Lianna, sleeping in the central small room, kept fiddling with the alarm clock shaped like a rabbit head.

Its eyes were made from the brightest red coral selected, while the polished coral patterns on its body below resembled sea waves and rolling air currents.

“Such a well-behaved little thing~. “

She twisted the alarm clock’s head, and it clicked and whirred as it rotated to the other side, revealing the smooth back of its golden cranium—so polished that her own reflection was faintly visible.

“Mmm, I’ll set it for seven. ” Having set the alarm and placed it on the pillow, Liana, clad in her nightgown, closed her eyes. The lingering medicinal scent of the room filled her nose, but her mind was flooded with images of “Yang Buchen ” by the campfire, frost coalescing in his hand as a few snowflakes drifted through the air.

“So beautiful… ” she murmured. She couldn’t help but fantasize: standing beside the “Hero, ” his raised hand summoning a cascade of pure white, dancing snowflakes all around them.

How romantic that would be…

She opened her eyes and touched her slightly flushed cheek. Did all Folkfolk possess such strange abilities?

She found herself wondering again: Why, in the same world, were people who looked so alike so vastly different?

Turning her head, her dark-adapted eyes met the metal creation with its drooping rabbit ears on either side, its red eyes fixed upon her. Reaching out to touch it, she heard, through the window, faint groans of pain drifting from afar.

Amidst the night, the patients’ voices hummed like insects—so subtle they were hard to distinguish, yet utterly impossible to ignore.

“These patients… Demon Qi is… “

She shuddered at the thought. Were these people, suffering so terribly, turning to Demon Qi in hopes of easing their agony?

The legend that Demon Qi had destroyed the entire town—could it truly be real?

She also remembered how, since she was a child, her father had made her study those texts over and over, understanding content that only a few could grasp. He said this was a secret that must absolutely never be divulged, knowledge that could only rot away in one’s own belly.

Were those things true as well?

If all of this was real, then what was this world?

She suddenly felt an intense loneliness, a loneliness as if she had been abandoned by the entire world.

……

Yang Zicang was in the room, tidying his hat.

Suddenly, the door was knocked on and then hurriedly pushed open. Ebiser, flustered, said, “I’m sorry, Hero. “

“What’s wrong? ” Yang Zicang stood up.

“My daughter has a bit of a fever. I asked the innkeeper, and it might be due to the water and climate not agreeing with her. Though it sounds hard to believe, the water and soil here can indeed cause symptoms in newcomers. I need to take her to see a doctor. So please, I beg you, keep a close watch on our luggage. “

“Watch the luggage? ” Yang Zicang was a bit puzzled. He had thought Ebiser was going to ask him to accompany them to find a doctor.

“There’s no time to explain in detail for now, but there are very important things in the luggage. If they’re lost, our hope of crossing the continent to board the ship will be extinguished. Please, I’m counting on you! “

After giving a solemn bow, he turned and ran towards the hallway, where from the other side of the corridor came the voice of the butler, Enso, calling out.

Yang Zicang went to the door and saw the old man hurrying downstairs, holding the somewhat dazed maiden in his arms. He Yishu also emerged from a room on the opposite side of the corridor; this was part of the staggered check-in plan they had devised—one taking the front, the other the rear.

“Do you need me to come along?“

“You… well, alright, thank you.” Ebiser turned his head. “Hero, please, I beg you, keep an eye on the room for me. I’ll raise your compensation.“

He Yishu glanced at Yang Zicang, nodded, and then followed, running downstairs.

In the blink of an eye, only Yang Zicang remained in the corridor.

“Cross the continent… to take a ship?“

Yang Zicang muttered this phrase. He had initially assumed that the father and daughter were just among the countless fleeing White Violet City due to the sabotage attacks orchestrated by the Steffen spies.

But he never expected that their goal was to get on a ship!

This man knew there were restrictions on boarding a ship!

“Without that certain something in their luggage, they wouldn’t be able to set foot on the vessel.” His gaze fixed on Ebiser’s room.

The noisy commotion of several people rushing downstairs startled some of the guests passing through below.

A few walked into the lobby.

“What’s going on?“

“Is it some acute illness? There are too many sick people here.“

Hearing these anxious and suspicious guesses, the innkeeper hurriedly explained:

“Everyone, please be at ease. Our hotel is exceptionally clean; we disinfect daily. And in this village, our establishment is already the best you’ll find. You simply cannot compare the sanitary conditions elsewhere to ours. Guests are more than welcome to stay worry-free.“

“Then what’s wrong with them? They didn’t come here just for treatment. “

“The smell of medicine is everywhere. Who has a scarf for me? “

The owner stepped away from the counter and said, “It might be due to not acclimating to the water and soil here. You know, the vegetables, plants, fruits, and even the water sources here all carry a special aura. That young lady might have a sensitive constitution, so suddenly coming into contact with these things caused a slight allergic reaction. Besides, her condition isn’t serious; Dr. Valentine will have her back on her feet in no time. We see this sort of case all the time. “

Standing at the stairwell, Yang Zicang watched the commotion below. Suddenly, he spotted two familiar figures emerging from behind the crowd. The man seemed to notice his gaze, looked over, and after a brief pause, his face showed surprise.

Yang Zicang squinted. It was the fellow villager whose box of luggage had spilled everywhere back at the rental ground. His daughter, who was two years older than Liana, was also standing beside him.

“Are you heading to Hydrapower City too? ” Yang Zicang muttered, keeping his head down at the stairwell entrance. It was only later that a tingling realization struck his scalp—he had introduced himself as “Medwiser ” when he’d previously encountered this person.

Damn it! Because of the startled look on the other man’s face, he had subconsciously glossed over this detail. Yang Zicang touched his own cheek. Even though he had put on some makeup, he wasn’t wearing a mask. It would still be easy for an attentive person to recognize him as the so-called “hero. “

That was the real reason for the man’s surprise—not that he actually “knew him. “

“Yes, Mr. Bu,” the man downstairs quickly schooled his expression, his tone steady. “Ah, forgive me, Mr. Yang. I’m Carden. Yes, we were planning to catch the train and leave.“

Hearing Carden introduce himself, Yang Zicang smiled and nodded.

Since the mistake had already been made, he saw no choice but to let it snowball. A spark of inspiration struck, and he came up with a solution.

Just then, the girl perked up, waving excitedly as she whispered, “Uncle, could I get your autograph?“

A few people turned to look up toward the staircase.

Yang Zicang nodded his head slightly. “It’s rare to see Fogfolk. If you don’t mind, we can get to know each other.“

The surrounding onlookers, a few lodgers at the inn, saw someone actively approaching the Fogfolk but didn’t find it strange.He probably needs a Fogfolk’s help, they naturally assumed.

Absorbing the “Hero’s” veiled invitation, Carden and Shirley felt a jolt of realization as they silently nodded their assent.

“Shirley, go buy two bottles of beer.” The man produced a few coins and placed them in the girl’s palm.

Shirley walked over and smacked the coins down on the counter. “Boss, three beers, you heard that, right?“

“Coming right up, right up! Heh heh, I’ll pop ‘em open for ya!“

Carden furrowed his brow, helpless, but said nothing. He took the bottles the girl handed him and tramped up the stairs.

In the Mistfolk Language, he murmured, “Fancy running into our Hero right here. Guess it was God’s will after all.“

Yang Zicang paused slightly as he took the beer, observing the man’s skin tone, similar to his own, and the curved eyebrows, concluding this person might be an Indian-American or British-Indian.

“You speak Mandarin well. Never lived in your homeland?“

“Oh?” Kaden chuckled, “What makes you so sure?“

“Just some minor differences in daily habits.“

“I left my hometown a long time ago. Huh… I’ve indeed changed a lot. And you’re right, we’re not from the same place.“

Yang Zicang glanced sideways, “Where are you from?“

“Let’s not dwell on the past,” Kaden said, his gaze sweeping over the girl beside him who was curiously observing the two of them. “Talking too much about this is bad for her.“

“Hmph, always the same line,” Shirley grumbled. “What could possibly be bad about it?“

Yang Zicang hadn’t paid much attention to that remark at first, but the word “always” from Shirley suddenly made his heart sink.

“It really could be bad?“

Kaden nodded, glanced at the few onlookers dispersing at the foot of the stairs, then turned around with solemnity: “That girl earlier—it wasn’t about the change of environment. It’s… exactly what I mean by ‘bad.’“

The grip of the young man clutching the glass beer bottle tightened, his face turning serious. “What’s going on?“

Kaden glanced at his daughter. Shirley snorted, then stomped heavily down the stairs.

Once she left, the man spoke slowly and deeply:

“The more they know, the easier they get into trouble.“

“The more they know…” Yang Zicang furrowed his brows. This wasn’t the Old Fate Trajectory.

“In short, don’t display too much of your abilities in front of the natives. ” Caden stared into his eyes. “Otherwise, they might start doubting the reality of this world. Intense doubt can lead to rejection by fate, yet they’ll have nowhere to go. Of course, each person’s tolerance is different—that girl might have seen other things that seemed unreasonable to her on top of this. “

Yang Zicang was taken aback—he felt as if he’d heard those words somewhere before.

He had… indeed displayed some elemental power from the “Frost-Snow Sword Art ” in front of her. Could that single act really have made Liana think to scrutinize this world?

Well, if that were the case… He lifted his head:

“Rejected by fate… you think she might become a Сrossing Рerson? “