Chapter 30: Here It Comes, Here It Comes.

Embers wasn’t particularly famous.

But as a team that had successfully cleared two dungeons, they still had some reputation in the nearby districts.

Seeking the protection of Embers had become a goal for many wandering raiders.

Unfortunately, ever since the first dungeon was cleared, Embers had raised their recruitment standards.

—Anyone who wanted to join the team had to possess their own unique skill.

“You are…?” As the leader of Embers, Kang Jie looked at the man.

“Ah, I’m Xiao An’s fiancé.” The man feigned affection and stepped forward, trying to hold Nurse An’s hand.

But Nurse An expressionlessly dodged.

The man looked a bit embarrassed. “Xiao An, don’t be scared, I’m here now. I’ll protect you.”

You’ll protect me?

Nurse An let out a cold laugh.

“Where were you when I was locked in that warehouse?” she asked coldly.

“I was out looking for someone to rescue you…”

“When I was dragged out in public like livestock and carted off to the auction house, where were you?” Nurse An stared at him down, pressing again.

The man took a guilty step back. “Xiao An, you have to believe me, I really was out there begging people for help, I went to so many…”

“Who did you ask?”

“I… I…” The man’s eyes darted around. “I went to the people from ‘Monsoon’! Their leader said they wouldn’t save you…”

Monsoon?

“Pfft,” Ah Lei burst out laughing, nearly spraying water. “Looks like he really doesn’t know Monsoon’s leader.”

“Who are you?” The man glared at Ah Lei.

“I’m the leader of Monsoon. Pleasure to meet you.” Ah Lei extended his hand with a grin. “No offense, but I’ve never heard of you.”

The man’s face turned all sorts of red and green. He hurried to change his story. “No, wait, I was wrong—it wasn’t Monsoon. I… I meant ‘Ark’.”

“?”

Han Nuo raised a question mark.

“I’m the leader of Ark, Han Nuo. And you are?”

“……”

The man silently cursed in his head.

“No, no, not Ark either—ugh, my memory!” He laughed awkwardly and stomped his foot. “It was ‘Beyond’! They were the ones who turned a blind eye!”

Shing—

In a flash of steel, Bai Xiaozhi’s longsword was at his throat.

“If you keep slandering Beyond, as its acting leader, I’m obligated to cut you down.”

“……”

He was breaking down.

All these so-called big shots, these dungeon raider leaders whispered about in the nearby districts—did none of them ever rest?

What kind of force had the power to bring together all these normally hostile leaders in one place?

“Keep going, make something else up,” Nurse An looked at the man icily.

She showed not a shred of sympathy for his embarrassment.

She had long since lost all hope in this man.

It wasn’t because he ran away—Nurse An never believed modern men had some duty to protect women. It was because of his endless lies.

How laughable that she’d once believed all those sweet nothings.

“Xiao An, you have to believe me. Let’s just leave together—I can explain everything.”

“Leave? Go where?”

“You just became a member of Embers, didn’t you?” The man smiled again. “I’ll take you to their base.”

Ha. Of course.

“No wonder you still have the nerve to show your face. You’re just after the protection of Embers.”

“I’m just taking you there, don’t twist things!” The man flailed as he tried to explain. “Don’t forget—we’re engaged! Protecting you is only natural!”

Oh, natural, is it?

Nurse An responded with action.

“Bang—”

She launched a kick straight into the man’s family jewels.

She put her whole body into it, possibly even boosted by a rush of adrenaline.

Even if it had been a wooden board, it would’ve been split in two.

“Let’s go, ignore him.” Nurse An gathered her long hair and, mimicking Bai Xiaozhi, tied it into a high ponytail.

Behind her, the man became a textbook case of “how humans react to extreme pain.”

He didn’t even scream—he was in so much pain, no sound came out.

Curled up, his head and groin buzzed in unison.

“Brutal,” Wu Xiaomi said, just watching him made her wince in phantom pain.

Too bad. This guy probably wasn’t even going to meet the Witch.

……

“Wu Xiaomi.”

Outside Bai Xiaozhi’s house, Kang Jie looked at Wu Xiaomi.

“Hm?”

“As the organizer of the Joint Patrol Unit,” Kang Jie said, “I, Kang Jie, formally invite you to join the patrol and become a guardian of public safety.”

Bro, don’t you feel even a little embarrassed saying ‘guardian of public safety’?

“You just want to take credit for Xiaomi’s actions and count it under the patrol’s name, right?” Bai Xiaozhi bluntly exposed him.

“Heh…” Kang Jie didn’t seem fazed. He kept going, “The patrol really does need credibility right now. If we want to protect the neighborhood, we need everyone to cooperate.”

Ah.

Whatever. I don’t care.

But just thinking about patrolling feels like such a hassle…

“Don’t worry, the main force of the Syndicate here has been wiped out. We’re not short on patrol manpower for now,” Kang Jie quickly said. “You’d just be a figurehead—it helps with publicity.”

“Whatever…” Wu Xiaomi’s shoulders and the back of her head were still aching—she didn’t even have the strength to argue. “Kang Jie, you’ve changed.”

“I’m just… not as stupid anymore,” Kang Jie said with a grin.

Fine, do whatever you want.

“We’ll come up with great codenames for you,” Kang Jie promised. “Also for Ah Lei, Han Nuo—everyone’s getting one.”

“? Codenames?”

Everyone had a bad feeling.

“Of course superheroes need their own titles! Like Supoman, Bateman, Deadbiteman… that sort of ‘Knight’ and ‘Giant’ stuff.”

Oh no.

Everyone looked at Kang Jie.

They had to double-check.

—He wasn’t joking!

He was serious!

“These codenames help people remember you. Makes it easier for them to follow your lead during operations. It also boosts the patrol’s visibility. Very important!” Kang Jie said.

Wu Xiaomi was just about to say forget it.

But Ah Lei jumped in, clearly sharing Kang Jie’s weird energy.

“Sounds fun, count me in. I’ll help you come up with names.”

“How about we call Han Nuo ‘Dead Fish Face’?”

“You really think that’s a reassuring name?”

“Then how about ‘Puppet Sh*t’? Has that international ring to it.”

“……”

Before anyone could shut them down, those two idiots had already slung their arms around each other and walked off, deep in loud discussion.

Nurse An followed along too.

She and the other girls turned around and waved back to Wu Xiaomi from afar, smiling in gratitude.

They stood in the twilight.

Their eyes were still swollen from crying, but their lips curved into bright smiles.

“Hm…”

Maybe being a superhero… wasn’t so bad after all?

“Pathetic,” Han Nuo muttered as he shook his head and left. “This world is pathetic.”

But kind of fun too, isn’t it?

……

Night fell, and Wu Xiaomi lay in bed.

Tonight, Bai Xiaozhi was taking the first watch.

“So, your return point is different from ours, and it’s random?”

“Yeah.”

“What’s the principle behind that…”

Maybe something was interfering with the teleportation?

What was it? The anklet?

Just what else can this anklet do…

No idea. Don’t wanna think about it.

My head hurts. Time to sleep~

……

On a night with no streetlights, the alleys were pitch black.

With the Syndicate thugs no longer prowling, the streets seemed even more deserted.

And in that darkness—

A faint white light shimmered on the street.

The glow of a teleportation.

“So this is your world, huh.”

A woman looked around at the milky white space.

“Heh, my little darling…”