Chapter 46 - Role Playing the Dark Horse Character

Chapter 46: The Crazy Bounty Hunter Upon confirming Tang's visit, Li Li used her abilities to leave Twin. It seemed many things had happened in the research institute, but outside, only a day had passed. She emerged during the night and returned once more at midnight. Perhaps the comic artist didn’t want to leave a cliffhanger here. Li Li felt she had grasped the artist's update pattern. When she returned, she donned the persona of Li Baige, the heart-sealed alter ego, as she headed to the Ability Guild to clear her daily tasks. However, during her second trip to the Ability Guild, she received a message from An Heyou. "[Yue Qing is preparing for a thorough investigation inside the Ability Guild, dispatching two A-class operatives. A-class spell-type ability user Rao Yue, a trusted subordinate of the Yue family. A-class spell-type ability user Yue Fu, Yue Qing's cousin. Stay safe. He]" Li Li roughly understood An Heyou's motive for sending the message—it was simply because they were on the same side, afraid she might encounter problems. Yet, the "stay safe" part was somewhat puzzling to her; she hadn't felt particularly close to them. Perhaps it was the protective instinct of someone who had raised younger siblings for too long? Li Li suddenly understood. Although it was a thorough investigation of the Ability Guild, it still posed no threat to her. The guild's lobby was bustling with people, often frequented by fierce-looking bounty hunters, alongside identical synthetic beings and cleaning bio-machines. The scene was as usual, except An Guyu was likely locked at home by An Heyou and couldn’t come out to chatter. At this point, Li Li was in Li Baige's guise, her expression cold and aloof, in stark contrast to Hei Ge's flamboyant demeanor, emanating a sense of indifferent restraint—almost merciless. The blue pendant by her ear swayed lightly between her black hair. As she prepared to accept a bounty task, she was met with obstructing figures on her way to the bounty hall. Slightly tilting her face, the man in the white uniform making the stop gesture hesitated before saying, “This way is not passable. Go queue over there to leave.” At the entrance to the Ability Guild’s bounty hall, several men in white uniforms barred those trying to exit. To the right side, a man and a woman sat behind a table. The man with blue hair was unmistakably Yue Fu, Yue Qing's cousin, watching passersby with boredom. Beside him was a woman with moon-white hair, scrutinizing the comers indifferently. They had checked once before, but this time, the personnel had changed. Frequent bounty hunters were familiar with each other, not to mention the guild’s reception and employed synthetic beings. Avoiding these checks for a few days only to return wouldn't work, and Li Li didn’t plan to avoid them anyway. Even if she walked right past, nobody could guess her identity. Unless they had someone capable of discerning her lies. Many had already formed a line before the desk. The bounty hunter facing the white-haired woman complained, “Abilities are a trump card; why should I tell you?” The white-haired woman glanced up, her deep blue eyes locking onto the protestor. Instantly, a gun appeared, aimed at the hunter's forehead. “Speak,” the woman demanded coldly. “Rao Yue, don't be so rash; you’ll get wrinkles,” Yue Fu commented nonchalantly, continuing to look indifferently at the sparrows outside the door. Obviously, only Rao Yue was actively working. The bounty hunter, feeling utterly powerless, eventually compromised, murmuring almost inaudibly, “Mimic-type, [Rabbit Transformation].” “Just a rabbit?” Yue Fu waved dismissively, “Seems slightly related to transformation. Okay, show us a little trick.” The bounty hunter looked even more exasperated. When Li Li reached her turn, the questions were similarly straightforward. But when she locked eyes with Rao Yue, she noted that the woman's gaze lingered on her a moment longer than usual. Nonetheless, Rao Yue said nothing and moved on to the next person. When Li Li exited, it wasn’t long after, during midday, with the sun bright overhead. A public area lay before the Ability Guild, with a square full of white pigeons just a street away. As Li Li passed the square and startled the pigeons into flight, she sensed an intense gaze. She caught it with her peripheral vision—a pair of vibrant blue eyes. It was Yi Ming, with the plump Le Caile standing next to him, along with a vaguely familiar passerby. In the next instant, the pigeons blocked her view, allowing her to depart without hesitation. Today's Li Baige remained heart-sealed and love-locked, staying emotionally detached. [Target update detected.] [Opening channel for you…] Only then did she recall who that passerby was. He seemed to be the one she met on her first day in Four-Way City. [Welcome back to reality.] In the darkness, Li Li opened her eyes and slowly smirked. The setup she'd arranged before was about to trigger. … Two days later, the comic updated. That day, her roommate had gone to the library to cram for a paper overnight, and Li Li also had an unfinished speech to work on. By the time she completed her assignments, an hour had passed since the comic updated. After pondering, she picked up her phone to read it. This time’s color page featured Yi Ming. Li Li stared for a while, ensuring the artist left no subtle hints. Flipping through, the comic followed the previous chapter's plot, continuing the developments, and revealed from Tang's perspective the relationship between Mo Mo and You You. The comments were flooded with exclamations of shock and praises for Tang. [Cat Tang has grown so much!] [Tang’s got it! Yi Ming is probably still clueless.] [Cowlick Li would definitely be comforted, having a brainy character inheriting the mantle.] Due to Mo Mo's deception and manipulation, there were dissonant voices in the comments. However, when Mo Mo mentioned not wanting to be alone, the criticism softened slightly. The comic artist depicted Mo Mo's intention to bring someone in for help, but as this scene stopped abruptly before 'Le Shan' could speak, it left just the line about Mo Mo not having time. Li Li noticed the artist left out the earlier interaction of Hei Ge appearing on Tang's side. The scene shifted to Yi Ming, with nothing omitted, so 'Le Shan's' words were drawn in full. This enraged not only Hei Ge and Le Shan’s haters but Yi Ming’s character fans too. The comic’s protagonist, the central figure of this series, Yi Ming had considerably more fans than other characters. Even if not a specific fan, anyone reading the comic generally liked him. This led to a nearly unanimous uproar in the comments. [Ahhhh, why are you bullying the little Corgi!] [It must be Hei Ge! He’s the only one who calls Yi Ming ‘low-class’!] [Power fans, stop jumping around; it's not cool for an A-class to bully a D-class!] [Someone else’s misfortune isn't your playing ground! This person is rotten to the core!] [It's my first time hating a villain so much. Who does he think he is? A philosopher? The truth?] [Daily check-in: When will Hei Ge die!] The comic artist elaborately portrayed this segment, including ‘Le Shan’s’ expressions and actions. Scattered research materials and the trampled experimental notes on the ground were depicted with nonchalance, as if nothing was wrong. The comic's narrative continued, sharply capturing Yi Ming’s anger and hatred through precise strokes as his character evolved. The baby-fat began fading from the young boy’s face, leaving behind a more defined and mature visage. Meanwhile, the researcher causing all of this remained unruffled. Attacking, blocking, counterattacking—Yi Ming was thrown back. These actions flowed seamlessly within the frames, creating tension with shards of glass scattering throughout the scenes. The power disparity between the two was clearly presented as well. [Feels so hopeless, why is he so strong?] [Hei Ge is the unyielding rock; the villains come and go, but Hei Ge's power is undeniable!] [The only upside to Hei Ge is his strength.] [But honestly, Hei Ge's lab coat is so cool; I love it!] [Sorry Yi Ming, but this man is so handsome. I'm in love with his composure, sob.] [Aaaaa stop trampling the Corgi! Step on me instead!] [You villain fans are frightening!] Li Li figured the following developments likely mirrored her experiences. She skimmed through, mainly waiting to see how the comic artist would handle Tang’s side of the story. In the comic world, she had met with Tang and the others earlier and didn’t wait for Yi Ming to realize his supposed promise: wake up and save people. This timing difference was crucial. She was quite curious how the artist would manage this plot point. Of course, she didn’t believe she would be discovered. The black-and-white scenes flipped, showcasing extreme action sequences that were commendable. This segment unfolded as she had experienced: removing the disguise, attacking again, with the comic depicting Yi Ming crashing against a wall, unable to move even a finger. Until Tang arrived, Yi Ming remained unconscious. Finally, the scene shifted to Tang. It was as if events unfolded between Hei Ge's departure and Tang’s arrival. Hei Ge had left to fulfill a promise, while in the darkness, the owner of the pendant stayed behind. Only after things settled on Tang’s side did the pendant's owner walk over to Yi Ming before leaving. The timing was completely offset, but from Li Li’s omniscient perspective, she knew that was not the case at all. "As expected," Li Li murmured, resting her chin on her hand, "This segment only raises a question: why was Hei Ge initially disguised as 'Le Shan'?" After all, Hei Ge had reverted to his original form after Yi Ming identified him. In the comic, Yi Ming passed out, and when he woke, Tang was by his side, with Mo Mo and You You coming to bid farewell. This time, Mo Mo stepped forward, head bowed, explaining her actions to Yi Ming. This part of the comic was exceedingly sentimental, and Li Li continued reading with her chin propped on her hand. "Sorry for using you, " Mo Mo, now completely blind, apologized. Beside her, You You added sincerely, "Mo Mo has caused you trouble. I'm sorry." Waking up, Yi Ming was still preoccupied with the blue pendant earrings and looked bewildered at their words. Then he remembered something Hei Ge had once said and asked, "Are you guys alright?" "That person saved us," Mo Mo replied. "That's good." Yi Ming smiled. ‘I don't mind being played with as long as they're safe,’ he thought to himself. He misunderstood, yet it made perfect sense. Yi Ming had no intention of revealing his ordeal; as long as the result was positive, he had no complaints. Afterwards, Mo Mo and You You bid them farewell, leaving a note that they would join the Tides. At the comic's end, Yi Ming went to the square, gazing at the white doves while waiting for the information broker, Le Caile. Le Caile approached with that strange fellow, chatting as they walked. When he saw Yi Ming, Le Caile cheerfully greeted him, "Hello there, young man." But Yi Ming came with questions. "Do you know a man with black hair, red eyes, and a blue pendant earring on his right ear?" Yi Ming asked. In the illustration, Le Caile blinked and said, "Of course I know him. I even know him personally. He’s the most famous bounty hunter around here, everyone calls him the madman." "Him?" The strange fellow, after pondering for a moment, added, "I've seen him too, but he’s genuinely mad, wanting to challenge an SSS-level bounty." The scene transitioned, depicting the bounty hall of the Ability Guild. “SSS-level bounty, illusionist, Hei Ge.” In the monochrome setting, crowds surged as the news caused a massive commotion. Amidst the uproar, the black-haired youth turned, glancing at the large black screen and its looming text. “No matter what, in the end, the one who succeeds will be me,” he declared. In the next frame, one could see his profile, eyes brimming with madness. He was a crazy bounty hunter, though it was unclear at whom his long blade was aimed. Returning to the present, the memory of the strange fellow, Rong Xiangnan, sent a shiver down his spine as he repeated, “That truly is a madman.” “What’s his name? If I want to find him, how should I do it?” Yi Ming continued to inquire. “Name?” Le Caile chuckled, waving his hand, “He’s called Li Baige.” The square’s white doves took flight, and within the flock, one could almost glimpse the familiar swinging pendant. The black-haired young man looked ahead, his face expressionless, like a frozen iceberg or an unruffled water surface. And when Yi Ming looked once more, the doves blocked his vision, and the man vanished without a trace. In the black-and-white frame, Yi Ming appeared bewildered, looking forward. “Li… Baige?” he murmured softly.