Xu Yingsnow’s nerves were slightly frayed. She’d just endured an hour of Nainai’s antics that afternoon, and now she had to clean up after the little succubus again.

Still, a trace of worry crept into her heart.

*That arrogant little succubus… could something have happened to her?*

Nainai’s cuteness was lethal. Even Xu Yingsnow—a woman who’d known her for years—sometimes caught herself fantasizing about pinning the pink-haired demon down for some fun. Let alone strangers.

Xu guessed Nainai was probably roaming outside because she was hungry. In all their years together, that lazy shut-in loli never left home unless she needed to hunt for sustenance.

“Ugh! Ugh! Ugh! Ugh! She tortures me even after work hours! Why won’t that useless loli let me breathe? I’m spanking her butt when I find her!”

Muttering fiercely, Xu Yingsnow yanked off her thin loungewear and scrambled into her Subhuman Administration OL uniform. She grabbed a small crossbody bag, stuffing it with gadgets—a flashlight, an alarm, anything useful.

“Xiao Xue.”

Just as Xu finished her frantic packing and reached for the still-connected phone call with Lady Nishang, the woman’s voice stopped her. Warm as sunlight, it carried unmistakable worry:

“I know you’re an Extraordinary Being with some self-defense skills… but promise me this: your safety always comes first.”

“I understand, Lady Nishang.”

Xu’s voice brimmed with confidence. Her dark eyes sparkled as she raised her right hand. Her sleeve slipped down, revealing a sleek black bracelet-like device. She clenched her fist—a trigger—and crackling azure lightning erupted around the band.

“Heh. This shock bracelet I bought online packs a serious punch.”

“Wait for my good news, Lady Nishang!”

She hung up, tossed the phone into her bag, and bolted out the door.

Her apartment complex stood on the western edge of Ashi City’s development zone—a forest of identical high-rises. Thirteenth floor. Normally, she’d take the elevator. But time was tight. Even if the elevator waited perfectly, it’d take ninety seconds to reach the underground garage.

Using her Corruption Essence? Forty seconds flat.

At the stairwell entrance, Xu didn’t hesitate. She leaped over the railing, heels be damned. Her feet never touched a single step—*whoosh*—landing two floors down. She pushed off again, repeating the motion, racing toward the garage…

*THUD—THUD—THUD—*

Her landings jolted the building, triggering every motion-sensor light in the stairwell, banishing the darkness. Thankfully, no residents used the emergency stairs.

Forty-five seconds after leaving her apartment, Xu’s fingers closed around the door handle of her white Mareun (Fourth-Class) sedan.

*VROOOOM—*

Door slam. Seatbelt click. Ignition roar. She peeled out of the garage like an arrow, speeding toward the deserted eastern district.

—*Nainai! I’m coming!*

-----------------------------------------------

Midnight neared. Even in peak summer, Ashi City’s night air carried a damp chill.

Nainai shivered in her skimpy outfit, exposed skin prickling in the alley’s cold. The low temperature acted like an ice pack, clearing the hunger-fog from her mind.

Leaning against a relatively clean wall, she undid her messy side ponytail, letting her pink hair spill down her back. She pressed a hand to her burning stomach and glared coldly at the young man.

*This is your “solution”? Calling the Subhuman Administration?*

*Ridiculous. How will they fix my hunger?*

Nainai sneered inwardly.

*Unless… a man shows up. But it’ll probably be Xu Yingsnow. This is her district.*

…

*BRRRRAAAAAP—*

Speak of the devil. That obnoxious engine roar? Only Xu’s junky local Mareun (Fourth-Class) sedan—with its meme-worthy horse-head emoji logo—could sound so aggressively broken.

*SCREECH—BANG. Tap-tap-tap-tap-tap…*

Tires screeched. A door slammed. Then came the sharp, echoing click of high heels on pavement.

“Nainai—!”

A flashlight beam sliced through the alley darkness, blindingly bright against Nainai’s face. She winced, turning away and shielding her eyes with a small hand. Tears pricked at the corners.

“Whew… thank goodness…”

Xu Yingsnow’s relieved sigh followed the light. Seeing that signature pink hair unharmed, she pressed a hand to her chest, tension melting away.

Then her expression hardened. Eyebrows snapped together. Her pretty face flushed with anger.

“Nainai! I called you *multiple times*! Why didn’t you answer?”

Xu strode over, voice sharp:

“And what happened here?”

“Phone? Left it at home.”

Nainai shrugged, eyes half-lidded and lazy.

“As for what happened…”

She shot a venomous glare at the silent young man.

“Ask him. It’s all his fault.”

Xu froze. Only then did she notice Nainai’s crimson-rimmed eyes—her heart-shaped, amethyst irises swimming with unshed tears. Faint tear tracks streaked the little succubus’s flushed cheeks.

*Nainai… was crying?*

Xu lifted her gaze to the young man.

White shirt. Black trousers. Sneakers. Neat, casual clothes—nothing like the thugs who haunted the eastern district.

Shoulder-length black hair, slightly wavy. Bangs shadowed his eyes, but his sharp nose, defined jawline, and lips hinted at good looks beneath an aloof demeanor.

Light tan skin—not a sun-worshipper, but no pale shut-in like Nainai either. Lean build, but muscles coiled under his clothes promised strength.

And…

*He’s probably an Extraordinary Being.*

Xu filed the observation away. Those tear stains on Nainai’s doll-like face made her blood simmer. *He made her cry.*

Her tone turned icy as she pulled out her badge, flashing it under the flashlight beam.

“Sir. You’re the one who reported this, correct? I’m Xu Yingsnow, field agent for Ashi City’s Subhuman Administration.”

Her professional mask slipped on, but her narrowed eyes betrayed her suspicion.

“Explain exactly what occurred here.”