After dinner, Li Wu took Raiden Mei to the supermarket downstairs to buy daily necessities, then to the nearest mall to pick up various outfits.
Simple T-shirts and light blue jeans, beige cardigans and floral dresses, silk slip nightgowns, and all sorts of peculiar stockings—black, white, ankle-high, over-the-knee, and even garters...
Though Raiden Mei had become bright and cheerful, Li Wu couldn't shake a lingering sense of unease. Fortunately, she remained obedient; as long as he suggested it, she would generally follow along.
Still, keeping a pile of suggestive items at home... if anyone found out, he'd truly never be able to clear his name.
That night, the two of them slept in separate bedrooms. Li Wu fell into a heavy, deep sleep.
In his dreams, he felt a strange sense of suffocation. His body felt weighted down, as if he were sinking into the ocean, unable to float back to the surface.
A giant python was coiled tightly around his waist, constantly constricting, undulating, and trembling...
He couldn't move. He could only watch as the python opened its massive maw and devoured him whole, from top to bottom. His internal organs were completely emptied out, leaving nothing but a few lingering nerves to wail in silent agony...
The next morning, a pale blue light burst across the eastern horizon. It filtered through the window, illuminating Li Wu's bloodless face.
"Ugh..."
Li Wu let out a weak groan. He struggled to sit up and rubbed his eyes, then pressed his hand against his lower abdomen.
"Is this a side effect of forcing myself to finish that thousand-meter run yesterday? I feel like I've been drained dry... It actually kind of hurts."
The pain wasn't as distinct as the sensation of Return by Death, so Li Wu naturally attributed it to yesterday's physical exertion.
Today, there were two "Crisis Events" scheduled. However, since the "Rooftop Four" had already been neutralized, he didn't need to worry about them anymore. He just had to focus all his attention on the remaining event:
"The Transfer Student Incident."
Li Wu muttered the words to himself, his expression turning more solemn than ever before. "In the manga, a transfer student arrives in Mei's class today. He claims his father was brothers with Raiden Ryoma and says he believes Ryoma is innocent just to trick Mei into trusting him. In reality, he's there to kill her. But since the protagonist has 'played the game,' he knows it's a trap. The two have a falling out, and Mei eventually gets lured to the back mountain and murdered."
"Dammit, what was I thinking when I wrote this? Why did I come up with such a braindead plot? Plot issues aside, the guy is an Anti-Entropy cyborg. I definitely can't win in a head-on fight. I have to plan a counter-strategy in advance."
Li Wu thought as he changed his clothes.
In the manga, the protagonist utilized the fact that the bubbly, energetic Kiana liked Raiden Mei. Through careful manipulation, he used Kiana's superhuman physique to take down the cyborg. But with the current Kiana... forget about her helping; he'd be lucky if she didn't join the other side.
Furthermore, Kiana and Raiden Mei were currently total rivals who wanted nothing more than to grind each other into the dirt. There wasn't a trace of the "Ship" dynamic from the original work...
"In the manga, Kiana won through brute force, and I never specified his weaknesses or openings. But reality is different. A cyborg is still human at the core. Even if parts of his body were replaced with prosthetics, there must be weak points. If I prepare a weapon beforehand and record a video to prove my innocence, I can fight back without restraint. At worst, I'll just have to 'Reset' a few times."
"Besides, the current Mei isn't as naive as she was in the manga. If I warn her, she probably won't be fooled."
Li Wu looked at the gun and the knife in his drawer. After a moment of hesitation, he tucked the knife into his jacket pocket.
He couldn't expose the firearm. If there was no one to clean up the mess, exposing a gun would land him in prison. A knife was safer.
After making a few more preparations, Li Wu left his bedroom.
The moment he pushed the door open, warm light bloomed like fireworks throughout the modest apartment, filling every dark corner.
The breakfast laid out on the table was staggeringly lavish.
"You're awake? Come try the breakfast I made, Little Li. It's okay if you can't finish; just eat as much as you can." Raiden Mei walked out of the kitchen. Her hair was still damp at the tips—it was hard to tell if it was morning dew or sweat.
As she carried a tray over, steam drifted lazily from the porcelain bowls.
Millet porridge with wolfberries; a side dish of golden, fluffy scrambled eggs with shrimp; diamond-cut purple potato cakes with a sweet glaze; a small bowl of black sesame and walnut paste topped with dried osmanthus flowers; and a plate of tender, succulent steak that looked incredibly appetizing. A small clay pot on the side was still bubbling, occasionally spitting out drops of savory broth. There was even a glass of fresh soy milk.
Raiden Mei picked up a spoon and slowly stirred the sesame paste. As the morning light spilled over her, the beads of sweat on her forehead were clearly visible.
Li Wu usually just grabbed a jianbing pancake from a street stall and ate it on the bus. If he didn't finish, he'd bring it to school. He had never seen a breakfast more extravagant than most people's dinners.
"This is way too much, Mei. You really could have just thrown something together for breakfast. But..." Li Wu changed his tone and sat down, picking up his utensils. "If I keep complaining, it'll just make you feel bad. You worked so hard on this; it would be wrong of me to look miserable. I appreciate all the effort you put in. Anyway, thanks for the meal."
"I'm the one who should be saying 'thanks for the feast.'"
"Huh? What do you mean by that?"
"Nothing. Hurry up and eat so we can go to school together! You didn't touch your homework, so I did it for you when I got up."
Mei's sudden comment left Li Wu puzzled. What did she mean, she was the one who should be saying thanks for the feast? Wasn't she the one who did the cooking?
Could it be because of what happened before? Then yes, "thanks for the feast" made sense—after all, he had practically turned into a killing machine to clear out those mercenaries for her. It was normal to be grateful.
Yeah, that's it. She's just being grateful. Raiden Mei is such a good girl!
It's definitely not because she helped me finish the homework I forgot to do.
Li Wu silently cheered for Raiden Mei in his heart.
After breakfast.
As usual, they boarded the bus. As usual, they walked into Chiba Academy.
Before entering the school, Li Wu parted ways with Raiden Mei to prepare for the upcoming crisis.
When they stepped into the building again, the former slander and insults had vanished.
Public opinion was a fickle thing—it came fast and left just as quickly. After only one night, everyone seemed to have put on a new face. They were gentle and kind, to the point where Li Wu almost fell under the illusion that he could actually become friends with them.
But logic told him that was a mistake.
When you have power and influence, everyone around you is a "good person." When you have nothing and no value, the contempt hidden behind those smiles finally reveals itself.
Raiden Mei understood this truth even better. Compared to Li Wu's perfunctory politeness, she couldn't even be bothered to look at those people. She simply clung tightly to Li Wu's arm.
The two of them walked into the classroom in an intimate display.
Under the gazes of their classmates—no longer judgmental—they returned to their seats and waited for the first period to begin.
At the same time, Li Wu waited for that "transfer student" to arrive...
DING-DONG—
The bell rang. The homeroom teacher's attire was even more formal than yesterday; his hair was visibly well-groomed.
"Students, today we have a new classmate from Northern Europe joining us. Some of you might have even seen her on TV. I hope everyone can get along and not exclude anyone based on race or status. Our class is one big, loving family. One person's honor is everyone's honor; one person's shame is everyone's shame. We must support one another, share in our joys and sorrows, and move forward hand-in-hand..."