"So, has everyone already gone to Tokyo?"
Sakura Country, Kyushu Island, Fukuoka Airport.
In the afternoon, on a flight heading to Tokyo, the three of them sat side by side.
Taking up the three middle seats, Yan Huan sat in the center, with Sakuramiya Hitomi and An Le sitting on his left and right.
Looking at it this way, it really did give off the feeling of having a pair of wings.
"Yeah, everyone has already finished their tour..."
While listening to Sakuramiya Hitomi's words, Yan Huan calculated the time and figured it was about right.
The "everyone" they referred to were the first-year students of Far Moon Academy who came here for the School Trip.
From the time they parted ways with the main group, to visiting the Sakuramiya family, and then staying in Shenxiang Village for four days, calculating the time, their trip was indeed nearing its end.
For the last few days of the School Trip, everyone was near Tokyo.
"So, where are you guys staying in Tokyo these next few days? A hotel?"
"No, my family has properties in Tokyo. I previously picked a convenient apartment and moved in with them first. But right now, it's just me and Bai Yi in the apartment."
Hearing this, Yan Huan frowned tightly, feeling somewhat puzzled.
"Just you and Bai Yi? What about Ye Shiyu and Spencer?"
Earlier in the car, Yan Huan only got the gist that Ye Shiyu seemed to be in bad shape, but he hadn't had the time to ask for details.
After all, Sakuramiya Hitomi had mobilized a lot of personnel and resources to help. Before leaving, they had to show some courtesy and greet the local figures in Fukuoka Prefecture who had assisted them.
Now that they were on the plane, Yan Huan asked about the past few days to quickly catch up on the information he had missed.
"Well, on the second day after you went missing, Mr. President, Spencer also contacted her family to seek help in finding you.
"So, she went to the Sakura Country branch of the Golden Lion Group. I heard that the woman named Heather came over too."
Sakuramiya Hitomi nodded and continued explaining,
"As for Ye Shiyu, ever since you disappeared, Mr. President, she has been very depressed. She just stayed in her room, refusing to eat or drink...
"Then, on the same day Spencer left, she also disappeared. Well, not exactly missing—when asked on Plane, she said she was also going to contact her family for help...
"As for right now, I have no idea where she went."
Hearing that Ye Shiyu had at least replied, Yan Huan breathed a slight sigh of relief, but he couldn't help asking,
"Then, when An Le contacted you yesterday, Sakuramiya, did you tell them?"
After the festival ended last night, right before going to sleep, An Le had told Yan Huan about contacting Sakuramiya Hitomi.
"Yes, I told them all this morning."
Hearing this, An Le couldn't help but feel confused.
"This morning?"
An Le's senses were very sharp, always able to detect when something was wrong from the slightest clues.
The phone call was made yesterday. Sakuramiya Hitomi arrived this morning, and she only revealed the news to the others this morning as well...
Wasn't this just jumping the gun?!
Upon hearing An Le repeat that crucial point in time, Sakuramiya Hitomi's expression grew a bit awkward, forcing her to explain,
"After receiving the call last night, there were a lot of things to arrange, so I didn't have time to discuss it with them immediately and rushed over here myself first...
"Besides, I'm the president's girlfriend after all, so... of course I should be the one to personally pick him up."
As she spoke, Sakuramiya Hitomi's face became slightly flushed, as if she was reveling in the fact that Yan Huan had recognized her as his girlfriend after his Memory Correction.
"..."
'You're still playing the girlfriend role?'
Looking at Sakuramiya Hitomi reveling in the situation, An Le pursed her lips. Even someone as gentle as her couldn't help feeling a bit speechless.
Yan Huan also almost couldn't hold back, but knowing he couldn't show any strange expressions, he immediately put on his Expression Management mask.
'If you don't know what to say, just smile.'
Yan Huan thought to himself.
"..."
But what Sakuramiya Hitomi said was actually true...
Well, referring to the first reason.
As for the second part, she probably just thought of something happy and couldn't hold back a smile, accidentally blurting out her true thoughts.
Don't forget, An Le and Yan Huan disappeared together; it wasn't just Yan Huan alone.
If Sakuramiya Hitomi wasn't truly anxious, she wouldn't have been oblivious to the risk of being solo-killed by An Le by coming alone. No matter what, she should have brought the others along.
Sensing An Le's faint speechlessness, Sakuramiya Hitomi immediately changed the subject.
"Spencer and Bai Yi were quite happy, but Ye Shiyu... she still hasn't replied to my messages."
"Is that so..."
Yan Huan stroked his chin, instinctively narrowing his eyes.
'This is definitely a major problem.'
With Ye Shiyu's borderline-psychopathic possessiveness, logic dictated that she would normally ask about it the exact moment she heard the news.
Yet she still hadn't replied at all, which showed just how abnormal this was.
"..."
In truth, Yan Huan shouldn't really care about how Ye Shiyu was doing, given how he had constantly been subjected to her incorrigible Hypnosis.
But later, he needed to kiss four Hosts in a row within a span of two hours...
'No matter what, I'll wait until we get to Tokyo, buy a new mobile phone, and then confirm her status.'
Yan Huan took a deep breath, secretly forming a plan in his mind.
At this moment, the plane officially took off. The flight from Fukuoka to Tokyo would take about two hours.
When the cabin lights dimmed and the plane's nose pitched up to climb in altitude, Yan Huan began to close his eyes and rest, pondering his plan for the upcoming Crab Medicine Great Battle.
Not only was time tight and the task heavy, but he also had to deal with different Hosts in different situations simultaneously...
'The time to test my skills has finally come.'
Beside him, watching Yan Huan close his eyes and rest, An Le pursed her lips. Amidst her hesitation, she still gently raised her hand toward him.
At the same time, she softly called out to Little Finger in her mind.
"Little Finger, please. Remove those unreasonable parts from Xiao Huan's memories."
Hearing this, Little Finger revealed its form, flicking its tongue.
It glanced back at An Le and asked,
"Have you thought this through? That previous promise will truly be gone."
"...Yeah."
An Le nodded, and Little Finger sighed, looking at Yan Huan.
"Alright then."
Immediately after, An Le suddenly reached out and gently touched Yan Huan.
"Gurgle!"
Sensing the touch, Yan Huan was about to open his eyes when a faint, comfortable sensation welled up in his chest.
Instead of pouring in like a violent tsunami as it usually did, it was just a gentle, trickling stream...
Just like the quiet creek in Shenxiang, it was intoxicating.
But the very next second, a wave of drowsiness suddenly washed over Yan Huan.
He fell into a deep, heavy slumber. His body went slightly limp and tilted over to one side...
Right in Sakuramiya Hitomi's direction.
"Hmm..."
Sakuramiya Hitomi had been looking at her mobile phone, but suddenly felt something approaching from beside her.
She paused slightly and turned her head, only to see Yan Huan leaning toward her.
"Eh, eh, eh? P-President?"
She thought Yan Huan was still awake and was leaning in for a hug simply because he saw her as his girlfriend.
Consequently, her face flushed red. Feeling the robust male presence closing in, she nervously shut her eyes and quickly turned her head away.
Yet at the same time, she opened her arms wide, looking entirely ready to let Yan Huan embrace her.
"P-Please be gentle..."
"Thud!"
However, Yan Huan wasn't trying to hug her; he merely collapsed unconsciously into her arms, producing a soft thud.
"Eh?"
She didn't feel the domineering, forceful embrace she had anticipated. Instead, a sudden burst of pain in her ribs caused Sakuramiya Hitomi to snap her eyes open.
She saw the soundly sleeping Yan Huan in her arms. He seemed to have felt the pain from bumping into something hard, making his sleep restless.
"..."
Sakuramiya Hitomi blinked blankly. She raised her eyes to look at An Le—who was still reaching out with widened eyes—and instantly realized what had happened.
"You..."
Seeing Yan Huan sleeping peacefully in Sakuramiya Hitomi's arms, An Le pursed her lips. A bitter taste filled her heart, but she still explained in a tiny voice that only the two of them could hear,
"I've already used Memory Correction to trim away the remaining unreasonable memories in Xiao Huan's mind... This way, it will cover up the fact that Ye Shiyu used Hypnosis on him, as well as the incident where he was teleported to Kyushu by the Barrier."
"You can actually perform such precise Memory Correction?"
Sakuramiya Hitomi was about to nod, but catching onto the implication, she quickly asked the question.
If An Le's perception was previously described as sharp, Sakuramiya Hitomi's was certainly not far behind.
Mainly, the previous Modifier battles either involved someone like Spencer, who relied purely on brute stats, or someone like Bai Yi, who was mostly a joke. So the overall quality of the matchups seemed rather low.
Now, with both of them possessing high intelligence and emotional quotients, there was finally a glimpse of a high-tier match.
"..."
Hearing Sakuramiya Hitomi's question, An Le offered no explanation.
She simply looked at Yan Huan, who was sleeping soundly in Sakuramiya Hitomi's arms, and couldn't help but swallow a mouthful of saliva.
Right after, she reached out her hand and suggested,
"Vice President Sakuramiya, you are too thin. It must be very uncomfortable for Xiao Huan to lean on you like this, right? Why don't you let me..."
"No."
Before she could finish, Sakuramiya Hitomi quickly wrapped her arms tighter around Yan Huan's head, as if terrified that An Le would snatch him away.
"..."
Although it was indeed just as An Le had said—with her weakling physique, trying to pull off the romance of holding a handsome young man was quite physically taxing.
But even so, Sakuramiya Hitomi refused to yield him to An Le.
The two simply stared at each other, locking into a brief stalemate.
As Sakuramiya Hitomi held Yan Huan's head tighter and tighter, the boy in her arms couldn't help but struggle slightly, unconsciously muttering a single word,
"Hard..."
Upon hearing this, Sakuramiya Hitomi's face darkened completely.
Don't forget, Yan Huan had been sharing a bed with An Le these past few days.
There was no need to reiterate just how well-endowed An Le was.
Sleeping in An Le's wide and soft embrace for several consecutive days had actually spoiled Yan Huan's senses subconsciously...
'He can't even sleep comfortably anymore if it isn't soft?!'
Gritting her teeth, Sakuramiya Hitomi glanced at An Le. Her gaze inevitably landed on those massive assets that seemed straight out of a sci-fi movie...
She temporarily lacked the confidence to retort, but she still stubbornly refused to let go of Yan Huan.
"Dear esteemed passengers, our flight has now arrived at Tokyo International Airport..."
The flight attendant's gentle voice roused Yan Huan's consciousness. His eyelashes fluttered slightly, and his mind was completely blank.
He only felt that he was very comfortable right now.
It was like lying in a cradle made of marshmallows—so soft and incredibly relaxing.
He blinked, subconsciously wanting to prolong this comfort.
But the very next second, countless memories flashed through his mind, snapping him fully awake.
Memory Correction!
He instantly remembered everything and then began to chew over the altered memories in his mind.
His promise with An Le regarding their first time...
The memories of sharing a bed with An Le in Shenxiang...
And the situation where An Le and Sakuramiya Hitomi were simultaneously his girlfriends...
They were all gone.
Replacing them was something akin to a restriction, or perhaps a subliminal suggestion.
Basically, every time Yan Huan tried to recall being subjected to Hypnosis by Ye Shiyu at the shrine, or the subsequent event of being teleported to Shenxiang, his memories would do their utmost to stop him. Needless to say, if he didn't have his Resistance, he absolutely wouldn't even try to think about it; he would just forget all of these events completely.
Furthermore, Yan Huan discovered something strange...
Although his brain should theoretically have forgotten about sharing a bed with An Le in Shenxiang, as long as Yan Huan thought about An Le, unwarranted sensory details would spring up out of nowhere in his mind.
The body heat of her sleeping beside him, the scent of her hair, her softness...
It was as if his brain had forgotten, but his body still remembered the beauty and tranquility of that time.
'The brain?'
'The body?'
'Hold on...'
As Yan Huan pondered, a sudden burst of inspiration struck him.
He suddenly thought of a brilliant strategy to manipulate Ye Shiyu... no, to outplay the other Hosts as well.
But at this moment, he didn't have the time to think deeply about it, because as his consciousness grew clearer, he gradually realized that he seemed to be resting in someone's arms.
"Mmm..."
He deliberately let out a muffled groan, acting as if he had just woken up.
It turned out he was leaning into An Le's embrace.
No wonder it was so soft and comfortable.
'It seems I really am going to betray the Flat-Chest Faction...'
"Xiao Huan, you're awake—ah, I... I forgot..."
Beside him, An Le's worried voice suddenly rang out. But then she seemed to remember something and hurriedly helped Yan Huan sit up straight.
After all, she had already completed the Memory Correction and was no longer Xiao Huan's girlfriend.
Him resting in her arms would be truly difficult to explain...
"Ah, An Le, did I fall asleep?"
Yan Huan pretended to be affected by the Memory Correction, rubbing his head as if he had a headache, before looking at the slightly flushed An Le in front of him.
"Yes, Xiao Huan. After you got on the plane, you... you rested."
An Le smiled faintly, stroking the long hair at her temples, though an imperceptible flash of disappointment flickered in her eyes.
After all...
From now on, they would return to the state where Xiao Huan merely saw her as a younger sister.
But this was what she had chosen herself.
"I see... Oh right, Sakuramiya..."
"P-President, I'm right here..."
From behind, Sakuramiya Hitomi's weak, withered voice sounded, making Yan Huan pause and quickly turn his head.
"Huh?"
He saw Sakuramiya Hitomi slumped in the seat beside him, looking completely exhausted and burnt out.
As it turned out, she had stubbornly held onto Yan Huan for over an hour earlier.
Later, when she truly couldn't hold on anymore, she finally let An Le take over for the last dozen or so minutes.
"..."
Yan Huan knew exactly what had happened at a single glance. However, at this moment, he could only pretend to be bewildered with a twinge of guilt.
"Sakuramiya, what's wrong with you?"
"N-Nothing..."
Sakuramiya Hitomi coughed lightly and struggled to sit up straight, wanting to pretend nothing had happened.
However, her near-collapsed appearance made it impossible for her to keep up the facade.
'Speaking of which, Sakuramiya's physical condition...'
'Is it also worse than before?'
The moment this thought popped up, Yan Huan immediately realized the core of the problem.
Especially with the cautionary tale of An Le losing sensation in her limbs still fresh in his mind.
It was just that Sakuramiya's condition wasn't severe yet.
Although it hadn't reached a life-or-death choice where Yan Huan had to agonize over who should receive the life-saving Crab Medicine, it still made him acutely aware of the urgency.
'If I don't curb the Modifiers soon, it's going to end in disaster.'
'This time, An Le can still use the Crab Medicine.'
'But next time, there might not be any Crab Medicine left.'
"..."
Thinking this, Yan Huan couldn't help but clench his fists...
'I really need to bring out my top-tier skills now.'
"Then let's go. Let's get off the plane."
"Mhm..."
Sakuramiya Hitomi unfastened her seatbelt and shakily stood up.
Terrified that Yan Huan would notice something amiss, she casually brought up a topic to divert his attention,
"So, Mr. President, let's head back to my family's apartment first. I wonder if Spencer is back yet..."
"...No, Sakuramiya."
However, Yan Huan shook his head. He held out his hand toward Sakuramiya Hitomi and asked,
"Can I borrow your mobile phone first?"
"Eh? Y-You can, but..."
Sakuramiya obediently turned off airplane mode and handed over her phone.
Just as she was about to ask why, she saw Yan Huan open Plane, then navigate to Ye Shiyu's chat box.
Sure enough, there was still no reply to the message sent to Ye Shiyu that morning.
Looking at the interface, Yan Huan pondered for a second before pressing the voice input button.
"Sister Shiyu, I've arrived in Tokyo. I heard from Sakuramiya that you're not doing well. Can you tell me where you are? We'll come over right now."
Send!
"Eh? W-We're going to find Ye Shiyu first?"
Meeting Sakuramiya Hitomi's astonished gaze, Yan Huan smiled faintly and nodded.
That was right. He planned to find Ye Shiyu first.
Tokyo, Central District, Ginza, Mitsui Garden Hotel.
Yan Huan looked at Sakuramiya Hitomi's mobile phone, then raised his eyes to observe the hotel entrance in front of him.
"This is the place."
Behind him, Sakuramiya Hitomi and An Le couldn't help but exchange a glance, both their eyes harboring unreadable emotions.
This was the address Ye Shiyu had sent right after hearing Yan Huan's voice.
It seemed that after leaving Sakuramiya Hitomi's apartment, she had checked into this hotel.
"Whoosh~"
As the automatic doors opened, Yan Huan walked toward the elevator.
Ye Shiyu had given her room number, so they just needed to go upstairs and find her.
Their luck was good; it was just the three of them inside the elevator.
But just as the elevator doors were about to close, a hand suddenly reached in from outside, stopping the doors from shutting.
"We are truly sorry, esteemed guests..."
It was two female front desk staff members, followed by an elderly woman wearing a female suit, who seemed to be a cleaner.
They were about to press the floor button, but upon seeing the button Yan Huan had already pressed, they pulled their hands back.
They were going to the same floor.
"Miss Fukuyama, are you certain that when you went to clean this morning, you saw razor blades all over the floor in Room 0511?"
"That's right. When I went to clean, as soon as I pushed the door open, it was pitch black inside. I could only vaguely see razor blades scattered all over the floor by the entrance..."
The cleaner swallowed a mouthful of saliva and spoke nervously,
"I was terrified at the time. Then, a terrifying voice of a girl came from inside the room, telling me to leave immediately."
'0511?'
While listening, Yan Huan couldn't help but glance at Sakuramiya Hitomi's mobile phone.
On the screen, the room number Ye Shiyu had sent was precisely 0511.
"..."
'Razor blades?'
'No way...'
'Ye Shiyu, you aren't going to pull that Landmine-type stunt and dramatically cover yourself with decorative cuts, are you?'
'Haji Ye, you already have the honorary titles of Master of the Hypnosis Domain, Master of Zero-Frame Start, Name-Writing Master, and Master Ye...'
'If we add something like "Master of Self-Harm Cuts" on top of that, Aunt Ye's family is truly going to need to hire an Expert.'
'Could it be that you're possessed by an evil spirit?'
"And it's a girl?"
"Yeah... anyway, she didn't sound very old..."
The two receptionists exchanged a glance, and the other front desk staff member reminded her,
"That girl is a foreign tourist. There's a relative's contact number on her passport. Should we..."
Hearing this, Yan Huan finally couldn't help but speak up.
"There's no need. I should be considered her relative... We're here to find her."
"You? You are?"
"I'm her younger brother... not by blood."
He didn't know why he felt the need to add that last qualifier.
The two staff members exchanged a look, both half-believing, half-doubting.
But regardless, at that moment, the elevator doors opened, revealing the corridor outside.
0511...
"This girl has been staying here for four days, and it seems she hasn't come out once. For the first few days, the screen at the door kept showing 'Do Not Disturb', but it seems she forgot to press it yesterday, so..."
They quickly arrived at the door of the room. Staring at the tightly shut door, Yan Huan narrowed his eyes.
Seeing this, Sakuramiya Hitomi stepped up and gently pressed the doorbell.
"Ding-dong~"
At the same time, she called out,
"Ye Shiyu, the President and I have come to see you."
"..."
'No response?'
Yan Huan leaned closer to the screen, also pressed the doorbell, and called out tentatively,
"Sister Shiyu?"
Still no response.
Yan Huan's expression turned increasingly solemn. He turned his head to look at the staff members behind him,
"Do you have a master keycard to open the door?"
"Y-Yes, we do."
The cleaner handed over a card. Yan Huan gently placed it against the scanner on the door and unlocked it.
The door was pushed open softly, revealing the gloomy environment inside.
The first thing to enter his sight were the freshly opened razor blades scattered across the entryway.
Staring at the razor blades, Yan Huan frowned tightly and quickly looked deeper into the room...
Following the light seeping in through the doorway, Yan Huan clearly saw Ye Shiyu lying in the middle of the room, her hair disheveled and her clothes unkempt.
She seemed to have lost consciousness, still gripping a razor blade and a water-based pen in her hands. He didn't know what exactly had happened, but her breathing was weak, and there was faint crimson blood on her hand.
"...Sister Shiyu?"
Looking at the utterly shattered Ye Shiyu in the room, even though he had mentally prepared himself, Yan Huan couldn't help but feel somewhat shocked.
And right at this moment, following Yan Huan's voice...
The faintly breathing Ye Shiyu in the room trembled slightly, slowly opening her terribly weak eyes.