Chainsaw Man, starting contract to cut down the Demon Line

Chapter 41 Dongshan Xiaohong: I've Conquered Myself

Withdrawing his hand, Yan Liang leaned back on the sofa.

Dongshan Xiaohong remained standing there, dazed. She didn't dare to look Yan Liang in the eye and could only stare helplessly at the carpet beneath her feet.

That sentence was deeply imprinted in her mind—

"I believe that keeping you around will likely bring me more value in the future."

Any normal person with self-respect would likely feel insulted to hear someone speak such words in such a condescending manner.

But Dongshan Xiaohong is different.

From childhood to adulthood, she was exploited by her parents in that crowded family. In their eyes, she was nothing more than an ATM.

No one had ever truly cared about her thoughts, nor had anyone ever looked her straight in the eye or made any expectations of her.

Those people simply took advantage of her weakness, forcing her to sacrifice herself and die.

It was precisely because of this long-term suppression that, after being so mercilessly reprimanded by Yan Liang, Dongshan Xiaohong unexpectedly developed a misconception of being respected.

This illusion slowly fermented in her heart, eventually twisting into something—

Sincere gratitude.

Yes, Yan Liang was rude to her and said domineering things like "I don't really want to kill you".

But was Yan Liang wrong?

No, Yan Liang is not wrong!

She did betray him; in that gambling game, she almost caused his death because she was afraid of dying.

Doing something like that, even being killed would be justified. As for punishment, Dongshan Xiaohong herself felt that no matter how the other party ordered her around afterward, it wouldn't be excessive.

But now, although Yan Liang ruthlessly tore away her fragile facade and belittled her despicable nature... he did not discard her as useless trash.

Moreover, the many favors Yan Liang bestowed upon her were beyond Dongshan Xiaohong's imagination.

If she simply followed Yan Liang and obediently listened to him, he could protect her. And when she repeatedly made foolish mistakes, he could seriously point out her problems and offer her this comforting message:

You have value, so stop doing those stupid things.

What an incredible experience this is!

Having always been used to being trampled in the mud, Dongshan Xiaohong felt a long-lost sense of respect from this powerful and frightening man, being treated as a "human being".

Conversely, it was precisely this uncompromising bossiness that struck at Xiao Hong's deepest vulnerability and insecurity.

There's no need to go through the trouble of feigning pitifulness anymore, nor is there any need to shamelessly fawn over her. Because Yan Liang has already seen her most despicable side, yet he's still willing to accept her as a useful tool.

Dongshan Xiaohong lowered her head and glanced at her current appearance.

She was dressed in an exquisite maid outfit, but no matter how well she dressed, it couldn't change her inferiority complex... In this bright room, she felt like a little worm in the sewer, exuding a dark aura from the inside out.

However, when she mustered up the courage to secretly glance at Yan Liang on the sofa, what she saw was an extreme situation.

The man simply sat there quietly, doing nothing, yet exuding an innate composure. This composure conveyed another message: peace of mind.

Standing in front of Yan Liang, the contrast between the two highlighted her vulnerability. So, for Dongshan Xiaohong, who craved dependence, Yan Liang at this moment was like a sun.

Although the light was so dazzling it brought tears to her eyes, it also exuded an irresistible attraction, making this poor little insect feel an urge to rush towards it from the bottom of her heart.

A kind of pathological emotion, similar to Stockholm syndrome, took root in Xiaohong's heart and bore strange fruit.

yes……

The more Xiaohong thought about it, the more her breathing became rapid. Even her wet eyes were misty with a hazy mist.

She had betrayed someone, but instead of retaliating, that person trusted her and kept her by their side.

Then, a thought that even she herself found frightening, yet which she couldn't stop, popped into Dongshan Xiaohong's mind—

To be used like this by Captain Yan Liang... I'm so happy!

"Team leader..."

Xiao Hong pursed her lips. A strange blush appeared on her originally pale cheeks. It was hard to tell whether it was shyness or gratitude.

Seeing Dongshan Xiaohong staring intently at him, Yan Liang, sitting on the sofa, remained unmoved.

The other party's reaction was exactly what he expected.

He is not usually a talkative person, nor does he have the leisure to speculate about other people's thoughts.

Unless, of course, this person is closely related to oneself.

This is the current situation of Dongshan Xiaohong. Yan Liang naturally has his own thoughts on why he is saying so much.

In this world fraught with danger, he must gather strength as soon as possible.

The forms of power are ever-changing. In addition to one's own strength, the person who can command it is also a factor. One needs someone who can truly obey one's commands unconditionally.

Denji, Hayakawa Aki, and Pava are no good. Although they can be driven by petty gains, for various reasons, they all have their own personalities or are uncontrollable, and it is impossible for them to truly obey him.

Dongshan Xiaohong is different. She is weak, insecure, and easy to fool. All it takes is a little manipulation, applying enough pressure followed by a small favor.

Of course, if she is to be truly useful to me, she will need to undergo a long period of transformation.

Therefore, he had to completely eradicate the inferiority complex that was ingrained in the other person.

However, Yan Liang was not in a hurry, after all, it had only been less than four days since the two of them met.

There's an old saying that goes: "Haste makes waste."

Rather, to have achieved this level in just one night is already considered an overachievement of the task.

"Alright, stop standing there like an idiot."

With a sigh, Yan Liang broke the somewhat awkward atmosphere in the room. Ignoring what Dongshan Xiaohong was thinking, his tone returned to its usual coldness:

"Remember what I told you today."

"If there's nothing else, don't bother me. Tidy up this place and then go do whatever you need to do."

"Yes, yes! Captain! I'll go right away..."

Upon hearing the instruction, Dongshan Xiaohong responded softly, and no one knew what she was thinking.

Chapter 42 After all, I'm not a demon.

After that night's conversation, Dongshan Xiaohong seemed to have really changed over the following period of time.

Although she still felt nervous in front of Yan Liang, at least she didn't do those illogical and foolish things anymore.

As long as Yan Liang doesn't make any demands on her, she will quietly stay in the corner and silently tidy up the house until it's spotless.

Yan Liang noticed her gradual shift towards "usefulness," but didn't say much on the surface.

During this period, Yan Liang appeared to be a completely idle person.

Aside from occasionally driving around a few neighborhoods in Tokyo, he spends most of his time in the library drinking coffee and reading books, comfortably enjoying his own leisure time.

Until one morning, this stability was broken.

The sky was filled with gloomy gray clouds, and the air was damp and chilly, typical of the rainy season.

"Ding-a-ling-a-ling—!"

The shrill ring of a landline phone rang in Yan Liang's apartment.

Higashiyama Koko, who was wiping the table, quickly dropped the rag, rushed to the phone, and grabbed the receiver. Listening to the brief report coming from the other end of the line, her previously dazed eyes cleared up.

"Captain." Xiao Hong put down the phone, quickly walked to Yan Liang who had just come out of the bedroom, and whispered her report:

"A notice from the Public Security Headquarters. We are required to assemble at an old residential building in Nerima Ward. It is said that... a demon caused the incident there."

"Oh."

Yan Liang yawned and casually replied, "Then just call them and tell them I have something to do and can't go. Let them figure it out themselves."

Upon hearing this, Xiao Hong paused for a moment, then cautiously reminded him, "But Captain, Senior Hayakawa Aki said that this is different from the usual patrols; it's a sudden, formal case that requires your personal command..."

Upon hearing this, Yan Liang pondered for a moment.

In his memory, this sudden case did not seem to exist in the original plot.

However, considering Hayakawa Aki's personality, he would never call and ask him to intervene for such a trivial matter.

Besides, he's been so bored these past few days that he's getting a little restless. Since that's the case, he figured he might as well help them out occasionally, since he doesn't take Machima's salary for nothing.

Besides, I haven't seen those two troubled kids, Denji and Pavana, for several days. I'm just killing time anyway, so maybe I can find some fun to do?

With this in mind, Yan Liang quickly made a decision and changed into a suit:

"Then there's no need to say anything more, let's go."

……

Half an hour later, downstairs in an old residential building in Nerima Ward.

The black Toyota Crown sedan slowly drove into the street.

Dongshan Xiaohong, acting as the driver, steadily parked the car on the side of the road. Before the two of them could even get out of the car, the blinding red and blue police lights had already pierced through the morning mist and entered their vision.

A large number of police officers had already set up a long yellow cordon around the apartment building, which had a dilapidated exterior. Outside the cordon, nearby residents, awakened by the sirens, were whispering among themselves in their pajamas.

This is just an ordinary residential building that you can see anywhere in Japan, with narrow stairwells and rusty air conditioner units hanging on the exterior walls.

Yan Liang walked towards the cordon without expression, with Dongshan Xiaohong following closely behind him.

"Halt! This is a cordoned-off area. Unauthorized personnel are prohibited from entering!"

Unsurprisingly, a young policeman who did not know Yan Liang reached out and stopped him.

After all, Yan Liang, as a "big shot" in the Anti-Demon Section 4, rarely showed his face at the grassroots level, and ordinary police officers had never seen his face before.

Yan Liang remained unmoved by being blocked, but Dongshan Xiaohong, who was following behind him, wisely played her part.

She strode forward, her shoulders still trembling slightly, but she deftly pulled out her police ID from her pocket and handed it to the officer.

"Public Security, Anti-Demon Special Lesson Four..." Xiao Hong explained, trying to appear calm, "This is our captain, Yan Liang. Please let us through."

Upon seeing the distinctive markings on the ID, the young policeman's expression changed. He quickly withdrew his hand and respectfully pulled up the police tape.

"I'm so sorry, sir! Please come in!"

Yan Liang ignored the other party's fear and stepped into the cordoned-off area.

As soon as I stepped inside, before I even got close to the apartment door, a familiar commotion came from the open space in front of me.

"Aaaaah—why are we just sitting here waiting?! I want to drink blood! Let me in and chop that guy in there into eight pieces!"

Pava crossed his arms and complained rudely.

"That's right! It's finally Saturday, and we still have to be called out to work overtime! Wouldn't it be better to finish this sooner and go home?!" Denji chimed in irritably, his face also showing his impatience.

However, Hayakawa Aki, standing in front of these two incessantly chattering fellows, did not fly into a rage as usual.

After living together for a few days and getting to know each other, he had come to understand the personalities of these two little brats. Preaching to them was like talking to a brick wall. He had found a better way.

Without saying a word, Hayakawa Aki, with a cold face, took out two pieces of chewing gum from her pocket and placed them in front of the two of them.

Denji and Pava, who had been shouting and yelling, suddenly shut their mouths, their eyes fixed on the two pieces of chewing gum.

The two exchanged a glance, then bowed slightly in a perfunctory manner, silently extending their hands to accept the chewing gum from Hayakawa Aki, muttering reluctantly as they did so.

"...Senior."

The moment the chewing gum was in their hands, the respectful expressions on their faces vanished without a trace, replaced by stunned silence.

"Hehe, got it!"

"Humans, you're so naive! I've really struck gold today!"

"It seems the three of you get along very well."

A calm and unhurried voice suddenly came from behind the three of them.

Upon hearing this sound, Denji and Pava, who were chewing gum, froze. Denji, in particular, deflated like a punctured balloon when he turned around and saw Yan Liang's ambiguous smile. His arrogant demeanor vanished completely.

"Captain..." Denji unconsciously shrank behind Hayakawa Aki.

"What's wrong?" Yan Liang stopped and looked calmly at Dian Ci. "Why do you look so unhappy when you see me? I don't think I've offended you at all."