An arm's length apart, a bit far, their clasped hands resting in the middle, like the dividing line between Chu and Han.

Shi Jinzhe keenly realized that he had said the wrong thing, so he moved closer, but Shekh moved further away.

"Did I say something that upset you?" He reached out his arm, only to have it pushed back.

Sheh withdrew her hand, and her bent legs transformed back into a snake tail. She placed both hands on her tail, staring blankly at a spot, lost in thought.

"I'm sorry." Shi Jin sat down next to her again, turned her body slightly, and tilted her head to look at Shehe: "It's my fault, don't be upset."

“No.” Shekh’s voice was calm, without the threatening tone he usually used to intimidate him. “Don’t take all the blame on yourself.”

Shekh ran his fingers along the scales, looked at them for a while, then focused his gaze on his hands.

She had just opened her palm when another hand grasped it.

"What's bothering you is related to what we've said. If you don't want to talk about it, can you listen to my thoughts first?" Shi Jinzhe adhered to the principle of resolving issues as early as possible, and held her hand tightly.

"I didn't think much when I said that at first. Maybe it was because of Li Jin. Subconsciously, I wanted to show you my strengths. But what he said after that was all just my personal guess. I can't just agree to things that I'm not 100% sure about. Some jokes can be taken seriously. You can't just say things carelessly."

Seeing that Sheh did not react, Shi Jinzhe continued, "To give in blindly is also to be perfunctory. Would you rather hear the truth after careful consideration, or just a superficial response?"

"The truth." Shekh answered without hesitation, staring intently at Shi Jinzhe for a moment before asking, "Is everything you're saying the truth?"

"Truth, didn't I promise I wouldn't lie to you?"

Shekh didn't say anything more, seemingly lost in thought.

Several jumbled images kept swirling in her mind, never stopping from the moment they appeared.

In her memory, her tail was even shorter than that of the little girl in the zoo.

There were chirping insects, flying birds, snakes, forests, and occasionally people, but in most of the scenes, she saw only the silent night sky and the ever-changing stars.

Shekh raised his hand and touched the ribbon on his eye; in his unfamiliar memory, this thing was not there either.

All of these are memories from very long ago.

She remained silent, and Shi Jinzhe asked with some concern, "Are you alright?"

He wondered if he had spoken too formally, causing Sheikh to be caught off guard.

Without saying a word, Shekh picked up Shi Jin's other hand and compared it with his palm. After observing for a while, she asked, "If we only look at the upper body, are we indistinguishable?"

“…Yes.” Shi Jinzhe didn’t understand, but he answered truthfully.

"You said before that I must sleep with you, which is wrong in your human world, right?"

"...It would be wrong if we had no relationship."

This answer was somewhat opportunistic, but Shech didn't say anything.

"Are you still angry?" Shi Jinzhe asked softly.

"I'm not angry, you don't need to worry about me not helping you with the game."

Shekh rarely had a moment like this. Remembering the promise that she couldn't lie about, and sorting through the jumbled memories in her mind, she told the truth, "I just misunderstood."

"What did you understand?"

"I originally thought that although the person who asked me for a mate was a human, you were the first one, so I could think about it carefully. But you're right, it was someone else's joke, and I can't take it seriously."

She realized she didn't understand humans well enough. Their words always had deeper and deeper meanings, and even their jokes could be true or false. She had misunderstood.

She didn't blame Shi Jinzhe; those weren't his words to begin with, so they had nothing to do with him.

Shi Jinzhe was speechless for a moment.

Because he always felt it was more than that.

Shekh didn't seem like the type to get upset over something like this; she didn't care about such things at all.

Their hands were still clasped together. Shi Jinzhe thought about her question: her upper body was indeed no different from a human's.

And what about the snake's tail at the bottom...?

He immediately recalled the scene when he first met Shekh: she couldn't shake hands, couldn't understand other people's curses, never chewed her food, liked to sleep coiled up, and had obvious serpentine traits.

She has a rudimentary understanding of humans; she can understand common phrases, knows how to dress, and knows that praising her tail is a compliment, which makes her happy easily.

But that's all. She knows humans, but is quite unfamiliar with them; she knows snakes, but doesn't understand their mating season in spring.

She only had a superficial understanding of both sides.

Shekh found it herself in the labyrinth, which was clearly not a suitable place to live, nor was it large enough to be a dungeon world. So where did she live before entering the labyrinth?

What if she's the only unique being in the place where she lives, a creature that's half-human and half-snake?

just in case……

Humans don't accept her, and neither do the snakes.

Perhaps snakes would be more friendly to her, but Shehr is also partly human. Not all snakes are like the little black one on Azure Island who would be friendly to her. The Gabonese viper in the zoo turned and ran away as soon as it saw her.

She can petrify and corrode, and she holds many secrets. Her kind of personality makes her an incomprehensible existence in any group.

If that's the case, then is Shekh...?

They were never accepted.

Her disappointment wasn't about losing a potential partner, but rather that the person she thought would accept her still didn't exist.

It's like a rose being offered to you. You happily accept the flower, but before you can even admire it, the petals break off, leaving you with only the prickly stem.

It doesn't hurt, but it's hard to feel happy again.

Shi Jin bent the fingers that had touched hers, held Shekh's hand, and placed it back in front of him: "I'm sorry."

Shekh turned his head. "Why are you apologizing again?"

"Because I should have told you my thoughts directly back then, so that others wouldn't lead you astray."

Shi Jinzhe couldn't see her eyes, but he knew they were looking at each other. "I'm just a little embarrassed. Sorry."

"I didn't mean to blame you. You don't need to apologize for something you didn't do wrong."

This is a principle that Shechkhun figured out himself, and it's true. I'm sorry, but if I say it too much, people will really think it's your fault.

Their eyes met, and she could see the sincerity in Shi Jinzhe's eyes. At the same time, she heard him add another apology.

...

She already said not to apologize.

This person is such a nuisance, such a pain.

After hesitating for a few seconds, Shekh removed his hand, turned his body to the side like Shi Jinzhe, and then stretched out his arms to put his arm around his shoulder. "I'll give you an apology. Stop torturing me."

Feel sorry.

'Feel sorry……

Shi Jinzhe was speechless for a moment, then smiled again. So that's how she understood "apology."