Chapter 288: Small Horn |
Trampling through thorns, transmigrating through the Golden Rain.
The sports car jubilantly roared across the Time Continent. Ashe glanced at the new block appearing on the Virtual Realm Map. Whenever a “Worth a Visit” or “Time for a Clan Annihilation” Battle block appeared ahead on the road, he immediately steered clear, keeping the sports car firmly on the “Wasting Time” route.
Only if a Sorcerer Projection, an easy target, appeared on the road would Ashe reluctantly run it over.
Tonight, it was just the two of them, not suited for Battle. Even if they fought, it would consume a lot of Soul Energy, better to broaden their exploration and see if they could encounter any special Virtual Realm structures.
Besides, they weren’t in the mood for Battle tonight.
The atmosphere in the car remained silent, but it wasn’t the awkward kind of silence. It was like someone who arrived hours late, only intending to pass by, but found their date still waiting for them—awkward, yes, but not uncomfortably so. Instead, there was an unspoken warmth in it.
“Small Horn,” Ashe suddenly blurted out after a long silence.
“What?” Sonya couldn’t believe her ears. “What did you say?”
“I said you’re a Small Horn.”
Act rather than talk!
Sonya immediately grabbed Ashe’s ear, “Oh, so you dare to insult me today, what dare you do tomorrow, I can’t even imagine!”
“Hey, hey, I’m driving, there’s a Slaying Fish-Dragon crossing ahead!”
“Why are you insulting me!”
“How’s calling you stupid a problem?”
“How am I stupid?”
“You’ve been waiting here for over two hours, isn’t that stupid enough?” Ashe raised his voice. “Lucky for you, the Time Continent doesn’t have ‘Eviction Secret Poison’. If this were the Sea of Knowledge, you’d have been devoured by Knowledge Creatures by now!”
“I’m not stupid!” Sonya retorted, “Do you think I’m like you, jumping into the Virtual Realm without any common sense? Since the day we parted, I’ve been studying the knowledge of the Time Continent every day, memorizing the critical aspects of the Time Continent, the mechanisms of the Virtual Realm, and various strategies for dealing with Knowledge Creatures… Of course, I knew it was safe to wait for you!”
“How could it possibly be safe?” Ashe almost laughed in exasperation: “I was just looking at the Map, and the White Bull is already far from you, and the Static Domain will catch up with you in less than an hour!”
“I would definitely leave the Virtual Realm before the Static Domain arrives!”
“What if you didn’t notice it? You’ve said before that the Static Domain is silent; by the time you realize it’s there, you won’t be able to escape!”
“I can still get away.”
“But you didn’t have to take such a risk!” Ashe complained. “I didn’t ask you to wait; you could have just continued Exploring the Virtual Realm normally. Why put yourself in danger? Am I wrong to call you foolish?”
Thump!
This time Sonya really got angry and gave Ashe a solid thump, making him feel his Soul Energy scatter a bit—You’re a Swordswoman, not a boxer, why do you hit so hard!?
“You still have the nerve to criticize me,” Sonya said fiercely. “We agreed to meet at 12:30, and I was the only one who showed up! You didn’t even leave me a car or a note!”
“I used to think you at least kept your word, but now I’ll never trust you again, you big liar!”
“This was an accident within the margin of error!” Ashe countered. “I suddenly had something come up tonight; it wasn’t intentional. It was two hours later by the time I settled everything, and here I am, joining you right away, aren’t I?”
“So what happened? Tell me something that will make this Swordswoman happy?”
“I can’t say.”
Annan’s Contract sealed Ashe’s lips like a gag.
“Will there be a next time?”
“Most likely,” Ashe thought about the current situation at the Funeral Firm. “I might even be unable to come to the Virtual Realm for several days in a row.”
“So you mean,” Sonya squinted her eyes, “you can’t explain the reasons, but you need to keep taking leave?”
“…Yes.”
Ashe answered, feeling quite aggrieved—what a world this was! He was the financier of the team, after all. How had he come to be scolded by an Operator? As an investor, wasn’t it natural for him not to do the work, especially since he had a legitimate reason, albeit one he couldn’t disclose?
He quietly awaited the next round of scolding from the Swordswoman, but after a while, she remained silent.
“I’ll try to leave the car for you next time…” Ashe said, “Though I can’t lend out the Map, having the car should help you maintain a rapid increase in arcane energy…”
Suddenly, Sonya asked, “Is it more dangerous than escaping from prison?”
Ashe paused for a moment: “A bit more dangerous, yes.”
“Huh.”
With Sonya’s indistinct chuckle, the atmosphere fell silent again.
After they finally defeated their first Sorcerer Projection of the night, Sonya commented, “This is so boring.”
“Why don’t you sing a song?”
“Don’t you have any life experiences to share?”
“I do, but I can’t talk about them,” Ashe shrugged. “If I must, I can only speak in the manner of the Riddler.”
“Oh?” Sonya’s interest was piqued, “What’s the riddle method?”
“Let’s say, for instance, I’ve become somewhat famous,” Ashe pondered and then continued, “Not only do I have to deal with the risk of being sexually harassed by a boss, but there’s also someone new in my life who I need to protect with my life…”
“Who is this person?”
“Can’t say.”
“A woman?”
“…”
“A woman under 30?”
“…”
“A woman under 22?”
“…”
“A woman under 18?!” Sonya was shocked, “Observer, how old are you even? It’s disgraceful, and you even—”
“It’s not what you think!” Ashe was exasperated, “And why aren’t you asking about the boss harassing me? Don’t you care about that at all?”
“Because that’s definitely not the same as you described,” Sonya was quite certain.
“In any case, although I really want to share with you the things I’ve been dealing with recently, I just can’t,” Ashe said. “Once all this is over, I’ll slowly tell you the stories from these past days.”
“Then I’ll look forward to it.”
Sonya, gazing at the Reverse Golden Rain outside, suddenly mentioned, “A couple of days ago, Wind Crane reached out to me—you can think of them as a guild that produces songs for Songstresses—they want to tailor a battle song specifically for me. If there’s enough time, it might even become the theme song for this year’s Intercollegiate League!”
“And then there’s Senior Sister Sylvia—you might have forgotten who she is—thanks to her recommendation, I’ve successfully landed a role in a prime-time drama. It’s not the lead role, and it’s a villain role, but it’s roughly equivalent to the second female lead!”
“Looks like your big break is coming!” Ashe exclaimed. “If you play it well, a villain’s impact on the Audience can be just as memorable as the hero’s!”
“I think so too!” Sonya nodded and scoffed, “Hmph, those Nobles really aren’t up to any good. My reputation has been rising, and while they want to capitalize on my fame, they look down on my background and are unwilling to offer me any good roles. So, they stick me with a villain role, hoping I’d embarrass myself and earn a bad name… But no matter, disappointing my enemies is something I never fail at!”
Ashe never doubted the Swordswoman’s capabilities—her rebellious spirit, born from humble beginnings, radiated an indomitable confidence, as if there was nothing in the world that could crush her spirit.
Perhaps that might have been the case in the past, since the Swordswoman was ultimately a lone Weakling. But now, her weaknesses had been compensated for by Ashe.
She would neither be weak nor alone.
Ashe suddenly remarked, “Feels like it’s been a long time since we’ve had a moment alone like this, hasn’t it?”
“…Yes.” The rustic girl lowered her eyelids, “With the Witch around, there are some things I just don’t feel comfortable discussing with you. It’s not that I want to keep secrets from her, it’s just… it would be a bit embarrassing.”
“Ha!”
“What’s so funny?”
“No, I’m not laughing at you; I actually understand how you feel quite well,” Ashe said with a smile. “It’s like a delicate, blooming flower. The Witch only sees your beautiful petals, so you want to keep up your dignity around her. But I’ve seen your roots hidden in the soil before you bloomed, not beautiful, so you feel more relaxed around me.”
In simpler terms, it’s like the label that fits everyone once you get to know them: ‘cold on the outside, chatterbox once you’re familiar’—most people are indeed like that, maintaining a good image when they first meet someone until they know each other well enough to reveal their quirks.
“So you’re saying I’m just a pretty girl with no substance?”
“You make ‘pretty girl with no substance’ sound so worthless…” Ashe muttered. “But I don’t think you need to be so stiff around the Witch… First of all, the Witch isn’t the type to look down on you because of your background.”
“Secondly, those muddy roots you want to hide are actually quite cute.”
The Swordswoman looked at him without saying a word. Ashe shrugged and said, “Of course, I’m just making a suggestion. I’m already very satisfied with the atmosphere in our small team; it doesn’t matter if we don’t continue to strengthen our bond. If you prefer the time we spent together in the Boat on the Sea of Knowledge, I can understand that—”
“Alright then.”
“Huh?”
“Thinking about it, talking about girly stuff with a smelly man like you does seem a bit inappropriate,” Sonya said, resting her chin in her hands. “It’s about time I found a new best friend.”
“First of all, I’m not smelly, and second—”
“You’re not a man?” Sonya instinctively used debate tactics from the School Forum.
After a bit of Small horn-level bickering, the rustic girl emerged victorious.
Watching the driver’s disgruntled face, Sonya suddenly said, “We’ve already left the Sea of Knowledge.”
“Huh?”
“So, the time of just the two of us teaming up is over. Next, it’ll be teams of three, four, five… The team will grow bigger, and we’ll become stronger.”
“…Yes,” Ashe replied, looking at her in the rearview mirror. “That’s exactly my plan.”
“I’ll help you,” Sonya said. “Although I might not be too keen on it, I will help because the stronger our team gets, the more efficient our explorations will be, and the more benefits I’ll gain.”
“And you’ll gain more benefits too.”
Ashe looked at Sonya, surprised, while the Swordswoman stared at the Reverse Golden Rain outside, her eyes sparkling.
“My life is full of color—singing, acting, competing. Don’t come to me for help with real-world problems; I’m neither free nor capable,” the rustic girl said softly. “However, if you really must, and you’re willing to kneel and beg, I guess I could help you out more in the Virtual Realm.”
“Kneeling is out of the question. In my world, we only kneel when Praying for a Miracle,” Ashe replied with a smile. “But I’ll reluctantly accept your grudging offer of help.”
“Hmph, now we’re really in cahoots.”
“Just remember not to do something foolish like waiting for others in the Virtual Realm again—it really lowers our average IQ.”
“Mind your own business, Small horn.”
Lise felt her cheek wet and wiped away the drool, turning over to continue sleeping. Through her haze, she saw the corners of Ashe’s mouth slightly turned up.
Lise mumbled to herself, “Dad’s smiling so happily. Is he having a good dream?”
“Maybe it’s the training before going to Prison,” Deya suggested. “He knows the Red Cap will catch him sooner or later, so he wants to keep a positive attitude…”
