Chapter Forty-One: The Unyielding Attitude of Seros

Chapter Forty-One: Shen Ce Is Dragged Into a Mission

At noon, Shen Ce was kept behind by Director Cheng to have lunch. The long dining table was surrounded by a crowd of adorable children. They fidgeted restlessly, their round eyes darting curious glances at Shen Ce, clearly unsettled by the presence of a stranger, making even the simple act of eating a lively affair.

Such a bustling meal brought Shen Ce a sense of both familiarity and estrangement. It was the height of summer, and most children had little appetite for food, so Director Cheng had specially prepared a spread of seasonal fruits and vegetables. Earlier in the kitchen, Shen Ce had helped slice fruit; his knife skills were exceptional. Under his hand, the bright red flesh of the watermelon unfurled like a pristine lotus blossom—delightful to behold and perfectly refreshing.

After lunch, Director Cheng studied Shen Ce, casually asking, “A-Ce, how is work and life treating you lately? Any plans for settling down?” In Director Cheng’s eyes, Shen Ce, aside from his solitary background, was a young man of fine character and appearance, surely the kind a young woman would notice.

Shen Ce, sipping his mung bean soup, was caught off guard by her question. He set down his spoon and smiled, “Not yet, but please don’t worry about me, Director. I’ve been well these years, even bought a place in S City. As for relationships, I suppose I’ll leave that to fate.” He deliberately avoided mentioning that he made a living through an online game; if Director Cheng knew, she would surely urge him to change jobs.

“Hee hee, getting married,” a little boy ran over, nestled against Director Cheng’s leg, and made a funny face at Shen Ce. “Shy, shy!” Director Cheng gently stroked the boy’s head, but the boy puffed out his cheeks and darted off again.

Director Cheng smiled, continuing, “A-Ce, you’re not so young anymore. I’ve watched you grow up, and I can’t help but worry you must be lonely all by yourself. And you’re too reserved—if you could find a gentle, caring girl to share your days, I’d be reassured.”

To Director Cheng, Shen Ce was no different than her own son—in fact, she cherished him all the more. Though Shen Ce was steadfast and capable, she always remembered him as the timid, silent boy who would quietly climb the wutong tree. She hoped he might one day find a good girl who truly understood him.

Shen Ce looked up, his heart stirred. “If I meet someone suitable, I’ll bring her to meet you.”

Director Cheng nodded, smiling contentedly. “Then I, this old woman, will be waiting.”

After lunch, Shen Ce accompanied Director Cheng on a tour around Qinglan Orphanage. Many neglected memories, gathering dust in the corners of his mind, were gently brushed clean—everything seemed as vivid as if it had happened just yesterday, leaving him awash with emotion.

He spent a day at Qinglan Orphanage. The next morning, as he prepared to leave, he urged Director Cheng not to see him off, but she insisted. As he boarded the bus, Shen Ce couldn’t bring himself to look back at the elderly woman standing under the stop’s sign. The bus, indifferent to their emotions, rolled away down the wutong-lined street, and that thick, leafy shade was soon lost from sight.

Shen Ce silently vowed that every year, he would return to Qinglan Orphanage at least once. Suddenly, he recalled Director Cheng’s words—perhaps, it was time to find a girlfriend? But how was someone like him, who spent all his days holed up in a game, supposed to find one?

At that thought, the image of Cyros flitted through his mind, leaving him faintly helpless. Maybe it was because his mood had settled, but he no longer felt as entangled by Cyros’s flirtations as before, though he was still far from indifferent.

When Shen Ce arrived home, Arnold, who had been anxiously awaiting his master’s return, could hardly contain his delight. Seeing Arnold bustling about, making tea and cutting fruit, Shen Ce almost felt sorry for leaving—even though, counting the hours, he’d only been gone a day and a half.

He turned on his computer. Yesterday was the finals of the Glory Battle; though he hadn’t made it to the final stage, he was still keenly interested in the results. Sipping the hot tea Arnold had prepared, Shen Ce browsed the official site, finding extensive coverage—the profiles of the top three contestants nearly filled the entire page.

Among them, he recognized the familiar silhouette of a hunter standing to the right of the champion, holding a dark-gold bow, his posture proud and upright. Who else could it be but Han Qishao?

Shen Ce wasn’t surprised to see Han Qishao in the top three, but it was a shame he only took second place. On the left, the third-place winner was “The Duke Is Me” from the Light Faction—a legendary figure who had founded the first guild in the game.

What truly surprised Shen Ce was the champion, “Murderous Wind,” a member of the Dark Faction. His class was an unusual one—a summoner. For “Murderous Wind” to defeat all others and seize the crown, much credit was due to his Fire Lion King. Shen Ce had no idea how he had conquered such a beast, but with such a flawless victory, the man was clearly formidable. Having never heard of him before, Shen Ce was sure “Murderous Wind” had become an overnight sensation.

Curious, Shen Ce watched the match demo. He found “Murderous Wind’s” playstyle fascinating—utterly unconventional. His interest piqued, Shen Ce researched the contestant further. It turned out that “Murderous Wind” was also fairly well-known in the Dark Faction, a mercenary assassin for hire, just as his name implied. Shen Ce made a mental note to seek him out when he next infiltrated the Dark Faction.

The next day, Shen Ce’s self-imposed break finally ended. As soon as he logged into the game, he was bombarded with private messages, almost all from Water Glimmer, and a few system notifications regarding the Glory Battle.

From “Zero, I really can’t finish that quest you gave me,” to “Zero, are you avoiding me by not logging in?” and finally, the newest: “Zero, I’ve finished the quest you gave me. If you don’t show up soon, you’re going to scare me to death.”

Shen Ce found Water Glimmer’s anxious tone both amusing and exasperating. He couldn’t blame her, though—unlike ordinary players, both of them depended on the game for a living. If one partner disappeared, the other was bound to feel uneasy.

So Shen Ce went straight to the Treasure Pavilion. Water Glimmer was both surprised and delighted to see him, quickly tending to her customers before hanging up a “Closed for Business” sign. She propped her chin on her hand and shot Shen Ce a sidelong glance. “Honestly, Zero, it was just two men confessing to you. Is it really such a big deal?”

Shen Ce was surprised that Water Glimmer had guessed why he’d been offline, but outwardly remained calm. He brushed away the floating tea leaves with the lid. “Are you saying Han Qishao did what he did for no reason at all? Wasn’t it because of you?” Han Qishao’s mention of Water Glimmer had struck Shen Ce as odd at the time, and in hindsight, it did seem she was trying to play matchmaker.

His words left Water Glimmer speechless. She forced a laugh, unable to respond.

Just then, a tall figure dressed in black entered the shop. Water Glimmer didn’t even bother to look up. “Didn’t you see the sign? Treasure Pavilion is closed today. No business.”

“Why didn’t you reply to my messages after logging in?” After a pause of two or three seconds, a deep voice sounded from the front.

That distinctive tone made Shen Ce tense instantly, as if a cold night had descended, chilling him to the bone.

Hearing the low, smooth voice, Water Glimmer’s head shot up—she was a sucker for voices. For a moment, her eyes sparkled with starlight. Her first thought was that a mysterious, handsome man had appeared; her second, that this was the other male lead from the wildly popular “Three Men, One Drama” live thread. There was bound to be a show.

As Shen Ce remained silent, Cyros’s brows knitted in displeasure, his voice tinged with irritation: “I told you it was all a joke that day. You’ve been offline for days—do you remember our mission?”

Mission? Shen Ce looked at Cyros, suddenly recalling that today was the day to take the Royal City’s language exam. But he’d only read a few dozen pages of the Elvish manual and had forgotten most of it.

Water Glimmer misunderstood, thinking Cyros was referring to his public declaration with Shen Ce. Though she felt a twinge of disappointment at hearing it was a joke, she nudged Shen Ce with her elbow, grinning slyly. “Come on, he helped you out that day, didn’t he? Now he’s here to do a quest with you. Zero, don’t be so…”

Shen Ce stood and faced Cyros, his expression calm and steady. “Sorry, I had some things to take care of in real life, and when I got back, there were too many messages to respond to right away. As for the mission, the exam’s today but I’m not ready. Why don’t you go ahead?”

In truth, Cyros had only sent him one message: “Is it because of me?” With punctuation, it was just six words, and he hadn’t explained what he meant. Shen Ce had no interest in replying. Was he supposed to just say “yes” or “no”?

Cyros’s tone was unreadable, even colder than Shen Ce’s. “I gave you plenty of time to prepare, and we agreed on this long ago. Now you want to back out?”

Shen Ce kept his composure. He noticed that whenever he was around Cyros, something in him went awry. He thought he’d gotten over it these past few days, but here he was again, out of control. He suppressed his irritation and repeated softly, “Sorry.”

“I don’t need your apology.” Cyros shot him a cold look and strode over. “Come with me. It doesn’t matter if you can’t speak Elvish—I said I’d do most of the talking. If you’re still hung up on what happened that day, I apologize.”

Cyros grabbed Shen Ce’s arm. He glanced at the beautiful human woman standing nearby and, in a voice only the two of them could hear, murmured, “If you don’t want that incident repeated in front of her, come with me.”

Water Glimmer had no idea what Cyros whispered to Shen Ce. She was lost in his voice, eyes closed in bliss. She didn’t know what the black-clad assassin looked like, but his voice was intoxicating.

She’d previously thought Han Qishao and Zero were the perfect match, but now, having met Cyros in person, she instantly changed her mind. Noting that Cyros wore a ring identical to Zero’s, she became more certain he was the one who had registered with Zero at the cathedral. This was a pairing made in heaven—she’d been rooting for the wrong side all along.

Shen Ce, meanwhile, couldn’t believe Cyros could be so shameless. He was tempted to smack him in the face with his staff. But then he calmed himself—what was the point? He was behaving out of character, just as Water Glimmer had said. Was it really such a big deal? Why keep brooding over it?

In a flash, Shen Ce let it go. Perhaps Cyros found his reactions amusing and just wanted to tease him.

Regaining his composure, Shen Ce unconsciously touched the ring on his index finger and said quietly, “Very well, let’s go now.” The Royal City Library awaited, after all. If Cyros was willing to take him to the exam, he must have a plan.

Cyros raised an eyebrow, puzzled by Shen Ce’s sudden change of heart.

Author’s Note: ovo, it seems everyone dislikes the boss turning into a robot. Alright, I’ll find a new path for the boss (～o￣▽￣)～o