It was at that point in time that the securely shut door of the shop suddenly opened with a creak. But there was no one to be seen inside. The doorway was like a huge mouth that was full of unknown dangers.
He frowned slightly and felt a tightness in his throat. He, who had always been so calm and composed, was actually getting a little panicky at this moment.
As the sounds of the people pursuing him came closer and closer, he gritted his teeth, took a large step forward, and rushed directly into the shop. He had no other choice.
After he went through the doorway, the door of the shop shut with a creak once again, and the sound was daunting.
Inside the shop, the lights were on and the windows were bright and clean. It wasn't at all as weird as he had expected it to be.
"I've already told you to fix that door. The door creaks and squeaks every time it's opened and closed. Our customers will be inclined to find it horrible. If Boss finds out about it, you better be careful, or she'll skin you."
"I got it. I got it. I'll fix it after this customer leaves."
The voices of a man and a woman came to his ears.
He looked at the two people in front of him and a look of astonishment flashed across his face. Of these two, the man had an extraordinary bearing and was exceptionally handsome, while the woman had bright eyes, a set of white teeth, and brows that were so beautifully shaped that they looked like a piece of artwork. When the two people noticed that he was staring at them, they smiled and approached him.
"Dear guest, this way, please. Our boss is waiting for you."
The two people spoke in unison, saying the exact same thing. It made his heart skip a beat. But, even though he found the situation a bit strange, he had actually started to calm down, albeit slowly. He didn't sense any malice or… murderous intentions... from these two people.
"I… there are people behind me who want to kill me. If it will bring danger to you guys, I will leave right away." He didn't respond to what the two had just said. Instead, he told them this.
"No, they can't enter this place. Dear guest, you're so adorable. Hehe. You almost died yourself, and you're still thinking about others," the woman said with a smile, but the smile seemed forced and ingenuine, so he couldn't tell for sure whether she was praising him or being sarcastic.
"Portly, you will repair the door later," a lazy voice came from inside the room. Though what the voice said merely seemed like a passing comment put across in a light, casual manner, it made the smiling lady stiffen all over. Then, she started weeping as she made her way to the side.
The man was trying to hold back his laughter, but his face was serious. Once again, he made a polite gesture of invitation and said, "Dear guest, this way please."
Drawing a lesson from the woman's mistake, the man no longer dared to make jokes. She had called Kong Hou by the nickname that was most humiliating to her, and she had even punished her by making her repair the door. Their boss must've been seriously annoyed by Kong Hou's lack of self-restraint when she had made those sarcastic remarks. Kong Hou was a fool in this respect. Didn't she know that their boss was exceptionally fond of and partial to humans?
"Dear guest, please take a seat." The man brought him in and beckoned him to sit down with gestural prompts. Then he turned and walked away.
He raised his head to look up and was met with a face on all smiles.
For a moment, he was somewhat distracted, simply because he had never seen such a beautiful woman before. Even that woman who had astonished him when he'd entered the shop wasn't even a tenth as beautiful as the one in front of him now.
"Dear guest, welcome to my shop," the lady in front of him spoke up, her voice carrying the same laziness as it had before. As if she sensed his confusion and suspicions, she said, "Don't worry. Since you're able to enter my shop, that means you're a fated one. Those people outside won't be able to get in."
"Can't get in?" He was confused, but more than that, he was worried. He couldn't imagine what would happen to this inhumanely beautiful woman right in front of him if those people outside were to barge in here. And the mere thought that he was the reason for all of this made him somewhat fidgety.
"So don't worry." The woman looked at the undisguised worry and guilt in the eyes of the man in front of her and the smile on her lips widened. Oh, humans. They always had their way of evoking tender affection and compassion for them.