Shen Mo had waited a long time for Bai Youwei. Seeing she still hadn’t returned, he grew worried.

He stepped outside and came to the edge of the road, hesitating over whether to go investigate near the village chief’s house, when he spotted Bai Youwei appearing at the junction ahead, walking slowly back toward him.

Shen Mo went to meet her.

Bai Youwei saw him and blinked in surprise. “…Your injuries healed?”

“More or less.” He nodded. “After resting a while, I’m much better.”

He glanced down, his gaze falling on her wrist, and his brow creased. “You’re injured. What happened?”

“It’s nothing…” Bai Youwei shifted uncomfortably, moving that hand behind her back. “I found a hidden basement in the village chief’s house. I scraped it going down… but I found what I needed. I finally know how to counter a werewolf.”

“Are you alright?” Shen Mo asked.

“Fine…” Bai Youwei forced an easy smile and shifted her shoulder. The rabbit perched there lost its footing and nearly tumbled off.

She laughed and said, “I’ve got it with me — what could possibly go wrong?”

Not wanting Shen Mo’s attention to linger on her injury, she changed the subject. “What about the village chief? Why didn’t he go back?”

Shen Mo replied, “I told him a boy had been pulling out nails around the village. The chief gathered some villagers and has been going door to door questioning people.”

The number of silver nails any given villager had was something of a mystery — no one could ever get an accurate count.

One household would be missing some, another would have too many.

Some people, lacking silver nails of their own, went to pull out their neighbors’; some, worried their count was too low and their protection insufficient, also went to pull out their neighbors’. Some simply went and pulled them out regardless.

No matter the reason, pulling out nails was an act that invited universal outrage.

Bai Youwei looked up at the sky. It was about two to three hours until sunset.

There was still time — though not as much as she might have liked.

“Have you seen Hans?” she asked.

Shen Mo shook his head. “Probably hiding in some empty house. He has wolfsbane now, so he has nothing to fear. Fewer nails on the door would actually make things more convenient for him.”

“According to the game rules, a werewolf can’t attack the same target on two consecutive nights. You were attacked last night, so tonight you should be safe.” Bai Youwei paused in thought, then continued, “He’ll definitely come after me tonight. I need to find a different place to hide.”

Shen Mo asked, “Should we look for a house with more silver nails?”

At the thought of those tiny nails — white, sharp, like droplets of concentrated acid — Bai Youwei felt deeply uneasy, her skin crawling with instinctive revulsion.

She managed a strained smile. “I’ll go look myself. Your injuries aren’t fully healed — you should rest and recover faster.”

It was only a matter of finding a house, after all. There was no need for both of them to go.

Besides… Shen Mo pressed a hand to his wound and winced slightly. The flesh had healed, but his bones still ached with a dull persistence. Having physical capability halved was a severe disadvantage for any player.

Bai Youwei took his arm and walked him back to his room. “Don’t worry. I already know how to deal with him. Just wait for good news from me.”

With Shen Mo’s body as it was, he couldn’t match a werewolf in a fight again.

He reached into his coat and pulled out a silver dagger, holding it out to Bai Youwei. “Take this. For protection.”

Bai Youwei: “…”

At that moment, she was genuinely grateful for the blacksmith’s corner-cutting. At least the handle was iron.

She accepted the dagger from Shen Mo with great care.

Noticing the skeptical look in his eyes, she quickly said, “I’ve got the rabbit — that’s plenty. Carrying a dangerous weapon like this, what if I accidentally scratch someone? What if it leaves a scar?… Ugh, this is really… fine, considering it’s from you, I suppose I can reluctantly accept it.”

Half complaining, half playful — it was enough to dispel Shen Mo’s suspicions.

The sky grew a few shades darker.

At the moment of parting, she kissed Shen Mo’s cheek and said affectionately, “This time, let me be the one to protect you~”

Shen Mo laughed despite himself, watching her walk away, with the inexplicable sense that their roles had somehow been reversed.

—