Chapter 49: You Stay Here, I’ll Go Buy Some Oranges (Extra Chapter)
The day I returned to reality, I spent the whole day in the library with my roommate.
With finals approaching, deadlines were piling up, and library seats were so hard to grab that I felt securing a spot was tougher than dealing with the people in the manga world.
Though maybe it was because I was polite, while Heige could be unreasonable.
How nice it would be to be Heige. I sighed.
When I got tired of studying, I pulled out a notebook and scribbled a few lines.
Former Ability Guild: The old guard, represented by Hua Yizhi, believed in the Prophet’s prophecies.
The new blood, represented by Rao Yue, yearned for a leader to stage a rebellion.
I felt that if I had agreed to Rao Yue last night, she might have immediately raised a banner and gone head-to-head with the Yue clan.
They seemed to have waited a long time, so they were impatient.
But calculating the time, it had indeed been a while—six years since the Former Ability Guild incident.
The pen tip twirled in the air above the notebook, and I scrawled the words “Ability Guild” in a flourish, then stopped.
Propping my cheek, I stared at those four words, thinking I needed to have a proper talk with An Heyu.
I still knew too little about this.
Four-Way City had been under the noble Yue clan’s jurisdiction since six years ago.
The Yue clan had only one S-rank, Yue Qing, but high-ranks were rare in the empire.
Those who reached high-rank were either ennobled by the empire or, like Jiao Huang’s city lord, refused to cooperate but didn’t interfere with each other.
The Yue clan’s territory included Four-Way City and four cities to the north.
Yue Qing came to Four-Way City ultimately because the Ability Guild’s branch leader, Yue Lan, had died.
Meanwhile, the An clan in Four-Way City was hiding from trouble.
They didn’t belong here, and over the years, An Heyu had managed decently, but their status in Four-Way City remained low.
Otherwise, Yue Qing wouldn’t have sent An Heyu to Jiao Huang to clean up after an A-rank like Yue Lan.
I shook my head, thinking how pitiful An Heyu was.
An S-rank noble, no less, reduced to this state.
Putting myself in his shoes, if it were me, I wouldn’t have left Floating City.
I’d have sent An Huyu away or forced him to gain the ability to protect himself, like Little Corgi.
Then I’d single-handedly turn those three noble clans upside down—barefoot, I wouldn’t fear those wearing shoes.
While I was thinking, my roommate poked my arm.
When I looked over, she pointed at the stairwell.
‘Food?’ she mouthed.
I nodded, mouthing back: ‘Eat.’
…
After returning to the manga world, I waited until broad daylight and sought out An Heyu.
But it seemed I came at a bad time.
“An Heyu, I’m telling you, I don’t need you controlling me! Why can’t I go out!”
“You could go wherever you wanted before, but not now. Four-Way City isn’t safe lately!”
With my ability activated, I made my form illusory and transparent, then sat in the chair I’d used last time.
Legs crossed, cheek propped, I watched the brothers’ argument with relish.
“You always have an excuse, just to control me,” An Huyu glared at his brother. “Do you know how annoying you are? I’m sick of it!”
“I—” An Heyu was clearly hurt, but in his stunned pause, An Huyu turned away, shoved past him, and stormed out the door.
The door slammed shut with a loud bang.
An Heyu stared at the door, his usually proud face showing a hint of dejection.
“Am I bad at raising him?” he murmured.
Hearing this, I dispelled my ability and looked at him leisurely. “Judging by your results, it’s obvious you’re not good at it.”
“!!!” An Heyu’s golden eyes widened slightly, and he whipped his head around.
He saw Heige, now in a casual navy-blue hooded jacket, sunglasses on, a smile on her lips, watching him.
He didn’t know how much she’d seen.
An Heyu let out a subtle sigh of relief, then dutifully picked up the tea set from the nearby cabinet, pouring a cup of milk tea and bringing it to me.
“Sorry you had to see that,” he said, placing the cup on the coffee table in front of me.
“No worries, it was pretty entertaining,” I said, not standing on ceremony.
I took a sip, thinking if An Heyu opened a milk tea chain in the real world, no other shop would stand a chance.
An Heyu sat down beside me, saying helplessly, “You really don’t give me any face.”
“Flattered,” I replied, seeing no issue.
Setting down the cup, I tapped the rim with my index finger and got to the point: “Which nobles were involved in the Former Ability Guild incident?”
I still knew too little about the noble side.
“Six years ago, I was sixteen, still studying at the academy, so I didn’t know much,” An Heyu began with a disclaimer, then continued, “At least four noble clans in Floating City were involved. The Qu clan collected the heads of most of the Former Ability Guild’s top members. The Sang clan advocated throwing the guild’s remnants into the beast arena for entertainment. The Lin clan once imprisoned the Prophet. The Feng clan directly participated in the massacre.”
“What about those you have grudges against?” Li Li continued to ask.
“The first three,” An Heyu said.
Speaking of this, he brought up recent matters concerning Yue Qing: “Yue Qing did indeed seek help from the Qu clan. He couldn’t persuade their patriarch, but it’s possible he could enlist an S-rank.”
“They are mostly mimicry-type ability users, but not the typical physical mimicry. They’re a more troublesome type, possessing additional attributes that are hard to counter,” An Heyu said. “At the same time, their actions are utterly unrestrained. If Yue Qing really succeeded, Four-Way City definitely wouldn’t be safe lately.” As he spoke, he thought of his younger brother. “I need to send Huyu away. He can’t stay here...”
Biotechnology here was advanced, but diseases, though different in kind, were like persistent cockroaches, still existing despite efforts to eradicate them.
Li Li lightly tapped the cup’s rim with her index finger, producing a crisp ‘ding’.
“Aristocrat sir,” she leaned back, using that slightly distant address again, her crimson eyes narrowing slightly, “do you really want revenge?”
An Heyu instinctively wanted to nod but hesitated before saying, “Of course.”
He had his pride.
No matter how difficult, he would avenge his family’s annihilation.
But the black-haired youth beside him, for once, wasn’t smiling.
The eyes beneath the sunglasses seemed to look at him, yet also seemed to gaze into the distance.
After a brief silence, the corners of that mouth curved upward again.
“This path is only suited for those without vulnerabilities,” Li Li stood, her hand lightly resting on the chair’s back. “You understand what I mean.”
An Heyu didn’t answer immediately.
His gaze dropped, as if in thought, or perhaps unwilling to make a decision.
Clearly, he couldn’t bear to let An Huyu live alone, nor was he at ease with it.
But this had nothing to do with Li Li.
If An Huyu got into trouble because of An Heyu’s issues, it wouldn’t be her who’d grieve.
Having fished out fresh information from this outing, Li Li was ready to leave.
She walked past An Heyu, but after a few steps, she suddenly stopped.
“By the way, is that appearance-changing ability user still around?” Li Li turned back and asked.
An Heyu, a beat slow, said, “Hundred Faces? You want to use them?”
That ability user was a tool of the nobility.
An Heyu could call upon them without issue, though his influence was much diminished, he still bore the noble title.
He dialed a number on a landline, asking where Hundred Faces was, but as he listened, his expression grew visibly worse.
After hanging up, he told Li Li directly, “Hundred Faces was taken out by Huyu.”
What did An Huyu want with this ability user?
Li Li was surprised but quickly pieced it together.
That young master An Huyu probably hadn’t given up on that SSS-rank bounty.
He didn’t know his brother had already aligned with the bounty target.
Hundred Faces, fishing, Heige.
Li Li pondered for a moment, suddenly feeling her plan might still succeed.
It depended on who An Huyu could reel in.
...
Since learning Li Baige’s name that day, Yiming decided to join the Ability Guild as a bounty hunter.
Tang thought it over and followed Yiming into the Ability Guild.
Both were C-rank now—one an attacker, the other a healer.
Their synergy made earning points easy. Yiming’s stubbornness was a bit troublesome, but bounty tasks weren’t limited to kill orders.
They picked and chose, completing plenty in a couple of days.
Yiming felt his control over his ability growing more adept.
“That crazy mister didn’t show up today. Rare,” Le Caille said.
He seemed fond of Yiming and Tang’s underage duo, often coming over to chat.
But he did this with all the bounty hunters, trading information.
He thrived in this hall.
From Yiming’s inquiries about Li Baige that day, he sensed they might know each other, making him even more eager.
After all, Li Baige’s info was a high-priced, rare commodity for him.
Yiming politely exchanged a few words with Le Caille, then left the Ability Guild’s Bounty Hall with Tang.
“You okay?” he turned to ask Tang.
Yiming was nearly an adult, but Tang was still young.
Frequent ability use could strain her, making her uncomfortable.
“I’m fine,” Tang said, her emerald-green eyes gazing at the sunset.
They walked down the stairs side by side. Tang asked, “Is it okay not to check on Yu Xiao?”
“It’s fine,” Yiming said, feeling no urge to help his often-unreliable friend. “He’ll find us when he remembers.”
Tang glanced at Yiming, then nodded.
Though they hadn’t known each other long, Yu Xiao’s eccentricity had already left a vivid mark on her.
As they spoke, they reached the last step.
Yiming glanced at the ground, then looked up again.
At that moment, his blue eyes widened slowly.
He saw a figure’s back.
And that back overlapped with a memory he could never forget.
He had watched him being taken by villains before his eyes, yet even in danger, he reassured him with joking words.
He had also seen that figure stand in front of him, resolutely walking the opposite path.
It was as if he could see that person turn his face now, calling him in a cold tone: “Little Corgi.”
Yiming was certain he wouldn’t mistake him!
At that moment, the familiar figure entered an alley at the street’s end.