The cold beauty

As Lu Li grinned foolishly at the forum, someone suddenly grabbed him by the scruff of his neck.

"Had enough fun?" Rover asked, exasperated.

She truly couldn't understand how anyone could have maxed out their social stats to such an extent.

Chixia snickered beside them. "I think it's pretty funny."

As they talked, the three of them arrived outside the Frontier.

The Frontier was a magnificent building on Jinzhou's central axis, accessible by the entrance steps.

Solemn and stately, it was Jinzhou's political center, as well as the home of the Huanglan Compendium database.

Since Jinzhou's founding, successive magistrates had governed from here, making it an important government site in the eyes of Jinzhou's people.

The Frontier was built against the mountains on elevated ground.

Lady Jinhsi was particularly fond of gazing out over Jinzhou City from the Frontier.

According to her, it was because the overlapping mountains beyond the city seemed to stretch on forever, yet with Jinzhou's countless lights shining alongside them, they didn't seem frightening at all.

The current magistrate, Lady Jinhsi, had also lifted the access restrictions on part of the Frontier's exterior grounds, allowing locals and visitors to tour its surroundings.

Defensive devices were installed on the building to effectively repel Remnant incursions. Any intrusion would also trigger their alarms.

Outside lay a pond and a rustling bamboo grove. For anyone looking to practice swordsmanship, this might be a good spot.

At that moment, the place was bustling.

Because of the notice the magistrate had issued earlier, some people had come here claiming to be the person she was looking for, all in hopes of meeting her.

A female passerby protested to the Midnight Rangers, "How could I not be that important guest? Look, look! Everyone who welcomed me along the way said it!"

"Every guest is an important visitor to Jinzhou!"

"Nobody said I wasn't!"

"So why won't you let me meet the magistrate?"

Elsewhere, two men were chatting. "How far did you get? Did you meet the magistrate?"

"I actually met-Lady Sanhua! Lady Sanhua looked at me!"

"And Lady Sanhua personally-confirmed that I wasn't the guest!"

"But who cares about a little detail like that?"

"I saw Lady Sanhua with my own eyes and got rejected by her in person!"

After making their way through the noisy crowd, the three finally found Yangyang.

Chixia smiled. "This is the first time I've seen it so lively outside the Frontier!"

Yangyang replied, "I was startled when I arrived, too. I've never seen so many people who aren't government employees gathered here."

Although part of the Frontier's grounds was open to the public, the overall atmosphere remained fairly serious.

"Are all these people here for an audience, too?" Lu Li asked.

"Most of them have already applied for one, but I heard they were politely turned away without meeting the magistrate," Yangyang answered.

Lu Li rubbed his chin. "Have they not seen my post yet?"

Yangyang smiled. "If you'd posted it sooner, they might not have come."

"Who turned them away?" Rover asked.

"Most were politely persuaded to leave by the guards when they first began the paperwork. Those applying on someone else's behalf, or insisting on a meeting, were the ones who stayed."

Yangyang explained:

"But everyone who went in seemed to say, 'Lady Sanhua took one look at me, and it was like I was frozen in place.' Then she sent them away with a single sentence."

Chixia said dramatically, "What a weird description! She sounds like some snake-haired Remnant who's about to turn people to stone."

Lu Li frowned. "Is this Lady Sanhua really that scary?"

Yangyang said, "She's the magistrate's personal bodyguard."

Realization dawned on Chixia. "Oh! I've heard of her. She's an 'all-rounder with a piercing eye and incredible fighting prowess-a cold beauty.'"

"-Or so the rumors say," she added.

A cold beauty...

As the saying goes, the public has sharp eyes.

If she's a personal bodyguard, she must be a Resonator, too.

"Heh heh heh..."

Lu Li planted his hands on his hips and tilted his head up slightly. "They must be waiting for me!"

Chixia patted his shoulder consolingly. "You're pretty great, but you're not a Resonator, after all. The person the magistrate's looking for should be A Piao."

Rover asked, "Can holographic messages be recorded in advance?"

"Of course! They're messages, after all!" Chixia playfully shook Lu Li by the shoulders. "What occurred to you, A Piao?"

"Maybe the magistrate can't be certain who this guest is." A Piao rubbed her chin, looking thoughtful.

"What do you mean, A Piao?"

"The broadcast wasn't sent out just because the guest was 'lost.' The magistrate couldn't possibly have overlooked impostors or the situation we're seeing now. But what is she using to identify these 'false guests'..." Rover seemed to be murmuring to herself before she sighed. "No, it's nothing."

Yangyang said, "I don't quite understand what you're thinking, Rover, but wouldn't it be better to meet her first and find out for yourself?"

Chixia said, "I'm pretty lost, too. Whatever the magistrate's goals or plans are, she's our only fairly solid lead right now, isn't she?"

"What do you two think?" A Piao still seemed uneasy.

Lu Li, however, understood what Rover meant.

After all, in the earlier holographic message, the magistrate's description of the person she was looking for had been vague. Rover probably wasn't entirely certain that she was the one Jinhsi wanted to find.

Lu Li reassured her, "It's fine. Let's go in and meet this Sanhua first. The magistrate hasn't appeared herself and has left things to her personal bodyguard, so there must be some way to tell."

Yangyang asked worriedly, "How do you feel, Rover? Do the unfamiliar city and your missing memories leave you feeling lost and uneasy...?"

A Piao pressed her lips together. "I don't know what I should do."

Ever since waking up, she had been led around almost constantly, with few ideas of her own.

After all, someone who had lost their memories would naturally feel lost in an unfamiliar world.

Lu Li was much the same. Although he hadn't lost his memories, he really didn't know much about this world, either.

Fortunately, he had the system with him, so at least surviving in this dangerous world shouldn't be much of a problem. With the tasks the system gave him, he also had some goals to pursue.

For example, his current little goal was to become a social menace!

Lu Li reassured her again, "It's all right! Whatever the past was like, we all have to look ahead!"

A Piao smiled and nodded.

"If that's settled, why don't you go in and meet Sanhua first, A Piao? Perhaps she can answer all your questions."

Yangyang then looked at Lu Li. "As for you... I think the chances are slim, but the magistrate's message didn't explicitly say the person she's looking for is a Resonator. Why don't you go in with A Piao?"

"No problem!"

Yangyang nodded. "Chixia and I will wait outside."

Chixia said, "Yep, right outside! If anything happens, just shout-oh, I guess that won't work. We probably wouldn't hear you from outside, and shouting isn't allowed in the Frontier."

Lu Li patted Chixia's head, then walked into the Frontier with A Piao.