Kraft Lee

"Ding-a-ling-a-ling-a-ling-a-ling!!!"

The piercing alarm clock rang frantically, shattering the early morning tranquility.

In a slightly messy room, a somewhat rough little hand emerged from the covers, skillfully grabbing the alarm clock by the bedside and silencing its ringing.

"Click."

As the alarm was silenced, a monkey doll on the bedside seemed to be pulled by something, falling straight backward. Its back of the head accurately hit an inconspicuous button behind it.

Immediately after, there was a light mechanical whirring sound, and the bed board where the owner of the little hand was located suddenly collapsed. Kraft Lee, still in a daze, fell without any suspense.

Then...

"Ah————!!!!!!!!!"

Screams even more piercing than the alarm clock sounded continuously. Kraft, dazed and disoriented, covered his ears and sat up abruptly from a pile of squeaky toys.

Kraft rubbed his messy hair and walked unsteadily down the stairs. His head was still buzzing, and coupled with the low blood sugar from waking up early, he probably wouldn't be able to snap out of it anytime soon.

Dizzily, relying on habit, Kraft walked as if drunk to the dining table and sat down, staring blankly at the tabletop, yawning from time to time.

It wasn't until Kraft's adoptive father, Mr. Li, placed breakfast in front of him that he jolted back to reality from his daydream.

"Looks like your new wake-up method worked well," Mr. Li took out two bottles of milk from the refrigerator, placed one in front of Kraft, and added, "It's just a bit noisy. I was startled downstairs."

"Bread and milk again..."

Kraft ignored his adoptive father's comment, picked up a baguette, and took a big bite, complaining indistinctly.

"We're Chinese! Even if we don't have century eggs with lean meat congee or Jianbing Guozi, we should at least have some steamed buns and soy milk!"

"I'm sorry, Kraft, I don't know how to make those."

Mr. Li smiled and sat opposite Kraft, also picking up a baguette to gnaw on.

"Then hurry up and find me a mom," Kraft urged, waving the gnawed-upon baguette, "She must be a Chinese woman who can cook."

"You're always rushing me to get married, just to find yourself a cook?"

Mr. Li's face darkened, and the baguette in his hand suddenly lost its appeal.

"Um... isn't there a saying..." Kraft shrunk his head, stubbornly arguing, "Uh... a mother is a mother as long as she has milk? That's it!"

"Sigh... that's not how that saying is used..."

Mr. Li sighed helplessly, his words filled with exhaustion.

"Oh, it's pretty much the same meaning," Kraft waved his hand with a grin, "Just get the spirit of it."

"If you really want steamed buns and fried dough sticks, I can help you order from Fu Man Lou."

Although Kraft was only his adopted son, the bond between them was more than just that of an adoptive parent and child. Therefore, Mr. Li treated Kraft no differently than he would his own son.

"Never mind then," Kraft flatly refused, "Fatty Liao's place is too expensive. I can't afford it, I can't afford it."

"You can afford it," Mr. Li's face showed a gratified smile, "I'm considered a wealthy person now, so I don't have to be as frugal as before. Besides, can't you earn money yourself? If you're really craving it, go eat a good meal at Fu Man Lou yourself."

"Let's forget it, bread is fine," Kraft wolfed down the baguette in his hand and chased it with two gulps of milk to swallow it. "The money I earn isn't even enough to buy new materials. As for your money, Martin, keep it to help those people at FEAST."

After quickly finishing breakfast, Kraft picked up his schoolbag from the side and hurried towards the door.

"I'm off to school."

He completely ignored Martin Li's roar from behind him.

"Hey! You haven't even washed up yet!"

"Washing my face and brushing my teeth is too much trouble..."

Stepping out of the house, Kraft took out a piece of gum from his pocket, popped it into his mouth, and chewed. Then, he roughly wiped his face and hair with his hands, considering it done.

At this moment, the school bus that picked up students appeared around the corner of the street.

"Hmm, just in time."

Kraft glanced at the time on his watch and nodded with satisfaction.

"My squeaky chicken operation was a complete success~~~ it was just a bit too shocking..."

Recalling the terrifying experience of struggling to get up from a group of squeaky toys just now, Kraft couldn't help but shiver.

"I really need to optimize it further."

"Hey! Kraft! Over here!"

As he boarded the school bus, a familiar acquaintance greeted him. The person calling out to him was also a Chinese person with yellow skin, the young master of Fu Man Lou mentioned earlier, who Kraft referred to as Fatty Liao.

"Good morning, David."

Kraft greeted his classmates as he walked over and sat down next to David Liao.

"You're actually waiting for the school bus early today. So, did the squeaky chicken operation succeed?"

Fatty Liao, with a smile on his face, impatiently asked before Kraft could even sit down properly.

"It succeeded... it's just that the psychological trauma is a bit severe... it still needs some improvement."

Kraft's face showed an unutterable expression.

"Oh... what a shame, I wanted to help you sell this awakening system to Ferris and the others sooner," Fatty Liao said regretfully.

"Cut the crap," Kraft shot him a look. "Didn't I tell you long ago that this thing requires me to go to their house for modifications, which is too troublesome and has no sales value?"

After a pause, Kraft squinted at Fatty Liao and asked, "Are you, Young Master Liao, short on money again? You're actually interested in my meager commission... Has anything new been released recently? The manga magazines were just released three days ago... Have you taken a fancy to some new treasures?"

Hearing Kraft's question, Fatty Liao, who had been smiling, instantly changed his expression. He sadly and righteously complained to him, "It's all my mom! She decided to do a big spring cleaning and found all my collectibles! But after my persistent arguments, my parents agreed to let me redeem them at the original price!"

The "collectibles" Fatty Liao mentioned were actually copies of a certain famous magazine, Playboy. However, Fatty Liao was very picky; he would never collect issues if the cover girl wasn't to his taste.

Still, it was surprising that Uncle Liao and Aunt Liao were willing to let him redeem those magazines...

Truly worthy of running a shady business! They wouldn't even let their own child off the hook!

"Serves you right!"

Kraft, who had only recently celebrated his fourteenth birthday and whose interests hadn't yet shifted to girls, couldn't understand Fatty Liao's pursuits.

A woman who can't cook is less useful than a hex wrench!

"Then don't you have any new inventions recently?"

Fatty Liao, with teary eyes, hugged Kraft and refused to let go.

"If all else fails, you can make some 'brain-bouncing' artifacts and puzzle locks, and I'll sell them to other middle schools!"

"No!"

Kraft flatly refused. He had been so sick of making brain-bouncing artifacts and puzzle locks to raise funds that he felt nauseous just hearing the names now.

"Don't be like that... Without my treasures, I can't live!"

Fatty Liao wrapped his arms around Kraft's waist and began to wail.

"David, don't worry. When you're about to die, I can lend you my treasures for a look, to extend your life. How about that? That's true friendship, right?"

An African student with the same hobby as Fatty Liao teased him with schadenfreude, speaking at the rapid-fire pace unique to their people.

"Get lost!"

Fatty Liao gave his sarcastic friend the middle finger and then said righteously, "I can't appreciate those big-bootied black girls you collect!"

"Hey! David! I won't allow you to insult my goddess!"

Then, the two lecherous friends of different complexions began to debate their respective aesthetic standards.

However, Fatty Liao was quickly "killed" by the black brother's remark, "What's the point of you saying all that? Your treasures have been confiscated anyway."

Only then did he remember his original purpose and once again hugged Kraft's waist, starting to cry pitifully.

Kraft was truly getting impatient with Fatty Liao's nagging. He told him, "There will definitely be no more brain-bouncing artifacts or puzzle locks. However, I've had some new ideas recently. Once the equipment I ordered arrives in a few days, we'll start working. After it's done, we'll upload the video online to see the reaction."

"Then it's all up to you, brother!"

Fatty Liao slapped Kraft hard on the back. Kraft returned a glare and didn't bother to pay him any mind.

However, the other classmates became excited at this point and crowded around to inquire.

"Kraft, do you have a new invention?"

"Can you tell us what kind of invention it is?"

"Please don't make it too expensive. The toilet robot you invented last time was too expensive; I couldn't afford it at all."

"That thing wasn't meant to be sold to us in the first place. It was sold to clients of the Clever Hands Channel, and I heard quite a few people bought it."

"It's great to have money..."

"Yeah, yeah..."

Vantas Middle School, where Kraft was enrolled, wasn't a prestigious school. Most of the students came from ordinary families. The rest were children of other ethnicities, like Kraft and Fatty Liao. Since the school's board of directors was mostly composed of Asians, many Asian families in New York were willing to send their children to this school.

Although America constantly chanted slogans like human rights and equality, it was all bullshit in reality. Non-whites were indeed treated differently in this country.

When Kraft escaped from the Magia Gang with Martin Lee back then, he had encountered the ugly faces of those people more than once. That's why Martin Lee established the FEAST Homeless Shelter to help the poor after he made money. Kraft had suggested not accepting white people, but Martin refused.

If only I had the ability to create those magical items now, I would definitely make those Magia Gang guys pay!

Recalling the tragic experiences of the past, Kraft gritted his teeth in his heart against the culprit, the Magia Gang.

It's time for the usual obligatory remarks.

The protagonist is once again in the villain faction... It's not intentional. It's just that there are very few Chinese characters in Marvel, and Martin Lee's character, due to his average popularity, has a relatively vague setting, making him easier to create original content for.

In terms of updates, I can only maintain daily updates, but I'll try my best to reach 3,000 characters per update. I don't know how long I can keep it up...

Finally, please collect, recommend, and give me a three-in-one!