Chapter 12

Chapter 12

The air was awkward, with both the human and the Horror unsure whether the other had noticed them.

After staring at the mysteriously filled water glass for a while, Shi Yu was surprised to realize he wasn’t particularly scared. Normally, if something supernatural had suddenly appeared in his home, he’d at least get goosebumps, if not more.

But now…

Maybe it was because the other party seemed so clumsy and harmless, Shi Yu took a deep breath and actually calmed down instantly.

Oh well. This wasn’t the first time—this was already the third incident in recent days.

After a moment of silent staring, Shi Yu decided to pretend he hadn’t seen anything, letting the Horror be and saving himself the hassle.

But just as he turned to leave, the Horror beside the glass grabbed him. The familiar sensation of being touched—and the memory of suddenly being unable to move—made his eyebrow twitch. A crazy idea popped into his head.

This gesture… wait.

“The Invisible Mimosa?”

The entity humans always called that—Horror No. 233—barely understood a few similar syllables and wiggled its leaves excitedly.

Yep, that’s me!

It had escaped again!

This time, it had even slipped away from that guy in black combat gear.

Strangely enough, the Mimosa felt pretty proud. After all, this was its first escape attempt—and it had gone extremely smoothly.

The moment it saw this handsome young man, an instinctive urge to get close welled up inside it. Even after being caught and taken back, it hadn’t given up. Taking advantage of its harmless nature and its caretakers’ relaxed supervision, it had escaped again and followed its favorite human home last night.

Giving a little tug on Shi Yu’s fingers, the Mimosa guided his hand toward the freshly poured warm water as Shi Yu watched with mixed feelings.

Shi Yu followed its movements, trying to figure out what it wanted.

“Wait—you want me to drink this?”

The Mimosa nodded, then remembered it was invisible, so instead gave two quick tugs.

The human had passed out the moment he got home last night and hadn’t had a single sip of water in nearly fifteen hours. He needed to drink something—otherwise he might feel unwell.

The Mimosa shyly but firmly tied itself around Shi Yu’s finger, while Shi Yu glanced at the glass, his lips quirked slightly.

“Appreciate it, but I’m good.”

But the Mimosa wouldn’t let up, pulling him a bit closer.

Shi Yu: “…”

You’re not giving up, are you?

Realizing he was stuck unless he drank, Shi Yu hesitated briefly. Remembering that the Ability User Association had classified the “Invisible Mimosa” as a harmless Horror with no history of harming humans, he sighed and picked up the cup.

The glass had just the right amount of water—somehow. He couldn’t figure out how the creature had managed to pour it.

Could a plant even use a water dispenser?

The ridiculous thought made him chuckle nervously. He quickly looked away, then took a sip under the Mimosa’s eager gaze.

The taste made Shi Yu blink reflexively.

"You added honey?"

He couldn't help but glance down, though he couldn't see anything. Still, he felt as if he were making eye contact with the Mimosa.

The Mimosa swayed its tiny leaves shyly.

Shi Yu felt the tendrils around his ankle slowly retract, only to push the cup closer to him the next moment.

This little guy... is surprisingly thoughtful.

Shi Yu liked adding honey to his water, so he kept a honey jar next to the water dispenser. He hadn’t expected the Mimosa to notice this detail and even add honey while pouring water for him.

Do Horrors have such high intelligence? Shi Yu was genuinely surprised.

But as he drank, he hesitated, looking down at his leg.

"So... can I touch you?"

As soon as he said it, even Shi Yu himself was startled by his boldness. But since it was already out there, there was no taking it back. Surely a little touch wouldn’t hurt? He was truly curious about this little creature that had followed him home.

Last night at the Ability User Association, the Mimosa had stayed invisible while clinging to him, so he still didn’t know what it actually looked like. Were Horror-transformed plants different in appearance from ordinary ones?

The idea made him burn with curiosity, but staring into the empty air yielded no reaction.

The Mimosa had already curled into a shy ball the moment the handsome human mentioned touching it, like a human blushing, its leaves practically steaming with embarrassment.

Eeee!

Is he going to touch me?

Does Shi Yu like me too?

The little Mimosa quivered anxiously. Just as Shi Yu, receiving no response, assumed it was unwilling, familiar vines gently brushed his fingers again—just a fleeting touch before pulling back.

Did that mean... yes?

Shi Yu tentatively guessed, lowering his hand to stroke the Mimosa’s leaves. When it didn’t pull away, he carefully felt it with his fingers.

Hmm, compared to ordinary mimosas, this one was bigger, its leaves were thicker. And perhaps due to its Horror nature, the invisible Mimosa's leaves felt colder.

Shi Yu lightly tapped them, only to feel the little Mimosa immediately curl up tight. He quickly withdrew his hand.

"Alright, I think I understand now."

"Thank you."

If someone had told Shi Yu just a day ago that he’d be sharing a room with a Horror and actually touching one out of curiosity, he would’ve never believed it. Yet here he was, faced with reality.

After satisfying his curiosity, Shi Yu hesitated. As the Mimosa timidly curled into a ball, he debated whether to report this to the Ability User Association.

Though he didn’t know why the Mimosa had sought him out, since it had escaped on its own, the Association must be in chaos by now.

...

Just as Shi Yu suspected, no one had expected "Item 233," safely returned and locked up last night, to disappear again by morning!

Subject 233 had always been one of the quietest and most inconspicuous among the Horrors held by the Ability User Association, causing no trouble for years—until recently, when it caused not one but two incidents in a short span.

After what seemed like a failed attempt at escape initially, it actually succeeded the second time.

When the staff on duty discovered its disappearance in the morning, they scoured the entire building and surrounding areas but found no trace of the Mimosa. Zhao Wen rubbed his temples and looked up:

"Captain Fu, what do we do?"

"The sensors didn't detect the Mimosa's location. It must have really escaped this time."

Who would have thought that the normally unnoticeable Subject 233 would be so determined to escape? After being returned to its dish, it even dug a large hole under the flowerpot and fled, leaving everyone both annoyed yet impressed.

Fu Nanyao hadn’t expected another incident either. The usually quiet man frowned slightly and glanced at the time of the Mimosa’s escape.

It lined up perfectly with when Han Chuyi escorted that young man named Shi Yu home.

Just a coincidence?

He lowered his eyes. "What’s the hazard level reading for the Mimosa?"

His low voice cut in suddenly.

Zhao Wen paused, then checked the readings on his tablet. "It's normal for now, Captain Fu."

Unlike the randomly appearing Horrors outside, the permanently contained Horrors within the Ability User Association were all fitted with special monitoring devices. Even if they escaped, their vital signs could still be tracked remotely.

If a Horror remained harmless to humans, the readings stayed within acceptable levels. But if it harmed ordinary people after escaping, the values would skyrocket to dangerous levels.

Right now, the Mimosa’s readings were still within the normal range, meaning that although it had escaped, it hadn’t hurt anyone.

The room went quiet as everyone waited for Captain Fu’s decision—whether to continue a large-scale search for the “invisible Mimosa.” After all, they were short-staffed, and this particular Horror wasn’t highly dangerous.

Fu Nanyao considered for a moment. "Let it go for now. Prioritize handling higher-level hazardous Horrors."

Zhao Wen and the others weren’t surprised. "Then we’ll head out, Captain Fu."

"Mm." The man responded after signing the documents. Only after everyone had left did he raise his head. For some reason, he felt something was off about this incident, though he couldn’t put his finger on it yet.

One floor below, Sang Huaiyu tilted his head slightly. Seeing the Association personnel pour out into the hallway, he immediately understood the situation. Recalling the fleeing Mimosa he had spotted last night, he raised an eyebrow.

If he wasn’t mistaken, that plant had gone out to find Shi Yu—the young man who had stood out to him.

Having hidden among humans for so many years, Sang Huaiyu rarely encountered something this amusing. A timid, sunlight-averse Horror plant working up the nerve to escape—all for a human it had barely met once.

Out of curiosity, he had deliberately “helped” the plant slip away right under Fu Nanyao’s nose.

But now…

Sang Huaiyu withdrew his gaze, sensing the traces he had left on the Mimosa, and allowed a slight smirk to curl his lips.

At that moment, Shi Yu was bending down to pick up the Mimosa when he suddenly felt a chill run down his back. Thinking something had happened, he snapped his head up—but noticed nothing.

"Did you sense anything just now?" Shi Yu asked, puzzled.

Sense?

The Mimosa shook its leaves and checked around, then signaled no. There had only been the two of them—nothing unusual.

Was he just being paranoid?

Shi Yu turned again to glance behind him. The empty room was truly devoid of anything—probably just his imagination then. Being thrown into this horror-filled world always kept him on edge.

"So, you really don’t want to go back to the Ability User Association?"

Shi Yu frowned as he asked the Mimosa.

The Mimosa stayed silent, only clinging pitifully to Shi Yu’s leg. Even though it was invisible, Shi Yu found its behavior annoying.

After all, the Mimosa was so lively and affectionate—it was nothing like your average Horror.

He'd just petted it, and now he couldn't bring himself to force the little Horror back.

Alright then.

"Look, you can crash here tonight, but if the Ability User Association comes looking for you tomorrow, you have to go back with them."

Mimosa: (sniffles) Okay!

Though it could only stay for one night, the Mimosa was thrilled to be near this human it adored—even if just for a little while.

Excited, the Mimosa bounced excitedly, its tender vines quickly winding around Shi Yu. Before he could react, it carefully brushed against his cheek, then darted away shyly.

Meanwhile, Sang Huaiyu, who had just gained access to the Mimosa's senses, was about to leave when he suddenly paused, detecting a strange but powerful emotion coming from the vessel.

Unlike the pure joy from earlier, this emotion had a touch of embarrassment.

What was going on...?

Hmm?

Realizing what the Mimosa had just done, Sang Huaiyu froze, narrowing his eyes as he instantly and vividly experienced the warmth from the human’s cheek—raw and unfiltered.

It was warm... and soft.