Popularity is everything; I play a super genius

Therefore, from the moment she started, her gaze never left the direction from which the blood arrow had come.

She was on edge, her hand resting on the weapon at her waist, scanning her surroundings warily, without letting her guard down for a moment.

until--

A hand gently patted her shoulder.

"It's all over now."

It is Saki-ji.

Before anyone knew it, he had already walked up to Shana's side.

Her body stiffened slightly for a moment, but she didn't completely lower her guard upon hearing this: "Really? Why?"

An enemy capable of unleashing such a terrifying attack must possess unfathomable strength.

If the opponent attacks a few more times, even if Qi Ji manages to protect himself, his "burden" from Class 8 will suffer heavy casualties.

Why did that powerful enemy lurking in the shadows stop attacking?

What makes Saki so certain that "everything is alright"?

Seemingly noticing her momentary confusion, Qi Ji smiled and said, "Didn't you notice? Lao Yue... he's gone."

Speaking of Tsukimi, Setsuna was still seething with anger: "I noticed it a long time ago! As soon as it's time to leave work, that guy—"

At this point, Setsuna suddenly understood what Sakichi meant, and her eyes widened in disbelief:

"You mean... that unreliable jerk...?"

"Actually, he's not that unreliable," Saki said casually.

"You can trust him occasionally, of course, I only say 'occasionally' haha~~"

Just as Saki finished speaking, a cold voice came from the side, interrupting his conversation with Setsuna.

“Saki-kun”.

It is glass.

She had somehow slipped away from the group of girls and now stood gracefully a few steps away from the two of them.

The moonlight outlined her slender figure, and her long, misty purple hair fluttered gently in the night breeze.

When Qi Ji saw Liu Li, he seemed to realize something, and his expression changed.

Almost immediately, he hid the Wuxiang Sword, which he had just retrieved from the war eagle's corpse and with which he had developed a bond, behind his back.

……

……

Chapter 44 This kind of woman is the most shrewd.

Liuli rolled her eyes in annoyance.

Thanks to the girl's maxed-out modeling stats, even this simple action of hers has a unique charm.

Liuli stretched out her hand, palm up, and laid it out directly in front of Qiji: "Sword."

"Sword? What sword?" Saki tried to play dumb.

"The one you hid behind your back."

Pretending to be stupid failed.

Qi Ji immediately looked as if he had just realized something, took the sword in front of him, and stroked it lovingly, saying:

"Oh—! You mean this? This sword is really useful!"

We really owe it to it just now!

Incredibly sharp, with an excellent feel! It's as if it was made just for me!

Yes, tailor-made!

It's so easy to use! Ah, I wish I had one too!

As he spoke, Qi Ji made a neat sword flourish.

The gleaming silver sword light drew a graceful arc in the air, attracting several girls who had been secretly glancing at Qi Ji, and another suppressed "Oh ho" rang out.

Upon seeing this, the comments section burst into laughter:

"Hahaha! Here it begins! The ultimate freebie-getting method!"

"A sword? What sword?" "This sword is really useful!" "It's like it was tailor-made for me!" "I wish I had one too!" — On the art of speaking in a solitary and lonely state!

"Liuli: My mother tongue is speechlessness."

"Hajiji, if you really want it, you don't need to beat around the bush! Please, Sister Liuli, do you think she won't give it to you at least once?"

"If Lao Ji wants it, will Liu Li give it to him?"

"Upstairs, I'm afraid that won't work. That wicked woman is jealous right now! Otherwise, why do you think she came over to ask for the sword right after Lao Ji hugged Li Li?"

"Hilarious, it's probably just jealousy!"

If Liuli knew that the comments were viewing her with such a "petty" attitude, she would definitely be angry.

After all, she came to ask for the Wuxiang Sword back, not out of jealousy!

What is she jealous of?

What kinds of vinegar are delicious?

How could she possibly be jealous!

Ultimately, Qi Ji wasn't anyone to her; they were just ordinary classmates.

Therefore, talk of jealousy is inherently ridiculous.

She came to ask for the sword now, mainly because—

"Saki-kun, this sword needs to be refined using a special method to maintain its power."

"If you need it, you can come to me anytime; I won't refuse."

There was another reason that Ruri didn't mention: if people found out that this sword was in Saki's hands, the Kamishiro family would definitely not let him off the hook.

This would put him in danger.

Upon hearing this, Qi Ji realized that Liu Li hadn't lied to him.

The echoes engraved on the Musou Sword diminish with each use, and can only regain their power when it is in the hands of the Kamishiro family.

Seeing Ruri take the sword back from Saki's hand, the comments section started scrolling again:

"Come find me anytime, I won't refuse! Family, is this a confession? This must be a confession!"

"The Romantic Brainstorming Battle of Love!"

"Laoji! You've been tricked! Swords are something that, once borrowed and returned, develop a bond, don't they?"

"Hilarious! Bad women are definitely the most cunning!"

……

Although the mission was fraught with setbacks and unexpected events, it was ultimately completed successfully.

Except for a few lucky ones, almost everyone in Class 8 was injured.

Everyone looked disheveled and miserable.

Fortunately, no trainees died.

This is already an extremely rare result.

In contrast, the caravans they escorted suffered far more devastating losses.

Most of the caravan members were ordinary people who had not awakened their inner power and were almost powerless against the ferocious beasts.

At this point, a headcount revealed three dead and seven seriously injured...

The caravan owner, on the other hand, was lucky; he only suffered a small amount of fly poisoning.

The poison was temporarily suppressed by the medicine, and apart from some numbness and stiffness in his body, he was not seriously injured.

He forced himself to thank Qi Ji and the students of Class 8, but there was no joy on his face. Instead, he looked as if he had aged more than ten years in an instant.

This trip not only resulted in the loss of most of the goods, but more importantly, the deaths of several long-time colleagues.

Leaving aside the emotional blow, the compensation alone would be enough to make it even more difficult for his already thinly profitable caravan to continue operating.

He squatted to one side, staring blankly at the bodies of his men and the wrecked truck.

Upon witnessing this scene, Qi Ji couldn't help but recall the line written in the plot synopsis—

"The medicine was delivered successfully, but ten people in the caravan died and all the goods were lost."

In the original storyline, although there was no beast tide, the caravan's fate was even more tragic than it is now.

Of course, these are only mentioned briefly in the plot.

This is the current state of the world.

Tragedy unfolds every moment, yet when recorded in writing, it is merely a short line.

Saki thought for a moment, then stepped forward:

"Boss, we might still be able to recover some of the goods you lost over there in the canyon."

"?!"

Upon hearing this, the caravan owner looked up abruptly, a glimmer of hope reappearing in his eyes:

"Is it really possible? But there are still so many Void Beasts there..."

"No problem, because I've already dealt with all the Void Beasts in the canyon."

"What?!" The caravan owner and the eighth-class students who overheard the conversation were all stunned.

All resolved?

A person?

In such a short period of time?

They assumed that Saki had stalled for enough time before withdrawing.

And now this guy is actually saying he didn't just cover the retreat, but annihilated the entire enemy force?!

Is this some kind of outrageous nonsense?!

The caravan owner stared blankly at Qi Ji, his lips trembling, unable to speak for a long time. Finally, he said heavily, with a sob in his voice:

"...Thank goodness, thank goodness! This time, it was you who protected us...Lord Saki..."

He knew perfectly well that with the small commission he offered, he could only hire some half-baked echoers at most.

It could even be a newbie who has just awakened and is trying their luck in the Rift.

If that were the case, given tonight's situation, their caravan would likely face certain death.

It was this masked boy in front of them who pulled them back from the brink of death and gave them a glimmer of hope to recover their losses.

It's all his own fault; he knew perfectly well that the cracks had been rife lately.

Almost every caravan that sets out on a journey suffers misfortune, yet he still insists on going his own way.

……

The group returned to the narrow valley.

Despite being mentally prepared, everyone still couldn't help but gasp when they saw the devastation in the canyon, as if it had been ravaged by a storm.

His gaze toward Saki was filled with awe.

After being shocked for a while, the caravan members finally calmed down and began searching for the goods.

Seeing this, the students from Class 8 also stepped forward to help.

Qi Ji immediately retrieved his trench coat, carefully dusted it off, and put it back on.

Then, looking at the corpse of the Void Beast that was becoming transparent and irreversibly disappearing, Saki felt a pang of regret.