Don’t Smile at Me Like That

Damian Black rose, strode over, and leaned in close, inspecting her face with that intense, Emperor-of-the-Wildlands focus. "Looks like you're cured. No more green."

"Thanks," Lily Bai said, handing him the box. "Picked this up for you today in Wildlands City."

Damian took it, opened the box, and found a Signet Ring inside.

"I carved a Protective Talisman into it myself," Lily said, suddenly bashful. "I mean... it might not be Demon Emperor-grade, but hey, it boosts your defense by ten percent. It's not much, but it's something."

Damian stared at the Signet Ring, saying nothing.

"Want me to try it on you?" Lily picked up the Signet Ring, grinning, and asked.

Damian just looked at her, his gaze deep and unreadable.

Lily fumbled, grabbed his hand, and slipped the Signet Ring onto his thumb—trying not to look too flustered.

It fit perfectly. Honestly, it looked amazing.

Lily flashed him a bright smile. "Seriously, it looks great on you."

"Don't smile at me like that!" Damian Black snapped, voice suddenly sharp and cold, as if her grin was some forbidden spell.

"Huh?" Lily was confused by what he meant.

"Did you forget who I am? I'm the Demon Emperor, you're a Heaven-Bestowed Demon Slayer. A Demon Slayer, giving the Demon Emperor a Protective Talisman—does that sound remotely appropriate to you?"

Lily shrugged. "Hey, public and private are separate. You helped the Sigil Sect, you helped me, so this is just a thank-you present. No strings attached."

"Fine, I'll accept it." Damian's whole vibe went frosty—like he'd built a wall of ice between them.

Lily bit her lip, got to her feet, and wavered. "So... should I go?"

Damian said nothing.

"By the way, what's going on outside?"

"Same as before. They haven't left—still waiting for your group to come back."

Lily nodded, a little awkward. "Okay... I'm leaving, then?"

Damian didn't meet her eyes. "Take care. I'm not seeing you out."

Lily sucked in a breath, spun around, and bolted out of there.

When Lily Bai finally found a spot with zero witnesses, she started whacking herself on the head. "Lily Bai, what on earth are you thinking? What are you even hoping for? Are you out of your mind?"

"Senior Sister?" Nine Li popped out. "Why are you hitting your own head?"

Lily's hand froze mid-slap. "Uh... just a headache. Poison aftereffects, maybe. Or maybe just me being dumb."

"Your face is fine now, right?" Nine Li asked, looking at her.

"Yeah, I'm fine, I'm fine. Just some aftereffects from the poisoning—headache! Where are you off to?"

"I was worried about you. I had no idea where the Demon Emperor took you, so I was using Spirit Tracking to find you! Baxa said you'd be fine, and he was right."

"You saw Baxa?"

"Yeah." Nine Li said. "They're over at the plaza, gathering a bunch of ants for something—I have no clue what."

"Let's go take a look." Lily and Nine Li headed over to the plaza.

Azure Flame was drilling the Marching Wing Guard from the Demon Emperor's Palace, chewing them out for their sloppy security—spies had slipped in and they hadn't even noticed.

The Marching Wing Guards were lined up perfectly in the plaza, heads bowed, not making a sound.

Baxa was there too, arms folded, standing off to the side looking cool.

"Those giant ants are really the Demon Emperor's palace guards? Seriously? Can they actually fight?" Nine Li whispered to Lily.

"Their tails make silk that's basically Immortal Binding Rope. Top-tier stuff!" Lily said, sounding way too proud for bug trivia.

"Oh..." Nine Li watched for a while, then asked, "Is Azure Flame wearing a human-skin mask?"

Lily snorted. "Nope, that's her real face."

"Why doesn't she ever show any emotion? She's like a walking mask."

"I asked her once," Lily said. "She told me expressions are for showing joy, anger, sorrow, and happiness. She doesn't have any of those, so—no expressions."

"Seriously?" Nine Li stared, fascinated. "She doesn't have any emotions at all?"

"I guess so," Lily said. "I'm not really sure myself."