Chapter 234: Temporary Farewell
February 2nd, 2049, New Year's Day
AM 06:13
Mo Tan woke up from sleep again. There was still a long time until dawn, and the room was pitch black. Only the constantly spinning Gu Gu Jiang standee in the hallway emitted a faint light, illuminating the living room, which, though not a complete mess, was certainly cluttered.
If one could filter out Wan Yang’s snoring, this time, this place, this scene would be perfect for contemplating life, but Mo Tan was not in the mood…
He just wanted to go to the bathroom. He had drunk a bit too much alcohol and water in the first half of the night.
So Mo Tan struggled to get up, stepping over Cui Xiaoyu sprawled on the carpet, Kang Lan sprawled on the floor, Wan Yang sprawled on the floor, and Yi Dong sprawled on the floor, and quietly went to the bathroom.
Then he finished with no fuss. (What else could happen?)
Washing his hands, washing his face, taking out his phone to check the time, Mo Tan planned to go back to bed for a while. After all, it was unlikely that anyone in the house would be able to get up before noon today.
But someone actually did get up…
“Xiao Dao? You’re awake?”
Looking at the slender figure in a black trench coat in the hallway, Mo Tan couldn't help but be slightly stunned. He really didn't expect this girl, who had also drunk quite a bit, to wake up so early, and she even looked ready to go out.
The girl also looked back at Mo Tan with some surprise, then nodded gently: “Yes, I’m going out for some fresh air.”
“Alright, then be careful not to catch a cold.” Mo Tan smiled, then casually turned off the bathroom light and walked into the living room: “I need to sleep a bit more. It’s been a long time since I drank this much, I’m still groggy…”
“Wait a moment!”
Ji Xiaodao suddenly called out softly, making Mo Tan’s steps freeze, and he turned his head back, somewhat bewildered.
The former stared at him, inexplicably falling silent.
Due to the angle, Mo Tan was almost completely hidden in the darkness at this moment, appearing as a blurred silhouette in Ji Xiaodao’s eyes, and this silhouette made her feel surprisingly familiar…
The next second, the light from the Gu Gu Jiang standee shone on Mo Tan, revealing an exceptionally bewildered face: “Uh, is there something wrong?”
“Nothing, sorry.” Ji Xiaodao shook her head, then quietly opened the door and went out.
【How strange.】
Mo Tan scratched his hair, yawned, and returned to the beanbag where he had been curled up. He soon fell into a dazed sleep.
AM 12:35
“Time for lunch, aloo! Time for lunch, aloo!”
A bun-haired Gu Gu Jiang in a red qipao suddenly popped out of the antique-style wall clock in the living room, waving a small purple umbrella and shouting excitedly. The sense of incongruity was truly remarkable.
The boys in the living room groaned and got up like zombies. Except for Mo Tan, who had woken up intermittently twice before, everyone looked listless.
The girls had woken up relatively earlier. Yu Cheng was currently in the kitchen making porridge for everyone, while the Ji family sisters were busily tidying up in the dining room. Several black garbage bags were piled next to the dining table; the mess from last night had already been mostly cleaned up.
Cui Xiaoyu, the last one to get up, struggled to put on his glasses, groggily surveyed the surroundings, and genuinely sighed: “They are all Xian Qi and good mothers.”
Wan Yang nodded, then added in a low voice: “If they don’t go into the kitchen.”
“It seems only Xiao Ge’s cooking is… that kind of special~”
Kang Lan also leaned in, whispering to join the discussion: “Yu Cheng and Xiao Dao are both fine, and if you think about it, if Xiao Ge had long hair, she would definitely be especially… Ugh ah!!”
Ji Xiaodao slowly retracted the broom, casting a cold glance at Xiao Kang, who was sprawled on the floor: “We only cleaned up because we couldn’t stand it. Yi Dong is the host, so we won’t mention him, but since you’re all awake, come and help.”
The three immediately fell silent: “Oh oh, alright, alright, alright.”
Cui Xiaoyu, still a bit dazed, asked one last question: “What about Mo Tan?”
“He’s very self-aware.” Ji Xiaodao pointed to someone behind her who was helping move the rice cooker, and said indifferently: “Compared to you three.”
Yi Dong, who had just finished washing up, rolled his eyes: “Shameless.”
“Cunning!”
“Sly!”
“Jerk!”
The other three echoed in agreement, then were chased by Ji Xiaodao, whose eyes were filled with murderous intent, to clean up the aftermath.
An hour later, after cleaning Yi Dong’s house and having lunch, everyone said goodbye at the community entrance, preparing to go home.
“Everyone, please be careful on your way home~” Ji Xiaoge, holding her sister, swayed restlessly, smiling as she said to everyone: “Xiao Dao and I had a lot of fun~”
Ji Xiaodao gently turned her head away: “I didn’t.”
Yi Dong, wrapped in a tattered military overcoat (which he reportedly stole from someone else his dad took from someone else one winter long ago), nodded seriously: “Yes, I will definitely be careful.”
“Get lost, you’re just turning around and going home now. Remember to get an autograph from Auntie for me.” Kang Lan shot him a sideways glance, then shiveringly pointed at Cui Xiaoyu and shouted: “Don’t forget to go online on time! We agreed to have a match yesterday!”
Cui Xiaoyu shrugged: “Alright, let’s fight. Just don’t cry then.”
Wan Yang, who was squatting nearby, breathing on his hands to warm them, let out a dry laugh and raised an eyebrow at Kang Lan: “You, you, you can still regret it now, now, now, still, still, still.”
“You’re almost frozen like a dog, just say less.” Kang Lan walked behind Wan Yang, placed her cold hands on his neck, eliciting a pig-like squeal, then snorted: “It’s not certain who will win or lose yet. Level 20 is a qualitative change.”
“I bet twenty bucks, Yu Ge wins.” Wan Yang, who had jumped up from the cold, glared fiercely at Kang Lan, then clapped his hands at the others: “How about we all gather in the game again tonight? Nobody has anything else to do, right?”
Everyone, still feeling unfulfilled, was somewhat tempted.
“I’m OK.” Yi Dong was the first to nod: “Nothing big happening in the game recently.”
Ji Xiaoge also clapped her hands vigorously: “I just need to say hello to Lu Wei and I’ll be fine~”
Mo Tan, currently in his Absolute Neutral persona, exchanged a glance with Yu Cheng, then spread his hands: “The two of us might be a bit late. There are still many things to deal with in Misha County.”
“Mm-hmm.” Yu Cheng stood behind him, nodding obediently, and whispered: “Mo Tan still has a battle to command.”
Kang Lan whistled: “Command? You can do that, huh? Commanding isn’t something just anyone can do. How about we exchange experiences later?”
It was clear he was just saying it casually, so Mo Tan just smiled and listened casually.
Ji Xiaodao, however, frowned slightly and lowered her head: “I won’t…”
“Xiao Dao, come along, come along!” Ji Xiaoge hugged her sister from behind, poking her head out and rubbing against her face: “You’re so grown up now, you can’t be so unsociable anymore! Come along, come along! Just to keep your sister company, okay? Please~”
All the men present were stunned, thinking that this girl’s cuteness was truly too devastating.
“I… I know, older sister, that’s enough!” Ji Xiaodao struggled for a long time before escaping her sister’s ‘claws’, her face slightly red as she nodded: “I’ll try.”
Ji Xiaoge clenched her small fists, nodded with satisfaction, her smile as beautiful as a flower: “Mm-hmm!”
The gentlemen were stunned for a while longer.
Yu Cheng gently poked Mo Tan, whose face showed no expression, and whispered: “Xiao Ge is so beautiful, I’m almost enchanted~”
“Oh? Is that so?” Mo Tan replied casually, unconcerned: “You’ll get used to it once you see her often.”
The girl blinked in confusion: “Huh?”
“Ahem, what I mean is, everyone already knows each other now, right?” Mo Tan, realizing his slip of the tongue, quickly explained: “You’ll get used to it eventually. Hmm, if you really can’t get used to it, should I help you pursue her?”
Yu Cheng, mimicking Kang Lan’s prank on Wan Yang earlier, placed her small hand on the back of Mo Tan’s neck: “You’re thinking too much!”
That cool little hand sent a massive shock through someone’s mind, and then he, too, froze like the others.
“Then it’s settled.” Ji Xiaoge clapped her hands and smiled: “See you in the game after we get back. Let’s set the time for… hmm, how about 12 AM game time? Anyway, we don’t need to rest like NPCs.”
Everyone indicated they had no objections.
Cui Xiaoyu and Wan Yang took a taxi together. Ji Xiaoge and Ji Xiaodao lived not far from there, so the sisters strolled back directly. Kang Lan received a call saying his mother would come to pick him up and also drop off Yi Dong’s parents, so he estimated he’d have to stay at Yi Dong’s house for another hour or two.
And then…
“You should take Yu Cheng home.” Yi Dong looked at Mo Tan meaningfully and smiled: “She’s a young girl, not a local, and she’s not going the same way as Xiao Ge and Xiao Dao. She doesn’t seem to live close either. As half a host, you should at least show some Gentlemanly manners, right?”
Mo Tan glared at Yi Dong, then scratched his hair, turned to Yu Cheng and shrugged: “I have no objection, want to walk together?”
The latter, however, unexpectedly shook her head, shrinking her neck and whispering: “Perhaps not? I feel… it’s not quite appropriate…”
Yi Dong: “Huh?”
Mo Tan: “…”
Yu Cheng stuck out her tongue and chuckled softly: “I don’t know many people here. If Mo Tan gets lost again, it won’t be easy for me to find him.”
Yi Dong immediately burst into laughter.
Mo Tan, with a face full of black lines, grabbed Yu Cheng’s arm: “Let’s go!”
The two walked away, laughing.
…
“Ahem.” Kang Lan glanced at their retreating figures, gently nudging Yi Dong with his elbow: “Are you trying to set those two up?”
The latter whistled: “Who knows~”
…
Real-world time PM 18:20
Mo Tan returned home, physically and mentally exhausted, carrying two large bags. Inside were a small amount of daily necessities, some miscellaneous parts, and two rather ugly dolls.
Well, he didn't get lost, nor did anything delightful and unexpected happen with a certain someone. He just accompanied Yu Cheng to a nearby mall to buy some snacks, drinks, and comic books after dropping her off at the hotel, and then, by some twist of fate, watched a movie with the girl. The specific details, along with their psychological activities, would probably take two or three chapters to describe, so we'll skip this part for now…
Hmm, no problem, just standard procedure, right?
Afterward, Mo Tan also went alone to a certain strange shop to buy some things (this is 'strange' in the conventional sense, not 'you know what'—this is an all-ages story, everyone please behave), and coupled with the difficulty of getting a taxi during the New Year, that's why he returned so late.
As for the two ugly dolls, that's content to be skipped for now. Please don't worry about it.
In short, Mo Tan carefully placed the dolls in the bedroom, then put the two movie ticket stubs from his pocket and a stack of freshly printed photos he had taken with his phone at the gathering into a certain drawer, changed his clothes, opened the game pod, and lay down inside…
…
Game time AM 07:01
The system prompt, which seemed to have been unheard for a long time, sounded in Mo Tan's ear.
【Your spiritual connection has been detected. Personal information is being synchronized…】
【Connection complete. Character information is being read.】
【Welcome back, Black Vatican of Absolute Neutral. Innocent World will be loaded shortly. Good night.】
…
Misha County
Holy Church United Chapel, Mida City, Mo Tan’s room
As three un-receded lights lit up again, Mo Tan, Yu Cheng, and Yu Ying all appeared in the room precisely at the moment the server started.
“Yo, you two are so punctual~” The first to greet them was Yu Ying. The girl flopped lazily onto the table the moment she logged in, weakly wiggling: “I’m so tired, I haven’t slept since last night, I’m going to die, I’m going to die…”
Mo Tan looked at her amusedly and tapped the table: “You’re basically sleeping now. Move aside quickly, you’re blocking the map.”
The female assassin said ‘Oh’ and then slid down the table, curling into a comma on the floor.
“Hey, hey!” Mo Tan was instantly startled, and said with alarm: “You’re not actually planning to sleep here, are you?!”
The comma lazily raised a hand, her voice low: “Don’t worry, I’m just lying down for a bit. It won’t delay anything important. Hmm, players from the second and fourth squads are all online. They seem to have just stumbled a bit in the eyes of the NPCs and weren’t found out. Two players from the third squad didn’t log in, they just fainted ‘a minute’ ago and have been dragged to the back. No big deal. All players from the first squad are online. They said those Justice Church paladins have almost annihilated the Mutants, so their situation is safe.”
“Very good.” Mo Tan casually fiddled with the chess pieces on the table, then turned to Yu Cheng and smiled: “We are now… hmm? Are you spacing out?”
Yu Cheng finally came back to her senses, then smiled apologetically: “Sorry, I zoned out~”
“Holy Maiden, are you also sleep-deprived?” the female assassin lying on the floor asked lazily.
Yu Cheng smiled weakly: “No, I just received a system prompt. It seems I’ve entered a ranking… asking me to choose what profession to display on the list…”
Mo Tan / Yu Ying: “…”
Chapter 231: End