93: Chapter 93 Assassination

Su Bai shoved one end of the stretcher to Zhao Dahai. Zhao Dahai hoisted up the other end.

Armored Mage Emperor Lu Chen walked over from the ruins. He was covered in blood, but his steps remained steady. He walked up to the display booth and slapped a Star Card onto the table.

"One, custom version. I want a heavy-duty type Magical Girl armor."

Su Bai looked up at this Ninth-Rank Mage Emperor.

"Are you sure? If it involves a sex change—"

"That doesn't matter. It's not like I'm the one changing; I'm just researching... By the way, I've worn even more embarrassing things in the past. Years ago, to trick an Abyss Succubus, I spent three days in a castle dressed as a princess in a wedding gown."

The surroundings went quiet for a beat.

Zhao Dahai looked at Lin Xiao with an expression that said, "I'm probably going to be silenced for what I just heard." Lin Xiao kept her head down, expressionless, and continued processing orders—but the volume of her typing noticeably softened.

Su Bai took the Star Card.

"The custom cycle is about a week. I'll send the design draft for your confirmation when it's ready."

"Fine, add more funds if it's not enough." Armored Mage Emperor Lu Chen turned around, walked two steps, then looked back. "Right. Can you turn off the BGM when transforming?"

"Sure, silent mode."

"That's good. I have a friend who doesn't like such flashy things; it's mainly for research... Yes, research."

Chu Yin let out a stifled laugh on the stretcher.

Armored Mage Emperor Lu Chen looked down at her.

"What are you laughing at?"

"No—nothing—"

"You're still on a stretcher."

"...I'll shut up."

Armored Mage Emperor Lu Chen left. Chu Yin buried her face into the tarp of the stretcher. Zhao Dahai, carrying the other end of the stretcher, whispered to Su Bai.

"The Mage Emperor wore a wedding gown. Is it too late for me to go back and check the Sanctuary's historical archives?"

"It's too late," Su Bai whispered back. "It's already burned into my memory."

By evening, the queue of people had finally dispersed. The display booth was piled high with cards for the signing event and empty boxes. Lin Weiwei was leaning in a corner, drinking her fourth cup of coffee. Chairman Lin sat on a folding chair, his tie half-loosened.

One hundred mass-produced versions, all sold out. Thirty-seven custom versions were ordered. The combined down payments were enough to buy a whole street in the center of Jinghai City.

Chairman Lin's expression couldn't be described with just a smile; it was a transcendent state between ecstasy and a trance. He looked down at the account balance on his phone and didn't speak for a long time. Then he looked up.

"Su Bai. I previously said that the 70/30 split with the Lin family was unfair to you. Next time we see a good business opportunity, you take 80% and we take 20%."

"...Uncle Lin, you said the same thing last time."

"I'm more sincere this time."

Li Qingyue walked up to Su Bai. She had finished handling the aftermath of the Canglan Strait, and the golden light of the universal balance was slowly dissipating behind her.

"Su Bai, I have to return to the Sanctuary for a meeting tonight. The Abyss suffered a huge loss this time and shouldn't dare to come back for a while—but be careful yourself."

"Understood, Master."

"Also," she paused. Those crimson eyes rested on Su Bai's face for two seconds. "Prepare well for the National Competition. Your job change quest and the First-Rank Kyubey Card have already been filed with the Sanctuary—but your ranking in the tournament will directly determine how many resources you can obtain later."

After saying this, she raised her hand and tore open a spatial rift. Her long silver-white hair fluttered at the edge of the gap, and she disappeared into the pale golden halo.

Deputy Commander Xiao Hongyan stood up from her chair. She stretched, her combat boots still unlaced.

"I'm leaving too. The people at the camp are waiting for me to go back for a meeting. The news about the military equipping Magical Girl armor will be released tonight—you'd better be prepared."

"Prepared for what?"

"The Abyss's reaction. Today, you made them lose three Ninth-Rank entities. They will take revenge for this grudge by any means necessary... Hmm, maybe I made that too complicated. Anyway, don't worry about the monsters' revenge; Li Qingyue just took care of those things. The focus is on humans. Humans cannot be screened; after all, they are of the same race. If they harbor malicious intent, it is very difficult to defend against."

Then she stepped into a flame rift. A blast of high-heat airflow exploded beside the display booth, leaving the smell of charred wood lingering in the air for quite a while.

Su Bai stood in place. Kyubey crouched on his shoulder.

[Su Bai, Deputy Commander Xiao Hongyan is right. The Abyss's revenge will come very quickly.]

"I know."

[You know that, yet you're still so calm.]

"Is worrying useful?"

[Logic holds.]

Zhao Dahai carried Chu Yin's stretcher out of the Convention Center. Lin Xiao followed beside him, her phone screen finally dark—the orders were processed. Lin Weiwei and Chairman Lin went to count the remaining inventory. The area around the display booth became completely quiet.

The setting sun dyed the rubble on the plaza dark gold. Chu Yin was lying on the stretcher, already asleep. A bandage was still stuck on the tip of her nose.

"Where is her master?" Zhao Dahai asked.

"Still at the front lines, probably. Armored Mage Emperor Lu Chen was seriously injured—but he shouldn't die. He is a Ninth-Rank, after all... It's mainly his Dao heart."

"Dao heart, huh... I don't really understand that part. Where is Chu Yin staying tonight?"

"She lives alone in the Kendo Association dormitory," Lin Xiao thought for a moment. "But she can't even lift a finger right now."

Su Bai glanced at Chu Yin, who was dead asleep on the stretcher. "Keep her at your place?"

Lin Xiao said, "That won't work. There's a barrier there. A high-rank swordsman like Chu Yin would be attacked if she entered, and I can't disable it in a short amount of time."

Su Bai said in shock, "There's such a thing?"

"Can't be helped. The Lin family does this for security. Some people once tried to rob and kidnap some of the Lin family's children for ransom... Also, although the barrier is strong, Chu Yin could have forced her way in during her prime, but since she can't move now, she would definitely be attacked."

Su Bai thought for a moment and said subtly, "Then bring her to my dormitory first. I have plenty of empty rooms anyway."

"Your dormitory is a standalone building for Card Creators, yes—but you're letting a Seventh-Rank female swordsman stay the night at your place?" Zhao Dahai was shocked from the side.

"She can't even turn over right now; what could she possibly do?"

Zhao Dahai looked at Su Bai with an expression of "You're right, but I feel like something is wrong somewhere." Then he hoisted up the other end of the stretcher.

Wait, that's not right. The point isn't whether Chu Yin can do anything; it's whether Su Bai can do anything!

But after thinking about it, that felt wrong too.

Forget it, let it be!

Night fell.

The streetlights in the dormitory area turned on. Su Bai pushed open the door and placed Chu Yin's stretcher on the living room sofa. Kyubey jumped down from his shoulder and crouched on the armrest of the sofa.

[Her soul gem's corruption level has reached zero. It is self-purifying. She is expected to recover her mobility by tomorrow morning.]

"That's good."

Su Bai took off his jacket and draped it over the back of a chair. Zhao Dahai sprawled on another sofa, his chubby face still stained with dust from moving goods during the day. Lin Xiao leaned against the window, holding a cup of freshly brewed hot tea.

It was very quiet outside the window; the magic tide that swept through the whole city during the day felt like a dream. Streetlights shone on the empty streets, and occasionally one or two magic motorcycles drove by.

"Today was really long," Zhao Dahai stared at the ceiling. "This morning I was worried about not selling anything. Tonight, I'm worried about production capacity not keeping up."

"Tomorrow will be even busier," Lin Xiao sipped her tea. "The military ordered ten thousand cards, and both the Mage Emperor and the Sword Saint from the Sanctuary placed orders... But we can't handle high-rank cards here; you'll have to ask your master about that later. You also need to help Chu Yin with the upgrade for the subsequent version. Right—do you plan to participate in the National Competition?"

"I don't even know what that is yet, but I'll probably participate; it should be quite important." Su Bai leaned back in his chair.

The air went quiet. There was only the clicking sound of the radiator.

Then Kyubey's ears suddenly stood straight up.

Those red glass eyes suddenly lit up in the darkness. Its tail puffed up into a ball of white fur.

[Su Bai—there is magic fluctuation.]

The next second. Bang! The window shattered!

The glass was sliced open in an arc by an extremely sharp blade. Before the shards even hit the ground, three black shadows had already lunged in simultaneously from the window, the door, and the shadows on the ceiling.

No sound. No killing intent. No warning of any magic fluctuation. Until the very last moment—they simply did not exist within any perception range.

Assassination. Professional!

Su Bai's soul gem hadn't been activated yet. His right hand had just touched the Kyubey Card on the table—

The first dagger was already pressed three inches from his throat.