If Yi was born, why did Huan have to be born too?

"Oh, please, you've got to help me. You have to find her. She has an event to attend on Sunday."

As soon as she got out of the car, Zuo Jiangqin followed the police officers, anxiously stressing how important it was to find Bai Yi.

The officer listening to her adjusted his cap, which bore a qilin emblem and the words Jinghe District Police Station. Glancing back at Zuo Jiangqin, he simply asked,

"Ms. Zuo, an event isn't what you should be worrying about right now. Unless we find your daughter, thinking about anything else is pointless. And according to you, your daughter ran away from home herself, correct?"

"I..."

That single remark left Zuo Jiangqin at a loss. She opened her mouth, but could hardly say anything more.

"All right, Ms. Zuo. We'll do everything we can to find her. I promise. Don't panic, all right?"

That one remark was enough, and the officer showed no further expression.

After all, he knew whose payments kept his community's police station benefits running.

They were here to serve these people.

The officer withdrew his gaze at the appropriate moment and headed into the school.

His colleagues scattered behind him, some going to find security, others looking for teachers...

Meanwhile, he pressed his Bluetooth earphones and spoke to someone on the other end.

"Little Wright, have you checked the residential complex's surveillance footage?"

"Yes, Captain Edo. They said they've checked all the cameras near the villa. Nobody was seen leaving between five and seven yesterday afternoon..."

The officer surnamed Edo frowned in surprise. After a moment's thought, he continued,

"...Check a few more hours after that, and have someone look for any surveillance blind spots while they're at it."

"Okay. But Captain, I don't think she's very likely to go to school. According to the information Ms. Zuo provided, she rarely goes."

"Right. But we spent all last night searching, so we can only try our luck here. Ms. Zuo is particularly nervous. Getting information out of her is like squeezing toothpaste out of a tube-one little bit at a time. There's nothing I can do."

"Yeah, I know. We worked all last night, and only this morning did she mention that she often brings up a classmate named Yan Huan in front of her daughter. Apparently, that's why her daughter ran away..."

Edo sighed silently, but with Zuo Jiangqin still in front of him, he didn't want to say much. He could only whisper,

"All she can think about is what to do about that big event this weekend now that her daughter's gone. There must be a hefty penalty if she doesn't attend, right?"

"Ha, of course."

Edo had intended to tell him to keep working while he went to find the boy called Yan Huan.

But suddenly, fresh news came through his earphones.

"Oh, Captain. The information division just got back to us. Bai Yi's identification wasn't registered at any hotels last night. If our little star didn't deign to sleep under a bridge in Jinghe District, then..."

Edo suddenly stopped and muttered,

"She has somewhere to stay?"

Edo turned to Zuo Jiangqin, who was holding a parasol behind him, and hurriedly asked,

"Ms. Zuo, does your daughter have anywhere to stay besides home? Or does she know anyone in Linmen who could put her up?"

The question briefly stunned Zuo Jiangqin. A few seconds later, she slapped her forehead, as though suddenly enlightened.

"I think she has a close female friend! A lot older than her, with a place in Jinghe District. Maybe..."

"...Why didn't you tell us about this sooner, Ms. Zuo?"

"She... Oh, it's mainly because that woman looked like a shady sort, with tattoos all over her. I cut off their contact ages ago and made them stop being friends. I was afraid she'd be a bad influence on my Yi-Yi. Who knows whether they've been contacting each other in secret? I forgot about her."

"..."

Edo was completely speechless.

Even with his temperament, Zuo Jiangqin had made his blood pressure rise a little. He almost wanted some Quick-Acting Heart-Rescue Pills.

For fuck's sake...

He rubbed his brow. At that moment, he truly hated his profession.

Forget it...

Money's hard to earn, and shit's hard to swallow...

What could they do? They couldn't afford to offend these rich people in Jinghe District.

Seeing that Edo remained silent for so long, Zuo Jiangqin took her phone out of her designer handbag and asked tentatively,

"How about... I try contacting her?"

Edo nodded with a headache, glancing at this top school in Jinghe District-

Totsuki Academy.

Then he forced a smile for Zuo Jiangqin.

"All right, please do. Then shall we go look for her first?"

"Okay, I... Oh dear, I don't remember her number either. Let me contact Yi-Yi's manager first. Give me a moment."

"Mm-hmm."

Daughter, take a good look!!

This is how hard your dad works to make a living!!

You must study hard in the future. Dad will save up to send you to this elite university!!

Edo cried out silently, his heart shedding tears of blood.

After escorting Zuo Jiangqin back into the police car, Edo used his radio to call back all the colleagues who had dispersed.

"Wee-woo, wee-woo!!"

The police car's siren sounded again as it drove out of the school, leaving all the students watching in bewilderment at its hasty arrival and departure...

That included Yan Huan, who had arrived late.

He had wanted to find out what was going on, but with everyone gone, that hope naturally came to nothing.

Essentially, Yan Huan actually hoped the police wouldn't uncover anything.

After all, if other people discovered more of the abnormalities caused by the Modifier and launched a thorough investigation...

That would be walking a tightrope on the verge of exposing the Modifier.

If she felt so little sense of security that the Modifier simply blew up, there would be no room left to maneuver.

Thinking carefully, of all the known Modifier owners, Bai Yi's Modifier was currently the easiest to expose.

The other Modifier owners had measures such as Memory Correction for their targets afterward. Only Bai Yi's seemed to leave direct traces.

The marks on Zhou Bin's face, the paint on his desk.

Once or twice was fine, but if it happened too often, attracting attention was almost inevitable.

Honestly...

Yan Huan took a deep breath, but his expression remained perfectly calm.

Just then, the security guard from the pavilion outside the gate also walked over, looking toward the entrance in confusion.

Yan Huan raised his eyebrows upon seeing him, then took the initiative to greet him.

"Uncle He!"

"Oh, Yan Huan. Good thing you're here. They just said a student at our school called Bai Yi went missing after running away from home. They came to look for her and specifically asked for you... What did they talk to you about?"

Me?

So Bai Yi running away from home very likely had something to do with me too?

And considering how much she resents me...

Those thoughts ran through Yan Huan's mind, but he smiled and shook his head.

"Nothing. I only came over out of curiosity. I didn't see them; they'd all left."

"What a strange business. Oh well, hopefully nothing happens. She's just a young kid, too..."

The security guard shook his head, waved, and turned away, returning to his post in the pavilion outside the gate.

Yet somehow, Yan Huan kept feeling as though someone behind him was watching him.

He suddenly turned, but there were only countless curious gazes from students on campus behind him.

Yan Huan turned and left without a word.

He didn't see a wisp of black hair lift in the breeze at a secluded edge of the teaching building, then briefly fall back into place.

Standing there in the shadows was none other than Bai Yi, fully equipped with a bucket hat, sunglasses, and a face mask.

Not translucent, but her real self.

Thump. Thump. Thump.

At that moment, the girl in hiding felt her heart pounding wildly, her mouth frighteningly dry.

After all, this was her first time being searched for by the police like this. Besides, she already possessed this inexplicable superpower...

If I end up exposed under a camera when Indifference wears off, wouldn't that look as eerie as a ghost?

If someone discovers me...

"Tick-tick. Tock-tock..."

Just as Bai Yi was deeply worried that she wouldn't be able to explain herself and would be taken away for research, a waterdrop-like ticking suddenly sounded, and words appeared before her eyes.

[Accumulated usage time: 3 minutes]

I've been using it continuously since last night. The time's almost gone...

Only ten minutes a day. Can't it be a little longer?

Even if I can save up time, isn't that still far too little?

Bai Yi gripped the pocket watch, and those thoughts, together with her earlier worries, became a simple question in her heart.

At the very instant that thought surfaced, the surrounding air seemed to grow invisibly colder.

As though it had frozen solid.

"Click, click, click..."

[Congratulations! Through your continued use, the pocket watch has leveled up!]

[Level 1 → 2]

[The daily duration of Indifference has increased to 20 minutes!]

[New trait acquired: Transparent Human Correction]

[The pocket watch will correct any potentially discoverable inconsistencies arising before and after your use of Indifference.]

[Corrections include, but are not limited to, technological products such as surveillance cameras, phones, and cameras, or other recording methods. However, human and animal eyes will still perceive abnormalities. Please remain cautious to ensure the pocket watch's existence is not exposed.]

Bai Yi's beautiful eyes slowly widened behind her sunglasses. Then she watched the accumulated time suddenly increase by twenty minutes...

"..."

She said nothing, and her face mask hid any expression on her face.

All that could be seen was her hand gripping the pocket watch tighter and tighter.

As the sun gradually sank in the west, Yan Huan emerged from the changing room with his schoolbag on his back, having already changed out of his volleyball PE uniform.

Hitomi Sakuramiya hadn't returned for her afternoon elective. Because of the kitten at home named Mizuki, she'd simply taken the afternoon off.

Yan Huan bought a sports drink from the vending machine and drank it as he headed toward his classroom.

Just like on Monday, the teaching building was mostly deserted, quiet and peaceful.

Along the way, besides the shadows cast by the pillars in the setting sun, there was only a translucent girl in a face mask standing in the corridor with her arms folded.

Wait, did something strange sneak into that picture?

The moment he realized something was wrong, Yan Huan nearly spat out his entire mouthful of sports drink.

Fortunately, at the critical moment, Perfect Facial Expression Control instantly activated again.

He walked past her with perfect naturalness. Beside him, the girl whose face was thoroughly covered merely kept her eyes on him, her intentions unknown.

Besides, isn't this person's Modifier usage time a little excessive?

I shouldn't have misheard in the exam room last Friday. The countdown was fifteen minutes...

She should've used more than fifteen minutes at noon today, no matter how you count it. How can she still use it this afternoon?

Hello, I'm a parent, and I'd like to report something!

Please implement an anti-addiction system for Modifiers. You're corrupting my Zihan!!

Although he didn't know what Bai Yi intended, Yan Huan realized he had to play his hand.

Drinking his beverage, his expression grew increasingly natural as he slowly headed toward Class A.

"..."

Before he even reached the classroom, the 500-milliliter drink in Yan Huan's hand was already an empty bottle, leaving Bai Yi behind him somewhat dumbfounded.

Was he that thirsty?

He drank that much in one go?

With her arms folded, she watched Yan Huan toss the empty bottle into the recycling bin, and the dark thought she'd had at noon surfaced once again.

After a moment of silence, she quietly followed him.

The setting sun sank lower as the two walked along the red-tinged corridor.

One person's shadow stretched long, while the other stood entirely within the red light, as though she herself had become shadow itself.

Yan Huan opened the classroom door and entered. His paint-splattered desk by the window had already been replaced after he reported it to the school.

Was he here to pack his things?

But wasn't he already carrying his schoolbag?

The next moment, Yan Huan pulled aside the replacement desk and chair, revealing the wall behind the desk.

Quite a few traces of multicolored paint remained on the wall.

Yan Huan looked at those marks, then silently set down his schoolbag and took off his jacket, revealing the black short-sleeved T-shirt underneath.

He turned and left the classroom, returning shortly afterward with a damp rag and the alcohol disinfectant spray kept outside the restroom.

Under Bai Yi's bewildered gaze, Yan Huan slowly rolled up his sleeves.

First, he sprayed the paint on the wall with alcohol. Then he crouched down and carefully scrubbed at the marks with the damp rag...

This guy was actually cleaning the paint marks off the wall?

Bai Yi froze slightly, her movement to step forward and continue carrying out her dark idea briefly stalling.

Because the paint had already started drying, scrubbing it off took considerable effort even with the alcohol. Yet Yan Huan painstakingly rubbed at the marks, bit by bit, over and over.

And those marks had only appeared out of nowhere because of her resentment.

Perhaps, just like that female student in Class A, he thought he'd encountered something supernatural?

He'd inexplicably been splashed with paint, and then inexplicably had little stones thrown at his window.

"."

Just then, Yan Huan, who was scrubbing the tiles, suddenly thought of something and took out his phone.

His phone was an unremarkable brand. Still, with smartphone makers competing so fiercely in recent years and so many good-value models available, it was hardly embarrassingly cheap.

But his particular phone really did look as though he had been using it for a very long time.

Bai Yi knew a great deal about electronics.

She watched him dial a number, then tilt his head to wedge the phone between his ear and shoulder.

"Beep."

"Sister Tong, it's me. Yeah... um, I'll be a little late getting to work at the shop tonight."

"...Yeah, there's something I need to take care of at school first. I probably won't catch the school bus, so I'll have to take another bus back."

"Sorry about that. I'm really sorry."

As he smiled and called his workplace to ask for time off, he continued cleaning the paint off the wall with his rag.

Meanwhile, upstairs at the tavern, a bleary-eyed Tong Yingying lay sprawled on her bed, holding her phone in utter confusion.

Huh?

What's gotten into this kid?

Why's he suddenly being so polite?

Am I dreaming?

I must still be half asleep.

"Mm-hmm. Yeah."

Thinking she was dreaming, Tong Yingying gave a few casual responses and hung up.

Then she scratched the patch of belly exposed between her pajama top and bottoms, rolled over, hugged her pillow, and went back to sleep.

Meanwhile, in Totsuki's Class A classroom.

Hearing Yan Huan's phone conversation, Bai Yi finally realized that the rumors she had heard on her occasional visits to school were actually true.

Yan Huan, Totsuki Academy's Student Council President, the boy so many people liked, really was working part-time to support himself?

And even being a little late to work required him to apologize to his boss in such a "servile" manner.

At the sight, a petty sense of superiority suddenly welled up inside Bai Yi.

She had appeared on quite a few variety shows over the years and had even acted in a movie, making something of a name for herself.

She had earned her family a lot of money. Her clothes, her belongings, and the place she lived were all quite nice.

So what if Mom said he was smart and hardworking?

So what if the station executives had taken a liking to him at first sight?

So what if he looked...

Possibly, probably, maybe...

Very good-looking.

Wasn't he still struggling so hard just to get by?

Thinking this, Bai Yi watched Yan Huan hang up.

She watched him put his phone in his pocket, then yawn as though unable to hide his exhaustion.

Even so, he continued painstakingly cleaning the paint off the wall bit by bit, showing no sign of irritation.

Watching him like this, Bai Yi found that her sense of superiority was like fireworks: once it bloomed, it could not last for long.

Concealed by Indifference, she would never be discovered by anyone, so in this state, she was also her truest self.

That petty sense of superiority was more like a compressed spring suddenly released, much like the anger that had driven her impulsive actions.

A little rational thought was enough to understand that she and Yan Huan had practically nothing to do with each other.

From his perspective, he might have done nothing at all and still been subjected to this treatment.

He had to study hard, deal with all the Student Council's miscellaneous affairs, and work after school to support himself.

On top of all that, he had been plagued by "supernatural incidents" for no reason, leaving him to quietly return after school right now to clean away those traces of colored paint.

This really was Bai Yi's fault.

Economic theory assumed that everyone was rational and would choose the most reasonable option whenever they made a choice.

But in reality, people could not remain rational at every moment.

Especially when, day and night, you were compared to someone else and told that he was better than you, more hardworking than you, and more valuable than you.

Of course you would dislike the person making those comparisons.

Yet it was also hard to avoid a trace of disgust and resistance toward him rising from the deepest part of your heart.

Especially when you possessed a pocket watch that could put you into a state of Indifference.

It was a magnifying glass, a tool that silently magnified ugliness.

But it was equally true that people could not be irrational at every moment.

Like right now.

In her state of Indifference, Bai Yi parted her lips slightly, yet she could not bring herself to carry out the dirty plan she had intended.

That's right...

Didn't I hate the path my mother and manager had arranged for me more than anything?

"You have such good looks. Of course you should make the most of your advantage and capture the market for fans of pretty faces."

That was why she had always wanted to write songs, to create.

Yet when she saw someone who, like her, had good looks-perhaps even better looks than her own-but had not taken that path, she instead felt superior because of the status she had gained through her appearance?

Bai Yi felt regret, jealousy, and confusion all at once.

Her regret was that she had used the Modifier to do this to an innocent boy, that she had sneered at his circumstances with such superiority earlier.

Her jealousy was that she seemed to have truly understood what her mother had said, to have understood his hardships and excellence.

People could try to teach you and fail; an experience could teach you in a single lesson.

But why did I have to meet someone like him?

If Yi had to exist, why did Huan have to exist too?

Bai Yi clenched her teeth, her delicate fists gradually tightening as well.

And finally, what confused her was...

The station executives had already taken a liking to him back then. Why would he rather struggle like this now than go?

Whatever the case, surely it would at least be easier than this?

It really makes me curious...

Are you really this outstanding and hardworking, or...

Then let me take another look at just what sort of person you are, the one my mother keeps going on about.

"Phew, finally done."

After quite a while, Yan Huan finally finished wiping the paint off the tiles.

He let out a deep breath, stood up, and patted his hands, which now smelled strongly of alcohol.

Then he turned around, pretending to pack up and get ready to leave.

In truth, he wanted to check on Bai Yi behind him.

Yet when he swept his gaze across the room, the classroom was already empty. There was no sign of the girl.

"."

Well, looks like this round of attacks has been defused for now.

Yan Huan rubbed his wrist and glanced at the time on his phone. It was just about time to leave for work.

He shouldered his schoolbag, but did not let down his guard in the slightest.

Because he had a feeling that Bai Yi was not done with him for the day.