123: Chapter 122

After hearing this "confession," Kwon Eunbi and Choi Yena didn't even know how to react anymore. Shame, absurdity, ridiculousness, and even a hint of "admiration" (in a negative sense) for Jiang Zhiyu's wild imagination were all intertwined.

So, the "voices in the wind" and "clues" they had worked so hard to find (while being tortured by the megaphone) were just a group of Star Palace handymen calling themselves "Starry Sky Merfolk," who had stolen "trash" from the Star Palace to sell at a street stall in the mortal world?!

And they even used a parody template of "Jiangnan Leather Factory" for their sales pitch?! They even fabricated a melodramatic story about a "Lion Saintess running away with a duck"?!

These weren't "Star Fragments" at all; this was clearly a "large-scale performance art piece" custom-made for them by Jiang Zhiyu, full of knock-off vibes and nonsensical humor!

However, beneath this extremely absurd surface, Kwon Eunbi keenly captured some information: the chaos after the Star Demon invasion, Star Palace items ending up in the mortal world, and... these "Starry Sky Merfolk" clearly knew them (or at least knew their character settings).

Perhaps this really was a clue, revealing a tip of the iceberg of their "past" (the show's setting) in the most unprofessional way possible?

Kwon Eunbi and Choi Yena exchanged a look, both seeing the same thought in each other's eyes: although the process was so ridiculous it made them want to hit someone... since they were already here, the clue (even if it was this kind of ghost of a clue) had been delivered to them.

So, what was the next step? Should they continue to interrogate this "Starry Sky Merfolk," or... just buy two twenty-yuan headgear pieces and see if it triggered anything?

After listening to the "Starry Sky Merfolk" boss (actor) and his full-of-holes yet solemn tearful complaint, although Kwon Eunbi and Choi Yena were full of the urge to complain, their reason (and their persistence toward the mission) told them they couldn't just let this only "clue fish" go.

Kwon Eunbi took a deep breath, trying to make her expression look serious and intimidating (even though she was already numb with shame): "So, these 'scraps' you stole... took out, besides selling for money, do they have any other... purpose? Or rather, are they related to us... recovering our memories and power?"

The boss (Starry Sky Merfolk) blinked, seemingly not expecting them to ask that. He hesitated for a moment, looked at the crudely made headgear on the truck, then looked at the two girls before him who, though dressed simply, couldn't hide their "Star Radiance" (idol aura), and a mysterious (and very scripted-looking) smile suddenly appeared on his face.

"Oh my! Since the two Saintesses... no, the two beauties asked, I actually remembered something!" He lowered his voice as if revealing some earth-shattering secret. "These headgear pieces, don't look at their rough workmanship; after all, they are 'Illusion Training Tools' that drifted out of the Star Palace! They still have a faint trace of 'Star God Power' lingering on them..."

He picked up the "Lion Headgear" with crooked stitches and frayed yarn, then picked up another "Duck Headgear" that looked like a yellow duckling (but more like an underdeveloped penguin), which was clearly customized for Choi Yena's nickname.

"Especially these two! The Lion Headgear and the Duck Headgear!" He introduced them solemnly. "It's said they were the beginner training models used by the 'Lionheart Saintess' back then—" he peeked at Kwon Eunbi "—and her... uh, close comrade-in-arms, the 'Dream Spirit Messenger'—" he glanced at Choi Yena. "Although less than one percent of the power remains, they have a passive effect—"

He paused intentionally to build suspense.

"Wearing them, under specific circumstances, allows you to faintly perceive the weak resonance of other more powerful 'Star God Power Fragments' scattered throughout Seoul! Just like... a compass! They can give you a general direction!"

Kwon Eunbi & Choi Yena: "..." (Could this setting get any more far-fetched?)

The boss (Starry Sky Merfolk) was clearly satisfied with his improvised (or rather, recited according to the script) "setting" and enthusiastically recommended: "How about it? Want to give them a try? They feel quite unconventional!" He even used an advertising slogan.

Kwon Eunbi looked at that fuzzy, silly Lion Headgear, then thought about the image of walking down the streets of Seoul wearing it; the veins on her forehead that had just calmed down showed signs of bulging again. This wasn't "unconventional"; this was a "social death announcement"!

However, just as Kwon Eunbi was struggling internally, Choi Yena beside her suddenly had a reaction.

She seemed to have a strange nerve touched by the mention of the "Duck Headgear" and the "passive effect," or perhaps she was amused by this extremely absurd situation, or... she simply thought the little yellow Duck Headgear was a bit cute?

Choi Yena suddenly burst out laughing, and then, before Kwon Eunbi or the boss (Starry Sky Merfolk) could react, she reached out and took the "Duck Headgear," putting it on her head without hesitation and with a bit of mischievous excitement!

The yellow, lopsided Duck Headgear covered most of her face, leaving only her lower face and a pair of eyes that had become exceptionally bright visible.

Following that, an even more shocking scene occurred—

The Choi Yena wearing the headgear seemed to truly be possessed by some kind of "Duck Power" (or rather, a variety show soul)! She slightly lowered her head wearing the Duck Headgear, her shoulders shrugged twice, and then—

"Quack, quack, quack~! Quack!"

She actually improvised an extremely childish, uncoordinated, yet somehow hypnotic "Duck Dance"! While twisting her body, she imitated a duck's cry, and her arms even flapped like little wings!

Kwon Eunbi: "...???"

Boss (Starry Sky Merfolk): "...!!!"

"Yena! What's wrong with you! Don't scare Unnie!" Kwon Eunbi was so startled she almost took a step back, thinking Choi Yena had been driven mad by this bizarre mission, or that there really was something weird about the headgear. "Quick, take the headgear off!"

After finishing a short segment of the "Duck Dance," Choi Yena stopped her movements and looked up (the Duck Headgear wobbling with the motion). Through the coarse knitted fabric, she "looked" at Kwon Eunbi with those sparkling eyes and asked in a muffled voice, with a tone mixed with playfulness, shyness, and a bit of self-indulgence:

"Unnie... do I look cute... wearing this?"

Kwon Eunbi: "..." (She just wanted to call the Manager immediately and apply for a psychological intervention for the whole group.)

"Don't say things like that at a time like this, okay??" Kwon Eunbi covered her face, feeling her dignity and sanity as a leader collapsing simultaneously.

The boss (Starry Sky Merfolk) on the side was also stunned by Choi Yena's sudden "performance," then, as if seeing some excellent variety effect (or completing some KPI), he slapped his thigh hard:

"Brilliant! That's it! 'Dream Spirit Messenger'... ah no, this beauty, you have already initially resonated with the 'Star Power' of the headgear! It seems this headgear is destined for you!"

He struck while the iron was hot, stuffing the silly "Lion Headgear" into the hands of the still face-palming Kwon Eunbi, and then with lightning speed, he jumped into the driver's seat and started the broken truck:

"The headgear is a gift for the two of you! Consider it a meeting gift! I hope they can help you! Bye-bye~ I wish you a speedy recovery of your memories and power!"

With that, before Kwon Eunbi could react, the small truck emitted a puff of black smoke and a louder "putt-putt" sound, speeding away from the scene like it was fleeing for its life, leaving only the megaphone sound of "The Lion Headgear Factory has gone bankrupt..." drifting away in the wind.

Kwon Eunbi held the heavy (psychologically) and scratchy Lion Headgear in her hands, looking at Choi Yena beside her, who was still wearing the Duck Headgear and seemed to be in high spirits, as well as the few passersby attracted by the commotion who were looking at them with curious gazes. She felt a deep, soul-piercing exhaustion.

"Unnie, what do we do now?" Choi Yena asked in a muffled voice, the duck beak moving along with her words.

Kwon Eunbi sighed and looked at the Lion Headgear in her hand as if accepting her fate. Since the "clue fish" said so, the headgear was stuffed into her hands, and Yena had mysteriously "resonated"... did they really have to rely on this thing?

She grit her teeth, closed her eyes, and as if performing some major ritual, slowly and extremely reluctantly put the Lion Headgear on her head.

Her vision was instantly blocked by fuzzy orange; a faint smell, like a mixture of warehouse dust and cheap synthetic fiber, lingered around her nose. A sense of shame washed over her like a tide.

However, the moment she put on the headgear, an extremely weak throb, almost thought to be an illusion, came from the top of her head. At the same time, on the old neighborhood map she was holding, one of the previously meaningless red circles on the edge seemed to flicker slightly? (It might have been a reflection of sunlight, or the production team might have tampered with the map.)

Even clearer was that she seemed to hear... cheerful children's music and distant shrill laughter in her ears?

"This is..." Kwon Eunbi (wearing the Lion Headgear) was stunned.

"Unnie! I think I felt it too!" Choi Yena (wearing the Duck Headgear) also suddenly cried out, pointing in another direction on the map. "Over there... it seems like there's something... very lively? There are many people? Shouting?"

The two of them, wearing the ridiculous headgear, looked at each other (though they couldn't see each other's full faces). Was this crappy headgear... actually useful?

Kwon Eunbi tried to distinguish the direction of the faint music and noise, then looked at the flickering (?) red circle's position on the map, combining it with Choi Yena's sensation...

A location gradually became clear in her mind.

"Alright, the next target is..." Kwon Eunbi's (Lion Headgear) voice came through the yarn, carrying a tragic and determined air of having nothing left to lose.

"An amusement park??"

Somewhere in Seoul, a place full of merry-go-rounds, roller coasters, cotton candy, and the laughter of children.

Could the so-called "Star God Power Fragments" or "lost memories" be hidden in a place like that?

Regardless of whether there was a deeper trap of shame ahead or a real clue, the "Saintess" in the Lion Headgear and the "Spirit Messenger" in the Duck Headgear had no way back. They had to advance toward that fairy-tale-colored destination (which might be a nightmare for them) under the baptism of passersby's gazes as if they were looking at crazy people.

Group D's "Whispers in the Wind" exploration journey was moving forward firmly (?), in an unprecedentedly absurd yet (possibly) effective manner. And their fates, along with the other three groups of teammates, would gradually intertwine in their respective "shameful and desperate" efforts.