"Hey, wake up," I said, patting Ya Nan's face.
Ya Nan's eyes snapped open, instantly sharp and predatory, her irises like a vast cosmos, the pupils at their center like black holes in the universe. After a few seconds, they gradually "returned" to a human appearance.
Ya Nan wiped the drool from her mouth and, uncharacteristically, greeted me with a "Good morning, boss."
She even smiled.
"You can smile?" I was pleasantly surprised. Ya Nan immediately suppressed her smile, then nuzzled back into my chest, pretending to be asleep?
But I couldn't sleep anymore. I was already a bit… aroused in the morning, and with the warm little Ya Nan pressed so close, I feared an accident. I gently pried her off me. "You sleep a bit longer. I'm going to get breakfast. Do you want… never mind, you can go hunting by yourself later."
She wouldn't enjoy the hotel's buffet.
After washing up, I found some Nescafé. I boiled half a pot of water and made a cup.
When I returned to the room, Ya Nan was gone. The window was open. I walked to the window, sipping my coffee and watching a beautiful woman swimming laps in the pool below.
Her strokes were textbook – was it butterfly? I'd seen it on TV. She was fast, too. By the time I finished my coffee, she'd already completed three or four lengths of the twenty-five-meter pool. I wanted to see what she looked like. She had a great figure, but in the water, with a swim cap and goggles, and the splashing water, I couldn't make out her face.
She swam another lap, finally reaching the edge and stopping. She treaded water, wiped the spray from her face, and pushed up her goggles.
"Holy cow, it's you!" I exclaimed.
The woman looked up, saw me, and was equally surprised. "Oh, what are you doing here?"
When I arrived last night, it was late, and I was tired. There was no immediate danger, so I'd lowered my guard and hadn't activated my Qi-sensing technique upon checking in. I never expected to find an old acquaintance in the hotel, a purple-qi expert at that!
It was Lin Xi!
"Wait for me, I'll be right down!" I said. The third floor was too high, and the pool had an echo effect. I was afraid my voice would be too loud and disturb other guests.
"No need to come down. I'm done. I'll get changed, and we can meet at the restaurant," Lin Xi said, climbing out of the water. The last time we met on the mountaintop, she wore loose clothing. Today, in her swimsuit, her figure was truly stunning!
"Okay," I said, swallowing hard.
"Just you?" Lin Xi asked.
"Ya Nan's with me, but she went out… for food. Don't worry about her," I replied. The eagle demon and Lin Xi had worked together once before, tracking the Mohe tribe to the Changbai Mountain Heavenly Lake, so they were quite familiar.
"Alright," Lin Xi said, flicking the edge of her swimsuit to drain the water that had seeped in. Her skin was incredibly firm!
I got dressed, left a note for the eagle demon, and headed down to the restaurant. Lin Xi probably needed to shower, as she wasn't there yet. The buffet restaurant was large, with thirty to forty tables and chairs, but only a few scattered guests. I found a corner and waited for two minutes. Lin Xi still hadn't arrived, and I was getting hungry. I got up to grab a plate of food and just sat down when Lin Xi appeared, dressed in a very casual, elegant dress and suit set. She spotted me but didn't rush over. She gave a slight nod, then, with her bag slung over her left arm, picked up some food herself and came to sit across from me, as if we were just ordinary friends.
"Eat up. The food here is good. I've been eating here for three days," Lin Xi said.
"You've been staying here?" I asked, figuring she wasn't just here for breakfast. The hotel rooms were quite expensive, but Lin Xi was clearly not lacking money.
"Yes."
"Why? Vacation?"
"Heh, I don't get holidays. I'm tracking someone here. If she doesn't make a move, I don't either," Lin Xi chuckled.
"Who?" I asked again.
Lin Xi lowered her voice, leaned close, and whispered by my ear, "The North Sea whale demon."