Ren Yi subconsciously touched his nose, but what his fingertips met wasn't the familiar texture of skin.
Instead, it was a soft, squishy, gelatinous texture.
He couldn't help but sigh softly, a hint of helplessness hidden in his eyes.
At this moment, he was dressed in a colorful, striped clown costume. The collar was loose and sagging, and the cuffs were adorned with ridiculous tassels.
And on his nose sat a round, bright red clown nose.
Ren Yi looked up in silence, taking in the scene before him.
It was a European-style living room. The floor was covered with a thick wool carpet that felt soft and silent underfoot, absorbing all sound.
Not far to his left, a fireplace burned with flickering flames. The orange-red fire licked the hearth, adding a bit of warmth to the dim room.
Directly in front of him sat an enormous solid wood round table. The tabletop was polished to a shine and covered with a dazzling array of gourmet delicacies.
There was a glistening roasted turkey, steaks drizzled with sauce, delicate little desserts, and a crystal-clear fruit platter. However, in the dim light, these tempting foods appeared somewhat dull.
Between the plates, several slender candles were lit, casting long, flickering shadows that made the entire scene feel increasingly eerie and strange.
Ren Yi looked up; the massive roasted turkey blocked most of his view, making it impossible to see the faces of the people on the opposite side of the table.
Indeed, around this round table large enough to seat a dozen people, there were others sitting besides himself.
Even with the dim candlelight and dappled shadows, Ren Yi recognized several familiar faces at a glance, and the helplessness in his eyes deepened.
Sitting diagonally to his left was a short-haired girl in a school uniform.
She had a neat, ear-length bob with tidy bangs across her forehead.
It was obvious she had made a special effort to dress up today. Her clean school uniform stood out sharply, looking completely out of place against the eerie atmosphere of their surroundings.
She looked extremely restless right now, biting her lower lip tightly with panic filling her eyes. She kept glancing at the others around the table, her hands placed properly beneath the table.
She looked every bit the timid, helpless girl.
But Ren Yi knew she was faking it.
Because she was Zhang Qiuqiu.
She was his class monitor—the woman who constantly referred to herself as "this lady," possessed a commanding presence, and could literally grow to nearly ten feet tall.
She was the "WhatAreYouLookingAt" classmate who had followed him through the Three Cities World, swapping bodies, slaughtering her way through mutant beast nests, and daring to challenge any Anomaly...
Yet now, this lady was huddled in her seat, putting on a pitiful, frail act.
Her acting was truly superb.
Ren Yi forced himself to keep the corners of his mouth from curling up, suppressed the urge to complain in his heart, and quickly scanned another seat not far to Zhang Qiuqiu's left.
A young man in casual clothes sat there. He was sturdily built, and his casual sportswear made him look exceptionally energetic.
But for some reason, his expression was a bit dim-witted at the moment.
He was scratching his head with one hand, his eyes glazed with confusion and his brow slightly furrowed, looking as if he had no idea what was going on.
That was Lu Zihan.
Well, Old Lu's acting seems okay... if he's actually acting.
His gaze quickly skipped over several unfamiliar faces. Those people had various expressions—some were nervous, some were numb, and some had caution hidden in their eyes.
Finally, Ren Yi's gaze landed on a figure on the right side of the round table.
The figure looked slightly stout, with fluffy brown curly hair, a face covered in fine freckles, and a short little mustache on his chin.
Most notably, he was wearing a stark white coat. The bright color made his profession obvious at a glance.
However, it wasn't a doctor's white coat, as he also wore a tall white chef's hat.
Indeed, this was a chef.
Reasonably speaking, this face should have been completely unfamiliar to Ren Yi.
But his gaze had been fixed in that direction from the start—not on the man's face, but on the chef's hat.
Although his perception was currently suppressed and he couldn't sense anything...
Ren Yi knew perfectly well that the seemingly ordinary chef's hat wasn't empty.
There was a Cha hidden inside!
That was the culprit who had dragged him, Zhang Qiuqiu, and Lu Zihan to this bizarre place, forced them into strange clothes, and made them sit around this eerie round table to perform such an absurd drama.
As for how all of this happened, it would have to start from this morning...
...
After finding Ren Man in the Sleep Grass flower field, the matters at the Entertainment City were finally settled. Ren Yi was finally able to get away and take Ren Man home.
It was worth mentioning that when he led Ren Man to the Entertainment City's main gate, Dr. Lin and Dr. Zhao were already nowhere to be found.
Only the Waiter remained, handing over a debt note signed "Zhao Xinyan."
As soon as he got home, Ren Yi's desire to go out vanished instantly, and he fully entered shut-in mode.
Reflecting on his experiences during this period, he couldn't help but feel a massive headache coming on.
First, there was the three-day summer camp at the Lu Family Courtyard, followed immediately by seven days of military-style management in the Three Cities World—killing mutant beasts and acting every day without even a moment to catch his breath.
Just when it was almost over, he had to sit down with that lunatic Azure to talk about life and ideals.
After finally getting home to rest for a few days, he had to rush his social practice report.
Halfway through the report, the homeroom teacher suddenly showed up, followed by the shocks from Dr. Lin and Wang Zhixin.
He had wanted to go out for a walk to clear his head, but ended up diving headfirst into the Entertainment City—a place completely unsuitable for adolescent activities.
He even ran into that troublemaker Dr. Zhao and got caught up in a strange conflict.
Who would have thought that all of this happened in just half a summer break?
Ren Yi felt that lately, it just wasn't his lucky day to be out of the house; he was better off staying home and scrolling through his phone.
But the happy times spent on his phone were always exceptionally brief.
Before he knew it, time had flown by, and Ren Yi suddenly realized he was facing an unprecedented crisis.
School was about to start!
Rate on N.U.
