A bowl of seafood ramen.
Inside, three plump crayfish were nestled among the noodles.
Li Xiang picked up his chopsticks, stirring the ramen as the rich aroma wafted up, making his mouth water.
"Li Xiang."
A familiar voice called from afar, and in a flash, Elena appeared at the table. She gracefully set her tray down and unfolded a napkin, placing it neatly on her lap.
With delicate hands, she slowly and meticulously cut into her steak, speaking casually, "We need to talk."
"About what?" Li Xiang mumbled through a mouthful of noodles.
"The ruins."
Li Xiang swallowed quickly, his interest piqued. "Did the captain agree to let me go?"
Elena stabbed a small piece of steak with her fork, savoring it before replying, "The ruins are dangerous. You need to be prepared for that."
"So... the captain agreed?" Li Xiang asked, eagerly.
"Which captain are you talking about?"
"Of course, the..." Li Xiang stopped short, noticing Elena's knife cutting into her steak with a decisive motion. Though the force was controlled, the steak split cleanly into two.
He wisely changed his tone, complimenting, "Obviously, I meant the adorable Captain Elena!"
Elena shot him a glance, her expression unreadable. "Tomorrow, ask for leave from the department head. You'll likely miss a week of classes."
"Understood, Captain!" Li Xiang put down his chopsticks, raised two fingers to his forehead, and gave a playful salute.
Elena couldn't help it—her lips curled into a small smile.
"When are we heading out?" he asked.
"Ruins from the Age of Gods are unpredictable. You might enter and find yourself in an entirely different world. These particular ruins are underwater, making them even more difficult to explore. Captain Adashino's plan is to send four teams to investigate below the surface, while the other eight handle operations on the water. The goal is to locate the ruins, figure out their origin and ownership. Only then can we assess the dangers inside."
Elena took another bite of her steak, "Mmm, delicious. Be ready by 8 AM tomorrow. We'll leave together from the office."
"Got it," Li Xiang nodded.
"I've been tied up all day with ruin preparations, so I won't be attending tonight's club performances," Elena said, waving as she left after finishing her meal.
When Li Xiang arrived at the student square, the performance had just started, once again led by the idol, Lidell.
Unlike her soft princess style the day before, tonight she embraced a more energetic, typical idol performance.
Full of vitality.
For a moment, Li Xiang felt like he'd been transported back to his previous life, watching a dance routine on some streaming site.
'Do magi really enjoy this kind of thing?' he wondered.
Thanks to his mental defenses, he wasn't as affected by the enchantment magic as others. Glancing at the sea of glowing support lights in the crowd, he couldn't help but shiver.
'Sorry, I underestimated your level of dedication.'
It seemed that no matter the world, fandoms were equally intense.
Li Xiang didn't stay for the final act. Exhaustion from the dream-like events of the day began to catch up with him, and he returned to his dorm and fell asleep almost instantly.
---
September 22nd. Monday.
Li Xiang woke up, staring blankly at the ceiling for a while before checking his system records.
It felt strange.
The Mystic Realm Spearmanship no longer had a progress bar; instead, it was now classified as one of his innate skills.
[Innate Skill: Mystic Realm Spearmanship C+, a spear technique passed down by the Queen of the Land of Shadows, Scáthach.]
'Innate skill, huh? So, if I die one day, does that mean I could become a heroic spirit and enter the gacha pool for others to summon?'
The absurd thought made him shake his head quickly.
'No way! Even if I die, I'll never give that money-grubbing game a cent!'
Li Xiang got out of bed, skipping the cafeteria for breakfast. He grabbed a quick snack from a roadside vendor and made his way to Druid Street, where he visited Waver's apartment to ask for leave. Once done, he headed straight to the Clock Tower's Law Department.
From a distance, he could see Elena waving at him.
She stood at the entrance of the Law Department building with a young man by her side.
As Li Xiang approached, Elena tossed something pink at him.
Headphones, microphone, visor, reflector strips, and a sturdy pink helmet.
Li Xiang had only seen such a thing on TV—an actual helicopter helmet.
"Was pink the only color available?" he asked, glancing between Elena and the young man, who was also holding a pink helmet with a resigned smile.
"Why? Got a problem with it?" Elena's left hand rested on the helmet, her right hand on her hip. Her small face was stern, showing off her sharp, gleaming teeth.
Li Xiang's smile quickly mirrored the young man's. "Nope, not at all."
"Hello, Li Xiang. I'm Max Feldman from the Ore Department. I'm ranked sixth in the team, codename 'Secretary.'"
'Sixth? That's Virgo, also known as the servant sign. Yikes.'
Li Xiang extended a hand, shaking Max's in friendly sympathy. 'Poor guy.'
"Is it just the three of us going?" Li Xiang asked.
"The Clock Tower still needs people to stay behind. Three members are already on-site at Flannan Island, and we don't need too many people to explore ruins. It's dangerous. If we all go in and get wiped out, the Law Department would take a massive hit."
'Come on, how many times have I said not to jinx us like that?!'
Following Elena and Max, Li Xiang arrived at a small airfield not far from the Law Department.
A large pink helicopter sat waiting on the H-marked landing pad.
Wearing the pink helmet, Li Xiang caught his reflection in the helicopter's polished surface—he looked like some sort of strange mascot.
Max patted him on the shoulder. "Strap in tight, junior."
Max then took the pilot's seat, donning his own pink helmet.
Looking at Elena in her pink dress seated beside him, Li Xiang couldn't help but think, 'Just how much do you love the color pink?'
'Sigh, I guess everyone has a princess side.'
The helicopter's three-bladed rotor whirled to life.
Li Xiang felt the tremor as the aircraft lifted off, the deafening roar of the blades filling his ears.
Two hours later, they touched down.
"This is the Edinburgh port. From here, we'll enter the North Sea through the Firth of Forth, follow the coastline past the Pentland Firth, and finally reach Flannan Island," Elena explained, removing her helmet and setting it aside. "Leave your helmet here. Someone will take care of it soon. Let's head to the port and board our ship."
Li Xiang nodded and followed her.
After a few minutes of walking, they reached the port, where Elena confidently approached a sleek yacht with three decks.
"This is our department's ship," Elena said offhandedly as she boarded.
Li Xiang stood frozen for a moment. 'Seriously? Is this what it's like to have money and just do whatever you want?'
He headed toward the cockpit, where Max and Elena were already at the controls.
"You two know how to drive a yacht?"
Elena glanced at him briefly, saying, "I've been doing this since I was a kid."
'What kind of family grows up driving yachts?' Li Xiang mused. 'Looks like I'm dealing with a rich princess here.'
'Maybe I should cling to her leg—wait, no, cling to her little leg.'
Li Xiang fell into a brief moment of contemplation.