The Long Vacation

Clearly aware of the nature of her father's work, Fu Yi looked at Huai Shi strangely. "Did you get into trouble during summer vacation?"

"...Yeah."

Huai Shi nodded, unsure how to explain.

Fu Yi did not ask much more. "You don't need to be afraid of him. He's just used to being rough and doesn't understand things like... tact.

People who have been on the battlefield are probably all like that. No matter how good their intentions are, they never come across as likable."

After fooling around for a while, she received a Student Council meeting text. Once she had returned to her quiet, ladylike demeanor, she left.

Huai Shi stayed alone in the music room until evening study hall.

Following Crow's instructions, he took his medicine, then practiced piano for several hours while completing that day's meditation.

He could feel that as his body developed, the fluctuations of his Source Matter were becoming ever more abundant. He figured he would soon reach his peak.

Very soon, once his growth phase was over, he could begin preparing for his Stigmata. Crow had said she would choose a lineage and type that suited him perfectly.

That would definitely cost another fortune...

The thought gave Huai Shi a headache, but he seemed to have gradually grown accustomed to this demanding routine.

Practicing piano, shooting the breeze with classmates, slacking off, dealing with teachers' inspections, making mistakes, getting scolded, meditating, sending stupid memes, pulling gacha in mobile games without spending a dime, doing homework, taking grading exams, finding time to complete work for the Astronomical Society, reading the records in the Book of Destiny, preparing for the college entrance exam...

There were simply too many things to do when he counted them carefully.

Though there were many imperfections, and many things that seemed unnecessary, this was still the precious life he had earned through his own efforts.

Even if it was tiring, he welcomed it willingly.

Then, before evening study hall, he left early.

Come on, now that he had special privileges, was he supposed to keep staying until after nine every day, miss the last bus, and pedal a shared bike home?

He was now a man who could afford a monthly bus pass!

Huai Shi carried his instrument case over his shoulder, humming a song as he deliberately made a circuit around the front of the teaching building. Under the envious, jealous, and resentful gazes of his classmates, he swaggered out through the school gate.

Then the gatekeeper stopped him.

"Huai Shi, right?"

The middle-aged guard playing on his phone recognized him somewhat and pointed toward the guardhouse. "You've got a package... Don't let this happen again. This isn't a collection point. Next time, I'll notify your homeroom teacher to come pick it up."

"What?" Huai Shi froze and followed his finger toward the pile of shipping boxes in the corner of the guardhouse.

For some reason—

The hairs all over his body stood on end.

A tangible chill crawled from his heels up the back of his head, tap-danced across his shoulders, stepped over his eyebrows onto the crown of his head, then grabbed his hair and spun around with a vicious grin, laughing a cold wind into his ear.

He nearly lost his footing and staggered back.

"What is it?" The guard glanced at him and shook his head. "Forget it, I'll get it for you."

"Wait!"

Huai Shi reached out and grabbed his wrist. The man froze, his feet stopping in place as he turned back in astonishment. An Oni had actually squeezed his arm hard enough to hurt.

"Sorry, I'll get it myself."

Rather rudely, Huai Shi held him in place, took off his instrument case, entered the guardhouse, and crouched down to inspect the package bearing his name.

Amid the jumbled noise from the television mounted on the wall, he vaguely heard a ticking sound from inside the box.

It was so crisp.

Huai Shi crouched on the ground without moving. He remained silent for a long time, until the guard impatiently urged him several times. Only then did he slowly rise, almost roughly dragging the man outside. Ignoring what he was saying, Huai Shi took out his phone and called Director Fu.

"Hello? This is Huai Shi." Huai Shi looked up at the security camera outside. "Director Fu, you can see me, right?"

"What the hell are you thinking?" The middle-aged man suppressed his anger. "I'm the director of the Special Affairs Department. Do you think I've got nothing better to do than watch surveillance footage and spy on you all day?"

"Forget it." Huai Shi sighed. "Come to the school, sir. Bring people. Bomb disposal experts if possible... The school is going to explode. Literally."

"What happened? What is it? What did you do?!"

Director Fu was instantly shocked, firing off the three great questions of life.

Once he came to his senses, a chaotic racket sounded from the other end. "Ten minutes! Wait for us! Stay where you are and don't touch anything!"

The call ended.

Huai Shi called Ai Qing as well. After informing her of the situation, he quietly dragged the guard to wait over ten meters away from the guardhouse.

Of course, whether the guard was willing was another matter. They also seemed to attract quite a lot of attention, including patrolling security personnel and teachers heading to study hall.

Soon, the commotion abruptly died down before one large black vehicle after another.

A squad of burly men armed to the teeth filed out of the vehicles, followed by Director Fu, who jumped down in a bulletproof vest and headed straight for Huai Shi.

"Where is it?"

Huai Shi pointed toward the guardhouse. Director Fu said nothing else and waved his hand. Two bulky figures wrapped head to toe in blast suits pushed a bomb containment sphere on a cart into the guardhouse.

Very soon, unfortunate news came through the walkie-talkie.

Director Fu's expression grew increasingly grim. He glared at Huai Shi and waved for everyone to retreat another considerable distance.

Not long after, the two experts emerged with their helmets off. Their messy hair clung to their foreheads, and sweat dripped from their chins.

"It's been dealt with."

They helped each other remove their heavy Protective Suits, then showed Director Fu the box lying inside the blast sphere. Inside the cut-open package, the bizarre thing bound together by dense cables and circuit boards had stopped counting down at an hour and a half.

"Looks like a pretty standard model."

Before Director Fu could take a closer look, a hand suddenly reached into the containment sphere and pulled it out, weighing it in its palm. The sight nearly made him stop breathing.

It was Ai Qing.

Seated in her wheelchair, she handled the dangerous object capable of blowing her sky-high. "What kind of trigger?"

"Two kinds. A combined pressure-release and timed trigger. Opening the box or reaching the countdown would both cause it to explode. The explosives are ordinary mining explosives, so their power is relatively low. It would probably only flatten this guardhouse."

Having caught his breath, the expert sat on the ground and lit a cigarette. "If it had been opened somewhere like a classroom, the consequences would have been unthinkable."

"..."

Director Fu stood with his hands behind his back and said nothing. The veins on the hands behind him bulged.

"This has become a serious public safety incident." Ai Qing rubbed her brow with some irritation. "Who delivered it?"

Soon, roadside surveillance footage displayed the courier's trail on the screen.

It was a hunched man in a cap, wearing an old Northern Express uniform. Yet no matter how one looked at him, he did not resemble a deliveryman. His steps were unsteady, and he limped as he walked.

He hid his face beneath the brim of his hat the entire time. After handing the item to the guard, he rode away on a bicycle.

But before leaving, as though in provocation, he looked up at the camera.

Revealing a twisted face covered in horrific burns.

There were faint traces remaining of the warm, kindly appearance he once had.

He grinned happily.

At everyone present.

There was no need to remember. The instant they saw that face, everyone who had experienced the turmoil half a month ago recognized him.

He was the former nominal leader of the Savior Society...

"Wang Hai?!"

Director Fu's eyes widened in disbelief. "He's still alive?"

"From the looks of it, he is indeed alive." Ai Qing coldly glanced at the smug smile on the screen. "And he still has enough strength to issue us a challenge."

Soon, the brief discussion ended.

Without question, this was a provocation aimed at the Special Affairs Department and the Astronomical Society. A remnant of the Savior Society actually dared to openly carry out an attack in New Sea. It was like dancing in front of Trench Prison—an outright death wish.

At this point, there was no second option but to beat those bastards to death.

From that moment onward, the Special Affairs Department began operating at full throttle. Before long, its informants spread through every corner of New Sea would begin searching for all traces of Wang Hai. The moment they found even the slightest clue, a group of eager brothers itching for a fight would descend from the sky with guns blazing and teach him a lesson.

From beginning to end, Huai Shi sat on the steps with a calm expression.

He did not say a word.

He merely remained silent.

As though he were in a daze, it took him a long time to snap out of it. Then he looked at Ai Qing beside him. "Is it over?"

"It may only be beginning."

Ai Qing shrugged. "Don't put too much pressure on yourself. The Special Affairs Department will send you back first. Get some proper rest tonight. I'll notify you as soon as there is news."

"Yeah."

Huai Shi nodded and said nothing more. But after taking two steps, as if only just remembering something, he turned back and asked, "Oh, right. Could you help me arrange leave from school?"

"Hm?"

Ai Qing froze. Seeing his eyes, she sighed after a long moment and nodded.

"Thanks."

Huai Shi smiled and said nothing else. He merely slung his instrument case over his shoulder and gave the now-peaceful school one final glance, along with the lights of the distant music room.

It seemed as though he saw Fu Yi's silhouette in that window. She watched him from afar, so Huai Shi waved to her.

A farewell wave.

After a long time, he withdrew his gaze and turned to leave.

"I'm back."

Amid the shrill scrape of the bolt, Huai Shi pushed open the doors of Stone Marrow Hall. Though no one was waiting for him in the courtyard, he still called out as if he had returned home.

The iron gates slowly closed behind him, as though answering him.

The moment he entered, he saw Crow standing beside a boiling crucible on the table in the hall, waving her wings at Huai Shi.

"Dalang, time for your medicine."

"Didn't I already drink today's dose this morning?" Huai Shi walked over, picked up a test tube from the table, tipped back his head, and drained it in one gulp.

"An extra serving. And I'm adjusting the formula based on your current condition."

After explaining, Crow did not ask anything further. Instead, she tilted her head curiously and examined Huai Shi before her, as though she had discovered something interesting.

"What is it?" Huai Shi asked, puzzled.

"No, I was just thinking—normally, you'd respond when you heard 'Dalong, time for your medicine,' wouldn't you?" Crow asked. "Did something happen, Huai Shi?"

Huai Shi fell silent.

After a long time, he slowly shook his head and turned toward the upstairs bedroom.

"Nothing happened." With his back to Crow, he spoke softly. "I'm going to sleep. Good night."

He shut the door, took off his coat, and kicked away his shoes.

Huai Shi lay facedown on the bed, staring blankly at the cracks in the wall as though lost in thought. After a long time, he buried his face in the pillow in regret.

"Fuck, I'm so weak..."

.

On a tree branch outside the window, Crow watched everything without going in to comfort him.

"Looks like he lost badly."

She narrowed her eyes. "We need to put gathering materials for his Stigmata on the agenda..."

Thinking over the plans and preparations to come, she returned to the table in the hall and began jotting things down in her notebook.

What followed was a long, long night.

Huai Shi's new semester, and the peaceful life he longed for, came to a hasty close just like that.

He was on vacation.