Someone strangely familiar

After Xu Le gave his confirmation, Black Cat nestled affectionately against his neck.

"Stop that. It tickles!"

Xu Le walked to a corner of the bank and began counting the money.

Lighthouse's Lower City might be a mess, but public safety in the Upper City was still fine.

The people who lived here all had status and standing.

Even if they harbored unsavory thoughts, they would still act respectable. After all, social circles in the Upper City were smaller than those in the Lower City.

Everyone was bound to run into one another, and they all had reputations to maintain.

1,150 dollars. How much should I keep?

First, he needed to establish how much a Gundo Relic was worth.

Xu Le glanced at the twin-bladed greatsword beside him and began thinking it through.

If it was simply a sealed relic, it usually wasn't worth much.

The conditions for unsealing relics were unknown, and nobody else could see their final wishes directly the way he could. They didn't have much value as collectibles, either.

So they generally wouldn't fetch much.

But a fully activated Gundo Relic was extremely valuable. Xu Le estimated that it would be worth at least a few thousand.

Maybe more? I've never sold one, so I don't know the price.

Furthermore, if he brought a Gundo Relic into the Mother Tree Realm and sacrificed it, he could use his ability to obtain a Guyinduo Talent Fruit.

That would be worth even more!

Having thought it through, Xu Le took five banknotes from the 1,150 dollars and tucked them into his pocket.

Then he wrapped up the remaining 1,100 dollars and put it in the paper bag the bank had given him earlier.

Once he did this, the twin-bladed greatsword in his arms grew slightly warm.

He knew he had succeeded. Unwrapping the black cloth, Xu Le glanced at the twin-bladed sword.

[Tianrui Lifeng Twin-Bladed Sword]

Gundo Relic-TU-Class.

Twin blades-splits the war sword into two combat blades.

Cursed blade-the twin-bladed sword can absorb supernatural energy to increase its power.

Description: a nonstandard war sword from Tianrui Lifeng-may auspicious blessings descend from heaven and sharpen my blade.

After confirming that the relic had been unsealed, Xu Le understood something.

A final wish didn't actually have to be completed. Sufficient sincerity and the intention to fulfill it were enough.

Xu Le hadn't considered what would happen if he went back on his word now.

Nor did he intend to.

"Once I get back and donate the money, I should probably visit the Night Watchers squad. With Bai Jing's invitation, if I get a chance to join a Lighthouse Government department through her, that would be pretty good."

Money in hand, Xu Le began walking back.

Because of Black Cat, most passersby gave Xu Le a few looks.

Some were contemptuous; others looked disgusted.

"Meow, meow!"

Halfway back, Black Cat began yowling. One chubby paw tugged at Xu Le's hair while the other pointed at the packaged food shop.

It looked ready to bite him to death if he didn't buy something today.

Xu Le gave an awkward laugh.

"I just forgot, that's all. I'll buy it now. Right now."

Xu Le obediently went to the food shop and pointed at the dried fish on the shelf.

"Shopkeeper, give me one dried fish."

"One?"

"Yes, just one."

"Meow!"

Black Cat leaped onto the shelf in protest, licking and pawing at two dried fish.

Its attitude seemed to say, How could one be enough? Two, at least.

The middle-aged shopkeeper smiled. He liked cats too and had no prejudice against Black Cat.

He reached out to stroke Black Cat's head, but it deftly dodged him.

"Doesn't seem to like me much, haha. These are premium dried yellow croakers imported from Zion. It's licked both of them. Shall I wrap them up?"

"Wrap up one."

"Certainly. I'll weigh them for you. That'll be six dollars and forty cents."

The corners of Xu Le's mouth twitched. He simply couldn't understand Upper City spending habits!

The original owner of this body had normally paid only six cents per meal at school!

Someone who ate six-cent meals every day was now spending six dollars on dried fish.

Now that's what you call a cat eating a hundred times better than me.

Xu Le gave Black Cat one dried fish and put the other in a bag to feed it later.

Just as he was about to leave, Black Cat tugged at his hair again, pointing at the canned cured meat on the counter.

Xu Le's face nearly turned green.

"I've spent all my money on your dried fish! Where am I supposed to get money for canned meat?"

Seeing his reluctance, Black Cat immediately jumped into his arms, climbing and rolling around, doing everything it could to act cute.

And so, with tears in his eyes, Xu Le bought two cans.

Then Black Cat turned its gaze to the little sausages...

Two minutes later, the smiling shopkeeper handed Xu Le the cans, dried fish, and little sausages.

"Here are your purchases and your change. Come again!"

Looking at the middle-aged shopkeeper's kindly face, Xu Le wanted to punch him twice-bam, bam.

He wanted to punch Black Cat twice, too... Forget it. It's so small and soft. I couldn't bring myself to.

"That's enough. Let's go back to school."

Xu Le returned to the school dormitory. Zheng Wen had already left, leaving him all alone again.

He looked out the window. It was already dark, but he didn't turn on the light.

The power of the Guyinduo Secret Language began drifting through the room. The darkness turned into pixelated blocks that formed words.

[Indoor light intensity: 2. Currently in darkness. A level 1 Oddity will appear in 4 hours, 59 minutes, and 45 seconds.]

"Even in the city, Oddities can still spawn as long as there isn't enough light? When everything around me is lit, the spawn timer gets extended to four hours even if this room is dark. That's very different from the absolute darkness outside."

After briefly studying the darkness, Xu Le turned on the dormitory's overhead light and fell into a deep sleep on his bed, holding Black Cat.

With a meow, Black Cat nuzzled against Xu Le's chest and fell asleep as well.

This time, he finally got some real rest.

Early the next morning, Xu Le went to the school's welfare office.

He took out Zhang Zhe's estate and all his documents and handed them to the welfare director.

Zhang Zhe had no family or friends. Giving his belongings to the school was enough.

"We've already heard about what happened to Teacher Zhang Zhe. Thank you for your efforts, Xu Le. Leave the rest to us."

"It was the least I could do."

Xu Le nodded and left the welfare office.

Black Cat was already waiting by the door. It obediently jumped onto his shoulder and lay down across it.

Cats rarely rested their bellies in a position like this. Its behavior showed how much it trusted Xu Le.

As he left the welfare office, the school had resumed its normal operations and order, now that all the students had been examined.

As Lighthouse's best-educated young people, its university students were quick to accept reality.

Most of them could already work and study normally.

Some students also volunteered to help the Night Watchers and the Guards with cleanup and the aftermath.

Although they were grieving the loss of friends and classmates, they were indeed stronger at heart than most people.

As he walked, Xu Le actually overheard people discussing him.

"Did you hear? A level 3 Oddity appeared in A7 last night."

"Holy shit! Was everyone wiped out, just like B5?"

"No. Apparently, a few remarkable people turned up in A7 last night. Really remarkable."

"They were that strong? They could even hold off a Polluter?"

"Not just hold it off. They killed it!"

"Who were they?"

"The Night Watchers have kept the details under wraps, but a few students let some things slip. Apparently, there was a really pretty woman from the Arts Troupe called the Angel of Redemption. Her singing stabilized everyone's Heart Energy, preventing a level 2 riot. There was also someone called the Butcher. Apparently, he was a real beast. He teamed up with the Night Watchers to kill the Polluter Oddity."

They spoke convincingly, though some details didn't match what had happened the night before last.

Still, the broad facts were correct.

"The Night Watchers suppressed information about me? There's no real need to hide that, is there?"

Xu Le had previously thought his information would probably be made public.

After a disaster, heroes needed to be held up as examples. That was common practice in any country or political system.

His actions last night had indeed been rather violent.

But the outcome was good, and calling them heroic wouldn't have been an exaggeration.

He hadn't expected someone to suppress the information. Interesting.

"Madam Juya's speech is about to start. Come on, let's not waste time."

"Sure, let's go together. We should be able to see her directly from the sports field."

Xu Le glanced at the departing students and searched the original owner's memories again.

Madam Juya... one of Lighthouse University's benefactors, and the wife of the deputy district head of Lower City's District B.

"A speech? She's probably here to explain last night's dark tide."

Xu Le stopped walking.

"Wouldn't hurt to listen."

Turning toward the sports field, Xu Le walked very slowly. He didn't want anyone to notice him.

Even though most people wouldn't pay him any attention anyway, apart from perhaps glancing at Black Cat on his shoulder.

By the time he reached the sports field, Madam Juya's speech had already begun.

Before he even saw her, he heard her voice.

"During last night's Guyinduo Dark Tide, Lighthouse University was a primary target of the Oddities' attacks. In this incident, we lost 996 students, 32 outstanding teachers and administrative staff, as well as 14 Night Watchers and 205 Lighthouse Guards. They were heroes. Let us observe a minute of silence for them."

Madam Juya had a rich, resonant voice. Listening to it, Xu Le felt an inexplicable sense of familiarity.

When Xu Le rounded the corner and saw Madam Juya herself,

Good lord... she feels even more familiar!

Madam Juya wore an elegant formal gown. Though she was somewhat older, with a few wrinkles on her face and a slightly husky voice,

she still possessed a mature charm. "A lady of distinction" described her perfectly.

"Meow!"

Black Cat cried out, but Xu Le merely stared at Madam Juya's face, as though he had spotted an old lover.

Though they were far apart, Xu Le was certain he had met Madam Juya before.

He raised his head slightly and began searching the original owner's memories for her.

But no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't remember where he had seen Madam Juya.

"That's impossible! I remember her. Why can't I place her?"

Xu Le looked at Madam Juya again, just as the minute of silence ended.

"Last night, I received word that an extremely powerful Guyinduo Oddity attacked the High Tower. However, it was stopped by our faith, the Light of the Lighthouse. In the process, Lighthouse sacrificed many Guards and Night Watchers. We must not give ourselves over to sorrow or let our hearts grow too heavy. For the future of Lighthouse and the future of Deep Blue, we must continue to break free of darkness and seek the light. Along the way, we will encounter many difficulties. But I believe that as long as we work together, we will surely escape the shackles of darkness and bring this era to an end."

Before her words had even faded, enthusiastic applause broke out.

Madam Juya surveyed the crowd, repeatedly nodding in acknowledgment.

As her gaze swept toward Xu Le, their eyes met for a fleeting instant.

Madam Juya had just turned away when she suddenly snapped to attention. As though she had seen something impossible, she looked toward Xu Le again.

But Xu Le was already gone.