Little Huo Girl

"Huo Yutong?"

Gao Ren: No, bro, where did my big ol' Huo go?!

Hearing that name, he visibly froze.

That name had never appeared in the original story.

The first time Gao Ren had encountered it in his previous life had been in a fanfic.

In that story, Huo Yuhao wasn't called Huo Yuhao, but Huo Yutong. She had been a bona fide girl from birth, the biological daughter of Dai Hao and Huo Yun'er, with experiences almost identical to Huo Yuhao's.

If this Huo Yutong standing before Gao Ren really was another version of Huo Yuhao...

Then the world he was in had to be a parallel world with certain deviations, rather than the original story's world exactly as written.

A name was just a label. If "Huo Yuhao" was female, there was a catchall term for her-"Little Huo Girl"!

Back in Gao Ren's previous life, there had been an online poll that stood far from humanity and close to divinity.

Its title had been "Douluo Continent's Most Popular Character."

The poll included not only characters from the original story, but also fan-created characters, including but not limited to Genderbent Tang Shan, Genderbent Wulin, Big Sao Gang, and so on.

The most popular among them had been our sweet-smelling, soft little Little Huo Girl.

In individual matchups against many of the original characters, she had won by overwhelming margins. Almost none of her opponents had received more than ten percent of the votes.

What?

You wanted to know why she was the most popular character?

Here were her strengths:

Starved for affection.

Loved taking care of people.

Once she chose someone, she took the initiative.

Sensitive to emotions and good at comforting allies.

Hardworking and self-sufficient.

A god at studying, with a sharp mind.

Emotionally rich and positive-minded.

If you accidentally [left] for a while, she would awaken some unknown traits.

Would rather suffer herself than let you suffer.

Beyond those, she had even more indescribable strengths waiting for you to discover.

In conclusion, this character was unbeatable!

"Is there... something wrong with my name?" Seeing Gao Ren freeze, Huo Yutong thought there was something wrong with her.

"Of course not. Your name is lovely." Coming back to his senses, Gao Ren smiled and shook his head. "I have a friend whose name is quite similar to yours. So when I heard your name, I got distracted for a moment."

"Oh, so that's why."

Hearing that, Huo Yutong couldn't help letting out a relieved breath. She had thought Gao Ren was looking for an excuse to go back on his word and take back the two delicious Overlord Drumsticks.

"Go on, try my Overlord Drumstick. Right now is when it tastes best."

At his words, Huo Yutong stopped hesitating. With the Overlord Drumstick's rich, meaty aroma wafting toward her, she picked it up in one hand.

The sight of her being so careful made Gao Ren struggle to hold back a chuckle.

Huo Yutong took a small bite.

At that instant, her eyes lit up.

Even plain stir-fried greens and white rice were things she ate with relish.

The moment she tasted the Overlord Drumstick, Huo Yutong felt so happy she could fly!

She would swear on the extinction of the White Tiger Duke's lineage that this was absolutely the best, best, best thing she had ever eaten in her life!

After that first bite, Huo Yutong abandoned all table manners and ate rapidly, as though afraid someone would snatch the drumstick away.

Before long, she had gnawed the first Overlord Drumstick completely clean and stacked the bones neatly.

Anyone who didn't know better might even have thought Xuan Zi had eaten it-that fellow who left nothing behind, no matter what he ate.

Just as Gao Ren thought Huo Yutong would eat the second Overlord Drumstick too, she stopped as decisively as someone who had kicked an addiction.

That made him freeze for a moment.

This was the first time he had encountered someone who could stop halfway through eating and resist continuing.

Huo Yutong's actions successfully caught Gao Ren's attention, and even stirred a strange sense of defeat in him.

Gao Ren: Eating drumsticks is such a wonderful thing! Eat! Go on, eat! Why aren't you eating?!

"Is there something wrong with my drumstick?"

Faced with Gao Ren's question, Huo Yutong looked a little embarrassed. She explained, "If I eat the second one too, I definitely won't be able to finish my stir-fried greens and white rice."

Then she lowered her head to look at the stir-fried greens and white rice before her, more than half of which remained. "Being hungry really feels awful.

"I grew up in those circumstances, so I've always treated food with respect. Wasting food really is shameful.

"I've already eaten some of the greens and rice, but I haven't touched the second drumstick... I want to finish the food I've already started first."

"So that's it..." Gao Ren understood at once. That approach really was very Little Huo.

"Does our cafeteria allow takeout?" Huo Yutong raised her head and looked at Gao Ren expectantly. "I'd like to save this second drumstick for tonight."

Her request wouldn't have been allowed before the cafeteria's reforms, back when there hadn't even been tables or chairs.

But Shrek Academy had been steadily moving toward a more people-friendly approach.

The outdated rule that no food could be taken out of the cafeteria had long since been scrapped.

"Of course." Gao Ren nodded, got up to fetch a takeout container, and packed the remaining Overlord Drumstick for her.

"Gao Ren, thank you!" Huo Yutong accepted the container and carefully put it into the Twenty-Four Moonlit Bridges.

"You're welcome." Gao Ren smiled and shook his head. "If there's nothing else, I'll head back to the kitchen."

"Okay, goodbye." Huo Yutong waved, then watched Gao Ren leave.

Today's lucky winner... yes! I'm the lucky winner! Today, I really met an incredibly kind person!

Only after Gao Ren had disappeared completely from sight did she resume eating the food she had left unfinished.

After finishing all her food, Huo Yutong didn't hurry to leave. Instead, she used Spiritual Detection from a distance to probe the serving window where Gao Ren worked.

She wanted to see how much such a delicious drumstick actually cost.

Her Spiritual Detection swept over the menu at the serving window, revealing a price that left Huo Yutong dumbfounded.

Overlord Drumstick, 25 Gold Soul Coins each

"Twenty-five Gold Soul Coins for one drumstick?!" Huo Yutong looked at the food she had just finished. Those two dishes together had cost only two Copper Soul Coins.

She could receive one Gold Soul Coin a month. Even if she spent nothing on food or drink, she would have to wait another two years and one month before she could eat another Overlord Drumstick!

"I just... ate twenty-five Gold Soul Coins in one go... and packed another Overlord Drumstick to take away... fifty Gold Soul Coins. How many meals at Shrek Academy could that buy me..." Huo Yutong felt a little dizzy. Was this the world of the wealthy?!

At dinnertime, Gao Ren specifically stopped Bei Bei and Tang Ya when they came to eat.

Thorough by nature, he intended to confirm through the two of them whether the girl named Huo Yutong really was who he thought she was.