Chapter 542: Explanation and Conversation
“Does Xiao Han know those people?” Seeing my expression, Shali was unsure how to begin, and it was eventually Tan Han who broke the silence.
“Not quite. As it stands, it seems they recognize me, but I don’t know them.”
“Then how do you know them? Can you share a bit about it?”
“Um, I met them in another world,” I said.
“Another world?” At this moment, Shali finally spoke up, clearly surprised and confused by my answer.
“Do you not believe me, Store Manager?” I wasn’t surprised by her reaction; I was just thinking about how to explain further.
“It’s not that I don’t believe you, but objectively speaking, we can’t leave our world before we achieve being an Extraordinary Witch.”
“The ability to leave our world does not depend on becoming an Extraordinary Witch; rather, it’s about the Earth Vein Shackles. You should be familiar with that concept, right?” I smiled and looked at the Store Manager, as she was also a senior graduate. Even if she hadn’t become an Extraordinary Witch, she likely knew how one achieves that and other related matters.
“…I understand.” Shali seemed to think of something, her gaze filled with complexity, and she didn’t pursue the topic further.
The atmosphere suddenly fell silent.
Thinking about the people present—me, Tan Han, and the Store Manager—our relationship was somewhat delicate. It was sensitive to the point that any topic seemed inappropriate; only discussing the objective facts happening at that moment could mask the subtle awkwardness.
“Then, Xiao Han, when you call them ‘players’… what does that mean?” Finally, Tan Han spoke, breaking the silence once more.
“Players… as the term suggests, those are people who play games. Those guys are a bunch of lunatics who treat the real world like a game and enjoy running rampant in it.”
“Reality as… a game?” Tan Han still couldn’t grasp why such people existed. “They aren’t from our world, right?”
“Correct, they are definitely not from our world. They are a highly aggressive bunch, notorious even beyond our world for invading other worlds and plundering resources.”
“Then we need to inform the academy’s upper management right away! This is such an important matter…”
“Do you think the academy’s higher-ups don’t know? The level at which I can access information, how could the Academy Head not be aware?” I directly questioned Tan Han’s naive perspective.
This situation had broader repercussions, leading to paralysis in a city of the Main World. The higher-ups at the Extraordinary Academy could not possibly avoid this issue; if this didn’t signify something, the Main World could hardly withstand them continuing their antics.
However, I certainly wouldn’t disclose to Tan Han about the Academy Head’s proactive scheming.
“Then if they know, why haven’t they made any moves? These guys are too dangerous. If they unwittingly installed so-called nuclear bombs around the world, they could destroy our civilization in an instant!”
“I know, but let’s not rush. The enemy isn’t standing in front of us like a piece of wood for us to beat down. This matter can’t be resolved merely with anger and assumptions,” I said, trying to calm her down.
“Then… does that mean we just let those guys wreak havoc in our world?” Tan Han began to speak excitedly but quickly realized her emotional outburst and controlled her tone before asking.
“Their individual power isn’t that strong. They rely on a very special weapon for their high aggression. You should have noticed it too? If I were to make a metaphor, they’re like a virus that causes d*ath; they infiltrate everywhere and have… never been exterminated. That’s the predicament we face. If an Extraordinary Mentor intervenes, it would indeed be a massacre, but what’s the cost?”
“The cost…”
Upon hearing my words, both of them fell silent.
“The cost is that we expose our trump card, and those bugs will still gnaw at our world from the dark corners. Plus, there’s another issue.” At this point, I threw out another question, but before they had a chance to think it through, I started explaining again.
“You guys probably haven’t seen a mentor intervening in action, right? Even if you have, it was just a hint. There has never been a fight among Extraordinary beings discussed; you’ve never even heard of it because our world can’t withstand the full power of the Extraordinary. Thus, the combat style in the Extraordinary Academy has always been based on students fighting.”
“…”
“Remember our trip to Ninglan New City?” Sensing their silence, I brought up a topic.
“Ninglan New City…” Tan Han naturally remembered; it was an unforgettable experience. “So, that’s another world?!”
“How do I put it? It’s not exactly another world since the place where Ninglan New City is located is also part of our world, but it exists in… another space. It’s a different concept from the players’ world, but what I want to say is… didn’t you notice something was off during that trip? The strange power of spells there.”
“Indeed, even though we didn’t have a physical form, we still managed to release spells. However, their power was terrifyingly strong…” Tan Han reflected on the moment, recalling her initial assumption that it was a dream.
Despite having more power, they still encountered enemies that couldn’t be dealt with simply through strength.
“I can tell you some truths: that experience showcased the true intensity of spells, while the world we’re in now is shrouded by a terrifying spell effect.”
“The powers of the spells we use are weakened; even the Extraordinary Mentors experience this reduction. The difference is that we are forcefully and unknowingly weakened, while the Extraordinary Mentors… accepted this knowingly.”
“And all of this is to prevent the unintentional power of the Extraordinary realm from causing irreparable damage to our world.”
“So… Xiao Han, after explaining so much… are you suggesting that this time the mentors are also just standing by?” After hearing my explanation, Tan Han quickly grasped the underlying meaning within my lengthy remarks.
“Tan Han, do you want to become… a savior?” I avoided Tan Han’s question and instead asked an unrelated one.
Upon hearing this question, Tan Han froze because this wasn’t the first time I had asked her like this.
When was the last time… When was the last time?
Last time, she was still naive and a bit impulsive, but now… she has learned to think calmly, to consider why she should care about and be concerned with this matter. If the sky collapses, there would be a tall person to hold it up. Would she be willing to be that tall person?
“I don’t want to become a savior… but this matter has occurred right before me… affecting so many people…”
“You still haven’t changed, Tan Han,” I said in a neutral tone, without praise or criticism. Though she hadn’t changed, she had made progress; it was visible. At least this time, she had remained calm and hadn’t yelled at me.
But… did she yell at me last time?
I forgot; after all, I generally forget unimportant things quickly.
“Will you act like you did last time…”
“Perhaps? But right now I’m quite busy. You might not understand what I mean by busy, but it means I’m occupied to the point of being unable to break free.” I didn’t make any promises. Although I would be actively involved in this event, I wouldn’t tell them openly. There’s a difference between having support and wondering if there is support.
If my involvement in this event was for personal interests, then Tan Han and the others were merely dragged into it. Truly, the Child of Fortune, acting on emotion, I wonder if by the end, Tan Han will end up shouting some power of friendship at the final BOSS and drive these players completely out of our world.
Speaking of which, I remembered something.
“Oh, I almost forgot. Did I miss out on updating you guys when I last changed relationships? It’s really just a minor issue…” I took out two business cards and handed them over.
Having recently met so many Witch Sisters, I had lost track of who was first. Knowing I could summon myself with a card led to a high demand, resulting in me crafting a lot overnight to stock up just in case.
Then, I marked them to know who summoned me in the future.
“This is… a business card?” Shali hesitated to take the card. Looking at its exquisite design, even showing signs of crafting, she was puzzled and looked up at me.
“Indeed, it’s a business card. It has a spell ceremony for reverse summoning me, just like the little item Tan Han used before. This is the updated version. When the time comes, I’ll know who summoned me. If I happen to be busy and encounter an unknown summoning ceremony, I might overlook it. So if you face this kind of crisis again, I may not be able to respond, so let’s go with this for now,” I explained to them.
“Thank you…”
“Thanks, Xiao Han.”
“No problem. Just be safe from now on. By the way, do you have any other questions? If not, I have plenty of questions myself.” I asked.
“What do you want to know, Xiao Han?”
“Well, first of all, I’m naturally curious…” I glanced at the Store Manager, who felt a bit uncomfortable under my gaze and looked away. “Store Manager~ what is it about you that makes those mad dogs so covetous?”
“Um… well…” Shali hesitated, unsure how to respond.
Should she just say “Extraordinary Knowledge”?
But she planned to give that to Tan Han and had already told her about it.
And once, Xiao Han had expressed a desire for it… Although it belonged to her, she could give it to whoever she wanted, the complexity of the situation couldn’t be simplified. As a seasoned veteran, she surely knew the difficulties of human relationships.
“I heard those guys calling it the Technology Core, and it seems that’s what they desire. It shouldn’t be something simple, right?” Seeing the Store Manager hesitate, I asked again.
“Um… the Technology Core… but it has another name in the Witch Academy… ‘Extraordinary Knowledge.’”
“Oh, I see.” Upon hearing this answer, I wasn’t too surprised. My calm response caused the Store Manager to feel it was almost surreal.
In fact, this was something that had been made clear when chatting with Senior Ying Shiqian, right?
I didn’t expect those players had already begun to set their sights on the Store Manager’s Extraordinary Knowledge.
“No wonder you’ve kept it so tightly guarded, Store Manager. This thing truly can’t fall into their hands. I remember you valuing this more than your own life~ By the way, Store Manager, why are you carrying something so important around when things are messy outside? It’s easy to stir up big trouble, just like now.”
After I said that, the Store Manager fell silent again.
Although I could guess the reason, I still asked the question. Is it because I’m known for ending topics? After saying that, I felt it might be inappropriate, but… I was also curious about how she would respond.
The first time the Store Manager brought me into her Small Treasury, she guarded that portion of Extraordinary Knowledge vehemently, saying she wouldn’t give it for anything. Back then, she even wanted to give it to Tan Han, but in the end, I cleared away the macro influence of Fortune, but it still didn’t escape the fate of giving it to Tan Han.
It must be said, the nature of Fortune is indeed pressing; those involved find themselves helpless.
If I were completely unaware, I might have blamed the Store Manager for not giving this to me.
Even if I didn’t say it, I still felt a bit unbalanced inside.
But now, I too had two Great Spellbooks and was even plotting to make the third piece of Extraordinary Knowledge into my third Great Spellbook. Looking back at what the Store Manager had now… it seemed somewhat dispensable.
Besides, this was still an incomplete piece of Extraordinary Knowledge. As for the remaining “fragments” of this Extraordinary Knowledge, they might be closely related to the script. Just looking at it seemed troublesome.
“I… originally decided to give this to Tan Han…” After saying that, Shali appeared as if most of her strength had been drained. But there was nothing to be done; that was her decision.
“I never said I would take it.” At this moment, Tan Han suddenly spoke, “It should belong to someone more suited for it.”
Seeing the tacit understanding between these two, I couldn’t help but want to laugh, “Then Tan Han, who do you think is more suited for it?”
“More suited…” In that moment, Tan Han found herself at a loss for words, yet it seemed she had made some kind of determination. But just as she was about to speak, I interrupted.
“Before you answer, think it through, okay? Last time you faced a similar situation, what decision did you make? And who ultimately received the spellbooks you didn’t want…”
“This… this is different!” My reminder caused Tan Han’s pupils to contract as she instantly grasped the implication and hurried to explain.
“It’s the same; it’s all… the same. Ask Store Manager Shali?” I said with a hint of a smile and turned Tan Han’s gaze toward Shali, who was momentarily confused about what to say. But I spoke for her, “Clearly, some concepts have already been made public, while some choose to look away. Fortune is the invisible hand that pushes us, and the script summarizes the process… A saying circulated in the academy is not wrong: those with Fortune Seeds are the ones who will contend for the ultimate outcomes in this world.”
“Here we go again… this…”
Upon hearing my words, Tan Han subconsciously tightened her grip…
My reminder suddenly illuminated many things for her.
Right now, Tan Han felt like a low-level person discovering the concept of “conspiracy theory.” All the irrationalities of the world suddenly had perfect explanations.
“Is it fate again…” Tan Han muttered, her voice filled with reluctance.
“Fate? Perhaps you’ve mistaken something, Tan Han. Fate is never your enemy, nor is anyone determined your life.”
“If you’re willing to look ahead, you’ll see endless possibilities. But if you look behind, all you can see is a predetermined path, and that path is called fate. The phrase ‘fate cannot be changed’ means the past cannot be altered.”
“If you are misled by concepts, believing that resisting fate is opposing the predetermined facts imposed on you by others, then that is truly tragic. Because you are always fighting against your past self. When you think you’ve succeeded, that’s when the tragedy begins. You deny all of yourself, and the current you has no support from the past, leaving only a castle built in the air. You don’t even have the right to walk forward.”
