"Holy cow, little bro Fu, lemme tell you—"

"That Nainai you mentioned? Total legend around here!"

"Seriously! She once broke three rookies in three months flat. Made quite the name for herself, y’know?"

"So far, only little Xu Yingsnow’s lasted longer with her. Seriously respect that girl."

"Just *reading* Nainai’s case files gave me headaches... If Lady Nishang ever asked me to serve her? I’d rather drown in a shit pit!"

"Honestly? Nishang’s way too kind not to blacklist her already."

"Anyway—"

...

Fusiming sucked in a sharp breath as the nonstop chatter droned in his ear. His usually stern, handsome face twisted into a pained grimace.

—This Ji Mengzhu lady was an absolute chatterbox.

He was chasing last night’s goal: digging into Nainai’s background.

Technically, snooping on a Subhuman’s records without clearance broke protocol. So he’d pulled a few *private* strings—skipping the front desk entirely.

Which brought him to Ji Mengzhu.

**File:**

Ji Mengzhu. Female. 35. Crow-type Subhuman.

True to her lineage, she had ankle-length hair shifting from deep crimson at the roots to molten gold at the tips—like sunset spilled across silk. From mid-bicep to fingertips, her arms were sheathed in vibrant red-and-gold feathers. Normally tucked close, those wings spanned over four meters when fully spread. Real flight feathers, not decoration. Her hands sat near the wing joints, fingers reduced to thumb, index, ring, and a shrunken pinky. Below mid-thigh, her legs tapered into powerful avian talons—gripping enough to pierce concrete, but useless for human shoes.

None of that mattered much.

Ji Mengzhu was a Strong Rank Extraordinary Being. First graduating class of the Federal Central Comprehensive University’s cultivation program. Now Head Archivist at Ashi City’s Subhuman Administration.

But this keeper of every legal Subhuman’s secrets? A notorious blabbermouth.

Nicknamed: "The Secret Dump Truck."

Only her freakish long-term memory, razor-sharp competence (and shameless, leech-like persistence) kept Lady Nishang from firing her on the spot.

Scavenger Squad cases often involved Subhumans—victims or suspects. So the Squad’s Discipline Division and the Archives worked closely.

Fusiming was Wanghong’s adopted son. Wanghong led Ashi City’s Scavenger Discipline Division.

That connection got Fusiming Ji Mengzhu’s number.

Now, guilt gnawing at him for bending rules, he’d hoped to pry *a few* useful details from her...

He hadn’t expected a data tsunami.

Gender? Address? Social background? Case files? Child’s play.

Ji Mengzhu even spilled Nainai’s measurements.

Silence thickened as Fusiming’s mind replayed the Little Succubus’s petite, heart-stoppingly delicate frame. Unconsciously, he mapped those numbers onto her curves.

*My god. Could a 135cm loli even have proportions like that?*

"Hello? Little bro Fu? Little bro Fu? You there?"

"Still listening? Still listening?"

"Talk! Say something!"

The shriek jolted Fusiming back, blasting his eardrums.

"...I’m here."

Her voice didn’t lower. It surged higher. He yanked the phone away from his ear.

"Hey now! Zoning out mid-convo’s rude!"

"Eh, whatever! Point is—" Her tone dropped to a conspiratorial whisper. "The Subhuman Administration’s got a *super* classified detail about Nainai. Buried deep in our archives."

"That Nainai’s actually—"

—*A man?! And 48 years old?!*

Fusiming choked. Nearly hurled the phone.

The pink, petite silhouette flashed in his mind.

Her honeyed, syrupy voice. Her unearthly beauty. That tiny body radiating forbidden allure. Every bewitching gesture...

*This was a dude?*

No way. That Little Succubus out-feminined most girls he knew.

But Ji Mengzhu never lied. Her gossip was always *accurate* gossip.

So... it was probably true.

Age didn’t shock him. He knew two ageless cases already.

Le Zhi from Interrogation—40 years old, but frozen at 15 after "dying" 25 years ago. 146cm tall. Looked like a cheerful (landmine-tier) middle-schooler.

And Ji Mengzhu herself. Her crow-type Subhuman body stayed petite for flight. Without those wingspan feathers? She looked barely older than Nainai.

Ageless girls weren’t the issue.

"*Heh-heh~* Shocked, little bro? Sister nearly fainted seeing that file too!" Her voice turned grave. "Gender-flips from Corruption Essence during the Erosion Disaster? Unheard of. Ashi City’s archives hold only *one* such case."

"Lady Nishang locked it tight to protect Nainai’s peace. Ordered me to bury it deep—keep it from outsiders..."

Her chatter died mid-sentence. A sharp gasp.

"...Oops. Slip of the tongue." Her voice shrank to a cringe-filled whimper. "Little bro... promise you won’t tell Nishang? Or anyone? She’ll strip me naked, tie me up, and spank me underwater..."

Fusiming: "...".

*The Dump Truck strikes again.*

"...I promise."

He needed her. No point punishing her slip.

"*Sob!* Little bro’s the best! Sister loves you! Hotpot’s on me next time~"

"Anything else on Nainai?" Fusiming pressed quietly.

"Hmm... there *is* something. But *that incident*? Top-tier classified. Absolutely untouchable." Her tone hardened. "My big mouth spills everything... but *this*? Even I can’t risk it."

A pause. Then, carefully:

"Sorry to bring up sore spots, little bro... but this’ll help you grasp it. Nainai’s file? Ranked just below Ultra-Secret Archives. One tier beneath your parents’—Fusizhi and Qilu’s—*cause of death*. My clearance can’t touch it."

*What?*

Fusiming’s pupils contracted.

*One tier beneath my father’s...*

That Little Succubus carried secrets as heavy as his own. Federal-level secrets.

How could a harmless, non-Extraordinary Subhuman be tangled in that?

He couldn’t fathom it.

Sensing his silence, Ji Mengzhu panicked. She’d already leaked punishable intel.

"Anyway—gotta go! Thanks for chatting, little bro! Archives is dead today... nobody answers my calls..."

"*Please* keep this secret! My life depends on it!"

"Bye! Talk later!"

*Beep... beep...*

The dial tone cut off before he could reply.

Fusiming stayed frozen, phone still pressed to his ear.

His mind reeled.

First: *Nainai was once a man.*

After a long moment...

"...Hah."

He exhaled slowly, pocketing his phone. Opened his browser.

The search bar glowed, autocomplete suggestions hovering below:

—*Why do I suddenly care so much about someone?*

—*Why can’t I forget him/her?*

—*Why do I need to know everything about a person?*

Beneath his slightly swaying, slender bangs, the young man’s peculiar silver eyes revealed deep exhaustion.

His fingers trembled as he silently and slowly typed into the search bar…

“What should I do if I suddenly find out the person I care about is trans?”

The sun had completed its daily journey, now lingering reluctantly on the western clouds.

The warm glow of the beautiful sunset streamed through the window, bathing his shoulders and casting a soft, caramel-like golden sheen on his slightly wavy black hair.

Silently scrolling through answers that might be reliable or utterly abstract, the gloomy aura around him seemed to deepen, making him even more depressed and withdrawn…