I Will Never Submit to Miss Grim Reaper - Chapter 414

Chapter 414: Still Believing in Beautiful Fairy Tales

 

The bus driver today seems to be the slower, more patient type. The bus moves at a slower speed compared to most other buses I remember, swaying leisurely under the bright sun as it heads towards the city center along the predetermined route.

 

Sitting on this bus, in the body of Xiao Mo, even while processing a lot of information simultaneously, my brain feels like it’s in “standby” or “half-sleep” mode, not at all reaching the “load” level.

 

I can easily pay attention to my surroundings while logging into our Tongmeng account on Xiao Mo’s phone to check various private messages and comments without any problem.

 

Fei Luo and Gabriel’s principle of not needing rest usually works the same way. They have extremely strong physical constitutions—one is a dragon, and the other is an angel. They can stay active for long periods without needing rest.

 

As for their brains, even if they work like this every day, their brains remain in a “half-sleep” state. Daily activities like bartending, playing games, and livestreaming don’t burden their brains. After a day’s work, their brains are essentially “sleeping.” Since their bodies aren’t tired and their brains aren’t tired, it’s no wonder they don’t feel sleepy at night.

 

In other words, as long as they’re not engaged in high-intensity combat, Fei Luo and Gabriel are almost always resting.

 

“A netizen sent us a private message saying they really like the operation model of our cafe and hope we don’t quit. They promised to visit Shenzhen City someday… It feels similar to novel readers. I used to have many readers say they would support my new book, but most of them went silent later.”

 

“Yeah…”

 

Xiao Mo nodded beside me, “Maybe… it’s just a polite remark.”

 

I could sense that “Yin Nuo’er’s” breathing had slowed down a bit, her heartbeat had also slowed, and her body temperature had dropped slightly. Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed Xiao Mo discreetly yawning. Her big eyes had closed slightly, looking very sleepy.

 

“There are also a lot of netizens asking when we’re going to work. They’ve visited the cafe several times but haven’t seen us… Here are two more, directly complaining, saying things like, ‘You’ve been resting for so long, if you don’t want to work, then don’t. You just got your position because of your looks,’ and even cursing our parents.”

 

Ouyang Xue posts the work schedule for the Maids in Shangjing Cat Cafe every day on the official public account. Besides the public account, anyone who has joined our WeChat or QQ groups can see the schedule for the next three days and the menu changes from the daily pinned group announcements.

 

For example, today Xiao Mo and I are off, tomorrow we’re working, and Lan Jiajia is off. These announcements are made in the public account, WeChat groups, and QQ groups.

 

Even if some people have social anxiety, don’t have a Tongmeng account, or don’t usually check it, as long as they’re willing to spend a few seconds using a search engine to look up “When does XXX cafe work?” they can find our public account and check the detailed duty schedule.

 

If all else fails, they can come directly to the cafe. Ouyang Xue has posted the relevant schedule information outside the door. Once the manager’s handover is complete, these tasks will be my responsibility.

 

Unfortunately, just like in novels, no matter how many announcements or promotions we do, there will always be people who don’t understand the situation and come out to criticize, saying the cafe doesn’t advertise at all and doesn’t inform everyone about the staff schedule, making them waste a trip. Some even start off with a barrage of insults. I’m used to it.

 

“Yeah…”

 

My words only elicited a soft, cat-like response from Xiao Mo beside me.

 

I saw her place her phone on her lap with both hands, tilt her head towards me, and rest it on my shoulder.

 

“Nuo’er… no, Momo, you keep talking.”

 

Using a voice reminiscent of Yoshino’s from “Date A Live,” Xiao Mo, who was using my shoulder as a pillow, softly said, “I… really like this kind of atmosphere… Is this what you usually feel?”

 

“Who likes to hear your voice, hmph!”

 

“I didn’t mention my own voice here, you’re the one who admitted it.”

 

I slightly turned my head. “Are you sleepy?”

 

“A little bit.”

 

Xiao Mo closed her eyes. “But I really like listening to you talk like this.”

 

“Shall I continue talking then?”

 

“Yeah… I like… this kind of atmosphere…”

 

Xiao Mo’s voice grew softer and softer.

 

The sunlight outside the window slanted across her small face, and from my angle, her once milky white skin, which used to be visible in the mirror, looked particularly enticing.

 

For some reason, Xiao Mo’s appearance reminded me of scenes from some dreams I had before.

 

Once, a little demon slept quietly by the sea, with her back to the campfire. Behind her, the hero squad was discussing the battle plan for the next day.

 

The soldiers’ discussions, the sound of the waves, and the calls of insects and night frogs on the beach all intertwined. Despite the noisy surroundings, the little demon peacefully closed her eyes and slept, the flickering campfire casting petal-like shadows on her dark red face.

 

“Then I’ll look for some videos and comments about our cafe online from the past few days.”

 

Staring silently at Xiao Mo’s sleeping face for a while, I closed the private message page on the Tongmeng app on my phone and entered “Shangjing Cat Maid Cafe” into the search bar.

 

The top results were mostly PVs and various daily short videos uploaded by Ouyang Xue. A few were “store visit videos” by some highly followed influencers.

 

Hmm… When Sister Ouyang goes to the internet cafe over there, I’ll have to learn how to make videos too.

 

“Here’s a video by a blogger with 200,000 followers about their experience at the cafe. It has over 600,000 views.”

 

I clicked on the video and turned the volume down. “I remember this influencer, tall and skinny. I served him that day in the store. I thought he was a local because he spoke with a Shenzhen accent… The intro is just ten seconds long, and it really is the video from that day he visited the store.”

 

Xiao Mo’s breathing gradually became steady.

 

“The top comment in the comment section: ‘Nuo’er and Xiao Mo should be together forever,’ with over 8,000 likes.”

 

Just like when the store first opened, the biggest doubt online about the cafe is still whether the maids are using beauty filters.

 

It seems many people are caught in some kind of loop: “The girls in the cafe are so pretty and cute, they must be using beauty filters.” Then some influencers travel a long way to “expose the truth” only to be proven wrong. Except for Ai Luodi, Lan Jiajia, and Ouyang Xue, whose appearances and figures are above average, the rest like Yin Nuo’er, Yin Xiamo, Fei Luo, Gabriel, and Dolly are stunning even without beauty filters.

 

The beauty features on various smartphone cameras tend to have a “negative optimization” effect on “Yin Nuo’er,” making her look unrealistic when turned on.

 

When these influencers debunked the rumors about the cafe PVs using beauty filters, it seemed that as more people learned about the cafe through Ouyang Xue’s promotions, new viewers started questioning again, saying, “They must be using beauty filters!”

 

Then it would lead to various “real-life” segments by authentic influencers, generating another wave of traffic. I even started to suspect if these doubting voices were orchestrated by Ouyang Xue herself.

 

Besides the maids in the store, many people were also attracted by our “food.” For instance, the “sour porridge with white-cut duck” I made earlier is a local delicacy in Shenzhen. Initially, I made it for myself, but I made a bit too much.

 

So, I asked Chef Wang to place it at the “free condiments” area for everyone to help themselves. My fans dining in the cafe saw that it was made by Nuo’er and rushed to grab it. It didn’t take long before the sour porridge and white-cut duck were all gone. Many of these customers were not locals of Shenzhen and were amazed by this dish. When they went back, they exaggerated their praise, and the hype grew again.

 

Before Xiao Mo and I went on our “honeymoon,” many people online requested that I make “sour porridge with white-cut duck” again. The debate grew fierce, with some saying it was an inedible dark dish, while others claimed it was a divine delicacy that made them addicted after one bite, creating quite a buzz.

 

“It feels like, whether we’re authors, waitstaff, or running these public accounts, we’re all facing the same audience.”

 

As I scrolled through the comments under the video, I softly spoke to Xiao Mo beside me, like lulling a child to sleep.

 

“The world is so big, with people from all over. Some people send hateful private messages without understanding, some pass by and downvote, or say strange things.”

 

“But more people are blessing us. Just like when I used to write books, being criticized, or having people point out where the plot was unreasonable, or seeing sarcastic comments often made me feel bad for days. I’d start doubting myself, wondering if I was really not suited for writing, or if I should consider ending the book… It was quite tough.”

 

“But… later on, I realized that it’s because those who support us do so quietly, and we don’t see it. Only the haters, like bad apples in an orchard, emit a sour and stinky smell from afar, making me think the whole orchard is bad…”

 

“Like this video, people don’t directly message us with their blessings, they just silently give likes…”

 

Amid my “self-talk,” the heartbeat of “Yin Nuo’er” beside me became steady, and her body temperature dropped slightly compared to before, as if her metabolism had slowed down.

 

Asleep?

 

I gently turned my head to look at Xiao Mo, who was using my body. In the sunlight, this little girl’s face looked very peaceful. Despite her head resting on my shoulder and the bus swaying, she was sleeping soundly.

 

Just as Xiao Mo had said before: “Nuo’er, your eyelashes are like a pair of beautiful butterflies, fluttering as if they might take flight at any moment.”

 

I used to think Xiao Mo was exaggerating, but from her perspective, it doesn’t seem wrong.

 

Also, if I remember correctly, my body hasn’t rested in a long time. Unlike Xiao Mo, who can go months or even years without sleep, my body is still growing and has a physical constitution not much different from an ordinary person. My brain’s processing power isn’t strong enough to treat daily life as if it were in a dormant state.

 

In the other world, a day is over thirty hours long. That night, I stayed in the lizardman village. After waking up in the morning, I flew back to Diwutith with the little demons on the Mobius Circle. After that, Xiao Mo and I explored the Grand Garden and exchanged bodies.

 

Converting it to Earth time, it’s roughly like… I slept a whole night the night before last, from about 10 PM to 10 AM the next day, a long stretch of sleep. But last night, I barely rested. My body was only still for three hours when Xiao Mo transferred my soul into her body near the altar.

 

In a sense, the body is a vessel that carries the soul and can influence the soul in return. So it’s perfectly normal for Xiao Mo, who is using my body, to feel sleepy, since “Yin Nuo’er” is tired.

 

While I’m in Xiao Mo’s body, I don’t feel sleepy at all, but if I were to switch back to my own body now, I would feel exhausted. It’s the same principle as if I bit myself, Xiao Mo would feel the pain in that spot after switching back.

 

“You know… the image you’ve maintained all along has completely crumbled in these past few days.”

 

Seeing “Yin Nuo’er” sleeping peacefully like a harmless little kitten, I sighed softly, “When I first met you, I thought you had a very strong and domineering personality, like an older sister.”

 

“At that time, I wondered, is this the kind of yandere character from novels? But it felt different from a yandere. Hmm, I’m not a yandere novel writer, so I don’t know much about that.”

 

“I just simply thought… if Miss Grim Reaper had her eyes on me, would my life become miserable?”

 

“But later, I slowly realized… Xiao Mo, you are actually quite gentle most of the time.”

 

Although the fact that my body hasn’t slept is a factor, I’m still quite surprised that Xiao Mo can sleep on the bus.

 

Xiao Mo is a warrior.

 

She is also a seasoned demon warrior with thousands of years of battle experience.

 

She should know what happens when you let your guard down in an unfamiliar environment, and thousands of years should have made her accustomed to staying alert at all times. Yet, here beside me, “Yin Nuo’er” shows no sign of defensiveness on her face.

 

Through her breathing rate, heartbeat, and body movements, I can tell that Xiao Mo has fallen asleep. She has truly placed all her trust in me.

 

“Even though this is so different from your usual image, I don’t know if I should say this, but this version of Xiao Mo feels more real to me.”

 

To the former me, Xiao Mo was a god, Miss Grim Reaper, the big sister who turned me from an uncle into a little girl, seemingly omnipotent.

 

But now, from what I’ve learned from Fei Luo, Gabriel, and my own observations, Xiao Mo has always been a living person.

 

She is also a girl, who once needed to rely on others to grow.

 

Everyone feels tired sometimes, needs to let down their guard and rest occasionally, and wants to trust someone.

 

When the body is tired, you can push through, but when the mind and soul are exhausted, it’s time to rest.

 

Xiao Mo might have had a similar thought when she swapped bodies with me today, treating me as someone she can completely trust, being willful just this once.

 

She actively destroyed the dignified image she had always presented to me, probably with this intention: we move forward and retreat together.

 

Love, it has never been one-sided. Love that only knows how to take, or where only one side gives, is never complete and won’t go far.

 

“We’re five stops away from downtown, about ten minutes. Should I sing you a song?”

 

Feeling the blend of milky and fruity aroma beside me, I set down my phone. A voice, once familiar yet now unfamiliar, which used to belong only to Xiao Mo, came out of my mouth.

 

“A song… from long, long ago, on a snowy day I learned it.”

 

“The winding little river flows slowly, a gentle breeze sings softly. In my memory, it’s you holding my hand, walking together over flower-covered hills…”

 

“Sometimes when I feel lost, I also sing softly. How I wish I could go back to childhood and relive carefree happiness…”

 

In the buzzing bus, to avoid disturbing the customers around us, I used Xiao Mo’s precise body control ability, almost as accurate as an instrument, to sing in a voice only Xiao Mo and I could hear:

 

“The stars blink their eyes, who is thinking of her in the wind?”

 

“……”

 

This song, “Star’s Eyes,” was somewhat of an enlightenment for me during childhood, a kind of introductory artistic children’s song.

 

That day, the weather was unusually cold, and for the first time, it snowed lightly over the medicinal plant garden. I ran out from the welfare home and heard the owner of a small shop on a nearby side street playing this song on a radio.

 

The melody of “Star’s Eyes” was particularly fitting for snowy weather. The owner must have liked that atmosphere because he replayed the song several times, leaving a deep impression on me outside.

 

Later at school, I asked around about this song and found out the singer was the third-place winner of the 2004 “Super Girl” national competition, who had sung songs like “Sour Sweet Me” and “Sing If You Want.” “Star’s Eyes” wasn’t very famous, but it was my favorite song back then because of its gentle melody.

 

Xiao Mo definitely knows about this because she mentioned that my favorite songs are “Star’s Eyes” and “The Season I Miss the Most,” although I haven’t sung them to her.

 

Back then, technology wasn’t as advanced, and mobile phones were limited to calls and texts. The only slightly “smart” devices that students could use were “learning machines”. As for MP3 and MP4 players that could play music, only students from relatively wealthy families could afford them.

 

Like me, a child who came out of the welfare home, if I wanted to listen to music, I would buy those radios that play cassette tapes, then spend one or two meals’ worth of saved money to buy tapes, and another two yuans for cheap earphones to plug in.

 

“Star’s Eyes” accompanied me throughout my entire middle school years and holds a very special meaning for me. I believe most people have such a song in their hearts, a song that represents their youth.

 

“I once — expected world, why does it seem a bit gray, is it because there needs to be some imperfection, so it’s perfect?”

 

“Even if it’s hard, I’m not afraid, I still believe in beautiful fairy tales…”

 

Yin Nuo’er’s voice is similar to that slow and elegant loli style, not suitable for this song, but if it’s Xiao Mo’s more confident and mature voice, it would be perfect.

 

From childhood to adulthood, I never deliberately practiced singing. Although not professional, I think my sense of pitch is still decent enough not to go off-key.

 

When I was alone at school, I would always hum “Someday, I will grow up, even if it’s at the cost of sweetness.” Now that I’ve really grown up, I don’t know why I’m nostalgic for my childhood again.

 

It’s like… I’ve grown enough to stand on my own, able to protect and care for my little demon. I suddenly thought about trying to transform into “Yin Nuo’er” and peacefully sleep beside my beloved person.

 

“In the future, I will also become strong like Xiao Mo. No matter how many ‘Demon Kings’ come, I won’t be afraid. I will protect you.”

 

After singing a song quietly, I reached out to help Xiao Mo tidy up the bangs on her forehead.

 

“When the time comes, Xiao Mo can sleep whenever she wants and hide in whichever cardboard box she likes.”

 

Xiao Mo’s eyelashes flickered. Although she didn’t open her eyes, from her noticeably faster breathing and heartbeat, I knew she was awake.

 

“The vehicle is approaching the station. Please hold on to your seats. Next station: South Chaoyang Road. Passengers who need to get off, please take your belongings and prepare to disembark…”

 

As another station approached its end and the bus started again, Xiao Mo slowly opened her eyes. “Have we arrived?”

 

“The next station.”

 

I smiled. “If you’re too tired, shall we find a place to rest?”

 

“I’ve already had a nap. Not tired anymore.”

 

Xiao Mo stretched lazily. “I wouldn’t miss the rare chance to play as Nuo’er. Spending time sleeping would be too much of a loss.”

 

I chuckled. “You didn’t seem to expend much magic using it just now, and it looks like we can swap again in the future.”

 

“It’s different. Using the Soul Forbidden Spell directly and using it in the Crystal Palace have completely different costs.”

 

Xiao Mo yawned. “Earlier, it was because you returned to the ‘Genesis Crystal’. That’s why I could manipulate your soul so easily. If it weren’t for that place, activating the Soul Forbidden Spell wouldn’t be so simple.”

 

“And also…” Xiao Mo looked out the window. “Swapping bodies occasionally is fine, but being Nuo’er allows me to do whatever I want with your body. However, seeing Nuo’er acting silly from my perspective is the most comfortable.”

 

What does she mean by acting silly? I’m not silly at all, right?

 

“The vehicle is approaching the station. Please be careful…” South Chaoyang Road, we have arrived.”

 

“We’re here.”

 

Seeing the bus slow to a stop, I stood up and took Xiao Mo’s hand.

 

“Grab your things, we’re getting off.”

 

“Mmm!” Xiao Mo leaned in and held onto my arm. “I saw a bubble tea shop at the entrance. Can I get that?”

 

“Of course.”

 

After getting off the bus with Xiao Mo, I looked ahead at the entrance to the pedestrian street and the bubble tea shop she mentioned.

 

“Is this the one? It looks like they’re having an event today.”

 

“Huh?”

 

Xiao Mo seemed startled by my generosity. “Nuo’er, aren’t you worried that I’ll drink bubble tea and make your body fat?”

 

I reached out and gently flicked her head. “Now you’re Nuo’er, so how you treat your own body is entirely up to you!”

 

In reality, not just for a day or two, even if Xiao Mo were to indulge in eating and drinking with my body for a week or a month, my weight wouldn’t likely change much. This is determined by genetics itself.

 

For most people, if they overeat and don’t exercise, their bodies store excess energy and fat because that’s the nature of most organisms—before human technological societies emerged, food was generally scarce. Even going back thirty-four years, everyone had little to eat.

 

If the body couldn’t perfectly digest what was eaten and store the energy, these individual humans wouldn’t have survived to the present day, leaving no descendants.

 

As human food gradually became more abundant, the problem of obesity also arose because everyone’s genes hadn’t kept up with the abundance of food in this “Earth Online” version. In the old version, people with good gastrointestinal absorption and slight obesity survived, qualifying to pass down offspring.

 

In the new version, everyone’s food is plentiful, people who absorb too well are too fat, their bodies have all sorts of diseases, can’t live to marry wives and husbands, their genes break, only those who can perfectly adapt to the version, good looking and good figure, moderate absorption, no fat and obesity diseases to survive and find partners, give birth to offspring, genes have ushered in another round of evolution.

 

However, my body, along with Xiao Mo’s and Fei Luo’s, is different. If Xiao Mo eats too much, Fei Luo can convert some of the food energy into her own magic power and some into dragon milk. In my case, it all converts directly into magic power without any effect on the body like fat.

 

Therefore, I don’t mind how much Xiao Mo eats or drinks using my body. A girl’s stomach is only so big, and if she can eat, I’m even happier for her—when we switch back, my magic power will have increased again.

 

“Then… Momo, take me there.”

 

Under the bright sunshine, “Nuo’er” quickly got into character and came over to grab my arm again. “I want a large cup, with pearls!”

 

“Alright, alright.”

 

I patted this fellow on the back, took out my phone, and walked into the bubble tea shop with my single-shoulder bag.

 

“Welcome!”

 

“Two large cups of signature pearl milk tea, less sugar.”

 

I tapped on Xiao Mo’s phone and switched to the payment interface. “Direct payment.”

 

“Okay, two signature teas, less sugar.”

 

The counter attendant quickly operated the register with a “beep-beep-beep” and handed me two tickets. “Please wait a moment.”

 

Hmm… This shop is well-located at the entrance of the pedestrian street, with a high customer flow. The lighting is excellent by this window, and the transparent partitions and mirrors… It’s probably designed like the transparent bathrooms in hotels, making the indoor space appear much larger.

 

For some reason, once inside the shop, I instinctively surveyed the layout and interior decoration here.

 

After Ouyang Xue leaves, I’ll be the cafe’s manager. I can start learning from other bubble tea shops from now on.

 

“Two large cups of signature pearl milk tea, less sugar.”

 

In no time, the counter attendant handed us the two cups of milk tea.

 

“Thank you.”

 

I handed one of the cups to Xiao Mo. “Before we go to the pedestrian street, I’ll take you somewhere, a place with few people and very secluded. I’ve been there a few times during high school, like the medicinal botanical garden, it’s my second secret base.”

 

After leaving the bubble tea shop with Xiao Mo, I lowered my voice. “Want to go?”

 

“Yes!”

 

An immediate response.

 

“……”

 

……