Know Your Stand, Cold-Faced Hunk

Lin Yu, a helpless orphan, naturally needed to be extremely cautious in the face of everything at such a banquet.

However, Lin Yu, Schicksal Knight and an elite of the Apocalypse clan with sufficient strength, is indeed just as you said, and there is no need for him to care too much about the feelings of others.

I'll eat and drink as I please. If anyone thinks I'm a country bumpkin who doesn't know manners—what they think is none of my business.

I should just do what I'm supposed to do. Wasting time trying to chat with these people is clearly not my style.

[That persona you're building, where you don't interact with them and you're constantly striving to climb the social ladder...]

Will it crash?

Lin Yu is a vengeful ghost who chooses to climb upwards in order to avenge the Honkai.

My public persona is that of a reckless, headstrong young man who doesn't care about his own life.

Expecting such a vengeful, hot-headed fool to actively curry favor with people who don't necessarily need to be curried over is itself a strange behavior.

Although I don't like acting, I guess this play will have to be done for several more years.

In this situation, I naturally had to take the initiative to immerse myself in the role and play the 'vengeful ghost' in my eyes.

My words might fool naive young girls, but among the people here, apart from those Valkyrie, the remaining Branch Leader and council members are all old foxes who have climbed up by stepping on other people's heads.

I get very tired from talking to them too much, even if I don't reveal any flaws.

It's better to act aloof now; that way, you can avoid a lot of trouble.

[... Is this even a possible line of thinking?]

Okay, this system has to admit that your line of thinking does have some merit.

[Wait a minute, why are some of them actually starting to think that way—you used the Phantasm Lantern Barrier for something so trivial?]

What a joke! Why would I use the dangerous power of the Phantasm Lantern Barrier for something so trivial?

These are all intelligent people, and intelligent people always have more confidence in their own judgments.

Knowing this, I could roughly guess the direction they envisioned, and I simply chose the one that was most advantageous to me to take action.

Wow, you're incredibly cunning.

Please call this the wisdom of survival.

After having made up her mind, she looked at Lin Yu much less often.

There was no third-rate plot like "everyone mocking Lin Yu for being too unsophisticated" appearing at all.

Ultimately, apart from a very small number of young people who were sent over by the clan leaders for social interaction, most of the people present came with their brains.

Lin Yu is currently riding high, and is a warrior personally promoted by Bishop Otto. Anyone who goes against him is going against Bishop Otto.

Going against Bishop Otto —isn't that just asking for trouble?

Moreover, even setting aside Bishop Otto's recommendation, Theresa, as the head of the Trio families of Schicksal, also thought highly of Lin Yu.

In addition, Lin Yu's sworn sister Rita and his close friend Durandal, with whom he has lived for a long time, are also S-rank Valkyrie.

Now that Lin Yu has defeated Chiyou, he clearly possesses S-level strength; all he lacks is certification from the Schicksal Headquarters.

Anyone with a little common sense would realize that Lin Yu has three close S-rank allies around him, and he himself possesses S-rank strength.

At a time like this—who would have nothing better to do than mock a promising young person?

Who knows, if something happens to the branch in the future, we might need Lin Yu to come and rescue us.

If you upset him now or make him lose face, and if the young man gets angry and argues with you, causing some unpleasant things to happen, he'll have nowhere to turn for help.

For these reasons, after Lin Yu exuded an aura of 'I have no interest in you all,' things really did quiet down around him.

Befriend Lin Yu; there will be plenty of opportunities in the future.

If the other party doesn't want to talk to them now, it's best not to provoke them.

However, while most shrewd and cunning people understand these things, it doesn't mean everyone does.

At that moment, a member of the Sania clan frowned as he saw someone approaching Lin Yu.

Meanwhile, Lin Yu, who heard the footsteps, could only put down his plate and look in the direction from which the footsteps came.

Before him stood a girl with chestnut hair who seemed to be trying to remain calm, but now, in front of Lin Yu, she seemed unable to make up her mind and awkwardly stopped in her tracks.

This... ah, it's this guy.

A real husky has appeared.

Looking at the chestnut-haired girl in front of him, who seemed quite uneasy, Lin Yu remained silent, waiting for her to speak first.

Under Lin Yu's indifferent gaze, the girl named Anna Sania seemed to have mustered up her courage and spoke loudly to Lin Yu.

"Mr. Lin Yu, my name is Anna Sania! I have long admired you. May I ask if you would like to dance with me?"

Faced with the girl who was trying so hard to say those words, Lin Yu didn't know what to say.

Anna isn't described much in the original novel, but the fact that she blushes after just a few words with Chen Tianwu is enough to show that she's a rather shy girl.

Would a shy girl take the initiative to walk up to Lin Yu and say these words to him loudly?

The answer is obviously yes, you made that judgment immediately, after all—the power of love can help people overcome all obstacles!

She's already mustered the courage to change herself for you, so now's the time to seize the opportunity, win her over, and then—

Then you bastard.

She suddenly mustered up her courage after seeing me, which was obviously impossible.

The little girl's body was visibly trembling and tense, which was clearly a sign of nervousness... or even fear.

She certainly didn't come voluntarily; someone instructed her to do so before the ball.

[So?]

So, of course I need to...

At that moment, Lin Yu made a move that few people had guessed.

After gently wiping his hands with a handkerchief, Lin Yu very gentlemanly took Anna's hand and gave Anna a smile.

"It is my honor to dance with this beautiful lady."

"Since Miss Anna has extended an invitation, how could I possibly refuse?"

Anna, who had been quite uneasy, suddenly felt completely at ease after Lin Yu made this move.

To be honest, Lin Yu's actions were not even ordinary; in his eyes, such flamboyant behavior could only be described as clumsy.

The problem is... people judge by appearance.

Lin Yu was already handsome enough, and with his Cold-Faced Hunk demeanor, his charm towards ordinary women would be further enhanced.

Anna was already a little uneasy, and then Lin Yu, who had just been giving off a 'keep away' vibe, actually smiled at her.

Critical hit.

Without a doubt, this was a devastating blow.

While it might not be enough to make a girl fall in love with him at first sight, it wouldn't be difficult for Anna to develop some affection for Lin Yu while feeling at ease.

[Occasionally, this system might have some minor doubts: You—you're not really a master at picking up girls, are you?]

Your system, with its incredible power, must know just how tragic my past was.

Don't you have any self-awareness about whether I'm a master at picking up girls or not?

[It used to exist, but now... it's hard to say.]

And to be honest, why do you think I'm trying to pick up girls?

Anna was chosen by Prometheus as the host body; in other words, even if she hadn't encountered the Manila Incident, she would have transformed into Herrscher in other events.

If I were to refuse her invitation now, which she had finally mustered the courage to do, it would leave a thorn in her heart.

While my actions may not completely prevent her from Herrscher Transformation in the future, being kind to the young girl will at least prevent her from becoming more radical.

Everything I'm doing now is to prevent my future self from encountering more dangers.

Haha, that's true, but you actually know very well in your heart...

Your true thoughts are unknown to others; they only judge you based on your actions in public.

So now, can you be sure that the girl named Anna Sania has developed feelings for you?

Let it happen, if it can become the opportunity for her to suppress her Herrscher Persona...

It's okay if I continue being a conman and an actor.

Anna, whose right hand was being held by Lin Yu, felt much more at ease than before.

Anna, who was forced to approach Lin Yu for some reason, now discovered that the young man in front of her was actually surprisingly easy to talk to.

"Alright, so now..."

After reaching their destination, Lin Yu did not let go of Anna's hand. Instead, he took her right hand and gently placed it on Anna's smooth back.

"Please dance with me, Miss Anna."

"I understand, Mr. Lin Yu."

Despite it being her first time interacting with a member of the opposite sex of the same age other than her brothers from her clan, Anna, who should have been shy, felt more relaxed than ever before in front of Lin Yu.

Perhaps it was the sense of security Lin Yu gave her that made her show a completely different attitude than usual.

As the music played, Lin Yu activated his "Mirror Mind" skill and began observing the dance steps of the others around him.

Relying on the properties of Mirror Mind, Lin Yu, who was originally just a novice, actually managed to dance like a seasoned dancer by observing the actions of others around him.

Anna, standing in front of Lin Yu, began to look at Lin Yu as he danced.

Even though the other person's eyes were as still as water, they gave Anna a sense of tranquility.

But just looking into his eyes made Anna feel her heart racing.

If she hadn't tried so hard to control her emotions, she felt she would have run away from him, her face flushed with embarrassment.

After the music ended, Anna even tried to continue dancing with Lin Yu because she was distracted.

"Uh, I..."

It wasn't until she saw that the men and women around her had already parted ways that she realized...

—I actually felt a tiny bit reluctant to see the dance music end.

Seeing the girl in front of him suddenly start to panic again for some reason, Lin Yu did not let go of Anna's hand. Instead, he forcefully took Anna's hand and led her towards a corridor where few people stopped.

"Hey, Mr. Lin Yu, you..."

"Alright, Miss Anna, I know you came to see me for more than just dancing."

Lin Yu, who had led Anna to the corridor, let out a breath of stale air, then leaned casually against the railing and looked up at the ceiling.

"I can tell that you came here probably because someone instructed you, or even forced you."

"Tell me, who forced you to do such a boring thing?"

Chapter 125. Get Your Position Clear, Cold-Faced Hunk

"Tell me, who forced you to do such a boring thing?"

Upon hearing Lin Yu's words, Anna's first feeling was one of utter helplessness.

She hadn't intended to say much, but now that she was relaxed, Anna's initial wariness had almost completely vanished in front of Lin Yu.

The girl, who had completely let down her guard, made her decision after only a second of hesitation.

"I'm telling you this in secret, but don't tell anyone else."

Looking at the girl's completely relaxed expression, you're certain that her level of trust in you surpasses that of most people in the world.

[You've only met for five minutes and haven't interacted at all before. If you can build such a high level of liking for her in just five minutes, then next, if you just show her your skills a little, she'll probably—]

You're a ghost.