The infirmary's white lighting was a little too harsh.
That cold, pale glare fell onto Su Yu's absolutely tragic leg, making the whole scene look even more miserable.
Su Yu slumped in a plastic chair, watching as the harmless-looking intern nurse lifted a cotton ball soaked in iodine—
and pressed it down onto his knee, which was swollen like a freshly steamed giant bun, without the slightest mercy.
"—HSSS!! Miss! Gently! This is flesh, not marble!"
Su Yu sucked in a breath so hard his face instantly warped into a full-on pain mask.
It felt like his skull cap had been pried open by the sour sting.
"Hold still," the nurse said in a voice as gentle as a kindergarten teacher. "If we don't get the sand out, it'll get infected."
Her tone was soft.
Her hands were not.
The tweezers rummaging in the wound made Su Yu seriously suspect she was playing Minesweeper in his knee.
He felt like poor Ziwei being tortured by a ruthless Madam Rong.
Xiao Yanzi! Save me!
Fifteen minutes earlier—
When Su Yu had limped into Kevin and Mei's line of sight, the expressions on their faces were so perfect they could've been screenshotted into stickers.
Mei pushed up her glasses, eyes scanning like an X-ray over Su Yu's jeans—ripped, bleeding—and then the wrist swollen like a pig trotter.
And Kevin, the usual "mountain collapses, face stays blank" pretty boy, had his brows knit so tight he could've pinched a mosquito to death.
"You went to that… 'Extreme Fitness King' show," he said, "and got eliminated on the first stage?"
His gaze paused for two seconds on the very obvious bruise blooming on Su Yu's forehead.
"No. I just… performed slightly below expectations," Su Yu forced a smile that looked worse than crying.
"You know that stadium fire escape is designed by psychopaths—dark, steep. I'm scared of heights, slipped, and got to experience human bowling."
Kiana stood half a step behind him—
right at the system-defined edge of the safe zone.
Head lowered, bangs covering her eyes, silent like an elementary kid who'd done something wrong.
Kevin and Mei exchanged a look.
The kind of silent communication only two lifelong partners-in-crime could decode.
That neck bruise is so obvious—since when do fire escapes strangle people?
"He's full of it."
"Painfully obvious."
But neither of them exposed the lie—so bad even a three-year-old wouldn't buy it.
"Infirmary," Kevin sighed. He stepped forward and, like hauling a casualty, simply hooked Su Yu's arm and carried part of his weight.
Now—
The nurse finally completed her masterpiece and wrapped Su Yu's knee into a perfect white rice dumpling.
"All done. The next few days, walk less. Don't get it wet."
She packed her kit, then gave Su Yu one more up-and-down look like she was observing a rare animal.
"Seriously. How do you even fall like that? Did you jump from the second floor?"
"…Saving a cat," Su Yu answered with a straight face.
"A particularly stubborn, vicious, foul-tempered stray. It insisted on climbing up to the rooftop. When I tried to grab it, it hit me with a full set of meow-meow boxing."
The nurse rolled her eyes—clearly filed it under lame flirting—and pushed her cart out.
Only familiar faces remained in the infirmary.
The air reeked of disinfectant—and a certain awkward silence.
Kevin leaned against the wall, arms crossed, eyes looking at Su Yu like he'd found a defective child.
His gaze went from the dumpling-knee, to the scraped raw wrist, to the grime on the shirt—
and finally to the very-not-subtle strangulation marks on Su Yu's neck.
"Saving a cat."
Kevin repeated it like the words themselves were insulting his IQ.
"Yeah. Saving a cat."
Su Yu—shameless beyond salvation—pulled out his phone with his one usable hand.
"A stubborn cat. Climbed too high. I fell trying to catch it."
Kevin didn't respond.
He just looked at Su Yu with an expression that screamed, Do you think I'm stupid?
Not far away, Mei handed Kiana a cup of warm water.
The little white-haired fluff took it, whispered a quiet "thank you," and looked so obedient it was hard to connect her to the rooftop insanity from earlier.
Kiana seemed much steadier under Mei's calming presence, nodding faintly and taking small sips.
Su Yu's phone buzzed.
[Kevin: What actually happened? Don't feed me this ghost-level excuse.]
Su Yu raised his head and met Kevin's confess now stare.
Some things really were hard to say in front of the "cat."
He lowered his head and typed fast.
[Su Yu: It really was saving a cat. Just… bigger than usual. And stronger. Don't worry. I won't die.]
Sent.
Kevin stared at the screen for three seconds, then replied with a sticker:
A fox squinting in disgust, captioned: "That's it?"
Then a second message immediately followed.
[Kevin: Seriously, I've known you for years. First time I've seen you go this hard for something. Knees shredded, wrist sprained, forehead bruised… were you saving a cat or wrestling a bear?]
Su Yu's fingers paused.
He stole a glance at Kiana.
With Mei there, her emotions had stabilized a lot. She was holding the paper cup and drinking in tiny sips, profile calm enough to look like a painting.
Who would believe a Herrscher that could blow the world apart was hiding in that body?
[Su Yu: …Is it really that bad?]
[Kevin: Your knee is basically worn through. Wrist looks like it'll explode. Your back is covered in dust.]
[Kevin: Do you think I'm blind?]
Su Yu went silent.
Then the phone buzzed again.
[Kevin: Fine. Whatever trouble you got yourself into, if you need help, say it.]
[Kevin: Mei and I are here.]
Seeing those words warmed something in Su Yu's chest.
This is what bros are.
At critical moments, they were more reliable than that garbage system that only knew how to flash red warning boxes.
He typed back.
[Su Yu: I actually do need a favor.]
[Kevin: What?]
[Su Yu: More accurately… I need Mei's help.]
Kevin lifted his head, curiosity flickering across his face.
Su Yu didn't meet his eyes—just kept typing.
[Kevin: As long as it's not illegal, Mei probably won't refuse. Say it. What do you need?]
Su Yu hesitated, carefully organizing his phrasing so it wouldn't sound like something a pervert would request.
[Su Yu: Can you… get Mei to make a "high-power anti–cat scratch device"?]
....
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