Chapter Thirty-Nine: The Wager
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“Brother, those people from Kassel College have no chance of resonating with the dragon script and deciphering its contents. If you don’t intervene, those two really will die there.”
The torrential rain drenched Lu Mingfei almost instantly. The icy water plastered his soaked uniform to his skin, and the sudden drop in temperature made the not-particularly-strong Lu Mingfei shudder.
“Then let them die.”
He paid no attention to the harsh surroundings, carefully examining the scene of this “dream” as he replied indifferently.
His own life was already wavering like duckweed in the rain. How could he possibly care about the life or death of anyone else?
The storm, mist, and dark clouds brought with them a thick, frenzied darkness. Only the incandescent lamp aboard the battered fishing boat beneath him still cast out a trembling glow. Yet the dense fog blocked most of its light, leaving it capable of illuminating only the tiny patch of ground at Lu Mingfei’s feet.
Lu Mingfei could not help frowning. He had seen this scene before.
Suddenly, a larger wave sent the little boat rocking violently. With his frail body, Lu Mingfei had no choice but to clutch the railing to keep his balance.
That was right. This was the “prophetic dream” that came to him whenever inspiration struck.
As usual, the boy wore an exquisitely tailored little suit and gleaming leather shoes, every strand of his hair perfectly in place.
He was like a plastic doll glued to the deck. Even as the waves tossed the boat violently up and down, his feet remained rooted to the spot.
The only difference was that this time he held an enormous black umbrella. It shielded him from the rain pouring down from the heavens, while water streamed from its surface and formed a curtain between him and Lu Mingfei, blocking their exchange of gazes.
The boy let Lu Mingfei shiver in the freezing rain and spoke in a calm, declarative tone:
“Those two pitiful little mice who trespassed into the land of death obtained something remarkable in there. It would be a shame if they were trapped inside and turned into dead mice.”
Lu Mingfei did not trust the boy before him. He had no idea whether this was the descent of the Holy Nyarla, or whether a fragment of his soul from within his spirit vision had arrived.
Nor did he know whether the boy was telling the truth or lying. He did not know whether Ye Sheng and Jiude Yaji had actually reached the scene from his prophetic dream, or whether they had obtained the supposedly “remarkable” things.
There were simply too few known facts. Lu Mingfei had returned to his homeland less than a month ago and had been in contact with the supernatural world for less than three days. He knew nothing. He could deduce nothing. Every clue was concealed behind layers of secrecy.
It was as though he truly stood amid this storm, mist, and black sky, while every sinister undercurrent churned and rolled through the darkness. The only thing he was qualified and capable of investigating was this tiny patch of blank light before him.
But there were things Lu Mingfei did know.
First, he knew that his situation was as precarious as a stack of eggs. Every enemy was mysterious, every enemy overwhelmingly powerful.
There was no need to elaborate on Nyarlathotep’s divine might. At present, a fragment of his soul had trapped Lu Mingfei in this wind and rain, freezing him to the bone, and Lu Mingfei could not even escape the dream and return to reality.
Second, he knew that he was worthless, and that he possessed only a tiny stake with which to wager.
That stake was his despair.
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What else could the soul fragment within his spirit vision have been entangled with him over?
It was nothing more than its inability to seize his body directly, forcing it to wait until he fell into despair and willingly surrendered it.
What could the great evil god Nyarlathotep, who transcended infinite dimensions, possibly want from insignificant Lu Mingfei?
Nothing but the despair of a human being, something with which to amuse Him.
So what if everyone else at the gambling table was more powerful than he was, with countless stakes at their disposal?
He could simply grip the final stake that everyone wanted with all his strength, then use the remaining worthless things that no one cared about to go all in.
Gamble! Of course he was going to gamble!
Whenever a question appeared before him, he chose to believe. Whenever They invited him to wager against Them, he accepted!
The rain clinging to his clothes was unbearably uncomfortable. Lu Mingfei tore off his uniform jacket and threw it to the deck. Then he roughly ripped open the buttons of the white shirt plastered to his body, pulled it off, and flung it into the river with a sweeping motion.
“Hahahahahahahahahaha! Come on!”
Lu Mingfei raised both arms toward the sky, allowing the wild downpour to scour his thin body until it trembled.
Mythos magic—Ariadne’s Thread!
This powerful spell created a three-dimensional map within its target. The map depicted the labyrinth or dungeon in which the target was located.
Under normal circumstances, it required a full day to prepare the mana and recite the incantation. But Lu Mingfei was a practiced user of the spell. He could simplify the incantation, greatly reducing the casting time at the cost of shortening its duration.
Lu Mingfei slapped the war-soldier urn at his waist once more. A dispirited middle-aged man slowly “flowed” out of it, chanting in the dragon script.
Word Spirit: Time Zero.
In the slowed rain, the foul radiance of the Mythos magic overwhelmed the incandescent lamp. The frenzied incantation transformed into genuine, tangible power and flowed into the unknown.
•
•
•
Kassel College, Library, Central Control Room.
The bone-chilling cold and the heavy moisture brought by the storm quietly receded. Lu Mingfei suddenly felt himself wrapped in a pleasant warmth. He could not help shuddering again, then smiled with satisfaction.
The thirteen elite students—handsome men and beautiful women—and the twenty-seven professors with snow-white beards all stared dumbfounded at the scene before them in utter silence.
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“P-President!”
Qilan, seated beside Lu Mingfei, gave him a forceful tug and pulled him directly back into his chair.
Lu Mingfei blinked in confusion and looked down.
His upper clothing was gone. His suit jacket and white shirt were both gone.
What?
Schneider, whose mask covered half his face, reminded him in a hoarse, shrill voice:
“So, you’re the new S-rank student, Lu Mingfei. I understand that excessive stress may have caused you to—”
Even the iron-blooded, stone-faced Schneider could not continue making excuses. After a pause, he said:
“Please see the school counselor tomorrow and undergo another psychological evaluation. I will continue monitoring the results. Time is pressing, so let us proceed.”
A trace of panic appeared on Lu Mingfei’s face.
No way…
Caesar, seated in front of him, expressionless, handed back his dark green jacket and reminded him:
“You just tore your white shirt apart yourself. Put on the jacket for now.”
His actual girlfriend, Susie, was there as well. Her expression was strange, and she kept sneaking glances at Lu Mingfei.
Lu Mingfei vaguely heard her whispering with Nono:
“Your boyfriend!”
“Your boyfriend!”
Lu Mingfei stared blankly. He was just about to ask Qilan what had happened when Qilan looked as though he mourned Lu Mingfei’s misfortune and resented his refusal to improve.
“President! Just now, you—just now…”
He sighed heavily.
“How are we supposed to recruit anyone in the future? You really should get a psychiatric evaluation tomorrow!”
Ha! What a damned boy.
Later, Lu Mingfei was going to send him to a Christian choir.
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