Chapter 5: 24 Hours (Part I)

When facing difficulties, one must not sit idly by, nor should one let their brain seize up. Think—you must think.

Wisdom and a sharp mind are the greatest distinctions between humans and wild animals. When a wild boar or a stray dog encounters a sudden situation it cannot comprehend, it might howl or attack, but humans in such circumstances utilize a calm mind and rigorous logic to find the path to a solution.

Gongsun Ce was currently thinking seriously under his quilt, attempting to uncover the truth hidden behind the confusing facade. He had woken up in his own bedroom to find his good friend and neighbor standing by his bedside without a change in expression, handing him his glasses. What kind of truth lay behind this?

—It was highly likely an assassination attempt.

Ancient empires had famous tales of assassins who, failing to strike with a blade, attempted to escape by offering the sword as a gift; how similar this was to Qin Qianbai’s behavior! The young lady was a master of martial arts; taking a life with a temple of a pair of glasses would surely be no difficult task for her. Everything was clear now: for some reason, Qin Qianbai had been overcome with murderous intent, used the spare key he had given her in the past to sneak into his room early in the morning, and grabbed the nearest pair of glasses to carry out the deed!

This was a textbook case of impulsive murder. Had he not woken up in time, he would likely be dead by now.

Gongsun Ce broke out in a cold sweat. He scrambled out from under the covers, clutched his pillow, and shouted, "I am innocent! Why does the Lady of Qin seek to slay me?!"

The Lady of Qin placed her hands on her hips and looked at him, saying, "You are a barbarian."

You, the one who attempted to break in and commit murder, are the one pinning labels on me?

Gongsun Ce clutched his chest, heartbroken: "I, Ce, hail from the Central Plains; I am well-versed in literature, I hold fast to integrity, and my actions are guided by righteousness. How can I be called a barbarian?"

"You spurn kindness and anger your neighbors; you cast aside faith and forget righteousness. Thus, you are a barbarian."

"I... I... I..."

Gongsun Ce could not come up with a retort. "Wait a moment, let me find the words—"

"Ten."

A countdown had started?!

Gongsun Ce frantically searched his limited memory of classical Chinese. He finally managed to think of half a suitable sentence in a rush: "The reason why words are..."

"Zero-one."

"What the hell is a binary countdown?!"

"Zero-zero. You have lost, A-Ce."

The consequence of using precious thinking time for quips was losing an inexplicable game.

Since when did they start having conversations in classical Chinese? And why on earth was a fool competing against a young lady from an imperial noble family in such a thing?

Gongsun Ce held his forehead and said with grief and indignation, "How did I ever cast aside faith and forget righteousness..."

"It was agreed: within 24 hours, I would obtain ownership of A-Ce."

"The phrasing there is subtly wrong, Miss Qin. I agreed to a penalty game, not a deed of indentured servitude!"

The young lady expressionlessly raised her phone.

"I sent a text message in advance, but the agreed-upon time passed, and A-Ce did nothing. Therefore, I came to confirm your survival status."

Don't make it sound like I had an accident.

Phone, phone... Gongsun Ce, having just woken up, couldn't help but yawn as he fumbled for his phone to check.

The latest unread message had been received at 7:59.

He checked his alarm clock, which was set for exactly eight o'clock, meaning...

"—You waited less than a minute at most! This isn't even fishing for a confession; this is dynamiting the pond!"

Qin Qianbai lowered her head and thought for a moment.

"Is this a hint that you wish for me to pour hot oil over you?"

"Could you please stop treating me like a fish to be cooked so naturally?"

And stop heating the oil so fast.

Forget the eggs and breadcrumbs; at least coat me in batter before putting me in the pan.

"Deep-fried salted fish."

"I’ve been demoted from fresh fish to salted fish!?"

This was impossible; what a supernatural scene. Just waking up and having to deal with this from a good neighbor made him almost think he was still dreaming.

Gongsun Ce leaned against the headboard and said weakly, "I'm getting up. I promise to keep my word and listen to your orders for the whole day... but would you mind going out for a moment so I can wash up and change into some loungewear?"

"..."

Qin Qianbai sat in the chair, staring at the wardrobe, appearing quite hesitant.

"I don't know what you're thinking, but I hope you don't voice your thoughts as orders."

"Inside the wardrobe, are there... strange books?"

"No one hides physical comics anymore in this day and age!"

In the end, even now, this person still lacked common sense in the most subtle of places.

***

Twenty minutes later.

"The first order begins now," the young lady said, sitting at the dining table. "A-Ce, make breakfast."

"I can tell you're hungry."

"Strive for the standard of a head chef from the Imperial Capital."

"Miss Qin, I am neither a graduate of a genius culinary academy nor some strange God of Cooking. No matter how hard I try, I can only fry you an egg and toast some bread."

Eggs, bread, bacon, and a bowl of milk—this was the breakfast Gongsun Ce usually made for himself. Fortunately, the refrigerator was well-stocked. After confirming the portions, he made an identical serving for the girl.

Using telekinesis to beat the eggs, using telekinesis to control the spatula, using telekinesis to operate the toaster...

The gray-haired youth sat comfortably at the table, maneuvering the fried bacon and eggs so they flew onto the plate.

Qin Qianbai remarked, "Someone who didn't know better would think the kitchenware had gained sentience."

"Why use my hands when I have psychokinesis?"

Gongsun Ce chewed on his bread, intending to find a topic to chat about—to distract the girl and prevent her from thinking of terrifying orders like "eat the eggs with your nose."

"How is your martial arts training going lately, Miss?"

"No substantial progress."

The girl, cutting her egg with a knife and fork, evaluated her own efforts with the objectivity of a third party.

"For me, reaching a higher realm is extremely difficult. My daily training mainly focuses on the application of martial arts, that is, the techniques. During this time, I have tried to create new moves, but..."

Gongsun Ce recalled the battles from a while ago and guessed, "All of them were seen in the Non-Heaven Pure Land?"

The young lady nodded like a bystander.

"All of them were just one of the possibilities simulated by Qin Ming. When I had an inspiration and studied it step by step, working hard and painstakingly to realize it, I discovered it was a reproduction that had already been simulated by that man, lacking any practical meaning. Rather than frustration, the feeling of unpleasantness was even stronger."

The harder she tried, the more she discovered she was still walking on a path planned by the enemy. Every step forward made her experience her own limits, while simultaneously making her feel the unfathomable strength of the enemy more deeply. Gongsun Ce tried to imagine how his friend felt, thinking that for someone as competitive and driven as her, this might be an even more embarrassing experience than defeat.

"So you're quite unhappy."

"Yes, my pride as a martial artist has been wounded."

No wonder you came to trouble me early in the morning. You really are like your uncle when it comes to dragging innocent people into things; is this the way of your Qin family?

Qin Qianbai finished her second fried egg and asked in return, "And you, A-Ce?"

Gongsun Ce slumped in his chair and answered lazily, "I haven't even touched the edge of 'Spirit Illumination'! Yan Qi is as cautious as someone with a nervous breakdown. Every night I go over, I just recite classical Chinese, learn basic knowledge, and practice meditation rituals, only to be slapped awake by him every time before I can successfully enter a dream."

"Enter a dream?"

"He says it's a step every Practitioner of Impermanence must go through at the start." Gongsun Ce said with a bitter face, "But my situation is special; I'm prone to going out of control if I'm not careful... so for nearly a month, I've been doing situational simulations and basic ritual practice, and he absolutely won't let me start training for real."

Qin Qianbai’s family also had Practitioners of Impermanence affiliated with the authorities. She vaguely remembered her uncles saying that the entry into the Law of Impermanence often required time measured in years.

A-Ce’s situation sounded like he was "ready to start at any time but was being held back." She thought of the appearance of the Malignant Practitioners and understood the source of Yan Qi's caution.

Being too talented was not necessarily a good thing.

"A-Ce is also stuck in a stagnant situation."

"I haven't even started, so it doesn't count as hitting a wall. Your situation should be more serious." Gongsun Ce shrugged, "So! Since neither of us is making much progress lately, why not push the training aside today and do something fun!"

The young lady finished the last bite of her breakfast and pushed the plate aside.

"A-Ce, you dare to make a sexually harassing comment to your master."

"I’m gradually becoming too lazy to critique your standards. By the way, since when did you start calling yourself 'master'?! When will this bit finally end?!"

Qin Qianbai picked up the milk and took a sip. The girl's lips parted gently, coated with a layer of milky white, and then a small tongue peeked out from between her teeth, licking her lips and skillfully wiping away the milk stain.

The esper rested his chin on one hand, observing the girl's small movements across the table, feeling that cooking this meal wasn't such a loss after all.

"I sense a rude gaze."

She immediately pursed her lips. Just how sharp is your intuition?

"If looking at your face is forbidden, I'll have to talk to you with my eyes closed from now on. Speaking of rudeness... have the people from the Mutual Aid Society and the Light Core come by again recently?"

Gongsun Ce pretended to be concerned, but was actually changing the subject.

The girl recalled for a few seconds: "The members of the Mutual Aid Society haven't been seen since their initial invitation was rejected, and the members of the Light Core stopped bothering me after coming four times."

Gongsun Ce was taken aback.

"Four times? Those chuunibyou are really free."

He wanted to ask why he hadn't known, but then he realized that such a thought was the wrong one. The young lady had long since passed the stage of needing to be looked after; she was capable of handling these trivial matters. Now, it was he who was being helped more often.

"I am a talent of the highest order and should move toward a higher stage—that is what the people who came to solicit me said."

Truly nonsensical words; as expected of a group of chuunibyou.

"Light Core" and "Mutual Aid Society" were the names of esper organizations. The former was an elite group founded around a certain esper, believing in elitism and viewing the strength of one's ability as the standard for judging talent. The full name of the latter was the "Celestial City Esper Mutual Aid Society," which advocated for espers helping each other through difficulties. There were no strict standards for recruitment; as long as there were no major problems, you could join after submitting an application.

Looking at the descriptions, they seemed like common clubs at a university, but Gongsun Ce, who had dealt with both, had a different opinion.

"Don't believe their act; they're just the Wings of Death in a new skin." He picked up a piece of bacon with his chopsticks and frowned, "You've seen the leader of the Light Core; an arrogant, mentally deficient person. As for the Mutual Aid Society... their president is a decent person, but not the type to be a leader of the righteous path. They call it mutual help, but it's not uncommon for people to end up in trouble while trying to help others."

"They last came over a year ago. Why did you suddenly bring this up, A-Ce?"

Gongsun Ce manipulated the plate to fly back into the sink and used his psychokinesis to turn on the faucet and wash the dishes.

"After the incident last time, the Skull fell, and the Wings of Death exist in name only. Those two organizations are probably busy fighting over the Wings of Death's territory and expanding their influence by absorbing new members. They might just set their sights on unaffiliated espers again."

This was the reason on the surface. The real reason was to use a serious topic to divert the young lady's attention so she would stop focusing on the matter of "orders."

Qin Qianbai stared into his eyes: "You're trying to find a way to get rid of the order, aren't you?"

"Sometimes I really doubt you've awakened telepathy. Are my lies really that easy to see through?"

The young lady gestured with her hand.

"About as difficult as eating a fry."

"Just how pathetic am I in your eyes?"

***

After breakfast, Gongsun Ce waited anxiously for about five minutes before receiving a new instruction.

"Look, look, this is my expression of mercy. Truth or Dare, or watching anime together—which order would you like?"

"In any case, let's rule out the game that didn't offer a choice before this."

Qin Qianbai sat on the sofa, giving herself a mental thumbs-up.

So far, the plan was progressing very smoothly.

According to Caldesia's suggestion, first, use breaking into the bedroom as a shocking opening, then use breakfast and daily topics to ease the atmosphere, and then, tailored to A-Ce's characteristics, use anime as a chance to close the distance.

By the time he realizes it, they will already be leaning against each other on the sofa... and then, depending on A-Ce's reaction, choose the next step of the operation.

Perfect. Following this plan, it will definitely succeed.

"Miss, what do you want to watch today?"

"I'll leave the decision to A-Ce."

Qin Qianbai occupied the advantageous position on the sofa, full of confidence.

The 'Spectator Operation' begins now!

***

And so, three hours later.

Gongsun Ce stood in the center of the living room, shocked: "What is going on? Could it be that it contains a new weapon I didn't know about?"

"You, who treat war as a means, you will not understand..."

*Clang! Clang!* The two, holding toy lightsabers, exchanged two rounds, neither gaining the upper hand. Qin Qianbai stepped back slightly to open up some distance. Gongsun Ce was about to pursue, but his movements suddenly froze.

"Move! The-O!" he said, sweating coldly, "Why won't you move!"

Qin Qianbai brought her hands together and thrust them toward the youth's abdomen.

"Ahhhhhhh—!"

The anime playing on the TV had just reached the same famous scene. The gray-haired youth's exaggerated scream synchronized with the villain being sanctioned in the animation.

The young lady withdrew her hand and turned around: "Go back to the woman's side."

"Woman...?"

What was currently taking place was an activity known as "Famous Scene Recreation." In layman's terms, it was anime fans mimicking the characters' lines to recreate the plot from the show.

The gray-haired youth (playing the villain) fell to the floor with a thud, and the young lady (playing the protagonist) delivered the concluding line.

"Ah, a large star is flashing..."

"Wrong, that's the line from the TV version!" Gongsun Ce, on the floor, quipped. "The movie version had a happy ending!"

Qin Qianbai pulled her neighbor up and said expressionlessly, "I like the original TV version better. The movie version with the happy ending leaves me with an inexplicable sense of unreality after watching it."

Personal happy stories set against heavy backdrops always felt a bit discordant.

Some people felt that "sad developments better reflect the profundity of a work," while others felt that "even if it's unreasonable, I still want to see a happy ending." The discussions arising from the conflict between these two viewpoints were also one of the joys of appreciating a work.

Gongsun Ce chuckled inwardly, following the momentum, and said: "ZZ is too long. Shall we order takeout and watch CCA next?"

"That's... okay."

The young lady, immersed in the anime, only just remembered to check the time.

It was already nearly twelve o'clock.

In an instant, Miss Qin's aura became like a stick figure in a black-and-white sketch. She pushed the gray-haired youth onto the sofa without a word: "I'm going out to make a phone call; A-Ce, you are not allowed to move."

"As you command~"

Gongsun Ce watched the girl walk out the door, laughing to himself.

Who would have thought it would be so easy to achieve the effect! Getting so immersed in the anime that she forgot the main task—many people have similar experiences, and this was the core of this 'Anti-Order Operation'...

You must have some kind of plan, Miss, but I, Gongsun Ce, am still one step ahead!

This is the trap I prepared specifically for you!

***

"Xiao Qian, you mean you got so absorbed in watching anime that you forgot all about the operation to close the distance?"

"...Yes."

The hatted woman on the other end of the phone shouted at the top of her lungs: "—Are you a grade-schooler?! Gongsun Ce is a weirdo for setting such a trap, but you have problems too for stepping right into it!"

"W-what should I do, Caldesia?"

"Immediately, right now, abandon the operation at Gongsun Ce's house. Change the venue and drag that shut-in out!"

***

The young lady returned, wearing her small bag for going out and a sun hat on her head. She said sternly, "A-Ce, no more anime. Come out with me to buy clothes."

The opening of an old anime movie was playing on the TV, and the white robot had just revealed its monitor from beneath the cloth. Gongsun Ce asked amidst the gradually swelling movie theme music, "Really? I've already started it. Such a classic film, are you really sure you don't want to finish it before we go out?"

Miss Qin wrestled with her inner desires for half a second before saying decisively, "We'll watch it next time."

The gray-haired youth sighed dramatically and got up sluggishly: "Fine, fine... where are we going?"

***

A dozen minutes later, the two stood at the entrance of a family restaurant.

This restaurant was near the apartment building where they lived, and it was well-regarded for its large portions and affordable prices. Most of the food here tasted good, but to attract customers' attention, they also introduced strange new items every quarter.

This quarter's "seasonal limited" offerings included Asparagus Durian Pie, Biochemical Kangaroo Soup, Sakura-flavored Squid Fritters, and 100% Pure Soil Cake.

Gongsun Ce's gaze swept over these new dishes, which looked extremely lethal, and he shivered slightly.

"Miss, please, at least don't make me eat these," he said pitifully. "You wouldn't have the heart to watch me hugging the toilet and vomiting, would you?"

Qin Qianbai made a fist with one hand and tapped her palm.

"Amazing, A-Ce proactively provided an idea for torturing himself."

"You hadn't thought of that?! Then why did you choose this place?"

"I wanted to eat something I didn't get to eat yesterday." Her expression was quite gloomy. "Yesterday, to show my sincerity, I bought Caldesia many desserts, but forgot to order any for myself..."

Just how much interest do you have in torturing me that you would invite that torture fanatic to help you plan?!

The word "planning" sounded like two wicked women were trying to figure out how to dismember him, Gongsun Ce. After this association, he felt terrible.

Could it be that what he was facing this afternoon was a prank plan specifically devised by Caldesia?!

"Miss, don't do this, Miss," Gongsun Ce said with a miserable face. "If you turn into someone like Caldesia, I'll have nightmares."

He walked into the restaurant with a heavy heart. The waiter at the door said in a cold, stiff tone that lacked any enthusiasm: "Welcome to—*Gah!*"

Either he had misheard, or this place had hired a biochemical duck as a waiter.

"Is this some new slang that's popular lately?"

His gaze swept over the waiter who had made the strange sound.

First to catch his eye were the large sunglasses and mask covering the entire face, followed by a head of purple hair that looked somewhat familiar, and finally, the orange top, plaid skirt, and matching white apron that looked like a very cozy, homey style.

He took off his glasses, wiped them, and put them back on. This time, he confirmed more details: the white stockings on the lower legs and the large ribbon on the head.

Gongsun Ce rubbed his eyes vigorously: "I..."

The purple-haired waiter said at lightning speed: "You have the wrong person. My name is Bismark Abdullah Hasasendin."

Gongsun Ce nodded repeatedly: "Oh, oh."

The young lady who had walked in behind him looked curiously at the two who were speechless, staring at each other. Gongsun Ce was silent for about a second and said: "So..."

The purple-haired waiter repeated loudly.

"My name is Bismark Abdullah Hasasendin!"

"Oh, um." Gongsun Ce nodded expressionlessly. "Oh."