Chapter 243

At Ye Qingfeng’s call, Kelin opened her hazy eyes, instinctively puckered her lips, and said in a soft, babyish voice:

“Mmm... what’s wrong...?”

“Leicaen said he doesn’t want you anymore—he told me to take you back.”

“What?!” Kelin shot upright, “Please don’t abandon Kelin! Waaahhh, Mr. Leicaen!”

Kelin frantically glanced around, as if searching for a certain figure.

Mr. Leicaen＞︿＜

There was no Leicaen in the room—only Ailian leaning against the door, Ies standing atop the generator,

and Ye Qingfeng, who had watched her reaction the whole time, grinning mischievously.

Anyone with eyes could tell it was a joke, but Kelin didn’t think so.

She didn’t believe Leicaen would say such a thing, nor did she believe Ye Qingfeng would lie.

The conflict between her two brains left her dizzy, unable to grasp the current situation.

“Master Qingfeng...” Kelin looked at Ye Qingfeng, trembling as she asked, “Did Mr. Leicaen really say that?”

Ye Qingfeng hadn’t expected Kelin to take it seriously—he was at a loss for words.

Should he say she was too naive, or too trusting of him?

Could anyone really bear to give away such a little cutie?

Ye Qingfeng considered whether to go along with the lie and take this chance to kidnap Kelin!

Then he remembered Leicaen wasn’t a docile dog-human—he carried the blood of a ferocious wolf-human.

The idea vanished instantly.

“I’m joking. Leicaen never said that. Don’t worry.”

“Phew~ Thank goodness!”

Kelin exhaled deeply and patted her childish chest.

She believed him again, instantly.

Ye Qingfeng suspected that if he tried it again, Kelin would still believe him, oblivious to the problem.

“Oh, by the way!”

Kelin bowed repeatedly to Ye Qingfeng, “Kelin fell asleep leaning on Master Qingfeng’s shoulder—I’m so sorry, that was terribly rude!”

“It’s fine. After all, I didn’t lose out—I’m glad Kelin leaned on me,” Ye Qingfeng said calmly.

“Mmm! It was Master Qingfeng who forced...”

Kelin pouted awkwardly, then paused, “But no matter what, Master Qingfeng’s shoulder was so comfortable—I rested for a while, and now I feel full of energy!”

【Ding! Kelin’s affection increased by 5%】

【Current affection: 60%】

【Reward: 5 additional draws, total draws now: 42】

Listening to the system’s announcement in his mind, Ye Qingfeng felt a deep sense of satisfaction.

Without realizing it, he’d stockpiled so many draws—this was the victory of the hoarder rat!

Forty-two draws looked awkward—let’s do two more to make it even!

『System, perform two draws!』

【Ding! Performing two draws】

【Congratulations, host, you’ve received the following rewards...】

【B-Rank Reward: Ding Ni 100,000 × 2】

【Ding! Host now has 400,000 Ding Ni】

“...”

Why treat the hoarder rat like this?!

Right after Ye Qingfeng finished drawing, Ies nearby stopped moving in sync.

“Phew... the generator’s preparations are finally complete,” Kelin sighed.

“Everyone worked hard,” said Ling, “Ling, contact the central control room now.”

"Everyone, you've worked hard," Zhe Dao said. "Ling, quickly contact the central control room."

Ling used the HDD system to successfully contact Leicaen.

“Master Rope-Crafter, you’ve finally reached out—was your trip to the generator room successful?”

“Don’t worry, everything’s settled!”

Ling contacted Leicaen alone; Ye Qingfeng couldn’t hear the other side. Thinking of meeting Uncle Wolf soon, he felt uneasy.

He feared Ling might accidentally reveal that Leicaen had been tricked and that Kelin had been taken.

Still, Ye Qingfeng had no intention of warning Kelin not to slip up.

The first wasn’t a big deal; the second, he’d only said it in jest—he hadn’t actually done anything, and Leicaen wouldn’t care if he found out.

At most, he’d warn Kelin to keep her distance from him.

Besides, Kelin’s affection for him had reached 60%, and with her gullible nature, he wasn’t worried she’d turn against him.

After a while, Ling ended the call with Leicaen. “Let’s go. We’ll meet Leicaen and Lina in the atrium, then head to Building B together.”

The group followed Ies to the atrium, where they found Leicaen and Lina already waiting.

The group followed Ies to the courtyard, where they saw Leikai and Lina, who had arrived earlier.

Ailian waved.

Leicaen’s welcoming smile froze instantly—he stared, eyes wide in disbelief.

Uncle Wolf? Him?!

Leicaen looked at Ailian, who wore a smug expression, her gaze casually flicking toward Ye Qingfeng.

After a brief thought, he confirmed the culprit was Ye Qingfeng—he was certain of it.

Leicaen glanced at Ye Qingfeng, said nothing, and pressed the switch to open the iron gate.

A title meant nothing.

Besides, “Uncle Wolf” sounded amusing—he’d never been called that before.

As the iron gate slowly rose, the scene beyond came into view.

“The door’s open! Great!” Kelin cheered.

“Thanks to our Guide, we restored power so quickly,” Lina bent down and patted Ies’s head, “Our master will surely thank you.”

“No need to thank me!” Ling smiled casually.

The group continued deeper, and as they climbed a set of stairs, a suspicious object appeared on the floor.

The group continued advancing deeper, and as they climbed a set of stairs, a suspicious object appeared on the floor.

Ies sprinted over—it was a small yellow bag, which he held aloft for inspection.

Ies sprinted over—it was a small yellow pouch, which he held up to examine.

“Master Rope-Crafter, do you recognize this backpack?” Leicaen asked.

“It’s definitely Renn’s! She must have come to the building!” Ling declared, pulling open the zipper and rummaging inside, “There might be clues inside!”

"It's definitely Renn's! She must have been here!" Ling declared, unzipping the bag and rummaging inside. "There might be clues inside!"

Ies pulled out a player—the countdown on its screen had reached zero. He immediately tossed it far away and dropped to the ground, motionless.

Leicaen, closest to it, reacted instantly—he crouched and raised his arm to shield Ies.

(Tsk! The more I write, the more I feel that in Aether Zero, aside from Ling, Ailian, Zhu Yuan, and Caesar, most characters have no romantic potential—single heroine or side characters fit better.

Plus, the main plot is vague with too many foreshadowings—I can’t mess with it. It’s so hard...)

The countdown on the player reached zero—but no explosion occurred. Instead, soothing music began to play.

“It’s just a player,” Ies hurried forward, picked up the device, checked it repeatedly, confirmed it was safe, then held it up high and waved it toward everyone.

“It seems to have a timer function—no danger... hmm?”

Before Ling could finish, a sharp object tapped against the railing with a crisp sound.

She was unaware of what was behind her—a hand glinting silver suddenly lunged toward Ies.

She was completely unaware of what was happening behind her, as a hand glinting with silver light suddenly shot out to grab Ies.