133: Chapter 132 hehehe

Kwon Eunbi and Choi Yena stood at the entrance of a large Seoul amusement park, surrounded by colorful decorations and cheerful music. One wore a fluffy, silly orange lion headgear, while the other donned a crooked, dorky yellow duck headgear. They formed an epically absurd contrast against the backdrop of excited families, hand-holding couples, and screaming, running children.

Kwon Eunbi (in the lion headgear) peered through the coarse yarn mesh at the dreamlike castle spires and floating balloons. As the sweet, greasy scent of popcorn and the sounds of children laughing swirled around her, her heart was filled with resistance. She tried to convince herself that this was to find "Star Fragmentss" and "memory clues"—a serious mission! But the thing on her head and the surrounding environment mocked her "seriousness" at every turn.

Just as she took a deep breath and prepared to brace herself and walk through the ticket gate like two suspicious characters who had stumbled into a fairy tale world, she was stopped by a young female staff member in an amusement park uniform, who had a pleasant smile but a slightly confused look in her eyes.

"Excuse me, guests." The staff member pointed at their headgear, her tone as tactful as possible. "For safety reasons and to avoid affecting the experience of other visitors, large doll headgear that covers the entire head... is not permitted to be worn inside the park."

Kwon Eunbi felt a wave of relief and immediately wanted to rip off this source of shame! Great! A legitimate reason! It wasn't that she didn't want to wear it; the regulations simply didn't allow it!

However, before she could act, another middle-aged male staff member, who looked like a supervisor, walked over quickly. He held a walkie-talkie and seemed to have just finished listening to instructions. He glanced at Kwon Eunbi and Choi Yena—especially their eccentric headgear—with a look of realization. Then, he whispered a few words to the young female staff member.

The female staff member froze for a moment. When she looked at Kwon Eunbi and Choi Yena again, the confusion in her eyes turned into a subtle "I get it" expression. She immediately put on a more standard professional smile, but what she said next made Kwon Eunbi feel like she had fallen into an ice cellar:

"Ah, I am so sorry. I didn't understand the situation just now." She bowed slightly to Kwon Eunbi and Choi Yena. "You two are the 'Special Project Testers,' right? We've already received the notification. Regarding the headgear... the higher-ups have instructed that 'without the headgear, you cannot enter the core mission area.' So, please make sure to keep them on; they are 'mission props.'"

Kwon Eunbi (Lion Headgear): "...?!"

What do you mean we can't get in without the headgear?!

She felt a surge of blood rush to her head (thankfully hidden by the headgear). "mission props"? This piece of junk had become a pass?! Jiang Zhiyu! Did you even bribe the amusement park staff?! Just how much do you want the whole world to see us looking this stupid?!

“Unnie...” Beside her, Choi Yena spoke in a muffled voice from inside the duck headgear. There wasn't much resistance in her tone; instead, she sounded a bit... curious and eager to try? "The rules... seem to be like that. Shall we... go in?" She seemed to have already started adapting to (or given up resisting) this setting, and even thought that walking around the amusement park in headgear might actually be quite fun.

Kwon Eunbi squeezed out a few words through gritted teeth: "...Jiang... Zhi... yu..."

But the situation was out of her control. They couldn't enter the "core mission area" without the headgear, and their mission was to explore. Kwon Eunbi closed her eyes, took another deep breath (the air inside the headgear was a bit stuffy), and resignedly stepped forward.

"Let's go!"

Thus, a magical scene appeared in the amusement park: a "lion" and a "duck," walking with either heavy (the lion) or light (the duck) steps, mingled among Mickey Mouse and princesses, becoming the most bizarre "mascots" in the park today.

Following the guidance of the "Voice in the Wind" (the knock-off advertisement) and the faint sensation felt after putting on the headgear, their goal seemed to point toward the classic carousel area. Cheerful organ music drifted from afar as colorful horses and carriages rose and fell amidst the light and shadows.

However, when they finally squeezed through the crowd and arrived in front of the carousel, the expected "clues" or "shards" did not appear. The carousel operated normally, children's laughter was crisp, and everything was as usual.

Just as Kwon Eunbi suspected the sensation was wrong or that Jiang Zhiyu was playing them again, a clearer, more specific "whisper" sounded directly in her (lion headgear) and Choi Yena's (duck headgear) ears. That voice was no longer the blurry "Jiangnan Leather Factory," but had turned into... an amusement park broadcast style?

"Zzt... (static) Attention all Star Envoys, attention all Star Envoys."

"The Astral Shard 'breath of joy' has been detected on a specific object."

"Target locked: Within this amusement park, the most delicious and soul-stirring—'Legendary Grilled Sausage'!"

"Repeat, target: Legendary Grilled Sausage!"

"The shard's energy is directly related to the deliciousness of the sausage. Please follow the resonance guidance of your headgear to find and 'taste' (verify) the most delicious one."

"Mission: Find the most delicious grilled sausage in the amusement park!"

"For the Star Fragmentss... and the glory of grilled sausages! Fight on!"

Kwon Eunbi & Choi Yena: "..."

Grilled sausage?

A Star Fragments is attached to a grilled sausage?

And they have to find the most delicious one?

What on earth is going on here!!!

Kwon Eunbi felt her dignity as the "Lionheart Sovereign" being repeatedly trampled by the words "grilled sausage." They had gone through so much hardship (mostly psychological) wearing these stupid headgear to come here, just to find a grilled sausage?! And the "most delicious" one at that?! How could this mission description sound so unreliable yet... inexplicably enticing?

Choi Yena (in the duck headgear), however, was instantly energized! "Grilled sausage?! Unnie! It's food!" Her excitement was audible even through the headgear. "I know, I know! All the grilled sausages in amusement parks are delicious! But which one is the most delicious? Let's go find it quickly!" For the foodie (and increasingly uninhibited) Choi Yena, this mission perfectly matched her interests! Searching for delicious grilled sausages? That was much more motivating than looking for some ethereal "shard"!

"Wait, wait!" Kwon Eunbi tried to pull her back. "Yena! This is clearly another one of PD Jiang's weird scripts! 'breath of joy' attached to a grilled sausage... is that scientific?! Is that logical?!"

"But Unnie," Choi Yena turned her head, her duck beak facing Kwon Eunbi's lion face, her tone "serious," "the headgear reacted! Look!"

Kwon Eunbi froze and focused. Sure enough, that faint throbbing sensation she felt after putting on the lion headgear now seemed to be vaguely pointing... in the direction of the fragrance wafting from a grilled sausage stand?! Moreover, as they moved closer to the stand, the throbbing sensation really seemed to be strengthening?!

"This..." Kwon Eunbi looked up at the sky in speechlessness (though she could only see the yarn at the top of the headgear). Did Jiang Zhiyu install olfactory sensors in the headgear? Or had their shame transformed into a craving for grilled sausages, which they were misinterpreting as "headgear resonance"?

Regardless, the "clue" (even if it smelled of grilled sausage) was right ahead. And to be honest... after running around for half the day and smelling that sizzling, fragrant aroma, Kwon Eunbi felt a bit hungry too.

"...To find the Star Fragments!" Kwon Eunbi forced a high-sounding reason, her tone firm (despite her inner guilt). "It's definitely not for the sake of eating grilled sausages!"

"Right! Unnie is right!" Choi Yena readily agreed, though her cheerful pace betrayed her. "For the Star Fragments! Fight on! Lion and Duck (?) Girls!"

The two (the Lion and Duck duo) followed the fragrance and the guidance of the headgear (?) as they began weaving through the amusement park in search of the legendary "most delicious grilled sausage." They passed one sausage stand after another; some had long lines and booming business, while others were deserted. Whenever they approached a stall, the two would (pretend to) concentrate on sensing it, and then (mostly relying on Choi Yena's nose) evaluate: "This aroma is a bit lacking..." "This one seems like the oil temperature wasn't high enough..." "Wow! The sauce on this one is so special!"

Kwon Eunbi went from initial resistance to gradually being led astray by this absurd "gourmet detective" game, even starting to seriously discuss the meatiness, crispness of the skin, and sauce pairings of the sausages. The image of someone wearing a lion headgear giving a critique on grilled sausages was fantastical enough just thinking about it.

Finally, after circling almost half the park and tasting (buying) from several vendors, they stopped in front of an unremarkable little sausage stand located next to the spinning teacups. This stall didn't have a long line, but the fragrance wafting from it was exceptionally rich and enticing, carrying a unique blend of charred aroma and sweet-spicy notes.

Most importantly, the lion and duck headgear on Kwon Eunbi and Choi Yena's heads produced the strongest "resonance" at this moment—not a throb, but a... warm, comfortable feeling, as if they had returned home? Moreover, both of them inexplicably felt that the owner of this stall was looking at them with a... somewhat strange gaze.

It was a middle-aged man wearing a checkered apron with an honest smile. When he saw Kwon Eunbi and Choi Yena approaching in their lion and duck headgear, his eyes clearly lit up, but he quickly returned to normal.

"Would you two... like to try our grilled sausages? Secret house-made sauce, guaranteed to be the best in the park!" the man greeted them warmly.