Races: Online

The PC cafe was quiet for once and there weren't many people around at all, if any, except for Han Jing, Mou Gu and the one left in charge to watch over the place. It appeared as though many people were truly spending their time somewhere else.

All it did was build up the tension in the cramped building.

The neon lights were always glaring but now it seemed extremely harsh on Han Jing's face. It almost acted like a bright white light that attempted to expose the truth about the situation.

"I never get like this, you know?" One could hear the frown in Mou Gu's voice and the sense that something was amiss. "Knocking myself out while drinking? That's more like your thing than mine."

Hah! Unbelievable. Han Jing forced him to stay still and expressionless, but Mou Gu was really someone else. 

The fact that this guy could really sneak in even snide little comments like that about Han Jing was admirable. Not that he actually minded since it was the truth, but it was making him lose concentration.

He shrugged. "Well, there's a first time for everything then."

Would he buy it? Would Mou Gu buy the lie and call it a night? Han Jing did his best to look relaxed and at peace with himself. He only kept his eyes on the computer screen in front of him and allotted his entire focus on the game.

It was a good way to keep his facial expressions blank and for Mou Gu to not read into it too much. Han Jing didn't expect that the memory-sealing talisman would work that effectively on Mou Gu… but who was going to buy him lying through his teeth?

Mou Gu might.

Han Jing was now hoping and trying to see if his luck could also rub off on his lying and acting skills. He had done his best to clean up the mess when they fought on the streets and even came up with the best excuse he could have made in the short amount of time.

He was doing the best impression of 'I don't really care about this conversation' and hoped that Mou Gu would let it go.

"Ugh, whatever." Mou Gu's head was still hurting, so he gave the other man a sour look. "Why couldn't you have let me crash at your place?"

"I don't even want to sleep there myself. Why am I going to let you sleep on a comfy bed if I can't?" Han Jing snorted. That was all in spite of the multiple questions running through his head. 

Did Mou Gu have any other failsafes? Some kind of written note to tell him that in case the man found himself having memory lapses, it was time to check and recover them? Was this guy aware of all the talismans and items in his spatial bead bracelet and kept a working inventory of it? 

Was Mou Gu that organized in the first place?

Han Jing didn't think that was the case, because Mou Gu was more focused on keeping other people happy and entertained to care much about grades—and his habits of putting things on the house at his restaurant seemed to be evident of his laxed nature.

Maybe he could really get away with it?

"You're still as petty as ever." Mou Gu clicked his tongue and then turned to the monitor. The guy's green eyes peered at the screen with some amount of distaste. "What are you even playing? Some kind of simulation management game?"

"Bingo. Not enough attention span needed to maintain it, easy for relaxing—but it's mostly an excuse so I can nap here."

"You're really not going home?"

"...Nah."

The pink-haired cultivator shook his head. "I don't get it… but maybe that's alright and fine. I can't just expect myself to know everything about how your family works."

"Huh?" Han Jing misclicked and accidentally bought the wrong building in the game—quickly tossing a look at Mou Gu. Did the memory-sealing talisman also erase the guy's feelings and perspectives on certain matters? 

"Well, I think you should take care of your parents more and be more understanding, but that's just me." Mou Gu shrugged and then cracked him a crooked grin. "Maybe it's because your mother is hot."

"Gross. I didn't need to hear that."

"What? Where else would you have gotten your looks from?"

"... I'll let the comment slide because of that," Han Jing couldn't help but snicker. It did help boost his confidence somewhat. Maybe just a tad. "But tone it down. When did you suddenly get a lot more honest now?"

"No. I was lying—you look a lot like your dad." Mou Gu grinned back at him, but then turned to his own computer. He switched it on and then asked. "So you're planning to play a few rounds?"

"Yeah, want to play something more team-competitive?"

"Sure. It's been awhile." Mou Gu cracked his knuckles. "My coworker in my side gig has only been playing solitaire and boring card games on our work computer so maybe I can lure him into trying this with me."

"What kind of boring person is that?" 

"Don't say that. He's pretty cool when you get to know him. So are you up for some shooting games?"

Han Jing threw a glance at his friend. "Yeah, sure." He was expecting Mou Gu to leave and for him to pass out immediately right after this and get enough sleep—but this… this wasn't so bad either. Nothing too terrible could happen to Han while he was away, right?

He didn't want to jinx himself, but there was good reason for him to believe that.

Han was just going to attend classes as usual. If anything... It was actually a good tactical decision to let somebody else know that he had a lot of contacts. Maybe not. Han Jing wasn't sure.

There were a lot of people who managed to see right through him or at least have enough suspicion to keep their eyes on him. Whether it was back there in Kraelonia Academy to even here.

Mou Gu was no different.

The reason as to why Mou Gu invited Han Jing to a couple of rounds was to catch the guy off guard. He was still feeling like there was something very wrong and that was what happened when you suddenly realize that a chunk of your memory was blank.

It was more suspicious than ever.

"So Han Jing, how was the trip?" Mou Gu asked as he blasted a zombie's head off. He kept an eye on the monitor but then shifted to look at Han Jing. The guy looked like he was concentrating hard and his focus was dedicated to the game a lot more than Mou Gu did.

"What trip?" 

"Your trip with your other friends?" Mou Gu started while trying not to smile. When a person was distracted, they were more likely to give truer responses. "I tried to visit you a couple days ago but you weren't around. Hard to believe that you were out and I wasn't aware of any sort of college reunions."

"Well, that's because they're not our classmates." Han Jing kept needing to change between two guns in order to recharge ammo. It didn't seem like his Skill also translated to games—but in a sense, it actually did.

He was sort of terrible at FPS and the Creators' Effects were still at a tiny percentage. So him actually getting some head-shots now was a miracle in a sense. Han Jing could only hope that this wasn't suspicious.

It was as if the littlest things that Han Jing did all left a pile of evidence for different people to sift through and put together.

"I guess they're your better friends." Mou Gu teased. "I didn't get invited at all."

"Well, I don't want them to get uncomfortable by having too many people around." Han Jing explained as he thought about his three visitors. Faeran and Mou Gu might get along, Odele would probably love the guy and Jilanya…? Well, Han Jing might see the two get along either.

That was actually a little more depressing now that he thought about it.

If Han Jing could be easily replaced by some other man who was deemed more likable, capable and overall just better than him—what would happen after that?

"Hah, you died. Let me give you my medkit." Mou Gu said, distracted for a moment by both the game and the conversation. 

"Thanks." 

"You don't sound very thankful."

Han Jing rubbed the back of his neck. "I don't know. I'm just not very into first-person shooters, it's all a very weird perspective."

"Bruh. We operate in first person."

"Yeah, but it's harder to distinguish the game and oneself if it's not in third person. Maybe I just like games where you're micromanaging crops more and ensuring—oh dang, I really was a flower boy all along." Han Jing slapped a hand over his face.

"A... what now?" Mou Gu frowned at him. "What's it got to do with the vacation?"

"You remember me selling flowers?"

"Yes." Mou Gu nodded. That was the entire reason why the cultivator was here in the first place, so how could he forget that? "Is there something wrong with it? Bad supplier? You want to change jobs?"

"I don't think I'm going to do that anymore." Han Jing tapped his fingers on the table. "I actually got them at a wholesale price online and then started distributing them… but the earnings aren't that much."

"Wait. You got them online?" Mou Gu stared at him. 

"Yeah, where else can I get flowers? I don't like going around to find suppliers." Han Jing shrugged. "Now that the festival is over, I don't think I'll bother with them again."

"That's a great idea—I mean yeah, it's no longer feasible!"

Han Jing chuckled. "And what would you know about that? You can't even hire someone to run your diner while you work elsewhere. Can't turn a profit either."

"...and that's why I'm saying it." Mou Gu waved a hand. "Flowers. Psh. It's not you. You don't want to get known as that when there are other viable job options. How about working in the same company as your dad? Wouldn't that help?" 

"Just because he works there doesn't mean anything. He can't pull the strings—and I'd rather not work somewhere where a husband and father can't even go home and just sees his family during the holidays."

Even if it was treading a somewhat touchy subject like his father's lack of presence in the family, Han Jing was more than happy to finally turn the cultivator's attention elsewhere.

Anything to keep up the charade.