"Thank you all for visiting Universal Studios. In twenty minutes, the park will be... Wait a minute, Bomb Pig, what are you doing?!"
Universal Studios, nearing dusk.
The announcer over the broadcast offered this gentle reminder, seemingly preparing to inform the tourists that the attractions would soon close.
But a second later, the Golden Bomb Pig's "oink-oink" sounds suddenly erupted through the speakers, followed by the chirping of countless birds. It sounded as if the broadcast studio had been completely thrown into chaos and pandemonium by the Golden Bomb Pig.
Many aspects of Universal Studios offered a strong sense of imrsion. The various theaters and costud NPCs all strove to transport visitors back into the authentic worlds of their respective IPs.
"Everyone, be careful! The Bomb Pig is chasing the birds and is about to arrive at Central City Avenue! Please rember, absolutely do not make eye contact with the Golden Bomb Pig, otherwise—"
This mont was no exception. When the lifelike sounds of the Bomb Pig echoed from the broadcast, it genuinely gave people the illusion that the pig was about to attack.
"Looks like the parade is about to start."
Inside a thed restaurant along the street, Yan Huan listened to the commotion outside, glanced out the window, and made his observation.
They had arrived early to eat dinner along the Comrcial Street in the center of Universal Studios. This way, all they had to do was step outside to see the army of "Angry Little Pigs" passing by on their floats.
He turned his head, just about to remind Spencer to eat faster, only to catch her stealthily using her fork to transfer the cauliflower from her plate into his bowl.
"What are you doing?"
"..."
Caught red-handed, Spencer's body stiffened slightly. She then blinked her azure eyes at him, acting completely nonchalant as she replied,
"Nothing at all."
"Aren't you embarrassed to be such a picky eater at your age?"
"...Why are you saying the exact sa thing as my mama?"
"Heh."
Spencer scoffed, indignantly taking a bite of the cauliflower.
But what could she say? The restaurant in this tourist attraction truly preserved the most authentic, raw taste of the cauliflower. One bite was almost enough to make Spencer gag.
'No way, I can't eat this stuff.'
Spencer did not want to eat the cauliflower, but she didn't want to waste it either. Instead, she began looking around for anyone else who hadn't finished eating, planning to secretly toss the vegetables onto their plates.
However, scanning the table, she realized everyone else had essentially finished. They were wiping their mouths and preparing to leave the restaurant to snag the closest viewing spot for the parade.
'Who else is there?'
Stare~
Just then, a pair of bright and sparkling eyes nearby suddenly caught Spencer's attention.
"Huh?"
Spencer turned her head and saw a little brat sucking on his finger, staring eagerly at the food on her plate.
"..."
Spencer and the little brat locked eyes for a mont. Then, she stabbed a piece of cauliflower with her fork and offered it to the child.
"Wh-what is this, older sister?"
"Don't ask, it's sothing delicious."
"Oh, oh."
The little boy opened his mouth and took the cauliflower. He took one bite, and his small face imdiately scrunched up.
"It tastes so bad..."
"Don't say that. This is good for your body, you should eat more."
Spencer let out a foolish laugh. She picked up her fork and fed him a few more pieces of cauliflower, stuffing the little boy's cheeks until they bulged as he wore an expression of absolute agony.
"Hehe, this cauliflower is extrely precious, you have to—"
"What are you doing?"
"Gah?!"
Spencer's evil smile stiffened slightly the mont Yan Huan's ghostly voice sounded behind her. She hastily turned her head to look at him.
"Ah, I... this child wanted to eat cauliflower, so I fed it to him."
Yan Huan glanced at the kid who was struggling to chew a massive mouthful of cauliflower and could not help but warn her,
"You don't even know whose child this is and you're just feeding him random things. When his parents co looking, you'll be in big trouble..."
Spencer blinked, while Yan Huan looked helplessly at the child and asked,
"Where are your parents?"
"I don't know where my mama went."
"...You don't know?"
Yan Huan was slightly taken aback, but before he could ask further, the surrounding broadcast speakers flared to life again.
"We interrupt this program for an ergency missing person notice. A lady has lost her child. Would all visitors please check if there is a lost little boy near you.
"Wang Jingze, little Wang Jingze, your mama is waiting for you at the security checkpoint. If you hear this broadcast, please contact the nearest staff mber imdiately."
Yan Huan's expression beca slightly abstract as he asked the child in front of him,
"Your na is Wang Jingze?"
"Mhm..."
'Are you going to say "it's actually delicious" now?'
Yan Huan originally intended to ask that, but looking at the little boy's expression—which looked as though he had just eaten crap—he could not bear to ask.
Upon hearing the broadcast, all their companions who had already stood up turned their attention to the little boy beside them.
Spencer also set down her knife and fork, asking Yan Huan,
"Should we contact the staff?"
"Now?"
Yan Huan glanced at the growing crowd outside the restaurant doors. At this mont, people from all over the park were pouring into Hollywood Boulevard from every direction, nearly filling the place to the brim.
There wasn't a single staff mber in sight.
'Should we leave him with the shop owner and have them call the park authorities?'
But right now, with the parade approaching, this was the closest shop to the main road. Everyone knew they needed to secure a spot, so they were all crowding in here to buy things.
There were only two employees in the store. Their spatulas were practically smoking from being swung so fast, and the receipt machine for smartphone orders was constantly spitting out new tickets.
But if they took this child outside, there was no telling if they would be able to squeeze back into the front row to watch the parade.
This place was soon going to be jam-packed.
"..."
Yan Huan pondered for a mont. Just as he was about to speak, Lin Wanwan, acting as the elder, took the initiative to shoulder the responsibility.
"How about this? I'll take the child to find a staff mber. You all stay here so you don't waste the spots you worked so hard to get."
Spencer glanced at the bustling street outside the door, then looked back at the child beside her, whose mouth was sared green from eating.
After a second of hesitation, she nonchalantly stood up, patted her chest, and declared,
"It's fine, I'll go. I run fast, so I'll be back in a flash. You guys go ahead and secure the viewing spots, I'll be right back!"
With that said, she grabbed the little brat, who looked like a first or second grader, and dashed outside.
"..."
Yan Huan raised an eyebrow in surprise. After a second of thought, he also stood up.
eting Yurianna's eyes, which were sparkling with excitent as if she had scented gossip, he said,
"I'll go check on her, lest she gets lost."
"Ooh~ lest she gets lost~"
"Get out of here."
Yan Huan gave the sarcastically ambiguous Yurianna a flick on the forehead, then turned and followed Spencer.
"Thank you, thank you, thank you so much!"
At the park entrance, a pale-faced lady pulled the little boy to her side, continuously bowing to Spencer in front of her.
"Mama, look at , I ate a lot of cauliflower..."
"Eat, eat, eat, all you know how to do is eat all day! Don't run off next ti, you hear ? You must stay by Mama's side!"
Having lost her child, the lady had been anxious and terrified. Now, seeing her child return safely, a surge of irritation bubbled up.
But looking down at his innocent smile, the lady's anger silently dissolved into relief. She hugged the child tightly, unable to hold back her scolding,
"Do you have any idea how much you scared ? We're in a foreign land! Do you think we're back ho?! If you get left alone in Linn, are you trying to worry
to death?!"
"Mama..."
Standing to the side, Spencer blinked as she watched the scene unfold.
Then, she scratched the back of her head and silently prepared to turn and leave.
"Oh no, it looks like the parade is about to start..."
She glanced down at the ti, a nervous expression appearing on her face.
But when she looked up, she found that Yan Huan had appeared behind her at so point. Thinking she had seen a ghost, she jumped in fright.
"Yan Huan? When did you get here?"
"I've been following you ever since you ran out of there."
"Huh? Why?"
"...No reason."
Yan Huan hesitated to speak, ultimately deciding not to say that he was worried she'd be too foolish to find the way.
If that happened, not only would she fail to return the child, but she'd also lose herself.
Then the broadcast would be playing a missing person notice for both of them—one elentary student and one university student, perfectly well-matched peers.
Spencer cast a suspicious glance at Yan Huan. She felt like he was secretly suspecting her of being an idiot, but she had no proof.
Seeing her gaze grow increasingly skeptical, Yan Huan quickly changed the subject, saying,
"Hurry up and let's go, the parade is about to start."
"Right! Let's go, let's go!"
Spencer's pupils shrank slightly. She hastily grabbed Yan Huan's hand and sprinted toward the avenue.
"Why are you pulling ? It's not like I can't walk."
"You run so slow, I don't even know why you ca out here."
Spencer knew her stamina was inexplicably better than everyone else's, so she worried that Yan Huan was a physical weakling and dragged him along in a sprint.
Hearing this, Yan Huan's expression darkened slightly. He fired back,
"If I couldn't keep up with your running, how exactly did you see
here, may I ask?"
"..."
Spencer blinked, slowly catching on.
"That's true..."
She looked back at the tall, slender Yan Huan behind her, her face full of doubt.
Although in her eyes, Yan Huan looked like a chibi peacock, that didn't an she couldn't distinguish a person's physical traits.
On the contrary, this anthropomorphic animal form actually strengthened the characteristics of others.
That was why she was confused, especially since she had never seen Yan Huan exercise before.
Jokes aside, the things Myau-chan's Modifier provided were inherently flawed. If he didn't make good use of the few useful items he received, it would truly be like a primitive man fighting Trisolarans.
Ard with the Naturalist form and the Muscle-Enhancing Shower Gel, Yan Huan had basically been working out every single night recently.
"..."
She tentatively let go of Yan Huan's hand, and sure enough, he still wasn't left in the dust by the swiftly running Spencer.
With that, Spencer finally relaxed and fully committed to sprinting back to Hollywood Boulevard.
"Haha... Isn't this way too many people?!"
Just as they stopped, Spencer rested her hands on her knees, staring in shock at the huge crowd before her.
And people were still pouring in continuously from behind them.
Behind her, Yan Huan, whose complexion remained normal, surveyed their surroundings.
This was the outer entrance of the Comrcial Street. Shops surrounded them on all sides, blocking the avenue where the parade was taking place.
Around them, many people who realized they couldn't squeeze through had resorted to carrying their companions on their shoulders, allowing them to catch at least a glimpse from afar.
"..."
The human wall in front of them was jam-packed. Short of Spencer unleashing her Golden Bull Great Strength and forcing her way through with a Little Bee Elbow Strike, Yan Huan couldn't think of any other way to get inside for the mont.
"I-It looks like it's starting! Let
see..."
Turning his head, he saw that Spencer had stopped trying to use brute force to get in.
Instead, she was struggling to stand on her tiptoes, attempting to catch a glimpse of the scene beyond the human wall.
When that failed, she raised her smartphone high, planning to use the cara lens to extend her line of sight.
Watching her try ti and again to peek inside without any success, a wronged expression ford on her face.
"..."
Taking in her expression, Yan Huan turned to glance at the surrounding shops. From the corner of his eye, he spotted the railing of a terrace on the top floor of a nearby store.
It was the top floor of a private shop, usually accessed from the interior.
Yan Huan thought for a second, then suddenly grabbed Spencer's hand.
"Wh-what are you doing?"
Her hand suddenly seized, Spencer's eyes trembled slightly. But before she could ask, Yan Huan pulled her toward another direction.
"There's a private terrace over there. Let's see if we can climb up from the outside."
"..."
Hearing this, Spencer paused for a mont, but still gripped his hand tightly, allowing him to lead her through the crowd and behind the shops.
"Step on my shoulders to get up first, then use the outdoor air conditioner unit to climb onto the terrace."
Yan Huan looked up at the second-floor outdoor air conditioner unit. Doing a quick calculation, he figured it was just close enough to reach the edge of the open-air terrace.
Then, he crouched down and turned to face Spencer.
Spencer pursed her lips, still a bit hesitant, but at that mont, the cheers of the tourists erupted in the distance.
"Here it cos, here it cos!"
"Wow!! So pretty!"
"Cluck cluck~ Cluck cluck~"
The parade was starting right this second.
There was no ti to lose. Spencer crouched down and took off her sneakers, revealing her feet wrapped in white socks.
Seeing her take off her shoes, the crouching Yan Huan was slightly taken aback.
"Why are you taking your shoes off?"
"Wouldn't I get your clothes dirty if I stepped on you with my shoes on?"
"..."
'That makes perfect sense, but...'
The next second, she lifted her white-socked foot and stepped onto Yan Huan's shoulder.
Without the flat, rigid sole of a shoe blurring the sensation, the delicate shape of her foot was clearly outlined against the muscles of Yan Huan's shoulder.
He kept his head lowered and stayed still, but the soft muscles of her calf ended up pressing directly against his cheek.
It felt cool to the touch, carrying the faint scent of shower gel.
"...Are you ready?"
"Not enough... It's not high enough, stand up a bit."
"..."
Yan Huan lifted himself slightly, and she grabbed the edge of the outdoor air conditioner unit.
"Heave-ho!"
With a forceful push, she vaulted onto it.
The weight on his shoulders instantly vanished. Yan Huan looked up, catching a clear view of her sticking her butt out as she scrambled up.
Yan Huan imdiately averted his gaze, adhering to the principle of seeing no evil. Lowering his head, he picked up her discarded sneakers and tossed them up to her.
"Catch."
"Got it."
Spencer caught her shoes and threw them onto the terrace above, then looked down and extended a hand toward Yan Huan.
Yan Huan glanced at her outstretched hand but didn't take it. Instead, he waved his hand and said,
"That's enough. That air conditioning unit is too narrow to hold two people. You just go up and watch, and I'll catch you when you co down—"
"It can hold us!"
"..."
Yan Huan was cut off. Spencer rely stared straight down at him, refusing to retract her hand.
After a second of hesitation, Yan Huan reached up and grasped her hand.
"Creak, creak!"
The brackets beneath the air conditioner instantly vibrated and groaned. Spencer took a deep breath, and with a sudden surge of imnse strength, she hoisted Yan Huan up.
The mont he reached the top, because the space on the outdoor unit was far too narrow, the backwards inertia almost caused Spencer to fall down.
"Careful!"
"..."
Seeing this, Yan Huan quickly wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her back.
"Thud-thud~"
The sound of their footsteps was starkly pronounced on the hollow tal casing of the unit. Yan Huan braced himself against the wall, while Spencer was pressed tightly against his body.
Holding her soft waist, Yan Huan was briefly stunned, just about to urge her to continue climbing onto the terrace.
But in his arms, she suddenly tilted her head back and shot him an excited smile.
"See, I told you I could pull you up!"
She had rely pulled him up, but she acted as though she had accomplished sothing monuntal. He had no idea why she was so thrilled.
However, when the words were on the tip of his tongue, Yan Huan t her pure and flawless smile, and the urge to hurry her was instantly choked back.
Especially right now, with the distance between them practically nonexistent, it gave him the fleeting illusion that he wanted to hold her tightly and embrace her closely in his arms.
'Warning! Warning!'
'Level One Warning!!'
Feeling his body temperature rise slightly, his Brain Command Center simultaneously issued a warning.
This made Yan Huan involuntarily swallow hard, and he reminded her,
"Right, you should climb up to the terrace first."
"Oh? Okay."
Spencer slowly turned around, completely oblivious to how her shifting movents altered the points of contact against Yan Huan's body.
"Hss..."
The sudden friction made Yan Huan gasp in shock. His waist trembled slightly, and his balance wavered.
"Creak, creak~"
A crisp rattling sound ca from the outdoor unit. Yan Huan hastily stabilized his grip on Spencer's waist, barely managing to maintain their equilibrium.
"Yan Huan, are you alright?"
As luck would have it, she looked back over her shoulder, completely oblivious to what was happening, her tone full of genuine concern.
"I'm fine... just hurry up."
'If you don't go up soon, Little Head is going to stand up!'
Not daring to look directly at their compromising posture, Yan Huan quickly averted his gaze and issued the reminder.
"Okay."
Spencer grabbed the terrace railing, then hoisted herself up with a sudden burst of strength.
She nimbly pulled herself up, swinging her right leg over the railing before her entire body flipped over and landed inside.
Seeing this, Yan Huan finally breathed a sigh of relief.
He glanced up at Spencer, who was peering over the edge at him, then grasped the railing himself.
With a smooth pull-up, he hauled his entire body up over the edge.
Flipping over the railing in the sa manner, they found themselves on a very flat and spacious third-floor terrace.
From here, they had a perfect overhead view of the incredibly lively parade below.
"Co here, hurry, it looks like it's already started over there!"
The mont she got up, Spencer heard the commotion from the street. Without even taking the ti to put her shoes back on, she dashed over to the edge.
"Hey, keep your voice down. We sneaked up here..."
Yan Huan watched helplessly as she ran to the side overlooking the street. He gave her a warning, picked up her abandoned shoes, and followed her. One side of the terrace lacked a railing and was cluttered with antennas, solar panels, and similar equipnt.
Navigating past a few large objects, they reached a slight downward slope ford by a rain awning.
Spencer sat right on the edge of the terrace, resting her feet against the awning, her eyes filled with boundless excitent as she watched the parade slowly approaching below.
"Yan Huan, Yan Huan, look! Here it cos!"
"Mhm, okay."
Yan Huan set her shoes down and sat beside her.
Glancing at the various floats that were still a bit far off, he unlocked his smartphone.
Sure enough, Yurianna had spamd him with countless ssages.
They were all asking where they were, whether they had arrived, and reminding them that the parade was about to start.
He brought up the keyboard, typed a few words, then deleted them and just called her directly.
"Hello, President? Where are you guys? Did you get in?"
"Couldn't squeeze in. But we climbed onto a third-floor terrace above a shop, so we're watching from up here."
"C-Climbed up to the third floor? President, are the two of you monkeys?"
"If you don't know how to complint soone, you can just not speak."
"Which shop's roof are you on? These are all private stores around here. If you get caught..."
"Looks like the roof of a bar, right next to the restaurant where we ate earlier. We'll just keep quiet and try not to get noticed."
Yan Huan couldn't be bothered to argue. He glanced at the thrilled, massive crowd below and said,
"Alright, let's leave it at that. Don't bother trying to find us, there are way too many people and it's too crowded. I'm hanging up."
Ending the call, Yan Huan also looked up at the avenue below.
In the distance, a massive flock of chibi-style birds sat within a castle-shaped float. They danced arrogantly at the top, showing off their beautiful feathers.
At that mont, from beneath the fortress float trailing behind, a mascot wearing a Golden Bomb Pig costu bounded down. Grunting out an "oink-oink," it began greeting the tourists lining the street.
"Bomb Pig! Bomb Pig! So cute!"
"Oink-oink~"
The Golden Bomb Pig wore an incredibly smug expression, but according to the lore, it was a very kind and adorable little pig.
To rescue its mother, who had been kidnapped by the birds to build their castle, the wingless pig bravely sat on a slingshot, launching itself into the sky to blast the birds' fortress to pieces.
This kind of childish ga the was really just about the atmosphere, much like watching cartoons with Minions.
Adults absorbed the adorable and fantastical elents, happily imrsing themselves in the joyful environnt without overthinking the underlying logic.
'But the Spencer beside
probably truly loves this golden little pig, doesn't she?'
Sitting on the terrace, Spencer held up her phone, recording the bird and pig mascots as they greeted the tourists one by one.
Strangely, Spencer wasn't just filming the pigs, who were the protagonists; she made sure to record the birds as well.
"I heard there's an Angry Little Pigs-thed fireworks show later! This spot is perfect for watching it!"
Spencer's eyes glead as she laughed joyfully, even her voice practically bouncing with energy.
She watched the pig parade below with total devotion, while Yan Huan watched her.
"ow~"
Even Myau-chan was moved by the lively atmosphere, materializing its form beside them.
It wasn't until he saw the ghostly, divine cat on his shoulder that Yan Huan suddenly rembered the matter of the modifiers.
Over the past few weeks, his nerves had been constantly taut, but today he felt exceptionally relaxed.
There was no modifier business to handle, no need to maintain any disguises; they were simply having fun and playing happily.
This atmosphere made even Yan Huan feel that sothing ant for kids, like "Angry Little Pigs," was genuinely entertaining.
"What's this 'Angry Little Pigs' nonsense? Such an illogical knockoff. The original is 'Angry Birds'..."
But right at that mont, a disdainful sneer drifted over from nearby.
Yan Huan froze slightly and turned his head.
He saw a young, heavily intoxicated man standing in the doorway leading from the second floor to the third. He had no idea when the guy had arrived.
It seed he had also been drawn by the lively commotion outside, wandering up from the bar to take a look, only to see the parade below.
"Angry Birds is the authentic one. This current version is just pushed by corporate greed; it's absolutely nothing like the original! It's completely bizarre that it's so popular right now..."
Hearing this, Yan Huan glanced at Spencer beside him, noting her montarily stunned expression, before frowning and standing up.
First of all, he was in a good mood and didn't want soone else ruining this great vibe.
Secondly, if he didn't stop this now and Spencer got angry, things wouldn't end so sim—
"Clasp!"
But just as Yan Huan was thinking this and standing up, Spencer suddenly grasped his hand.
Yan Huan paused and turned to look at her.
He saw her still gazing at the parade below. The bustling scene was reflected in her pure azure eyes, and a faint smile still lingered on her lips.
She wasn't angry, yet she was no longer as ecstatic as before. Because of this, her expression seed deeply complex.
"..."
This was the very first ti Yan Huan had seen such an expression on Spencer's face.
"Hey, this is a private area, no entry!"
At that exact mont, a woman's fierce voice echoed from the stairwell.
Yan Huan looked at the drunken fool, inwardly groaning that this was a disaster.
'We finally found a good spot, is the mood really going to be ruined by this bastard?'
Yan Huan glanced at Spencer, who was still holding his hand, and decided to pull out the White Card Ye Lan had given him, intending to offer the bar owner compensation to rent this precious spot.
But when the owner ca up and saw Yan Huan preparing to approach, she waved her hand dismissively at him.
"You guys can stay, it's fine."
"Huh?"
Yan Huan looked at the bar owner with imnse confusion. 'Don't tell
Sister Tong's influence has extended all the way to this godforsaken place.'
However, a second later, a familiar pink-haired head popped out from the stairwell, covering her mouth and giggling. It was Yurianna.
"Hehe, President~"
"Yurianna?"
Yan Huan glanced at Yurianna, then at the owner who was leading the drunkard back downstairs. He couldn't help but ask,
"You know the owner of this bar?"
Yurianna shook her head and said,
"Nope. I just ca over after getting your call."
"Then..."
"Ah, but I'm already besties with this big sis! I chatted with her a bit, told her you guys missed the parade because you were helping a lost kid, and she agreed to let you stay!"
"That fast?!"
Yurianna affectionately hugged the helpless-looking bar owner, snuggling against her and said,
"I told you, I make friends easily~ Hehe, so soft~"
"...It would have been better if you had used the front door, though."
The bar owner patted Yurianna's back and said,
"Alright, just be careful up here. There's no railing on that side. I'll get back to work downstairs. Yurianna, are you staying up here too—"
"No, no, no, I'm heading downstairs. I'll leave this place to the two of them."
Yurianna waved her hands. Then, while pushing the bar owner down the stairs, she slyly pulled the terrace door shut.
"It's just the two of you now. I absolutely, positively will not peek at what might happen, so... Hehe~"
"Click~"
The next second, the door clicked shut, and the terrace fell completely silent once more.
"..."
Speechless, Yan Huan shoved his wallet back into his pocket and turned to look at Spencer, who was still sitting on the edge of the terrace watching the parade.
She pointed downwards and said,
"Yan Huan, look, they're all down there!"
Yan Huan walked back over and saw that she was pointing at Lin Wanwan and the rest of the Doujinshi Society mbers.
They had probably been guided back here by Yurianna. However, they seed oblivious to Yan Huan and Spencer's presence above them. They simply stood by the street, happily waving to the passing mascots.
"Yeah."
Yan Huan nodded and sat back down next to Spencer.
But he didn't look at the parade below. Instead, he quietly glanced at Spencer's lingeringly cheerful face.
After a mont of silence, he spoke up anyway,
"Don't take what that drunk guy said to heart. He was wasted."
Hearing this, Spencer blinked, shook her head, and let out a soft laugh.
"It's fine. Actually, I know what he said is true."
"..."
"'Angry Birds' is the genuine version. 'Angry Little Pigs' was just sothing my mama altered later on to comfort ."
"..."
As she spoke, Spencer suddenly pulled another object from her pocket: a battered, outdated smartphone.
Spencer familiarly unlocked the screen. The image on its lock screen instantly caught Yan Huan's eye.
On the lock screen was a picture of a blue-eyed child whose head was shaved down to a thin layer of peach fuzz. She was wearing a hospital gown, hooked up to a myriad of dical tubes and IV lines, cradled in the arms of a beautiful blonde woman.
In the picture, the bald child stared directly at Yan Huan with innocent, crystal-clear eyes, prompting him to hastily shift his gaze toward the present Spencer.
'That was Spencer from the past.'
Yan Huan suddenly realized this.
"Here, look."
Spencer unlocked the screen. Surprisingly, sitting right on the hopage was the ga "Angry Birds."
She tapped the icon, and the old smartphone labored to load the application.
What opened was the exact "Angry Birds" ga that Yan Huan was intimately familiar with from his past life.
The ordinary red bird, the triangular yellow bird, the splitting blue bird, the black bomb bird...
And, of course, the horde of bright green pigs.
Spencer gently swiped the screen, revealing an endless, dense grid of levels. Every single one was completed with a three-star rating.
She had fully beaten "Angry Birds."
"..."
Yan Huan was stunned speechless for a mont. He turned his head to stare at Spencer.
He caught her looking back with a proud expression. She gave him a goofy smile and said,
"See? I actually cleared all of these levels a long ti ago. I'm pretty smart, aren't I?"
"..."
But as she laughed, her smile gradually faded.
She closed the ga, returning to the lock screen wallpaper of her bald, younger self lying blankly in her mother's arms.
Staring at the child in the photo, she let out another silly, self-deprecating laugh.
"Just kidding. I actually know... I've always been stupid. Incredibly stupid."
Yan Huan's eyes widened. He turned back to look at Spencer—this was the very first ti she had ever admitted to being foolish out loud.
In the past, if you even slightly hinted that she was dumb, she would instantly get ruffled and furious.
But right now, she was stating it so calmly and plainly.
"The reason I never dared to admit it was simply because I was scared. Scared that because of it, I'd be bullied again."
"Bullied?"
"Ah... When I was little, 'Angry Birds' was so popular. Back then, all the classmates around
were playing it."
Spencer chuckled, lifting her phone to show Yan Huan the image of her younger self with sparse hair and slightly protruding eyes.
"Then, look. Don't I look just like those bald green pigs in the ga?"
"..."
Yan Huan looked at the inherently frail-looking child in the photo, then glanced at the current Spencer, seemingly realizing sothing.
Spencer herself studied the picture and explained,
"Back then, I thought those kids wanted to be my friends. Because of my mama's status, the students my age always claid they were super close to
on the surface, and I foolishly believed them.
"But in reality, they were just stringing
along like an idiot. Whenever we played gas, they always got to play the birds with all sorts of beautiful feathers, while I was always the ugly green pig..."
Spencer lowered her phone, picked up a nearby pebble, and tossed it toward the building across from them.
"Clack~"
The pebble landed precisely on the opposite roof, but Spencer's face showed zero joy from her perfect aim.
Because at this very mont, in her eyes, standing on that opposite roof was a foolish little kid desperately covering her head with its sparse, thinning hair.
'Why... why are you throwing things at ? Aren't we friends?'
'We are friends! We're just roleplaying. We're the birds, and you're the pig.'
'Why am I the pig?'
'Why do you think? Because you don't have hair! Look, we all have it. It's like a bird's feathers. And pigs don't have feathers.'
"..."
Spencer stared blankly into the distance as if seeing those kids with their beautifully colored "feathers," and spoke in a similarly hollow tone,
"I honestly believed it. I believed I was naturally born a green pig, while they were the beautiful birds.
"From that point on, in my eyes, every other normal person with hair was a bird. I was the only one who was a green pig.
"And I really believed they still saw
as a friend. That they were only throwing rocks at
because of the ga, because of the roleplaying...
"Because in front of my mama, they were always smiling. They constantly told her how great our relationship was."
Yan Huan also turned to look straight ahead, out at the bustling parade right beneath their feet.
The fortress of those beautiful birds felt like it was suspended upside down in the heavens, an unreachable height for a naturally slow-witted little pig like her.
"Until one day, Mama told
my illness was cured. My hair finally grew back out...
"I thought to myself back then, I could finally beco a bird, right? I wouldn't have to be a pig anymore?"
Yan Huan glanced at her self-deprecating expression and said softly,
"Actually, it was never really about the hair, was it?"
"Yeah. Even without the hair... a short height, stupidity, a weak personality... As long as there's a weakness, they'll always find an excuse."
It was just like a building with one broken window; soon enough, the rest of the windows would be smashed one by one.
People who are weak and cowardly will always be bullied and taken advantage of from all sides.
Just thinking about this made Spencer's expression turn sorrowful.
She stared at the opposite building. In her mory, the little pig being pointed at by the surrounding birds finally couldn't bear the anger anymore. It stood up and fought back.
That little pig pinned the mocking birds down, tearing at their gorgeous feathers, throwing punch after punch at their pretty faces.
Beating them until their faces were covered in tears, beating them until they loudly begged for rcy.
Yet, even so...
A pig was still a pig, and the birds were still birds.
From that day forward, in Spencer's eyes, everyone besides herself was a bird.
The little pig grew terrified of the glamorous, radiant birds outside who were so different from her, and never dared to step out of her room again.
Even now, after being forcibly shipped thousands of miles away by her mother to this place, she was still afraid.
But she knew that the mont she showed any weakness, she would be bullied. So, she had to disguise herself to appear just as strong as the other birds.
That was why she pretended to be fierce. That was why she pretended to be strong.
Only in front of those who were as weak as her, or those who were gentle and willing to accept her vulnerability, would she finally shed those fake feathers she used for disguise.
This was also why she was so picky about others. The mont she detected even a hint of hypocrisy, she would have a stress response.
She was simply terrified of running into those sa hypocritical people from her childhood, terrified they would hurt her using the exact sa thods.
As he listened, Yan Huan paused slightly before asking,
"So, that's why you stood up for An Le back then, right?"
"Mhm... Because she and I are the sa kind of people. Seeing her get bullied always felt like seeing myself."
Spencer hugged her knees and pouted as she spoke.
"It's the sa for the others in the Doujinshi Society. I always feel like they're just like ."
"...And I'm not, right?"
"Yeah. You... are a bird."
"Then why are you telling
all this?"
Hearing his words, the knee-hugging Spencer turned her head blankly to look at Yan Huan.
She fell silent for a second before suddenly asking in a quiet voice,
"Then... will you bully ?"
"..."
Yan Huan's pupils contracted slightly, and a sudden warmth swelled in his chest.
He quickly averted his gaze and retorted,
"Aren't you the one who's always bullying ? When have I ever bullied you?"
"Hehe, true. But back at the hospital, didn't I say I'd tell you why I'm afraid of hospitals? Besides, for all the trouble I caused you before..."
Spencer laughed foolishly once again. She looked out at the street below and said,
"I'm sorry."
"..."
"I thought that as long as I acted super tough and fierce, nobody would bully ."
Spencer stared blankly into the distance and whispered softly,
"But I never wanted to bully you or anyone else. I even envied you all.
"I know you guys are the normal ones, and I wanted to be just like you...
"I wanted to have the beautiful things you guys had. I tried to build them, but it seems I only know how to ss everything up."
Invisible ripples spread outward from her body, enveloping the majority of the people she viewed as birds like a curse.
She had once tried to study hard, but the letters twisted and turned like incomprehensible writing, refusing to register in her mind.
She had once tried to make friends with her classmates, but on the very first day, everyone seed to inexplicably hate her, so much so that they wouldn't even tell her where to return the ball.
Failure after failure drove her to completely abandon herself to despair. She began to doubt if she was capable of succeeding at absolutely anything.
And so, she resigned herself to her fate.
"But don't worry, Yan Huan. After the Club War ends, I'll be leaving the academy."
"?"
Yan Huan turned sharply toward Spencer, listening as she muttered,
"My family said they'll arrange to retain my academic status or sothing, so it just ans I won't be coming to classes every day. I can still co visit An Le and the rest of you to hang out, so it's not a big deal!"
Yan Huan paused for a second before asking, "...Are you really that unconfident about winning the Club War? Especially after you've been training so hard lately."
"It's not about winning or losing. Though, I really did want to win, just this once."
Spencer raised her eyes to look at the Doujinshi Society mbers standing joyfully along the side of the road below. She smiled and said,
"If we lose, then we lose.
"But if I win, I'll give the Doujinshi Society's grand wish to my club mbers. I'll let that group of people who are always bullied have a wish of their own!"
Looking at the broadly smiling Spencer, Yan Huan felt a subtle stir in his heart.
He looked as though he wanted to say sothing, but the next second, a firework suddenly blossod across the sky right in front of them.
"Bang!!"
"Yan Huan, look quickly!!"
All the words he was about to say were completely drowned out by the fireworks in front of them. His hesitant expression was illuminated by the colorful bursts, shining just as brightly as Spencer's fair, smiling face.
Unable to bring himself to break the current atmosphere, he had no choice but to silently turn his head and look up at the sky.
High above, a firework shaped like the Golden Bomb Pig suddenly exploded, filling the entirety of Spencer's vision and incinerating all the resentnt of her past.
Yet in this mont, in her eyes, there were only the dazzlingly bright fireworks.
Beside her, however, Yan Huan had unnoticeably withdrawn his gaze from the sky, stealing a quiet glance at Spencer's profile.
Then, a smile graced his own lips. He lifted his eyes back to the fireworks above and softly whispered,
"So pretty."
"Right? Hehe..."
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