Chapter 32: Lu Mingfei

Lu Mingfei had once believed that if he was salty enough, no stray cat would ever take a bite out of his salted fish.

But life is a lover of bold flavors—the saltier you are, the more life loves to bite you.

What dragon-slaying, what saving the world.

Those were never things for a waste like him to do; being a hero comes at a price.

His greatest wish was to earn some money, find a girl he loved, take over the newspaper stand at the gate of his neighborhood, and live a life of comfort forever.

At the graduation party of senior year, that red-haired girl named Chen Nuotong made a dazzling entrance, pasting swan feathers onto this ugly duckling with glue, making Lu Mingfei leave behind a legend at Shilan High School.

But that wasn't the real him.

The "S" rating must have been a mistake somewhere.

Lu Mingfei had always told himself that.

If he had to say what set him apart from others, it was probably his ability to make a deal with a self-proclaimed younger brother called "Little Devil."

No matter what wish, as long as he gave up one-quarter of his life, the Little Devil could fulfill it for him.

But what kind of person was Lu Mingfei? A coward without ambition or drive—what could possibly make him trade his life with a devil?

There was. He had already made two deals.

After every deal, he walked on eggshells, terrified of falling again into Lu Mingze's trap.

But in the end, he realized that only Lu Mingze could help him out of the pit he had walked into.

He had thought it was Lu Mingze's joke, but it turned out to be a cross-world messaging tool.

What kind of mindset could write such a novel? Lu Mingfei wanted to grab a Desert Eagle and press it against the author's skull and ask: What grudge? What vendetta?

Lu Mingfei curled up his legs, his eyes dull and vacant.

"04.24, went to Tokyo Skytree with Sakura. The warmest place in the world is at the top of the Skytree."

"04.25, went to Meiji Shrine with Sakura. Someone was having a wedding there."

"04.26, went to Disneyland with Sakura. The haunted house was terrifying, but because Sakura was there, it wasn't scary."

"Sakura is the best."...

Sometimes he truly felt exhausted, but he couldn't stop to catch his breath.

"Hui Liyi"

He didn't know what mindset to use to face this girl.

When he saw himself treating her as Nuonuo, Lu Mingfei was so embarrassed he could have built a castle with his toes.

A girl who loved anime and games, who shared many topics with him—so Lu Mingze, you little bastard, set me up with a Tokyo love story!?

But that girl...

Really fell in love with him.

And he was still running away, just like before.

In twenty years of life, she was the first girl who had ever loved him.

He didn't understand why anyone would love a loser like him—a princess from unreachable heights falling for a passing background character.

This wasn't fairy-tale at all.

Yet, that girl truly loved him.

On the check in the hands of the Head Whale, in the corner, written in his familiar handwriting: Shangshan Hui Liyi.

That girl bought ten thousand flower tickets just to make him stay.

Pulling a pillow from the bed and hugging it, Lu Mingfei didn't know what emotion he felt at that moment.

His heart felt clenched, his mind filled entirely with the book's descriptions.

In the book's final ending, he walked unsteadily, like a puppet whose spring was nearly spent.

Every time he was so broken, every time he failed to protect what he wanted to protect.

In this theatrical life of his, every gain was accidental, every loss seemed the norm.

Lu Mingfei got out of bed, put on his shoes, listlessly picked up a coat, and lifted the silver aluminum-magnesium alloy suitcase Lu Mingze had prepared for him.

At the front door, Chu Zihang had already been waiting for him for a while.

"Have you packed your luggage?"

"Mm." Lu Mingfei nodded, expressionless.

Chu Zihang assumed Lu Mingfei was down because of Kaiser and Nuonuo's engagement.

"What I said before still stands."

As Lu Mingfei was putting his luggage away, Chu Zihang suddenly spoke.

"Huh?"

"Cut the axle."

"......"

Senior brother, I'm touched, but can we please stop fixating on Kaiser's axle?

Lu Mingfei forced a smile: "Senior brother, I had a nightmare and didn't sleep well."

Last night, Lu Mingze put on a dragon-fishing show in his dream, waking him up in the middle of the night.

Later, he got another cross-world chat group in his head, and spent the whole night reading "Dragon Raja 3."

"Mm, let's go. You can sleep on the way to Chicago Airport."

Probably not—I'll have to keep reading "Dragon Raja 4" soon.

"Here."

After getting in the car, Chu Zihang handed Lu Mingfei a carton of milk and a loaf of bread.

"Thank you, Li Shixiong."

Knowing he hadn't eaten breakfast, she brought him a meal—Brother Chu is so thoughtful; it's not wasted that I risked a quarter of my life to save you.

Sip~

Lu Mingfei sipped milk and bit into bread on the car, thinking how tragic Xia Mi was—they really suited each other, but unfortunately one was a dragon, still a Dragon King.

Who wouldn't love such a caring senior?

If Lu Mingfei were a girl, he'd love him too.

Wait!

Lu Mingfei shivered.

The events of "Dragon Raja I" and "Dragon Raja II" had already happened; he hadn't paid much attention, but suddenly he remembered a line he'd skimmed at the beginning, describing Xia Mi.

"Female version of Lu Mingfei."

The bread nearly choked him.

"Water."

Taking the mineral water Chu Zihang handed him, Lu Mingfei gulped it down.

"Ha—."

After catching his breath, Lu Mingfei shifted his thoughts elsewhere—if this chat group had arrived two years earlier, it would've been better.

Perhaps many things could've changed.

No, maybe nothing could've changed...

Whether it was Old Tang or Xia Mi...

If the future could be altered, if the script already written could be rewritten, that would be wonderful.

Is it really that easy?

Others might escape, but Lu Mingfei cannot escape.

For Lu Mingfei, running away is shameful and useless.

He can't escape.

From the moment he set foot on the Cassell College, he had no way to escape this vortex.

With his intelligence, he shouldn't have to ponder so many questions, so often he chose to ignore things that seemed unreasonable.

"Black Swan Port," "Zero," "Renata," "Authority"

When these things appeared before his eyes from a god's perspective, could he still ignore them?

Several hours later.

The black "Gulfstream G550" roared with deafening noise; on this flight from Chicago to Japan, there were only three passengers.

Lu Mingfei leaned back in his seat; this time, no drool dripped from his lips, nor did he rest his head on Brother Chu's shoulder for Caesar to silently judge.

People's joys and sorrows are not the same; Lu Mingfei only felt life's hardships came wave after wave.