Chapter 7: The Liu Family’s Tactics. Yun Zhou: Why is this guy still trying to kill me? …

The night faded quickly, and in the blink of an eye, it was the following afternoon.

Beneath the shimmering starlight falling from the World Tree, a long-abandoned meeting room on the top floor of a club building at Tree Tower Academy had been cleared out. A plaque reading “Salvation” was now hung by the door.

Yun Zhou had rejected Black Swan’s offer to arrange a meeting room at The Tower’s headquarters, choosing instead to establish the team’s base at Tree Tower Academy.

Perhaps this made the pressure Yun Zhou faced feel a little less terrifying. It felt as though the weight of the entire world had crashed down upon him overnight, leaving him with no power to resist.

Liu Ming understood that feeling all too well.

After all, two things had happened under the cover of last night: the heir of the Liu Family had taken the future of his clan onto his shoulders, while a wanderer from the Seventh District had simultaneously shouldered the expectations of the world.

Liu Ming stared at the crookedly hung plaque and immediately recognized whose handiwork it was.

“Heh,” he chuckled softly. “Some protagonist. He can’t even hang a sign straight.”

He thought to himself: It’s a good thing Yun Zhou isn’t here, or he’d be bristling again. I wonder if the kid even has enough fur for all the bristling he does.

【What is it? Does the host require a separate identity construct now?】

T231 asked, recalling the most common method used by hosts paired with its colleagues at the World Regulatory Bureau: the use of “vests¹” or secret identities.

This was a specialized technique, and even a system with a high-ranking serial number like itself needed to prepare in advance.

“No. Just provide me with some crude disguises like masks when necessary. I’ll only use this one identity. I want all the misunderstandings born of love and hate to tilt toward this one person.”

A bold smile played on Liu Ming’s lips.

T231’s Misunderstanding Points were calculated independently, and their value was closely linked to the emotional fluctuations of those being misled.

Secret identities? He wasn’t about to do something that would dilute his Misunderstanding Points. No matter how much a new persona might tug at someone’s heartstrings, it couldn’t compare to the deep cultivation of a single character.

He would use these Plot Strings to make the protagonist’s party and other key characters unable to live without him, right up until his fated death arrived.

When that time came… it wouldn’t be because of some baseless friendship, but because of interests bound tightly together. Simply because he was Liu Ming, the protagonist’s party would find it impossible to raise a hand against him.

He refused to believe the Plot Strings could grab Yun Zhou and the others by the hair and force them to kill him.

Liu Ming pushed open the door and stepped into the unassuming meeting room.

What met his eyes was a simple conference table surrounded by four chairs. On the other side of the room was a lounge area furnished with soft beanbags, an old-fashioned projector, and a CRT monitor.

This unremarkable room would henceforth be the place where he reversed the fate of both himself and the entire Liu Family.

Inside the room, Yun Zhou and Du Shui had already arrived. The latter was busy whisking matcha for herself, while the former held a stack of reference books, wobbling atop a pile of volumes as he tried to reach the top of a bookshelf.

“Three…”

Liu Ming began to count down.

Du Shui gave him a strange look. “What are—”

Liu Ming ignored her and continued, “Two—”

The books beneath Yun Zhou’s feet began to sway precariously.

Liu Ming uttered the final count with something akin to a sigh. “One.”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa—!”

The moment the word left his lips, Yun Zhou lost his balance completely. With a loud crash, his makeshift support collapsed. He tilted sideways and tumbled clumsily onto the carpet right next to Liu Ming.

Du Shui: …

Now she knew what he had been counting down to.

“Liu Ming!”

The moment Yun Zhou saw Liu Ming, he immediately bristled. “You’re laughing at me again!”

This time, Liu Ming couldn’t hold back. “As if anyone actually wants to mock you. If Council Chairman Black Swan hadn’t called for me by name, who would want to take on a job like this?”

“Heh.” Yun Zhou brushed off his white, Tibetan-style robe², looking thoroughly annoyed. “Who cares? You make it sound like I can’t function without you! Does the planet stop spinning just because you’re gone?”

Liu Ming didn’t acknowledge Yun Zhou’s defiant retort. He walked straight to the opposite end of the table from Yun Zhou’s seat, pulled out a chair, and sat down. His movements were leisurely and composed, carrying the innate elegance of a Liu Family heir. It was entirely out of place in these humble surroundings, yet it created a strange sense of pressure.

It was the pressure unique to those who had been groomed for power since childhood.

Liu Ming stopped pretending and began to demonstrate his value.

“I don’t know if the planet will stop spinning,” Liu Ming said, his fingertips lightly tapping the cold tabletop. A look that could almost be described as helpless appeared on his face. “But if Y008 truly awakens and your little team wants to find the clues the Council Chairman is looking for… I’m afraid you really can’t do it without me.”

“You’ve got to be joking.” Yun Zhou was incredulous. He knelt down and began picking up the fallen books one by one. “If it’s just looking for clues, we can manage just fine without you!”

His voice was clearly tinged with petulance.

Du Shui felt her head begin to ache again. Although she didn’t like Liu Ming, Yun Zhou’s words were a bit too naive.

“Just clues?” Liu Ming scoffed, his blood-red eyes full of mockery. “O Savior, you seem to have forgotten that the prophecy identifies Y008 as the ‘King of Water.’ If you want to find clues, you cannot avoid the endless oceans. And the Third District happens to be the human administrative region with the longest coastline and the most extensive network of maritime monitoring facilities.”

“Tell me, do you think the head of the Third District—that young District Chief who holds no hope for you—will willingly hand over core maritime intelligence and real-time data on Anomaly erosion to a team captain who is still a student at Tree Tower Academy?”

The wolf tail behind Yun Zhou flicked irritably, but he had no rebuttal. He truly hadn’t thought that far ahead. The barriers and competition between districts were far beyond the imagination of a student fresh out of the academy.

The Third District Chief’s hostility might not have been sharp, but it was very much there.

Du Shui’s brow furrowed even tighter. She thought for a moment before looking at Liu Ming. “Do you have a way?”

“A way?” Liu Ming leaned forward slightly, propping his elbows on the table and resting his chin on his interlaced fingers. He wore an arrogant smile that sent a chill down one’s spine. “It’s not a way, it’s an inevitability. Because I am Liu Ming—the Liu Ming of the Liu Family, and the heir to Liu Lin, the head of the First District.”

He paused slightly when mentioning the word “heir.” Even a simple mention of Liu Lin’s current state made a trace of unbearable bitterness ghost across the tip of his tongue.

Yet, Liu Ming’s face remained a mask of perfect, calculating arrogance.

“The Liu Family has operated in the First District for countless years, and our influence is deeply intertwined with the factions of every other district head. Don’t be fooled by how those District Chiefs act like bitter rivals during meetings. Faced with the reality of Anomaly erosion, no one refuses cooperation. The exchange of interests and favors between district heads is perfectly normal.”

Liu Ming lowered his eyes, masking their color. “The District Chief of the Third District might not necessarily cooperate with Council Chairman Black Swan, but his subordinates are even less likely to cooperate with him. Perhaps some people want our First District to yield on a disputed maritime project, or maybe others are in desperate need of technical support for high-level Anomaly containment? Who can say for sure?”

Liu Ming spread his hands and gave a light chuckle. “Even though the order came from the Council Chairman, that District Chief could easily choose not to cooperate. He can ignore you, Yun Zhou; he can brush off Du Shui because she’s from the Third District; he could even ignore the ‘olive branch’ extended by the Liu Family. But he absolutely cannot ignore the trouble the Liu Family can bring—especially now, with the Seventh District fallen, prophecies running rampant, and every district jumping at shadows, barely able to look after themselves.”

With every sentence he spoke, the anger on Yun Zhou’s face faded, replaced by a completely blank expression of bewilderment. Beside him, Du Shui’s gaze grew increasingly solemn.

Testing the waters, evasion, exchange of interests, leverage, threats, incitement to defection…

These filthy games belonging to the “adult world” were laid bare before them by Liu Ming. And he… he handled it with such ease, clearly accustomed to walking such paths.

He was a member of the Liu Family. Only a Liu could achieve such toxicity at this age.

Yun Zhou suddenly felt like lighting a candle³ in sympathy for the upright District Chief of the Third District, who wasn’t much older than they were.

Liu Ming looked up, his silvery-blue hair falling with the movement. He looked at Yun Zhou and flashed a smile that could almost be described as innocent. “Well? Lord Savior, do you still think I’m dispensable now?”

“I was wrong.” Yun Zhou was quick to concede. “I don’t understand any of this. Please, you must help me find the truth behind this damn prophecy!”

After all, he truly didn’t want to live another day being hunted by high-level Anomalies like the Scorching Ghost. Although he had aspired to become a great Corrector like Black Swan to protect humanity ever since his home in the Seventh District was contaminated by Y004, there was a difference between a choice made of free will and being driven like a duck onto a perch⁴.

Furthermore…

Yun Zhou’s golden eyes dimmed. He couldn’t forget that precognitive dream he’d had before the Scorching Ghost came knocking, a dream that felt as if the prophecy had been implanted directly into his brain. In that dream, everything collapsed and sank, just as Y008’s prophecy foretold.

If…

If the prophecy was truly real, if the world was truly going to end, and if he was the Savior who could save everything…

Then please, let him succeed!

To prevent that dream from coming true, he needed every bit of power he could get. Especially Liu Ming.

Du Shui’s eyes darkened. The red pupils within her blue eyes looked like a raging fire burning on the surface of the sea as she warily watched the thin, frail-looking youth before her.

The aura Liu Ming had just radiated was completely different from when he was picking fights with Yun Zhou at the Tree Tower Academy. He was a carbon copy of Liu Lin.

A terrifying venomous snake lying in wait.

“You don’t need to be so tense, Savior. Who knows, maybe your passion and that fluffy tail of yours will be enough to move the Third District Chief.”

Liu Ming understood the principle of the carrot and the stick, so he tried to soothe Yun Zhou, whose tail was drooping dejectedly. He didn’t expect to provoke the boy into bristling again. “Why are you still attacking me!”

Yun Zhou was indignant, his golden eyes watery and looking somewhat aggrieved.

Through Liu Ming’s explanation, he realized for the first time with such clarity that the real world was so complex and suffocating. He admitted that as a captain, he hadn’t thought things through enough, but why did Liu Ming always have to be so unpleasant!

Liu Ming blinked. He honestly thought he had been quite comforting.

“Alright, alright, stop, stop!” Du Shui couldn’t listen any longer. She broke the tense atmosphere and said seriously, “Student Liu Ming, you’re right. We do need your help, especially regarding the coordination with the Third District.”

Liu Ming nodded with satisfaction. “Then let us hope that this connection, forced upon us by the oppression of the ‘adults,’ lasts until the matter of the prophecy is perfectly resolved.”

Step one, complete.

He had deeply bound himself to the Liu Family and displayed the value of “Liu Ming” to its maximum, forcibly embedding himself into the core needs of this team. Whether they hated him, feared him, or simply used him, no matter what happened next, the protagonist’s group would have to acknowledge his indispensability.

To Liu Ming, this was the most reassuring way to change his future fate.

He looked at Yun Zhou, who seemed to want to say more, and then at Du Shui, who remained wary with her arms tensed. He smiled and spoke two words.

“Happy cooperating.”

“Happy cooperating!” Yun Zhou snapped irritably.

“Happy cooperating,” Du Shui said guardedly.

As those words left his lips, the bullet chat before Liu Ming’s eyes began to flash frantically.

【Holy crap?!】

【Is… is this a political drama now?】

【Using family background to trade interests? This is way too… realistic, isn’t it? Isn’t this guy supposed to be cannon fodder? Why does his style of handling things feel completely different!】

【I thought this was supposed to be a hot-blooded shonen manga⁵? Why did the art style suddenly shift like this?】

…

The bullet chat was equally startled by the scene unfolding before them. Along with the flood of shocked comments came a notification from T231.

【Misunderstanding Points +100】

【Misunderstanding Points +100】

…

Liu Ming arched an eyebrow. This time, the Misunderstanding Points hadn’t come from Yun Zhou, but from the source he had been ignoring all along: the bullet chat.

So, leading these viewers to misunderstand his identity could also generate points—and even more than the protagonist, it seemed…

Liu Ming’s gaze as he watched the scrolling comments grew increasingly profound, like a vampire who had just laid eyes on a delicious blood bag.

Translator’s Notes