Lu Mingfei, become the king of gambling in dungeons!

"Zhao Menghua has gone missing. I feel so confused right now. You're the only person I can think of. Can you help me?"

"You're the only one who can help me."

Lu Mingfei: "???"

Zhao Menghua has gone missing... Is there still a role for Young Master Zhao in this instance?

Confusion, contemplation, bewilderment, surprise, incomprehension... these emotions flashed across Lu Mingfei's face one by one, and he frowned and pondered under Chen Wenwen's gaze.

In this timeline, were he and Zhao Menghua very familiar with each other?

What does Zhao Menghua's disappearance have to do with him? We weren't even friends before, at most we were like friends over a bottle of Nutritional Express and a bottle of Original Recipe Chicken. We didn't even get to eat the Original Recipe Chicken, we just smelled the aroma.

He paid the price for his enthusiastic support of the Nutritional Express drink, so it was a reward for his hard work and he had a clear conscience.

Could it be—

Lu Mingfei's wildly imaginative mind was racing.

They share the same name. In this worldview, "he" and Chen Wenwen might have a good relationship... In any case, they jointly adopted a pet dog, and out of friendship, he bestowed the name Zhao Menghua upon this lucky fellow.

As for why they would share a pet, that's easy to understand. Imagine a girl you once genuinely liked wants to rekindle your old flame; assuming there's still that past affection in this scenario, who could resist?

There are definitely people who can refuse, but Lu Mingfei doesn't think that might include his former conflicted self.

Judging from the game's name and Chu Zihang and the others' reactions, Lu Mingfei had long ago guessed that the growth trajectory of the "protagonist Lu Mingfei" in the game might be the same as his own growth trajectory before he had ever been exposed to dreams.

The personality of the "protagonist Lu Mingfei," who should be a sophomore in Tokyo, is not much different from the original character. He has grown in his personal relationships, but not much.

Given his past internal conflicts and stubbornness, a life without dreams would likely be full of ups and downs, and slow growth would be understandable... what a load of rubbish.

Lu Mingfei had a slight doubt about Chen Wenwen's charm, but he had no doubt about his own self-control.

Thinking of this, Lu Mingfei's heart skipped a beat. He thought of Chen Wenwen, who was crying sadly, and wondered if something bad was about to happen.

Damn it, after all these years, are you still hanging on that crooked tree from back then, the one you secretly loved but wasted your energy on and never got a response from?

This is such a disgrace to the Lu family.

This explanation makes sense. It's understandable that Chen Wenwen from this instance would come to him for help if her pet was lost, since they had raised the same pet together. Humans aren't plants or trees, how could they be without feelings? Even trees are like this, let alone someone like Lu.

Reasonable and logical...

Lu Mingfei, who had been determined never to go back to his old ways, became increasingly terrified as he thought about it. If that were really the case, then things would be in trouble.

However, upon further reflection, this doesn't really make much sense. Naming a pet after a person is a bit excessive, only slightly more reasonable than "After graduating from high school, Mr. Lu and Mr. Zhao laughed and buried the hatchet. Mr. Zhao said he was young and naive back then, while Mr. Lu said that he was like a fish in water with Meng Hua. They regretted not becoming sworn brothers sooner."

He simply couldn't imagine himself and Zhao Menghua becoming close friends, and it gave him goosebumps.

Completely baffled, Lu Mingfei remained silent for a long while before tentatively asking, "Help? How can I help?"

"Hmm, let me think. I'm so confused right now, I'm making a fool of myself in front of you, aren't I? Are your eyes uncomfortable? Why are they closed?"

Chen Wenwen recounted Zhao Menghua's disappearance incoherently, detailing everything she knew, and unknowingly added more information about Zhao Menghua.

"So, he's your ex-boyfriend? You're looking for me? I'm not your ex-ex-boyfriend, am I?" Lu Mingfei tried to sort out the logic. It would be really inhumane to just blurt out "You should be hospitalized".

After a couple of soft sobs, Chen Wenwen choked, her white dress crumpling under her hands.

The atmosphere became somewhat tense.

Lu Mingfei unconsciously frowned: "Even if it were you, you shouldn't have come to me. Besides, I'm not. I sympathize with you, but I'm not the kind of person who can truly empathize with your situation."

"I'm sorry, I... I don't know what to do. The only thing I can do now is—" Chen Wenwen's eyes reddened even more, and she waved her hand helplessly.

"It's not a question of whether I can help or not, Chen Wenwen, you should go to the police for help."

Lu Mingfei breathed a sigh of relief, feeling somewhat wistful. Fortunately, the worst hadn't happened, and he hadn't gone back to his ex.

I told you, logically speaking, Zhao Menghua's disappearance has absolutely nothing to do with him, it's completely unrelated.

He dismissed the possibility that he was a kidnapping suspect.

He knew himself well enough to prevent those trivial conflicts from escalating to that point.

"What year is it now... never mind, I'll look it up myself. I hope you find the person you're looking for soon."

"July 23, 2010. I am currently in the summer break of my first year of university. If my calculations are correct, it has been almost a year since I enrolled in Kassel. There are still six months until Genji Heavy Industries. The worldviews of the different instances should be the same, like different events on the same timeline."

With his back to Chen Wenwen, Lu Mingfei opened his eyes. Several new messages popped up on his computer screen. They were from classmates at Kassel College, saying they were related to some kind of "College SS-level Dragon Slaying Mission." The nickname was "Fen Gou," a strangely cheerful name. His real QQ name was "Dragon Slayer Hero."

Seeing his messages coming in one after another, Lu Mingfei had the strange feeling that he was plotting something big with his animal friend. Did Finland really have a highly intelligent canine friend who could type online?

Fen Gou: "Waaaaah, junior brother, if I tip you off, I'm afraid I'll get stabbed three times and stabbed six times in the future!"

Fen Gou: "We've found a way to get into the dragon's lair. You'll need a local transportation card. Use it to enter each subway station on Line 1 and the loop line once a day. Each time, you'll swipe the card, and then you'll see it turn gold. Swipe this gold subway card to reach the hidden station. This was discovered by your senior brother Chu."

Fen Dog: "We're not worried about Chu Zihang, the vanguard Chu, being in our group; he's a friend of our canines. But Caesar has also gotten a transportation card. He's rich, powerful, and has a lot of manpower. Plus, his group has the beautiful and fierce junior Xia Mi in charge. Your Majesty, you have to be careful around him."

Findog: "I didn't mean to stir up trouble. Trust me, brother, the top-secret images and text I'm about to send you are amazing. Although I'm nominally Caesar's underling and hold a high position in the student council, my heart is pounding for you, my junior!"

Lu Mingfei pondered, seemingly thinking that he was doing quite well at Kassel University, and that he even had such capable henchmen under his command.

"You don't have some ulterior motive, do you?" he sent his question.

If my intuition is correct, this Fen dog is probably a sycophant, the kind who feeds on both sides with a single piece of information. He gives off too strong a vibe of being a public lackey. Right now, he might be considered a guide NPC to start the main storyline.