Chapter Volume 6, Heaven or Hell, Sixth Level: Television, the Overlooked Truth (1/2)

Volume 6, Heaven or Hell, Sixth Level: Television, the Overlooked Truth

Translator: Ever (proofread by Trespasserby & Lala Su; C/E edited by Lucathia)

“Solitary Butterfly, Dark Sun finally finished repairing your legs.”

Finally? The spare ones really aren’t as powerful. Is your whip also finished?”

“Not only is it finished, it’s fantastic! Its energy efficiency increased greatly, its destructive power is greater and its battery life also increased significantly. The most unbelievable thing is that not only is it a whip, but it can also switch modes into a sword or dagger and can even fire bullets and be used as an energy gun! I don’t even know if it counts as a whip anymore, haha!”

Give me my legs first.

“Oh, oh! By the way, Dark Sun also wrote you an instruction manual.”

They’re my legs and yet I need to read an instruction manual he wrote?

“Of course! Look at my whip. If it weren’t for the instructions, I wouldn’t even know that there were so many added features!”

Oh well, just bring me everything there is!

“Hurry up, tell me what features were added to your legs.”

Hmm… Both thighs can be opened by pressing the silver decorative button. The left thigh contains grenades and the right leg has flash bangs; the knees can fire energy bullets; the sides of the calves and the toe tips all have extendable blades; the feet have wheels that can be extended when needed for gliding with a max gliding speed of sixty kilometers per hour.

“Wow, your legs are as good as cars now.”

…

“Are you satisfied with them?”

…

“Do you like them?”

…

“Just what do you think?”

I’m satisfied and I like them! I’m running out of time so I’ll be going first.

“Hehe!”

“Do you know the difference between man and man?”

I looked at Lieder in confusion and said hesitantly, “There are many differences. I am not sure of which you are referring to.”

“I study anthropology, which focuses on studying the differences between humans. Do you know what my conclusion is?” Lieder said as he waved a fork around. I shook my head and he smiled and said, “My conclusion is—there’s no difference at all!”

“Is that so?” I replied as my gaze drifted downwards. He gave me a confused look and shifted his gaze down too, and our eyes both focused on his plate. I said, “There is also no difference between your lunch from earlier when it was carried over and now.”

“…”

I shook my head and continued, “You must eat your three meals normally in order to benefit your body.”

“As a vampire, can you not care about my health so much?” Lieder said as if he were amused, “It feels very peculiar since I have no family, and therefore no one who cares about my health. In contrast, a vampire whom I’ve just met recently worries about my health. This feels very odd indeed.”

“My apologies, I may have developed a habit,” I replied embarrassedly. “Someone at home also forgets to eat, so I have to remind him quite often.”

On some level, Mr. An Te Qi and Lieder act alike. The only difference is that Mr. An Te Qi does not really like to lecture someone and would rather give them a scalpel right away, while Lieder is very enthusiastic about lecturing and even forgets his food when he starts talking.

“I know.”

… Pardon?

Lieder looked at me and laughed, “I mean, I get it. Do you have class this afternoon?”

“I have two classes.”

“Where do you plan on going afterwards?” Lieder asked and then added, “It’s not every day that I get to chat with a vampire. You don’t mind me asking this much, do you?”

I shook my head as I laughed, “Of course not, having someone I know at school makes me feel much more reassured. After attending my classes, I am going to the market.”

“Huh?” Lieder stopped and then said understandingly, “Oh, you mean the human blood market?”

“No, I meant the market that sells poultry and vegetables.”

“… Has anyone ever told you that you don’t act much like a vampire?”

“I hear that quite often,” I admitted honestly.

“Haha… Excuse me,” Lieder said when his cell phone suddenly rang. After having excused himself, he answered the call right where he was.

I lowered my head as I drank blood, acting as if I did not care, but it was still not possible to keep their conversation away from my ears.

“Oh? It succeeded? How many? Two? A bit worse than what I’d imagined. I thought that there would be at least three… Mmhmm, that’s fine. Buy the necessary stuff and transfer the rest of the funding to the place we agreed to.”

After finishing that conversation, Lieder ended the call and said with a smile, “There seems to be some hits and misses in my investment! Some succeeded and some failed, but at least I still profited a lot in the end.”

“Really? What did you invest in?”

“Banks.”

I replied in astonishment, “Banks? That sounds like a very large investment.” It does not sound like something a professor would invest in, but come to think of it, Lieder is also a part-time assassin, and assassins are usually quite rich?

Lieder smiled and said, “It’s not too big. It did take some money to start off, but the payoff is quite good.”

“Is that so?”

Suddenly, Lieder’s expression froze as if something had caught his attention. I spaced out for a bit and then followed his gaze to discover that he was watching the televised news.

It was evident that the camera had to zoom in to shoot the scene since the picture was very blurry. The video showed a group of people in black suits. Only the blond man at the center of the group was wearing a long, dark-colored windbreaker. The group walked very quickly, and the blond man glanced at the camera with irritation as they passed by.

To be frank, the video was not very clear. It was only a bit better than the blurry videos from security cameras. But the two large news headings and the fact that I had seen this blond man before made him easy to recognize. He was the Sun Emperor.

The Sun Emperor rarely appeared on the news. There were not even many secret photos of him, not to mention interviews. It was surprising that the media could record such a video. Though it was only for an instant, that instant was already a very rare occurrence.

“Ri Xiang Yan…” Lieder suddenly turned to me and asked, “What is your opinion on Ri Xiang Yan?”

“My opinion?” I was caught off guard and did not know how to answer him, so I gave him an ambiguous reply, “I do not have a specific opinion, since the Sun Emperor seems too distant for a commoner.”

“True,” Lieder said with a vague smile, “but do you see yourself as a commoner?”

“Even for vampires, the Sun Emperor is still very distant.” I mean, for vampires aside from me.

“You’re right, Ri Xiang Yan is practically the only emperor in the world.” Lieder said emotionlessly, “Though monarchy has vanished for a long time, is it really gone?”

I was caught off guard, confused about how the topic suddenly changed to monarchy.

Lieder then said in a mocking tone, “Or maybe it’s just that the name changed but it has continued to exist, so that the people in slavery won’t think that they’re slaves? How different are those business heads from ancient emperors?”

Were I not the young master’s butler, I might have discussed this topic in further depth with Lieder. But since I served the young master, then it would be inappropriate of me to discuss the master, so I answered, “Even if the Sun Emperor really were an emperor, how would that affect the common masses?”

“That’s the brilliant thing!” Lieder threw something with great force and said, “No one thinks that that has anything to do with them, and no one cares about it! But do you know how many businesses the Sun Alliance has?”

I lowered my head to look at the item that was cast on the table and realized that it was a fountain pen. “Um, many, but I do not know exactly how many… Lieder, throwing this fountain pen around does not seem like a good idea?”

“Don’t worry, this pen is made of stainless steel. It’s my smashing pen.”

Is, is that so?

“Walking down a street, half of the shops that people walk past belong to the Sun Alliance or partner companies, and they have no idea! They’re ignorant to the fact that Ri Xiang Yan can cause inflation whenever he wants to. No one can say a thing even if he raised the prices of everyday necessities, because a lot of industries have been monopolized by him.

“Life or death, eat or starve, everything has fallen into the hands of this guy. You still think he’s not an emperor? Ya think people aren’t ignorant of their slavery? People even call him the Sun Emperor. They won’t call him by his name!”

I did not think that Lieder would have such a strong opinion on the Sun Emperor. This made me quite worried, but I could not pinpoint why I was worried. Even though Lieder is a part-time assassin, he would not be able to assassinate the Sun Emperor, would he?

I frowned at Lieder, wondering what kind of advice I could offer him, but he smiled and reminded me with a carefree attitude, “The bell’s about to ring. Given your personality, you’re not the type who likes to be late for class, right?”

I lowered my head to check my watch. It really was time for class, so I hurriedly said, “Excuse me, I have to go.”

I stopped in the middle of my hurried tracks and turned around to check on Lieder. He was eating his food, and when he saw me, he forked up a big portion of food and put it into his mouth, as if telling me that he was eating his food like a good boy.

I smiled at him before hurrying to class.

Maybe I was worrying too much. Many people become passionate when they are discussing a social or political topic. Lieder should be one of them. There is nothing special about this, nor is there anything that I should worry about.

I scurried into the classroom just as the bell rang. The classroom was very quiet. Well, students in the faculty of medicine do study hard… No! They are looking at me! The entire class is looking at me!

I looked at the classroom full of students, stumped, thinking, What is going on here?

“It really is him!” A student gasped.

Some people were looking at the TVs that were hanging from the walls of the classroom, so I turned my head toward them. The news was on and there really was not much to show since there was only a hospital wall and some reporters.

“I saw you on the news last night and you were still visible then! And then you disappeared today. That’s so weird. According to my theory, vampires might emit some kind of electromagnetic radiation that stops an image from being recorded on film…”

“That was so cool! You walked onto a wall just like that, totally defying gravity!”

A lot more people asked out of concern, “The Angel is still alive, right? The manager didn’t lie, did she? Is his life in danger? How severe is his coma?”

I nodded and said, “Yes, his life is not in danger and he has regained consciousness, though he has many wounds and needs to rest for a while. He is fine.”

“Great!” The students cheered in joy, “That’s the Angel who graduated from combat. If he didn’t grab onto a whole lot of stuff to slow down his fall, he would have really died!”

I was glad to see how happy they were. The young master really did have many fans who cared for him.

“Student, go take a seat.”

I was caught off guard. Turning around, I saw a young man standing behind me. He was wearing a black leather coat and high black boots. His expression was cold, and he had an earring that had a faint, white glow on his left ear. He looked like one of the young people on the streets, but if I was not wrong, all the books he held in his hand were professional medical books.

He is making me sit down? Is he the professor? He looks too young to be one, even younger than Lieder, and even, even more like an assassin than Lieder.

“Yes,” I replied hurriedly and rushed to find a seat.

The classmate sitting beside me asked me in a low voice, “Do you know who this professor is?”

I shook my head as I took out my textbook.

“Ni Cai! The doctor that was awarded for his thesis on modifying brains!” The classmate said excitedly, “The school specially hired him. I heard that if it weren’t for an anthropology prof who knew him and especially asked him to, he would never have come!”

Anthropology… Could it be Lieder? So he knows Ni Cai. Well, he did say that if the professor would not let me into his class, then he would help me out. So it was because he knew the professor.

“Oh yeah, why are you starting from third year?” The classmate on my other side asked confusedly.

That made me a bit nervous. Should I say that I have taken first and second year courses?

He started talking before I could reply, “First and second years all feel horrible! They know that you’re a third year and that you’re taking classes that they can’t take yet so they’re almost crying.”

Crying? I asked in surprise, “Why?”

“Oh!” The classmate laughed. “A lot of reasons! Some like the Angel, some are into vampires, and some people became your fans after watching the news, like my assigned junior! You should become a celebrity like your brother!”

I smiled slightly, not feeling odd about it. Falling for vampires was not uncommon.

“My junior said that if I don’t get her an autograph, she won’t speak with me anymore. So lend me a hand?”

My classmate said very earnestly and even took out a very formal autograph board and signing pen.

“… My brother’s autograph?”

“No, yours.”

I was speechless. I could only take the pen and sign my name. Well, I of course left out my surname.

“Thanks! She actually wanted an autographed photo, but the cameras can’t capture you. I even made fun of her…” The classmate put away the board and started writing something on a piece of note paper, saying, “Here’s my number. Feel free to call me if you have any questions!”

After receiving the piece of paper and hearing the three words: “have any questions,” I immediately remembered that I did have a lot of questions, so I hurriedly asked, “Have you taken a dissecting class?”

“Yep.” The classmate nodded and said quietly, “I’ve seen it a lot of times! Because my family owns a hospital, so I help out sometimes… Cough! You know! But it really isn’t just me saying this, my skills totally match up to my father!”

“Can I call you, sir, when I have questions about dissecting?” I asked earnestly and saved the number into my phone immediately. Perhaps I will have to call this classmate tonight, asking him questions while I dissect.

“… Sure,” The classmate said helplessly, “But can you leave out the ‘sir?’ You’re scaring me!”

I apologized and he laughed, introducing himself, “I’m Shuu Kahl, just call me Ah Shuu.”

“Then, please call me Charles as well.”

As soon as we finished introducing ourselves, he averted his gaze and stopped looking at me. Just when I started to feel confused, he reminded me in a low voice without turning around, “Charles, look at the blackboard. The prof is glaring at us.”

Hearing that, I hurriedly looked toward the blackboard. Professor Ni Cai was in fact glaring at us. Actually, the glare was more like a few cold glances in our direction, but those glances were so cold that I felt like I was in an underground freezer, as if my heart were frozen by one single glance. Compared to Lieder, I felt Professor Ni Cai was more suited to be an assassin.

I did not know what to do under the professor’s gaze. Fortunately, his gaze only swept across us a few times before he started the lecture, and he did not pay any particular attention to me during class, allowing me to sigh in relief.

Professor Ni Cai had started talking about the structure of the human body. I appreciated this greatly as I felt that I could go home today with more courage to face Mr. An Te Qi’s practical lab class.

“Weird… Didn’t the prof already start on brain structures?” Ash frowned and then muttered to himself, “Midterm’s coming up, so maybe he’s reviewing!”

Hearing this, I hurriedly turned around to ask him, “When is the midterm?”

“In two weeks… Umm, I can lend you my notes, so don’t look like the sky’s gonna fall…”

The midterm is in two weeks, yet I need to practice operating under Mr. An Te Qi’s supervision every night, and I also have to serve the young master… Fortunately, we live in a hospital right now so not much cleaning is required, and we cannot cook in the hospital so Dell and May are in charge of buying food. This must be the silver lining amidst all this misfortune.

“Oh, and Professor Ni Cai is really strict. He said that he’ll only test us on reasonable stuff, so those who fail the midterm won’t have to come to class anymore… But, but you just joined this class so he might go easy on you? I mean might. Prof Ni Cai really is very strict!”

“…”

Just what should I do about the midterm? I worried as I stared out the car window.

“After applying the discount, that will be a total of a hundred and sixty-seven yuan saved. Thank you for your patronage.” Nitewalker’s toneless voice came from the front seat.

“Please, wait for me here. I will be back very soon.”

“All right.”

I exited the car and was a bit worried about how the merchants would react when they saw me, but I had to pick up the chicken I ordered since Li Qi had already chopped them for me. I could not let him take the loss.

No one in the market noticed me at first as I walked over to Li Qi’s stall, but as I walked further into the market, people started noticing me and even started to follow me.

I was bewildered and turned my head to check what was happening. The housewives all stopped in their tracks and then scattered in a hurry, pretending they were shopping. Seeing this, I turned around and kept on walking until I reached Li Qi’s chicken stall and said, “Li Qi, I am here to pick up the chicken.”

Li Qi lifted his head and stared at me with a blank expression. He said after a few moments, “Charles, my wife and I saw you on TV.”

“That many people watched the live news?” I asked in astonishment.

“A lot!” Li Qi immediately said with a nod of his head. “Do you know how many people care about the Angel? Everyone was waiting in front of the television, waiting to see how things would turn out, so of course they’d see you! Charles, is your brother really okay? The media says that he didn’t die and his wounds weren’t deadly… But you know the media, they’d make a great impression if half of what they said were true!”

I chuckled. “Please, do not worry, Ah Ye is really all right. If he were not, I would not be here casually picking up chicken meat, would I?”

Li Qi said with difficulty, “I sold your chicken for half the price! I was afraid that it was going to go bad and your brother got into that accident, so I thought that you wouldn’t have the time to pick it up.”

Hearing this, I hurriedly said, “That was a very wise decision. Please, let me pay for the half of the price you lost…”

“What the hell are you talking about?” Li Qi raised his voice awkwardly, “You saved my life! I should be the one paying you! If my wife found out that I actually took your money, then she’d definitely run off with the child in her belly! Also, my wife said that I should give you half price from now on whenever you come, or else she’s going to divorce me!”

Half price! And it is from here on out!

“Charles, are you really a vampire?” Li Qi asked, scratching his face. “I’ve heard a lot of stories about vampires, but I’ve never heard any about a vampire whose eyes would shine just by hearing that he could buy chicken at half price!”

I said with a smile, “I have already shown you my vampire form, and you still doubt that?”

“Hm?” Li Qi stopped for a split second and then said, as if everything suddenly became clear to him, “You mean that growl that you did? It’s pretty unique, but that’s what a vampire looks like?”

Pretty unique… I am not quite sure how to respond to that.