Chapter 20: The Uninvited Guest

When I got home, I found that Qu Le had already been waiting at the door for quite some time.

“So, why did you come to my house?”

At the dinner table, Lu Xiu poked at the carrot slices, glancing over at the man who was eating with his head down.

“To mooch a meal, obviously.”

Lu Xiu covered his face. “How can you say you’re mooching a meal with such righteousness…”

“Well, the department’s out of funds, after all. No matter how you put it, it all comes down to being broke.”

Qu Le said this, swallowing the mouthful of food that stuffed his cheeks full.

“You’re not allowed to eat anymore! If you keep eating mine, there won’t be anything left!” I protested. “Eat, eat, eat, all you know is eating!”

There wasn’t enough food for me in the first place, and now that he’s here, I have to share some of it with him. I think he’s just a walking disaster!

“How do you have the nerve to say something like that?” Lu Xiu stared at me with wide eyes, looking at me in disbelief.

“Why wouldn’t I?”

Isn’t he always only concerned with eating, anyway.

“Ahem. That’s not quite right.” Qu Le raised a finger and waved it. “I’m here on official business this time.”

“Is it the Magical Girl Ululu thing again?”

I looked at him in confusion.

Qu Le’s previously pleased face darkened to a deep purple.

“I told you, Magical Girl Ululu was a special case…” He didn’t dwell on the topic and instead looked at Lu Xiu.

“The Yingdui Si branch in Yanluo City seems to have discovered a cult called the [Golden Remnants] that’s been very active lately. They worship a unique entity called [Ji Yuan], which is estimated to be some kind of advanced Aberration.”

“So? Don’t tell me you want me to go all the way to Yanluo City?” Lu Xiu crossed his arms.

“No, that’s not the point.”

Qu Le’s expression became serious.

“The important thing is, we’ve found evidence of the Demon of Sacrifice’s activity among them, and all the clues point to a Devil Gathering—the very ones that dragged Sui into the borders of Hell back then.”

“So I think there’s definitely some kind of connection between the two.”

Lu Xiu fell silent.

I also stopped my frantic eating.

Qu Le continued, “Someone in Yanluo made a deal with [Faust], and it only gave one phrase: ‘Four Laws’.”

When he said that, I clearly saw Lu Xiu’s thumb pause from where it had been rubbing his arm.

“‘Poem of the End, all returns to the Ruin’—that’s what the Possibility Demon once told me. The ‘End’ refers to the Four Laws, and the ‘Ruin’… I’m guessing it means one of the Four Laws, the [Banquet of the Ruin]—the annihilation and death of existence itself.”

Qu Le went on, “So I think what this phrase means is… the Calamity of the Void is about to descend.”

“Sigh… Every day it’s doomsday or apocalypse or whatever… I’m getting tired of hearing it.” Lu Xiu put down his arms.

“You’ve said all this, but you still haven’t gotten to the point. Telling me all this is useless—I’m just a lowly agent, what am I supposed to do?”

“No, Lu Xiu, you’re the only one who survived that incident. You’re also the only ‘lowly agent’ with a bounty on your head from the Death Demon.”

Lu Xiu went silent again.

I didn’t really understand what they were talking about, but I did catch the word ‘bounty.’

So that means there’s a demon who wants to kill Lu Xiu?

No wonder I’ve been so unlucky lately! Bad things happening every day!

So it was all because of you!

I was angry, but also helpless.

After all, my life is now tied to Lu Xiu’s.

If he dies, I die too.

I haven’t tasted all the delicious food in the world yet—I can’t die!

So I have to protect Lu Xiu.

That thought really annoyed me.

It’s like he’s some little brat always causing trouble, and I have to clean up after him every time.

Why is it so hard to be a good person?

“And, this also concerns Sui.” Qu Le suddenly turned to me.

“In the millions of possibilities that the Possibility Demon revealed, Sui is one of them, and you—Lu Xiu—are another. That’s why I made you two partners.”

“One thread of possibility is too fragile. What I need to do is weave countless strands of possibility into a rope to change that destined doomsday.”

When he finished, no one said a word, and the atmosphere turned quiet and somber.

“…But you still haven’t told us what we’re supposed to do, right? You just rattled off a bunch of hero stories for no reason… Are you trying to act cool in front of me?”

Lu Xiu’s voice broke the silence at the table.

“Ahem…maybe a little.” Qu Le rubbed his nose. “Anyway, after all that, the main thing is this: before doomsday arrives, run forward, seize every chance to grow. I’m counting on you two to save the world. By then, the department’s budget will skyrocket.”

Eh… Save the world…

“But that has nothing to do with me… Saving the world doesn’t fill my stomach.”

And it sounds exhausting.

“Of course it does. Think about it—if I get the budget—no, if the department gets the budget, doesn’t everyone’s salary go up? Wouldn’t Lu Xiu get paid more? If he has more money, he can buy more food, right?”

“Eh! That’s true.”

“Exactly, saving the world and filling your stomach go hand in hand.”

I nodded, thinking that made a lot of sense.

“Your nonsense could only fool an idiot.” Lu Xiu mocked from the side.

Fool an idiot? I think what he said is perfectly correct.

“Wait! Are you calling me an idiot?!”

“Yo, not too dumb, after all—you finally figured it out.”

I’m furious!

When I get mad, someone’s definitely going to be unhappy, but I won’t let it be me.

So between Lu Xiu and Qu Le, one of them is definitely about to get upset.

As for who it is…

I reached into my clothes, my belly-mouth opening wide, and my little hand rummaged around inside.

“What are you—” Lu Xiu didn’t even finish before he saw me pull out a familiar box and a small, soft, squishy, pink thing.

“Phew… Good thing I didn’t eat it all, there’s still some stash left in my belly.”

“This is…” Qu Le looked at the box, his expression turning odd. When his eyes landed on the slippery, sticky soft thing in my hand, he froze up, just like Lu Xiu had before.

Three people, three pairs of eyes, staring at each other.

“This… isn’t what I think it is, right?” Qu Le asked uncertainly.

“..Sui.” Lu Xiu gritted his teeth a little.

“Oh no, grabbed the wrong thing.” I immediately put on my most “innocent” face.

“No dinner for you today.”

“I’m sorry! I was wrong! Don’t take away my food!”

I begged for mercy.

“So it really is that thing, huh?” Seeing Lu Xiu’s reaction, Qu Le realized what it was too. “How did it end up in Sui’s belly?”

“I told you, it’s not what you think!”

Lu Xiu was nearly driven mad.

“Someone else gave it to me!”

“Who would give someone that!” Qu Le’s voice rose as well.

“Zhong Jie.” As the misunderstanding deepened, Lu Xiu could only say the name.

“A Jie?”

Qu Le’s expression of watching a good show quickly faded.

“Yeah. On my twentieth birthday, he gave it to me. I forgot where I stuffed it, and Sui somehow dug it out.”

He sighed.

“Now that you mention it… that’s definitely his style…”

“That’s why, I’m not that kind of person.”

“What kind of person?” I asked, only to see Lu Xiu’s eyes turn a little dangerous, so I sheepishly shut my mouth.

If you don’t want to tell me, then don’t.

“Well…it’s kind of shocking, honestly.”

“More than just shocking. When I found out Sui had eaten that thing, I wanted to die.”

After that, the two of them fell silent at the same time.

Silence, like the carrot slices on the dinner table.