127. Early Morning
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The competition was over, the prize money was in hand, and Lin Nan suddenly felt that school life had lost its purpose.
It was time to unlock a few spells. Sure, it would make his body increasingly feminine, but that was still better than having to fork over cash for surgery later on.
Besides, he could totally prepare in advance, start unlocking magic the week before winter break, and on the last day, fully transform into a girl. Genius, right?
Lin Nan thought his plan was flawless; the real challenge was picking which spells to unlock.
And that was a real headache! Those self-harm methods for unlocking magic could easily take him out, while the embarrassing ones could lead to losing himself—just like Li Na warned, turning into a girl only to have Lilith’s soul invade his body.
Lin Nan could clearly sense Lilith’s long-lost soul stirring back to life within him. Almost nightly, he dreamt of becoming Lilith, reliving her unforgettable memories.
Sometimes he even wondered if he was truly Lilith and not Lin Nan.
After all, those three hundred years of memories were quite a lot to unpack!
“Lin Nan? Class is starting.”
He snapped his head up. He’d only wanted to rummage through some acceptable spells in his memory, but somehow he’d gotten lost in Lilith’s reminiscences.
“I’m putting on shoes!” he instinctively replied.
“What did you say?”
Chen Yao scratched his head, puzzled. What Lin Nan just mumbled sounded like complete nonsense to him.
That was a serious case of accidentally mixing up languages from different worlds!
It wasn’t until Lin Nan realized he was tangled up in both their memories, feeling just like when he first met Lilith. Back then, he would unintentionally blurt out words from another world, but after a few days at home, he’d force himself back to normal. Yet he still couldn’t shake off Lilith’s little quirks and habits.
Like talking while slightly tilting his head.
For a cute girl, that was naturally adorable, but Lin Nan found it distressing. Thankfully, his roommates were already used to his feminine mannerisms.
Bending down, he slipped on a pair of what he considered androgynous women’s shoes, then grabbed Chen Yao’s light jacket to throw over himself. Finally, he stood up and got ready to head to class.
November was creeping in, and temperatures had slipped from around thirty-five degrees in September to about twenty-five now. Even though folks were still in short sleeves, Lin Nan had brazenly commandeered Chen Yao’s jacket under the guise of being cold.
Mainly because his own denim jacket was way too tight; if he didn’t button it up, he was fine, but buttoning it just turned his chest into a suffocation hazard, and it did nothing to hide his figure—if anything, it highlighted it due to the snug fit.
Fortunately, Chen Yao was much taller, so the jacket that fit him just right practically draped over Lin Nan’s backside, perfect for concealing his femininity.
Still, for some reason, even though it was men’s clothing, it somehow felt like women’s wear when he put it on.
He grabbed the textbooks he needed for the morning and didn’t mind the delay from Tu Junhui and Xiong Da still lounging in bed. Following Chen Yao, he left the dorm.
“You should really get your own jacket; mine looks weird on you,” Chen Yao suggested on their way out.
It was still early, and there were hardly any students in the hallway. As they walked side by side, Chen Yao glanced at his phone and added, “If we’re talking about covering up your figure, I’d suggest a trench coat. It’d be better than looking like a kid in my clothes.”
While saying that, his gaze subconsciously drifted to Lin Nan’s legs peeking out from under the jacket.
With the jacket covering Lin Nan’s backside, his legs in casual pants looked even more slender and alluring—a classic case of “looks slim while dressed, but has curves when undressed,” right?
“Who has time to wear a trench coat?” Lin Nan dismissed.
He thought his jacket suited him just fine.
“Well, if you like it, keep wearing it. Just don’t bother returning it to me tonight.”
It was mainly because Lin Nan’s scent was lingering on the clothes—some sort of milky fragrance that was actually quite pleasant. But it also had a way of leading his thoughts in all the wrong directions…
Even though Chen Yao already knew Lin Nan was definitely pulling some serious girl vibes, it didn’t stop him from feeling guilty. After all, he’d spent years seeing Lin Nan as a guy, so it felt wrong in a way that he couldn’t shake off.
The two of them were headed out for breakfast, and since they left early, the dorm hallway was practically deserted. Even after stepping outside, they only spotted a handful of people milling about the campus.
Though midday temperatures didn’t seem to drop much compared to summer, the early morning was thick with fog, sitting just over twenty degrees. Chen Yao, sporting a short sleeve, couldn’t help but shiver, while Lin Nan felt perfectly fine, only noticing his skin had turned a bit more icy.
But the school cafeteria was bustling. Lin Nan trailed right behind Chen Yao, nervously glancing around.
They grabbed two meat buns and a cup of soybean milk, then found a secluded table. Chen Yao knew Lin Nan’s nerves were basically on high alert these days and didn’t want to draw attention.
“Hey, Lin Nan.”
“What?”
“How are you handling the winter break?” He asked, worried. “Your dad isn’t going to roll out the welcome mat, right?”
Lin Nan paused, biting into his meat bun, “I guess it’s whatever. My family is just renting a place anyway. Plus, after winter break, my mom might want to take me for surgery, so I probably won’t even see him, right?”
With the potential of Lilith’s resurrection looming, Lin Nan was mentally prepared for that surgery. His family was in debt, and any potential medical mishaps didn’t weigh nearly as heavily as the risk of his body being taken over.
But just thinking about his father stirred up more resentment. Previously, he’d felt merely disappointed and sad, but thanks to Lilith’s influence, these feelings had spiraled into something more intense.
He didn’t want to go there, so he pushed his father’s words and image out of his mind.
“Yeah, it’s just a rental anyway. Grab your stuff and it doesn’t matter where you crash.” Still, he hesitated, “But… he is your dad…”
“Once I graduate, I’ll just send him a bit of money each month. That’ll keep him from yapping about me not supporting him.” Lin Nan replied flatly. “Besides, he didn’t even try to give my mom a dime in the divorce. He won’t be in need, and I won’t be of use to him.”
“Just worry that when he’s lying in the hospital bed, he suddenly remembers you.”
“…”
Lin Nan thought Chen Yao’s perspective was a bit disturbing. If his dad really did pull something like that, it would be utterly disgusting and hideous!
