"Pee-Wee, check the common psychological changes in a woman who’s crushing in secret." Having lived two lifetis as a mother-born solo, Jiang Shu only understood love between n and won through a foggy lens, leaving him to seek answers on the internet.
Pee-Wee: The person you’re trying to contact is dead. Please burn paper offerings... [Auto-reply]
Jiang Shu: "..."
What’s this, the Renaissance?
"Quick, quick, quick, put the data collection aside for now; I need to figure out what’s going on and how to reply to this woman." Jiang Shu dragged four Tablet Spirits to the office desk.
One human and four spirits ford a circle, ready to have a profound seminar on the Kirie Tsukimiya problem.
"So, what’s the deal with Kirie?" Jiang Shu said gravely, knowing that understanding and analyzing the problem is the precondition to solving it.
Spirit A: A woman who’s in a secret crush becos weird.
Spirit B: She’ll act very differently from usual.
Spirit C: For instance, they might be more timid, sensitive, shy, and preoccupied than normal.
Spirit D: A bold and outgoing girl could totally turn humble in front of soone she really likes.
Spirits A, B, C, D: In summary, the first Tablet Council unanimously believes that you, great Magician Jiang Shu, are in luck!
Jiang Shu: "..."
He fell into deep thought—
[Timid]: Frightened easily at the police station, definitely timid.
[Sensitive]: Haven’t tested that, unsure.
[Shy]: Instant ssage recalls, definitely shy.
[Preoccupied]: Who in their right mind stays up in the middle of the night?
[Behaving Humbly]: This respectful tone is overly humble, like to the bone, alright?
With that, Jiang Shu drew his conclusion.
The conference ended successfully with a resounding 5:0 score. Jiang Shu was quite pleased with such a democratic and free discussion.
However, he seed to have forgotten one thing; the Tablet Spirits were intelligent beings spawned from his own mory and character template...
"Actually, this isn’t a big deal," Jiang Shu scratched his head, "It’s just a naïve young girl’s crush... What’s the big deal?"
Spirit C: Then stop grinning!
Jiang Shu tried to suppress his smile, but couldn’t quite control the corners of his mouth and burst into laughter.
Truth be told, any normal person would react the sa upon learning that a talented and beautiful girl admired them. It had nothing to do with love; it was purely the vanity encoded in one’s DNA that was being satisfied.
But when it cos back to it, this lively and adorably naive young girl wasn’t his type.
So, how should he respond?
After pondering for a mont, he decided not to address it directly—after all, girls around twenty care a lot about face and he needed to let her know in a tactful way that holds a sense of distance—
We’ve already got a sad, thick wall between us.
So, he sent a ssage, concise and to the point—"Let’s stick to business."
In the few short minutes waiting for a reply, Kirie’s emotions roller-coastered. As she nervously watched the Simulated Light Screen, a ssage appeared before her eyes.
"Let’s stick to business."
The simple four words left her stunned.
Ahhh!
The Wizard must be angry...
She hastily replied: "Sorry sorry sorry, I don’t think this is important, we can talk about it later, goodnight Mr. Jiang, goodbye."
"Hssss—" Jiang Shu drew a sharp breath at that reply!
And she said goodnight!
This pure-hearted flirting technique has serious issues!
He pondered for a while, then consulted with the four Tablet Spirits again, and typed once more: "Let’s stick to business."
"..."
Kirie felt dejected.
He must be angry...
So why did I wake him up in the middle of the night?
Kirie felt her eyes moistening and her nose growing sour, but under Jiang Shu’s authoritative presence, she had no choice but to honestly reply:
"Can we change the previous bet? Change it to this: the magic show on Wednesday must be sothing that can be explained by common sense. If I can decipher your magic, then you... you’ll let go, not hurt , and not make do those things."
Jiang Shu stroked his chin, pondering the aning behind Kirie’s words.
It seed his distancing technique had worked wonders; the girl had imdiately realized that any relationship between them was impossible, so she was using this bet as a way to pull herself together and stay away from him.
Although it was a victory in this phase, Jiang Shu felt a sense of loss; not to ntion, this was the first ti a girl had explicitly shown interest in him.
But as quickly as she’d fallen for him, she lost interest just as fast.
So, this ti he planned to be generous and prepare a magic act that was effective yet simple in principle—it would be better for everyone if he let go sooner rather than later.
"If I can’t replicate your magic, then... I still have my uses, you can ask to do anything." Kirie continued to type.
Ever since that night, Kirie Tsukimiya had realized that Jiang Shu, the magician, though profiting from performances by using witchcraft, had always planned how to achieve the sa effect through normal ans to ensure a safe exit even if exposed.
Therefore, the magic he ca up with also conford to common sense, and with that, she was confident she could crack it.
But to be honest, at this mont she was extrely anxious, knowing full well that this test was playing with fire.
She, Kirie Tsukimiya, couldn’t escape the palm of this wizard and was at the rcy of Jiang Shu’s whims. She didn’t even dare to contemplate suicide, unsure if Jiang Shu had the ans to control her soul—becoming a Soul Body could an enduring torture round the clock.
But Kirie was clever, and by carefully modifying the bet, she saw the slightest chance to escape from his clutches. Losing would be no loss, winning would be a huge gain, especially since it was an opportunity that cost her nothing.
What a huge win!
She pumped her fists, encouraging herself, her eyes shining brightly in the night.
---
Jiang Shu, looking at the ssage from Kirie Tsukimiya, was stunned. It took him a while to blink and turn to the side where Alpha, Beta, Gamma, and Ding were.
Beta, understanding, pinched Jiang Shu, and when he felt the pain, he realized this wasn’t a dream.
Such good luck!?
The ability to do whatever I want...
Wouldn’t that an I could customize a whole lot of equipnt and items?
Jiang Shu’s eyes brightened.
Talking about replicating magic, if you could replicate mine, wouldn’t I be wasting my career as a magician?!
Alpha: What do you guys think?
Gamma: Kirie, a godsend!
Ding: Isn’t this one for free?
Beta: Are you serious about this one?
Jiang Shu, engrossed in the joy of gaining a new assistant, completely forgot his earlier thoughts of going easy. Completely unaware of the exchange among the Tablet Spirits, he lost himself in his elation.
What a huge win!
"Building my own force, wasn’t this second-in-command supposed to be hard to co by?" he thought excitedly, waving his fists.
In a Cyberpunk world, having such a talented goblin engineer to assist you, the comfort was indescribable.
Beta: Wait, elaborate.
However, once he cald down, Jiang Shu also realized a problem: if they kept in touch, would Kirie develop lingering feelings?
Hmm, so maintaining distance was still important.
Jiang Shu mapped out his future strategy for interacting with his second-in-command, checked the ti, and realized it was late, so he went to the bathroom to wash up.
The office bathroom was without a shower; living in the theater seed to an no showers were possible. He wondered if there was a public bath nearby.
He might consider installing one after getting paid this month...
Wait, why spend my own money now that I have a second-in-command—the best technician at the police station—to set up a shower for ?
Jiang Shu thought with glee, then contentedly went to bed.
anwhile, Kirie resolved a burden on her mind and suddenly felt her life was full of light, also going to bed contentedly.
At the sa ti, in different rooms, both adjusted their sleeping positions and closed their eyes.
What a huge win.
Both of them thought so.
We both have a bright future.
Both slept peacefully.
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