"This night has been way too loooong..."
Zhao Xi let out a long yawn, wishing he could find another can of ice-cold beer to press against his forehead.
Back at the venue, unwilling to let anything go to waste, he had drunk nearly all the beer people had brought him. Then, amid all the noise, he had listened to the head of security explain the situation. He had not felt it while concentrating, but now that he was outside the Great Auditorium, a light breeze made him dizzy and lightheaded, his mind heavy and muddled. All he wanted was to collapse right there and sleep like hell.
He had really overdone it.
Yet this pleasantly drunken sensation was a rare experience after receiving Machine Core modifications. For the moment, he did not even want to "deal with" it.
"At most, a little past midnight." Fris was full of energy and even had the leisure to correct Zhao Xi's inaccurate description.
Zhao Xi sighed. "That's why I said it was long! If I'd known, I would've just slept in the guest room until dawn... Hah-yawn!"
Fris turned to Liu Fengming beside him. "Giving up Divine Authority to investigate a case all night—feeling all right?"
"This doesn't count as a case." Liu Fengming was examining the mask in his hand. At the question, he raised his head, his rugged face grave. "...What it exposes is the Hun Dun Order's immature side. But this order has another, far more terrifying side. It may even be precisely because of that immaturity..."
"Know when to stop!" Zhao Xi interrupted drunkenly, not caring that Liu Fengming still outranked him. "You can't be so blatantly goal-oriented, and you definitely can't order the big boss around just because he's nice-tempered."
Zhao Xi had actually begun sticking up for