By the time we stumbled back into the sect grounds, I looked like a corpse that had tried to cosplay as a human and failed. My robes were torn, my arm was bleeding, and every step made me sound like a dying squeaky toy.
Yan Yezhen, of course, looked like he had just walked out of an immortal shampoo commercial. A little pale, sure, but not a hair out of place. Typical protagonist behavior.
[Mission update: The protagonist is injured. Assist in recovery to increase affection.]
"I am injured," I muttered. "What about assisting me?"
[Priority: the protagonist. Host's wellbeing is secondary.]
I sighed. "Wow, glad to know I'm the DLC side quest in my own life."
We made it to the main courtyard just as two healers came running over. They were senior disciples in pale green robes, carrying medicine pouches and those smug expressions of people who were paid to judge your life choices.
"Senior Brother Yan!" one gasped. "You're hurt!"
"Barely," he said evenly, though his sleeve was dark with dried blood.
The healer turned to me — and blinked. "And… you too, Senior Brother Lin?"
I waved a shaky hand. "Oh, this? Just a scratch. I like to bleed for aesthetic reasons."
Yan gave me that look again — the one that said please shut up before I disown you from the sect I didn't even find.
Before anyone could drag me to the infirmary, the other healer gasped. "Wait, are the rumors true?"
I froze. "What rumors?"
The healer whispered dramatically, "They said you two were found holding hands while bleeding together in the forest!"
I nearly choked on my own soul. "WHAT—"
Yan coughed lightly, his ears turning the faintest pink. "It was not intentional."
[Public rumor detected. Generating social consequences.]
[Potential outcome: romantic misunderstanding.]
[Affection increase possible.]
"Oh no," I whispered. "No, no, no. We are not doing the 'caught holding hands' trope. I've seen where that leads!"
"Senior Brother Lin," one healer said kindly, "there's no need to be shy. It's natural to care for someone you nearly died with."
I gawked at them. "I was unconscious! I didn't even know I had hands!"
Yan rubbed his temple like he was developing a migraine. "Enough. He's delirious from blood loss. Treat him first."
"I can walk on my own," I said stubbornly. Then I immediately tripped on nothing and face-planted into his chest.
The courtyard went silent.
Someone giggled.
I could feel the gossip spreading through the sect like wildfire.
[System alert: Sect-wide rumor established — "Young Master Lin falls into Senior Brother Yan's arms."]
[Affection +5.]
"Stop rewarding me for humiliation," I hissed.
[Positive social attention detected.]
"POSITIVE?! I look like a clingy koala!"
Yan Yezhen's voice came from above my head, calm but tight. "Can you stand, Senior Brother Lin?"
"Physically? No. Emotionally? Also no."
He sighed — actually sighed — and scooped me up like I weighed nothing.
The crowd collectively gasped.
My brain short-circuited. "Oh. Oh wow. You— you're carrying me. This is happening."
[Affection +3.]
I glared at the air. "System, if you're watching this, delete yourself."
The sect infirmary was quiet, lined with rows of bamboo beds and faintly glowing jade lamps. The scent of medicine and disinfectant filled the air — not that I minded. It reminded me of hospitals back home, minus the Wi-Fi and overpriced bills.
Yan placed me gently on a bed and turned to leave, but I caught his sleeve.
"Wait. Where are you going?"
"To report the completion of the trial."
"But you're injured!"
He raised a brow. "So are you."
"Yeah, but I'm special. I have protagonist-proximity syndrome. If you die, I die. Spiritually. Emotionally. Possibly literally."
That earned me a blank stare.
I tried again. "Just sit. Please. The healers will fix us both."
He hesitated — just a flicker — before sitting on the bed next to mine.
[Proximity detected. Heart rate synchronization in progress.]
[Affection +2.]
I groaned softly. "You're just… unfair."
He turned to me. "What?"
"Nothing." I waved it off. "Just… wondering if you ever do anything halfway. You fight like a storm and heal like a statue."
"I take it that's an insult?"
"Maybe a compliment in disguise."
For a moment, something shifted. His eyes — usually so cold and distant — softened, like frost melting under morning light.
"Thank you," he said quietly.
That threw me off. "What?"
"For helping in the forest. You didn't have to."
My mouth went dry. "You'd have done the same."
"I would not have been fast enough."
There was something so honest about the way he said it that I forgot to breathe.
[Emotional resonance achieved.]
[Affection +10 | Current total: 80.]
The healers returned with ointments and bandages, breaking the moment.
"Senior Brother Yan, please remove your upper robe," one said politely.
Yan nodded, loosening the ties at his collar.
And I— I was not ready for the reality of shirtless protagonist physics.
He had the kind of body that looked carved by divine spite. Lean muscle, pale skin, faint scars tracing his side. My brain completely forgot how to function.
[Host elevated heart rate detected.]
"No kidding," I whispered.
"What was that?" Yan asked.
"Nothing!" I squeaked. "Just admiring the… craftsmanship of your sternum. I mean— swordsmanship! Your swordsmanship!"
One healer stifled a laugh. The other gave me a look that screamed, "You're doomed."
Yan looked very, very done. "If you cannot keep quiet, Lin Feng, perhaps I should tend to your wounds myself."
I froze. "Wait, what? No, you don't have to—"
But it was too late. He took the medicine jar from the healer and knelt beside my bed.
"Your shoulder," he said calmly. "Remove your outer robe."
This was fine. Totally fine. I wasn't blushing; that was just blood loss.
As his fingers brushed my skin, something in my chest did a backflip. His touch was cool and steady, careful not to hurt. Every motion felt deliberate — reverent, even.
"Hold still," he murmured.
"I am! You're the one touching me like a tragic drama lead."
He paused. "…You speak strangely."
"I'm from a distant land called 'Common Sense.' You should visit sometime."
That earned me a small, almost imperceptible smile — the first I'd ever seen on his face.
My breath caught. "You smiled."
He blinked. "Did I?"
"Yes! Just now. It's like seeing a solar eclipse, except prettier."
Yan's hand stilled against my shoulder. "…You talk too much."
[Affection +5.]
I grinned. "You like it though."
He didn't reply, but the tips of his ears turned pink again.
After the healers left, the infirmary quieted. Outside, the evening light spilled across the paper screens, bathing everything in a soft gold glow.
I leaned back on the bed, too tired to move. Yan sat nearby, quietly grinding medicine herbs with a small pestle.
"Why are you still here?" I asked.
He didn't look up. "You shouldn't be alone until your wounds close."
"You say that like I'm not indestructible."
"You fell twice walking up the stairs."
"…Okay, fair."
A silence stretched between us, the comfortable kind that made the air feel heavy and safe at the same time.
Finally, I asked, "Were you scared? During the trial?"
His hand stilled again. "…I was not."
"Liar."
He glanced up sharply.
I smiled faintly. "You froze that beast solid because you were afraid. You thought it would kill me first."
He didn't answer, but his jaw tightened.
I sat up a little. "It's okay to be scared, you know. Heroes are allowed that."
He looked at me for a long time, eyes unreadable. "You… are strange, Lin Feng."
"I get that a lot."
"Most who speak to me do so with flattery or fear. But you— you say things that make no sense."
"I prefer to think of it as creative honesty."
His gaze softened again. "And yet… you make me forget my burdens."
Oh. Oh no. My heart wasn't ready for that line.
[System alert: Emotional resonance deepening.]
[Warning: Host emotional attachment exceeding safe threshold.]
"Too late," I muttered.
"What?"
"Nothing," I said quickly, rubbing the back of my neck. "Just… glad to help, I guess."
He nodded once, then stood. "Rest. I will check on you later."
He turned to go — and then paused at the doorway.
"Lin Feng."
"Yeah?"
His expression was unreadable, but his voice was softer than I'd ever heard it. "Don't risk your life for me again."
I blinked. "That's kind of hard when my whole survival depends on you."
He frowned slightly. "What?"
"Nothing! Sleep well, Senior Brother Yan!"
He gave me one last long look before leaving.
As the door slid shut, I flopped back on the bed, groaning into the pillow.
[Mission progress: Affection 80/100.]
[New subtask unlocked: Survive growing mutual feelings without dying of embarrassment.]
"Fantastic," I muttered. "So now the System's my therapist too."
Outside, a breeze rustled through the courtyard, carrying faint laughter from disciples still whispering about us.
And for the first time since waking in this insane world, the thought didn't make me panic.
Because beneath the confusion, the chaos, and the ridiculous flirting, something warm was starting to take root — something that felt dangerously like hope.