Bai Zhou quickly tidied up, slung his suit over his shoulder, and was just about to leave.
Ya's voice suddenly came from upstairs—
"Bai Zhou, someone's looking for you."
"...?"
Bai Zhou indeed had no idea.
At this time and in this place, aside from hunters carrying knives and guns who wanted to chop him into eighteen pieces, who else could be looking for him?
Bai Zhou immediately grew tense.
Then, standing by the window, he saw a figure pacing hesitantly below.
Melancholy long hair and a sharp, imposing beard.
He leaned on a long Steel Rebar club with one hand and held a paper bowl in the other.
...Was it him?
The Bearded Man from last night?
What had he come for?
"Uncle, this place can't be your territory too, can it?"
He walked out of the villa, listening to the incessant chirping of cicadas in his ears...
Bai Zhou wore a puzzled expression on the surface.
But in reality, he had already hidden his left hand behind his back and secretly gripped the Black Short Club.
It was hard to say...
Maybe it was because of those two missing underlings.
That would be unfortunate. If that was the case...
"It's really you?"
The man stood amid the weeds, leaning on the Steel Rebar. His clothes were tattered, and a strong smell hung over him.
But before the smell reached him, the man's coarse voice did, along with several words hurled straight at him—
"You're so young, yet you're already drifting around outside. Is this really comfortable?"
"You really don't plan on going home?"
...But before Bai Zhou could answer, the accusatory force behind the man's words collapsed on its own.
He had clearly seen the dilapidated house behind Bai Zhou, as well as Bai Zhou's vigorous state.
He didn't look like he was forcing himself to hold up.
The man then furrowed his brows and asked in a muffled voice:
"You spent the night here alone?"
Not exactly alone...
Bai Zhou blinked.
"Someone told me that they saw you around here while collecting trash today."
"I was worried, so I came to take a look..."
"I didn't expect you to really be here."
Saw him? How?
Bai Zhou thought it over. It must have been when he washed his face by the river at noon and was spotted by a scavenger passing by.
He remembered that, but he hadn't expected this scavenger to be one of the Bearded Man's people.
Do you scavengers even divide up territory?
"Looks like you're not merely the willful rich kid I thought you were."
The Bearded Man shook his head, then unexpectedly bent at the waist:
"Sorry. I made assumptions."
"No, no..."
Bai Zhou hurriedly waved his hands.
It wasn't entirely the man's fault.
Judging only by Bai Zhou's age, his neat and respectable clothes, and the heavy Briefcase, it was hard not to make assumptions.
He had grown up without parents, his hometown had been bombed into ruins, and he had ultimately been hunted throughout the city by a mysterious organization...
An experience like that was simply too bizarre.
Ordinary people couldn't imagine it. Even if Bai Zhou told them himself, they would probably send him straight to a psychiatric hospital for treatment.
"So, you came to find me because..."
Bai Zhou asked uncertainly.
"Everyone has their difficulties. I won't ask about the specifics. That's the rule in our line of work."
The Bearded Man waved his hand.
"But to be honest, being homeless is very hard, and humiliating. Everyone looks down on you."
"You're still young. You can easily find a job in the city!"
The Bearded Man's voice paused there.
"...But if you really think you can accept this kind of life, that's fine too."
"If any other scavengers give you trouble, tell them you're one of my people and have paid your dues."
"My surname is Qiao. Everyone calls me Old Qiao—Old Qiao of South City."
As he spoke, the Bearded Man raised a hand and pointed in the direction he had come from:
"If you feel lonely and want some company..."
"Go find us where we were last night."
"I take back what I said yesterday."
"But if you go, you'll have to hand over part of what you earn each day. That's the rule."
"It's fine if you don't go. It's up to you."
After saying that, Old Qiao handed over the paper bowl in his hand.
His movements were stiff and clearly showed that he wasn't used to doing this. The paper bowl nearly hit Bai Zhou in the chest.
"This is...?"
Bai Zhou blinked.
"Braised pork!"
"I guessed you hadn't had a proper meal in a while."
Old Qiao's voice was dry, as though he wasn't used to saying things like that.
"You're in luck. Today is the Stronghold's monthly meat day. We paid for half a pig and cooked it ourselves."
"The bowl... is clean... It hasn't been used. Don't worry."
Several glistening chunks of fatty meat were piled inside the small paper bowl.
The thick, glossy sauce coated the trembling fat, reflecting the dazzling sunlight. The smell of scorched soy sauce rushed toward him, mingled with the fragrance of meat and a hint of sweetness.
Bai Zhou froze for a moment.
He had thought this uncle had come to recruit him.
But in the end, the man had carried a disposable paper bowl all this way...
Just for this?
"Uncle, you may have misunderstood something."
Bai Zhou hurriedly waved his hands.
"I don't actually want to become a scavenger. Even if I eat your meat, I won't join you."
"Hm?"
Old Qiao raised his eyebrows twice, then nodded in relief instead.
"So you're looking for a job? Then you should fill your stomach first..."
"Not that either."
Bai Zhou answered honestly. "I don't have that plan for now."
Old Qiao choked.
"...Then you're going home?"
"I don't have that plan for now either."
Bai Zhou's answer was astonishingly frank.
But the more he spoke, the more Old Qiao bristled and glared, his face turning red.
"You won't do this, and you won't do that?"
"Are you planning to sleep in this broken house until you starve to death?"
"You're young, with perfectly good hands and feet, and no illness or disability. How can you not support yourself?"
"Even if you're going to collect trash and salvage scraps... you need to have the right attitude!"
As he shouted, he forcibly stuffed the paper bowl of braised pork into Bai Zhou's hands, splashing a few drops of gravy out.
"...Forget it. I'm meddling in things that don't concern me."
"Do whatever you want!"
Old Qiao turned and left, huffing and Cursingly.
He didn't waste a single word.
It was as if handing the braised pork to Bai Zhou had put his mind at ease.
Not even Bai Zhou's thanks and refusals could slow his steps.
"...He just left like that?"
Holding the bowl of braised pork that had practically fallen from the heavens, Bai Zhou's stomach growled as he stared blankly at what had just happened.
No... What was all that supposed to mean?!
He had just told those two unlucky scavengers the story about the River God and the ax.
He hadn't expected to encounter another version himself—
The River God uncle with a huge beard emerged from the lake and asked Bai Zhou which ax he had lost.
But Bai Zhou wasn't a woodcutter at all. He was merely a penniless passerby who didn't even own a rusty iron ax.
Yet the bearded River God hadn't cared what he said at all. The River God simply wanted to reward him and give him something...
Everything had happened too quickly.
So quickly that Bai Zhou hadn't even had time to ask questions or refuse.
A bowl of braised pork had simply appeared in his hands.
Had they known each other before? Why was the man treating him so inexplicably well?
As for that question...
Bai Zhou had, more or less, some guesses.
When Old Qiao spoke with him, the way he looked at Bai Zhou was completely unlike the way one looked at Bai Zhou.
It was more like he was looking at the shadow of someone else.
With remembrance, emotion, and then frustration at that person's failure to live up to expectations.
There might be quite a story behind him.
But Bai Zhou had no intention of prying into someone else's privacy.
After all, meeting and parting with strangers were both matters of fate.
He only needed to silently remember the kindness he had received.
To Bai Zhou, this sudden kindness was both a familiar and unfamiliar experience.
It was a little like the feeling of being cared for by everyone as an orphan in the alleys of Evening City.
"..."
Thinking this, Bai Zhou looked down at the bowl of braised pork in his hands.
It was still warm.
He pinched off a piece and put it into his mouth.
They probably hadn't added cooking wine, so the pork's gamey smell was quite obvious. The seasoning was crude, the meat was coarse, and the fatty oil was greasy.
But how should he put it?
Bai Zhou chewed, his mouth puffed out.
...Perhaps because it had been so long since he had eaten, the meat actually tasted quite unique.
It was delicious.
At least, that was how Bai Zhou saw it.
This braised pork tasted far better than the exceptionally refined meat dishes in the base Cafeteria.
"You were right, Ya."
"There are good people and bad people everywhere."
As he ate, Bai Zhou turned his head to look at the girl in the windbreaker standing beside him.
Ya had been here the whole time, listening in from beginning to end.
If not for that, Bai Zhou wouldn't have dared to casually eat food handed to him by someone else.
"At least I can confirm that he really wasn't lying."
Ya shook her head and said uncertainly:
"Perhaps he saw the shadow of his son in you?"
"Who knows?"
Bai Zhou shook his head, then pinched another piece of pork belly from the little box and put it into his mouth.
Melting in the mouth.
His stomach no longer rumbled. The calories from the meat turned into a warm current that swept through his body, gradually relaxing Bai Zhou.
He smacked his lips, and Bai Zhou's eyes narrowed in satisfaction.
Then he held the box out,
"Want to try some? Actually, it's not bad once you get used to it."
"No need."
Ya shook his head.
The wild grass swayed, and the wind swept past his ink-black hair.
A faint fragrance drifted through the air, barely there.
"I no longer need to rely on low-level energy such as protein and fat to sustain my life."
As he spoke, he took two Coffee Beans from his clothes and gently put them into his mouth, chewing them.
The damp wind gained a few more hints of Coffee's roasted bitterness and fragrance.
"This is enough."
The twists and turns of life were always rather strange.
Just moments ago, Bai Zhou had still been eating the food forced upon him by an unfamiliar beggar uncle.
Now, he was preparing to head to the city center for a meal at an expensive Michelin three-star restaurant.
The braised pork had merely been an appetizer.
Especially since Bai Zhou had walked for another three hours along the map to reach that restaurant.
Ya had not come with him. He said he had something to take care of.
Very mysterious.
...Along the way, Bai Zhou never once removed his mask, keeping a remarkably low profile.
Although walking was exhausting, it had also given him a much better understanding of this unfamiliar city.
Unexpectedly, the bears of Tinghai City could actually "eat people" in the middle of the street.
—He had witnessed it with his own eyes!
In front of a shop called "Sweet Snow Hegemony City,"
a brown bear opened its mouth wide, and a human arm suddenly crawled out from inside!
Clearly, there was a human struggling within.
At the time, Bai Zhou had nearly rushed over and sent the bear flying with a sliding kick.
But a little girl passing by beat him to it. She screamed and threw her arms around the bear, shouting things like, "What an adorable bear!"
—Leaving Bai Zhou with no choice but to wonder whether there was some other explanation.
Finally, before the sun had completely set,
accompanied by a sky filled with blazing sunset clouds, Bai Zhou arrived at the bustling city center around half past six in the evening.
—Incidentally, when he had seen blazing sunset clouds for the first time,
Bai Zhou had thought Ya had arrived!
So this Blue Star really was strange. The sun was clearly golden, and the moon was white, so why did the transition between day and night happen to be red?
Their Evening City had the Blood Moon, so it was perfectly normal for dusk to turn red.
But what was the explanation on your Blue Star...
Wasn't this very abnormal?
—But he soon had no time to think about it further.
Because he saw "acquaintances" here.
Several men in black suits casually looked around as they walked along the street.
The silver Briefcases in their hands were all too familiar to Bai Zhou.
—The Special Management Department's Field team!
His first instinct told Bai Zhou...
They had come to find him!
His heart tightened. Bai Zhou quickly lowered his head and hurried through the crowd with his mask on.
They had come so quickly...
Had everything at the base already been dealt with?
A tense sense of oppression spread through Bai Zhou's heart.
The crowded street seemed to turn into a midnight Graveyard, no longer offering him the slightest sense of security.
At any moment, he might run headfirst into the Special Management Department's pursuers...
Fortunately, Bai Zhou did not need to remain on the street.
Because he had already reached the destination of this trip—
[L'Ambroisie]
He had come for the "Pocket Money" Ya had left at the restaurant.
Even knowing that Tinghai City would be dangerous, he had still come here without hesitation—
all to obtain the equipment and supplies Ya had left behind.
Interestingly enough...
L'Ambroisie meant food offered to the gods.
It was also known as "The Feast of the Gods," with specialties including Black Truffle Duck Liver, mille-feuille pastry, and Chocolate Tart.
—Of course, all of that was what Ya had told him.
It seemed Ya had frequented this restaurant in the past, to the point of hiding part of his "Pocket Money" here.
"...Huh?"
Suddenly, Bai Zhou discovered a blind spot—
Back then, Ya should at least still have eaten meals.
"Dress requirements for entering the restaurant: gentlemen must wear shirts and trousers, and ladies must also dress appropriately?"
Bai Zhou softly read the notice on the sign at the entrance.
—What a coincidence.
Bai Zhou looked at himself.
A white shirt, trousers, and a suit draped over his shoulder.
Although he looked careless, he still met the requirements quite well.
—Could even this have been within Ya's expectations?
At the entrance, all kinds of golden plaques were densely layered one over another:
[Hundred-Year Traditional French Cuisine]
[Tinghai City Purple Pearl Three Diamonds]
[Michelin Guide Three Stars, Selected Every Year]
[Tinghai Must-Eat List, Number One]
[...]
It was impressive, though he had no idea why.
With a "snap"—
he pushed open the restaurant door, cutting off the inside from the outside.
Bai Zhou inexplicably let out a sigh of relief.
It was as if some sudden sense of urgency had floated away.
"Welcome to [L'Ambroisie]!"
As Bai Zhou pushed open the grand door that exuded the scents of Truffle and money, the approaching waiter greeted him with impeccable courtesy.
The glow of the crystal chandeliers was dazzling, the wall decorations magnificent and elegant, and shadows of trees swayed beyond the windows. Everything was filled with a gentle, refined atmosphere, as though it were completely out of place with the modern city outside.
—And Bai Zhou was an uninvited guest who was out of place in both environments.
Every guest wore formal attire and had a solemn expression. They deliberately lowered their voices while speaking, as though raising their voices would make them seem low-class.
Only Bai Zhou looked around without the slightest concern for the gazes of others, examining the place curiously.
"Good evening, sir."
The waiter spoke again, his voice not loud,
but beneath his polite tone was a faint, indescribable pride.
The waiter had naturally extended both hands, intending to take the suit from Bai Zhou...
But after glancing at the beads of sweat on Bai Zhou's forehead and the dirty suit marked with obvious traces of dust,
he calmly withdrew his white-gloved hands.
Oh... got it.
An insurance salesman out making rounds.
Thus,
the courteous waiter reached out to stop Bai Zhou and tactfully indicated:
"—Please leave!"
"Insurance salesmen aren't allowed here!"
Bai Zhou: "?"
What was insurance?
"Arbiter-300" did have something called insurance...
Did this person want him to take out the gun and show him?
Or was this also part of the code exchange?
...After Bai Zhou explained that he had come to eat,
the waiter scrutinized him suspiciously:
"May I ask whether you have a reservation?"
"A reservation?"
Bai Zhou recalled the words Ya had taught him before coming and replied uncertainly:
"I... don't think I need a reservation?"
"What?"
The waiter was utterly stunned.
By Bai Zhou's straightforwardness.
—And you still say you aren't an insurance salesman!
No, you really weren't an insurance salesman—
you had come here to cause trouble, hadn't you?
In the nearly two hundred years since [L'Ambroisie] had opened, there had never been a guest who did not need a reservation!
All across Tinghai City, which prominent figure, wealthy dignitary, senior executive, or important official would not consider securing a seat at [L'Ambroisie] a matter of pride?
Thus, he quietly signaled behind him.
Immediately, two more waiters silently came over.
...Then, the two approaching waiters
clearly heard Bai Zhou's next words:
"Private Room 103, [L'Étoile Voilée]."
Reciting the awkward name like a mysterious Curse learned during his past training, Bai Zhou chanted the meaningless line as if reading from a script:
"I have come to listen to the unfinished nocturne."
After saying it, Bai Zhou himself flushed.
What an embarrassing line!
—Was Ya not ashamed to leave behind a code like this?
I really don't understand you people from the Mystic World!
But on the other side—
Private Room 103?
The three waiters froze for a moment.
Immediately afterward, a plump figure, as nimble as the wind, swept past them.
That was...
The manager?
One of the waiters called out blankly.
At that moment, as more and more people gathered at the entrance,
the "Upper Class" figures in the hall all turned their gazes toward this place.
—Then they all began to suspect that their ears had deceived them.
"Of course—"
"Of course, you don't need a reservation."
Facing the masked young man at the entrance,
the always-proud and uncompromising manager displayed a humble attitude they had never seen before, his smile stretching to the corners of his mouth like a blooming flower:
"—Because [L'Ambroisie] will always reserve the best seat for you!"
He glared fiercely at the three bewildered waiters and sent them aside, then bent forward with his arm raised slightly:
"—This way, please."
Amid the hall's countless speculative gazes,
Stepping across the deep-red carpet, Bai Zhou breathed in the scents of Truffle and wine lingering in the air.
Bai Zhou headed straight toward the depths of the restaurant, an area off-limits to outsiders.
Right at that moment—
"Tap, tap..."
Several more men in black suits, each carrying a Briefcase, hurried past the windows of the restaurant.
A floor-to-ceiling window separated the inside from the outside,
dividing two worlds.
Bai Zhou walked toward the depths of the hall, while the pursuers from the Special Management Department searched in the distance.
—The figures of both sides crossed paths by chance, only to drift farther and farther apart.
In the evening sky, the afterglow faded as darkness surged in.
Masses of dark clouds gathered faintly.
A storm was brewing—
Meanwhile, inside the air-conditioned, resplendent Golden Splendor restaurant...
The supposedly quiet hall was teeming with activity.
The manager led the way, the servers followed, and even the famously proud head chef, rarely seen by outsiders, hurried over afterward.
Just like that, they surrounded Bai Zhou, whose expression beneath his mask was bewildered, his eyes flickering restlessly.
—Like stars crowding around the moon.
The self-proclaimed upper-class patrons in the hall could only stare at his back with fascinated eyes, whispering among themselves.
Yet they gained nothing.
This had clearly gone beyond the realm of a VIP guest...
It was almost as if the King had returned to his loyal territory.
All eyes were upon him—
But the King didn't care.
Before you continue