52 52_

"What?? Such a thing happened?!" Ji Xia was fuming.

"How could he do that to his own nephew?!" Ji Ke Mu almost ripped his own hair out after they got some intel from Harmonia about Ji Haishan and Bai Yulin's situation.

Ji Xia shook her head as if her brother was silly "He never thought of him as his nephew, Hephaestus. You know that better than anyone else."

"But to use force like that- it's really out of line!"

The two siblings were pacing around with blazing eyes. Their mood was sour and they didn't want to stop being angry at their own father who was the culprit in getting Bai Yulin injured. It had been like so for the past hour.

Harmonia sat there faced down. She was still tired after exhausting her magic power in order to create the emergency spell.

The stickman-like doll was insufficient in restoring too much power. It would be ripped apart after the host used magic that was far within their current capabilities.

That was why Harmonia was forced out of the doll into her own original form.

"You guys.. please stop pacing back and forth. It's making me dizzy!" Harmonia complained as she sighed.

"We're not 'you guys', we're your uncle and aunt!" Ji Ke Mu suddenly corrected her.

"That's right, Harmonia. Seeing your face like this reminds me of my old age.." Ji Xia snorted.

"What..? That's got nothing to do with this?" Harmonia deadpanned. She felt like facepalming herself.

She knew how old exactly these two current mortals were. They were as old as her parents. Perhaps around a dozen of thousand years old and more? She didn't know.

And now she had to think of a way to pass the task for Bai Yulin and Ji Haishan without letting them see her this way.

*

It was already morning in Ji Haishan's condo and the doctor was checking on Bai Yulin. Ji Haishan was standing not far from them as he looked at his real body with gauze over the head. His face showed concern and worry.

"Everything's fine but you'll need to eat more protein to treat your wounds. Refrain from exercising for the time being because it may put restrain on your body." the same female doctor advised as she looked at 'Ji Haishan'.

Then she sorted out her instruments inside her own briefcase and stood up. She faced 'Bai Yulin' and smiled, telling her not to worry.

Ji Haishan casted one more glance towards Bai Yulin on the bed as he went outside to send the doctor off. When they reached the exit, the doctor called him out.

"Ms. Bai, I'm thankful for your attentiveness towards young master Ji."

Ji Haishan raised his brow but didn't say a word. He seemed to not get what the doctor was talking about.

"I've known young master Ji since he was young. I'm his personal doctor. I don't know much about him but I'm glad he's finally overcame his gynophobia." the doctor said as her face turned glad.

She didn't notice Ji Haishan's change of expression when she said the term 'gynophobia'. His eyes showed a flicker of surprise but at the same time, they were slightly hardened as if he was reminded of something unpleasant.

The doctor then said goodbye as she disappeared into the elevator. Ji Haishan's body turned stiff when he suddenly heard Bai Yulin from behind him.

Bai Yulin stood there near the entrance as she stared at him. She noticed his unnatural body language and she was worried.

Ji Haishan turned around and asked her what was wrong in an attempt to draw her attention. He wasn't smiling but his face was gentle.

Bai Yulin tilted her head slightly but kept her mouth shut. She didn't mean to eavesdrop on their conversation earlier but she was actually taken aback by the word 'gynophobia'.

If she wasn't mistaken, that was a term of phobia for dislike or fear of women.

"Have you taken your medicine? Let me bring you a glass of water." Ji Haishan acted as if nothing was amiss as he went to the kitchen.

'I never thought you have.. a phobia like that.' Bai Yulin watched his retreating figure as she felt her heart clench. She wanted to ask but at the same time she felt obligated to respect his boundary.

"What do you want to eat for lunch? I'll cook for you." Ji Haishan was rummaging through the kitchen as he looked for some ingredients. It seemed that the fridge was almost empty now.

Bai Yulin went towards the kitchen counter and propped her arm on the marble table. She hummed softly, thinking about some food she would like for Ji Haishan to make. It helped her to forget about the thing she overheard.

Then all of a sudden, there were paper particles in front of them. They instinctively knew it was the doll. So their next task was finally here.

But what caught them by surprise was that the doll never appeared!

"Where is it?" Ji Haishan asked as he looked around. Even after the particles dispersed, there was no trace of the stickman.

"I don't see it too..?" Bai Yulin was also confused. She swore that the particles were here just now.

Suddenly, there was a paper plane flying on top of Ji Haishan's head. Bai Yulin arched her eyebrows together as she called out to him.

"Hey! There, on your head!"

Ji Haishan reached out his hand on top of his head and found the plane. He looked at it with narrowed eyes.

"What's this?"

"Open it up!"

There, they saw an instruction from the doll! Its words were written down like a typewriter and all of them were in capital letters.

[GOOD MORNING PARTY A AND B! I APOLOGIZE FOR NOT BEING ABLE TO SEE YOU! THERE ARE SOME TECHNICAL ISSUES FOR ME TO SETTLE.

FOR THE NEXT TASK, IT'S ACTUALLY QUITE SIMPLE AND VERY FUN! I'LL BRIEF YOU ON IT DOWN BELOW:

TASK 4: GO AND SHOP.

CONDITION(S):

1. GO TO THE SUPERMARKET TO BUY KITCHEN INGREDIENTS.

2. MAKE SURE TO STICK TOGETHER EVERYTIME.

3. NEVER LOSE SIGHT OF ONE ANOTHER FOR MORE THAN TWO MINUTES. IF NOT, THERE WILL BE PENALTY!

4. LIST DOWN AT LEAST 40 INGREDIENTS TO BUY. IF LESS, THERE WILL BE PENALTY!

5. SHOP FOR NOT MORE THAN THREE HOURS. IF YOU DON'T, THERE WILL BE PENALTY!

AND THAT'SSSS IT! HAVE FUN SHOPPING!! SEE YOU AROUND!]