Chapter 337: Pinokangni Chapter (Twenty‑Six)

The watch kid again expressed thanks to Xing, then left with Misha.

"Come with me, this time don't be taken away by your invisible friend again..." Liuying turned away and let out a soft, little hum.

The air in Pinokangni seemed to carry a hint of vinegar... probably just an illusion?

The two took a pinball machine to a café, and Liuying said this was the place.

"Is this the secret base?" Xing looked around, seeing the coming and going crowds; this place could indeed serve as a base, but it's not at all "secret"?

"No, not..." Liuying blushed, embarrassedly pointing at the manhole cover behind her: "—It's here."

This is somewhat awkward; Xing unconsciously lowered his voice: "There are still people watching around here..."

"It's fine! Anything can happen in dreams—lots of people fall from the sky every day—passersby are already used to it. I'll give a demo—at first it'll get a bit dark, you need to stick close to me."

Having said that, the girl lifted the cover in front of her and slipped in, dripping with water.

"..."

Diving into the sewer with a beautiful girl was a novel experience for the first time. Xing's thoughts raced, but having come this far…

——

Silver Soul.

"Isn't it already full inside?"

"Ayin, nobody here can teleport."

In front of the Odd Jobs Shop's tea table, three people stared at the screen showing Liuying and Xing diving into the sewer.

Yinshi lay limp on the sofa, his dead‑fish eyes showing no ripple: "Ah… my heart has died. Not a metaphor—I'm literally envious to the point of cardiac arrest."

Kagura chewed on pickled kelp, tilting her head: "Huh? What's there to envy about diving into a sewer? It's stinky and you might run into a rat, Alu."

"The point isn't the sewer!" Silver Soul suddenly sat up straight: "It's two people diving into the sewer together! This is youth! This is romance! This is—"

"Your youth and romance smell a bit heavy…" Xin baji pushed up the bridge of his nose.

"Moreover, don't you find it strange? Why must we dive into the sewer to reach the secret base? This is clearly Liuying's little trick."

"Ayin, you're just jealous, right?" Kagura swallowed her pickled kelp, then said: "If you're really envious, why not try digging into the sewer with Mister Hijikata next time—"

"Shut up! This is a proper shonen manga, not a BL doujin!"

——

A girl with black twin tails suddenly stopped by the roadside, hands on her hips, and suddenly said: "Hey, I'm asking you…"

"Is your way of attracting girls' attention just to swagger and follow her?" She turned her head, her twin tails swaying slightly with the motion: "It's been almost half a system hour."

Shajin swaggered out of the shadows and said lightly: "To be exact, it's 45 minutes. Pleasant times always fly by, don't they?"

The girl snorted: "Heh, little peacock… you've got a nice pair of eyes. Your hometown is Cigangniya, right?"

Shajin put one hand on his hip: "Want another hint? For example, I'm an Aweijin Person."

"Hmm… my eyes aren't as good as yours, but I'm not blind," the girl said coldly, mocking: "—Who in the whole universe doesn't know you Cigangniya people? Born cheats, thieves, social butterflies… honey‑mouth, sword‑heart, truly living up to the name."

"If I may say, you'd be better off waiting under a manhole cover than in a dream," the girl said, looking around. She indeed spotted a manhole cover nearby and gave Shajin a wink: "... Ah, there's one right there—go on over~"

"No need, dark corners don't suit my vibe. This beautiful dream fits me better—frivolous, vain, showy but substanceless." Shajin seemed unfazed by the girl's aggressive remark, still smiling: "... Besides, it won't rain! My outfit is too delicate to withstand wind and rain."

She slightly lifted her chin, not hiding the mockery in her tone: "Put away your cheeky tongue, little peacock. Go back, we're Fools, not idiots—we don't plan to play buddy‑buddy with the company's lapdog."

——

Dual City War.

This Shajin really gets argued with wherever he goes. I'd say his temper is too good—if it were me, I'd definitely punch that little girl in the face and see if she'd still dare say such things—

In Piiertewofu's park square, Wei and Kaitelin sat side‑by‑side on a roadside bench watching the skyline. When they saw the black‑haired girl openly mocking Shajin, she instinctively clenched her fist—only to forget she was still holding a can of beer, which sprayed all over her.

Kaitelin sighed helplessly, pulled out a stack of tissues from her pocket and handed them over: "You're always like this, hoping to solve things with violence. In my view, he isn't just good‑tempered…" She narrowed her eyes slightly: "... rather, he's grown accustomed to it."

"Used to being a punching bag?"

"Believe me, nobody can reach a Company P45 position by just being a punching bag."

Kaitelin shook her head, her blue hair fluttering in the evening breeze: "Perhaps for some people, being a Cigangniya is seen as a shameful side they hide, and exposing it would humiliate Shajin. But for him personally, the Cigangniya identity is maybe just a card in a hand—play it at the right moment, and whether it's disgraceful or not doesn't matter."

"Just like my mother always brings up 'the daughter of the Gilamanen family' to make a point—though I dislike it, I can't deny… this is also one of my cards; at least in certain high‑society settings, playing it saves me some unnecessary trouble."

"As for that masked little girl…" Kaiselin smiled faintly: "I think she just wants to provoke Shajin, or perhaps for the Masked Fool, seeing people fly into a rage is part of the fun."

Wei also chuckled: "But she didn't expect Shajin to be completely unbothered."

"Well, I guess Shajin isn't exactly new to dealing with the Masked Fool—he knows their routine all too well." Kaiselin nodded: "The more she tries to humiliate Shajin, the less he cares about it. Still, I don't know what he's thinking—he actually wants to cooperate with the Masked Fool."

"Xiaodangao, you seem pretty familiar with the Masked Fool… how do you know they can't cooperate?" Wei gave Kaitelin a puzzled look.

"It's not that I'm well‑versed, but do you remember what happened during the initial universal locust plague… regarding the Masked Fool part?"