Lin Mu leaned back on the little stool inside the tent, casually crossing his legs.
A lollipop with the original Alpenliebe flavor dangled from his mouth as he idly ran his fingers over the crystal ball's cool, smooth surface.
Sunlight filtered through the tent's pale fabric, casting a hazy glow inside.
His little fortune-telling stall looked completely out of place amid the bustling Club Recruitment Plaza, yet it stood out all the same.
The simple tent was propped up, with a plain banner hanging from it. The words "Accurate Fortunetelling: See the Road Ahead" swayed gently in the breeze. Tarot Cards were laid out neatly on the table, and the crystal ball glimmered faintly.
But the stall owner himself showed no enthusiasm whatsoever for attracting customers. He simply lounged there, eyes half-closed.
He seemed entirely detached from the commotion around him, as if he were just waiting for a "kindred spirit (fat sheep)" to wander in on their own.
Students streamed past, their curious eyes occasionally turning toward this quiet corner.
Some pointed at the banner and whispered, "Fortunetelling? Is it for real?" Others scoffed, "It's definitely just a gimmick to scam people out of points."
And some thought, Looks pretty cool. Maybe it's cheap. I should ask.
But when they peered into the tent and saw that the stall owner was a handsome guy with white hair and a cool, aloof face, sucking on a lollipop and radiating a lazy "don't bother me" vibe,
and noticed the empty space on the table where the prices should have been, most of them hesitated.
It took courage to be the first to try something, especially when the stall owner looked like he had no interest in doing business at all and his prices were unclear. (It's best to avoid stalls that don't list their prices...)
After watching for a while, most people turned and headed for the nearby clubs, where enthusiastic members called out to passersby and showed off their talents.
Lin Mu didn't care in the slightest. He even adjusted his posture to get more comfortable, in no hurry at all.
After all, his superpower had his back. Whether he managed to run this stall or made a single sale today wouldn't affect his life one bit.
Rather than waste his breath drumming up business, he'd rather sit back, slack off, and enjoy life.
That was how you ought to face life.
He even had time to use Psychokinesis to control the candy in his pocket from a distance.
An orange-flavored lollipop floated out of his pants pocket on its own. Its plastic wrapper silently split open, and it flew straight into his slightly parted mouth.
The original flavor mingled with the sweet-and-sour orange, giving his taste buds twice the satisfaction. He narrowed his eyes contentedly, radiating the carefree indolence of someone who wanted nothing to do with the world.
Time passed quietly.
Just as the warm sunlight was about to lull Lin Mu to sleep, a hesitant shadow at the tent entrance blocked some of the light.
The newcomer was a thin young man who looked a little older than Lin Mu, probably a second-year student.
His brows were knitted tightly, his face clouded with worry, and his hands unconsciously clutched at the hem of his clothes.
He paced back and forth in front of the stall, his steps uncertain. His eyes darted like a startled rabbit between the Tarot Cards on the table and Lin Mu's expressionless face.
He kept muttering to himself, clearly embroiled in an intense inner struggle.
After agonizing for a full three minutes, he finally seemed to make up his mind. He gritted his teeth and shuffled awkwardly into the tent.
His voice was timid and full of apprehension. "C-classmate... Can you really... tell the future?"
Lin Mu lifted his eyelids and glanced at him carelessly.
The instant their eyes met, Lin Mu's precognitive ability kicked in. He saw several key fragments of the young man's future over the next few days.
They seemed to involve a chaotic team competition, arguments, regret, and isolation...
Combined with the "I have a huge problem" expression practically written across the young man's face, the situation was already clear.
With two lollipops in his mouth, his cheeks slightly puffed out, Lin Mu spoke in a lazy, nasal voice, yet with absolute certainty:
"Of course I can. My predictions are precise, without fail."
He paused, then added the most important rule of the transaction. "Pay the points first, then I'll read your fortune. One hundred thousand points per reading. If I'm wrong, I won't take a single point."
He even nodded toward the crystal ball in front of him and made an absurd-sounding joke. "And if my prediction fails, I'll eat this ball on the spot."
(I'll eat this computer screen on the spot.)
"One hundred thousand?!" Sato Yuta, a senior from Class 2-D, instantly widened his eyes and sucked in a breath.
One hundred thousand points! For a Class 2-D student like him, who had to stretch his monthly points and budget carefully, that was no small sum.
He looked at Lin Mu, who seemed so lazy he might fall asleep at any moment. He didn't look like a reliable fortune-teller at all—more like a bored freshman who'd set up a stall to kill time.
He'd only come because he couldn't stand being tormented by his worries anymore and wanted to find somewhere to get a little reassurance... He didn't want to be a sucker and hand his points to an underclassman for nothing!
"Th-this is way too expensive, isn't it?" Sato Yuta's face twisted with pain, and his voice almost broke. "Could you... charge less?
"I-I have to be careful with my points too... How about five thousand? Ten thousand?"
At that, Lin Mu couldn't even be bothered to move an eyebrow. He simply raised one finger and lightly tapped the tabletop, making a crisp knock, knock.
His tone was calm but firm, leaving no room for negotiation:
"Senior, either pay for a reading or leave. If you think it's too expensive, turn right when you go outside. The clubs over there offer free comfort; maybe you'll find what you're looking for.
"I only make accurate predictions here. I don't do cheap tricks to fool people."
He knew exactly what he was doing.
For people genuinely troubled by a problem and desperate to find a way forward, an outrageous price paired with absolute confidence could actually make them think, Maybe this really works.
(People can be so complicated. They think cheap means bad and expensive means great, even though there's barely any difference between the two.)
Besides, spending one hundred thousand points on a definite answer (and it was a real answer) was far more "worth it" than continuing to wear himself out with confusion and anxiety.
Sato Yuta bit his lower lip, his expression shifting back and forth.
He really had been driven to the end of his rope. A few friends he usually got along with had invited him to join their team for the upcoming Business Simulation Competition.
But he had no confidence in himself at all and no relevant experience. He was terrified of letting them down, then being mocked and rejected.
Yet he didn't dare refuse outright, afraid the group would exclude him and leave him even more isolated in class.
His mind was a mess, and he'd come out to clear his head. Somehow, he'd ended up at this fortune-telling stall.
Now, he looked at Lin Mu's indifferent expression, the very picture of "take it or leave it," and thought of the torment in his own heart...
If he could really learn the definite outcome and avoid a huge problem in the future, then one hundred thousand points... might... be worth it?
Though his heart was still bleeding.
In the end, his fear of the unknown trouble outweighed his reluctance to part with his points.
(Event dates: May 1 to May 5)
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