Chapter 5: Stalking
The next day, Xia Yan just laid on the bed the entire morning and didn’t even have breakfast. He had exhausted himself a bit after continuously using the Vampiric Curse and the Spirit Storage Magic last night. After the Vampiric Curse ended, he felt as if he had run a marathon and ached all over.
Zhao Qiang and Qin Jian queried about his health, and after learning he was fine, both went out. The term had just begun, so there were a lot of things to do.
Xia Yan woke up after sleeping straight till lunch. The room’s temperature was around 38°C, yet there was no sweat on his body. This was the sign of a weak body.
“Using a curse without support from a Horcrux is too exhausting. My magic power is too low right now and can’t bear the load. I have to create a proper Horcrux as soon as possible!” Xia Yan wore his clothes and took out two seal stones and a carving knife from the cupboard. He then looked for a nonwoven pouch to carry them. After that, he picked up the cell phone from the desk, put his wallet into the back pocket of his denim shorts, and locked the dorm room’s door before making his way down.
It was the warmest moment of the day right now. After walking for a moment, Xia Yan felt his body warm up and couldn’t help but exclaim internally that he had not lucked out this time. He has saved those beauties yet got nothing in return.
[Well, who asked me to be a goody-shoes! Frankly, all those girls had stunning figures. Especially An Xiaoru…]
As he recalled An Xiaoru’s bare upper body and the thong, Xia Yan felt that he might have lucked out after all…
He reached the dining hall while letting his imaginations run loose and ordered a bowl of hot and sour noodles using his food card. He asked the master to add in two extra spoonfuls of chili oil. Xia Yan sat down and had a few mouthfuls of the hardcore, bright-red hot and sour soup. He felt much more comfortable after some sweat finally appeared on his forehead.
He didn’t pay much attention when someone sat behind him and busied himself with eating the food, but when he caught the whiff of a few fragrances that seemed like shampoo mixed with pheromones, he guessed they were girls.
“Anna, just what did you see last night?” A tiny voice arrived from behind him. Xia Yan’s hand stopped its movements. He pricked up his ears to listen carefully and surmised that it was the common-faced girl’s voice.
[Ah, my fated enemy… No wait, the adage was ‘What a fateful meeting!’]
“Yeah, Sister Anna, was what I saw last night real? It ought to be a dream, right?” This was Xiaoyu’s adorable voice.
“Xiaoyu, you dolt! Are you telling me we all had the dream?” An Xiaoru chided her.
Xia Yan couldn’t help recalling that pleasant scene again when he heard An Xiaoru’s voice.
“You sure you want to hear it?” Anna asked softly.
“Yeah!” The trio replied in chorus.
“Oh no, it looks like I forgot to bring my food card!” Anna exclaimed suddenly.
“Swipe my card!” An Xiaoru gritted her teeth.
“I’ll go get food!” Xiaoyu stated.
“Let me help you!” The common-faced girl added.
“I must trouble you then!” Anna laughed proudly, then said, “Xiaoyu, remember to buy a few good dishes. Right! Get me a chilled cake and cola too!”
“You damn foodie!” An Xiaoru stated bitterly.
A few moments later, Xiaoyu and the common-faced girl brought back all the dishes after making two trips.
“Can you say it now?” An Xiaoru stated fiercely.
“Let me tell you then!” Anna sipped a big mouthful of cola to moisten her throat, then began speaking in a low voice. “Last night, Xiaoru got possessed by the spirit we invited through Ouija divination!”
The girls turned silent. After a moment, An Xiaoru feigned coolness and stated, “Who would believe that! Don’t make things up, Anna!”
“Xiaoru, Sister Anna may be… telling the truth!” Xiaoyu stated in a terrified voice, “I remember what I saw before fainting. It was your eyes. I recall that… your eyes were fully black with no hints of the whites!”
“Yeah! I also remember that!” The common-faced girl stated excitedly, “I planned to run, but Xiaoru, you grabbed my foot. Your hand felt ice-cold, and I fainted after that. When I woke up this morning, I found a faint black hand mark around my ankle. It disappeared under the sunlight just a while ago and scared me!”
“No way! You must have ganged up to trick me!” An Xiaoru was dumbstruck; her voice lacked confidence.
“You really remember nothing?” Anna asked doubtfully.
“Actually… I remember a few tad bits!” An Xiaoru hesitated a bit then said sullenly, “I thought it was a dream, it might have really happened now that you’ve confirmed it!”
“It really did!” The trio answered altogether.
“What do you remember?” Anna asked.
“I only recall that it felt like something had left my body, and after that, I lost all strength in my body and fell to the floor in a daze. Someone hugged me then and copped a feel of my butt a few times… And then… I heard a man speak with Anna before I fell asleep!”
“Cough-Cough!” The hot and sour soup in Xia Yan’s mouth spurted out from his nostrils and made him cough. After taking away the Undead elements last night, he believed An Xiaoru had fainted. He didn’t expect that she had just lost her strength and was in a semi-conscious state yet still somehow recalled that someone had copped a feel of her butt.
“A man?” Xiaoyu and the common-faced girl keyed in on this word and felt their gossip cells burn with fervor. Xiaoyu asked her, “Sister Anna, was a man really in our dorm room?”
“Yeah, Anna, tell us. You were the only one who didn’t faint!” An Xiaoru stated.
“It wasn’t a man!” Anna sipped the cola gain and hit the table, “It was an expert!”
“An expert?” The trio questioned.
“Yeah. Xiaoyu and Xiaoli had fainted while the spirit had possessed Xiaoru. Just as she was about to hurt me, a masked man came in from the balcony. He chanted an incantation and used a magic artifact to take away the spirit possessing Xiaoru’s body. He even told me you’ll be fine after a night of good sleep. He then jumped down from the balcony and left!”
“Did that really happen? Why does it sound like you’re making up a story?” An Xiaoru questioned.
“I use my chastity to vow it’s true!” Anna stated.
“Fine. I’ll believe you!” An Xiaoru replied.
“Jumped down from the balcony?” Xiaoyu cried out, “It’s a real expert with skills!”
“Did this expert announce his name?” An Xiaoru asked.
“Nope, but I remember his voice, and I also noted his magic artifact. If I run into him, I’ll know it is him for sure!!” Anna stated proudly.
Xia Yan promptly received the skull pendant inside his T-shirt and decided to not hang it out.
“Right! According to my speculation, this expert might be a virgin!” Anna lowered her voice again and stated mysteriously.
“Really? Sister Anna, how do you know that?” Xiaoyu’s gossip cells were surpassing their activity levels in succession from the surprises.
Xia Yan had almost gone spartan while eavesdropping. [You even know such private information? Sister Anna, you’re the real expert here, okay?!]
“Because I saw a tent prop up in his shorts when he copped a feel of Xiaoru’s butt, hehe! Also, after getting found out by me, he panicked and almost fell for my trick to get his name. Only a virgin fresher is so pure!” Anna analyzed.
Xia Yan immersed himself in gobbling up the noodles. [This is too humiliating! Don’t tell me my behavior was that obvious yesterday?]
“Stop saying nonsense, you meanie!” An Xiaoru was at her limits, “I lost out too much last night… He saw me naked and copped a feel of my butt and even had a reaction to it… Wait, since he reacted, it validates my attractiveness… Argh, just what kind of nonsense am I saying?!”
“You’re right, Sister Xiaoru!” Xiaoyu realized suddenly, “Sister Anna must have guessed it right. That expert must have loved you in secret, or else why would he show up so opportunely to save you? I’m guessing that he was stalking you and climbed up onto the balcony to peek at you. He saw you get possessed by the spirit and played the hero. If it weren’t for Sister Anna staying awake, who knows whether he would have done you on the spot!”
“Xiaoyu, where did you learn the word ‘stalking’ from? And even saying something like ‘done you on the spot…’ You have become a pervert!” An Xiaoru’s mind had thoroughly collapsed now. She reached out to pinch Xiaoyu’s baby-cheeks, while the latter avoided the former with all her might.
The episode ended in such a gorgeous manner.
Xia Yan finished eating his hot and sour noodles in silence and left the dining hall with a defeated heart. He looked up at the sky and sighed. [Really, the city folks are sophisticated. Even a cute girl like her knows what stalking is… Wait for a second, why do I know what stalking is?]
After leaving the school, Xia Yan rode a bus towards Songxian Bridge. It was a crowded bus, so he had to stand while grabbing the strap handle. He rested his head on his arm while his thoughts were still a mess. It was inevitable as the stimulation he had received at the dining hall just now was too much for him, and he still needed some time to recover.
The bus halted at two stations, and plenty of people embarked and alighted, overcrowding the bus. Xia Yan suddenly felt someone try to snitch his wallet. He reflexively caught that person’s hand from the back and shouted, “Thief!”
No one stood up bravely, while the impenetrable crowd had miraculously opened a circle with Xia Yan and the punk in the middle.
“What are you doing? Who are you calling a thief? Let me go!” The punk felt agitated when he got caught. But after seeing the crowd move away like they were avoiding the plague, he immediately felt relieved and berated Xia Yan instead.
“Kid, why are you grabbing my brother? Do you want to die?” A fatty donned in a tank top came out of the crowd. He had a disproportionate butterfly tattoo on his upper arm. It was a real wonder why a man like him had gotten such a thing tattooed.
Thieves always operated together with an accomplice. The two of them had appeared now.
If an ordinary university student had run into such a situation, they would have compromised and let go in fear. A wise man knew better than to fight when the odds were against him. But Xia Yan wasn’t an ordinary student. Also, he felt downhearted after the episode with Anna’s group and worried that he wouldn’t be able to vent it out. There was no chance he would get scared by these thieving punks.
“Driver, take us to the police station!” Xia Yan yelled towards the front of the bus.
The driver didn’t reply and stopped the bus at the curb.