The Minami residence.
The time was approximately 3:23 AM.
Tick! Tock!
The second hand of the wall clock jumped forward with its usual punctuality.
But to Miyamoto Rei, sitting on the sofa, it felt as though the clock was broken.
Otherwise, why did every second feel like it was passing so agonizingly slow?
The girl with long flaxen hair looked up at the wall clock from time to time, then immediately shifted her gaze back to the area nearest the entrance.
She was waiting for someone to return.
She didn't know why she was waiting.
She didn't even know why she wanted to wait.
She especially didn't know why she continued to wait when it was already this late.
It was an inexplicable feeling.
She simply wanted to see the man named Su Yan before she closed her eyes to sleep.
It was as if just seeing Su Yan return and knowing they were under the same roof was enough.
Even without much conversation, a single glance or the sight of his figure brought a profound sense of peace to her heart.
Rei felt like she might be going crazy, as she had never been this fixated on a man before.
Yet, Su Yan seemed to possess a special kind of magic that made her want to draw closer to him involuntarily.
Even though she knew his relationships with Marikawa Shizuka and Busujima Saeko were complicated.
She was still willing to dive in like a moth to a flame.
She even found a strange sweetness in the sensation.
But if she was waiting here for that reason, then what about her?
Rei turned her gaze to the tanned older woman sitting on another sofa nearby, who had been waiting just as long.
Minami Rika sat quietly, saying nothing. Compared to the restless Rei, she appeared much calmer.
Before she could think further...
Click!
It was the sound of a key turning the cylinder of the door lock.
At this hour...
It couldn't be anyone else besides Su Yan, right?
Joy flared in Rei's heart. She stood up immediately, intending to welcome Su Yan back.
Unexpectedly, a dark shadow lunged from beside her, moving much faster than she could.
The girl couldn't help but stare in surprise.
That shadow was Minami Rika, who had been waiting alongside her the whole time.
Rika dashed toward the entryway with extreme speed, moving like a black panther.
Perhaps because she was barefoot, every step was like the padded paws of a cat, landing with a slight, silent spring.
She didn't make a single sound on the floor.
And even faster than Rika herself was her fist.
It was fortunate Su Yan returned so late; had he come back a few hours earlier, a fuming Rika might have reached for her gun and put a bullet through his head.
With the long wait, although her irritation continued to simmer, the brain that had been flooded with rage began to regain some logic.
If she really shot Su Yan in the head, there would be no turning back.
However, the anger in her heart still needed an outlet.
In that case, she would use her fists to teach him a lesson.
Even though she was launching a sneak attack, he had the physical advantage of being a man, didn't he?
All things considered, it was only fair.
The moment Su Yan pushed the door open, he saw a fist flying toward his face.
It was heavy and lightning-fast.
If an ordinary person took this hit, they would be out cold for at least an hour.
But Su Yan wasn't thinking about how to dodge.
Instead...
'Wait, where is my Snowball Beast? Where did my two big snowballs go?'
Usually, the first things to greet him when he got home were those two fluffy little cuties.
Why was it a fist this time?
As for the threat level?
All he could say was...
'What? A punch like this can actually kill someone?' (Hashirama Senju confused face)
Slow!
Too slow!
Su Yan casually raised his right hand and caught Rika's fist in his palm with effortless ease.
Rika was somewhat surprised; she hadn't expected Su Yan to catch her sudden, explosive punch.
It seemed the man Marikawa Shizuka chose wasn't as pathetic as she had imagined.
But she didn't give up on the attack.
Her eyes narrowed, and her other hand whipped toward Su Yan's head.
Slap!
Soon, that hand was also caught by Su Yan's remaining free hand.
Su Yan held Rika's hands high, spun her around half a turn, and then locked her firmly in his embrace.
Surprisingly, although Rika only had a bit of bright lipstick on her lips and no other trace of makeup could be seen.
And judging by her behavior, she followed a no-nonsense, minimalist style.
Yet, at such close range, Su Yan caught a faint, delicate scent emanating from her.
Su Yan said, somewhat exasperated, "I say, Miss Rika, what are you trying to do in the middle of the night?"
Rika froze for a second.
At such close proximity, Su Yan's breath brushed against her neck, causing goosebumps to rise on her tanned skin.
It wasn't until she heard his voice that she snapped out of it, cursing in embarrassment, "Go to hell!"
Then, she thrust her right leg upward in a high kick that was even more exaggerated than a full split, looking both fierce and elegant.
Rika's long leg whipped toward Su Yan's face like a lash.
Su Yan saw it very clearly.
Her toenails were neatly trimmed and devoid of any polish, looking clean and delicate.
The curve of her foot was perfect, without a hint of excess fat—lean where it should be, and soft where it should be.
In certain online forums, these would be classified as edible-grade.
Simply exquisite.
It was clear that Rika took good care of them.
But Su Yan wasn't one of those enthusiasts.
Compared to feet, he preferred lips.
Su Yan didn't hesitate, tilting his head to dodge her whip-like kick.
Seeing this, Rika quickly retracted her long leg and followed up with a scorpion kick behind her.
But her goal this time wasn't to attack; her foot pressed against Su Yan's abdomen.
Then she pushed off hard, using the momentum to break free from Su Yan's grasp.
In reality, Rika's strength was nowhere near enough to break Su Yan's hold.
However, firstly, Su Yan hadn't used much strength to hold her.
Secondly, he was afraid that if she pushed and he didn't let go, he might accidentally dislocate her arms.
Of course, this was assuming that while Rika's behavior was somewhat bizarre, it was still within his range of tolerance.
If her foot had pressed down a few inches lower on his abdomen, he really would have gotten angry.
Having broken free, Rika crouched low on the ground.
Back arched and head raised, she looked like a jaguar preparing to ambush its prey.
There was no disappointment in her eyes, only the burning excitement of finding a worthy opponent.
After that brief exchange, Rika was certain.
In terms of close-quarters combat, Su Yan was an expert whose strength was at least equal to hers, if not far superior.
Rika looked at Su Yan and couldn't help but lightly lick her lips.
His unexpected strength ignited a fire in her heart.
She loved excitement, she loved a challenge, and she also yearned for...
A man who could conquer her!
'Could that man be you?'
[Reviews - Power St0nes - Comments are highly appreciated to keep me going.....(+50 chapters) patre0n.c0m/talecrafter]