KyokaSuigetsu
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Chapter 43: So This Is How It Works
🕑 Added 2025-04-22 20:40:01 +0000 UTC[A cold smile plays on your lips. These two aren't weak—in fact, they're considerably stronger than the average Cloud Knight.]
[But that's all they are.]
[You raise your hands and effortlessly catch their fists mid-air. Then, under their disbelieving gazes, you toss them around like ragdolls, slamming them left and right.]
[By the time Guinaifen rushes in, you're lounging lazily on the sofa, while her eldest and second brothers lie on the ground like beaten dogs, groaning in pain.]
[Seeing the person in question arrive, your smirk deepens.]
["Your eldest brother's job? I arranged it. His salary? I pay it. Your whole family survives because of me. And yet, you dare raise your hands against me?"]
["Even a dog knows to wag its tail at the one who feeds it. Seems you're worse than dogs."]
[Guinaifen's eldest brother struggles to sit up, his face twisted in rage as he points at Solon. "You—you threatened her!"]
["Threatened? Fine. Then you can take her and leave." Solon's smile drips with mockery as he flicks his hand dismissively at Guinaifen.]
[Her two brothers grit their teeth against the pain, hauling themselves up and grabbing Guinaifen's hands to drag her away.]
[Yet no matter how hard they pull, she remains rooted in place, unmoving.]
["Fourth Sister?" The brothers stare at her, bewildered.]
[Guinaifen's expression is solemn. "Brothers, this is my choice. I became his woman willingly. So… you should go."]
["Fourth Sister—!? Do you even hear yourself?" Their disbelief is palpable.]
[Guinaifen meets their gaze without flinching.]
["You're coming with us, now!" The eldest brother barks, reaching for her again—only for her to yank her arm free.]
[When he moves to force her, the second brother abruptly stops him.]
["Is this really your decision?" The second brother's voice is grave.]
[Guinaifen nods firmly.]
[The second brother's shoulders slump in resignation. With a defeated sigh, he grabs the eldest brother and pulls him toward the door.]
["What are you doing!? Why are we leaving her here!?" the eldest brother protests, struggling.]
["Enough! Stop humiliating yourself!" The second brother suddenly snaps, his glare sharp enough to freeze the other in place.]
["This is Fourth Sister's choice," he says darkly.]
[With that, he drags the unresisting eldest brother out.]
[Once outside, the second brother suddenly clenches his fists and slams them into the unyielding wall. He doesn't shield his hands with Imaginary energy—soon, his knuckles are bloody.]
["You…" The eldest brother places a hand on his shoulder, his expression conflicted.]
[The second brother's frame trembles. "It's not her fault! We're useless! As her brothers, all we do is hold her back! Damn it—!!"]
[Though the Xianzhou Alliance took their family in, their past as interstellar pirates and outsiders with criminal records barred them from decent work.]
[Meanwhile, back inside, you study Guinaifen with amused curiosity, as if seeing her for the first time.]
["Color me surprised. I thought you'd obediently follow them home~"]
[Guinaifen responds with a radiant smile. Wordlessly, she kneels before Solon, her actions speaking louder than any reply…]
Well, Guinaifen's choice wasn't exactly unexpected.
Despite her absurd acrobatic stunts—a result of the cutthroat livestreaming industry—Guinaifen herself was far from foolish. In fact, she was shrewd.
Take her friendship with Sushang, for example. While Sushang was genuinely naive, Guinaifen wasn't. To boost views, she'd convinced Sushang to perform "chest-crushing boulder" stunts—as the one lying under the boulder. Later, she leveraged their connection to join the Suiyuan mission hunting down the Sui spirits, skyrocketing her follower count.
Her cunning wasn't malicious, though. At her core, Guinaifen was kind, warm, and hardworking—her cleverness was simply a tool to seize opportunities. Her life before coming to the Xianzhou had been a rollercoaster, from privileged princess to desperate refugee. Without wits, she'd have long been captured as a plaything.
If anything, the real miracle was that she hadn't turned bitter or corrupt after such hardships.
Here, she'd simply made the smartest choice for her siblings.
[Simulation complete. Evaluating results…]
[Evaluation finished. Rank: C!]
[Minimum clearance achieved. Reward obtained: 'Filthy Rich (Blue)'.]
Seeing the mediocre C-rank and the blue-tier Filthy Rich reward, Solon felt a twinge of regret.
The golden Twelve Paladins trait he'd picked at the start had barely been more than a garnish—it contributed little beyond the early stages, arguably less than Filthy Rich. He could've cleared the run without it.
Lesson learned: choose traits carefully. For low-difficulty scripts, starting bonuses might just dilute the rewards.
He could've done better. For instance, after gauging the difficulty, he could've reset by suicide and picked a different trait.
Committing this lesson to memory, Solon examined his new Filthy Rich (Blue) trait. He wondered how the system would implement it—it wasn't a business talent (letting him earn money himself) or a luck boost, but more like an item or backstory element.
The moment he equipped it, his Jade Abacus pinged with a notification: an unknown distant relative had left him a massive inheritance, and he needed to visit the Divination Commission to claim it.
Solon's face twisted into a wry expression.
Let's not forget—I'm a transmigrator. My identity in this world is literally fabricated by the system. Since when do I have rich relatives?
Ah. System shenanigans again.
As Solon tallied his gains, Guinaifen abruptly jolted awake in her bed, drenched in sweat.
Her hair clung to her damp skin as she hugged herself tightly. The dream had felt too real—especially those shameful, intimate memories.
Even now, she could almost feel phantom hands tracing her skin, leaving trails of searing heat in their wake…
