bookbashuk Page 21
Page 21
"Have you decided yet?"
"Yes, Yuqiu has good teaching resources and focuses on college entrance exams. With my grades... I have a high chance of getting a scholarship there."
But looking at the forced expression on Xiangzi's face, Yanming knew that she didn't like that school.
"I can pay for you to continue your studies..."
“Yanming-kun.” Xiangzi called out to him, looking intently into his eyes, “You are now… also an important person to me, so don’t say that… don’t take away my last bit of dignity from me.”
Toyokawa Shoko has always been a child with a strong sense of self-esteem.
"it is good."
……
Chapter Thirty-Three: Black Hole
after that
Until Yanming fell asleep, the strategy system remained silent, as if it had disappeared.
"..." Yanming lay on the bed with his eyes closed.
Realizing he was having insomnia, the young man turned over in frustration.
After getting used to noise, a sudden silence can make you feel uncontrollably lonely.
No wonder people say that humans are the most awkward mammals on Earth.
[Can you hear me, Host?]
"?"
[This message was pre-recorded and will play automatically if I'm not around at bedtime... Hehe, when I'm not here, have you ever felt so disappointed that you can't sleep?]
"That's disgusting."
Well... you're probably just being stubborn again at a time like this.
But I don't care at all!
I still love you today! Go to bed early!
"..."
That shameless bastard.
……
The next day
"Xiao Xiang, won't you come with me to see that child?" Yanming packed his things and prepared to leave.
Xiangzi shook his head: "I have other plans today, but don't worry, Oblivionis is a very easy person to get along with, if it's you."
"Why do you say that?" Yanming asked, somewhat puzzled.
"Because..." Xiangzi smiled, keeping everyone in suspense for a moment, "Hmm...should I tell you?"
I'll make you takoyaki tomorrow.
"Yada!" Xiangzi was easily bribed, shaking his finger and giving his reason, "Because Yanming-kun is very good at charming girls, isn't he?"
Yanming slung his clean guitar bag over his shoulder, walked out of the entrance hall, and said, "Stop teasing me, I'm going out."
"Bon Voyage--"
……
"Om - hum -"
Motorcycle, Sunshine
"Thump thump ↑ thump—cough! cough!"
An unpleasant tune, and a cough.
Yanming pulled his motorcycle over to the side of the road, took out a bottle of medicine from his pocket, poured out two pills, and swallowed them whole.
"call--"
The dryness and pain in my throat were somewhat relieved by the medication.
[Host, I'm back!]
Yanming's tone was calm, revealing no sign of worry: "Where did they go?"
He didn't come back all night.
Wait a minute, let me confirm again.
[Name: Takamatsu Tomo]
Current intimacy level: ? ? (???)
[As expected, nothing's changed... Host, it seems we're in big trouble!]
"?"
Yanming asked curiously, "Why do you say that? So what's wrong?"
Let's first explain the issue of Lantern Girl's affection level.
[Host, do you remember last time when Lantern Girl displayed a specific affection level value? What was it?]
To be honest, Yanming never really cared about the numerical values given by the system; what he valued was the feedback in reality.
Take Xiao Xiang as an example. Making Xiao Xiang smile because of a small thing is definitely more direct than increasing his favorability by one point. And the former is the goal that Yan Ming needs to work hard for.
As for that string of numbers
Yanming shook his head: "I forgot."
It's 79 points.
[In the system's defined divisions, 79 and 80 points are a significant dividing line.]
[Before reaching 79 points of affinity, the closest relationship will never exceed "friends." Once it exceeds 80 points, it will evolve into different types of relationships.]
[For example, a lover, family member, close friend, etc.]
[First of all, it can be confirmed that the current Lantern Girl's favorability towards the host definitely exceeds 79 points, which is why the panel shows this change; it's not a bug.]
Yanming frowned, puzzled, and asked, "Is there a problem with this?"
According to the system itself, shouldn't the intimacy value be as high as possible?
The connection between her and the light has become closer, which is a good thing for helping her get out of the shadows, right?
This is a huge problem!
Yesterday I spent a long time troubleshooting the data backend but couldn't find anything unusual, so I concluded it wasn't a bug. Then I went to consult a senior colleague...
【Host. 】
The system's voice became serious and cautious.
What I'm about to tell you, please don't be afraid.
Yanming scoffed, rolling his eyes and saying, "I used to be a guitarist and lead singer, I'm not afraid."
In his mind, what serious things could a mere system possibly say?
It's just that this guy thinks it's serious.
Have you ever heard of black holes?
A black hole is an extreme celestial body in the universe, characterized by its large mass, high density, and extremely powerful gravitational pull on everything around it.
Yanming nodded to indicate that he knew, and then asked, "But what does this have to do with black holes?"
This involves a theory: black holes are generally believed to form due to the collapse of stars.
That is, gravitational collapse.
When an object becomes too massive and heavy, the repulsive forces between its internal substances become insufficient to counteract the gravitational pull it generates. This causes all the matter within the object to rapidly contract inward, eventually forming a black hole.
"I've heard some of what you've explained before," Yanming asked. "So what does this have to do with the little lamp?"
Simply put, the system's interface cannot display such heavy emotions, and then...
[It collapsed into a black hole! Aaaaaah!]
The system made a strange noise, and what it said was also difficult to understand.
"Could you explain in more detail? It doesn't have to be this simple." Yanming said, implying that no one would understand what he was talking about.
[I don't know the specifics either. Lantern-chan was acting perfectly normal before, and then suddenly she's like this...]
[Host, you won't abandon Deng-chan, right?]
Yanming tapped the guitar bag on his back: "What do you think? I was originally planning to never touch a guitar again in my life."
He made a promise with Deng that he would help her win back her band.
I've also made a decision for myself: I must save the lamp's life.
Since it was agreed upon, we must fulfill it no matter what happens.
[…Therefore, you must be extremely careful. If you sense anything amiss… know how to escape, and absolutely do not look back.]
[This isn't me exaggerating; the system expert told me that there were three similar cases in the data it collected, and all of them ended tragically...]
It's starting to suspect that their encounter with streetlights a few days ago might not have been a coincidence at all...
Although Deng Jiang doesn't seem like the kind of bad kid who would lock someone in a basement or sever their tendons, the system still hopes that Yan Ming will take this matter very seriously, so it made it sound a bit scary.
There's no reason to give up halfway through doing something, and of course, there's no chance to start over in a relationship.
“I won’t run away from this. If it’s really as you say, then…”
"I'll fix it."
Yanming's words remained at the starting point as the engine roared once again.
……
Chapter Thirty-Four: Spring Shadows That Don't Belong to C Group
Upon seeing the familiar motorcycle come into view, Deng quickly stepped forward.
"Mr. Yanming..."
At the entrance of Ring, Yanming found an empty parking space and parked his car. He greeted Deng naturally, "Deng, you're here so early? Come on in, the person I arranged to meet probably won't be here for a while."
The lady with the string of letters "ob" just sent him a LINE message, saying that there was a traffic jam on the way, which caused a slight delay.
And at the same time
A blue-haired junior high student from Tsukimori, who wished to remain anonymous, had just received his custom-made mask from the courier station. He checked his pockets and found only two copper coins left. Gritting his teeth, he abandoned the idea of taking a taxi.
She lived her life on thin ice, probably because she couldn't afford a taxi to the other side.
Hopefully, by the time she gets there, she'll still have time to grab a cup of coffee; of course, black tea would be even better...
"Yanming-kun, you must wait for me, you idiot—"
Miss oblivionis, the marathon is in full swing!
……
"Did Mr. Yanming make an appointment with... anyone else besides me?"
Yanming didn't notice anything unusual in those words and continued walking ahead: "Well, according to my kid, he's a really good keyboardist, his name is ob... something like that."
It is oblivionis
He still didn't remember.
"Keyboardist...? And Mr. Yanming, is that a guitar on your back?" Deng said, following behind Yanming. "Are you going to play a piece?"
"Yes, I've already booked a room. We can go right now." Yanming took out the order on his phone, greeted the clerk behind the counter, and took Deng's hand. "Come with me, this way."
"..." In Deng's memory, there was also someone who had held her hand like this and led her to the rehearsal room.