Chapter 867: 464 Long Time No See

"You're telling me this isn't insane..."

Unaware of what had happened outside, Leon caught the female journalist as she fell from another digestive tract, then stared at her in utter disbelief.

"It just said you can go back—so why don't you just go back? Why are you sticking your nose in? Couldn't you just go back and bring help? Even if you couldn't, you could've sent a message back, told the Director how I died, and had her avenge me."

"Now look what you've done—you've turned this into a buy-one-get-one-free deal, and now you're both in here feeding the dog. That damn thing's stuffed itself full, and you've just made it even happier!"

"..."

After listening to Leon's rant, the female journalist fell silent.

It did... seem to make sense... but...

She touched the crimson deer-horn mark on her forehead, and her eyes dimmed slightly, her mood visibly sinking.

She felt her impulsive, immature act had stemmed not only from guilt toward him, but also from this mark.

When the Blood-Haired Woman had captured her in the Dream Realm, she had truly prepared to give her life to repay the Director's upbringing—but the Director had left a backdoor in her soul: if she ever tried to leak information, her soul would instantly be sent to the Death Realm.

He didn't trust her at all... well... he wasn't wrong not to trust her; after all, she had been on the verge of revealing something under the torment of guilt. He owed her, but she owed him too.

"Enough standing there frozen."

Seeing the female journalist's face practically stamped with the words "shut down," Leon shook his head in exasperation and urged:

"While we haven't been digested yet, think—any way out?!"

"Most of my anomalies are physical, and they're stuck on my body right now. Do you have any anomalies that work with the soul and can be carried along? If you do, name them now—I'll see if we can buy a little more time!"

"You still haven't given up?"

Hearing Leon, the female journalist looked up, bewildered.

"We've been swallowed by the Dog God. Even if it's weak, it's still a true god—its life tier is different from ours. We can't resist it. Even if we escaped, we'd still be no match for it."

"Then at least try before you give up."

Watching the female journalist slip back into her "resigned-to-die" stance, Leon's head throbbed. He pressed on:

"Stay optimistic—we're not definitely dead yet.

Think: if the Director notices the silence and checks, she'll realize our souls are gone. And once she comes looking, it'll be this damn dog's turn to suffer."

"Sorry, that's unlikely."

The female journalist shook her head.

"The 【Blood-Drinking Slaughter】 has consumed too much of the Blood-Haired Woman's focus. She's not skilled in soul matters. Even if she notices our souls vanished, she won't immediately connect it to the Death Realm—she won't arrive this fast."

"..."

"Even if your Bureau has someone sharp enough to sense traces from the Death Realm, they won't think of the Guardian Dog—they'll rush straight into the Death Realm."

Pointing to the deer-horn mark on her forehead, the female journalist explained, her voice heavy:

"This is the mark of the 【Flesh-Bearing Doe】. Anyone who senses traces of the Death Realm will sense this too.

Even if the Blood-Haired Woman finds the Death Realm, her first move will be to head straight for the 【Corpse Soil Black Forest】 and the 【Shroud Mirror Lake】 to demand the 【Flesh-Bearing Doe】 return you—not to linger at the Gate of the Dead or near the Dog God Angxi. She won't even suspect we've been eaten."

"..."

Sorry. I know you're unwilling to accept this—but right now, struggling is pointless.

Seeing Leon utterly silenced by her analysis, the female journalist spoke with guilt:

"If it weren't for me, you wouldn't have suffered so much in the past, wouldn't have joined the Cleanup Bureau, wouldn't have been dragged into the Death Realm. It's all my fault. I owe you."

"..."

Can we please not bring up that "painful past"? It's so awkward...

Overwhelmed by the sincerity of her apology, Leon fell silent for a moment, then blurted out:

"Look—if we're both going to die anyway, why not make the most of it? While we're still alive, let's cause some chaos! Even if we just make this damn dog uncomfortable for a while, at least we won't let it enjoy itself!"

"That... actually makes sense..."

Watching Leon, who still hadn't surrendered and was already planning a counterstrike even at this point, the female journalist's eyes flickered with admiration. She spoke:

"Most of my anomalies are physical too—they were confiscated when the Blood-Haired Woman captured me. Only two exceptions: one is these hands of mine."

She raised her palms, glowing with a pure, luminous light.

"This is called the 【Untouchable Hands】. Its ability is..."

"It lets you touch anything below true god-tier—or put another way, you appear to be touching something, but there's never actual contact. You're always just a hair's breadth away, so nothing ever harms you... right?"

"How do you know?"

"I shook your hand."

Leon explained:

"And whenever I touch an anomaly, I gain its knowledge... What's the second one? What else did you bring?"

"The second anomaly..."

The female journalist hesitated, then looked straight into Leon's eyes and said:

"My name is Nicole. Long time no see. Do you remember me?"

"???"

What long time no see? What are you talking about?

Hearing her question, Leon froze. Before he could speak, scattered fragments of memory stirred quietly from deep within his mind.

Before he moved out of Veteran's Alley, there had been a girl named Nicole living next door—when he was bedridden with illness, she had helped Anna care for him.

When he collapsed from freezing cold while breaking ice and hauling ropes in deep winter, his lips blue and purple, and Anna was out buying bread, it was she who revived him and boiled him a bowl of hot soup.

Later still, when Anna suddenly fell critically ill, he entrusted William and Melanie to her, carried Anna to the hospital, and borrowed money from her to pay for the bed at Red Brick Road Hospital...

Wait—something's off.