Chapter 443: Birthday?

I really just got fucked by a black goat!

He hadn't been acting right just a second ago, yet in one instant he'd flipped three cars and blown his cover completely—Li Ang cursed under his breath at how absurd it was, then snatched up the broom and spun around, two strides carrying him straight out the conference room door, face-to-face with the security manager's snarling visage.

"You…"

"You're done!"

A flying kick slammed hard into the security manager's face, sending him flying mid-sentence; Li Ang snatched the file folder off the ground and bolted for the exit, head down.

By now, even the dumbest fool should've realized something was wrong—six different shouts, varying in tone, erupted nearly simultaneously inside the conference room, eventually merging into one unified cry:

"Catch him!!!!!!"

…

You'll never catch me!

Though he'd inexplicably blown his cover, Li Ang felt no panic.

Aside from the calmness granted by 【Martyr of Wine Country】, he'd been taught by Senior Emma's experience—"Before thinking how to complete the mission, first think how to escape if you fail."

So when entering Hydro Corp, Li Ang had already studied the layout and pre-planned his escape route, never worrying he'd be caught.

After quickly reviewing his surroundings, he noted the security squad stationed at Hydro Corp's main entrance to deter protesters, so he didn't run toward the nearest door—he reversed direction and sprinted deep into the company!

"Stop him!"

"Catch that man!"

"Don't let him get away!"

Amid the chaotic shouts, the pursuing crowd swelled like a snowball rolling downhill, densely cramming half the corridor.

But because he carried so much, Li Ang couldn't increase his speed; soon the pursuers caught up, with several top-condition guards closing to less than three steps behind, even having breath left to shout as they ran.

"Drop the stuff!"

"No way out ahead!"

"Stop! You can't escape!"

Who said I'm "running"?

Glancing back at the pursuers, seeing they'd closed in, Li Ang—prepared—narrowed his eyes and gripped the shaft of 【Witch's Broom】 tightly.

"Boom!"

The wind-blocking barrier exploded open; the supposedly enclosed room suddenly erupted in a bizarre gale, absurdly targeting only people's lower bodies.

The guards behind him, already leaning forward while running, were knocked flat like cut grass—each crashed onto the tile, heads splitting open, some too slow to react and collapsing unconscious.

Those behind weren't directly blown down, but tripped over the fallen guards, tumbling into heaps and blocking those behind—pursuers' numbers halved instantly!

"Damn it! Go around!"

"Get out of the way!"

"He's going upstairs!"

Admittedly, Hydro Corp's security had excellent physical conditioning—some kept their balance, merely delayed; those who fell less hard rose one by one, gritting their teeth and charging after Li Ang into the stairwell.

But again, something baffling happened.

Li Ang, bursting into the stairwell, moved like a monkey returning to the forest—his slender frame light as paper, he leapt halfway up the stairs in one bound.

After using his free hand to tug the handrail and dissipate momentum, he seemed to think it still wasn't fast enough; he clutched the goat head and file folder under one arm, the broom tucked sideways, then vaulted straight through the gap between two stair segments.

To the stunned, godlike stares of the guards, the man in their same uniform refused to use the stairs—he climbed upward by gripping and kicking through the stairwell's open space!

As if the air around him weren't empty but a fluid offering buoyancy, his unimposing body simply contracted and expanded, lightly pushing off the handrail and steps, shooting upward nearly two meters at a time—lighter than floating upward from the sea while clutching an empty wine barrel!

"Why are you all stopping?!"

Breathless, the conference supervisor burst into the stairwell, seeing the guards staring dumbly upward—his face pale, he roared:

"Chase him! He took the records from the archive! Even if you die here, you must—must—ah?" Watching Li Ang scramble up to the sixth floor like a monkey, then kick through the air vent and ride the broom straight out, the supervisor forgot to breathe.

His furious face flushed red, then white, then faintly bluish-purple with suppressed rage.

"Ahhh?!?!"

…

"Ahahaha! Who'd have thought! Our heart's right here in the capital!"

Ignoring the gale blowing against him, the black goat hanging from the broomstick grinned wildly:

"You've got insane luck! I just mentioned it to you, and you turn around and find one—and the strongest heart yet!"

Kid! Get stronger fast! When you're powerful enough, in just one hour, I can help you wipe out the entire Ryan family and reclaim our heart!"

"Speaking of luck…"

Habitually ignoring the goat's demonic rambling, Li Ang recalled the earlier events and frowned:

"Don't you think today's a little strange?"

"Huh?"

"Until I left the conference room, my luck today was absurdly good."

Perched on the broom, Li Ang held up his hand, counting off on his fingers:

"I wanted to find your goat… anomaly, and immediately got word; I wanted to learn about Hydro Corp's compensation plan, and instantly discovered the board meeting; I wanted to sneak in and see who touched your heart, and something happened inside immediately… oh, and!"

He patted the front pocket of the guard uniform, then frowned:

"Your goat falling out of the shopping bag I can accept—my turning motion was indeed big—but this pocket is too odd.

To avoid losing my ID, I specifically fastened the pocket's button; yet just as I bent over, one thread snapped, flinging the Clearance Bureau ID right out."

"And that security manager—he could've passed a second earlier or later, nothing would've happened; yet he appeared precisely when he shouldn't have. Aren't there too many coincidences today?"

That does sound absurd… and the number of good and bad luck events is exactly equal? Hmm… I get it!

Blinking thoughtfully, the black goat declared firmly:

"Kid, today must be your birthday!"

???

Birthday? My birthday's still far off! And what does that even have to do with it?

"Heh, that's the blessing the Clearance Bureau stole from the Lord of the Stars."

Seeing Li Ang's confusion, the black goat chuckled:

"You don't think the Clearance Bureau's eighty-seven branch names were chosen randomly, do you?"

Kid, let me tell you—those eighty-seven branches are themselves a conceptual anomaly, called something like Star Chart Protection."

Its effect grants Clearance Bureau employees protection from their corresponding star constellation on their birthday, granting a wish-fulfillment-like ability.

Of course, this wish-fulfillment is degraded—it only helps achieve goals already possible; if you wished to become king of the world, you'd get nothing."

"That doesn't make sense."

Li Ang frowned, then shook his head:

"Wish-fulfillment is good luck—but half of today was bad luck!"

"Bad luck? That's exactly right. You think the Lord of the Stars has no temper?"

As if recalling something hilarious, the black goat chuckled:

"Though forced to grant you the blessing, that Lord of the Stars is petty—he immediately added an equal curse in return."

On your birthday, every time you gain an advantage from the blessing, you'll suffer an equal misfortune afterward—fair repayment."

"That… makes sense…"

Recalling the events again, Li Ang nodded slightly, then frowned and shook his head:

"But my birthday's already passed—it's not today!"

(End of Chapter)