After the Black Moonlight’s "Death Escape" Failed [Quick Transmigration] - Chapter 44

Chapter 44: Death-Escape

◎ She should have known long ago that she could not lock up the light ◎

A dense, clawing network of tentacles wove together into a massive web, casting a dark, heavy shadow over Jiao Qingyin’s head.

I can’t escape. Jiao Qingyin reached this conclusion the moment the instinct to retreat surfaced.

Quickly, she discovered that not only was there no escape, but Al had even blocked her path of retreat—she had only shifted her right foot when a tentacle coiled around her ankle, climbing all the way up to her knee.

Jiao Qingyin could only try to soothe the other’s emotions. “Al, calm down.”

“I am very calm,” Al said. By now, she had walked right up to Jiao Qingyin. The two, similar in height, stood face-to-face, their noses nearly brushing.

“I am very calm,” Al repeated, her expression looking as though it were frozen in ice. “Otherwise, I wouldn’t be standing here talking to you like this, Jiao Jiao.”

“I would strip off your clothes, lock you in the cage I built, and ensure you could never say the word ‘leave’ again. You would only be able to see me, forever… staying by my side, being with me.”

Every time she said the word “forever,” her tone grew heavier, like successive giant waves crashing against Jiao Qingyin.

The premonition of danger made Jiao Qingyin’s breathing quicken. With nowhere to go and tentacles blocking even the sides of her head, she was forced to look directly into Al’s eyes.

She could feel that Al wasn’t threatening her; she was stating a fact. She truly thought this way, and quite likely had already put part of her words into practice.

“…” After several seconds of scalp-numbing silence, Jiao Qingyin finally organized a sentence. “Since you’re still considered ‘calm’… first take these… tentacles back, okay?”

“No,” Al refused directly, something she rarely did to Jiao Qingyin. “If I retract them, I’m not sure I can hold onto you.”

“…I won’t leave. You don’t need to hold me.”

Al tilted her head slightly and asked softly, “Is it that you won’t leave now, or that you won’t leave ever?”

Jiao Qingyin was rendered speechless.

Perhaps having expected this, Al showed no obvious emotional fluctuation because of her reaction; she only lowered her eyelashes slightly. The look in her eyes at this moment reminded Jiao Qingyin of a slowly collapsing, shattering iceberg.

“Even though what I’m about to do will make you angry, Jiao Jiao…” Al reached out and took Jiao Qingyin’s hand. “I really have no other way.”

When Al brought her to an ancient castle in the outer city of the Capital, Jiao Qingyin cooperatively offered no resistance.

When they flew deep into the castle and Al opened an ordinary-looking door, gesturing for her to enter first, Jiao Qingyin still said nothing. Out of guilt, she intentionally followed Al’s lead in everything, hoping to smooth over the other’s emotions as much as possible.

But when the door opened and the scene inside was fully revealed, Jiao Qingyin’s footsteps faltered. With one foot halfway across the threshold, she stared incredulously at the massive golden cage inside the room.

This prison, forged of pure gold, was shaped like a birdcage. The domed top featured relief carvings that perfectly matched Jiao Qingyin’s aesthetic. Every pillar forming the cage was engraved with extremely complex high-level magic circles, showing at a glance how much effort the creator had poured into it.

If she had seen this golden cage under any other circumstances, Jiao Qingyin might have appreciated it like a work of art, examining every detail of its design. But now, since it was glaringly obvious who the cage was meant for, she had no room for such thoughts.

“Jiao Jiao, aren’t you going in?” Al’s voice sounded from behind her.

Jiao Qingyin turned her head stiffly, trying to judge from Al’s expression if she was actually serious. Then, on Al’s face, she saw a familiar smile—docile, obedient, and even a bit shy.

Her expression formed a vivid contrast with her actual behavior, and her next words sent a chill from Jiao Qingyin’s tailbone straight to her skull.

“—Before going in, take off your clothes.”

Everything that followed happened swiftly and as if it were a matter of course.

Al’s learning ability was formidable. She could use magic after seeing it once and memorize books after a single glance… and she was even more adept at practicing the content Jiao Qingyin had taught her.

Not only did she do as she said—returning what Jiao Qingyin had done to her twofold—but she even repeatedly “consulted” her former teacher during the process, asking if she was doing it correctly.

Jiao Qingyin’s obsidian-like eyes filled with mist. Under the interrogation, they condensed into tears as Al desired, falling drop by drop.

On the day Jiao Qingyin had bullied Al, she had deliberately avoided Al’s requests for kisses, giving no response while Al was conscious. Now, perhaps because she had left too deep a psychological shadow that time, Al seemed to have turned into a monster that only knew how to kiss, her behavior completely devoid of moderation.

The excessive, dense kissing and caressing nearly drove Jiao Qingyin mad. Al gave her almost no time to catch her breath; if she tried to close her eyes or if her gaze strayed for even a second, the black tentacles would coil around her, forcing another kiss meant to “correct her erroneous behavior.”

As time passed, Jiao Qingyin discovered with some despair that Al seemingly wanted to kiss every single part of her body.

During one of many moments of nearing total dissociation, Jiao Qingyin heard Al’s voice whispering in her ear.

“…Jiao Qingyin, Jiao Jiao.”

Al called out several blurred syllables. Words not belonging to this world were spoken by her with a lingering softness. Jiao Qingyin opened her mouth but failed to speak due to the overuse of her throat.

Al didn’t know her calls had received a response; she wasn’t actually calling “Jiao Qingyin” so much as simply repeating the syllables that had left the deepest impression on her. Her subconscious told her this was her partner’s name, the person she longed for even when she had no sanity left.

But why did the thought of this name make her so sad? So sad that… she couldn’t stop herself from wanting to cry.

In the past, Al felt that only useless people immersed themselves in sadness and weeping. If one had any ability at all, they should understand that crying solved nothing. But now, she found that she was that useless person.

“Jiao Jiao… don’t bully me.”

Jiao Qingyin, who was trying to turn her head to look at her, suddenly felt a slight dampness against her cheek. It took her several seconds to realize what was happening.

…How is she the one crying?

Clearly, the one being bullied was her. Al’s crying made it seem as if Jiao Qingyin had done something terrible.

However, despite the tears, Al’s movements didn’t stop at all. Jiao Qingyin could barely manage to control herself from making embarrassing sounds, but she couldn’t control the jumble of thoughts in her head.

While breaking down over how Al’s stamina could be so good, she couldn’t help but regret letting her off so easily back then. If there was a chance in the future…

Vaguely, Jiao Qingyin felt sad at the thought of a “future,” but before a concrete idea could form, she forgot everything under Al’s reckless actions.

On Jiao Qingyin’s right ankle, Al had placed an exquisite chain. The style was very similar to the one she had once picked out for Al, and the other end of the chain was connected to the entrance of the golden cage, circling her range of activity within the cage.

Though it was called a cage, Al had covered the floor with cushions—soft, comfortable, and durable—so they didn’t even wrinkle after half a night of tossing and turning. But no matter how much care Al put into these details, it didn’t change the nature of her actions.

As the night passed its deepest point, Jiao Qingyin slowly woke up in the warmth of a healing spell. What she saw was the bright moon hanging high outside the window.

Truly, no matter how many times I see it, it’s just as beautiful…

Al, who was focused on healing Jiao Qingyin, didn’t notice she was awake. Out of some dark intent in her heart, Al’s handling of the healing was very tricky; she healed Jiao Qingyin’s minor scratches but intentionally did not remove the marks on her body. Only by looking at the hickeys and bite marks she left could Al truly feel that the other belonged to her at this moment.

Al cradled Jiao Qingyin’s left hand and added another red mark to the webbing of her thumb, which she had licked and bitten countless times last night.

As the thin flesh of her hand was nipped by Al, Jiao Qingyin’s entire body inexplicably grew hot. She instinctively closed her eyes, pretending she hadn’t woken up.

A second later, she felt glad for this decision, because a voice suddenly rang out in her head.

[Ding… Successfully connected to Host… Loading data…]

The flat but familiar mechanical voice confirmed that it was the System bound to her. It seems it didn’t lose too much data in Al’s attack, Jiao Qingyin thought. But she had originally thought… that there would be at least a few days left between her and Al.

“Headquarters has received the Host’s report. After a feasibility analysis, the higher-ups have decided to respect the Host’s wishes. There is only one point that the Host needs to confirm again…”

“May I ask the Host, can you guarantee that after your early departure, the main plot of the current world can continue to progress normally?”

Jiao Qingyin was silent for a moment before slowly replying in her mind: “The plot related to the original soul can proceed according to the original line until the end, but if you’re asking about the trajectory of the entire world… that shouldn’t be within my mission scope, right?”

The System gave an official response: “Whether the world line changes relates to Headquarters’ assessment of this world’s Protagonist’s status. Since the Host provided a large amount of exculpatory testimony for her in the report, the Host needs to bear part of the responsibility.”

Hearing this, Jiao Qingyin remained quiet for even longer, until the System emitted a beep of static, intending to repeat the words. Then she said: “The main world line refers to Al continuously growing stronger, reaching the summit, destroying the entire world, and then rebuilding it, right?”

The System confirmed Jiao Qingyin’s summary.

“Then there should be no problem… she will grow stronger.”

After hearing Jiao Qingyin confirm that the world line could progress normally, the System began the detachment process. While the program was loading, it reminded her: “Host, if the world line deviates later, you will have to accept a work penalty.”

“…What penalty?” Shouldn’t it have told her this before she confirmed?

“The specific details are unclear to the System, but it should be a penalty mission like increasing the difficulty of the next world.”

That’s fine. At least it wasn’t wiping out all her points, or… Jiao Qingyin paused, suddenly remembering something, and asked again: “If it really deviates, will I be sent back to fix the error?”

“At that time, Headquarters will dispatch another employee to push the deviated world line back on track.”

That means another Host would be sent to Al’s side. Thinking of this, Jiao Qingyin felt uncomfortable.

She didn’t let her feelings show. Once the System finished with official business, its rigid voice took on a touch of subtle humanization. “Host, you really slept with the Protagonist this time, didn’t you?”

“…” Jiao Qingyin didn’t want to deal with it.

But the System, having been attacked by Al once, clearly held a grudge and became startlingly gossipy: “May I ask if the Host was on top or on the bottom? If you were on top, please use more strength to vent some frustration for your workplace partner and loyal System…”

“Can’t you see for yourself?” Jiao Qingyin was somewhat embarrassed and annoyed.

The System emitted a “ding.” “Because the Host’s skin area not covered by clothing exceeds 80%, the System has automatically turned on Pure Mode and cannot detect the Host’s current status.”

Jiao Qingyin had almost forgotten. In the past, when she performed highly private activities like bathing or changing, the System would also enter Pure Mode, no longer detecting surrounding signals. But this also meant—

“You still dare to come back.”

—it meant the System couldn’t be alert to surrounding threats in real-time.

Al’s cold voice rang out by her ear. Jiao Qingyin snapped her eyes open, wanting to tell the System to run, but it was too late. A sphere tightly wrapped in black threads was yanked out of the void by Al.

Amidst the sound of crackling electricity, the System’s detachment progress bar froze at 90%.

The System, which had just undergone a full upgrade and maxed out its stealth attributes, couldn’t believe it had met its Waterloo again. It continuously threw out data streams, only to discover that not only could it not escape, but even the channel to contact Headquarters had been manually cut off.

Jiao Qingyin, in shock, stopped Al from crushing the System, but before she could speak, her vision went dark from a headache. The System usually stayed in her head as a consciousness; being forcibly extracted had some impact on her.

After fainting for a few seconds, she slowly recovered under Al’s panicked calls.

“Don’t…” As soon as she opened her eyes, Jiao Qingyin covered her temples and pleaded for the System in a trembling voice. “It has no ill intent.”

Al no longer had time to care about the System; she held Jiao Qingyin, pouring a steady stream of magic into her body. Seeing Jiao Qingyin regain consciousness, she immediately opened her mouth to speak, but Jiao Qingyin spoke first: “I’m fine, I just felt dizzy for a moment.” After saying that, fearing Al wouldn’t believe her, she rarely initiated a kiss on Al’s cheek.

“…” Al, who had been sinking into self-reproach and regret, was easily swayed by Jiao Qingyin.

“I…” Al still wanted to apologize, but her lips were gently bitten by Jiao Qingyin.

Although Al intended to carefully check Jiao Qingyin’s condition and deal with the thing she had caught, she couldn’t refuse the other’s closeness. But before things went too far, Jiao Qingyin stopped. She nipped the tip of Al’s bright red ear and, under her gaze filled with endurance, spoke softly: “Don’t hurt that… thing you caught, okay?”

Al’s eyes immediately reddened. She gritted her teeth. “You kissed me just to plead for someone else?” At this moment, she wanted nothing more than to smash the thing to pieces.

The System shivered nearby.

The pressure coming from Al was terrifying, but the expression on Jiao Qingyin’s face didn’t change much. She even hooked a strand of hair hanging in front of her face and pulled Al toward her. Before Al thought she was getting another kiss, Jiao Qingyin stopped. Just an inch from her lips, she sighed, “Don’t want me to kiss you?”

“…” Al was silent.

“…I do.” Al endured the humiliation.

Jiao Qingyin burst out laughing. Al was so annoyed she pinned her down on the soft pillows and kissed her thoroughly. Once she finally vented her frustration, Al finally compromised: “I won’t touch it, but it cannot get near you anymore.” As she spoke, she released a tentacle, completely wrapping the System into a black ball before tossing it away.

Jiao Qingyin didn’t see where the System landed; it simply vanished from the room into thin air. She couldn’t help but feel anxious. “Al, it’s related to your future safety…”

“I know it’s here to take you away.” Al interrupted gloomily. Jiao Qingyin stiffened for a moment before recovering her composure. “…When did you guess?”

“I’m not telling you.” Al wrapped her arms around Jiao Qingyin’s waist and rested her head against her cheek like a giant koala. She didn’t want to talk about this with Jiao Qingyin, fearing the other would use her gentle words to make her make a choice against her heart. So, she reached out toward a certain place again.

“You… wu!”

Jiao Qingyin raised her hand to cover her mouth, her eyes widening at Al’s sudden move.

“I want to hear your voice,” Al leaned in, using her free hand to pry Jiao Qingyin’s fingers away. “Jiao Jiao, don’t be shy.”

But even though Jiao Qingyin’s entire body had turned a lovely shade of pink because of Al, she refused to admit she was shy. After many attempts, Al still couldn’t hear the words she liked from Jiao Qingyin, and a hint of urgency appeared in her expression. But whether it was coercion or enticement, Jiao Qingyin remained tight-lipped; only her body’s reactions revealed that she was far from calm.

Al was eventually at her wit’s end, a touch of grievance appearing on her face. Then she saw Jiao Qingyin’s gaze narrow slightly, as if she were drawn to her.

Could it be… Al’s heart beat faster. Following her heart, she leaned down, nuzzling Jiao Qingyin and making whirring, spoiled sounds.

Jiao Qingyin’s pupils shrank. Her body, which she had been enduring with all her might, suddenly tensed up, and a whimper uncontrollably escaped her lips. Seeing this, Al immediately entered a more excited state.

Jiao Qingyin couldn’t take it anymore. Some of Al’s actions were too much, making her cry out in a curse: “Don’t bite—! Al—you little brat, are you a dog—wu!”

“In front of you,” Al licked the corner of her mouth, a trace of satiation in her expression, “I always have been.”

At dawn, bird calls drifted from outside. Al opened her eyes and the first thing she saw was the sleeping Jiao Qingyin beside her. Jiao Qingyin’s sleeping face was calm; because she had been too exhausted last night, she was sleeping particularly deeply now. Her exposed skin was covered in red marks, making one’s thoughts wander at a single glance.

Al tightened her arm around Jiao Qingyin’s waist and buried her face in her hair, surrounded by the other’s pleasant scent. She greedily clung to this morning tranquility. If only it could stay like this forever…

But as soon as she looked up, she saw the sky divided into pieces by the golden birdcage. It served as a constant reminder that Jiao Qingyin had not stayed by her side of her own free will.