The Red-robed BOSS Says I Killed Him - Chapter 12

Chapter 12

It was raining heavily on the day of the discharge.

Ji Qingyan stood at the hospital entrance, clutching a medical file as she watched me.

“Are you really taking him back to your place?”

“What do you mean, ‘taking him back to my place’?”

“Doesn’t he have his own place to live?”

Ji Qingyan’s expression was complicated.

“Luo Tinglan, get a grip.”

“This person has just undergone separation from an Infinite Flow Instance. His ability to adapt to real-world society is roughly zero.”

“Yesterday, when the nurse asked him to scan a health code, he almost crushed her phone.”

I couldn’t help but turn to look at the culprit beside me.

Li Shuheng held an umbrella, his expression indifferent.

“It beeped too many times.”

“I thought it was the System again.”

“You certainly have an answer for everything, don’t you?”

“Mm.”

I almost laughed in frustration at that simple “mm.”

Jiang Yichuan was standing below the steps smoking. Seeing us come out, he stubbed out his cigarette.

“The higher-ups are still investigating the Deep Well fragments.”

“Someone might come to question you both.”

“Especially you.”

He directed those last three words at Li Shuheng.

Li Shuheng didn’t react much.

“If they want to take me back to slice me up for research…”

“I’ll slice them up first.”

Ji Qingyan rolled her eyes.

“See?”

“This is exactly why I’m not comfortable with you taking him away alone.”

Before I could respond, Li Shuheng suddenly tilted his head toward me.

“What do you think?”

“About what?”

“Are you comfortable with it?”

His tone was flat.

Yet, I could hear the faint, hidden tension within it.

It was as if he was afraid I’d find him a nuisance.

Or afraid I’d say I regretted it.

I looked at him for two seconds, then reached out and pulled his umbrella a bit closer to my side.

“Stop acting.”

“You’re already leaving the hospital with me, and now you’re asking this?”

His eyes flickered ever so slightly.

A moment later, he gave a low “mm.”

“Then I’ll follow you.”

Ji Qingyan cleared her throat beside us.

“While I hate to interrupt this moment…”

“I still have to remind you.”

“The Deep Well is closed, but it hasn’t completely evaporated.”

“There are still many people in reality who were pulled into Instances. They’ll have nightmares, suffer brief memory loss, or confuse reality with the Instances.”

“The higher-ups have formed an Aftermath Team.”

“They want us all to help out.”

Jiang Yichuan added, “There’s a salary.”

I looked at him. “Are you doing it for the money?”

“No kidding.”

“I fought for my life in those Instances just so I could come out alive and have a hot meal.”

Raindrops drummed densely against the umbrella’s surface.

I suddenly felt like smiling.

Back in the Instances, I always felt like the world would become a strange place once I got out.

But now that I was actually out, I realized many things were still the same.

Jiang Yichuan was still stubborn.

Ji Qingyan was still worrying even while acting annoyed.

And the person beside me-even though he had crawled out of hell and was standing in the rain of reality-was actually quieter than he had been in the Instances.

“What are you thinking about?” Li Shuheng asked softly.

“I was thinking that the way you’re holding that umbrella makes you look quite human.”

He glanced at me.

“I am human.”

“I know.”

I looked up and smiled at him.

“I know that better than anyone now.”

In the car on the way back, Li Shuheng remained mostly silent.

While waiting at a red light, he suddenly spoke.

“Luo Tinglan.”

“Yeah?”

“If another Fragment Instance comes looking for us in the future…”

“Will you push me away again?”

The question was asked very lightly.

So lightly it sounded like a casual inquiry.

But I knew it wasn’t.

This was what he truly feared.

I turned to look at him.

“No.”

“Why?”

“Because I’ve already tried that many times.”

“Every time I pushed you away, the result was absolute garbage.”

He looked out the car window, his Adam’s apple bobbing slightly.

“And this time?”

“This time, I’m not trying that anymore.”

I reached out and directly grabbed his hand, which was resting by the seat.

“From now on, we face things together.”

“Don’t always think about going off to die by yourself first.”

Li Shuheng was silent for a long time before finally giving a low response.

“Okay.”

But after he said that, he added another sentence.

“I’ll try.”

I glared at him. “Try?”

“Bad habits are hard to break.”

“Then break them slowly.”

“I’ll be watching you until you do.”

He finally turned his head to look at me, a hint of a smile touching the corners of his eyes.

“Fine.”

“You watch me, then.”