Chapter 41: Ultimate Detective!

Restricted Fantasy Invasion

Tong Yingying:

"I fell asleep last night. What''s up?"

Sitting inside the low-key yet luxurious black electric car parked at the entrance, Yan Huan enjoyed the cool breeze of the air conditioning. He stared at the Plane messages on his phone, pondering the possibility that Tong Yingying was the host of the fourth Modifier.

It was a perfectly reasonable explanation, but the more Yan Huan looked at it, the more something felt wrong.

Because this message had been sent by Tong Yingying at eight twenty-eight in the morning.

Given Tong Yingying''s nocturnal sleep schedule, unless she had pulled an all-nighter, it was absolutely impossible for her to text him this early.

Yet she claimed she had fallen asleep last night and missed his message?

Just what exactly was she doing last night?

"It is rare for your schedule to be this normal."

Well, her tone was exactly the same as always.

Yan Huan sent back a speechless emoji and stopped replying.

As for Bai Yi''s side...

He opened Bai Yi''s chat window and reviewed their conversation from earlier this morning.

"Are you Bai Yi?"

He had followed that up with a Cat Emoji.

"Yes~"

Her reply to Yan Huan was accompanied by a chibi sticker of a little girl, the cartoon character nodding adorably.

Following that was her actual message:

"Mama told me to add your contact info. She said that if you want to come to the event on Sunday, we have insider tickets here."

She then sent over a QR code.

"Just let them scan this when you arrive, and you will not have to wait in line~"

"Thank you so much!"

"You are welcome."

"Please do your best later as well. I will be there in person to watch."

"Okay, thank you for your support~"

Aside from that, they had not exchanged any other words.

Inside the electric car, Myau-chan, wearing its tiny yellow scarf, soundlessly appeared on his shoulder. It stared at the messages on the screen and asked in confusion,

"Did you not say before that you were going to act like a fan of her music? Is it really okay to send such bland messages, meow?"

It was baffled by Yan Huan''s behavior of saying hello but failing to strike up a real conversation.

Yan Huan did not look at Myau-chan. After all, Ye Shiyu was sitting right next to him. She was also looking at her phone, seemingly texting Ye Lan.

And naturally, there was a specific reason for how he replied to Bai Yi.

''Myau-chan, there are many types of fans. Distance creates beauty. Only a fan who maintains an appropriate distance from their Idol is a good fan...''

''Since I acted enthusiastically offline before, it is more appropriate to play it a bit cool online.''

"Meow?"

Myau-chan did not understand at all, and Yan Huan did not bother to explain further, simply locking his phone.

Beside him, Ye Shiyu''s fingers tapped against her screen a few times as she communicated with Ye Lan on Plane.

"Mama, Xiao Huan is in the car right now. I want to invite him to have dinner together tonight."

''If things kept going like this, once Xiao Huan returned home, she could privately express her welcome to him, her mother would naturally invite him to stay, and his moving in would be a matter of course, right?''

Her breathing gradually grew ragged. The rationality trying to rein in the wild stallion of her Desire suddenly exerted its strength, cursing loudly within her mind.

''Rationality: Ye Shiyu, I think you are being incredibly indecent. Do you not know what will happen if Xiao Huan comes to live at home?''

''Desire: What else could happen? It is not like Xiao Huan will lose a piece of flesh. This way, Mama and Chen Yi can take care of him, he will not have to work part-time, he can rest properly, and he will not show that exhausted expression... As an Older Sister, it is perfectly normal to take care of the younger brother you like, right?''

''Rationality: Is that what you call liking him? You just crave his body, you degenerate! Did we not agree to stop using Hypnosis on him?''

''Desire: Oh, please, would it not be a complete waste of a heavenly gift to ignore such a convenient tool? It was born specifically to grant your wishes, was it not?''

''Rationality: Bullshit! These twisted thoughts are absolutely not the right way to interact with people! Ye Shiyu, you need to calm down. You know it is wrong to use Hypnosis on Xiao Huan, right?''

''Desire: Besides, Shiyu, think about it. If you do not do this, will not that Vice President, Sakuramiya Hitomi or whatever, snatch Xiao Huan away very soon?''

''Rationality: ...''

''Desire: Xiao Huan''s sleeping face, the smiles Xiao Huan gives you, the way Xiao Huan takes care of you... All of this! Everything will Vanish like Smoke and Clouds once Xiao Huan gets together with someone else.''

''Rationality: ...''

''Desire: Ultimately, you have only been taken care of because Xiao Huan is gentle to everyone. You are not anyone special to him at all, and he does not belong to you. The moment Xiao Huan finds someone he truly likes, you will be absolutely nothing!!''

''Rationality: ...''

''Desire: Just think about it. That Sakuramiya Hitomi dared to speak to you like that earlier even though she is not even dating Xiao Huan yet. Who does she think she is?''

''Rationality: ...''

''Desire: If you ask me, you should ruthlessly use Hypnosis to claim Xiao Huan, to possess him exactly like you possess those Dolls. He would not have to think about anything; whatever you want him to think, he will think. Would that not be wonderful?''

''Rationality: I think Desire makes a valid point.''

Ye Shiyu''s struggling rationality abruptly collapsed at the thought of Sakuramiya Hitomi from earlier. Initially, she had wanted to suggest to her mother that they "eat out".

That way, after eating, Yan Huan would still have the chance to leave.

But thinking of all this, the words she was about to send were driven by Desire and morphed into:

"I will let Chen Yi know. How about we eat at home tonight?"

''Once dinner is over, there is no way Xiao Huan will be leaving.''

''It is a very long trip back to the South Ward from Kyogo Ward at night. As long as he stays over, I can...''

''Wait, no. I already used Hypnosis once on Tuesday when Xiao Huan was fixing my Laptop.''

''Does that mean I only have one fifteen-minute usage left for this week?''

''But there is still the entire weekend ahead!''

At this thought, Ye Shiyu''s expression as she looked at her phone shifted into one of deep dissatisfaction.

''If only I could increase the number of uses and extend the duration a bit...''

As she thought this, the black aura known as Desire began to surge once more, prompting Myau-chan, who was sitting on Yan Huan''s shoulder, to let out a sharp "Meow."

Hearing Myau-chan''s voice, Yan Huan turned his head to look at Ye Shiyu.

Sensing Yan Huan''s gaze, the dense black aura covering Ye Shiyu dissipated in an instant.

She turned her head to look back at Yan Huan. Her expressionless face somehow managed to look a bit silly and adorable, as if silently asking:

"What is wrong, Xiao Huan?"

"..."

Yan Huan shot a glance at Myau-chan, his eyes conveying a clear message:

''Myau-chan, why do I feel like she is up to something shady?''

''You do not just feel it, I feel it too, meow.''

This was the meaning behind the look Myau-chan returned.

Yan Huan smiled faintly and had no choice but to take the initiative and ask,

"Older Sister Shiyu, are we heading back to Kyogo Ward for dinner tonight?"

Ye Shiyu was just about to nod when the female driver in the front seat, wearing a crisp suit, suddenly tilted her head slightly and spoke up,

"Yes, Shiyu and Yan Huan are both in the car..."

Someone had called, and the driver was conversing through her Bluetooth Earbuds.

"Ah, okay, understood, Boss Ye."

As she spoke, she lightly tapped the Bluetooth earbud in her left ear, then immediately turned her head to say to Ye Shiyu and Yan Huan,

"Boss Ye happens to be in the South Ward today. She said she originally planned to visit Yan Huan anyway. Since you are both in the car right now, Boss Ye told me to drive to the South Ward for dinner."

"Ah, that is wonderful, though I always feel like there is nothing good to eat in the South Ward."

Yan Huan said this to Ye Shiyu, who opened her mouth but found herself entirely speechless for a moment,

"..."

''Mama?!''

''That is right, today is Friday, so Mama finally has some free time!''

''Before I returned the clothes, she kept saying she wanted to see what Xiao Huan''s place in the South Ward looked like. She was very concerned about his living conditions.''

But since Ye Lan had already made the arrangements, Ye Shiyu could not find any excuse to refuse.

''There is still a chance...''

And so, the electric car that was originally heading toward Ye Lan''s mansion in Kyogo Ward turned around mid-journey, heading for the South Ward instead.

Along the way, Yan Huan chatted with Ye Shiyu intermittently, but Ye Shiyu was genuinely terrible at socializing.

Even though Yan Huan took the initiative to bring up topics and she tried very hard to respond, the conversations inevitably died out after two or three sentences.

In the end, they simply resigned themselves to playing on their phones for a while.

The Student Council administration group chat was already bustling.

"Everyone, when we go to the gaming convention on Sunday, I will introduce you all to a few friends in the circle!"

Yabashi Ki also sent a sticker of a Two-Dimensional beautiful girl—a character from some game he played, the type where her chest bounced animatedly.

The first to reply to him was the Secretary, Yurianna.

"Sounds great! It is my first time attending this kind of event! Can I cosplay?"

"No problem, there will be tons of cosplayers there. But we are going in two days. Do you have time to buy a cosplay outfit, Yurianna?"

"Hehe, I am on very good terms with the school''s Anime Club. I will just have them lend me a few sets. What about you guys? Want to cosplay together?"

She tagged absolutely everyone in the group.

Sakuramiya Hitomi: "I will pass. I do not know much about these things. I will just look around when we get there."

Yan Huan: "I will not cosplay either. I do not really have a character I want to dress up as."

Ashley: "Speaking of which, did you guys completely forget to invite me?! And you are tagging me to cosplay?!"

Yurianna sent a "shattered" emoji,

"I-I-I-I forgot! I bought two bundled tickets from a scalper. I was originally going to invite you because I figured Sakuramiya would not want to go. But then Sakuramiya actually agreed!"

As soon as the weekend arrived, Sakuramiya would stay home to take care of her kittens, generally showing zero interest in this sort of event.

That idiot Yurianna had probably planned to go with Ashley from the start.

She had casually invited Sakuramiya Hitomi in passing, completely failing to anticipate that she would say yes.

Then, while grinning like a fool, she had completely forgotten about Ashley.

Yan Huan did not even have to think to figure out exactly how her brain worked.

Yabashi Ki sent a black-and-white sticker of a shocked loli,

"I bought bundled scalper tickets too. I gave one to the President."

His phone was entirely stocked with these highly cultured Two-Dimensional anime girl stickers.

At this moment, Sakuramiya Hitomi sent a message,

"Ashley, you should go. I am not really interested in these things. I just thought Yurianna had an extra ticket, so..."

Ashley began to politely decline as well,

"Vice President, it is fine. You go. I happen to have some things to deal with this weekend anyway."

"No, no, don''t! This kind of thing... Sakuramiya, Ashley! Wuwuwu! You two go! I won''t go! Don''t be like this!!" That absolute blockhead Yurianna straight-up sent a voice memo!!

Ashley: "Are you an idiot?"

Sakuramiya Hitomi: "Truly an idiot..."

Yan Huan was amused by Yurianna''s antics. He sent a "stop fighting" Cat Emoji to the chat,

"Sakuramiya, I have an extra ticket here for you. Let''s all go together."

"President?! Where did you get a ticket?"

"Yeah, we had such a hard time snatching ours! This gaming convention is incredibly popular. The online prices have been jacked up crazy high by scalpers."

Yan Huan considered it for a moment before offering a brief explanation,

"A friend gave it to me. Since there is an extra one anyway, the five of us can all go together."

"Hehe, that is perfect! I can cosplay and go have fun there~"

"Where should we meet up?"

Reading Ashley''s reply, Yan Huan thought for a second and responded,

"Let''s meet near the subway station. Yabashi Ki and I will take the subway over. Ashley should be taking it too, right?"

"Sounds good."

The simple-minded Yurianna was instantly satisfied, Yabashi Ki breathed a sigh of relief, and Ashley had not really cared that much about the ticket situation to begin with.

Only Sakuramiya Hitomi, behind her phone screen in the Student Council Office, suddenly sat up straight.

She blinked rapidly, then hurriedly flipped open her laptop and searched for the ticket prices for the Linmen gaming convention.

Scalpers had already driven the price of bundled tickets over two thousand, and now even those were completely sold out.

Thinking about it carefully, Yabashi Ki had given the President his ticket inside the Office this Wednesday. Her Room Barrier had recorded it perfectly.

The President had accepted it at the time, which meant he did not possess this new ticket back then.

Therefore, he must have acquired this new ticket within the last two days.

''Did that older sister of Ye Shiyu give it to him?''

''No...''

''The President is taking the subway. If Ye Shiyu were going, they would definitely be riding in a car together.''

''In other words, someone else gave the President that ticket?''

''Who else could it be?''

''I know the President''s every move like the back of my hand.''

''I know exactly when he leaves home every day, when he comes to school, when he enters the Classroom, when he enters the Student Council Office, and when he goes to work part-time!''

''When did the President meet another friend capable of giving him this kind of ticket?''

Sakuramiya Hitomi stared at her computer, opening the camera logs one by one, following the footage that tracked Yan Huan.

''His desk was inexplicably splashed with paint?''

''Who did this? Who has the nerve?!''

Frowning, Sakuramiya Hitomi scrubbed the camera footage back and forth, yet failed to spot a single flaw.

She only saw footage of the police entering the School Gate and quickly leaving. She later learned from Yurianna that they had apparently come looking for a student named "Bai Yi."

''A Supernatural Event?''

''It shares a striking similarity with the math teacher getting a turtle drawn on his face last Friday.''

But suddenly, a flash of inspiration flooded her mind.

''On Monday, when I used the Room Barrier to lock the President and myself inside, the President seemed to suspect that a Supernatural Event was occurring too.''

''Although the President has forgotten about it now due to the Memory Correction after leaving the Jiejiè, but...''

''Is it possible that the perpetrator behind these apparent Supernatural Events is someone just like me?''

''Which means, I might not be special. It is highly likely that there are others like me who possess some kind of supernatural Ability!''

Sakuramiya Hitomi''s heart skipped a beat. Deep down, she felt relieved that she had stayed hidden and had not used her Jiejiè recklessly.

''That Spencer who could shatter my Jiejiè with a single kick...''

''This mysterious person who drew on Zhou Bin''s face and splashed paint on the President''s desk...''

''Could they all possess some sort of Ability?!''

''And could they have targeted the completely oblivious President?!''

At this thought, Sakuramiya Hitomi''s breath hitched.

''Even with my Jiejiè, all I did was monitor the President without any blind spots, and lock him up with me to confirm our feelings. I have not done anything out of line at all!''

''But there is absolutely no guarantee what these other people might do to the President!''

''No, I must protect the President no matter what!''

At this moment, Sakuramiya Hitomi seemed to plunge into some kind of "Dark Forest predicament."

Her movements as she pulled up camera logs on the computer grew increasingly rapid, her gaze constantly shifting along Yan Huan''s trajectory.

Outside the Bar where Yan Huan worked part-time on Wednesday night, her hand dragging the Mouse abruptly came to a halt.

She saw an unprecedented number of police cars entering the South Ward, coming to a stop right in front of the Bar.

And Yan Huan escorted a girl outside, handing her over to the police and a middle-aged woman.

As the girl left, she kept her eyes fixed on Yan Huan the entire time.

Sakuramiya Hitomi froze slightly, then scrolled the wheel, zooming the camera''s feed in bit by bit.

She had purchased very high-end cameras, so the image was not blurry in the slightest, even at night.

Thus, she clearly saw the identity of that beautiful girl with her head bowed and tears seemingly in her eyes...

Sakuramiya Hitomi furrowed her brows, narrowing her eyes.

Then, as if to verify her own theory, she pulled open a drawer and took out the ticket Yurianna had given her.

Under the sunlight, her eyes rapidly scanned the list of invited guests printed on the back of the ticket...

Finally, her gaze stopped on a specific name within the "VIP Section".

"Bai Yi..."

Sakuramiya Hitomi murmured that name under her breath.

Everything made sense now.

She almost subconsciously deduced that the so-called "friend" who gave the President the ticket was Bai Yi.

Sakuramiya Hitomi set the ticket down. After a moment of silence, she looked at the computer folder packed full of camera feeds.

Then, tapping lightly on her keyboard, she created two new folders outside the main directory.

One was named "Aria Spencer", and the other was named "Bai Yi".

Once finished, she dragged these two folders into yet another directory.

This folder was named:

"High-Priority Threats"

"Xiao Huan, I have not seen you in so long! Have you gotten thinner again?!"

In the South Ward, inside a spacious private room of a luxurious Hotel, Yan Huan walked in only to see Ye Lan standing up from the seat of honor.

She was wearing a women''s suit, looking both capable and sharp. However, upon seeing Yan Huan, the expression on her face instantly shifted back to the delicate and touching appearance she had worn a week ago.

Her expressions were even more vivid than those of her daughter, Ye Shiyu.

"Auntie Ye, we just saw each other last week. How has it been a long time?"

Yan Huan smiled helplessly, then spread his arms and looked down at his own body, saying,

"And not only have I not gotten thinner, I actually feel like I have gained a little weight. It is probably just the different clothes; my school uniform from last week was a bit looser."

Ye Lan smiled as she sized Yan Huan up. Seeing that he still had that same sunny disposition, she breathed a sigh of relief and sat back down in the seat of honor.

Inside the enormous room, it was just the three of them.

"I originally said I was going to visit the house you are living in tonight, but I did not expect your Older Sister to actually take the initiative and invite you home for dinner~"

Yan Huan knew perfectly well that Ye Shiyu had invited him on her own earlier, and he had intended to come anyway...

Mainly because he had seen her phone screen light up.

Ye Shiyu sat down, smoothing out her black hair somewhat bashfully, not daring to meet Yan Huan''s gaze.

Yan Huan, on the other hand, sat down naturally, gave Ye Shiyu a smiling glance, and then said,

"Whether it is Auntie or Older Sister Shiyu inviting me, I would always come."

"Hehe, you are such a sweet talker."

Ye Lan covered her mouth and chuckled lightly.

"But Auntie Ye really shouldn''t go see the place I live in. I usually don''t clean it much, so it''s as messy as a dog kennel. It would be quite embarrassing."

"How can that be? Even boys need to pay attention to hygiene and shouldn''t be so sloppy. Otherwise, Xiao Huan, what will you do if you ever invite friends over to your house?"

"Growing up, I have basically never had any friends in the South Ward..."

Yan Huan was smiling as he prepared to continue speaking, but the image of a petite girl walking behind him with her head bowed suddenly popped into his mind.

It was usually in the late afternoon. She would reach out her little hand, grab the back hem of his shirt, and hold on tight, quietly asserting her presence to Yan Huan.

As if afraid of getting lost, she would obediently follow closely behind him.

And whenever he turned his head to look at her, her face would flush completely red, and she would hurriedly pull back the hand gripping his clothes.

Then, in a soft, sweet voice, she would tell him,

"Xiao Huan, do you want to come play at my house? Mama bought popsicles, she said they are super sweet. I left them in the fridge without eating any. I want to eat them together with you."

"..."

Thinking of this, Yan Huan paused slightly, even cutting off the words he had been about to say.

"Xiao Huan?"

Ye Lan spoke up in confusion, and Yan Huan''s thoughts were yanked back to reality.

"My apologies, Auntie Ye."

"Did you think of something?"

"No, I just remembered a very good friend I used to play with back when we were kids at the Orphanage."

Ye Shiyu''s gaze abruptly snapped up, shooting a sharp gleam as she looked at Yan Huan sitting across from her.

Ye Lan, meanwhile, covered her mouth and asked,

"Oh? A childhood sweetheart? Are you two still in touch?"

Yan Huan smiled helplessly and shook his head.

"She moved out of Linmen a very long time ago. Perhaps I will never see her again."

Ye Shiyu lowered her head as if breathing a sigh of relief, but Ye Lan cupped her chin with a look of pity and sighed,

"That is truly a shame..."

"Yes, it truly is a shame."