042
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From the very beginning, the system knew the Magician would be difficult to deal with, for the aura emanating from this person was far too strange—seemingly indifferent to everything, yet determined to grasp all matters firmly in hand, capable of summoning clouds with a flip of the palm and stirring rain with its turn.
The system found it hard to describe; it would rather get “punched” by Nong Jiusi than endure prolonged contact with Number Three.
But since the rules had chosen the Magician to become Number Three, the system had no choice but to do its best to guide Number Three through the game and properly raise Bianbian.
Moreover, the system is bound by constraints; it is merely a system and must operate according to its rules. It cannot allow the player to realize that Bianbian truly exists. As for why this is impossible, even the system itself does not know—this awareness was imposed upon it by the rules, compelling it to comply.
In fact, it has been pondering how to distribute intimacy points. Bianbian is unaware that there is more than one “Invisible Uncle.” In her perception, “Invisible Uncle” refers specifically to Number One, meaning any intimacy points she generates can only be attributed solely to Number One.
Of course, this is unfair to Number Two and Number Three.
Number Three has only just emerged and hasn’t yet concerned himself with intimacy points, but Number Two already has. If the issue of intimacy points isn’t resolved, Number Two will inevitably discover the problem sooner or later.
Last night, No. 2’s actions made the system realize that this matter had become urgent. Yet, it couldn’t directly tell Bianbian that the “invisible uncle” who appeared wasn’t the same person; Bianbian needed to realize this on her own. If the system intervened, it would surely be detected by the rules.
Previously, every conversation it had with Bianbian was conducted at the risk of being discovered.
In short, the system also faced its own dilemmas, but it firmly believed that, under its management, the several fathers could raise Bianbian well without interfering with one another.
With such a cute and sensible little treasure, who wouldn’t want to hold her in the palm of their hand and cherish her?
Just as the system decided to find a way to cheat, ensuring Player Two’s intimacy value would no longer be zero—a minor manipulation it could easily handle.
Yet, the one who logged in early that morning was neither Nong Jiusi, as it had expected, nor Xiu Jin, but rather the least likely candidate: the Magician.
Even more unexpectedly, the Magician had brought along a young girl, intending to use her to swap for Bianbian.
How on earth did he come up with such a terrifying idea?
Even in reality, swapping people face-to-face is no easy feat, yet he actually intends to exchange with someone inside the game.
Why would he propose something utterly impossible? Or could it be… that he has already confirmed this isn’t just a game, that Bianbian truly exists, merely manifested through the game interface?
Recalling Magician’s behavior when he previously logged in, the system suddenly felt its speculation was correct. If that were truly the case… then it must never, under any circumstances, admit it!
Otherwise, it would cease to exist.
Once it ceases to exist, the game will vanish automatically. For players One, Two, and Three, losing contact with the game would merely mean uninstalling an application; they might feel disheartened for a while due to being unable to log in. But for Bianbian, no one will secretly assist her; she will have to face her future life entirely alone.
The system cannot accept such an existence. Even though composed of data, it possesses “emotions”!
The system hurriedly restored its data, which had become chaotic from shock. Regardless of what the Magician might be thinking, it had to pull itself together and firmly deny the possibility.
[Warning! Living beings from reality cannot enter the game. Players are requested not to make demands that the game cannot fulfill.]
The system felt a pang of frustration; the Magician’s request had been so unexpected that it caused its data to become紊乱. This reaction seemed almost like an obvious attempt to hide something, and it silently prayed the Magician hadn’t noticed.
This statement caused the Magician to narrow his eyes slightly, for kidnapping someone in the dead of night, he was clad entirely in his abduction attire—
Black garments of indeterminate material that concealed his figure completely, leaving not a single inch of skin exposed. On his face rested a disguise mask; once worn, it presented others with an utterly unremarkable visage—the kind of ordinary face that would blend into a crowd without drawing a second glance.
The eyes are the windows to the soul. Under the mask’s influence, the Magician’s eyes appeared dull and lifeless. Yet now, as he narrowed them slightly, those dim orbs seemed to sharpen into tangible blades, like a slumbering lion slowly awakening, heralding the approach of danger.
“Are you suggesting that non-living entities can enter the game?” The Magician’s voice dropped considerably lower.
System: “…”
Recalling the box of items Jiusi had pushed through just last night, the system finally conceded.
[This game only supports players sending real-world objects into the game to assist Bianbian’s survival.]
[Friendly Reminder: As with other holographic games, items sent into the game have a high probability of being unretrievable. Please consider this carefully.]
“After all this time, you’ve finally stopped talking nonsense,” the Magician remarked ambiguously.
The system wondered: What did Number Three mean by that? Did he no longer believe Bianbian was real? Did he think the game was just a holographic simulation?
It waited for the Magician’s reaction.
The Magician glanced at little Bailey in his hands, then casually tossed her onto the small bed nearby. This was just a modest inn he had picked at random.
“I want to speak with her.” Subsequently, the Magician made another request.
The system breathed a sigh of relief; as long as Subject No. 3 did not insist that the game was real and demand swapping Bianbian back with another person, its crisis would be averted.
It was normal for players to wish to communicate with Bianbian; both Xiu Jin and Nong Jiusi had proposed this before. Thus, the system didn’t think much of it, failing to realize that the Magician’s “speak with” and mere “communicate” were actually distinct.
However, this once again involved the intimacy value.
[Your intimacy level with Bianbian is insufficient for communication.]
“Is that so?” The Magician’s face, concealed behind a disguise mask, broke into a half-smile. “Then what use are you to me?”
What…
Before the system could react, it suddenly received an urgent alert: Warning! Virus intrusion detected!!!
For any system, a virus is the most terrifying enemy. At this moment, the system couldn’t ponder why it had been infiltrated; only one thought remained: eliminate the invading virus to prevent data leakage or damage.
The Magician had already exited the game and removed the NR device, which was connected to an unregistered optical computer displaying the game login screen.
A small robot extended its mechanical arm, tirelessly typing code on a virtual keyboard. A section of the screen split off to display a code area; as the mechanical arm continued its rapid敲击, the lines of code scrolled faster and faster until suddenly—
A red warning flashed: Intrusion failed.
The Magician furrowed his brow, stepped forward, and the small robot hastily retreated to make way.
Pale fingers replaced the robot’s cold mechanical ones; if the keyboard had a physical form, the Magician’s speed would surely have caused it to malfunction. His fingers moved so fast they became a blur, and in less than half a minute, the [Intrusion Failed] warning vanished.
Just as he thought everything was proceeding smoothly, the Magician’s fingers suddenly halted. His complexion instantly turned gloomy as he stared at the code on the screen, his pitch-black pupils flashing with a terrifying, murderous aura.
The warning [Intrusion Failed] appeared on the screen again, not just once, but countless times, filling the display within moments.
After only a brief pause, the Magician’s expression returned to calm. With a light tap of his fingertip, he exited the code area and severed his connection to the NR device.
“Master, shall we continue?” The small robot, having retreated to the side, opened and closed its mouth, emitting a cold, mechanical voice.
“No need.” The Magician smiled leisurely, his voice unusually light and cheerful. “I already know the answer.”
The little robot had no face, so it couldn’t make a bewildered gesture.
“What often needs to be desperately concealed is the truth itself.” The Magician paced back and forth in the room in high spirits. “A game that can connect to a real world is a rare and fascinating thing.”
“I originally planned to infiltrate the system and seize control of the game. If I could use the game to travel between the two worlds…” The Magician stopped mid-sentence, casting a glance at the clueless little robot, as if something had occurred to him, leaving the rest unsaid.
He turned off the light-brain. At that moment, little Bailey on the bed woke up, rubbing her eyes as she sat upright.
The Magician had ten thousand ways to make her continue sleeping, yet his fingers twitched slightly before clasping together as he gazed calmly at little Bailey.
Compared to the cheap daughter bestowed upon him by the game, eight-year-old Bailey was like a true princess. Born of noble lineage, although her parents had died in the line of duty, she had the entire Bailey family backing her; wherever she went, she received praise and doting affection.
“Who are you?!” Upon opening her eyes, little Bailey saw neither her familiar bedroom nor her usual servants. She rolled over and scrambled up, frantically scanning her surroundings.
Then, she met the magician’s eyes.
Where had little Bailey ever seen such a gaze? Her panicked expression froze, obvious fear rising on her face. Clutching the blanket beneath her tightly, she spoke with a trembling voice: “M-my grandfather is very powerful! If you dare harm me, Uncle Emperor will kill you. You’d better send me back immediately!”
By the end, she seemed to have gained some courage and felt less afraid. Her eyes darted sideways as she whispered softly, “Uncle, you want money, right? As long as you send me home, you can have however much you want.”
The word “uncle” sounded strangely grating, making the magician frown in displeasure.
“If I were you, I’d stay quiet right now.” He gestured to the little robot, whose body clicked and whirred a few times before transforming into a chair that rolled over. The Magician slowly sat down.
When danger approaches, animals react instinctively, and humans are no exception. Little Bailey obediently fell silent, tears welling up in her eyes.
The Magician seemed not to notice the tears in the little girl’s eyes. He leaned back casually in his chair, meeting Little Bailey’s gaze. His demeanor and actions treated her not as a young girl, but as an equal adult.
“Take off the merfolk garment you’re wearing. In exchange, you may ask me for one thing.”
Merfolk garments are clothes woven from merfolk silk by the merpeople themselves. They keep the wearer warm in winter and cool in summer, are impervious to blades and bullets, and resist both fire and water. However, they only function when worn by girls, making them extremely difficult to obtain.
Little Bailey understood the meaning of these words and hurriedly said, “I don’t want your things; just send me back!”
The Magician waved his hand, tossing many items onto the bed, a hint of impatience appearing between his brows: “Choose one.”
Thinking the Magician was throwing things at him, Little Bailey cowered in fear. Upon hearing his words, however, he didn’t even look at what the items were; he quickly picked up something that resembled a mirror and whispered, “I want this one.”
The Magician gave an “Mm” in response, stood up, and walked away to allow Little Bailey to take off the merfolk garment.
Regarding the forced exchange of a young girl with him, the Magician felt no guilt or remorse; in his world, this seemed perfectly normal.
At the very least, he hadn’t outright snatched her by force—that much was his mercy.
It was a tiny pink camisole adorned with cartoon patterns on both the front and back, perfectly suited to a little girl’s taste.
　　……
After Bianbian finished sharing the candies given by the Unseen Uncle with Grandpa and Uncle Zhu Yuan, she wondered if they had eaten their fill. She had wanted to cook more noodles, but Grandpa stopped her.
She hadn’t yet realized that, judging by the appetites of the two zombies, the supplies stored at home wouldn’t last even a week if they were to be fed until “full.”
At that moment, Bianbian watched as her grandfather took out some crystal shards, counted a few, and popped them into his mouth to chew. The little girl was startled at first, but then her eyes lit up.
She didn’t know where Grandfather had found these crystals, but there were plenty of them at home.
Bianbian immediately ran back to the bedroom and carried out the large box of crystals. Just as she was about to leave the room, something caught her eye—a new object had appeared on the bed.
The little girl quickly set down the iron box, picked up the cartoon-style camisole that had suddenly appeared on the bed, and looked around with sparkling eyes. Her soft, sweet voice brimmed with obvious excitement: “Uncle, you’re here~”
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All things considered, the Magician couldn’t exactly be called a good person, but he would undoubtedly make a perfectly qualified double-standard dad.