My Demon Friends-Chapter 665 - 627: Too Much Headache

Sunday night.

A night without Brother Nan to cuddle with wasn't much different from sleeping in the dormitory. It lacked the sounds of snoring, teeth-grinding, and sleep-talking, and missed the scent of three boorish guys. It also missed the company of Lord Dumpling. However, given the current situation, even if I return to school tomorrow, Tuanzi, who emerges in the evenings to attend to Her Highness, would likely not follow me back to the dorm. She would definitely go with Brother Nan.

Zhou Li fell asleep amidst sighs.

「In the middle of the night.」

The feeling of being watched was gone, but now I hear rustling noises beside me. It's like when I was a child sleeping in the countryside, with mice crawling over the cabinet, scavenging for food.

Zhou Li woke up groggily. He opened his eyes to the living room's deep, ink-black darkness. He groped for his phone on the sofa's backrest and switched on its light—

His girlfriend was sitting cross-legged by the coffee table, seemingly unbothered by the chilly floor tiles or the dim room. Her hands rested on the table, holding a disassembled pen. Illuminated by his phone's light, she turned her head to stare, eyes unblinking, straight at him, her expression dumbfounded.

"..."

For a moment, Zhou Li had no idea what to say.

His gaze swept over her. She wore a loose, deep gray T-shirt and black sports shorts that only reached halfway down her thighs. The attire was light, wide, and one of Brother Nan's sleep outfits. It was faintly discernible she wore nothing underneath the top. The cross-legged position pulled her shorts even shorter, revealing a long, smooth, pale leg that reflected the light, its skin looking delicate.

Her hair was loose.

Her fingers on both hands were stained with ink, and the pen's nib and feed lay on the table.

Zhou Li's eyes twitched. He took a deep breath in silence, finally calming himself before asking, "What are you doing here in the middle of the night?"

The Elm King answered with a single word, "Playing..."

"...Why didn't you turn on the light?"

"You were sleeping."

"That... that does make sense," Zhou Li frowned. "I thought there was a mouse in the house."

"How could that be? Don't you have Huai Xu? He would catch all the mice."

"How could Lord Dumpling... Oh, Huai Xu, right. That makes sense," Zhou Li shook his head. "My head's a bit foggy."

"Can you not shine that at me?" she said. "Although the title 'Demon King' is something you humans came up with, and I'm not as fearsome as your human emperors, it's still very impolite."

"Got it. Could you turn on the lights, please?"

"Sure."

The phone's light switched off, and the living room lights came on.

Zhou Li's peripheral vision again caught the ink-stained pen parts on the coffee table, his breathing quickening. "My Montblanc and my Naginata Togi pen..."

"What?"

"Why did you dismantle my pen?"

"I wanted to study how this thing works—how it can write so many words without needing to be dipped in ink, and still write so smoothly," the Elm King said, continuing to look down and earnestly examine the disassembled pen. "Don't worry, I'll try my best to put it back together for you."

Try my best...

"It looks simple enough; I think I can manage it. If it doesn't work after I put it back together... well, I still have some interesting things I kept from before. I can compensate you with one of those."

"..."

After a while, she finally figured the pen out and reassembled it.

By now, the coffee table's surface, her hands, and the items on it were all covered in ink. Zhou Li sighed helplessly. He told her to go wash her hands first while he began wiping the table. He wiped it once with a paper towel and then again with a kitchen wet wipe. Once it was reasonably clean, he finally breathed a sigh of relief.

His Highness the Demon King emerged from the bathroom, hands freshly washed, holding a box. "What is this?" she asked. "Why did you all have such strange expressions during the day? Open it and let me see..."

Zhou Li: ...

Good thing I'm going back to school tomorrow.

Zhou Li straightened up, sitting upright on the sofa. "I have something important to discuss with you."

Hmm, he suddenly got serious...

"Serious business."

"Oh!"

His Royal Highness, the Prince of Yu, also plopped down, still on the floor tiles. She sat cross-legged, straightened her upper body, looked at him seriously, and said, "Go ahead!"

Zhou Li's gaze inadvertently dropped, resting on her chest. The sleepwear was naturally soft, and with nothing worn underneath, her chest puffed out like that... Luckily, Brother Nan has already let me see such sights, so I have some resistance now.

"Recently, there have been frequent incidents involving demons in Yu Country. As the Prince of Yu, don't you bear some responsibility?"

"Oh, that..."

The Elm King nodded. "I can't control those Evil Demons; most of them lack reason. But if you're talking about Lin Zhong and his followers, I had already planned to deal with them after a while, once I could stay out for longer. I'll handle it then."

So direct...

I initially thought she'd say, 'I'm no longer Her Highness' or 'Hong Ran is in charge now,' but she didn't.

Then His Royal Highness, the Prince of Yu, continued, "I can only be out for half a Shichen each day, which is too short. So, you need to persuade your... what is it? Girlfriend, right? Anyway, tell her not to be so guarded against me all the time. Oh, by the way, what exactly does this boyfriend-girlfriend thing mean?"

"It means lovers who aren't married."

"So, like a paramour?"

"..."

It's a good thing Huai Xu and Brother Nan are both like this; I'm already numb to it. Zhou Li numbly steered the conversation back on track.

"Then how did you notify those Great Demons a few days ago?"

"Those were pre-arranged plans from earlier; I just sent a signal. Once they saw it, they naturally began preparations for my body," the Elm King said casually, still fiddling with the box. "Otherwise, you could also go and summon him—Lin Zhong—for me. Have him come see me. As long as Yu Country hasn't chosen a new Prince, they will still recognize me. But there's no need; you'd risk getting killed. If your girlfriend doesn't restrict me, it won't be long before I can go to him myself. Then I'll completely resolve this issue for you."

"Completely?"

"Yes."

May it be as you say.

The Elm King's words were naturally trustworthy. Even if she weren't a Demon, I'd still trust her, just like I trust Brother Nan.

However, Zhou Li still had a question. Lin Zhong had been a part of the Hawk Faction for more than a day or two. Clearly, the Elm King had always possessed the ability to completely resolve this issue. I can understand why the Elm King never did this in ancient times, but why is it possible today?

Before he could ask, the Elm King had already set down the box, stood up, and walked straight into the bedroom. She grabbed Tuanzi, shook her awake, and said, "You open this."

"Mrow...?" Tuanzi woke up groggily. Her mind wasn't clear yet, but her body had already obediently complied. "As you command, MEOW... Your Highness, when did you wake up?"

"Just now."

"Why didn't you call me?"

"Hurry up and open it!"

"Oh..."

Tuanzi energetically began to unwrap it, using her claws and teeth. The process was strenuous, but she didn't complain of being tired.

The box was quickly torn apart.

A moment later, the Elm King picked up the item inside and said, "Oh, it's this. On TikTok, they use these to hold water, then smash it on someone's head. It instantly wraps around their head, like a swimming cap..."

Zhou Li pursed his lips and remained silent.

...

「Monday.」

At home, Brother Nan's anger erupted.

Tuanzi was still in her dreams when Brother Nan grabbed her with one hand, intending for her to identify the crime scene.

"Was it you? Confess honestly!"

"Leniency for those who confess, severity for those who resist!"

"So you've learned to wreck the house now, have you? Open your eyes..."

"Hey, you've learned to stay silent too..."

"..."

Tuanzi, eyes half-closed and clearly still sleepy, let Brother Nan hold her. She stuck out her little tongue, her limbs dangling naturally. She neither looked nor made a sound, seemingly accustomed to this, and Brother Nan's anger had no effect on her sleep.

Can't hear... Can't see... Can't feel anything either...

Just like that, her half-closed eyes closed completely.

Zhou Li couldn't bear to watch anymore and stepped forward to intervene. Well, Tuanzi didn't get hit, but he did.

「Morning.」

The two of them walked into the school classroom side by side.

I've only missed a week of classes, but my classmates are looking at me like I'm a transfer student. It's making me particularly uncomfortable. But on second thought, it's probably all because I'm too good-looking.

They walked to the back row and sat down.

Little Cousin turned her head to look at him and nodded slightly. "Cousin, seven days without seeing you feels like years. Is Lord Dumpling starting work today?"

Zhou Li said helplessly, "It's Lord Dumpling who's felt like years to you, right?"

"And you too."

"Really?"

"Yes."

Little Cousin nodded seriously. "I did your homework again last week. It felt like an extraordinary amount, more than a month's worth."

"Thank you."

"How about some money?"

"?" Zhou Li made a pained expression. "Isn't that a bit too direct?"

"Indeed it is."

Little Cousin nodded honestly. Actually, I think so too. Sometimes, relatives need to be a bit more tactful to show that their relationship is harmonious. But it also depends on the person. For instance, when my paternal aunt gives me a red envelope for New Year's, I'll decline it once politely. If Grandma gives me one, I'll decline it several times. But Cousin is different. I'm afraid if I'm only a tiny bit tactful with my 'refusal,' he'll just take me at my word. That feeling of watching money slip through my fingers, powerless to do anything about it, is just too awful.

Zhou Li had no choice but to send her a small red envelope.

The class bell rang.

The three boorish guys from Dorm 502 arrived five minutes late, each holding a baozi, clearly on a path to degeneracy.

Chang Xiaoxiang brought him his books.

Zhou Li uncapped his pen and began to listen to the lecture and take notes.

After His Royal Highness, the Prince of Yu, dismantled it last night, my Naginata Togi pen doesn't seem to ink as smoothly. What a headache.