After thinking for a while, Lin Han finally decided to add two points to skill.

First, his Charm had reached 20 points, and adding another point would cost 4 attribute points, which felt like a bit of a waste.

Second, Lin Han didn’t have any specific ideas on how to allocate his points, so he simply followed the wooden barrel theory1 and prioritized making up for the shortcomings in his attributes.

Now his attribute panel became:

After allocating the points, Lin Han tapped the “Skill Tree” button at the bottom of the light screen.

The original character panel faded away, replaced by three straight vertical lines pointing upwards, respectively labeled [Devil Abilities], [Mental Abilities], and [Physical Abilities].

At the very bottom of each of the three vertical lines, there was a point of light—

Lin Han took a look and first spent one skill point to unlock the [Soul Feedback] ability on the [Devil Abilities] path.

A new line immediately appeared on his ability panel:

Subsequently, a new point of light extended from the [Devil Abilities] path—

Lin Han understood.

In other words, the Devil Abilities path mainly relied on Contractors to grow stronger.

Rather than improving himself, it was better to rely on others.

Although this path was quite attractive to Lin Han, he ultimately decided to use his remaining two skill points to unlock abilities on the other two paths.

Similarly, new points of light emerged above the other two paths—

With the points allocated, Lin Han took a moment to adapt to the feeling of using his abilities, then selected Monica at the bottom of the light screen.

Lin Han emptied his mind, allowing the darkness to swallow his vision…

“And then? And then?”

“Big sister Monica, was that giant lizard really three stories tall?”

“Did you send it flying with one punch?”

“Idiot, big sister Monica uses Telekinesis, not fists!”

Looking at the noisy children surrounding her, Monica cleared her throat, which had grown a little sore from telling stories for so long.

“Ahem.”

She deliberately lowered her voice, putting on an imposing air.

“At that moment, the Desert Goanna opened its bloody maw, about to swallow me whole. In the nick of time, I calmly raised my hand.”

“And then?”

“And then I let out a loud shout.”

Monica paused.

The surrounding children all held their breath.

She said in an incredibly serious tone:

“Help!”

“……”

After a brief silence, the room erupted into the children’s chaotic laughter.

“Big sister Monica is such a coward!”

“Not cool at all!”

“But it sounds exactly like something big sister Monica would do. After all, big sister Monica is an idiot.”

“Hey! Who said that last sentence? I have my dignity too, you know!”

Monica huffed angrily, picking up the nearest little girl and rubbing her head a couple of times.

The little girl laughed and struggled.

The lighting in the room was warm. Picture books and colored pencils were laid out on the table, and the walls were covered with the children’s drawings.

This was an orphanage.

It wasn’t spacious, nor was it new. Mildew spotted some corners of the walls, and the window frames bore traces of repairs. But it was kept very clean. A few potted green plants sat on the windowsill, their leaves swaying gently in the night breeze.

Monica stood among the children with a bright smile on her face.

“Alright, alright.”

An older woman walked in through the door and gently clapped her hands.

Her hair was already graying, and fine wrinkles lined the corners of her eyes.

“It’s getting dark, stop pestering Sister Monica. She’s already very tired today.”

“Aww?”

“But the story isn’t finished yet!”

“Will Sister Monica come again tomorrow?”

The children immediately started chattering all at once.

Monica smiled and raised her hands.

“I will, I will. As long as I don’t get eaten by a Calamity, I will definitely come.”

“Don’t say such things.”

The Director’s voice was soft, but carried a hint of reproach.

Monica stuck out her tongue.

“I know.”

Although the children were reluctant to leave, they were shooed back to their rooms by the Director.

The lively hall soon quieted down.

Monica stood where she was, the smile on her face slowly fading.

“Director… I want to go see Xiao Rou.”

The Director paused her movements.

She looked at Monica, a very complicated emotion flashing in her eyes, like heartache, yet also like pity.

But in the end, she gave a gentle nod.

At the deepest part of the orphanage, there was a small room.

Inside the room was a small white bed.

A frail little girl lay on the bed.

She looked only seven or eight years old. Her complexion was so pale it was almost transparent, and her thin wrist rested outside the blanket, as if it might shatter from the slightest touch.

She slept very quietly.

So quietly that it made one worry whether she would ever wake up again.

Monica stood at the door for a long time before slowly walking over.

She sat down beside the bed and gently held the little girl’s hand. That hand was very cold.

Monica lowered her head and tried hard to raise the corners of her mouth.

“Xiao Rou, I’m back.”

The girl did not respond.

Monica’s fingertips subconsciously tightened a little.

One month ago, Xiao Rou had still been chasing her all over the orphanage.

That child clearly wasn’t physically strong, yet she always smiled so happily. She would stuff crooked drawings of Monica into her hands, then earnestly say that when she grew up, she wanted to become a Calamity Hunter too.

At the time, Monica had laughed and tapped her on the head.

“Being a Calamity Hunter is very dangerous, you know.”

Xiao Rou had puffed out her cheeks and replied,

“Then I’ll become even stronger than Big Sister Monica!”

It was clearly only one month ago.

But looking back on it now, it felt as if a very long time had already passed.

“Big sister will save you.”

Monica’s voice was very soft.

It was unclear whether she was saying it to Xiao Rou, or to herself.

“I will definitely save you.”

The Director stood by the door, remaining silent for a long time before finally speaking in a low voice:

“The doctor came again today.”

“He said the ability disorder in Xiao Rou’s body is still worsening. The cause is unknown, and conventional treatment can only temporarily stabilize her.”

The Director’s voice grew lower.

“If we continue the medication, at most… she has less than half a year left.”

Monica’s shoulders trembled imperceptibly.

The Director closed her eyes. “If we stop, she may not last three days.”

Monica stood up in silence, then took an envelope from her jacket.

“This is the money I earned from subjugating a Calamity today. I wasn’t lying to those little brats, you know. I really did defeat a C-Class Calamity.”

She handed the envelope over.

But the Director did not reach for it.

However, when Monica turned her head to look at Xiao Rou on the bed with tenderness, the Director finally lowered her head and accepted the envelope with trembling hands.

“Monica, thank you… I thank you on behalf of Xiao Rou…”

“Don’t thank me. There’s no need to say thanks for helping your own family.”

Before leaving the room, Monica looked back one last time.

The girl was still sleeping peacefully.

As if she was having a very, very long dream…

Off to the side, Lin Han, who had concealed his figure using [Illusion], quietly watched all of this unfold.