CHAPTER 38: CHAPTER 38: DANGER.

Yue Ning lowered her head. Seeing this, Huo Yan grew anxious.

"Sister-in-law, did I do something wrong?" she probed.

Yue Ning gestured toward a bench. "Let’s sit first."

They sat in silence for a moment, Huo Yan’s gaze fixed on her, waiting. Yue Ning caught the eagerness in her eyes and decided to tease.

"Why don’t we have something to drink?"

Huo Yan pouted. Even she could tell Yue Ning was deliberately delaying. She clung to her arm. "Sister-in-law..." she whined.

Yue Ning chuckled softly. "In all the years you’ve attended the fair, has Huo Fei ever spoken to you right before the competition?"

The question stilled her. Huo Yan thought hard, and gradually, realization dawned on her.

Yue Ning caught the shift in her expression. One hint was enough; Huo Yan could piece the rest together.

"So she provokes me on purpose... just to throw me off," Huo Yan muttered, annoyance sparking in her eyes.

Yue Ning studied her quietly. Smart, but short-tempered. This was her weakness.

"Now that you know her game plan," Yue Ning asked, "what will you do?"

Huo Yan’s lips curled coldly. "Simple. If she thinks she can outwit me, I’ll prove her wrong this year. Sister-in-law, thank you for opening my eyes."

Yue Ning’s lips curved faintly at her resolve.

"I’ll get us drinks. Wait here, okay?" Before Yue Ning could answer, Huo Yan was already gone.

Minutes later, she returned with two soft drinks and handed one over.

"The competition is starting soon. Let’s register."

"I won’t be playing." Yue Ning shook her head. "I’ll watch and cheer you on."

For safety’s sake, she would remain in the background. Ah Si wasn’t with them inside the fair, and she couldn’t afford to take unnecessary risks.

[A/N: Ah Si had offered to be their bodyguard, but they refused. Stubborn... I know.]

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The registration table stood beneath a lantern-lit canopy. Contestants formed a line, the low murmur of voices filling the air.

Huo Yan stepped forward to sign her name, but a familiar figure slipped in beside her.

"Huo Yan, are you sure you want to compete this year?" Huo Fei’s smile carried no warmth. "It would be such a shame if you were eliminated in the first round again."

Several heads turned at the taunt.

Huo Yan did not glance at her. She accepted the parchment handed to her and stepped aside, her expression steady and unreadable.

Huo Fei’s smile faltered for a moment before she composed herself. "Pretending to be composed... I see." There was a scoff at the end of her words, but Huo Yan couldn’t be bothered to give her a reply.

From a distance, Yue Ning watched the exchange, a faint curve tugging at her lips. Huo Yan had resisted the bait.

The host’s voice rose above the crowd. "Welcome, everyone, to this year’s Trivia Hunt." A loud applause followed his words.

"The rules are simple. Each participant receives a riddle. Solve it and you advance to the next station. Fail, and your journey ends."

Sheets of parchment were handed out. Huo Yan accepted hers, fingers tightening around the slip.

"A hero never stands alone, yet his shadow fears the dawn." She murmured to herself.

Her brows furrowed as she read. Around her, contestants were already scattering across the fairground, chasing the hidden clues.

Yue Ning folded her hands inside her sleeves, calm but watchful. The hunt had begun.

Huo Yan read the riddle again. ’A hero never stands alone, yet his shadow fears the dawn.’

Her eyes lifted toward the stalls, where painted banners of legendary figures swayed in the evening air.

Among them, a mural of a knight stood with his sword raised, an image of his shadow stretching behind him.

Understanding flashed across her face. She walked straight to the stall and pressed her parchment to the mark at the knight’s feet.

The scribe there smiled and handed her the next clue.

Yue Ning, watching from afar, nodded happily. Huo Yan had found her answer quickly.

The Trivia Hunt thinned as contestants fell away, one by one. Soon only two remained at the final station. Huo Yan and Huo Fei stood side by side, the crowd gathering in a tight circle.

The host raised his voice and spoke. "Final riddle."

Loud cheers followed as people clapped. Yue Ning was among the crowd. Huo Yan turned to look at her with a smile to which she returned.

"Not bad, you were able to make it to the final riddle. But that doesn’t mean you’ll have the opportunity to beat me." Huo Fei boasted.

Huo Yan’s lips curved. "It is best for you to remain humble. After all... the hunt isn’t over." She replied, successfully angering Huo Fei who scoffed.

The host lifted the final parchment, but before he could speak, one of the lanterns above snapped from its rope. It swung violently, sparks raining down onto the wooden frame. The canopy groaned under the strain.

The crowd shrieked and pressed backward.

Huo Yan froze, still holding her slip, her attention locked on the falling lantern.

From a distance, Yue Ning’s pulse quickened as the system’s voice rang again in her ears.

’Host, danger detected. Hidden Mission activated: Save Huo Yan!’

Her eyes sharpened. The danger was real, and it was already upon them.

Her hands tightened inside her sleeves. The system had been silent for days. For it to speak now meant the danger was no illusion.

She lifted her gaze just as the lantern snapped free completely. The fire within it flared, casting a jagged glow across Huo Yan’s face.

And then it began to fall, its target being Huo Yan who was completely frozen from the shock.

Without hesitation, Yue Ning rushed forward into the fire, her figure vanishing in the blaze. Her only aim was to save Huo Yan! She would never allow her face the same tragic ending in the novel.

Yue Ning forced her way onto the platform, coughing through the smoke.

She caught sight of Huo Yan, still rooted to the spot, and pulled her back just as the lantern came crashing down.

The flames struck her leg with a sickening thud, heat searing through fabric and skin, and she broke into cold sweat.

Huo Yan snapped out of her trance instantly. Her voice broke as she cried out, "Sister-in-law!"