Looks like we won't be able to leave tonight.

Looking at the information in front of him, Su Yang thought to himself: ‘Damn, why does this profile feel so familiar?’

‘34 years old, divorced, and the number of battles is only one? Interesting. And this "strong"... system, you better explain clearly...’

Just as he was thinking, Yoshida Yoshie walked over carrying a long bath towel.

“Sir, here you go. You should dry yourself off quickly so you don’t catch a cold.”

“Okay, thanks.”

Su Yang nodded with a smile, took the towel, and first wiped his wet hair and arms.

Since he was still in his clothes, it wasn’t very convenient to dry his body properly.

He looked at Yoshida Yoshie and asked, “Excuse me, miss, but what should I call you?”

“Oh, right. I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Yoshida Yoshie. And you, sir?”

“I’m Su Yang.”

“Alright then, I’ll call you Su-san. But you don’t look that old, do you?”

Su Yang nodded and smiled. “I’m 25.”

“Then I’m much older than you. I’ll be 35 soon.”

“Really? I thought you were only in your early twenties!”

Hearing this, Yoshida Yoshie blushed slightly and lowered her head. “No, not at all. I’ll be 35 soon—I’m not young anymore.”

“But you really do look very young. You don’t seem like someone in their thirties at all.” As Su Yang spoke, he walked over to the table where the candles were placed.

His wet clothes and pants were sticking to him uncomfortably, and he wanted to take them off to dry himself properly, but she kept staring at him.

“Uh... well, sis, could you maybe turn around for a second?”

“Huh?” Yoshie blinked in confusion, not understanding what he meant.

Su Yang pointed at his clothes and said, “I’m soaking wet all over. I probably need to take these off and dry myself—it’s pretty uncomfortable otherwise.”

“Oh, oh! Sumimasen. I’ll give you some privacy.” Yoshie immediately turned and walked away.

Once she was gone, Su Yang quickly peeled off his clothes and pants in one go, then used the bath towel to dry himself from head to toe before wrapping it around his waist.

“Ahh, finally feeling dry. Damn.”

Looking at the wet clothes and pants on the floor, he bent down to pick them up, grabbed some tissues from the table, wiped the floor dry, and then called out, “Hey, Yoshie-san! All good!”

Hearing his voice, Yoshie came back from somewhere.

But as she got closer, she was stunned. Su Yang was standing right next to the small table.

The dark space was barely lit by the dim, yellowish candlelight, but that made Su Yang’s perfectly built upper body look even more sculpted with shadows.

The contrast made it more striking than under normal lighting.

His abs, chest muscles, arm muscles, his standard inverted triangle physique, and his model-like face—all of it captivated Yoshie, a divorcee who had been alone for years.

Her eyes were fixed on him without moving.

Su Yang tilted his head and waved at her. “Yoshie-san? What’s wrong?”

“Yoshie-san?”

“Huh?” After he called her twice, Yoshie finally snapped back to reality.

Her face felt hot, and she lowered her head slightly. “S-sorry, Su-san. I... I...”

Before she could finish, Su Yang stepped forward and said with a smile, “There’s nothing to be sorry about. I was actually going to ask you where your bathroom is. I need to wash these clothes.”

Hearing this, Yoshie looked up at the clothes and pants in his hand. “Su-san, give them to me. I’ll wash them for you.”

“What? No, no, no. Forget it. We just met—I’d be too embarrassed to have you wash my clothes. I’ll do it myself.”

“It’s fine, Su-san. Let me handle it. It’s no trouble for me.” Yoshie reached out, took the wet clothes and pants from him, and gave a gentle smile. “Please sit down for a bit, Su-san. I’ll be right back.”

“Uh... well, what about my under...”

Yoshie smiled warmly. “Don’t worry about it. Just sit.”

“Uh... okay then. Thanks.”

“You’re welcome.” With that, Yoshie turned on her phone’s flashlight and headed toward the bathroom.

‘Damn, this woman is really something. She’s genuinely sweet. I kinda feel bad now,’ Su Yang thought as he sat down.

In Japanese homes, many living rooms have tatami mats, making it easy to sit directly on the floor.

Once seated, Su Yang pulled out his phone. He wanted to chat with the group again, but now his phone had completely lost signal.

Unable to use his phone, he just sat there, staring out the window.

Outside, the wind was still raging violently, howling loudly, and the rain showed no signs of letting up.

It looked like it wouldn’t stop anytime soon.

‘Sigh. Looks like I’m not going anywhere tonight.’

……

On the other side, after learning that Su Yang was temporarily safe, Pan Ning and the others also felt a bit relieved.

They chatted with the two girls who had taken them in, eventually learning that the girls were sisters—their parents were stuck at work and couldn’t get home.

With the sisters’ help, everyone changed into dry clothes.

Meng Wenzhou and Liu Bo wore the sisters’ father’s clothes, while the women wore the sisters’ own clothes.

Everyone was now sitting together in the living room.

Because a nearby utility pole had been battered badly by the typhoon, everyone’s phones had no signal, so they could only sit around, drinking hot tea and chatting.

The two sisters were kind-hearted and quite pretty.

The older sister was 22—the one who had first opened the door for Su Yang. Both sisters were named Kawashima: the older was Kawashima Mika, and the younger, Kawashima Mika (note: likely a typo in original; younger sister is Kawashima Misa at 19). Without their help, everyone might have been in danger tonight, especially since the wind had suddenly grown so strong that even Su Yang—who weighed 160 pounds—could be blown away, let alone the women, who only weighed around 100 pounds.

The two vans they had been riding in were also nowhere to be seen, likely swept away by the wind.

“Ladies, we are so grateful to you both!” Liu Bo held a cup of hot tea and smiled at the two girls.

But they didn’t understand what he said, and their faces showed awkwardness.

Zhuang Mengli immediately smiled and explained in English, “He said we’re very thankful to you both for helping us. Without you, we’d still be out there in the storm.”

“Oh, oh, it’s nothing.” The older sister, Kawashima Mika, smiled sweetly.

“Your friend should be fine now, right?” Mika asked.

“He’ll be okay. Don’t worry,” Zhuang Mengli said casually.

But she wasn’t lying—everyone knew how extraordinary Su Yang was. Still, worry was unavoidable. Except for Zhuang Mengli, Liu Bo, Meng Wenzhou, and the four Japanese girls, the others were genuinely concerned about his safety.

Pan Ning, in particular, despite knowing Su Yang’s abilities best, wore a face full of worry.

Meng Wenzhou patted her shoulder and said, “Pan, don’t worry. You know Old Su better than anyone. A little wind like this won’t hurt him. Besides, he called to say he’s safe just now. Relax.”

Pan Ning took a sip of the hot tea and nodded faintly. Lu Yun, sitting beside her, also said, “Su Yang will be fine. He must have found shelter at another house by now.”

“Yeah, I just hope this typhoon passes soon.”

......

On the other side, Su Yang sat blankly at the table, staring at the flickering flame in front of him, lost in thought.

It had been a long time since he’d sat quietly like this, doing nothing.

A few minutes later, Yoshida Yoshie walked over to him, drying her hands.

Su Yang looked up. “Thanks, Yoshie-san.”

“You’re welcome. I’ve hung your clothes out to dry. Oh, and let me get you a glass of water.”

“Sure.”

Yoshie quickly poured a glass of warm water and sat down across from Su Yang.

Su Yang took a sip of water, then looked at her delicate face. “Yoshie-san, let’s chat. Otherwise, sitting here in silence is a bit boring.”

“Sounds good.” Yoshie smiled gently. She didn’t seem at all worried that Su Yang might try anything.

“Yoshie-san, what do you do for work?” Su Yang asked.

“I’m a middle school teacher.”

“Oh, that’s a great profession. I’ve heard teachers in Japan earn pretty good salaries, right?”

Yoshie brushed her hair aside and smiled. “Not really. It’s neither high nor low—just enough to get by. What about you, Su-san?”

“I own a restaurant.”

“Oh? So you’re a boss?”

“Sort of.”

“That’s impressive. By the way, Su-san, did you and your friends come from Tokyo?”

“Yeah, we arrived in Tokyo yesterday. The weather was fine at first, and the tour guide told us the typhoon wouldn’t hit for at least another three days. Who knew it would come tonight, and a super typhoon at that?”

“We get a lot of typhoons here every year, big and small. But it’s rare for one to make landfall several days early like this. I have no idea what the weather bureau was thinking this time.”

“Anyway, forget that. So, Yoshie-san, do you usually live alone?”

Yoshie rested her cheek on her hand and nodded. “Mm-hmm. I... I’m divorced, so I live by myself now.”

......