Chapter 118: Staying at the Damen Residence

"Qin Fei... what have I become?"

Inside a cafe, Qin Fei and the anthropomorphized Lalamon sat by the window, watching the flow of pedestrians on the street. However, Lalamon seemed somewhat distracted.

"Still no memories? Lolo..." Qin Fei looked at Lalamon with some distress. To the naked eye, she was a very delicate girl. Although he did not mind it himself, this "girl" was clearly far more concerned about the lost fragment of her memory than he was.

"Nothing at all. It felt like a long dream. In the dream, there was only me, but you were with another version of me."

"..." Qin Fei felt a bit strange, as if she were speaking from such deep, lived experience. "Another you... what do you mean?"

Lolo regained her focus, her pupils finally settling on Qin Fei's face. "Exactly what I said, Qin Fei. I feel like there is another self inside me, one that seems to want to replace me at every moment."

Qin Fei was completely stunned. He did not know if Lolo's intuition was right or wrong, but one thing was certain: whenever Lolo digivolved into Lilamon or even Rosemon, her personality seemed to change entirely. Lolo's base personality was combative, but often tsundere and gentle. However, once she digivolved, her personality became extremely aggressive and possessive, bordering on a cruel, yandere-like state. It was as if they were two different people—no, they were the same person, yet they possessed two entirely different temperaments.

"Could it be a split personality?" Qin Fei silently pondered the possibility. But... could a Digimon, being a data-based lifeform, suffer from dissociative identity disorder? No one knew, and no psychologist had ever studied it.

"Don't worry, Lolo. As long as you keep returning to this form, you will always be you." Seeing the worry in the girl's eyes, Qin Fei set aside the question of mental disorders and turned to comfort her. "I will never allow you to disappear, whether it is your body or your soul."

He cared for her more than Lolo could imagine. After all, this Lalamon was his only solace during those uneasy days after he transmigrated. She was family, an incredibly important person—sometimes, he felt she was even more important than himself.

"Don't think too much about it. Let's go; we need to find a place to stay tonight." Patting the shoulder of the still-listless Lolo, Qin Fei pondered his next move.

A hotel was out of the question. Although DATS had settled all wages before disbanding and Qin Fei had enough funds, he and Lalamon looked like minors. Checking into a hotel? If anyone with ill intent saw them, that hotel would likely be shut down. Formal hotels were very strict about minors.

A shady inn? That was not safe. He and Lolo looked like weak, defenseless lambs, and such places were often dens of iniquity. If they caught someone's eye, it could lead to trouble. Qin Fei was not afraid of trouble—his training had made him capable of handling two or three ordinary people, and Lalamon was certainly not something an average person could deal with—but being on edge all night guarding against others would defeat the purpose of resting.

"So, should I really stay at Thomas's place for a while?" He recalled that because of his situation, both Marcus and Thomas had invited him to stay with them, but he had declined, not wanting to be a burden. Debts of gratitude were the hardest to repay. But now... if he didn't accept, he and Lolo would be homeless.

"Because I prevented Biyomon and Kristy from being separated, Garudamon never lost control. So, will Marcus's Digimon reach its Ultimate form, RiseGreymon?" Qin Fei mused. It was the destruction caused by Garudamon that had allowed Hashiba to restart DATS, which in turn brought Satsuma and the others back. But for now, he had no idea how long he would be drifting.

"Ah, Qin Fei! Finally found you!"

Just then, a familiar voice came from behind. Qin Fei instinctively turned to see Marcus and Thomas standing there.

"You two... what's this about?"

"What? We've been partners for so long, and you don't recognize us already?" Marcus walked over generously and said, "Let's go, come to my place first!"

"Huh?" Qin Fei hesitated for a moment, but decided to follow Marcus. Since Thomas was here too, there might be something important.

...

"Oh? We have guests?" As soon as Qin Fei stepped into Marcus's home, Kristy's surprised voice rang out from the staircase. "It's you guys!" Seeing Qin Fei, Kristy was surprised; she clearly hadn't expected them.

"You should already know each other. They're going to stay at our place for a while, so be a good host," Marcus told his sister.

"No problem, I'll take good care of them!" Kristy was completely at ease, even warmly ushering Qin Fei and Lolo inside. Since they looked like they were around her age, she was actually quite happy to have new friends to play with.

"I'll pay," Qin Fei said, feeling a bit embarrassed by her warmth.

"Don't be so formal. After all, you helped Biyomon so she wouldn't be snatched away by that big Digimon, and you even saved my big brother." Kristy grabbed the hands of Qin Fei and Lolo, leading them into the living room. Marcus and Kristy's mother, Sarah, was there, along with Biyomon.

"I've already heard from Satsuma. You can stay at our house for a while; Satsuma will find a way to arrange things for you. Oh, right, I was just about to start dinner. Thomas, you should stay for dinner too." Sarah welcomed Qin Fei warmly. Seeing a boy around her daughter's age and hearing from Satsuma that he was homeless, her maternal instincts kicked in immediately.

"Thank you, I'm looking forward to your cooking, Mrs. Sarah."

"I'm glad you're happy to stay."

Just then, Kristy leaned toward Qin Fei, grabbing his hand and looking him over, seemingly searching for something, which made everyone curious.

"W-what is it?"

"Where's that little kitty?"

Qin Fei realized with a start that she still remembered Gatomon. Seeing the expectant look in Kristy's eyes, Qin Fei took out his Digivice. "Materialize, Gatomon... Materialize, BlackDorumon!"

And so, the figures of Gatomon and BlackDorumon appeared in the living room.

"Wow, there's another little cutie!" Seeing the dog-like BlackDorumon, Kristy excitedly hugged its fluffy tail and started petting it.

"Alright, now that we're all gathered, is there something you need to tell us?" Watching Kristy play with Gatomon and BlackDorumon, Qin Fei shifted his gaze to Marcus and Thomas, waiting for an answer.