Chapter 463: Beneath the Calm Routine

"Bro~"

Shortly after the girl with a doll-like face left the ward, Anna walked in carrying a small cloth bag, her eyes filled with curiosity.

"What were you two just talking about? Miss Amy seems to be in better spirits—her eyes aren't as swollen anymore."

"Haha, of course it was good news!"

With his brother and sister's school issue resolved, Li Ang was also in high spirits, smiling as he delivered the good news:

"I didn't take the compensation from Char Company. Instead, I asked her for a favor—she helped get Melanie and William enrolled in school."

"Really?!"

Hearing that her brother and sister had found a school, Anna's eyes sparkled with surprise.

She hurried to the bedside, sat down sideways, pulled out a lunchbox from the cloth bag, and asked with beaming eyes:

"Which public school? The one on Blackstone Alley? Or the one past the alchemy factory, heading out of town?"

"Neither."

Smiling and shaking his head, Li Ang didn't tease—he gave the answer straight away.

"Bridge Academy—the one at the intersection of Bridge Street and Theater Street!"

Bridge Academy?!

Upon hearing the school's name, Anna was overjoyed, a flush of excitement coloring her pale cheeks.

"That's the best school in our old district! If William and the others get in, they can be promoted straight through to university if they do well! Oh my goodness! This is…"

"Don't get so excited! Hey, hold it steady!"

Seeing his sister's lunchbox tilt and soup seep from the lid's gap, Li Ang startled and reached out to catch it—he saved his lunch, but pulled his broken ribs, turning pale with pain.

"Bro!"

Startled, Anna leapt up, helping Li Ang lean back against the pillow as he gasped for air. After waiting a moment to confirm he was alright, she finally relaxed, her face filled with worry:

"Bro! Don't move yet—I'll feed you."

Li Ang, grimacing from pain, nodded and slightly lifted his chin trapped in the neck brace, sipping the fish soup offered to his lips.

"Sss…"

Was it too hot?

Hearing Li Ang's sharp inhale, Anna blinked in surprise, scooped up another spoonful of the milky-white fish soup, and tasted it herself.

"It's not hot?"

"Not hot—it's delicious."

Seeing his sister still worried, Li Ang didn't mention the pain—he grinned and teased:

"Anna~ This hospital must be amazing. After you stayed here a few days, not only did you recover, but your cooking's even better than before~"

"My cooking hasn't changed—it's just that now we have money, so we can afford fresh fish and spices."

Pulling a handkerchief from her pocket, Anna wiped a few drops of soup from Li Ang's lips, then skewered a small piece of fish and held it to his mouth, smiling happily:

"Bro, this morning someone knocked on our door—said he was your coworker. He brought your salary for the week—nine gold wheels!"

Nine gold wheels…

Hearing Anna's words, Li Ang mentally calculated.

His base weekly salary was twelve gold wheels; adding the two from the toad mission, it should've been fourteen. After deducting his drinking bill, nine remained… So the boss's six bottles cost five gold wheels?

Shocked by the price of the alcohol, Li Ang swallowed his fish and opened his badge panel to check the progress of 【Alcohol Martyr】: 117/1000.

One hundred seventeen bottles… If each costs this much… On the night I passed out and the boss carried me home, didn't I drink nearly a hundred gold wheels?!

…

【Dear Miss Olivia, you incurred a total of 327 gold wheels in alcohol charges at our establishment ten days ago, and payment remains outstanding. We earnestly request prompt settlement and look forward to your return.】

"…"

After reading the overdue notice on her desk, the red-haired boss picked up the bottle, tilted her head back, and gulped down the tea inside. Then she placed the whiskey bottle back on the table, staring blankly at the liquid inside—its color identical to whiskey.

What on earth was I thinking, to let him drink so much?

Recalling the drunkard who slurred and swayed as if about to collapse under the table, yet somehow kept drinking more than anyone else, the red-haired boss rubbed her throbbing temples, fragments of that night's memory surfacing.

Boss, all these are drinks—shouldn't we order some food too?

I'll try a bit of everything, but just one sip of each.

Huh? That's it? I thought you had a good tolerance!

Can't you afford it? Should I chip in?

"…"

Did I get tricked?

Recalling, through her exceptional memory, how her wallet had been slowly emptied, the red-haired boss grimaced, realizing she'd been played for a fool.

He swore he couldn't drink, took one sip, then ended up drinking more than me! Worse—he passed out on the floor the moment the liquor ran out, and I had to carry him home!

Feeling her newly received salary vanish again, the red-haired boss clenched her fist, gritting her teeth in silent resolve.

Olivia, even if I starve to death! Even if I die of thirst! Even if I have to fill whiskey bottles with tea to fool myself—I will never drink with Li Ang again!

Never!

Crumpling the overdue notice and tossing it into the trash, the scowling red-haired boss grabbed a stack of newspapers and began flipping through the week's news.

The Sun: "Shocking! Citizen Passes Char Department Store, Suddenly Struck by Falling Fortune!"

"Pfft!"

Seeing the black-and-white photo on the front page—Li Ang buried under countless gold wheels, only his arms visible—the red-haired boss burst into laughter, scanned it briefly, then cut it out and tucked it smugly into Li Ang's file.

The report on the Sacred Spirit of the Scale Faith incident still needs a photo—this'll do perfectly~ Heh, payback for stealing my booze money!

Oh, and it's been four days now—given Li Ang's condition, he should be back at work today, right?

After quickly scanning The Sun and finding nothing suspicious, the red-haired boss, in better spirits, turned to other newspapers.

Daily Chronicle: "Our Editor Attacked by Rebels; They Declare: Nobles Are Just Lice in the Crotch!"

Financial Times: "Char Department Store's Big Sale Slashes Rose Department Store's Revenue; Bankruptcy Looms!"

Entertainment Weekly: "Chief Actress Scandal Sparks Boycott; No Replacement Found—Master Wang Erde's Performance May Be Delayed!"

Hmm… Though many things happened, none seem related to 'anomalies.' The capital seems peaceful enough!

Satisfied, the red-haired boss was about to put the papers away when her peripheral vision caught a tiny, overlooked article in the corner.

New Industry Daily: "Aimé Wine Launches New Couple's Drink—Couples Who Buy Together and Drink On-Site Get 50% Off!"

"Sss…"

(End of Chapter)