No Disturbing the Master's Thoughts

Fang Qi stared intently at the ceiling.

Beside him, the silver-haired girl was still looking at him.

Her gaze was gentle yet fervent, roasting the side of his face like a small flame.

But right now, his mind was entirely filled with—

Lin Xiaoyou.

Lin Xiaoyou, Lin Xiaoyou, Lin Xiaoyou!

This name was now circled in red pen in his mind, flanked by several large question marks, jumping around frantically!

Could it be her?

Could it really be her?!

She was a key NPC, an NPC who, like An Lian, could retain memories of the previous playthrough in the form of dreams...

So she should be...

A very important character!

Now, it was confirmed that An Lian was more than just a maintenance specialist. She was the "older sister" who had known him since childhood, someone deeply connected to his "parents" and the "secret" of Liguang...

Then what about Lin Xiaoyou?

As an equally important key NPC, could her identity...

Just be an ordinary female colleague who liked him and constantly courted death?

The more he thought about it, the more something felt wrong!

He immediately began to recall.

Recalling from the very beginning!

When was it... that he first met Lin Xiaoyou?

...It was the second day!

He had reloaded his save several times, successfully survived the first day, and after finally seeing the sun on the second day, went to work at the company for the first time!

And then he met Lin Xiaoyou for the first time!

Back then... how did she act?

"Senior! Good morning!"

Her voice was crisp and lively, and that round little face suddenly popped over from the adjacent cubicle!

At the time, when he first saw her, he was actually quite terrified.

After all, this good teammate in the game was Liguang's "yandere switch"!

And then?

Then she started finding all sorts of ways to get close to him!

Making coffee for him, inviting him to a cake shop on the weekend, and then after he refused...

Very smoothly mentioning Liguang!

—"No matter how good she is, it's still just a programmed response!"

—"Real human emotions are what's precious! They are unique!"

At the time, he didn't think there was anything wrong, because Lin Xiaoyou's behavior was exactly the same as in the game!

In his eyes, she was supposed to be this kind of "good teammate" who constantly courted death and triggered the "yandere switch"!

But thinking about it carefully now...

It seemed like she had been courting death on purpose all along!

—"Senior, senior! Then try it quickly! Make her jealous and see what happens!"

—"Senior, how can you give your beautiful AI such cheap street stall goods..."

—"True, she's just an AI after all. With simulated emotions, she'll feel happy no matter what her master gives her. There's really no need to give her anything expensive."

—"Senior, could your Liguang have actually awakened self-awareness?"

—"I, I, Lin Xiaoyou, will not give up! You don't have feelings anyway, you're just simulated!"

—"Let me tell you, Liguang! Even if you try to stop me, I will definitely find an opportunity!"

Heh...!

Now, looking back with the subjective "colored glasses" of hindsight, he couldn't help but feel that the things she said...

Were so deliberate! Truly so deliberate!

It was as if she was intentionally provoking Liguang, intentionally trying to see how Liguang would react!

Hey, hey, hey, Xiaoyou, my good teammate...

Are you for real?!

You... you, you, you...

It couldn't be...?!

Fang Qi's breathing even became a bit uneven...!

Right, and there was the previous playthrough...!

In the cafe during the last playthrough, in order to completely reject her, he had said what he thought were very harsh words!

Asking her, "Why do you like me? Could it just be a momentary impulse?"

He felt at the time that her feelings were just an obsession bestowed by the program, just a "setting"!

And then... she cried.

The tears fell patter by patter. She looked completely bewildered and helpless, and when she was finally pulled away by her best friend, she even looked back at him and said with tears in her eyes...

"Liking someone is just a feeling, and feelings don't need a reason."

Her performance, whether viewed then or now... had absolutely no flaws!

Thinking back on her behavior at the time, he still felt a slight twinge of heartache.

So he had always felt before that although this girl was annoying, her feelings for him were definitely genuine!

But now...

His Adam's apple bobbed.

What if...

There was no such thing as a "setting" at all?

At least he couldn't see a trace of any so-called "setting" in anyone else—even the most ordinary NPCs!

They were all very real!

So...

What if Lin Xiaoyou wasn't a program-driven NPC at all?

What if... she was a living, breathing person?

Then all those things she showed in the cafe—

Teary-eyed, bewildered, helpless, hurt...

Were they her truest feelings?

Or perhaps...

She. Was. Faking. It?

Her mission?

Holy crap...!

This was a bit too terrifying, wasn't it!

A cute girl who greeted him with a smile every day and kept saying she liked him...

Was actually acting from start to finish?!

Every time she lunged over to hug him, was she thinking in her head—"Target's emotions are stable, can continue to approach"?

Every time she showed a wronged expression after being rejected, was she calculating in her heart—"Affection level dropped, need to adjust strategy"?

...A chill rose up once again.

This time it wasn't from a sniper or observer who might exist in the dark, but from...

The person beside him whose existence he took "for granted," someone he had never once doubted!

A cute girl who liked him?

...Help!

This was truly a bit horrifying!

He suddenly reached out and scooped the silver-haired girl, who had been lying beside him staring at him... right into his arms!

"Mmph!"

Liguang let out a soft gasp as her entire body was immediately pulled into his embrace.

Wifey, quick, come into my arms!

I need comfort! I need healing!

Only you can give me a sense of security now!

Wifey, save me, save me, save me!

Liguang lay on his chest, her long silver hair scattering all over him.

She propped up her upper body, her heterochromatic eyes shimmering faintly in the dim light as she looked at Fang Qi.

"Master?"

Fang Qi didn't speak, just tightened his arms and hugged her even closer!

A soft, warm sensation transmitted through the thin fabric, along with that familiar sweet strawberry scent.

His breathing finally began to steady a bit.

Liguang squirmed in his arms, her little head rubbing against his chin as she spoke in a soft voice:

"What's wrong, Master? Did you think of that nightmare again?"

Fang Qi simply buried his face in her silver hair... and took a deep breath.

Still that familiar sweet strawberry scent.

Smells so good. Intoxicating!

I feel safe!

As expected, wifey is the best...

"No, I just wanted to hug you," Fang Qi breathed into her ear.

Liguang's little ears flushed slightly from his breath, and she immediately acted like a little quail, lying obediently still on his chest.

Her two small hands were still gripping his collar, her fingertips twirling around his buttons in circles playfully.

"Oh..."

She replied obediently, then nudged upward, pressing her small face against the side of his neck, her warm breath puffing rhythmically against his skin.

It tickled.

With a soft, warm body in his arms, Fang Qi's body also slowly relaxed.

His mind finally cleared up a bit as well.

Then, he began to think more seriously once again.

From the perspective of the game, could Lin Xiaoyou... really be an overseer sent by the company?

At least in the game... apart from that damn "Eternal Love" ending, this had never been mentioned!

He had played for 312 hours and knew the storyline of every character like the back of his hand, let alone Lin Xiaoyou, a top-tier "good teammate"!

She should be the NPC he understood best, other than Liguang!

In the game, she had always been portrayed as a lively, cute, and trouble-seeking junior at the company.

In the early stages, she was just an ordinary pursuer, clinging to the player's side every day.

In the middle stages, after she learned that the player's customized Liguang was worth a fortune...

She began an even more aggressive pursuit and started courting death!

...A little money-grubber. This was one of her most prominent labels.

She would often say, "Senior, you're so rich," "Senior, why don't you provide for me," "Senior, is your house short of a maid? I can do it for free"...

It gave off a poor, desperate-to-marry-rich vibe.

This attribute made many players find her cute, but it also made some players feel she was materialistic, thinking she only pursued the player for money.

He had also previously felt that this was a slightly subtle setting, which was indeed somewhat unlikable in the eyes of some players.

It really lacked immersion! After all, few players were rich, just like himself before he crossed over...

But what if... this "money-grubber" attribute was just an "excuse" for her to approach him reasonably?

A poor girl likes a rich man, so she crazily pursues and gets close to him... Isn't that perfectly normal?

No one would be suspicious.

Everyone would think: Oh, she's just after money, how normal, and she's so cute, whatever, let's forgive her!

But what if... she wasn't after money at all?

Fang Qi's breath slightly hitched again.

He remembered something else!

In the playthrough before the last one, on his second day on the island...

He had just sent Lin Xiaoyou his location in the morning, and she chased after him in the afternoon!

How did she get there?

First taking a plane to the coastal city, and then from the coast... taking a helicopter to fly to the island!

Not by boat!

By he-li-cop-ter!

That island wasn't exactly remote. It could be reached by boat from the shore, it just took a few hours longer!

Thinking about it now... how could a little money-grubber be willing to spend on a helicopter to rush over?

The cost of that helicopter ride was several times more expensive than her plane ticket from home to the coastal city; it could probably equal a month of her salary!

Moreover...

She arrived even earlier than An Lian that day!

Thinking about it now, An Lian treated him as a younger brother. At that time, she suspected Liguang had awakened, and suspected he was covering up for Liguang and running off to a deserted island to "fool around" with Liguang. She must have been very anxious too!

As a result, Lin Xiaoyou arrived even earlier than her!

...Did she really need to be in such a hurry?

Just to see him a few hours earlier, she spent so much extra money?

Was it necessary? Did she love him that much?

Was this still that "money-grubber"?

Unless...

She didn't care about that bit of money at all.

Holding the obedient, warm, and soft body in his arms, Fang Qi narrowed his eyes and stared at the ceiling, his brain racing!

What if Lin Xiaoyou herself was very rich?

What if the forces behind her... wouldn't let her lack money?

What if her "money-grubber" persona was just a front from beginning to end... a front that allowed her to approach him with a justified reason?

Fang Qi's fingers unconsciously tightened, squeezing Liguang's slender waist.

The person in his arms squirmed again, looking up at him with her small face, rubbing her delicate nose against his chin.

"Master?"

Her voice was soft, her eyelashes fluttering.

Fang Qi looked down at her.

In the dim light, those heterochromatic eyes were sparkling.

He was just about to say something when—

"Ding!"

The phone's SMS notification tone rang again, exceptionally clear in the quiet bedroom.

On the flashing screen was prominently that familiar name:

[Lin Xiaoyou]

Fang Qi slowly took a deep breath.

Xiaoyou.

My good teammate...

Are you still my good teammate now?

Liguang's small head also poked out from his chest, her amber eyes glancing at the phone screen...

And then she glanced at him.

Her gaze was faint and resentful.

But she didn't say anything. She just buried her face back into the crook of his neck, and then...

Opened her small mouth and gently took a bite out of his neck!

It wasn't hard, just a little itchy, like a kitten grinding its teeth.

After biting, she even stuck out the tip of her tongue and licked the tooth mark...

Then her small head buried back into his embrace, and she let out a soft hmph, as if she were sulking.

Fang Qi: "......"

Hm.

Very well.

For some reason, the creepy, hair-raising emotion he had just felt...

Was now gone.

It was rapidly shifting into another kind of emotion!

No, crazy woman...

You're not behaving!

Stop teasing your master!

Stop interrupting your master's thoughts!