A brave man may not live, but he cannot die

Chapter 164 The Pizza Girl's Arcane Festival Dream (10)

"Then why have you been avoiding my eyes?"

With a voice as soft as clear water, Lin tilted her head back, like a cat waiting to be petted by its owner.

Quinn stiffened slightly, staring nonchalantly at the colorful streetlights as if they were some rare and eye-catching object. Most of the people on the street, however, were secretly watching Lynn. Her appearance was too outstanding; whether it was her clear white eyes or her dreamlike, aurora-like long hair, the petite and exquisitely beautiful girl was like a spotless piece of jade, quietly radiating brilliance.

Quinn stared for a few seconds, and when he turned back, it was the same familiar face Lynn had always looked at, with the most ordinary expression between her dark eyebrows.

He looked gently at the little girl, at her pure and innocent eyes.

"Really? Maybe I'm a little tired today. I've been giving piano lessons all afternoon."

"Go back and rest."

"What about pizza? Don't you want some?"

".think."

Lin's voice was hesitant, and she remained standing there motionless.

"Next time is fine too."

"We'll have to wait another year for the next one." Quinn took Lynn's hand, and the teacher led the girl into the crowd. "Let's go buy something to eat first. You'll have more energy if you're full."

"Hmm!" She seemed to breathe a sigh of relief, and her steps became lighter.

Although the little girl rarely showed her emotions on her face, you could tell by her gait. If she was happy, like when she went to get the pizza Quinn had baked, she would walk a little faster—about a tenth faster. If she was unhappy, like when she walked home from Quinn's dorm every day, she would walk a tenth slower.

How about the egg tarts?

"What is an egg tart?"

"delicious."

"Lin wants to eat."

The two held hands, not in the manner of a couple, but more like a father holding his daughter's hand, his large hand supporting Lin's soft little hand to prevent her from being separated by the crowd on the street. However, not many people dared to push them; Lin's Grindelwald school uniform was highly recognizable, and passersby wisely made way for her, while admiring the little girl's flawless beauty from every angle.

Lin ignored the many gazes directed at her, simply blinking as she watched Quinn's retreating figure. They walked one after the other through the surging crowd, amidst the sounds of conversation, hawking, the clatter of horses' hooves and wheels on the cobblestones, the night wind, the whirring of airships, and the synchronized footsteps of the patrolling officers.
All she could hear was Quinn's breathing. She could almost feel his body temperature, the throbbing of his pulse, which warmed her own icy body. The icy chill from the mana injection was fading, and the sounds of the crowds, the city, and life were gradually becoming clearer, as if the world itself had brightened.

She suddenly understood; this was the meaning of life that Harry had mentioned in his letter.

"A cup of camel milk with ice and coffee powder, and two vanilla tarts, please."

Normally, these food stalls run by people from the Western Continent wouldn't be allowed in East Will, but the Arcane Festival is an exception. On a day promoting peace, unity, and progress, some pretense is necessary to give reporters something to photograph—the Will people looking cheerful and like one big family. Of course, once today is over, they'll be chased away. With so many foreign tourists around, the food allowed to set up stalls here is naturally not bad. Quinn found a stall with relatively clear oil and waited with Lynn for the egg tarts to bake.

The Eye of Grindelwald is not far away; the light of the airport can already be seen. This octagonal building, resembling a stadium, is the largest logistics center in the Southern Continent. At each corner, there is a tower-shaped dock tens of meters high, accommodating airships for docking, loading, and unloading.

However, no airships were docked at the airport at this time. All eight docks were equipped with arcane spotlights to enhance the atmosphere, illuminating the cloudless night sky. The huge sign of "Branson Trading Company" was also obscured by the flags of the city and the academy. The area inside the airport facing Mirror Lake had been transformed into a stage that could accommodate three thousand people. Those who had tickets to the party were all wealthy businessmen, celebrities, or foreign dignitaries. Even those without tickets lined up in front of the airport to wait for the fireworks display after the party, creating a massive crowd that blocked the roads.

Quinn silently withdrew his gaze.

Once Grindelwald's Eye fires, this will be hell on earth.

If thousands of people die in an instant, would those in the know be unable to immediately determine that our target is the hero? Quinn had to admit that Aqua's timing was extremely perfect.

Regardless of whether the academy knew of Lin's identity as a hero, the academy, being on holiday, couldn't immediately concentrate its efforts to apprehend the murderer. The large number of dignitaries, led by Elon, buried at the scene would act as a smokescreen, confusing any potential pursuing forces. Meanwhile, the law enforcement's operation to apprehend the Golden Wind would cause chaos in the city. Even if the investigation uncovered traces of the Eye of Grindelwald's spell overwriting, the desperately fleeing gang would become the prime suspects. Ankuya only had time to buy.
One hour.

According to his estimate, he could retreat from the Eye of Grindelwald to King Ron's Lakeside Manor within fifteen minutes, activate the teleportation array to Aknets, the place farthest from the sun, and wait for the Demon King to descend.

The remaining time was all he reserved for contingencies, and all his preparations covered possible scenarios. As he said, he never fights a battle unprepared.

Having teammates like that should be reassuring, but Quinn couldn't smile.

Standing in front of a food stall run by people from the Western Continent, Quinn mentally rehearsed what he was about to do. He knew he wasn't the kind of brilliant strategist who could plan everything perfectly; he could only rely on his memory to review his actions repeatedly, hoping to gain a better grasp of the future. Even at this point, random thoughts suddenly popped into his head. Tsk... this wasn't the first time he'd done something like this, yet he was acting like a sentimental old woman.

But he still couldn't help thinking about it.

Once this matter is settled, how will they view themselves? A demon king's lackey, a murderer of a hero, or even a sinner who caused the destruction of the world.
Amamiya Nene will probably act as if nothing happened, humming a song as she throws out everything in her office that relates to her, into the trash can and burns it, then leans back in her chair and complains with something like, "So that's how it is." In the end, she'll probably secretly grieve for a long time because the clues about her father have run dry.

Celia... She definitely wouldn't believe it. That girl was as innocent as a sheet of paper, just like Mi Yutong back then, who believed in herself until everything was exposed and the undeniable truth was laid bare before her eyes. Only then did she realize that the teacher she had feelings for was a villain all along. But she wouldn't become like Mi Yutong. She had a reason to live, a legendary mission.
Even knowing she's a bad guy, she'd still play the pieces I taught her, glaring angrily at the person who made her lose all enjoyment from the piano.

Suddenly, Xia Dai'er's image flashed through my mind again.

Xia Dai'er was well aware of Quinn's admiration for her. Although their interactions were filled with ulterior motives, Quinn remained grateful to the girl. She was probably the most heartbroken to have been branded a disgrace to humanity. But after the initial shock, would she be grateful that Quinn hadn't gone any further in the bathroom? It was truly a once-in-a-lifetime experience; this experience might not have been a bad thing for a naive young lady from a noble family like her.

However, the thought of Chaldale becoming a cunning, profit-driven woman like her mother Jenny, capable of managing a family with impeccable manners, doesn't seem like a good thing or a bad thing to Quinn, but she still feels guilty.

"Boss, be careful, it's hot!"

Under the astonished gaze of the shopkeeper, Quinn picked up two sizzling egg tarts with one hand, seemingly impervious to the heat, as if his hand were made of iron. With his other hand, he handed the camel milk to Lynn, who only took two sips before refusing to drink any more. The little girl was used to milk tea and had no interest in drinks with minimal added sugar.

As for the egg tart, after she took a bite, her eyes widened slightly, and Quinn knew this meant she was happy.

"A new kind of sweetness."

“It’s vanilla flavored, it’s hapbonpus, the kind of herb used to make animal repellent,” Quinn explained in a language she could understand.

"Go back to Potions class," Lin decided immediately.

"You can't eat it directly; you have to extract the flavor first."

"Make it for me."

"it is good."

Unexpectedly, Lynn handed the half-eaten egg tart back to Quinn.

"What, doesn't it taste good?"

The stall owner was also nervously watching Lin, because her good looks and Grindelwald school uniform had attracted a lot of people. Once the two of them left, the egg tarts at this stall would definitely sell out. But if Lin said they were bad, the watchful law enforcement officer would come up and kick her out.

She said expectantly, "Lin wants to eat pizza."

It means that they intend to keep their stomach full.

The stall owner breathed a sigh of relief and hurriedly promoted his pizza: "Pizza! Pizza! My pizza concept is very unique, a dumpling pizza that combines elements of Eastern cuisine—"

"Lin, let's go."

Without a word, Quinn tossed down a gold pound and left that wicked place. This pizza's concept is indeed unique; it's like all the ideas combined, all the thoughts added together.

"Lin, you must remember that dumplings and pizza must never be eaten together; it's illegal."

"dumpling?"

"It's a type of food from the East that uses dough to wrap meat filling. It's said to have been invented by a brave warrior."

"I'll make this for Lin from now on."

Quinn paused almost imperceptibly as he bit into the egg tart.

"I'm not your cook."

"friend."

Lynn said calmly, "Quinn is Lynn's friend."

"."

The barely perceptible sigh dissipated into the noisy night.

"Yes, I'm honored."

Her friend led her into the bustling airport.

They sat down in a spot directly facing the stage, with the best view and a view of the entire Eye of Grindelwald. They talked, and then he patted her head, repeating the same conversation they had had countless times over the past two months.

"Wait patiently, I'll go make you a pizza."

Lin nodded quietly, placing her hands on her white stockings on her knees, and watched the man's back as he left.

She's always been very well-behaved; you just need to hurry.

"What's with the mood? Today is your brother's big day. Even if you want to go on a date, there's no rush."

Xia Dai'er remained silent as the maid unbuttoned her coat, only occasionally glancing up at the clock on the wall.

She shed her casual clothes one by one, and although she had decided to give up on having any feelings for him, she couldn't help but change into the clothes he liked. That guy usually acted like an old man and seemed completely uninterested in women, but after wearing his school uniform one day, Xia Dai'er realized what he liked.

You don't need to show any skin, just a simple white shirt, bow tie, plaid skirt, black tights, and Mary Jane shoes, and he'll steal glances at you from time to time, though he'll never admit it.

However, she can't dress like that now; she needs to attend as the eldest daughter of the Branson family and deal with those "friends" and "partners."

“Your brother’s political ideals are very dangerous,” his mother sighed. “Saying those things in a situation like today means there’s no going back. He’ll offend a lot of people, and even with the academy backing him up, whether these things will actually come to fruition is uncertain.”

“At this time, he especially needs someone to back him up. If your father can't come, and you don't come either, then tomorrow's headlines will show him looking like a lone wolf. We need to convince the public that he can get things done—”

Seeing that her daughter still wouldn't speak, Jenny raised an eyebrow, and the two maids who were helping the young lady change their clothes tactfully stepped aside. Then, this always elegant lady extended her wicked claws towards her daughter, who had been stripped down to the level of a lamb—

"Eaaaa-!!!"

Xia Dai'er finally spoke. She tried to slap her mother's hand away, but Jenny said angrily, "What? When you were little, I never let a maid bathe you. I bathed you myself. Even your brother didn't get that treatment. Now that you're grown up, you don't want your mother anymore?"

Xia Dai'er, her face flushed, struggled and cried out, "I'm sixteen! Let go!"

Jenny then let go, waving for the maid who had pretended not to have seen anything to come and help her get dressed. Crossing her arms, she exclaimed, "Sixteen years old! Who did you inherit that from? Your grandmother wasn't this old when she was young. Have you gotten older?"

"No way!!" Xia Dai'er protested with a dark face.

"That kid got off too easy, sigh." Jenny said with exasperation, "What kind of relationship is this? If I had a fight back then, Reeve would have come to my door every day with flowers and sang love songs."

When Chaldale's father was mentioned, Jenny's expression darkened.

"You have to help Elon. The family depends on him. Are you really going to let such a huge family business fall into the hands of those relatives in the countryside?"

“Of course I support my brother,” Chaldie said softly. “He took me to the factory in Seaville, and I know that many people in this city are not doing well.”

“Elon’s ideals are great,” Jenny said seriously.

"Mom, do you really support him?"

"Of course, would I have forcibly dragged you over if I didn't support him?"

“It doesn’t seem like it.” Xia Dai’er looked at her toes. “What my brother wants to do will not benefit the family at all, and may even harm the interests of many families. But if there is no benefit, you will not agree to it.”

"What kind of talk is that? Do you think I'm the kind of woman who only cares about profit?"

Xia Dai'er listened to the faint noise coming from outside the door without saying a word.

My father has been ill for several years, and my mother has been handling almost all the business matters. If she weren't a profit-driven person, why would the "Branson Trading Company" sign at Grindelwald Airport remain so secure?

Jenny's gaze toward her daughter gradually softened with contentment.

"Of course I don't want him to do that, and I don't approve of it from any angle. But if even I don't support my son, then who will?"

Xia Dai'er froze in surprise. Her mother put her hand on her shoulder and said with a sigh, "Okay, I promise you, after your brother finishes his speech, I'll take you to record an interview in front of the reporters and everyone else, and then I'll send you to that pub. I promise I won't be late, okay?"

Xia Dai'er, who had changed into a purple evening gown, stood up and hugged her mother.

"Ok!"

"Also, since you really like him and he's a good match, I won't say anything more. But you should wait until after marriage to do those things. If you give in too early, men won't appreciate it. You need to be a little reserved—"

"mom!"

Xia Dai'er blushed and pulled away, "We were just... chatting, we don't even know if we can be together. And forget it, I'm ignoring you."

After saying that, she stormed out of the lounge, and the huge party venue was laid out before her.

Then, a familiar figure came into Xia Dai'er's view.

".Eh?"

"What's wrong?" The mother strolled over leisurely. "You saw him? That's normal. Quite a few Grindelwald people will be here today. I'll have someone call them up to sit down. The view is better from here. You two shouldn't go to that shabby tavern to talk."

“It’s not Quinn.” Chaldale shook her head. “It’s nothing, just a student named Grindelwald whom I saw at the banquet last night. Let’s go.”

(End of this chapter)