The Protagonist and the Villain Both Kissed Me [Quick Transmigration] - Chapter 45

“Just a few?” Hearing System 1368’s words, Su Xi found it almost laughable. He hadn’t encountered many subjects since arriving at the Institute, he could count them on one hand. It was a small number, yet the System implied that several of them were involved?

“Forget it, I’ll find them myself. You really are unreliable,” he muttered in his mind.

Unable to get the answer he wanted, Su Xi turned to look at Mephisto. The merman stared back in silence for a long time, his emerald eyes unnervingly calm.

Suddenly, a cool sensation pressed against Su Xi’s chest. He looked down to see a beautiful, azure fan-shaped object marked with several red veins.

“What is this?” he asked.

“A gift for you,” Mephisto replied succinctly. After fastening the necklace around Su Xi’s neck, he withdrew his hand and turned back toward the pool.

If Su Xi didn’t like his pearl necklace, no matter he could provide something far better.

“Xiao Ba, what is this thing?” Su Xi asked, rubbing the pendant. It felt like a scale, but he had never seen one like this on Mephisto.

“It’s the scale from over Mephisto’s heart!” 1368 sounded electrified. “Host! Host! The Salvation Value is only at 85, and the villain already gave you his heart-scale!”

The System’s reaction was so intense that Su Xi wanted to press for details, but a tender, soft voice whispered in his ear. He looked back to see Mephisto leaning by the water’s edge.

“I said I would be obedient.” The merman curled the corners of his lips into a smile, his lashes trembling innocently. “I won’t leave this room. Come find me when you’ve finished your task.”

Almost the instant he finished speaking, a cold, mechanical voice rang out:

“Ding! Congratulations, Host, on unlocking a hidden mission: Please work hard to eliminate or recapture all experimental subjects within the Institute! As the only remaining researcher, you are the last hope of Fuguang!”

Again? Su Xi looked at the mission panel that had suddenly popped up. His face paled as he gnashed his teeth and whispered, “Are you kidding me? It’s only the first day, how am I the only one left…?”

His heart was a mess of complicated emotions. He wanted to find someone to complain to, but in the end, he could only accept the reality. How was he, a powerless researcher, supposed to deal with a horde of subjects with bizarre abilities?

Su Xi lowered his eyes, masking his thoughts, and took a moment to compose himself.

Beyond the blizzard blocking the roads, this massive breakout was caused by the total failure of all control collars and bracelets. The Institute had prepared for such an emergency with a backup system in the rooftop control room, but in the first moments of the collapse, someone discovered it was missing.

“So, who is the traitor in the Institute?”

The answer was obvious. The traitor had to be the only other “human” besides Su Xi who was still walking around the Fuguang Institute as if nothing had happened.

In the long corridors of the Institute, screams rose and fell. Occasional frantic footsteps were quickly swallowed by the sound of heavy objects being dragged. The wet sound of splashing was accompanied by the rustling of fabric.

In the dim hallway, a researcher who could barely be called human anymore fled in panic. His white lab coat was shredded and hanging in tatters, soaked in a deep purple fluid. Behind him, an octopus the size of half a room waved its tentacles, closing the distance. Once a tentacle wrapped around the man’s neck, it took only a moment to strangle the life out of him.

The scene was too bloody. Su Xi, emerging from a corner, only saw the spray of blood. He backed away, face white, and swallowed hard.

One of those tentacles could crush me instantly. How am I supposed to ‘recapture’ that?

In the end, he still needed to find a high-level subject to control the others. Currently, the most powerful known subject besides the three S-ranks was A04. But unless it was absolutely necessary, Su Xi really didn’t want to go near that blue-ringed octopus.

Slimy blue tentacles, a habit of clinging to him, and a volatile temper the experience of being dangled in mid-air was not something he wanted to repeat.

He held his breath and waited for the ugly octopus to leave before creeping out. He glanced at the floor map on the wall, which was now unrecognizable, and decided to head to the Director’s office for clues.

However, just as he stepped inside, someone followed him in.

BANG! The door was slammed shut with violent force. Su Xi’s expression changed as he spun around.

“Xiao Yangyao? Why are you still in the Institute?” Su Xi’s eyes widened in shock. He had previously begged the man to stay, but Xiao Yangyao had claimed he had urgent business and had to leave. Yet the face before him was unmistakable.

Seeing Su Xi’s shock, Xiao Yangyao let out a light laugh, his brow arching. “Isn’t it good that I stayed to protect you?”

“Wait… something’s not right.”

Su Xi backed away until his waist hit the edge of the desk. He propped himself up with his arms, trying to use words to stop the man’s advance. “Um… you can talk from over there. I can hear you.”

Is he kidding? If he got touched in this state, he’d be like a piece of sticky candy. Skin hunger—what kind of cursed trait is this?

Xiao Yangyao stopped half a meter away. A flash of impatience crossed his handsome face before vanishing. He stared at Su Xi, his gaze burning, shamelessly looking him up and down.

Uncomfortable under the scrutiny, Su Xi coughed and moved inconspicuously to the right, reaching for the second drawer. The key to the surveillance room was there.

He threw the water glass from the desk at Xiao Yangyao, grabbed the key, and bolted for the door.

The current “him” might not even be human anymore…

Recalling the various mutants he had seen on the way, the air felt thin.

Just then, the door he was reaching for opened on its own. Before Su Xi could celebrate, he crashed into a warm chest. The scent was incredibly familiar—a crisp, clear wood fragrance. He didn’t even need to look up to know who it was.

It was the silver-haired youth who had handed him the handkerchief when he came out of the second basement level.

“Are you all, right?” the youth asked the same familiar question.

Avoiding the youth’s attempt to lift his chin, Su Xi began to wonder if Mephisto had lied to him. The merman said Su Xi was the only human left, so what were these two standing in front of him? Ghosts?

“…”

The air seemed to stagnate.

Su Xi feigned calm and backed away a few steps. His gaze shifted from the youth to the surroundings, but a wave of inexplicable heat began to spread from the skin where they had touched. He instinctively grabbed the cold wall to keep from falling.

A soul-stirring scent of orchids began to waft through the room, growing more intense by the second.

“So fragrant…” Uranus murmured, his silver-white lashes looking as though they were dusted with frost.

Hearing this, Su Xi bit his lip hard. He reached back to cover the gland area on his neck and shuffled toward a far corner, away from both men.

The once spacious room suddenly felt cramped. Xiao Yangyao leaned lazily against the desk, his eyes unreadable. Meanwhile, the delicate youth’s ears were flushed crimson as he stole glances at Su Xi.

“How long are you two going to just stare?” The atmosphere was too bizarre for Su Xi to handle. He took a deep breath; his forehead was covered in beads of sweat not from pain, but from the heat.

Despite it being a bone-chilling winter at -4°C, he felt as though he were trapped in a furnace. He was lightheaded and his vision was blurring.

“Su Su, come here,” Xiao Yangyao’s eyes narrowed slightly. “Be good. I’ll take you through this.”

Hearing those words, Su Xi admitted he was tempted. He bit his lip to stay conscious, drawing a bead of blood that spread a metallic sweetness through his mouth.

A flash of clarity returned to his eyes, but it was quickly replaced by a dazed fog.

Evidently, Xiao Yangyao couldn’t stand just watching anymore. He shot a glance at Uranus before walking toward Su Xi with suppressed urgency. He seized the man’s wrist and pulled him directly into his arms.

“Are you afraid of me?” Xiao Yangyao’s voice whispered against the back of his ear, laced with undisguised amusement.

The warm breath hitting his sensitive skin made Su Xi shiver uncontrollably. He lowered his eyes as if thinking. A moment later, he turned and hugged the man back, even nuzzling against him dependently.

Xiao Yangyao wasn’t surprised by the sudden change in attitude; he knew Su Xi’s constitution was special. But for Uranus, the sight was a massive shock. The man who had resisted and even loathed his touch was now acting incredibly docile in another’s arms.

Holding onto Xiao Yangyao, Su Xi felt the discomfort in his body ease significantly. He wrapped his arms tighter around the man’s waist and asked muffle-voiced, “Was it you who took the backup device?”

“It wasn’t me,” Xiao Yangyao replied, looking down at him.

“Then why are you fine?” Su Xi still found it strange, his misty eyes full of confusion.

Xiao Yangyao’s tone darkened, sounding slightly displeased. “You want me to be in trouble?”

Realizing his mistake, Su Xi shook his head quickly, a rosy flush spreading across his jade-like face. “That’s not what I meant…”

CRACK. The sound of a glass being crushed suddenly rang out.

They looked toward the source. It was Uranus, who had remained silent until now. He was looking at the two of them with a complex, pained expression.

“Don’t forget,” Uranus said, his brow furrowed as he emphasized every word, “the task at hand.”