At some point, the gunfire outside, the roars of the monsters—everything had vanished, plunging the world into an eerie silence, as if it had truly become a land of the dead.
Light, hurried footsteps approached from the distance, and the next moment, the door to the room swung open, revealing a man in a black uniform wearing a cheerful grin.
"Miao Miao, I'm here to get you!"
No. 13 rushed in eagerly, pulling the girl who had been crouching pitifully in the corner into his arms.
He thought he must be sick.
Otherwise, why would he feel such intense discomfort after being separated from her for just a short while? It was as if a part of him had been torn away, his mind and body both screaming at him to return to her immediately.
Only now, with her in his arms, inhaling her scent deeply, did he finally feel a sense of satisfaction and peace.
"The monsters outside have all been dealt with. We're safe now." No. 13 cupped her face, pressing his forehead against hers, his blue eyes curving into crescents, shimmering with light—and reflecting only her.
Xia Miao seemed to notice how unusually clingy he had become and tried to lean back slightly, wanting a little more space to move. But the moment she showed any sign of retreating, the arms wrapped around her tightened, holding her firmly in place, leaving no room for escape.
The young man remained smiling, utterly absorbed in the joy of having captured a priceless treasure, heedless of everything else.
Xia Miao endured a few more kisses before finally finding a chance to speak. "Wasn’t it really dangerous outside earlier? How did you resolve everything so quickly?"
"Because I promised you I’d come back soon." No. 13 nuzzled her cheek, then pressed her hand against his face, rubbing it gently, his tone laced with a hint of pride. "Miao Miao, I’m really strong. Those things were easy to kill."
He grinned, his expression bright and innocent, yet his eyes betrayed a flicker of anticipation—like a child who had scored full marks on a test, eagerly awaiting praise from someone important to satisfy his childish vanity.
Xia Miao obliged. "You’re amazing."
No. 13’s eyes sparkled even brighter with delight. "Miao Miao, you must be exhausted. Let’s go back and rest."
He was growing more and more accustomed to his role as her boyfriend. Once, he’d thought only fools would be reckless enough to date a young miss like her, but now he was the one fretting over her exhaustion, considerately scooping her up onto his back to carry her out.
"The passenger rest area was hit the hardest. It’s still a mess and needs time to clean up, so it’s uninhabitable for now. During this time, Miao Miao, you’ll stay with me in my dorm."
Outside the room, the hallway was littered with severed limbs and splattered blood, the metallic stench of gore saturating the air. Every detail screamed of the horrors that had unfolded here not long ago.
Yet No. 13 chattered away without pause, seemingly oblivious to the gruesome surroundings. His cheerful tone and light footsteps stood in stark contrast to the carnage around them.
Xia Miao spotted armed team members approaching and quickly tugged No. 13’s hand, signaling him to let her down. Being seen riding piggyback would be embarrassing.
No. 7 called out boisterously, "We’ve checked that area—no abnormalities."
No. 8 exhaled in relief. "Good thing our teamwork was flawless. No matter how clever those monsters were, they couldn’t outmatch us."
No. 7 grinned. "Miss Xia, you should’ve seen how No. 13 and we took down those things. Not to brag, but we looked pretty damn cool when we got serious!"
No. 8 teased, "You’re just hoping Miss Xia will like No. 13 even more after seeing that, aren’t you?"
They laughed easily, the despair of their earlier life-or-death struggle already fading. From their tone and demeanor, it seemed that while Xia Miao had been left in the "safe room," the armed team had worked together seamlessly to eliminate the horde of monsters.
No. 13 remained smiling. "Without everyone’s effort, I wouldn’t have been able to come back for Miao Miao so quickly."
His words suggested that his teammates had played the bigger role in resolving the crisis.
No. 7 suddenly remembered something. "Oh, right! No. 6 found his girlfriend!"
Speak of the devil.
No. 6 walked over, holding the hand of a girl who looked thoroughly traumatized. Xia Miao had no memory of her—with so many passengers on board, she couldn’t possibly remember every face she’d passed by.
But the girl clearly recognized Xia Miao, who had never been one for subtlety. When she saw No. 13 holding Xia Miao’s hand, her expression shifted noticeably. The others assumed she was still shaken—or perhaps, like most, found the idea of Xia Miao and No. 13 together baffling.
No. 8 explained, "After everything went down, No. 6 rushed to the rest area to find his girlfriend, but she’d already come looking for him at the workstation. They just missed each other. Luckily, she had good enough luck to hide in a fire cabinet the whole time."
No. 6 looked like he was walking on air. Of course—everyone had said his relationship wouldn’t last, but true feelings showed in times of crisis. Fate had been kind: she was unharmed, and he had found her.
No. 6’s girlfriend, Jiang Jiang, was timid, half-hiding behind him and peeking out with wide eyes, her gaze repeatedly darting toward Xia Miao as if she wanted to say something but didn’t dare.
No. 6 said, "Jiang Jiang has some scrapes. I’m taking her to the infirmary."
No. 7 waved them off. "Go, go. We’ll handle the cleanup here."
No. 8 rolled up his sleeves. "Us single folks have energy to spare."
As Jiang Jiang followed No. 6 away, she glanced back at Xia Miao once more, her face etched with fear—though no one could tell why. Her eyes flickered to the man beside Xia Miao, but she pressed her lips together, staying silent as she hurried off with No. 6.
No. 13’s dorm wasn’t as spacious as Xia Miao’s room, but though small, it had everything one could need. He was also surprisingly tidy—unlike the typical bachelor’s den littered with socks and slippers, his space was meticulously organized.
"Miao Miao, sit and rest."
No. 13 guided her to the bed, then dutifully unpacked his bag. He shoved his few clothes into a corner of the wardrobe, carefully hanging Xia Miao’s dresses in their place instead.
