You are all bad women! Don't come over!

The kitchen faucet gurgled as Shen Mochen cleaned up the cookware and stove, ready to wash the pots and dishes later.

Yin Caiyu tiptoed over and suddenly slapped Shen Mochen on the back while letting out a weird yell.

"Childish, aren't you?" Shen Mochen said, expressionless, without turning his head.

"Pfft, you have no sense of fun." Seeing that Shen Mochen didn't react, Yin Caiyu couldn't help but click her tongue and helped Shen Mochen wash the dishes.

She was finally wearing slippers, EVA material pink flip-flops, which were the same style as the blue ones Shen Mochen wore. When she bought the slippers, she proudly told Shen Mochen they were a "brother-sister" matching pair.

Even though she was only a month older than Shen Mochen and relied on him for household chores, Yin Caiyu liked to assume the role of his guardian, especially after Yin Huailian passed away.

Shen Mochen teased, "Why are you helping me with chores today? How diligent."

Yin Caiyu hummed, "You say that as if all I do at home is eat and sleep... Hey, the food the others make in the team is nowhere near as good as yours. I don't know which lucky girl will get to marry someone as good-looking and capable as you!"

Shen Mochen glanced at Yin Caiyu and couldn't be bothered to engage her.

Yin Caiyu was washing the dishes, her hands aimlessly moving around in the water, more like she was playing with it, and continued to sigh, "But once you get a girlfriend, you'll be making her meals every day, not mine. Ah, 'when the husband gets a wife, the mom is forgotten'..."

Shen Mochen was scrubbing chopsticks, his hand bathed in soapy suds, "Your imagination only soars at times like this. I'm not that casual, I won't just cook for anyone."

Yin Caiyu scoffed, "Pfft, who knows..."

Shen Mochen couldn't be bothered to argue on this matter, "How many days are you back for this time?"

Yin Caiyu's eyelids drooped, "Tonight and all of tomorrow... I have to leave the day after tomorrow morning."

Shen Mochen was startled and turned to look at her, "So soon? Don't you usually get at least a week?"

"Idiot, I didn't even have a vacation this time. I squeezed out some time to come back and see you!"

"I see..."

Shen Mochen rinsed the suds off the chopsticks and put them in the drainer, "Oh right, you just had your birthday last month. That means it's been two years since you enlisted, right? When are you getting discharged?"

Yin Caiyu's expression flickered, and she said calmly, "I wish I could, but recently... things have been complicated, probably until next month."

"Is it because of me?"

"You're overthinking it, it has nothing to do with you getting into First Middle School! I can handle that kind of stuff by working some overtime."

Shen Mochen let out a small sigh of relief, "Is it about what you mentioned last time?"

Yin Caiyu's figure stiffened, confusion crossing her face, "What did I say?"

Shen Mochen frowned, "About the monsters being unusually active recently..."

"You must be remembering wrong, when did I say that?"

"I definitely did not remember wrong. You said it last month when you came back for your birthday, while sitting on the bed picking your feet."

Yin Caiyu became furious, scolding him, "Bullshit, why would a fairy like me pick her feet!"

Shen Mochen looked askance, "You always touch my face with those fingers after picking your feet, have you forgotten?"

"Forget it, I don't remember! I definitely didn't pick my feet, slander me again, and I'll cut you down!"

Yin Caiyu placed the washed dish in the rack, splashed the water on Shen Mochen's clothes with one hand, and left the kitchen, visibly annoyed.

Shen Mochen followed Yin Caiyu, shouting after her, "Just get discharged when it's time, don't drag it on. The Buque Team has so many people, they won't miss one. There are plenty who can take your place!"

Yin Caiyu waved her hand impatiently, "I know, I know, I'll leave next month, why are you nagging more than a woman!"

Shen Mochen watched Yin Caiyu's figure slowly fade away and turned back to finish the cleaning.

I don't want to either, but you're all I have left.

As guardians of humanity, the Buque seemed glorious, but how could battling monsters not be dangerous?

Superpower Users, besides their superpowers, are still made of flesh and blood; a hidden handgun can easily take their lives, let alone an attack from a monster.

According to unofficial statistics from undisclosed sources, the mortality rate of the Buque Team remains above ten percent year-round.

Even though the public hopes that Superpower Users will battle monsters until their powers completely fade away and praises their dedication and sacrifices made in the process, when it's their own turn or a loved one's, it's inevitable that everyone starts thinking along the lines of "I really have a cow," i.e., putting their personal interests first.

Just finish the obligatory two years and then retire. Anyway, an Awakener can find a decent job outside of the Buque, and it's much less dangerous.

...

"Make sure it's washed properly!"

Shen Mochen had just prepared a basin of water in the bathroom to hand-wash Yin Caiyu's underwear when her faint voice sounded.

"Why are you here again?" Shen Mochen turned with impatience.

Yin Caiyu pulled up a stool and sat down, solemnly saying, "I'm watching you wash. Who knows if you'll do something kinky with my sister's clothes!"

Shen Mochen's face warmed slightly as he threw Yin Caiyu's underwear back into the basin: "Was it your teammates filling your head with nonsense again? Since that's the case, wash it yourself, you're so free now anyway!"

I've been washing your underwear for so many years; if I wanted to do something, I would have done it long ago. What are you talking about now! Shen Mochen was a mixture of embarrassed and angry. If he had known this would happen, he should have done something from the start!

Yin Caiyu raised her head proudly: "Don't you know, 'older sisters are like mothers'?"

"Shouldn't the 'older sister as a mother' do the work then?"

"Wrong, that means I'm the head of the household. Whatever I tell you to do, you have to do! Less talking, more working! I'm supervising you!"

Shen Mochen could only grumble as he scrubbed the underwear: "What kind of dictator of a head of the household are you!"

Don't believe me, huh? Afraid that I'll do something bad with your old underpants, right? Just wait, the next time you're not around, I'll do something big!

He seethed internally, refusing to speak to Yin Caiyu out of spite. Yin Caiyu did not try to strike up conversation either, just watching him work with a smile, contentedly enjoying the scene.

After washing the underwear, Shen Mochen went to the balcony to hang them up, then grabbed his clothes to prepare for a shower.

"You'd better go to bed soon; don't catch a cold."

Shen Mochen stood in the doorway of the bathroom, turning to look at Yin Caiyu up and down. Aside from an undershirt and a blouse, she wasn't wearing anything else.

"I have a strong constitution; I won't catch a cold!" Yin Caiyu held out her hand, "Give me your phone for a bit."

"What for?"

"To play games. My phone is out of battery, I need to charge it."

Shen Mochen grumbled as he handed over the phone: "Then you should have charged it earlier, you've been home for so long!"

"I forgot, it still had some charge earlier…"

"Charge it in advance next time, dummy!"

Shen Mochen couldn't be bothered to listen to Yin Caiyu's explanation, he closed the bathroom door, and soon the sound of water whooshing could be heard.

Yin Caiyu shrugged her shoulders, went back to the bedroom, and lay down on the bed with her legs crossed, unlocking the phone effortlessly.

They had lived together for so many years and knew each other quite well. Just as Shen Mochen remembered every word she said, she was familiar with every one of Shen Mochen's expressions.

Although she was slightly inferior to Yin Huailian, who could tell at a glance what Shen Mochen was thinking, Yin Caiyu was certain that Shen Mochen had indeed wavered because of that text message.

How strange, it was just a usual text... Old Ye, is there a girl with the surname Ye in his class?

Yin Caiyu opened the contacts; Shen Mochen hadn't replied after receiving the message from "Old Ye," and there was still only that one message between them:

"This is my number, save it."

As Yin Caiyu looked at the message, the way it was phrased seemed so distant, unlikely to be from someone particularly close. She frowned in thought for a while, then a mischievous smile gradually emerged on her face as she rapidly typed on the keyboard:

"Got it, love you yo (Heart symbol)"