The baby vine lifted its head from around my shoulders and hissed softly toward the soldiers.
None of the guys interrupted... the only thing that changed was the smiles on their faces. Those got bigger. Even Yuche's.
Wei Guang forced himself to exhale slowly before speaking again. "You were outside the perimeter for hours. Standard protocol requires—"
"Your protocols stopped mattering the moment when corpses started eating people," I interrupted flatly.
"That doesn't mean we abandon structure."
"No," I agreed casually. "But it does mean I'm not stripping on command because you suddenly remembered you have authority."
Lingyun made a suspicious choking sound behind me that sounded dangerously close to laughter.
Wei ignored him with visible effort. "Miss Shen—"
"We've gotten to this point," I sneered. "I think you can call me Rouxi."
