Chapter 56 The So-Called Fate _1

First there was bewilderment, then a startle, followed by shock.

"What in the world?"

Huai Shi jumped up, startled, and leaned in to scrutinize the scene within the basin that looked like a bird's-eye view, identifying a dilapidated warehouse in the suburbs.

Incredible.

"King Ocean is right here?"

"Yes." Raven countered, "It's just a watermark method of tracking through the ink of Event Branch, is that really so unbelievable?"

Huai Shi's eyes widened: "Why didn't you say so earlier?"

"But you didn't ask."

Raven looked at him with a puzzled face, completely innocent.

Huai Shi could hardly resist the urge to grab this damn bird and squeeze it to death.

"You're clearly playing dumb!" he said angrily, slapping the table, "Look at you, eating my family's rice, living in my family's house, stealing my family's electricity, using my family's internet. I let all that slide but you knew this bastard wanted to kill me, why hide it from me?"

"Oh?" Raven looked at him curiously, "Had I told you earlier, what would you have done?"

"Obviously, I would've called people to deal with him!"

"The Astronomical Society? Or the Special Affairs Department? Or perhaps both combined?" Raven smiled strangely, "But how would you have explained why they would be hiding out in that place?"

Huai Shi opened his mouth to speak but was interrupted.

"No, no, no, I don't mean how you got the method to find his hiding place."

Raven paused for a moment and glanced at the reflection in the water: "Rather, how would you explain why a property that once belonged to your family has become a lair for The Purified People?"

"... What in the world?!"

Huai Shi's eyes widened, staring at the basin in astonishment: "You're saying this place, this thing... belongs to my family?"

"You really have forgotten everything completely."

Raven looked at him pityingly, "Why am I, an outsider, clearer about this than you? No, I should say this is something you would understand with just a little investigation into the property rights?"

"Indeed."

She said, "The place where King Ocean is now hiding was once one of the Huai's shipping cargo transfer warehouses. In other words, a place that belonged to your family about a decade ago has now become a 'Fasting Circle' where The Purified People raise Border Variants."

With her words, countless old papers flew from the basement air, fell down, and gathered in front of Huai Shi, neatly forming a stack.

"I can understand your confusion and bewilderment, but this is indeed the conclusion drawn from these old archives of your house."

Huai Shi silently flipped through those papers, page by page.

These were indeed piled up in the storeroom of his house, covered with dust, moldy, cast away in some unremarkable corner.

Forgotten.

Raven was right, that place was indeed once part of the Huai Family's properties, a warehouse used for transferring goods.

"But I don't remember it at all."

Huai Shi sat blankly in his chair, carefully recalling, but the memories of his childhood had too many gaps, too many blurry things.

After that high fever, a lot of things had gradually faded...

But it didn't seem like anything surprising.

Ever since he could remember, the family's assets seemed to have been declining rapidly. Even if his great-grandfather had been amazingly wealthy, what was left now was nothing more than an old house.

With so many properties the Huai family once had, it would not be surprising if something occasionally happened, right?

It was just somewhat unlucky.

Just like himself all this time.

Yet, why would he feel angry?

"Damn it..."

He muttered under his breath, yet didn't know what exactly to be angry about.

In the silence, Raven stood perched on the hilt of the knife, looking at him with pity. The flickering light cast her shadow long on the wall, dancing like flames.

"Let me give you your second lesson, Huai Shi."

Her voice changed, not the usual flippancy and jest, but solemn, like the clash of glaciers and iron, with a low rumble, "

"—Fate cannot be controlled, but its subjects do vary."

"Fate?"

"Yes, fate," the black bird said, "Some people choose their fate, while others are intimidated by the difficulties and fears they see, and they stop in their tracks."

They could only wait to be chosen by fate.

Though the latter isn't necessarily bad, when duckweed is caught in a storm at sea, how can it blame its own luck?"

Huai Shi remained silent for a long time before asking, "Does the former necessarily lead to happiness?"

"Who knows?" Raven answered calmly, "Striving might not change any outcome, but at least one dies with integrity, right?"

"..."

Huai Shi fell silent.

"You need not detest yourself, after all, the you from the past had no chance to choose, but now everything is different."

Raven said, "If you don't care about the past, you can simply ignore it, letting it all continue to sink into darkness.

I assure you, you will have a bright future.

But if you truly want to know what happened to you, no, in your house, you must confront it all yourself."

After a prolonged silence, Huai Shi couldn't help but want to laugh: "Even if I knew, what could be changed?"

Nothing can be changed, nothing will return.

Just as fate will not change.

Just like that Book of Fate.

The dust has settled, and the contents recorded within will never change.

Raven looked into his eyes and said slowly, "But at least you can know why you have lost, can't you?"

In the dead silence, Huai Shi closed his eyes and sighed wearily.

After a long, long time, he opened his eyes, stood up, took his coat from the chair, draped it over his shoulders, then examined the pistol issued by the Astronomical Society: the trigger, the barrel, and the magazine, before tucking it into the concealed holster at his waist.

Lastly, he picked up the Sacrificial Knife from the table and fastened it to the buckle of his belt.

"Allow me to use it for a moment."

Huai Shi zipped up his jacket and said, "I'll be back soon."

"Hmm."

Raven flapped its wings, "Have a good journey."

As he was leaving, Huai Shi paused in his steps and saw an envelope on the table.

"What's that?"

"Oh, that." Raven glanced at it, "Someone came by at noon, didn't come in though, just left this thing in the mailbox outside. I think it's probably for you."

Huai Shi picked up the envelope, shook it, and it seemed to contain some metallic object with a bit of weight.

After opening the envelope, a key slid out and fell into Huai Shi's palm.

A brass key, aged, not looking like it would unlock a high-security door or a valuable safe, just the type commonly accompanying cheap locks.

That slight heft felt so familiar; Huai Shi could almost remember every groove on it.

It was the key to his piano room.

"Fu Yi?"

The only person likely to send this key would be her, right? After all, abusing the student council's power to check a student's home address is quite in her style.

What exactly does it mean?

Huai Shi scrutinized the key and suddenly felt like laughing, "Skipping class again, that girl..."

He thought about it and then hung it back on his keychain in his pocket.

Never before had he been so certain that this abrupt holiday would come to an end.

His life would start again, return once more to that room of his own, and once again begin practicing piano, idling away, and imagining a happy future.

Return to his own club for patients.

"Thank you."

He sent a WeChat message to Fu Yi, and shortly after, he received an emoji in response—it was a picture of Huai Shi hesitating in front of the Cowherd Club, with two brightly flashing colorful words Photoshopped onto it.

——Cheer up!

"So, are you really the leader who's been sending me those emojis?"

He didn't know whether to be angry or to laugh.

He turned off his phone screen and pushed the door open.

Huai Shi set out.