There Must Be Something Wrong With This Game!

Chapter 37: Chapter 37: The End of the War

A few minutes later, the Black Hand came down.

He was a remarkably unremarkable-looking middle-aged man. Facing the police, he bowed and scraped, apologizing profusely for the reprimand until every last suit of unmanned armor was taken away.

After being told that a repeat offense would mean fifteen days in detention and a two-hundred-yuan fine, he clutched his chest and swore it would never happen again. He then turned around only to find Duan Fei and his group blocking his path back to the top of the tower.

Looking at the group of teenagers, who all seemed to be around eighteen, the middle-aged man sneered and took out his Magic Scripture.

"Don’t blame me for not warning you—nothing good comes from messing with your elders!" the middle-aged man said, pointing at them. "Scram if you know what’s good for you. Right, and Yue Hua stays."

Wang Er tapped the ground in resignation. "Go ahead," he said to Duan Fei and the others.

Five minutes later.

The middle-aged man was pinned firmly to the ground. His phone had been taken from his pocket, and all its contents were on full display.

While methodically backing up the man’s flirtatious text messages with other women, Duan Fei asked with a smile, "You’re married and still playing the field like this?"

His secret exposed, the middle-aged man’s demeanor did a complete one-eighty. "It’s just business entertainment, nothing more," he said brazenly. "Please, don’t tell my wife."

"I have to say, I preferred your arrogant and defiant act from before. How about you show me a little more of that?"

"You’re joking, sir. How would I dare act so presumptuously in front of you?"

Sitting down across from the man, Duan Fei waved the phone in his hand. "Alright, enough. Tell me why you were trying to kidnap Yue Hua."

"...That touches upon my professional ethics."

"I wonder what your wife would think about your professional ethics. By the way, does drinking with other women fall under that code of conduct?"

The middle-aged man silently cursed Duan Fei three times and beat him five times in his head before he finally, slowly, said, "Have you ever heard of the Merlin Company?"

Duan Fei looked blank, but Wang Er nodded. "A large Magic Artifact Company."

"How does it compare to you, President Wang?"

Wang Er shot Duan Fei a dissatisfied look. "I told you, I’m not some domineering president. Overall, we’re about evenly matched."

"Impressive. And then?"

"The president of Merlin Company is critically ill. Years ago, he had a daughter, but she eloped and later had a daughter of her own. The elopement soured their relationship. Now that the old man is on his deathbed, he wants to find his daughter. Unfortunately, both his daughter and son-in-law died in a car crash, leaving only their granddaughter behind."

Pointing at Yue Hua, the middle-aged man said with conviction, "And you, Yue Hua, are his only granddaughter! I know you refuse to acknowledge your maternal grandfather, so I took it upon myself to..."

"Um... you’ve got the wrong person," Yue Hua said awkwardly.

"...Huh?"

"Someone else has already come looking for me about this. I’m not his granddaughter; they’ve already confirmed it. I don’t know why you people keep getting it wrong, but it’s really not me."

"Wh-what!"

"Sir, being dedicated to your job is a good thing, but maybe do some better intel gathering next time."

"Wha— Wha—?!"

"Alright, now that we’ve cleared up the misunderstanding, can you just concede? That way I can get a two-thousand-yuan cut to upgrade my meals."

"...Impossible! How could I have made a mistake! I’m taking you back with me to get to the bottom of this!"

Just then, the door to the tower swung open. Jinghong appeared, flicking blood off his Yo-Yo. "You guys are slow," he said to the others. "I already took care of the guys inside."

"I told you he’d somehow get lost on his way here," Duan Fei whispered to Zhao Baimao.

In that moment, Zhao Baimao felt the "noble young master" filter through which she viewed Jinghong completely shatter.

Shattered along with it was the hope the middle-aged man had so painstakingly built up.

The Black Hand was taken care of, several players from the White Tiger Team were defeated, and after Wang Er had Bystander A go head-to-head with Jinghong, he had laughingly admitted that when it came to a one-on-one duel, Jinghong was indeed stronger.

When dawn broke, Wang Er rushed off to class, Zhao Baimao had to get to her part-time job, the Black Hand needed to go home and face his wife’s interrogation, and the other Magicians had to get on with their lives.

For them, the Holy Grail War was just a diversion. The paths of ten people had briefly crossed, allowing them a temporary escape from the tedium of reality. But in the end, they still had to go back to work and school.

But there was one exception.

Before Jinghong and Duan Fei could leave, Yue Hua led them into the Merlin Company headquarters.

Without any need for an announcement, the receptionist at the front desk saw Yue Hua, immediately stood, and bowed, ushering her into an elevator.

The private presidential elevator took the three of them straight to the top floor. The old man behind a desk of golden nanmu wood was not at all surprised to see Yue Hua. "You’re back," he said calmly. "Have you made your decision?"

Yue Hua shot forward. Her slender frame erupted with unbelievable speed, closing the distance in an instant. She appeared before the old man and slammed him to the ground with a single punch.

Looking down at the old man, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth, Yue Hua said coldly, "Don’t ever bother me again. Got it?"

"I’m your grandfather."

"You were the one who disowned us."

"I regret it."

"Like I give a damn. Let’s go, Duan Someone."

Following behind Yue Hua, Duan Fei was silent for a long moment before asking, "What’s the full story here?"

"He’s the grandfather of *part* of my body."

"That’s a new one on me."

Scratching her head, Yue Hua said with a sigh, "I was in a car accident. My parents and I were in the car. I was just a newborn. The accident was caused by one of my grandfather’s rivals who wanted to eliminate us. My parents were critically injured, and I... I lost eighty percent of my body. Only my head survived."

"To save me, my mother went to beg my grandfather for help. He told her he wouldn’t do a thing unless she divorced my father. So instead, my mother entered the Holy Grail War. She sacrificed her own body to summon a Heroic Spirit who could reconstruct mine... but my parents..."

Lifting her sleeve, Yue Hua pointed to her pale, almost translucent skin. "More than half of my body is made from a Heroic Spirit. The rest... is from my parents. That’s why I said he’s only my grandfather in part."

"I see. So, what are your plans now?"

"The usual. Bum around, wait to die, summon a Heroic Spirit now and then, fight in the Holy Grail War. I cleared 1,700 yuan this time, so I can take it easy for a while. By the way... can I summon you again next time?"

"We’ll leave it to fate."

Yue Hua looked at Duan Fei, then glanced at Jinghong beside him.

They didn’t seem compatible at first glance, but on closer inspection, they looked like a perfect match in a strange way. A truly odd pair.

She reached out and hugged Duan Fei tightly, whispering, "Thank you, my Hero."

Watching the two of them disappear, Yue Hua let out a long sigh of relief. She looked at the money in her hand. "Tonight, I’m getting an extra egg with my noodles!"