Chapter 360: A Little Story After the Rain
"But Jiang Si, don't you already have a way to get to the Magic Kingdom?"
Regarding the question of who would accompany Keke to see her parents, the matter was put on hold for now.
Neither of them wanted to argue in front of Jiang Si. Though both had raised their hands, they planned to discuss later at the Disaster Control Bureau who was more suitable to go.
Besides, both tacitly understood—this matter had to be kept secret. No one could know.
After all, just within the Bureau alone, there were plenty of competitors.
There was only one slot. Once it became public knowledge, both of their chances would shrink.
In this regard, the two had formed an alliance.
They'd compete behind closed doors.
As for Jiang Si, he didn't bother sitting back down on the sofa. Instead, he glanced up at Keke, who was previewing her lessons in her room upstairs.
Jiegeng's irritable voice soon softened, while Keke's timid tone carried a bit more distance.
Earlier, she'd said she wanted to build a good relationship with Keke, but after teaching numbers, those two would probably end up enemies.
Casually pouring himself a glass of water, Jiang Si, as the host, also poured tea for the two young guests.
Only then did he slowly explain to Li Yi:
"If there's a legitimate way to enter the Magic Kingdom, it's better to take the formal route."
Li Yi was still confused: "Why?"
"Smuggling in would affect Keke's background check."
"..."
Li Yi glanced at An Shiyu, who still wore a faint smile, as if nothing Jiang Si said seemed strange at all.
A total Jiang Si affirmation bot...
Unfortunately, Li Yi wasn't that kind of person. Though she didn't think her feelings for Jiang Si were weaker than Little An's.
But everyone had their own personality and way of doing things.
Most importantly.
What Jiang Si said was too absurd!
Who could seriously keep a straight face hearing, "Not letting Keke sneak in is to prevent her from failing a background check"!
"Cheep, regarding that, can't you just have Azure Cloud Sect put in a word?"
"Can't let Keke rely on others. She needs to be independent. What if she gets into the habit and starts writing essays like 'My Sect Master Teacher,' 'My Sister Bingtang' or something? That wouldn't do."
You're thinking way too far ahead!
And why Bingtang? Isn't my friend, the Magical Girl captain, pretty impressive too...
Grumbling inwardly with some dissatisfaction, Li Yi finally muttered, "I'll go ask if the Bureau can get an extra slot. It'd be more convenient to head to the Magic Kingdom together."
"Appreciate it."
"Not at all."
Then Jiang Si added, "It'd be best to find out our parents' location and situation in advance."
"Got it."
Though Li Yi's status might not be as high as Bingtang's or others from Azure Cloud Sect within the Bureau, the most important thing was her connection with the Incubators.
Right now, the Bureau itself couldn't be counted on, but the Magical Girls within it who had good relations with the Incubators were quite useful. They could extract intel from them.
Li Yi had a decent relationship with the Incubators at the Beihai Disaster Control Bureau. Those Incubators were old-timers and might be able to get some useful information in advance...
"Jiang Si really cares about his parents, huh."
At Li Yi's sigh, Little An immediately chimed in, "Of course! Jiang Si has a great relationship with his parents. Back when we were traveling together in the car, it was Jiang Si's mom and dad who told him to confess to me."
Who asked you?
Li Yi gritted her teeth in frustration. "Oh, lucky you."
When it came to emphasizing her connection with Jiang Si, An Shiyu never backed down, showing a forceful side that felt unfamiliar.
More like, when it came to romance, this girl was terrifyingly proactive.
If it weren't for An Shiyu, Li Yi wouldn't be in such a rush...
"So really, it'd be most suitable for me and Keke to go together. Because Mom and Dad would definitely remember me. It'd be easy to talk then, and they'd surely feel nostalgic about the past..."
"Hold on, after all these years, they might not recognize you. Even if they do, you're going with Keke, not Jiang Si."
Li Yi immediately cut off An Shiyu. "And you're not that close with Keke. Besides, can you really talk properly when you meet Mom and Dad? It'd probably be awkward! Keke and I have the best relationship. It'd be best for me and Keke to go together. That way, there won't be any awkward silence, and I know what Keke's thinking."
"Huh? The problem is, Mom and Dad don't even know you, right?"
"That's, that's not a big deal..."
Listening to them bicker, Jiang Si suddenly asked, "Don't you two have your own parents? Why do you keep calling mine Mom and Dad?"
One sentence silenced the argument. Both girls fell quiet.
Jiang Si assumed his words had struck a chord, making them think of their own parents.
Of their parents' nurturing kindness, feeling guilty for casually claiming others' parents as their own.
After all, that title wasn't a joke. How could you just call anyone Mom and Dad? Having a second dad, a second mom all willy-nilly made it seem like you were raised without one.
After making the girls recall their parents' goodness, Jiang Si didn't keep pressing them. Instead, he continued, "I mainly want to know if the Magic Kingdom will threaten our parents."
"It shouldn't," Li Yi quickly answered. "The Magic Kingdom is a bit strange, but violence is prohibited there. There won't be any harm..."
"No, no, that's not what I'm asking."
Jiang Si took a sip of water, then switched the TV channel. The news was now about Mochi from the Beihai Urban Construction Bureau being interviewed. Mochi looked full of energy, since during the recent Dark Chaos, Beihai had barely seen any large-scale building damage.
Being so happy was only natural.
"You're still too young. You don't know how sinister people can be," Jiang Si lectured. "These days, revenge schemes involve guiding parents into committing crimes, then reporting them so their kids get implicated, losing all qualifications for civil service exams. I'm worried our parents might succumb to temptation and testing, affecting Keke's future."
Compared to Li Yi's speechlessness, An Shiyu whispered, "That shouldn't happen. Mom and Dad have a really good relationship. They love each other deeply. They won't cheat."
"Hard to say."
Faced with Jiang Si's far-reaching concerns, Li Yi felt at a loss for words. Finally, she muttered, "Is Jiang Si's relationship with his parents not good?"
"Why do you say that?"
"Because... you always seem worried they'll hold you back..."
Others always worried about their kids not being up to snuff.
Here, Jiang Si was always worrying about his parents not being up to snuff.
"They're great friends."
Jiang Si didn't react much, just noncommittally said, "Just a bit dumb."
"Finally seeing a normal family relationship."
Mùjǐn had already seized control of An Shiyu's body. She emerged and started scarfing down Li Yi's little cakes. "This is a healthy parent-child relationship... Mm, got any drinks? I want bubble tea..."
Li Yi poked her cheek from the side. "An Shiyu's body is going to get deformed from all your eating."
"No way. I always make her exercise properly. Calorie balance!"
"Go exercise on your own time after you finish eating!"
Jiang Si watched them for a while, seeing no sign of them leaving. "Aren't you two going home for dinner?"
Both nodded. Li Yi immediately said, "Yeah, we already ate before coming."
Mùjǐn chimed in, "Right, right."
"Good." Jiang Si turned toward the kitchen. "I won't make portions for you, then."
Li Yi changed her tune in a flash: "But we're hungry again now!"
Mùjǐn: "Exactly! Cake doesn't fill you up!"
"Bullshit. You don't need to eat anymore. You've already eaten so many cakes!"
"Magical Girls can eat unlimited cake without consequences. That's the rule!"
"Which Magical Girl's rule is that?!"
"Doesn't matter, doesn't matter! Girls have different stomachs for sweets and meals!"
"That's what fat people tell themselves."
"Little An isn't fat! I have spatial abilities. I can just send it somewhere else when I swallow..."
"Wasting food."
"I'll strangle you!"
......
After dinner, a light rain started falling outside.
With her tutoring finished, Keke could finally go out and play with her two friends.
Jiang Si wasn't about to ruin his sister's fun after she'd completed her tasks. He just reminded her to come back early tonight.
As they went out, An Shiyu kept talking about the pool and swimsuits.
She seemed very persistent, probably confident in the swimsuit she'd bought.
Finally, Li Yi insisted that Keke accompany her to buy a swimsuit too.
Looks like she'd gotten competitive about that as well.
Jiang Si naturally didn't stay home either. Since he planned to go to the Magic Kingdom, he needed to return to Azure Cloud Sect.
Jiegeng, who had finished tutoring Keke, came out with him, holding an oil-paper umbrella.
When it came to maintaining her antique, refined style, Jiegeng was probably even more particular than Thousand-Pinweed.
Her miko outfit could easily get splashed with mud in the rain, but her slow, graceful movements always kept the clothes clean.
As she held the umbrella for the Sect Master, she stayed half a step behind, creating an instant visual hierarchy of status.
Her serene demeanor and gentle movements made her seem not just like a miko, but like some highly tolerant maid.
As they walked along, they naturally attracted plenty of attention.
"That Jiang kid again."
"He switches fast. This time it's a foreign girl. Picky taste..."
"Exotic style. Envious."
"He'll probably get dumped in a few days. Should we ask for her number? Comfort her when she's heartbroken..."
Jiegeng listened nearby, spun her umbrella, then revealed half her face and smiled faintly in the direction of the speakers.
For a moment, the drizzling rain seemed to freeze.
The group gossiping nearby instantly fell silent.
Jiang Si glanced over but said nothing.
Jiegeng explained herself, "That wasn't me being petty, you know."
"Yeah." Jiang Si wasn't interested in what she'd done. "When are you giving the body back?"
"I am Jiegeng?" Jiegeng tilted the umbrella slightly. "The Sect Master seems mistaken. Unlike Miss An Shiyu, I'm not really a Disaster Beast that barged into this body. If it were two separate consciousnesses sharing one body, then Jiegeng and An Shiyu's traits would overlap, which is very dangerous."
"Dangerous how?"
"Dangerous because Jiegeng would lose her uniqueness. And unlike Miss An Shiyu, I couldn't cling to the Sect Master every day, which would push me to the margins. As a lower-tier replacement for Miss An Shiyu, I'd only be remembered when the Sect Master can't see her and wants a substitute..."
"You still talk way too much nonsense."
"Heh, it's the same in web novels, Sect Master. Characters with similar traits just show up less often." Jiegeng shook the rainwater off her umbrella. "Anyway, Jiegeng is Jiegeng. That so-called Disaster Beast personality is just another Jiegeng created by absorbing the Disaster Beast's negative emotions. At heart, it's still Jiegeng. If the Sect Master likes Jiegeng, you'd get two girlfriends without the risk of cheating, because it's just me splitting apart..."
I guess that's two negatives making a positive.
"Of course, if you like An Shiyu, there's the risk of becoming a scumbag who cheats, because Mùjǐn and An Shiyu are actually two different people. That's our biggest difference."
Walking quietly along the rain-soaked path, Jiang Si didn't say anything about Jiegeng's rambling.
Truth be told, he wasn't very familiar with that irritable Jiegeng personality.
Though he did appreciate her quite a bit. As a battle maniac, Jiegeng truly was all about fighting.
Even if she rarely won among the true-transmission disciples.
Her interactions with Jiang Si were mostly challenges and beatings.
Very pure.
But every time after a beating, when the irritable Jiegeng's eyes cleared up, that other personality influenced by the Disaster Beast would appear.
So when it came to conversation, this Jiegeng was the one Jiang Si was more familiar with.
Though Bingtang always thought this personality was rather unhealthy, treating the irritable battle-type one as the main personality.
As they walked, they saw a little girl fall in the rain. Jiegeng casually helped her up. Soon, the child's parents came looking, paused for a moment at Jiegeng's miko outfit, but still gratefully took their child back.
She lightly brushed a strand of hair from her temple, wiped away raindrops, and suddenly asked, "Sect Master, if I accidentally tripped and pulled down your pants, would you help me up first or pull your pants up first?"
"Press your head down first."
Jiegeng tilted her head, her dark eyes showing surprise. "Oh? So bold? Well, Jiegeng could accept that..."
"Press it into the mud to sober you up."
"Though I already guessed that, you really have no sense of romance, Sect Master."
Seeing they were about to reach Azure Cloud Sect, Jiegeng lowered her umbrella.
The light rain pattered against her clothes. The miko lightly skipped through the rain, moving ahead of the Sect Master. She put away the umbrella and held it behind her. Her soaked miko outfit clung to her body, faintly revealing skin. Her smile was charming, her wet hair making her even more alluring.
"Before, when I heard people say 'the moonlight is beautiful tonight' as a way to confess, I thought I understood—just Eastern subtlety. But today, when it rained and I desperately wanted to tell someone how happy the rain made me, I finally understood what 'the moonlight is beautiful' really feels like."
"Actually, 'the moonlight is beautiful' isn't subtle at all. It's even the complete opposite of subtle. It's a very direct, very passionate confession."
Indeed, light rain was pleasant, not messy, but romantic.
But the speaker had intention, while the listener had none.
"Sect Master, do you know? It's raining in Beihai today."
Saying something utterly trivial, Jiegeng reached out to catch the light rain and murmured, "It's raining... The effect of rain is that Water-type moves' power increases by 1.5 times, Fire-type moves' power decreases by 0.5 times, Weather Ball becomes Water-type with double power, Thunder and Hurricane become certain-hit, Solar Beam's power is halved, Synthesis, Morning Sun, and Moonlight recover only one-quarter HP, Swift Swim doubles Speed, Rain Dish recovers 1/16 max HP per turn, Dry Skin recovers 1/8 max HP, and Hydration cures status conditions..."
"Sorry, I was possessed just now... Mainly because I suddenly remembered my rain team's core didn't get its visa..."
Jiang Si just snorted coldly. Trash Beast Taming Genre.
On the way, he also asked Jiegeng about Keke's studies. Though it almost made Jiegeng snap and brought out her other personality, Keke's studies were ultimately good. When Keke actually focused, she was a very smart kid.
That wasn't some empty consolation for a dullard.
After Jiegeng finished explaining her teaching plans for the future, the two had arrived at Azure Cloud Sect.
Several people looked at Jiegeng oddly.
They'd all heard that whole rain-walk chat just now.
Even Bingtang's gaze toward Jiegeng carried a hint of subtle pity.
Qinghua directly grabbed the soaking-wet Jiegeng and, while drying her off, whispered, "With such good atmosphere! Why didn't you seize it? Why'd you get possessed by the rabbit brain?!"
"I couldn't help it! I had to suppress the kind main personality..."
Yumo also wiped her raincoat and muttered softly, "It, it should have been mine."
Hearing the true-transmission disciples' muttering, Bingtang didn't get involved. Instead, she looked at her Sect Master, took out a handkerchief to wipe the rain from his face, and casually tidied his hair.
"Regarding the Magic Kingdom's location, with the Bureau's help, we found traces of where it appeared before and found eyewitnesses."
Hearing this, Jiang Si perked up. "When?"
"Not long ago. When that senior Qingying mentioned, the Full Bloom one, fell unconscious, someone observed the Magic Kingdom's appearance. At the same time, an Incubator took away Senior Qingluan's Miracle Seed."
Jiang Si had almost forgotten about that.
Qingying joined Azure Cloud Sect to save her unconscious senior. Jiang Si had even personally promised to help her.
But remembering it now wasn't too late.
"So where is the Magic Kingdom? At the World Tree's roots, or its trunk?"
"Right in the new world."
"Yeah?"
Bingtang said with extreme seriousness, "Not only is it in the new world—it's in West China."