It was late at night, and Hua Rong was ready to sleep, but the thought of him outside, alone in the cold, made her uneasy.
She sighed, turning over in bed, but it didn't help. Annoyed at herself, she got up and glanced out the window. Xu Lingwei was lying on the wooden bed outside, his eyes fixed on the glowing screen of his phone, completely unfazed. Did he not feel the cold? The temperature dropped significantly at midnight—he was bound to freeze later.
Frustrated, she grabbed a couple of blankets and stepped outside. The night air was crisp, sending a shiver down her spine. Without a word, she tossed the blankets over him.
"Wrap yourself in it when you start feeling cold," she muttered.
Xu Lingwei caught the blankets and looked up at her with a smirk. "Hey, you're seriously leaving me out here all alone?"
"Yes, I am," she replied without hesitation, already turning on her heel.
"That's heartless, Hua Rong!" he called out, but she ignored him, closing the door behind her.
she climbed back into bed, pulling her blanket over her, but sleep wouldn't come. The image of him lying outside in the open, exposed to the cold, kept creeping into her mind. Ugh, why do I even care?
After tossing and turning for a while, she sighed in defeat and got up again. Grabbing another blanket, she dragged a chair outside and placed it at a safe distance from his bed.
Xu Lingwei lifted his head, watching her with mild amusement. "What are you doing now?"
she sat down, wrapping myself in the blanket. "You're an idiot," she muttered.
He chuckled. "If I'm an idiot, then what does that make you for sitting out here with me?"
she shot him a glare. "Just sleep. I'll stay here and keep watch until you do."
He smirked, shifting to his side. "You know, you could make this easier by just letting me in."
"No," she said flatly. "There's only one bed inside."
His smirk deepened. "So? We could—"
"Finish that sentence, and I'll throw you off this hill," she warned.
He laughed under his breath but didn't push further. She exhaled, pulling my blanket tighter around her.
The night stretched on in silence, the cold air wrapping around them. She tried to convince herself that she was doing this out of basic human decency—but deep down, she knew it was something else.
And that realization was far more dangerous than the cold.
.....
Hua Rong's eyes fluttered open slowly, her body still heavy with sleep. But as she turned her head, something felt…off.
She bolted upright, her heart hammering in her chest.
The bed.
She was back in her bed.
Panic surged through her as she jumped up and ran toward the door, yanking it open. Her breath hitched as her gaze swept over the empty wooden bed outside. He was gone.
Her eyes darted around the quiet surroundings, searching for any sign of him, but there was none. The cold morning air bit at her skin, amplifying the strange emptiness that settled in her chest.
Then, something caught her eye—a small piece of paper pinned beneath a stone.
She hesitated before bending down and picking it up.
"Thanks for letting me stay!"
That was all it said.
For some reason, the simple note stung more than she expected. Her fingers clenched around the paper, crumpling it tightly in her grasp before she exhaled and forced herself to let it go.
Shaking off the feeling, she stepped back inside and walked over to her desk. She had work to do.
Pulling out a blank sheet of paper, she began drafting her application for the archery competition. But her thoughts refused to stay focused.
The test results would be out in two weeks.
Her fingers hovered over the page as the thought weighed on her.
What if she didn't ace the exam?
What if—
No.
She shook her head, pushing the negativity aside. Overthinking wouldn't help her now.
Setting her focus back on the task at hand, she picked up her pen and began writing.
.....
The dimly lit control room hummed with the quiet whir of machines, the glow of multiple screens casting flickering light on the walls. Rows of monitors displayed live footage from every corner of Blackthorn Academy—hallways, classrooms, training grounds, even the secluded library corners. It was their job to watch, analyze, and gather intel.
Wang Wuxi leaned forward, her sharp eyes scanning the screens, fingers rapidly tapping across the keyboard. Then, she suddenly stopped.
Her expression darkened.
"One of our cameras is gone," she announced, her voice carrying a sharp edge of concern.
Seated beside her, Li Wei, who had been lazily spinning in his chair, straightened up slightly. "Did the academy's management get to it?" he asked, though his tone remained indifferent.
Wang Wuxi shook her head. "I don't think so. If the administration had found it, they would've removed all of them at once."
Before she could say more, Gao Xuan, the most restless of the group, rushed toward her. His hands gripped the edge of the desk, eyes wide. "What if they detected us?!" he blurted out, his usual hyper energy now laced with panic.
Wang Wuxi scoffed. "No way. Those cameras were made by me. No one—not even the top security teams—can detect them," she said with unwavering confidence, flicking through different camera feeds to check for more anomalies.
Gao Xuan still looked unconvinced, but before he could argue, Li Wei let out an exaggerated sigh. He leaned back in his chair, spinning it once more. "So how much longer do we have to do this?" he asked, the boredom in his voice unmistakable.
"Until we get the order to stop," Wang Wuxi replied, unfazed.
"We've been at this for a month," Gao Xuan muttered, running a hand through his hair.
"And all we've gathered is the bare minimum," Li Wei added, crossing his arms. "Seriously, these kids… Even though they're in a so-called 'home-school' setting, they still hide their true nature. Makes it a pain to figure out their weaknesses."
Wang Wuxi clicked her tongue, zooming in on another camera angle. "According to the contract, we have to keep this up for another four months," she stated, her fingers resuming their rapid movements on the keyboard.
Four more months of watching. Four more months of waiting.