"Yan Huan!"

"..."

"Yan Huan, wake up, Meow!"

"Ugh..."

Yan Huan's consciousness groggily emerged from the darkness, the first thing he heard was the anxious call of Meow beside him.

He tried to open his eyes but felt his entire body was numbed, as if he were waking from anesthesia, consciousness alert but the body unresponsive.

I...

Where am I...

Yan Huan's mind felt heavy as he struggled to recall the recent events.

He remembered...

He had just gone downstairs to buy groceries, when he noticed a black car.

Then he glanced at the car's rearview mirror, which reflected the billboard opposite the public rental housing...

Then, he lost consciousness?

"!!"

It was hypnosis!

At this moment, Yan Huan belatedly realized he had been hypnotized.

But this hypnosis was completely different from before!

Before, when she hypnotized him, he only felt slightly numb, but at least somewhat aware.

But this time, he completely lost consciousness.

Her modifier ability must have grown stronger...

A chilling feeling surged in his heart, bringing back some sensation to Yan Huan's limbs,

"Creak~"

He instinctively tried to move but found himself tightly bound, his eyes covered by a blindfold.

"Meow?"

"Thank goodness, you finally woke up, Meow!"

"Was I hypnotized by Ye Shiyu?"

"Yes, Meow. By the time I realized, you were already entranced, Meow! Then I watched helplessly as Ye Shiyu came down from the public rental housing and brought you here..."

"Came down from upstairs?"

Hearing this, Yan Huan's heart sank.

That would mean Ye Shiyu had been to his house?!

Could she have encountered An Le and Hitomi?

And if Ye Shiyu could come downstairs unscathed to hypnotize him, it likely meant a conflict had occurred with her emerging victorious?!

What happened to them?

Right now, Ye Shiyu's modifier is terrifying as a ghost, Sakuragi Hitomi's duplicate was dispelled, and An Le hasn't used the modifier in ages, there's no way they could stand against her...

If anything happened to them...

"..."

Yan Huan instinctively worried about Sakuragi Hitomi and An Le being hypnotized, forgetting his own captivity.

"By the way, Yan Huan, do you remember that villa you looked at last night, Meow?"

"...The one with the luxurious basement?"

"Yes, Meow! You're currently locked in that basement!"

"..."

Hearing this, Yan Huan was dumbfounded.

He now understood why the elders always had the tradition of "avoiding taboos."

Great, just searched a basement yesterday and today ended up "moving in with a suitcase"!

Hold on...

Don't I still have a defeat CG attempt left?

Logically, being hypnotized to kneel and then locked in a basement sounds like a bad ending, why wasn't I notified by the defeat CG when I went home earlier?

Could it be that the ability originating from the index finger has been co-opted?!

Yan Huan instinctively thought so, but then reconsidered.

Maybe...

This isn't counted as a bad ending yet?

Or...

Some special factors prevented it from taking effect?

"Click~"

However, in the next second, a door opening sound suddenly came from the darkness.

"Is it Ye Shiyu, Meow!"

Although Yan Huan had Meow as his eyes, battling in unknown darkness, the pressure Ye Shiyu brought was far from being neutralized.

Hearing the approaching sound of Ye Shiyu, Yan Huan's heart skipped a beat.

Having lost his sight, Yan Huan's hearing, touch, and smell became exceptionally sharp.

"Tap... tap..."

He listened to Ye Shiyu's steady footsteps; a gentle floral scent breezed through, outlining her tall silhouette.

Yan Huan instinctively raised his head, composed himself, yet still wore the mask of perfect expression management, facing the direction of the sound,

"Who? Who's there?"

"Xiao Huan... it's me."

Hearing Ye Shiyu's voice, Yan Huan feigned a sigh of relief and hurriedly asked,

"Sister Shiyu, where am I? Are you here to save me?"

"...I'm the one who tied you up, Xiao Huan."

In front of him, Ye Shiyu's words made Yan Huan's heart sink.

Reflecting on past experiences, Ye Shiyu used to pretend to be very restrained when not hypnotizing him.

But now, she wasn't even pretending, giving Yan Huan a sense of foreboding.

Possibly...

"Xiao Huan, there's something I want to ask you."

"...Sister Shiyu, go ahead."

Yan Huan swallowed a mouthful of saliva, preparing to respond as needed.

In the darkness, Ye Shiyu was silent for a long while before tremblingly asking,

"You... know I have a superpower, right?"

"!!"

"Meow?!"

Upon her opening, Yan Huan felt his scalp go numb, while Meow exclaimed in shock beside him.

Yes, even if unseen, Yan Huan still felt the pressure emanating from Ye Shiyu's modifier.

It's likely Ye Shiyu had long suspected it, resulting in another explosive growth of the modifier...

Is that why, when she hypnotized him earlier, he was completely unaware?!

"Before, in the staff dormitory, Xiao Huan you broke through my abilities at night when you awoke, I already sensed something was amiss...

"At the time, it was just a suspicion.

"But recently, you... have reacted to An Le and Sakuragi Hitomi... this indicates not only that you know of my abilities, but also...

"You know how to counter them, right?"

Nearby, Ye Shiyu leaned in and spoke.

The more he listened, the more shocked Yan Huan became.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by lotustale.com