Duan Mingyuan, 29 years old, single, company employee, joined 4 years ago and has remained in the same position without any change, lives a life of regularity, doesn't smoke or drink, has no bad habits, and has a limited social circle, having little interaction with others outside of work.
The Fox Lady held a printed document in her hand and glanced at it for a moment.
She then looked up at the person in the living room. Under the warm-colored light and shadows, the man walked into the kitchen to peel ginger and took out a packet of brown sugar, placing the prepared ingredients into a pot of boiling water.
He then methodically removed his wet clothes and put them in the washing machine.
The Fox Lady quickly covered her eyes; otherwise, she might have seen some indecent scenes.
The wretched day for the corporate drone was about to come to an end.
The Fox Lady waited outside the door for quite a while, until she heard some noise from the bathroom. She then opened a slit between her fingers and saw Duan Mingyuan dressed in pajamas, finally not scantily clad.
Come on, Jiuyue, you can do this.
She took a deep breath and, after motivating herself internally, the Fox Lady knocked on the bedroom door.
"Knock knock knock!"
Soon, the door opened, and she began the self-introduction that she hadn't managed to complete in the alley, unable to wait any longer. "Hello, Mr. Mingyuan, nice to meet you for the first time, I'm Jiuyue, and I'm here to…"
"Sorry, not interested."
"Wait a minute, please give me 1 minute!"
Before Duan Mingyuan could close the door, the Fox Lady struggled to say, "This is the resume you recently submitted. I'd like to talk to you about your future job."
"Resume?"
Duan Mingyuan took the form she passed over with suspicion and indeed it contained his personal information.
He had indeed been considering a job change recently, as he had been in his current position for too long. His work was busy, overtime had become the norm, and he saw no room for promotion. With fewer and fewer colleagues in the office and the company continuing layoffs, he began to contemplate quitting.
He had sent out quite a few resumes, but...
A job interview at 01:05 in the morning?
The location was his home, and the interviewer was a monster.
No matter how one looked at it, the interview was filled with signs of unreliability.
"Now?"
The Fox Lady didn't speak; she just looked at him with pitiful eyes, her wet Daoist robe clinging tightly to her body. A cold wind blew by, making her shiver involuntarily.
The pressure that had eased somewhat due to Mr. Monster's selfless contribution spiked again on seeing the girl at the door, feeling as if ants were crawling all over his body.
How could someone with an umbrella get so drenched? Isn't it uncomfortable to have clothes sticking to you all the time? Her hair was also wet; if this continued, she would surely have a headache the next day. And her shoes were leaking water; her socks must have been soaked through long ago.
He just couldn't take it anymore.
"Mr. Duan, I—"
"Give me the umbrella."
The bewildered girl handed over the umbrella and watched, dazed, as Duan Mingyuan opened it in front of her to dry in the porch, then he ordered in an indisputable tone, "You go to the bathroom to take a shower first, I'll get you a change of clothes. There's a hairdryer on the washbasin, dry your hair, and also, can you wear your socks properly, why is one long and the other short?"
"...I'm sorry."
Jiuyue didn't know why she felt the need to apologize, but the way Duan Mingyuan spoke was indeed a bit frightening, so she obediently bent down to pull up the sock that had slipped down to her ankle to her knee.
Do humans normally invite someone of the opposite sex that they've just met to take a shower at their home?
With this question in mind, Jiuyue entered the bathroom, while Duan Mingyuan bent down to neatly arrange the shoes she had taken off, feeling the pressure that had been building inside him start to ease.
As the sound of water came from the bathroom, Duan Mingyuan went to the guest room to fetch a set of pajamas. Although his social life was almost nonexistent outside of work and he had had no visitors to his home since moving here, he had still prepared clean clothes and the bathroom was always stocked with disposable towels and toothbrushes.
He placed a chair by the bathroom door and neatly set the folded pajamas on top of it.
Next were the snacks.
Poli seaweed, rice crackers, potato chips, and beef jerky – he took some of each and neatly placed them on a tray, and the ginger sugar water was almost ready too, so he poured it into two prepared bowls.
It was half an hour later when Jiuyue came out of the bathroom, having changed into the loose pajamas and pants, and walked lightly towards Duan Mingyuan. Since entering the room her presence had been completely overshadowed by his, even though it was supposed to be her conducting the interview!
"You got caught in the rain just now, drink the ginger sugar water first."
Duan Mingyuan's tone softened as he looked at the Fox Lady in clean clothes, with the fluff on her ears and tail dried by the hairdryer and looking fluffy, and he found her much more agreeable to the eye.
"Sorry, I was indeed a mess just now!"
The conversation then fell into a temporary silence, with only the "glug glug" of drinking the ginger sugar water heard. Jiuyue, while smiling on the surface, screamed inwardly due to this sudden silence, causing her cheeks to turn bright red.
Why the sudden silence?
Wouldn't it be normal to make some polite small talk, at least saying "It wasn't that bad"?
Despite feeling a bit aggrieved, she was also taken care of thoughtfully, not only provided with clean clothes to change into, but also carefully prepared with four kinds of snacks and ginger sugar water, a first for her, especially with a stranger she had just met...
Shaking her head to clear her thoughts, she mustered her spirits and steered the conversation back on track, "The creature that appeared in the alley just now, we call it an 'evil specter.' In Yunlong City, there are many like it that roam around, preying on humans when they're alone. Our investigation indicates that several recent disappearances are related to them."
She paused before adding, "But I've never seen anyone as brave as you before, walking directly towards an evil specter."
Duan Mingyuan was very brave, perhaps even too brave.
Brave enough to kick an evil specter to smithereens upon encountering it.
She brought Duan Mingyuan's personal file with her, but it didn't indicate any experience dealing with evil specters.
"There's no need for flattery, let's get straight to the point. I am indeed considering changing jobs recently. As long as it's legal and compliant, I have no issue whether you're dealing with evil specters, monsters, extraterrestrials, aliens, Demon Lords, or even if it's clerical work or management. What matters are working hours, salary, bonuses, and benefits to match the risks of the job, and whether there's room for advancement in the future."
Duan Mingyuan drank the ginger sugar water from the bowl, "The focus is on whether the work hours, pay, bonuses, and benefits match the risks of the job itself and whether there is enough potential for growth."
"Before that, I have a question I'd like to ask you."
Jiuyue cleared her throat, adopting a serious face, trying to look as authoritative as possible, "How exactly are you so strong?"