"Stop joking, big sister," Fu Lin waved his hand dismissively. If it weren't for her playful tone, he might have believed she was serious.
"Well, joining a secret organization would be so cool," she said as she walked past Fu Lin, her voice sincere.
"Hahaha… It would be cool, but you have such a sharp tongue," Fu Lin replied with an awkward laugh, watching her retreating figure.
----------------------------
"Is that so? I'll keep that in mind. Just leave the deposit on the table. You can come pick it up in a few days," the big sister said, taking the design sketch into the back room and disappearing from Fu Lin's view.
"Alright, see you in a few days." As Fu Lin left the shop, he replayed the shop owner's words in his head. The more he thought about it, the more suspicious it seemed, like there was a hidden meaning behind her words. But before he could figure it out, he bumped into Fu Shi and Yae Sakura, interrupting his thoughts.
"Fu Lin, are you done? Come play with us now!" Fu Shi exclaimed, holding a stick of candied hawthorn in one hand while tugging on Fu Lin with the other.
"Alright, that candied hawthorn looks pretty good. Let me have a bite," Fu Lin said, eyeing the treat in Fu Shi's hand.
"Ehhh... Fine, but just a tiny bite! Don't take a big one," Fu Shi said reluctantly, glancing at her candied hawthorn and then at Fu Lin's eager face.
"I swear, just a 'small' bite," Fu Lin promised with a grin.
Fu Shi held out the hawthorn stick, and Fu Lin opened his mouth wide, ready to take a huge bite and show her the deceitful nature of the world.
But when he bit down, he got nothing—he almost bit his own tongue instead.
"Did you think I'm a fool? Your face practically had the word 'liar' written all over it! Bleh... Did you really think you could trick the great Herrscher of Sentience?" Fu Shi wiggled the candied hawthorn in her hand, sticking her tongue out teasingly.
"..." Fu Lin stared at her in disbelief. He never thought he'd be the one getting tricked today.
After a moment's reflection, he realized he had underestimated Fu Shi. He'd forgotten that the Herrscher of Sentience had mastered the art of deception by the age of two. In the end, it was his own fault for thinking she was just a sweet, innocent girl.
This was all Fu Hua's fault!
"Surprised? Didn't expect it, huh? Of course I saved a share for you. Now say 'thank you' to the great Herrscher of Sentience," Fu Shi said proudly, holding out a fresh stick of candied hawthorn to Fu Lin, looking as if she expected a compliment.
"Hmph, I'd never say something so embarrassing," Fu Lin turned his head away defiantly, unwilling to sell himself out for a snack.
"Thank you, great Herrscher of Sentience!"
"??? Did you just make me say that?" Fu Lin looked at the smiling Fu Shi, then at the hawthorn stick in his hand, feeling like he had just uttered something without realizing it.
"Hehe~" Fu Shi tried to play it off, but Fu Lin, being a time traveler, wasn't going to let it slide so easily.
"What do you mean by 'hehe'?"
"Oh, who cares what it means? Let's hurry over to Yae Sakura," Fu Shi quickly changed the subject, pulling Fu Lin along as she headed towards Yae Sakura.
"Alright, but let's slow down a bit. There are a lot of people," Fu Lin sighed. After all, this was his dear Fu Shi—how could he not spoil her a little?
...
"Sakura, did you go shopping?" Fu Lin asked, noticing Yae Sakura carrying two bags filled with goldfish.
"No, Fu Lin, it's just that I came across a goldfish scooping stand like the ones we used to have during the festivals. I couldn't resist scooping up a few," Yae Sakura replied, her cheeks tinged with a hint of embarrassment.
"I see. Where's the stand? I'd like to give it a try too," Fu Lin said, getting excited at the thought of experiencing a classic festival activity he often saw in anime.
"Me too! I want to play!" Fu Shi chimed in enthusiastically.
"Um... I might disappoint you both. I accidentally scooped up all the goldfish, so the vendor packed up and left," Yae Sakura said sheepishly as she saw the two of them getting ready to head over.
"..."
"...Ah, I see."
Fu Lin and Fu Shi exchanged a glance, their excitement instantly deflated.
He couldn't help but laugh when he thought about the vendor's expression as they packed up their stall.
"So, how was the hot spring? It's been a while since the school incident—haven't really had a chance to relax~" Fu Lin stretched and said wearily.
Chiba Academy: … You'd better have a good reason for this!
"Yay! Just what I wanted."
"Sure, but where can we find a hot spring?"
"...You just need to ask someone," Fu Lin replied confidently.
Searching for a hot spring...
After an hour of Fu Lin's persistent efforts, they finally found an open hot spring inn. With excitement, they pushed open the door.
"Blah blah blah (a lot of things)..." The receptionist greeted Fu Lin and the others politely.
"Alright, Fu Shi, Sakura, see you in a bit," Fu Lin said after hearing the introductions.
"Mm, see you in a bit." Fu Shi waved and headed to the women's hot spring.
"See you soon, Mr. Fu Lin." Yae Sakura, carrying a bathrobe provided by the inn, also went in.
Fu Lin went to the locker area, took off his clothes, picked up a towel and bathrobe, and entered the hot spring. He leaned against the wall with a satisfied look, closing his eyes to enjoy the warmth.
He could vaguely hear the playful sounds of Fu Shi and Yae Sakura from the next area.
"I feel so sleepy, ha~"
Fu Lin yawned and fell asleep. At that moment, the mark of the Herrscher of Void on his back began to glow.
[Spatial anomaly detected!]
[World Task Scroll automatically used]
[Warning! Warning! Dimensional anomaly detected!]
[System initiating emergency measures!]
[Emergency measures failed!]
[Activate backup plan?]
"..." A sleeping Fu Lin.
[Host consent detected.]
[Activation successful!]
[Preparing to enter the mission world!]
In his sleep, Fu Lin frowned. He had a sensation of his consciousness being pulled away, but it quickly faded.
Only his body remained soaking in the hot spring.
Fu Shi paused her playful splashing and looked curiously in Fu Lin's direction. Then, in a panic, she got up, put on her bathrobe, and rushed into the men's hot spring despite the staff's attempts to stop her.
Yae Sakura followed closely behind, confused about why the Herrscher of Sentience was suddenly so flustered. She only realized what was happening when she saw Fu Lin lying on the ground.
"Hey, Fu Lin, wake up! Don't scare me like this—you were fine just a moment ago!" Fu Shi pressed her ear to Fu Lin's chest. Seeing no rise and fall of his chest, she panicked, and tears began to fall.
"What happened to Mr. Fu Lin?" Yae Sakura asked worriedly as she saw Fu Shi's reaction.
Even the staff who had followed them in looked worriedly at Fu Lin's body and the crying Fu Shi.
The system screen seemed to take pity on the scene and displayed the previous message, finally calming Fu Shi down.
Otherwise, something truly scary might have happened.
"Huh? Phew, it's fine! He just went on a mission. That damn system tricked me," Fu Shi wiped away her tears, gritting her teeth. Transferring Fu Lin's consciousness without any warning was too much.
"Fu Shi, you…" Yae Sakura noticed the sudden shift to anger on Fu Shi's face and asked, puzzled.
"Nothing, he's just sleeping. Did my acting fool everyone? Hehe." Fu Shi looked at the crowd with a mischievous grin.
"As long as everything's fine."
The staff breathed a sigh of relief. If someone had died in their hot spring inn, how would they continue running the business?
"I'll take Fu Lin back to his room first. Everyone, it's fine now—please disperse." Fu Shi carried Fu Lin's body towards his room, making sure to cover him with a towel along the way to maintain his modesty.