7: taste

However, in that bizarre inner world untouched by ordinary people, the situation was entirely different.

At the very moment that golden talisman crashed down and the malice of the cicada song collection was thoroughly suppressed and Sealed—

An invisible yet majestic wave of purification, with Lin Luo's apartment as its origin, surged outward like a massive boulder dropped into a still lake!

Certain ancient existences hidden deep in the shadows of the city raised their "eyelids" in startled suspicion from their slumber.

Outside the window, the city remained a kaleidoscope of neon lights and bustling traffic. To the surface world, this was just another calm and uneventful night.

However, in that inner world beyond the reach of ordinary people, the purification wave triggered by Lin Luo's suppression of the cicada song collection was as clear as a beacon fire lit in the dark of night.

Just as that purification wave spread, causing countless hidden malices and curiosities to stir, ready to trace back to the source—and potentially even affecting innocent residents of the surface world—

Buzz—!

At the end of a secluded street in the city stood Longevity Manor, a Japanese-style residence perpetually shrouded in mist that seemed "non-existent" to ordinary people. Suddenly, the powerful and ancient barrier of the "Law of Invisibility to Mortal Eyes" surrounding it emitted a low vibration!

In the next instant, in the eyes of those inner world existences possessing "Vision," this mysterious youkai apartment appeared so proactively and clearly for the first time!

The wooden residence with blue tiles and white walls seemed to emerge from the Void Realm. Its ancient gates swung open, and a majestic Spiritual Pressure—far more vast, boundless, and redolent of the passage of time than the spiritual power Lin Luo had previously erupted—soared into the sky like a silent proclamation.

This Spiritual Pressure wasn't targeted at any individual; instead, it formed an invisible barrier that precisely enveloped a vast area centered on Longevity Manor. It perfectly intercepted all the ghosts, demons, and supernatural entities that had been attracted by the purification wave and were restlessly lunging toward Lin Luo's direction!

Even more terrifyingly, the courtyard of Longevity Manor seemed to transform into an invisible, gaping maw, generating a powerful suction. Those intercepted monsters and spirits, regardless of their strength, were drawn and dragged in like moths to a flame. They vanished into the depths of that seemingly peaceful courtyard with startled cries and agonizing howls, instantly falling silent.

The entire process lasted only a dozen or so breaths.

When the last trace of sinister aura was swallowed whole, the vast Spiritual Pressure receded like a tide, and the ancient gates quietly closed. The mist shrouding the residence drifted back, and the silhouette of Longevity Manor blurred and faded at the boundary of reality and illusion, finally vanishing once more beneath the "Law of Invisibility to Mortal Eyes," as if it had never appeared.

The street returned to its seclusion, as if everything had been a mere hallucination.

But in the inner world, countless prying gazes were filled with shock and gravity.

Longevity Manor... this youkai apartment that had always remained neutral and almost never intervened in external affairs—why had it suddenly appeared today? Was this move to protect the new power that triggered the wave? Was it declaring that area as its territory? Or was it simply... cleaning house and maintaining some unknown order?

Lin Luo, naturally, was completely unaware of the ripples caused in the inner world last night and Longevity Manor's quiet intervention.

After suppressing the cicada song collection, he had been sitting in meditation to regulate his breathing, consolidating the power gained from those seven strange cycles while slowly recovering his exhausted mental energy. When he opened his eyes again, the sky outside was bright. The morning light filtered through the clean glass window, illuminating the bedroom with warmth. The cold and eerie atmosphere of the previous night had long been dispersed by the bright sunlight, as if that perilous battle had been nothing but a dream.

“Another new day...” He glanced at the time; it was his usual hour to wake up. After a quick cleanup and changing into a clean school uniform, he pushed open his door, ready to begin his day as an "ordinary" high school student.

However, coincidence (or perhaps fate) is always so wonderful.

Just as he pushed open his apartment door, he happened to see the door next door open as well. Kirisu Mafuyu was carrying a tightly tied black trash bag, cautiously peeking out. From her posture, it looked less like she was going to take out the trash and more like she was heading to a secret transaction.

Their eyes met, and the air instantly froze.

Kirisu Mafuyu clearly hadn't expected to run into Lin Luo so coincidentally. Her whole body seemed to hit the pause button, and the hand holding the trash bag froze in mid-air. She was still wearing a sharp professional suit today, her silver hair meticulous, and she tried to maintain her usual icy mask. But the moment her eyes met Lin Luo's, cracks visibly appeared on that mask.

Looking at her like this, Lin Luo found it a bit amusing, and even a little... cute? He stepped forward quickly and naturally reached out to take the "evidence" (or at least, the carrier of part of the evidence) from her hand.

“Good morning, Teacher Mafuyu.” He greeted her in his usual tone. Then, as if suddenly remembering something, the corners of his mouth curled into an imperceptible arc as he deliberately asked, “Teacher, did you sleep well last night?”

This seemingly ordinary greeting sounded like a thunderclap in Kirisu Mafuyu's ears!

Boom—!

Blood instantly rushed to her head. Her fair and delicate face turned bright red at a visible speed, with even her ears and neck stained crimson. Her mind uncontrollably flashed back to that intimate garment Lin Luo's fingertip had hooked last night, and her own mortified state at the time.

“I-I slept quite well!” She answered quickly, almost reflexively, her voice an octave higher than usual. Her eyes darted around frantically, simply not daring to look at Lin Luo. “V-very well! Slept right through until morning!”

However, her heavy dark circles (which were still detectable upon close inspection despite being carefully concealed with foundation) and the slight, imperceptible floatiness and raspiness in her voice completely betrayed her.

(Inner thought: How could I possibly sleep well! Just thinking about that... that... Aaaah! I couldn't sleep at all! That image kept replaying over and over!)

Lin Luo looked at her textbook-perfect "stubbornness" and her head that seemed about to emit steam. He understood everything and didn't poke further. He hefted the trash bag in his hand and said casually:

“That’s good. I’ll take the trash down for you while I’m at it.”

After saying that, he carried both bags of trash (including his own) and turned toward the elevator, leaving Kirisu Mafuyu frozen in place, her inner self undergoing a new round of storms.

Watching Lin Luo's composed back as he carried the two bags of trash toward the elevator, Kirisu Mafuyu struggled internally for a moment before finally plucking up the courage to chase after him in a few steps.

“Lin Luo,” she said, trying to make her voice sound as cool and professional as usual, “considering the time, you can take a ride in my car to school.”

She deliberately avoided words like "repayment," as if this were merely a rational suggestion based on efficiency.

Hearing this, Lin Luo raised an eyebrow in surprise, then smiled easily. “Then I’ll have to trouble you, Teacher.”

He was naturally happy to save himself a walk.

The two went downstairs together to her tidy white sedan. Lin Luo naturally pulled open the passenger door and sat inside, immediately looking down to check his phone.

Kirisu Mafuyu sat in the driver's seat and buckled her seatbelt, but her eyes couldn't help but glance at the composed youth beside her. Taking a deep breath as if having made a decision, she lightly tapped the steering wheel with her fingertip, making a soft "thump-thump" sound to get his attention.

Lin Luo looked up from his phone screen and glanced at her in confusion.

He saw his Class Advisor gripping the steering wheel tightly with both hands, staring straight ahead as if focused on checking the dashboard. Her fair profile was a bit tense, and her tone carried a deliberately maintained, almost stiff calmness:

“Regarding certain... non-essential situations from yesterday and this morning,” she chose extremely formal vocabulary, trying to define those awkward scenes as incidental events, “based on considerations for maintaining normal teaching order and teacher-student ethics, I expect you to uphold your usual prudent attitude.”

—Simply put: "Forget those embarrassing things and keep your mouth shut!"

After speaking, she continued to look straight ahead as if she had just read a school rule amendment. However, her slightly reddened earlobes and slightly accelerated speech rate betrayed her inner turmoil.

Seeing her awkward posture—clearly dying of shame yet still forcing herself to put on a cold, serious, and business-like front—the curve of Lin Luo's lips expanded uncontrollably. He didn't laugh out loud this time, but the mirth in his eyes was almost overflowing.

He responded in a similarly formal tone, “Understood, Teacher Kirisu. I will keep your teachings in mind; everything shall be centered on maintaining normal teaching order.”

The words sounded incredibly obedient, but paired with that knowing smile in his eyes, it sounded like he was merely playing along with her performance.

Kirisu Mafuyu was choked up by his "well-behaved" response. She felt like he had seen right through her, but she couldn't say anything more. She could only give a stiff "Mm" and immediately started the car.

(Inner thought: This guy... is definitely laughing at me!)

The car drove out smoothly, and a silence mixed with subtle awkwardness and a certain tacit understanding fell over the interior. Kirisu Mafuyu focused on driving, not looking at Lin Luo again the whole way, trying to rebuild that ice wall named "Teacher's Dignity." Only her still-pink ear tips announced the failure of this construction project.

The morning classes passed in mundanity. As lunch break approached, the atmosphere in the classroom gradually relaxed. Lin Luo and Kato Megumi, as usual, formed their own small pocket of quiet amidst the noisy background.

Kato Megumi organized her notes from the previous class with unhurried movements. She didn't look at Lin Luo immediately, but spoke in her characteristic, steady voice that betrayed little emotion, as if mentioning it in passing:

“The relationship between Mr. Lin Luo and Teacher Mafuyu seems to be very good.”

This sounded like an ordinary observation, but Lin Luo keenly captured a trace of extremely subtle, pointed inquiry within it. He turned his head to look at Kato Megumi. She was still looking down, her soft short hair partially obscuring her face, making it impossible to see her specific expression.

“Oh? Why do you say that?” Lin Luo asked back calmly, while his mind quickly calculated where he might have slipped up.

Kato Megumi only then slowly raised her head. Those clear, calm eyes looked at him, containing no suspicion, only a pure, matter-of-fact expression.

“Because, this morning, I saw you,” she said softly. “Two blocks away from the school, I saw Mr. Lin Luo getting out of Teacher Mafuyu's passenger seat.”

Her tone was still flat, yet it was like a pebble dropped into a still lake.

“The distance was a bit far, but,” she tilted her head slightly, a hint of her own surprise at the coincidence showing in her eyes, “I just happened to see it so unexpectedly.”