Chapter 632: No. 1: Are three days long?

No. 1: Are three days long?

So, Xiaoshe, you were late by a full ten minutes because there were too many people on the way home from school, and you pushed the cart for a while!

Strictly speaking, there's still some traffic jam at the overpass leading to this direct passage, but anyway, I'm sorry for being late.

Night had already fallen, and in front of a high school in Jiemen Xiqu, only a few high school students remained, quietly waiting around the barbecue and fried food stalls.

At that moment, a beam of high‑bright light cutting through the street's gloom was unmistakably eye‑catching; when they realized what the light came from, they let out several excited shouts.

Of course, the source of that beam was neither an Ultimate Zero nor a glowing spear or the chemical glow of a raw cola, but a heavy‑duty motorcycle styled with a demon theme.

That fierce, overbearing design undoubtedly matched the dark‑style aesthetic common among this age group, to the point that some even plucked up the courage to approach, half‑thinking of asking the rider for a photo.

But some, being well‑versed, began to feel that the motorcycle, with its small parts flashing a cool‑toned faint light, looked somewhat familiar.

But before they could really recall the specifics, a stranger with pink hair had already taken the motorcycle's rear seat, making them realize the rider had come to pick someone up.

Finally, they could only watch helplessly as the motorcycle's skull‑like twin horns blazed with black fire, its rear pipes spewing azure flames, and it roared off into the distance.

They missed the chance, but it wasn't necessarily a total loss.

After all, everyone had seen that pink‑haired stranger; since we're at the same school, we might run into her again.

It's not hard to guess that someone's transfer student journey would begin with a version of the story that has many rumors.

The motorcycle rider was obviously Aomo, and the transfer student in question was the newly arrived Xintiao Qian.

He is also Aomo's only remaining tenant at the office.

Note: Hungry state.

Clearly, Xintiao Qian, who despite having a cafeteria at her high school, had no intention of eating there like the boarders, was also one of the main reasons Aomo refused to join his colleagues' team‑building.

Although I don't have much of an appetite, I still have to go work as a cook.

Even earlier, the other side sent a message informing me of the school‑end time, and, despite knowing Aomo already knew the address, sent it again.

The intention was obvious, prompting him to reply with an irritated laugh and type 'See you then.'

Then he was a little late.

"Just a verbal apology lacks sincerity; a warrior can't just talk the talk!"

Recognizing the words in the wind isn't really a test; it's even less oppressive than the feel of arms wrapped around the waist and pressure from behind.

After failing several times, Aomo had already given up lecturing Xiaoshe about whether it was a lack of vigilance or just a desire to see him make a fool of himself; facing such a trial, he could only respond by demonstrating his marksmanship.

"Indeed, so is there anything special you'd like to eat?"

"Black Forest cake!"

She answered almost without hesitation, leaving Aomo momentarily speechless.

Undeniably, that answer brought to mind a certain Baidema Niang for him.

That was Rinjin Shinyou, who, according to the information records, excels at making desserts and was the person who, together with Orihime, inquired about himself at the Chazuo.

However, for a variety of reasons, he had fully devoted himself to investigating Orihime's side, neglecting the other, and to this day he still isn't clear why she's curious about him.

"Let's talk about it tomorrow…" he thought to himself.

Rather than worrying about whether it was rude to think of another girl while talking to one, he felt the silence in the conversation was simply inappropriate.

So he replied, "I'm asking about the meal; dessert can wait."

"Well…" Xintiao Qian, not worried that Aomo would dismiss the comment, gave a decisive answer: "Sour‑braised beef! Suzi said she saw you soaking beef earlier—you must be preparing this."

"I can make a bit; I'll leave a portion for the few of them."

"A bit is fine~ there's also roasted pork knuckle!"

Aomo sighed helplessly: "……Don't you want any East‑style dishes?"

He wasn't rejecting his hometown cuisine.

Rather, he was actually pleased that she kept mentioning his hometown dishes.

But the preparation steps for the dishes she mentioned were somewhat troublesome, far less convenient and quick than most East‑style cuisine.

As for that, the person behind him also seemed thoughtful, no longer pressing against his back, and promptly said, "How about hamburger patty?"

"Why is that a question?"

"Because I haven't really seen Xiaoshe make it before~ but Chazuo knows how."

"You can learn it; following an online tutorial, although the flavor might not be fully restored, you'll probably get about seventy‑eighty percent."

He was quite confident about that.

Especially since he, as a resident kitchen worker, had actually seen Chazuo make Jidong‑style hamburger patty.

After all, cooking may be a profound skill, but anyone with a bit of common sense can follow a tutorial to make it at least edible, if not particularly tasty.

Between 'deliciously praiseworthy' and 'tastelessly inedible' lies a common‑sense scale; Aomo sees himself somewhere in the middle, whereas the opposite would be people like Muhai Xingzi and Evolto.

Such manga‑style extreme culinary black holes are obviously rare.

"Hey——? Do you want me to help, Xiaoshe? I can actually do it too!"

"Well, that's really unexpected… so, won't you give me some instruction?"

"Oh wow, you're really good at talking today!"

"After all, I've annoyed quite a few people at once, so I ought to learn to reflect." Aomo sighed.

Although reflecting on his way of speaking is actually meaningless, he merely felt his rhetoric had many shortcomings; the three girls seemed to have calmed down, yet when he left, not a single one came to see him off.

"Is there still something like this? What did you do? Nobody's ever told me about it!"

"I was thinking about telling you this; would you get as angry as they did?"

"Mm… it's hard to say, so maybe I shouldn't ask." Qian rested her head against his back again, gazing at the many vehicles on the side lane.

During rush hour the traffic was horribly congested; they could barely inch forward, their headlights and the distant neon lights blending into a hazy sheet, like a solid wall blocking the wind.

But the motorcycle Xiaoshe controlled could weave incessantly through every sort of boundary, as if nothing could block his road, so the scenery before her eyes kept changing and the wind in her ears kept blowing in bursts.

She loved this feeling of unimpeded flow, so she always wanted to ride Xiaoshe's motorcycle.

Anyway, little snake, you've definitely been reflecting, so I won't get angry again.

You've never heard of the possibility of not getting angry afterwards?

If it can make both Chazuo and Bourbon angry, I think I wouldn't be special either.

Won't you be curious?

Curiosity and happiness aren't necessarily linked, you know~

Really? I'm pretty curious about your first day of school.

Eh eh eh? I'd definitely love to chat about this! By the way, let's exchange our first‑day‑of‑school experiences!

Then it'll involve why those three are angry.

Oh! Then go ahead and slice a piece!

... Should I also put together a compilation?

Then let's do a director's cut!

Since that's the case, let's start with the Black Star.

Oh! Does that mean the cosmic ape‑people have arrived?

It's a pity, just a lost little girl.

Later, at the Lindon office.

Aomo, staying in the room, was trying to get used to the time when no one made coffee for him.

Although he could directly teleport to Chazuo's room in the Beautiful Port Dorm to ask for coffee, it was obvious Aomo wasn't in that kind of mood.

He was merely preparing for tomorrow's work, and incidentally browsing the apology emails sent by the three horse girls at different times, each with different wording.

Roughly speaking, it's an apology…… Looking at Suzi's arrogant and proud text, which reveals a full sense of mockery, Aomo alone isn't very sure about his attitude toward her.

But all we can say is that we just need to get used to it.

Miss Nitanda and Mechanic's messages were still quite pleasant, especially the latter's photo of a dessert shop where you could see Vega Miss, whom I've been at odds with for years, showing that expression—not bad as a work break.

Besides that period, there was also the boring Xintiao Qian knocking on his door to watch a newly released special resource for transmigrants, showing that people who feel unadjusted to the three roommates' departure aren't just him.

But saying she and Aomo are in the same situation is still a bit awkward.

After all, she wasn't given any homework on the first day, whereas Aomo had to adjust the horse girls' training plan and was also mocked by the haunted Zhouri Ningjing on the screen about his current state.

I don't know who the guy who was exhausted from the press conference and could only slump on the desk like a dead dog during the day is, but at night he's all smug—come on, come on, you go make coffee in the kitchen——

Aomo hadn't caught her yet, but she slipped away quickly.

Thus, in the end, Aomo could only activate the coffee machine's smart grinding and brewing function.

The first night without Chazuo, I missed her.

But fortunately, even if he didn't catch Zhouri Ningjing, his network environment wasn't lonely either.

Steadily processing crawler software info, the witch beast that feeds Aomo into the SOC (where hackers integrate and analyze user data, then centrally archive) always shows up on time.

Although complaints about the boring work keep growing, in terms of results, her diligence is by no means low.

And besides that, there's a certain super‑agent whose level is on par with Iron Man and Miss Shunchuan.

How's it? Miss Xintiao hasn't changed much, right?

Dedicated and devoted, active in the frontline search‑and‑rescue aircraft for lost horse girls: Mr. Jie Si Ti Si, and he even still dwells on his initial misunderstanding; his first words upon arrival left Aomo stunned, then he shrugged.

Still pretty stable, but how's the collection of nodes in the new universe going?

The fourth one is being transmitted to you; by this point we should be able to do some direct communication, though the delay will be higher—want to give it a try now?

Trying high‑latency dialogue? What kind of prison is this?

Don't say that—just think of it as old‑school pen‑pal exchanges, with slower feedback.

How long is that, conservatively estimated?

One reply every three days.