13:41:27, inside the temporary tent.
Daylight pulled Zhou Cheng aside and whispered in all seriousness, "Fatty, let's have a proper talk..."
"This damn nickname... Is that a proper way to speak?" Zhou Cheng replied, adjusting his collar and trembling.
"Then, Old Zhou, Director Zhou, elder Zhou," Daylight pointed straight outside and said, "I've been observing Li Qingming for quite some time. He's top-notch, and if he could hatch, it wouldn't be anything less than extraordinary. Give him some time, postpone the rescue, please."
"Playing Pokémon in here? No way!"
"Don't rush to make a decision. As the old team leader taught us, first collect, then analyze, and lastly decide," Daylight gestured toward the screen, "Look, the monitor shows the situation inside is very stable. The Secret Realm has been erupting for almost 22 minutes now, and all members are still alive. This proves they have survived the first two waves of panic and are now in a highly unified state."
"It's indeed rare that no casualties have occurred for this long," Zhou Cheng acknowledged, nodding at the screen, "It seems the psychology teacher is right; Class Four of Senior Year Three is a united team, and the homeroom teacher is well-organized."
"Right? It doesn't matter," Daylight gestured carefully, "You just need to know that the temperaments of each ruler are different. The current situation indicates that this ruler desires unity, not competition. So, why not give the students more time? It's very possible they can complete the Secret Realm and produce more than one Vanguard prospect. That way, your performance points would significantly increase, and you would be one step closer to promotion, right?"
"Exactly because I'm one step away, I can't afford a safety accident," Zhou Cheng was far from convinced, his expression becoming even stiffer. He pointed at Daylight's cast and said firmly, "Accumulate performance points steadily. Greed leads to rashness, which is the behavior of a gambler. If there's a mass casualty under these circumstances, do you want me to end up like you?"
"No, no, you've got it backwards. Letting the kids complete the Secret Realm is the safe choice. Sending that worthless Vanguard will only cause an accident," Daylight waved away the secondhand smoke drifting in from outside the tent and said, "That kind of person is either addicted to drugs or gambling, or both—in any case, their head and heart are rotten through. The 67% success rate is purely a courtesy for the sake of the magical artifact. Once inside, he will focus only on killing the ruler without thinking about the safety of others."
"I know that," Zhou Cheng sighed, "Even if there was an intern Vanguard from Apex Academy here, it wouldn't be his turn..."
"But the people from Apex will need another half an hour to arrive," Daylight tapped Zhou Cheng's shoulder and said, "Life sometimes requires a bold bet. Those who rise to the top are those who dare to play their hand. Fatty, the tender meat is right in front of your eyes; this is no time to hesitate."
"…I'm too damn lazy to correct your language anymore," Zhou Cheng pondered for a moment, then looking at Daylight's cast, asked, "How's the injury?"
"A complete wreck, could die at any moment," Daylight dismissed nonchalantly, waving his hand, "Enough about me. With each passing year, your promotions will only get harder. You talk about steady progress, but you know if you don't move up this year, there's no chance, right?"
"…"
"Then hand over the command to me quickly. I'll take the blame," Daylight said, tilting his head with a jaunty smile, "A dead pig isn't afraid of boiling water. What can the agency do to me? Expel me? Cancel my public medical care? Freeze my pension? Let them, I won't need it anyway."
"…" Zhou Cheng stared at the screen for a long time before finally taking a breath, "We'll wait until the 40th minute at most. No one is to die in the meantime, and if even one number decreases, we start the rescue immediately."
"One is too few; how about ten?" Daylight pleaded with a raised fist.
"Go to hell, are you trying to get me out on patrol too?"
"Then eight, not too many or too few, wouldn't make much of a headline."
"One! Just one! No negotiation!" Zhou Cheng said as he took off his microphone from the collar and threw it to Daylight, "Put away your crazy calculations. Life is priceless!"
Daylight could only twist his mouth and clip the microphone back onto his collar before he walked up to the screen, composure in every step, and began to speak.
"I am Daylight, formerly served in the Special Secret Realm Assault Team, having extensive experience in clearing extreme Secret Realms. I am an expert more fit for command. Director Zhou Cheng has now transferred onsite command to me. Please cooperate.
"First, please note that the mission's top priority has changed.
"From now on, strictly guard against Secret Realm smuggling. Except for the designated rescue Vangaurd, no one is allowed to approach the entrance of the Secret Realm.
"If you encounter any suspicious personnel, you can immediately call Nakata Hideo to handle it."
"As for what is happening inside the Secret Realm,"
"Let's all cheer for Class Four of Senior Year Three.
"Come on, Nakata-kun, you lead the way."
"…Cheer…" Nakata's awkward voice came through the channel.
"Put more spirit into it, I want to hear the authentic version," Daylight said.
"Ganbare, joshi kōsei!" Nakata cried out passionately.
…
Inside β1-2103257, 22 minutes and 47 seconds after the Secret Realm had erupted.
"'Break' had already started a few minutes ago, and the situation inside the classroom was still stable."
Facing the temptation of 'spilling everything to a close desk mate,' aside from the very few who were seeking death, most remained calm."
Li Qingming and Ji Xiaoxiang hadn't said a single word."
Ji Xiaoxiang had indeed found a reason to stay silent and was enjoying the current relaxation."
Li Qingming, on the other hand, was rapidly observing the crowd, eager to collect everyone's words and actions to confirm his guesses."
The rest, as long as they had a shred of sanity left, were also cautious with their words."
Although everyone was curious about the true thoughts of their desk mates, now was not the time for a heart-wrenching game of truth with close friends."
Questions like 'Am I your best friend?' or 'If me and so-and-so fell into the water who would you save first?'—no one asked."
If they couldn't restrain themselves, they'd only ask some inconsequential things—
"Does this hairstyle actually look good?"
"Ugly as hell."
"Damn it! I knew you were lying to me this morning!"
"Haha… what about my hairstyle then?"
"Very good-looking…"
"Haha."
…
"You were obviously online last weekend, why didn't you team up with me!"
"Went to team up with my girlfriend…"
"Girlfriend?? You have a girlfriend??"
"Yes…"
"You… you fucking betrayed the two-dimensional world! Show me a picture right now!"
"Haha, I've been wanting to show off to you!"
"You son of a bitch!"
…
"What's your XP."
"Being stepped on the face by Zhang Qingyi."
"Eek… that's so perverted…"
"Damn… then what's your XP."
"Being stepped on the face by Zhang Qingyi."
"…"
"…"
At the back by the window, Zhang Qingyi, seeing Ye Qian staying silent, eventually leaned against the wall and sighed, "After all this, do you hate me now?"
"It's fine." Ye Qian tried to speak as calmly as possible, "Qing Yi, at this stage, it's best we watch our words."
"What's this about watching our words, especially at a time like this when we should be clearing things up so we have no regrets when we die, right?" Zhang Qingyi said, bowing her head slightly. After making up her mind, she didn't dare to look at Ye Qian; instead, she looked at the desk and asked, "So, do you like me now?"