Angie's three teammates could not answer her. They were ready to follow her to the death, but to partake in something as seemingly silly and reckless, then lose their lives to that? They began to have second thoughts about it. Their expressions clouded over as their loyalty conflicted with their rationality.
Angie softened her tone. “I understand that this is something huge to absorb. Take your time to think about it. Think it through, carefully and thoroughly. Don’t rush it. Understood?”
The men looked at her with grave expressions, but nodded.
At the same time, the door to their room opened. Angie and her team immediately straightened their posture and saluted the man who entered with a team of technicians.
"Report." Their section commander demanded.
"Angie Dawson, reporting. I punched the mimic and it fell apart." Angie got the ball rolling.
"Brandon Fields, reporting. We know that should be impossible.
Angie gritted her teeth in frustration and annoyance. He had played her. “You-”“What has it got to do with you, you asked? Nothing. It has nothing to do with you. I'm just frustrated. I feel so maligned. Then I remembered that you’re here! Ha!”[What?! This isn’t how karma was supposed to work!]He leaned in for a kiss but Angie headbutted him and pushed him back. It was a piece of cake for her. She just needed to utilise a little bit of her spiritual energy. She skidded off the table on the opposite side of him while a low ominous chuckle sounded by the side."Still as fiesty as ever. I'll never be bored by you."/Deja Vu?/[Ew, he's the same.] BaoBao said at the same time as Angie./Where did I encounter this before again?/[First world. That-]/Psychopath./[Yeah.]
"What?" Elias broke out of his little trance-like state."Hm? Nothing." Angie recovered her flat expression fast, then walked away."Can't be. I'm sure I heard you say something.""That's some really good lie you told at the clinic to get me out.” She changed the topic, hoping that he would get derailed too. “I didn't know you'd stoop to that to get what you want."He shrugged. "You didn't seem keen about the checkup either. So, I figured, why not? I didn't think you would mind. Do you mind?"Angie shook her head."What exactly do you hate so much about the clinic?""Nothing much.""Impossible. Did you know how much hostility and negativity radiated off of you when we left the clinic?"/I can't trust his blabbermouth…/"If you're so curious, feel free to check in each time I visit the clinic.""Huh? Why're you so sure that you'll return to the clinic?""You'll know w
Angie came upon a tall but narrow building. With far fewer exposed pipes and painted cement in place of heavy duty metal, it looked a lot more welcoming than the military compound.Her eyes darted around. There were a few more soldiers returning home, including Valerie./Hm? She’s fast today./ Angie noted the difference based on the original soul’s memories./Does she have something on later?/Angie took the stairs instead of the lift, even though her floor was the topmost level. Although the mask was highly breathable and efficient, exerting her body with the mask on still felt different. Moreover, the quality of air outside was poorer than the air pumped indoors.She stopped before a plain grey door, slid her palm across the cold smooth surface, then listened to the sound of bolts coming undone. After that, she pushed open the door and stepped in. When the door swung shut behind her, the bolts could be he
“I’m planning to fake my death during my upcoming mission. I’ll leave behind some trouble for them to be preoccupied with, so that you can sneak out and come with me on the mission.” Angie shared more details of her plan.“Does everyone on the mission know of this?” Her mother pulled back from the hug to discuss more seriously.“I’ve told them but they haven’t decided yet.”Her mother frowned.“Don’t worry. Even if they don’t go, they’re trustworthy. They won’t blab.”“Do they… Know?”Angie shook her head.Her mother sighed in relief. “You know… Since we’re leaving… We could cause a breach in the military’s security and let them get ravaged by all those monsters out there.” Her eyes sparkled like a little child.It was on the tip of Angie’s tongue to reject he
Angie and Elias sat side by side by the door of the room. She sat with her back ramrod straight, while Elias slouched with his elbows on his knees. Angie had been ready to listen to him rant or share his heart woes, but there was only dead silence since the time they entered the room.“What do you think of monogamy, Angie?” Despite thinking long and hard about his loss, it still did not make sense to him. Yes, he was of a lower position than Conrad. Yes, he did not promise her monogamy. However, was he not the one helping her by her side all the time? True that Conrad could help Valerie a lot more now that they became official, but he anticipated more trouble than benefits to the situation. Was his presence and affection so easily overwritten like that?Elias’ question came so suddenly that Angie took a while to think of something to say. She lightly cleared her throat. “Mm… I think it’s sweet and romantic.”
Over the next few days, the results of the new rearrangement already began to show. Due to different reasons, Angie, Elias, Jeffery, and Alfonso reached a new peak performance. The better and more resilient teams approached them during the team battles segment and received pointers and guidance. The rest of the teams that gave whatever excuses for their low performance and rested on their laurels got relegated to a new division. Although the purpose of the new division was left unsaid, any smart and observant individual could infer from the composition of the teams and how much resources went to training them. This further spurred the teams in the original division to stay focused and driven. Valerie was one of those who got relegated. Despite her relationship with Conrad, he could not help her out too explicitly. Otherwise, it would only give others more reason to disapprove of their relationship. Conrad was already doing what he could to save Valerie from being summoned by the hi
The next morning, Angie easily appeared at Elias' residence on time, since he lived just two blocks away from her. As her lot reached Elias' floor by the stairs, they witnessed a few young women leave Elias' flat. Angie recognised them as part of the group that surrounded Elias the previous week. Did they sleep over?[No, they didn't.] BaoBao responded fast. [They just came earlier this morning. Since it was for nothing important, I didn't tell you. I didn't want to spoil your mood.] He explained./How's my mood ruined? I'm fine./ "Angie, you're here!" Elias happily greeted her. "Ms Dawson." Elias bowed in respect.Her mother was slightly taken aback by how he addressed her. This was the first time someone addressed her by her last name without her asking for it. "I like this boy." She whispered to Angie to praise him."And-" Elias' smile turned stiff and his eyes rounded a little bit. "Jeffer
"Look, you don’t have to accept this.” Angie suddenly said. “I told you, I had another plan in store. If you don’t agree, we’re just different and we’re each better off not working together. You wouldn’t want any issues from our differences coming up while we’re out there.”[Angie? What’re you saying? What if she really disagrees?]/We can’t forget about keeping negativity to a minimum. I don’t want her displeasure with me to cause any trouble, especially when she’s the lead in this story./[Oh… How burdensome.] BaoBao grumbled on Angie’s behalf.Meanwhile, Valerie sucked on her bottom lip. There was a perpetual frown between her brows. Angie had caught on to her. She wanted to agree just because she was the only one with the issue. However, Angie was right. If they did not settle their differences now, more issues will app
RenRan began napping. A lot. Souls did not need sleep, but they could choose to do so. FanHai was one of those who seemed to never catch a wink of sleep. While RenRan slept, he stayed by her side, always keeping himself busy with something. This carried on for a good time before she began to catch him with his guard lowered after waking up. ‘A while more.’ RenRan did not believe that a man like him could keep himself entertained this long and resist a cat nap with her. At this point, BaoBao cried out in frustration. There were a few times she could have slipped away because he had already fallen asleep with her! He even dared to cuddle with her. That spot was only reserved for two people! Him and the familiar soul! “Is it really too much to assist by waking her up?” He challenged the elder one. “Is it so hard for her to stay awake in a world that doesn’t need sleep?” He challenged BaoBao back. “...That’s easy for you to say.” Then, BaoBao puffed his cheeks and returned to gl
RenRan’s eyes opened wide. No matter how hard she pushed against him or how much she pounded his chest, shoulders, or head, he persisted on. She tried to bite him, but he avoided using his tongue and skillfully moved his mouth in tandem with her attempts. With his hand cupping the back of her head, she could not break the kiss either. She was at his complete mercy. ‘I should have dropped the act earlier. This isn’t worth it!’ Fear slowly gripped her heart as she wondered how far he would take it. Then, he stopped, just as suddenly as he started. “Enough?” He grinned and meaningfully applied greater pressure on her lower back. His move made RenRan conscious of the rock hard member against her abdomen. Immediately recognising what it was, she fiercely pushed against his chest and demanded, “Okay, let me go! I’ll properly spend some time with you first!” He smiled with satisfaction. “Like I thought.” Then, he let her go. “You wouldn’t have to waste so much time and energy if you jus
RenRan’s heart jumped but she poised herself promptly, ready to grapple with whoever had manhandled her. “Why’d you run away from me? Didn't we have deal?” The somewhat familiar deep voice cleared up the situation. “I’m not running from you.” RenRan explained as she attempted to pull her arm out of his strong grip. “You know you can’t lie with this within us.” He pointed at his chest and kept on his tight smile. “You got to try harder than that to convince me.” RenRan frowned. “And I was precisely following that to find you, as agreed.” His smile gradually disappeared as his gaze dropped to study her entire body. “…You’re weaker than the last time I saw you.” RenRan had nothing to say in response. Instead, she attempted to twist her arm free again. “Even so, I’ve never heard of a compass malfunctioning because of this before.” Annoyed with his accusations, RenRan tuned in
RenRan headed for a condensed group of swirling sparkles that was just a little larger than her. ‘So, my mission is to achieve my dream no matter the cost. What’s my dream? To find YingTao? No, I’ll definitely find him. It’s just a matter of time. Then, I’ll find out that YingTao doesn’t want me anymore. And I’ll want him back...’ RenRan thought of everything that had happened in RenRan’s life. ‘I can only hope that her dream’s that simple...’ She began to think of all her misdemeanors, then ways to right her wrongs. [I should stop you right there. If it wasn’t clear enough before, as long as you’re in the story scenes, you’re supposed to do and say all the things the original character did.] ‘What? You didn’t say that earlier.’ [I mentioned earlier that it's risky to provoke this world’s consciousness into doing anything. So, we can only observe this world. What do you think this mea
Luna was right. She had inhabited Luo RenRan’s body. RenRan’s family belonged to the working class, but her gripe was not their standard of living, it was her parents’ favourtism for her brothers. She was the only girl, and she was the oldest. Anything her brothers did, she was responsible for. Any wrong they committed, they were let off with a more lenient punishment, while she was supposed to forgive and forget. Their expectations for her and the restrictions they imposed on her could not be compared to the standards they held her brothers against. The only solace she had was that her siblings never directly crossed her line, even when she was old enough to start working. If only it stayed that way forever. “RenRan... Forgive your brother, okay? You know he only took it because he needed it and only you can help him. If you have someone you need to blame, blame your father.” A gentle motherly voice coaxed her. “If your father helped, none of us would be
“Wh- What am I doing here?” BaoBao looked around in shock. He recognised this place. The last time he was here, it was to defend Luna. “Why am I back here?”The elder one sighed. “Why did you do it?”“D- Do what?”Gasps were heard around him.“It lies.”“It truly deceives.”“Surely, that’s bad.”“This can’t go on.”“It’s always this one system.”“Clearly there’s something wrong with it.”All the administration looked at the elder one, waiting for the go ahead. The elder one looked at BaoBao so intensely as if BaoBao was a specimen under his microscope. BaoBao gulped. He felt exposed. What was with this elder one? Whatever the case, Luna had already been sent to the next world. He could not dilly dall
“Don’t ignore me! I know you’re awake!” Someone pushed Luna’s shoulder hard. Her eyes flew open, and a purple and black galaxy unfolded before her. Her bottom left whatever she had been sitting on, but she did not fall. There was a resistance that made her body glide instead. Luna blinked a few times, stunned. "I dare you to say it again.” The same voice challenged her. Luna turned towards the source. There it was again. The sensation when she moved was familiar. However, she had no time to make sense of it. The deep voice belonged to a burly woman, instead of a man like Luna had assumed, not that it made anything better. Her guest looked as friendly as a starving lioness. Luna straightened her neat celestial-like robes while she quickly collected her thoughts. It shimmered and shone brighter than the glow emanating from her body. The fabric was so silky to touch that it was like water. Although it was transluc
“LUNA!” BaoBao jumped onto her. Luna grunted from the impact. It reminded her of how much he had grown from the first time she met him. ‘How is he so weightless but so heavy at the same time?’ “Hi BaoBao,” she laughed lightly, “Is this your new way of sending me to the next world?” “Huh?! No, no! It’s far too soon to be sending you to the next world, isn’t it?!” Luna laughed even more. “I was just teasing.” BaoBao blinked innocently. “Oh.” Luna looked at him endearingly. “You’re still so much like a kid.” She rubbed the top of his head lovingly. “Don’t systems live for eternity, if nothing goes wrong?” “Mmhm, what about it?” “It still felt that long to you?” “YES!” BaoBao confirmed without a second thought. Luna laughed. “Let’s spend some time together before heading to the next world.” BaoBao’s heart warmed and h
Nozomi closed her eyes and thought hard about his request. It did not feel right or good to take his years, but she had no right to dictate how he should live his life.‘Since he’s really fine with it...’Nozomi pushed her hands forward to cup his cheeks. “Okay...”Hikaru’s eyes brightened up. He promptly retrieved his book and readied himself. Nozomi watched Hikaru activate his magic with interest. The way his book’s ribbon splits and transforms into a robe and staff never got old. “Thank you, for going along with my wishes.” His heartfelt gratitude was reflected in his eyes as well. Nozomi smiled in understanding and squeezed his hands that were once again holding onto hers. Hikaru closed his eyes and focused on her presence, then said the incantation that he had memorised by then.Green glowing vine marks appeared