novelLevel Up
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Chapter 28 - Level Up translator: xiin editors: apricot & juurensha
Azure Cosmos, Main City, Block 16, Bar.
The main door smashed open, and two people dashed outside as though their tails were on fire--
"Quickly! Little Witch is still nearby!"
After looking at a large terminal the size of a watch for two seconds, Zoe and Caesar suddenly turned into two lightning bolts and charged off into the distance.
The ladies chatting by the door were given a scare.
"How rude!!"
"Exactly! They only know to to lower their heads and look at their watches, do they think that they're performing Fengshui downtown or something... Didn't they say that Crazy Lion was footing the bill today? Why were they the ones who left??"
On the terminal, the flag that represented Wu Jin was moving rapidly.
Caesar, who hadn't sobered up yet, had a blank expression on his face--
"Little Witch is 128 meters above the surface... Little Witch accelerated from a standstill to 100 km/h in two seconds!! Little Witch did a 70 degree rotation!! Little Witch fli-fli-flipped upside down?!!"
"The hell?! Was our Little Witch hijacked by some circling, fire-breathing dragon!? Zoe--"
Fifteen minutes later, the two of them came to a dismayed stop at the end of the street.
Against the bright night sky, the smooth metal tracks that looked like a chemical equation filled up the entire amusement park. The roller coaster swooped down the steep slope at a high speed, and the screams of tourists penetrated their eardrums.
"Little Witch!"
Zoe suddenly looked towards the exit to the ride with surprise on his face.
The youth stood there quietly under the soft orange streetlights. He was working hard to hold onto a rabbit plush toy the same size as he was. His porcelain pale chin was set on top of the rabbit's head, the soft, fluffy material making him appear even more small and lovely.
The light reflecting off the dust in the air gave him a delicate outline, separating Wu Jin from the shadows. Many of the tourists who were still in line looked unconsciously in his direction, and some younger girls even wanted to raise up their terminals to take a photo--
"Big brother Zoe!" Wu Jin reacted half a beat later, and he dragged the big rabbit behind him as he ran over jubilantly.
Caesar was relieved at last, shouting, "Our Little Witch is alive and kicking, how could he be lost just like that! Just now, Red even said... hey, what did he say again..."
Thus, the three of them were gathered back together.
According to Wu Jin, he had returned to the amusement park half an hour ago in order to practice shooting, then used the two complimentary experience vouchers to take the ferris wheel and the roller coaster.
Zoe immediately felt ashamed.
As his senior in the company, he hadn't taken proper care of Little Witch and had run off to have fun drinking instead. The child had been all by himself in the air rifle shooting range, and had no warm or dependent companion other than his rabbit plush. This kind of no class friendship behavior of theirs was simply appalling!
Caesar was still tugging on the rabbit's ear."Yo, the quality's pretty good! Little Witch, how many credit points did you use to obtain it? Were you able to recoup your costs? If yes, then we should go and win a couple more to bring back and sell..."
Wu Jin's eyes grew wide as he retreated backwards step by step, trying to rescue the rabbit plush that was about to be abducted and sold.
Zoe directly ignored Caesar and looked at the terminal."Enough. Pack up and get ready to go back. Those three Azure Cosmos tickets are only valid for a five hour stay."
In this money-squandering den, time itself was also highly expensive.
Caesar nodded, then plucked at the rabbit's ears and showed off his bulging biceps, "Come, do you want your big brother to carry it for you?"
Wu Jin hurriedly thanked Caesar while declining his help.
As they left, he couldn't help but look back towards the darkened end of the road.
The lights in the downtown area looked the same as how they had when they had first set out.
Back at the port, the fluffy rabbit plush was pressed into a rectangular rabbit pie at the narrow security checkpoint.
Several staff members rushed over to push the plush back out and respectfully told Wu Jin that there was no need for him to go through the security check.
However, Caesar and Zoe were ushered out to line up in the long queues.
A spotless red carpet was spread out on the ground to one side of the port.
The check-in personnel for the star ship opened up the courtesy channel for Wu Jin. The VIP lounge was only a few steps away, and it was equipped with an independent private space, comfortable slippers, and drinks and snacks with unpronounceable names.
Wu Jin was stunned and didn't recover until the waiter handed him a warm and damp hand towel.
The embroidery on the hand towel was exactly the same as the badge on his collar.
The low-key silver mask seemed to shimmer slightly as it glinted in the light.
Wu Jin subconsciously stuffed his right hand into his pocket and brushed his fingertips against the gun's cold metal grip.
It was nearly 1AM by the time his two teammates got through the security check, and the star ship once again carried the three of them through the endless stardust.
Caesar was spread out on the sofa like a salted fish as he flirted with his girlfriend, occasionally smacking a kiss onto the screen.
Based on Zoe's expression, if he had a gun in his hand, he might have pressed it against Caesar's forehead and taken immediate action.
Wu Jin was still flipping through the newspapers inside the star ship cabin.
Caesar stretched out lazily and finally closed the terminal screen. He chuckled slyly, "This wine was really strong! When we go back to that place where even the birds don't shit, we should have Red ship some bottles over."
Zoe's expression was cold as he reported the price on the bottle, giving Caesar a shock.
"He's really damned rich--exactly how much money did Red make in the underground competitions?"
Zoe spread his hands.
Caesar rubbed his chin, "Why did he come here to be a trainee?"
"It's great to be alive." Zoe opened his mouth and said, "At least nobody dies on the Crosson Show."
Wu Jin looked up and asked, "Brother Zoe, why don't these contestants play in the Star League..."
Zoe thought of Wu Jin's lack of common knowledge and explained patiently, "The Star League is a legal monopoly industry where players are strictly audited. Illegal areas like Azure Cosmos have always been targets for Federal attacks. The business ecosystems for survival reality shows on both sides are completely separate from each other, and no contestants move from one industry to the other."
Wu Jin thought about it for a moment, "What if they set up their own team?"
Zoe replied, "If you look at the Azure Competition Zone, you'll find that the profits are all controlled by the major entertainment companies and programs. Many forces vie for a piece of this sweet pie every year, and only a few of them are able to form a team. This is because the barriers to entry are too high."
"Not to mention the background checks and requisite capital reserves, simply considering the contestants themselves--in formal competitions, the main force of each battle team must be players who have made an official debut. So, they can only pay heavily to induce other contestants to transfer, or train up their own trainees. Considering the Crosson Show as well, how many debut positions can the Azure Competition Zone have every year?"
Wu Jin's eyes grew wide.
Zoe recapped the main points and knocked on the table."Remember, Little Witch. This is a legal monopoly. The league, reality show, and sponsorship; every part of the ecosystem has Federal money flowing through it. We're just workers in this industry."
Caesar cracked open a nut and nodded in agreement.
The star ship passed through the meteorite belt and slowly came to a stop at the dock on the edge of the city.
When they returned back to the company, the entire building was silent. Only Secretary Qu was cracking melon seeds in the training room, using the high-definition projection screen that was used for trainees to watch replays on to catch up on a drama series.
Secretary Qu's gaze lit up when the teenager holding the rabbit plush appeared.
A faint green light flashed behind the lens of her glasses.
"Have a good rest. You have to go back to the Crosson base tomorrow." Secretary Qu couldn't help but reach out to touch the small fluffy curls once again, then patiently helped him straighten out the fluffy fur on the plush toy.
It wasn't until Wu Jin left that Secretary Qu's expression grew even more satisfied.
Little Witch was so cute!!!
Little Witch was so gentle!!!
Not only was his appearance value super high, his strength was also rising up steadily!
They must sign an S-class contract with him after his debut. Little Witch was going to be the White Moonlight Battle Team's future treasure!
If anyone dared to steal Little Witch from under the company's noses--
Secretary Qu's eyes narrowed slightly as she bit down mercilessly on the shell of the melon seed in her hand.
White Moonlight trainee dormitory.
As soon as Wu Jin pushed open the door, he saw Brother Rabbit looking at him with its head tilted.
He set down the oversized plush toy, locked the door behind him and drew the curtains before relaxing and stroking the rabbit.
Then, he tentatively pulled the gun that big boss had given him out from his pocket.
The rabbit jumped out of its drawer and sat quietly in Wu Jin's arms.
The youth happily freed up the top level on the spacious bookcase.
From left to right, from small to large--
The silver mask badge, small handgun, and rabbit plush toy.
"Brother Rabbit, come here!"
Wu Jin grinned widely as he picked up the rabbit and stuffed it between the handgun and plush toy.
These were all things that Big Brother had given him!
Wu Jin touched this and that and only took Brother Rabbit back down in delight after a long time. He also put away the handgun and the badge, packing them into his luggage to bring back to the Crosson Show the next morning.
Moonlight streamed through the gap in the curtains, casting a pale white glow in the bedroom.
Wu Jin rolled around on the bed, wrapping himself up in the warm quilt.
While he'd still been in a daze, big boss had led him off the roller coaster, glanced at the terminal, then told him to go and meet his teammates.
Within the dreamlike and illusory lighting of the amusement park, Wu Jin who had only just gotten off the roller coaster, was still extremely merry and had a bounce in his step as he walked.
"Happy?" Wei Shi raised his brows and asked.
Wu Jin nodded repeatedly, his eyes sparkling like crystals.
On top of the big boss's head, an information bubble containing the words 'goodwill +5' popped out silently.
Wu Jin was stunned, and lifted up his head--countless information bubbles then popped out of his small curls one after another, 'goodwill +5', 'goodwill +5', 'goodwill +5', filling the air with crystal clear, transparent bubbles!
The badge that had just been placed on his left collar flashed, showing a line of small text.
Level up.
Lv2 Ordinary Follower -> Lv3 Bronze Follower.
On the soft single bed in the dormitory, Wu Jin happily smacked his lips and cuddled with the rabbit, curling together in a warm little ball.
Wu Jin slept until ten in the morning.
The suspension car had been waiting for a long time beneath the White Moonlight Building.
The Crosson Show's precious two-day holiday was already over. Caesar looked sleepy as he dragged his luggage behind him, reaching out to shove it into the back seat.
Zoe and Wen Lin chatted as they walked to the car, and Wu Jin was last, carrying the rabbit with him.
The car rose up into the air and shot off, high-rise buildings retreating from view one by one. Soon, the twin towers representing the show's base appeared in front of them.
The four of them got out of the car. The training schedule for the next two weeks had already been posted on the lawn.
"Damn!" Caesar suddenly saw, "Tactical shooting, 20 class hours. Static target shooting level of seven rings is considered qualified. Don't worry, Little Witch. I remember that A-level contestants can postpone the basic assessment once. I'll help you look for it--"
"Don't worry." Wu Jin shook his head. His right hand went deep into his pocket and touched the warm metal."There's no need to postpone it."
Juurensha: Little Witch is adorable, towing around his rabbit plush.
xiin: this chapter and the previous one.. i'm fricken melted into a puddle of cute.
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