Chapter 124 | After Maxing Out, I Became a Landlord in Another World

The lights in Loviki's bedroom went out.

The five of them lay side by side on the floor beds. The curtains were drawn, and only a sliver of moonlight filtered through the gap, leaving a silver band of light on the floor.

Velyan lay nearest to the door, her breathing even, clearly fast asleep.

Louise lay with her back to the window, her breathing steady.

Flora lay on Loviki's left, on her side, likely asleep as well.

Loviki lay on her back, her hands folded over her stomach, staring quietly at the ceiling with her eyes wide open.

She couldn't sleep at all.

Even though this was her room, she had laid out the floor beds herself, and the blankets had been washed and sun-dried by her own hands, carrying a scent she was familiar with.

On top of that, Flora, Louise, Velyan, and Chen Mian were all here.

Everything was perfect, yet she just couldn't fall asleep.

She was thinking about what Velyan had said during the hot pot: “Loviki, you keep looking toward the door.”

Why did even Velyan notice... Was she really that obvious?

She turned her head, her gaze drifting toward Chen Mian.

He was lying not far away, incredibly close to her, his features clearly defined in the faint moonlight.

He was currently closing his eyes, and his face, which usually carried a calm and composed expression, looked quite soft in the moonlight.

After a moment, Loviki realized she had been staring for a bit too long. She quickly withdrew her gaze and looked back up at the ceiling.

She knew about the relationship between Flora and Chen Mian; she had known ever since the day she saw Chen Mian feeding Flora cake on the stairs, and she was well aware of the inexplicable emotions stirring in her own heart.

Back at the apartment, she could still pretend not to notice, but when Chen Mian told Louise, right in front of her, “In that case, you live in my heart too,” she found she could no longer pretend she hadn't heard. Her chest felt tight and heavy.

The things she wanted to say and do always seemed to lose their flavor whenever she was in front of him.

Loviki let out a soft sigh and closed her eyes.

After a long time, she still felt completely awake, so she opened her eyes again to look at the ceiling.

Just then, she felt her fingers being gently touched.

Loviki froze slightly and shifted her gaze to her stomach. At some point, Chen Mian's hand had slipped out from under his blanket, and the tip of his pinky finger was resting gently on the back of her hand.

She slowly turned her head to look at Chen Mian's face. He still had his eyes closed, and his breathing was even. He seemed to be asleep, which made her breathe a small sigh of relief, though a trace of inexplicable disappointment also welled up in her heart.

Chen Mian's fingertip twitched slightly, his pinky brushing against hers.

Loviki held her breath, staring quietly at his hand with a conflicted expression.

After a moment, as if possessed, she reached out her pinky and gently hooked it around his finger. At that instant, she felt her heart racing furiously, her palms growing sweaty.

Chen Mian is asleep, so just a tiny touch should be fine, right...

But in the next moment, Chen Mian's hand moved. It slid from her hooked finger and slowly covered her entire hand, his palm gently holding the back of her hand.

Loviki's body stiffened slightly. She couldn't tell if she was happy or panicked; she only knew her heart was beating so fast and loud that it felt almost deafening to her.

After hesitating for a long time, she still turned her head.

In the moonlight, Chen Mian had his eyes open and was looking at her, his face carrying a touch of post-sleep laziness, and he seemed to be in a pretty good mood.

Loviki opened her mouth to explain, but ultimately found herself at a loss for words. She wanted to pull her hand back, but her body refused to cooperate.

In the next moment, however, her body stiffened once more. She heard the sound of Flora tossing and turning. The movement was very light, but in the quiet room, it sounded exceptionally clear. Loviki instinctively tried to pull her hand away, but Chen Mian had no intention of letting go. He merely rubbed his thumb gently against the back of her hand.

Loviki quickly held her breath and looked toward Flora. Currently, Flora was facing away from her, her light brown hair scattered across the pillow. Her breathing was slightly faster than before—hard to notice if one wasn't paying attention.

But Loviki certainly noticed... Flora was awake.

Loviki's breathing quickened. She glanced at Flora's back, then turned her head to look at Chen Mian, feeling a lump in her chest... She should pull her hand back. That way, the three of them wouldn't have to face an awkward situation.

Yet she didn't. She just let Chen Mian hold her hand like that...

After a while, Flora's hand emerged from under her blanket. She fumbled around until she caught the edge of Chen Mian's clothes, gave it a gentle tug, let go, and began to slowly withdraw her hand.

But just as her hand was about to slip back under the blanket, it paused. Then, it slowly fumbled its way toward Loviki's hand, her fingertips lightly brushing against the back of Loviki's hand.

Loviki was stunned.

She stared at Flora's back, then looked down at the three hands overlapping beneath the blankets.

After hesitating for a moment, she finally made a decision.

She let go of her hold on Chen Mian's hand, reached out under the blanket to gently clasp Flora's fingers, and whispered, “...Silly Flora.”

As soon as she finished speaking, she felt Chen Mian's fingers reach over again. This time, his entire hand covered her and Flora's clasped hands.

In the darkness, Flora rolled over to face Loviki.

The moonlight filtering through the gap in the curtains illuminated her face. Her eyes were still closed, but a faint smile played at the corners of her lips, as if she were having a beautiful dream.

Looking at Flora's face, the tight, heavy feeling in Loviki's chest slowly melted away.

She closed her eyes again, tightening her grip on Flora's hand.

Loviki felt the three hands clasped together under the blanket. Slowly closing her eyes, her breathing grew calm and steady. Both Chen Mian and Flora were very close to her.

Their relationship seemed to have shifted ever so slightly compared to before... This change was so wonderful that she didn't feel the need to make any compromises.

...

The next morning, when Loviki woke up, Chen Mian was already gone. She instinctively looked down at her hand, her fingers curling slightly.

Then she rolled over and saw Flora sitting on her bed, combing her hair. The sunlight filtering through the window fell upon her light brown hair, giving her a soft radiance.

Sensing movement, Flora turned her head, her lips curving upward slightly. “Good morning, Loviki.”

Loviki looked into her eyes. There was no evasion or complex emotion within them, only her usual gentleness.

She slowly sat up, only speaking after a few seconds. “...Good morning, Flora.”

“How did you sleep last night?”

Flora's hand paused mid-stroke, then she casually resumed combing, though the smile on her lips grew even more pronounced. “Very well. Though it felt like a cat was scratching my hand in the middle of the night.”

“A cat?” Loviki's ears warmed slightly.

“Yes.” Flora set down her comb and turned around, a trace of mischief gleaming in her lively eyes. “And after scratching me, it even called me a dummy.”