Bai Youwei and Shen Mo went together to Zhu Shu and Yan Qingwen’s residence.

They knocked for a long time before the door opened.

Zhu Shu opened it, saw them standing outside, and paused for just a moment before stepping back to let them in. “I just went looking for you two…”

Bai Youwei and Shen Mo paused in turn.

Because Zhu Shu was wearing an apron, looking every bit the model housewife.

For most people, this would be nothing out of the ordinary — but for Zhu Shu, who had once been a celebrity, it looked strangely fresh.

Inside, they found the living room piled with supplies.

— They had the same goods themselves. It was what the organization had sent over as thanks after they cleared Game 21.

Zhu Shu moved the rice, flour, oil, and salt into the kitchen, clearing space for Bai Youwei and Shen Mo to sit, all while continuing to explain: “After Yan Qingwen came out of the game yesterday, he didn’t eat anything — had no appetite at all. I wanted to make him a nourishing soup. I just got the ingredients sorted out. It’s just the fire that’s a bit of a bother…”

She paused for a moment, then smiled bitterly. “It’s not like there’s much else I can do to help.”

Shen Mo glanced at the tightly closed bedroom door. “Because of Lu Ang?”

“…Mm.” Zhu Shu also looked toward the bedroom door. “He didn’t sleep all night. He said every time he closed his eyes, he’d see Lu Ang standing in front of him. Then when he heard that Su Man had gone missing, he couldn’t sleep at all. I was worried his body couldn’t take it, so I went to the medical team and got some sleeping pills. He just fell asleep a little while ago.”

Shen Mo was quiet for a moment. “For Yan Qingwen to work through this… it will probably take some time.”

Zhu Shu gave a low “mm.” “Right now… Yan Qingwen only has me left. I want to take good care of him.”

Five people had been brought together by a series of coincidences — perhaps at first it had been a web of favors owed, missions carried out, interests served — but walking this road together, a bond had long since grown among them that nothing else could replace. And yet, after arriving here, Li Li had gone back to the research team, parting ways with them; then came Lu Ang’s unfortunate death, and now Su Man’s mysterious disappearance —

Five people, and now only Zhu Shu and Yan Qingwen remained.

Thinking of this, Zhu Shu let out a heavy sigh. “Yan Qingwen… he seems indifferent to everything, but in truth, he values his teammates more than anyone. The blow Lu Ang’s death dealt him was enormous. Now with Su Man in trouble too, I’m genuinely worried he won’t be able to handle it.”

In some ways, Yan Qingwen and Shen Mo seemed similar — both cold and distant with others. But if you’d truly dealt with them, you’d notice the difference: Yan Qingwen was cold, yes, but he was “social,” even skilled at holding a certain sway within a group. Shen Mo’s coldness, on the other hand, was the real thing — like a lone wanderer, carrying a careless indifference toward people and things alike.

For Yan Qingwen, whose nature was bound to a team, losing teammates was, without question, a devastating blow.

Like a conductor stripped of his orchestra. Like a formation of wild geese suddenly scattered. Like a general charging into battle only to find he is the last one standing… That kind of loneliness and desolation was something few could truly understand.

Bai Youwei asked Zhu Shu, “How did Su Man just disappear like that? Are you certain she isn’t in any danger?”

Zhu Shu smiled bitterly. “Yesterday, her family came to us carrying a handwritten letter she’d left behind. They asked if we knew where she’d gone. In the letter, Su Man wrote that she needed to go somewhere, and asked her family to take care of themselves and not to worry about her.”

Bai Youwei’s eyes widened. “…She needed to go somewhere?”

“Yan Qingwen suspects she entered the labyrinth.” Zhu Shu sighed again. “Su Man’s right hand was badly injured when she left ‘The Last Bride.’ At the time, Yan Qingwen and Lu Ang carried her out of the underground parking garage and helped treat the wound. She didn’t want us to worry, so she had Yan Qingwen and Lu Ang keep it secret — didn’t tell her family either. Thinking about it now, the injury to her hand is probably the reason she left without a word. She went to the labyrinth.”