July 13th, Tokyo, Japan — Roppongi Grand Hotel.
In the large hotel room marked “4105,” Ji Minghuan was controlling Body No. 1, standing at the bathroom sink, holding a disposable toothbrush in his left hand.
While slowly brushing his teeth, he was also playing the rhythm ga Piano Tiles 3 on his phone. The level he was attempting was the highest difficulty: “Crazy Tap Arena.”
But instead of using his fingers, he was using Binding Restraint—this was to train his precision control of it.
The mirror above the sink reflected his bowed head and focused expression. The black Binding Restraint extended from his fingertips, tapping lightly and rapidly at the screen, striking every piano tile without missing a beat.
Ji Minghuan picked up the rinse cup and drank from it, his pupils reflecting each vanishing black tile.
With the light lody and reward notification sounds, the score at the top of the screen soared upward. But… just as the score finally hit “10000,” a WeChat ssage popped up at the top, breaking his concentration.
He thought it might be Su Zimai, but then rembered—he had set her account to “Do Not Disturb.”
So he glanced over. The ssage wasn’t from her—it was from his old buddy Li Qingping.
[Li Qingping: (Image).]
If it had been soone else, Ji Minghuan might’ve ignored it. But this was the vice-captain of the Royal Court Squad—“Red Dragon,” and one of the upcoming participants in next week’s Tokyo Auction. He was curious what Li Qingping wanted at this mont.
He paused the ga and opened the chat. The photo Li sent was of Tokyo Tower.
[Gu Wenyu: What’s this supposed to an? You on vacation in Japan too?]
[Li Qingping: Haha, ca to Japan with a friend, first ti seeing Tokyo Tower. We’re heading to Shinjuku next, gonna check out Kabukicho.]
Their ssages ca almost simultaneously. Ji Minghuan even beat him to it, which showed just how slow Red Dragon typed.
[Li Qingping: What do you an?]
[Gu Wenyu: What do you think?]
[Li Qingping: You’re in Japan too?]
[Gu Wenyu: Yeah, I’m in Tokyo. Wanna et up?]
A long silence followed, no reply.
Ji Minghuan shrugged and was about to exit the chat when the notification tone pinged.
[Li Qingping: Never mind, I’m with my foreign friend and can’t get away.]
[Gu Wenyu: Oh.]
[Li Qingping: Wait no, he said it’s fine to et up.]
[Gu Wenyu: Huh?]
[Li Qingping: I’ll bring him along. If you don’t speak English, I’ll translate.]
[Gu Wenyu: What were my English scores? And yours?]
[Li Qingping: Haha, fair point.]
[Gu Wenyu: So when are we eting?]
[Li Qingping: Tomorrow morning. He’s curious what my friend looks like. Just rember to dress impressively.]
Ji Minghuan thought: Li Qingping is currently acting as the Second Prince’s bodyguard in the Anecdote Codex’s Whale’s Garden, so the “friend” he ntioned in the ssage… is probably the Second Prince himself, right?
He pulled up the main quest log.
[Main Quest 4 – Phase Two: Form a partnership with Royal Court Squad’s vice-captain “Red Dragon” to develop connections within Whale’s Garden.]
If it were just Li Qingping, Ji Minghuan might’ve approached him using his “Black Cocoon” identity.
But since Li Qingping was currently guarding the Second Prince, likely glued to him at all tis, and the Second Prince’s influence within the Anecdote Envoys was still unclear, having Black Cocoon show up now could bring trouble.
To be safe, Ji Minghuan decided to wait until after the auction to make moves on this quest.
Of course, if Li Qingping died at the auction, that would be a different story.
Ji Minghuan put away his phone and looked up at the numb face in the mirror, toothbrush still in his mouth. For so reason, the scene felt strangely familiar—so familiar it made his scalp tingle. After a mont, he sighed:
“Seriously… how many tis do I have to wash up in one day?”
He swished the water in his mouth, did a quick ntal count: Body No. 1 and No. 2 each required morning and evening routines, plus showers in between—that made six tis in total.
The only exception was his true body at the lab: the bathroom linked to the detention room was only available at certain tis. But it was just a bathroom—only allowed for normal bodily functions, hand washing, or splashing water on his face, and nothing else.
So the Salvation Society would deliver food, toiletries, and a fresh inmate uniform to the detention room while he slept.
Each day, Ji Minghuan simply wiped his face and body with a towel, brushed with a cup and toothbrush, put on a new uniform, then collapsed onto the bed and shut his eyes. Even showering seed like an unattainable luxury.
Still, other than bodily secretions, that detention room was so clean it seed completely dust-free—like it existed in a vacuum. Strictly speaking, there really was no need for a full shower. Wiping down with a towel was plenty, saving both ti and energy.
Ji Minghuan spat the rinse water into the sink, wiped his mouth with a towel, and walked back into the room.
Just as he sat down on the soft double bed, a ssage ca from his big brother.
[Gu Qiye: I’ll be busy in a couple days. Didn’t you say you wanted to go to Akihabara? I’ll teach you how to get there by train.]
[Gu Wenyu: No need. I looked up guides online and even learned so sketchy Japanese. Worst case, I’ll use a voice translator. I can go on my own.]
[Gu Qiye: Alright. Then how about today? Want to walk around nearby with ?]
[Gu Wenyu: Not today. Just got to Tokyo and I’m tired. Didn’t sleep well last night either. Gonna rest at the hotel.]
After sending that, Ji Minghuan pulled out a voice recorder and began prep work.
Even if Su Zimai was clueless and kind of slow, the girl with her—Ke Qirui—definitely had a brain.
So to avoid suspicion during the negotiation, he had to prepare ahead of ti. For that… he’d even need to use Body No. 2.
…
…
That sa day, evening, Shiba Park, Minato Ward, Tokyo.
Su Zimai and Ke Qirui sat on a public bench near the fountain. The one with the high ponytail had her head down, playing with her phone, while the other smoked a pipe and casually stared at the nearby Tokyo Tower.
7 PM. Tokyo’s sky hovered between deep blue and fiery crimson. The sun slipped beneath the horizon, its afterglow fading. Tokyo Tower’s lights shifted from orange-red to soft white, casting a warm glow in all directions.
One of them broke the long silence filled with cicada cries.
“My brother hasn’t replied to
all day.”
Su Zimai frowned and muttered, voice tinged with nace.
The phone screen showed her last ssage was sent thirty minutes ago:
[I’m with my teacher at Shiba Park. Are you coming out or not?]
Naturally, Gu Wenyu had ignored her. He hadn’t blocked her, but he let her spam him freely.
Ke Qirui tucked the pipe back into her trench coat pocket and asked casually, “What about calling him?”
“He blocked my number.”
“What a wonderful brother,” Ke Qirui chuckled.
Su Zimai mumbled, “So what do we do? Looks like we can’t lure him out.”
“Should we go find him ourselves?”
“But we don’t even know which hotel he’s staying at. I can’t just ask my big brother or dad—they don’t know I’m in Japan.”
Ke Qirui thought for a mont, then asked, “Want
to have soone at the Exorcist Association use their access to check? It’d be easy to find out where he’s staying.”
Su Zimai shook her head. “Forget it.”
“Mm, honestly, whether he’s Blue Arc or not won’t affect our mission,” Ke Qirui said softly. “You can set this aside for now.”
Su Zimai nodded.
“Let’s take a walk around. I’ve never been to Shiba Park,” Ke Qirui said, standing up.
Su Zimai silently followed, clearly distracted. The two strolled through the park. The cicadas chirped brightly. A little girl in wooden clogs clacked along the path ahead.
Under the ginkgo trees, a quiet stone path stretched out. They chatted and laughed, walking through the patchy moonlight scattered across the pavent.
Suddenly, Ke Qirui raised an eyebrow—she noticed the shadow ahead wasn’t shaped like a tree. It looked more like… a mummy.
So she calmly looked up and saw, hanging upside down beneath a tall ginkgo tree ahead, a massive, pitch-black cocoon.
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