—Don’t let Si Xuanyang kill him.

This would have been an odd and confusing request for Si Nan in the past.

No matter how bad his brother’s temper was, he wouldn’t go as far as killing someone. That was beyond doubt, so what was there to remind him of?

But after these recent events, he wasn’t so sure anymore. A feeling was gradually growing inside him—if it involved Yu Ge, Si Xuanyang really might go that far.

And the more he thought about it, the more he felt this was an undeniable fact.

“I’ll try my best… try my best…” Si Nan chuckled dryly.

Yu Sen was almost furious. For the first time, he felt that language was an incredibly important weapon. He really wanted to curse someone out right now, but when he thought about how all that would come out of his mouth would be some ineffective, incoherent sounds, his fighting spirit instantly deflated.

It wouldn’t even sound like cursing; it would seem more like he was whining!

“Are there a lot of people downstairs?” Si Xuanyang naturally changed the topic, earning a fierce glare from Yu Sen.

“Not many,” Si Nan sighed in relief, carefully glancing at Yu Sen. “Those who haven’t gotten a pass already went out on the streets. During breakfast today, the lady of the house reminded us of something—tonight, children will be coming by to ask for candy, and we must treat them well. She didn’t explicitly say that we must give out Halloween candy, but everyone’s a bit worried. They’re afraid they don’t have enough candy, so those who’ve already gotten their passes are out looking around to see if they can get some extra candy.”

“Earn? Wishful thinking,” Si Xuanyang sneered. “This town’s trade is all bartering. If you want to get Halloween candy, you’ll probably have to give something up.”

“Who knows?” Si Nan shrugged, “Might as well try our luck; this whole process feels like it’s all about luck.”

His gaze shifted from Si Xuanyang to Yu Sen, and he sighed softly. “The two of you probably have opposite luck, and it would be good if it balanced out.”

Yu Sen: “…”

Can you watch your mouth? Just because I can’t argue back right now, huh?

“Yu Ge doesn’t have the worst luck either,” Luo Yu said helplessly, “The worst would be Yuan Fei. His boss is really tough. I heard that after they entered together, all their candy ended up with Huang Zhengxuan. It burned to ashes with him, leaving Yuan Fei with only one chance left—the jack-o’-lantern. With no way out, he set his sights on Yu Ge yesterday afternoon.”

“He brought it on himself,” Si Xuanyang said coldly. “And if we’re talking bad luck, it’s really Huang Zhengxuan who was unlucky, stuck with such a teammate. Otherwise, he might not have died so quickly.”

“That’s true…”

“By the way, should we also go to the streets to see if there’s a way to get Halloween candy?” Si Nan asked.

“I doubt it,” Si Xuanyang didn’t seem hopeful. “You don’t just earn starting items later on.”

He paused and said, “We still don’t know the use of those Western glasses. It’s best to figure that out first; they must have an important purpose.”

“Okay,” Si Nan nodded, “I tried them on before, didn’t notice anything special. How about I wear them all day today? With the whole afternoon, I should be able to notice something.”

At the mention of this, Yu Sen suddenly became interested. The previous frustration in his heart instantly lifted. He tugged at Si Xuanyang’s clothes, “Mm!”

Si Xuanyang raised an eyebrow at him, “You want to wear them?”

“Mm!”

“Alright, but if you get dizzy, take them off immediately.”

Si Xuanyang took the Western glasses with red and blue lenses out of the bag, looped the silver chain attached to the glasses around the back of Yu Sen’s neck, and placed the glasses on his high nose bridge.

“Dizzy?”

They were colored flat lenses, with no prescription, so what was there to feel dizzy about?

Yu Sen calmly shook his head.

After putting on the glasses, the world in front of him turned red and blue, but everything he saw was normal—the bed was a bed, the sofa was a sofa, and his boyfriend was still the same boyfriend.

“Looks pretty good, like watching a 3D movie in a theater,” Si Xuanyang said.

Yu Sen: “???”

What a suffocating description…

Si Xuanyang looked at Yu Sen’s frustrated face and tried his best to hold back his laughter, expressionless.

In fact, he did look very good wearing those glasses. They hid some of the original charm of his alluring eyes, and the silver frames and chain added a cold, restrained vibe. However, the dark blue and red lenses made his gaze seem even more mysterious and seductive.

His aura became more complex.

He definitely looked better wearing them than anyone else.

But he didn’t say that.

Si Xuanyang curved his lips, poking Yu Sen’s cheek with his fingertip: “Don’t get mad. You need to stay calm and be like a fish with a seven-second memory, don’t waste too much energy.”

“Hmph…”

Yu Sen rolled his eyes sharply again.

…

The four of them went downstairs for lunch. Yu Sen looked around but didn’t see Yuan Fei in the living room or the backyard. He pulled Si Xuanyang and asked, only to be told that Yuan Fei had been locked up. He was still breathing but not dead, though Si Xuanyang didn’t allow Yu Sen to go find him.

With Si Xuanyang’s iron grip on him, Yu Sen didn’t have enough strength to struggle. Even the slightest effort made him dizzy and unsteady, so he decided not to bother with the unfortunate guy who had brought trouble upon himself for the time being.

Lunch was blueberry pie, pizza, and creamy chicken stew—all of which tasted good. Although Yu Sen didn’t have much of an appetite, he still ate a little.

People came and went in the house, some of whom, like Yu Sen, were wearing glasses, but none of them seemed to have discovered anything special.

However, when some people saw Si Xuanyang by Yu Sen’s side, their eyes were filled with fear and wariness. By the time Yu Sen wanted to take a closer look, they had already taken their food and kept their distance as if avoiding disaster.

Perhaps many had seen Si Xuanyang torment Yuan Fei yesterday… Yu Sen pondered for a moment, glanced sideways at his “demon boyfriend,” and sighed helplessly.

The way those people looked at them, it was obvious how miserable Yuan Fei’s fate was going to be.

The snow outside had stopped, but judging by the current temperature, the piles of snow on the ground and rooftops wouldn’t melt anytime soon.

Yu Sen’s forehead was still hot. Si Xuanyang wouldn’t let him go outside, so he gave the glasses to Si Nan and Luo Yu, telling them to go for a walk.

Back in the room, with nothing else to do, Yu Sen leaned against the windowsill, watching the street below.

Halloween was approaching fast, and those without passes were getting more anxious. Bored, Yu Sen watched for a while and even saw someone trying to sneak into another yard to steal a pumpkin lantern.

However, as soon as the person touched the lantern, they were suddenly repelled by an unknown force, falling into the snow pile by the lawn, flailing around like a ridiculous carrot before finally crawling out in embarrassment.

After a while, Yu Sen felt too weak to continue. The room was well-heated but stuffy, and the bandages around his neck were wrapped tightly. His head was hot and dizzy, and the wound began to itch with a tingling sensation that he couldn’t scratch.

Si Xuanyang checked the time, fed him some medicine, and coaxed him into taking off his clothes, then began to wipe him down with alcohol.

Though it wasn’t the first time, Yu Sen still felt awkward and shy. His upper body was half-covered by a blanket, and when Si Xuanyang’s hand holding the cloth reached under it, Yu Sen instinctively followed, lightly gripping Si Xuanyang’s arm, moving along his own body.

He thought this would make it feel more natural, but as they wiped around his inner thighs, Yu Sen’s palm, resting on Si Xuanyang’s arm, grew hotter, even starting to sweat.

The places where their skin touched seemed to ignite, making the atmosphere even more ambiguous.

Yu Sen’s hand trembled. He wanted to keep holding on, but pulling away would seem suspicious. After a minute, instead of cooling down, his body felt even hotter.

Si Xuanyang paused, sighed, his voice lower and huskier than usual: “If you keep teasing me, you’ll regret it later.”

“!!!”

Yu Sen immediately pulled his hand back and shut his eyes, pretending to be asleep.

Forget it. It’s better to just sleep at a time like this.

A soft, sighing laugh came from above.

And before he knew it, he really did fall asleep.

His last thought was of Si Xuanyang lowering his head to kiss his right eyebrow, tucking the blanket snugly around him.

…

When Yu Sen woke up, it was already evening. He was sweating a little from being wrapped up so tightly, but the fever had subsided somewhat, and he felt much more refreshed.

Si Nan and Luo Yu returned before dark, complaining that they had worn the glasses all afternoon without seeing anything unusual, and that there was no way to collect Halloween candy. Tomorrow would be the last day, and the atmosphere among the players had become increasingly tense.

Those without passes were eyeing those who had them; those with passes were afraid of being targeted.

Many wanted to steal passes like Yuan Fei did, but the rules imposed certain restrictions, and unlike Yuan Fei, most weren’t crazy enough to disregard the consequences. They wouldn’t dare act openly until the last possible moment.

Si Xuanyang weighed the glasses in his hand, glanced at the Halloween candy on the bedside table, and said to Si Nan: “You two stay in our room before midnight. I suspect… these glasses are for seeing the trick-or-treaters tonight.”

Si Nan was startled, exchanged a glance with Luo Yu, and suddenly thought of something, asking: “If we can stay in your room for a while, then if everyone stays in one room, won’t we need less candy?”

“What are you thinking?” Si Xuanyang chuckled softly. “Pass cards aren’t starting items. Everyone out there is scheming, hoping others die quickly so they can take their things. Cooperation isn’t an option.”

He lowered his head and eyes, suddenly thinking of the person locked in a dark room on the first floor. A ruthless cold light flashed in his eyes.