【Character Anya has completed attack training. Strength attribute increased!】
【Character Anya has completed evasion training. Agility attribute increased!】
【Character Anya has completed anti-impact training. Constitution attribute increased!】
【Character Anya has received the Full Moon Blessing and unlocked the skill Moon Frenzy. Base attributes increased.】
Xu Xiaoyou brushed her teeth in the bathroom while eagerly checking yesterday’s training results. The outcome did not disappoint her—if anything, it exceeded her expectations.
【Anya gained a total of: Strength +10, Agility +15, Constitution +10.】
Gaining this many attributes in a single night—was it because of the character experience boost card, combined with the fact that yesterday happened to be a full moon?
She hadn’t expected even the werewolf race’s full-moon blessing to be amplified by the character experience boost card. As for the remaining card, Xu Xiaoyou already had a rough idea of how to use it.
【Resonance · Moon Frenzy (Beginner): After activating Moon Frenzy, character Anya gains the “Berserk” effect for 30 seconds.】
【Berserk: Attributes increased by 200%. Note: During Berserk, mental resistance is reduced and sanity decreases.】
“Berserk… a 200% attribute increase…” Xu Xiaoyou pondered.
Anya’s current Strength, Agility, and Constitution were 25, 40, and 35 respectively. Once Berserk was activated, they could spike to 50, 80, and 70—already brushing against the threshold defined by the Fixer Association for a grade 2 fixer.
The downside was reduced mental resistance and sanity.
Did that mean she would be more prone to losing control or going insane when faced with mental-type attacks?
Xu Xiaoyou shook her head.
In this hive city, fixers above grade 1 were extremely rare, and mental-type professions were virtually nonexistent—sometimes not even seen once in decades. Even if one did appear, they would have long been recruited by Universal Heavy Industries’ Strategic Talent Resources Department and transferred to headquarters.
Keeping Anya by her side, there were very few people in this city who could pose a real threat. She could practically walk sideways through the streets.
That was, of course, assuming she didn’t directly clash with a major gang—or that three-winged investigator.
【Sword Maiden Resonance · Mind’s Eye (Beginner): 563 / 10000】
The substitute had gained another 563 proficiency points in the latter half of the night. Not much, but better than nothing.
When Anya saw her, she became visibly flustered, like a child who had done something wrong.
Looking at the mirror, Xu Xiaoyou saw Anya standing behind her, head lowered, silent, both ears drooping limply.
She didn’t quite understand what was going on.
Why did she look like she was afraid of her?
Xu Xiaoyou glanced at the durability of the Substitute card—and was surprised to find it had dropped to zero.
Had Anya used it until it broke?
So she was afraid of being scolded.
Xu Xiaoyou saw right through her thoughts.
The little girl tugged at the hem of her clothes, her body swaying slightly. Her small mouth opened several times as if she wanted to say something, only to swallow the words back down.
Just as Anya finally looked up and gathered her courage, the girl’s hand slowly reached toward her head.
Anya shut her eyes in fear, her neck retracting as her shoulders trembled slightly.
The punishment she had imagined never came.
Instead, that warm, soft hand gently rested on her head, stroking her hair and rubbing her fluffy ears.
It felt comfortable—familiar.
Just like when her mother used to groom the fur on her head when she was little.
“Mmm…”
“Anya, there’s no need to be afraid. It’s okay,” Xu Xiaoyou said softly. “I won’t blame you over something like this.”
Anya opened her eyes, staring blankly at the girl smiling gently at her. That warm smile was like the sunlight of early spring on the snowfields—shining on her fur, warm and soothing.
Thinking back on everything that had happened last night, Anya didn’t fully understand it, but her instincts told her that Xu Xiaoyou—the one in front of her now—was different from the blonde girl yesterday, and different from everyone she had ever met before.
“Waaah…”
Watching the little girl suddenly burst into tears, eyes reddened as she hugged her and buried her head against her waist, rubbing back and forth, Xu Xiaoyou smiled and gently patted her head.
She finally understood why some parents used guilt-based education to make their children feel dependent and remorseful toward them.
This feeling really was satisfying.
Later that morning, Lin Ran prepared breakfast, and the three of them sat around the table.
The toasted bread was crispy and fragrant with wheat aroma. Drizzled with jam, it tasted quite good.
There were also fried eggs, sausages, and bacon, all giving off a rich meaty scent. Anya speared a piece with her fork and stuffed it into her mouth, her small face full of satisfaction.
“Well? How is it?” Lin Ran asked expectantly.
“It’s okay,” Xu Xiaoyou replied.
Lin Ran was instantly deflated.
Great. She had gone through so much effort, getting up early to make breakfast, and all she got was an “okay”?
Xu Xiaoyou didn’t notice the thick resentment radiating from the girl, her eyes fixed instead on the morning news playing on her phone.
“Good morning to all our viewers! Yesterday’s Death Lottery results are out—31 people in total. Did you guess the right number?”
“Yesterday, the city recorded 47 criminal incidents, four fewer than the previous day. Thanks to the city’s heroes who uphold public order—and to you, sitting in front of the TV and behaving yourselves.”
“A mysterious three-winged investigator from the Oasis appeared yesterday at the Sector 7 tram station, causing quite a stir. Let’s guess—why did this Order Court family investigator travel thousands of miles to come here?” The host lowered his voice dramatically, then raised it. “That’s right!”
“She’s here to investigate the murderer who killed three grade 1 fixers some days ago! Reportedly, this is the first case she has taken on since coming of age. The beautiful investigator hopes to conclude it perfectly as the final punctuation mark of her coming-of-age ceremony.”
“I swear, in the name of the Order Court family, I will bring that criminal to justice. I will not allow evil to continue roaming free!”
On the screen, the black-haired girl placed a clenched fist over her chest, her gaze resolute as she faced the reporters.
“Tch.” Xu Xiaoyou silently switched channels.
“Nosy much,” Lin Ran muttered while chewing on bread. “There are so many crimes in the city—are those three fixers really that special? Who knows how many ordinary people they killed. The Fixer Association—what a joke.”
“But that guy really is unlucky, haha. Three grade 1 fixers—normally something that wouldn’t even make a splash—and he just had to run into someone’s coming-of-age case.”
“Being targeted by a three-winged investigator? Brutal. I heard that Bai Youyou is a full-blown sadist. Once she catches you, tsk tsk tsk.”
“I’m done eating.”
Xu Xiaoyou stood up, straightening her clothes. Anya immediately set down her fork, hopped off her chair, and followed after her.
“You barely ate anything,” Lin Ran said in confusion.
“No need to prepare lunch. I’m taking Anya out—we’ll eat outside. Won’t be coming back,” Xu Xiaoyou’s voice drifted in from the entryway.
“Okay then…”
“Fresh Meat Restaurant express delivery! Today only—the second box of thigh meat is half price! Limited supply, first come first served~”
“What is this nonsense…” Lin Ran complained. “Why play ads like that while people are eating? Now I’ve lost my appetite too.”
Rate on N.U.
