Deviant: No Longer Human

He turned back to Elizabeth—her blonde hair tousled, blue eyes wide with terror—bound to the wall like a bird in a trap, her beauty only intensifying the fear in her gaze.

Soft footsteps sounded as Wang Mei entered, her presence calm yet striking, like the pause before thunder. Clad in deep blue robes that set off her dark hair, she reached quietly for Zhenxi, hoping to pull her away, but the girl slipped behind Wang Xiao, curiosity glinting in her eyes.

Wang Mei gave him a chiding look, as if to say, Must you show her things like this?

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

With a flick of his wrist, a set of sleek, meter-long needles appeared behind him, floating like sharp petals. Elizabeth\'s eyes went wide, her muffled screams caught behind the tape, while Wang Mei instinctively drew Zhenxi closer, her gaze flickering with unease.

"…Can\'t this wait?" she murmured, her voice soft, almost reverent. Her gaze shifted from Elizabeth\'s terror back to her brother, quiet concern in her eyes.

Wang Xiao only smirked, inching the needles closer, until—

Knock, knock!

His jaw tightened, irritation flashing in his eyes. "Who now?" He gestured for Wang Mei to answer.

"Mmm…" she responded, casting Elizabeth a last, guarded glance before gliding to the door.

Outside stood Wang Xueying, dressed casually in a loose off-shoulder sweater and fitted leggings, her dark hair gathered back with an easy elegance. Her eyes took in the scene quickly—Elizabeth bound, Wang Xiao ready with the gleaming needles.

"You… have visitors," she announced, a hint of intrigue sparking in her calm tone as her gaze lingered on the needles. "Are those mechanical? Could I… borrow a set?"

Kacha—!

Wang Xiao sighed, letting the needles shatter like ice. Brushing past Xueying, he muttered under his breath. Whoever was behind this latest interruption had no idea what wrath awaited them.

___

"..."

"..."

A few minutes later, Wang Xiao\'s fury was practically steaming off him, filling the entire living room with a deadly silence.

Yet, in front of him sat two girls, smiling as if this were the most amusing thing in the world, their eyes roaming around with the curiosity of tourists.

Behind him, Wang Mei and Wang Xueying leaned in, just as interested in the bizarre newcomers, while Zhenxi squirmed out of Wang Xiao\'s hold, hopping down and marching right over to the two doll-faced girls.

With a determined leap, she poked one of them square in the cheek, as if inspecting a strange creature, then quickly retreated to Wang Xiao, looking mildly disappointed.

"Oh, uh, hi," Yue greeted, waving cheerfully despite the face-poke, while Wenxi raised a brow, clearly impressed. She gave Zhenxi a once-over, then shot Wang Xiao a suspicious look.

"Another secret daughter?" Wenxi asked, already filing Zhenxi under \'one more daughter he\'d hidden somewhere.\' She\'d rarely seen him hold kids, so what else was she supposed to think?

Wang Xiao sighed, rubbing his temples. "Alright, where\'s your mother?" he asked, bracing himself.

The two girls exchanged knowing looks, both sighing as if they\'d been through this a thousand times. "She… disappeared," they said flatly. "Dropped us off, poofed into thin air."

"..."

Wang Xiao groaned. He\'d been ready for a quiet night, but instead, Anran had seen fit to dump her daughters on him like an unexpected delivery and vanish.

Just gone.

Yue and Wenxi looked at him expectantly, like he was supposed to have a plan.

They didn\'t have a cent to their name, didn\'t even have a clue what to do next.

And Mary? Wenxi thought, glancing around the room. \'Where the hell was she hiding these days, anyway?\'

They hadn\'t seen their mom in days, and while their bank cards held a "modest" million a year, that was pocket change when hanging out in the same circles as Seraphina and her crew.

Between luxury outings and splurges, they\'d burned through it faster than a cheap candle.

The backup cards? Anran kept those under lock and key, doling them out based on her mood. And when she wasn\'t around, Mary was the next option.

Right now? They were flat broke.

Wang Xiao sighed, rubbing his face as Wang Xueying poked him in the back, leaning in and whispering, "Are these… actually your daughters?"

He shot her a look. "Yes."

"But they\'re so… grown?" She squinted, as if trying to find a family resemblance.

"It\'s a long story…" he muttered.

Wang Xueying shook her head, then leaned toward the girls, squinting. "Wait… aren\'t you the same two that greeted us at Icevale?"

Wenxi perked up, beaming. "Yep! Dad told us to, and don\'t worry—we know everything! No need for introductions!"

Wang Xueying and Wang Mei exchanged horrified glances.

Technically, the girls were their nieces — But that\'s definitely not the vibe they were getting.

Then Wenxi, oblivious—or maybe just brazenly honest—continued with a mischievous grin. "You\'re Wang Xueying, Auntie number… twelve? Or is it eighteen? Eh, who cares—you\'re the one who almost drugged Dad!" She winked. "And you\'re Wang Mei! Don\'t worry, we caught the whole hotel \'show\' live, so we know all your secrets!"

"..."

"..."

Silence.

Absolute silence!

Wang Xueying\'s face went scarlet. "You… saw… that?"

"The whole thing," Wang Mei muttered, horrified, her face heating up. They saw the hotel scene? The whole embarrassing mess with Wang Xiao? She\'d cried all morning afterward.

If she could vanish right now, she\'d gladly do it.

Yue slapped a hand to her forehead, wondering, Is Wenxi this clueless, or just that good at it?

Wang Xiao raised a brow, giving a lazy wave. "Alright, permission granted. Beat the shit out of them."

"!"

The words had barely left his lips before Wang Xueying and Wang Mei lunged forward, all embarrassment morphing into fury.

"Oh, you\'re dead!" Wang Xueying shouted, storming toward the girls.

"That white one\'s going down first," Wang Mei whispered, her rarely seen temper flaring.

"!!"

Wenxi and Yue\'s eyes went wide as they realized he wasn\'t bluffing.

"RUN!" Wenxi shrieked, grabbing Yue by the arm as they bolted toward the stairs, hair flying, their shrieks echoing through the hall.

Thud! Thud!

Heavy footsteps pounded after them as they scrambled up the stairs. Wenxi glanced over her shoulder, catching sight of her furious aunts closing in.

"Wait, wait!" Yue gasped, laughing breathlessly. "Dad~Just throw us a little cash, and we\'ll disappear!"

"Pfft!" Wang Xiao called up, leaning against the doorway, smirking. "Why leave? Stay a while."

"What? NO!" Wenxi yelped, horror on her face. "They\'ll beat us!"

It\'s been years since they got a beating! Wenxi thought. They\'re practically adults now!

Getting smacked at this age?

Mortifying!

"Too late for regrets!" Wang Xueying yelled, practically growling. "Should\'ve kept those big mouths shut!"

BAM! Yue tripped over the top step, catching herself. She threw Wenxi a panicked look. "This is your fault!"

"My fault? You\'re the one who wanted to bring up the hotel scene!—I just did it on your behalf!" Wenxi snapped, dodging a vase as they sprinted.

"Yeah, and you\'re the one who blurted it out!" Yue shot back, matching her sister\'s stride, both of them moving as if they shared one mind.

"You two watched us..." Wang Mei muttered, mortified.

How could Wang Xiao just let his daughters witness that entire mess? They were both naked, doing all those dirty things!

The girls tore down the hallway, footsteps pounding as they tried to escape.

Thump-thump-thump!

The floorboards shook beneath them.

"We\'re sorry!" Yue called, half-laughing, half-panicking. "We\'ll take it all back! Just don\'t beat us!"

"Oh, no," Wang Xueying muttered, eyes narrowed as she closed in. "You\'re not getting out of this."

Desperate, Wenxi shouted back down the stairs, "DAD! Seriously, just give us some cash, and we\'ll leave!"

Wang Xiao chuckled, folding his arms. "Where\'s the fun in that? Stay and enjoy some family bonding..."

"NOOO!" Yue and Wenxi screamed as they threw open a random door, diving inside to hide, while Wang Xueying and Wang Mei charged in after them, war cries echoing down the hall.