Uneasy daily life

[Bai Liang and Bai Ying: ?]

[Want to be a Bunny Girl: This is a fan group.]

[Bai Liang Bai Ying: So what?]

[I want to be a bunny girl: but I have a hater group.]

[Bai Liang Bai Ying: I've already said I'm not a hater, and I have no interest in rummaging through trashy groups. I don't join other legitimate fan groups, so why should I join your hater group?]

[Want to be a Bunny Girl: The people here are all the high-quality haters you mentioned. They might not say a word for ten days or half a month. It's not the garbage dump you described. Besides, if you're not interested, just leave the group. Do you think I'd lock you up?]

[Bai Liang Bai Ying: I'm not a hater.]

[Want to be a Bunny Girl: Two heads are better than one. By working together, we can have more intelligence channels and create enough influence—there are plenty of people in the group with juicy scoops. After all, it's hard to maintain a sustained impact on your own, right? Sakurajima Mai's Twitter account doesn't have that many flaws.]

[Bai Liang and Bai Ying: Now that you mention it, I'm intrigued.]

[Bai Liang and Bai Ying have joined the 'Sakurajima Mai Fan Club'.]

The group was quiet; no one came out to greet customers.

[Bai Liang Bai Ying: I'm a fan of Mai Sakurajima. I've heard this is a den of anti-fans? I advise you all to surrender as soon as possible, submit to the righteous path, and join me in establishing the Sakurajima Dynasty. When the time comes, appointing you all as administrators wouldn't be a bad thing.]

[Wooden fish: ?]

【crow:?】

Insomnia: ?

[Little Pockmarked: Did the group admin invite the wrong person?]

[Want to be a bunny girl? No, he's probably just bluffing, seeing if anyone's going to jump out and dump the trash—you should all have heard of this Bai Liang Bai Ying.]

[Wooden Fish: Wow, a pro who spammed several posts in a row?!]

[Crow: That hater who spent an entire afternoon staking out a hilltop just to expose a scammer's activities?!]

[Insomnia: Huh? So his name is Hakura Hakukage? I thought it was Kira Yoshikage.]

[Little Pockmarked Girl: Is she the one who's really dark-skinned but insists she's a fan?]

[Bai Liang and Bai Ying: I am a loyal and devoted fan. What are your thoughts, and what actions will you take?]

[Wooden Fish: I once bought a shampoo that Mai Sakurajima endorsed in her early days, but unfortunately, I got a substandard product. From then on, I went from being a fan to a hater, and I won't give up until I defeat the enemy.]

[Bai Liang and Bai Ying: You've got some skills.]

[Crow: Do you know the pain of having five K-pop fangirls in a dorm of six? There was a time when we had a huge advertising campaign, and I saw three Sakurajima Mai ads even while playing a game! It was absolutely infuriating! Now I'm surrounded by enemy forces, and I have to find a way to bring these five rebellious kids to their senses!]

[Bai Liang Bai Ying: Five times the strength of Lu Bu, you can be called a divinely ordained adoptive father.]

[Insomnia: My boyfriend is a huge fan of Mai Sakurajima, the really fanatical kind. I think he needs to face reality—everyone's bathroom smells!]

[Bai Liang and Bai Ying: I suggest breaking up.]

[Little Pockmarked Boy: I'm her boyfriend.]

[Bai Liang Bai Ying: They're gay? Great! We're all fans, we should unite and support Sakurajima Mai!]

[Little Pockmarked Girl: Who's comrade to you? I admit there are no perfect people in the world, but Miss Sakurajima is definitely the closest to perfection. We should all join the Sakurajima faith. @Insomnia, didn't you also complain about how bad my cooking is?]

[Insomnia: So, do you think it tastes good?]

[Little Pockmarked Boy: Of course it tastes bad. I'm just a bad cook, not someone with a loss of taste.]

[Insomnia: If you give up idol worship, I'll cook from now on.]

[Little Pockmarked Boy: Then we can only perish together.]

[Insomnia: You wait, I'm coming to take you down with me!]

[Little Pockmarked Guy: Hey—we agreed not to talk about online stuff in real life! Woman, you lied to me again!]

[Bai Liang and Bai Ying: Spartacus, just watching the show.jpg. I've figured it out, you guys all have amazing skills.]

[Want to be a Bunny Girl: That girl with pockmarks is a role model in the group, demonstrating the dangers of excessive superstition.]

[Bai Liang Bai Ying: Got it, the catfish in the sardines, right? Looks like it's a pretty normal group after all. Let's raise our banners and condemn those fake fans!]

[Want to be a Bunny Girl? Welcome to join us!]

[Bai Liang Bai Ying: Okay, I can have the group ownership now.]

[Want to be a bunny girl? ]

[Bai Liang Bai Ying: Your previous clashes with me were probably a deliberate attempt to amplify the discussion and involve more people to create a viral effect, right? But if we're talking about merit, I deserve the top credit and should sit in the group admin position.]

[Want to be a Bunny Girl: Now that you've joined the group, your contributions will naturally start from the beginning. If you can gain the trust of the group members, you'll be more than the group leader even if you're not. Just keep pushing the activity and managing the group leader position; it will be yours sooner or later.]

[Bai Liang and Bai Ying: Fine, then I'll wait to step down.]

[Want to be a bunny girl? Good luck!]

The black-haired woman put her phone aside, stretched with a smile, closed the script in her hand, and turned off the light to rest.

Chapter Ninety-Six: The Entrance Test for 9527

"Mai, are you awake?"

There was a knock on the door.

"She's awake. Wait a moment."

Sakurajima Mai was dressed when she heard a click at the door. Sure enough, her mother called out and then opened the door and came in.

Do you remember the itinerary?

Sakurajima Mai continued getting dressed, seemingly unfazed, and said, "I'm going to visit the film crew today. I saw some fruit shops in the village yesterday, so I can buy some fruit and deliver it over... Hmm, I wonder if the film crew has prepared any insect repellent. I heard from the people here that there are quite a lot of bugs in the mountains."

"Hmm—change your clothes first. The crew already gave you the school uniform, right? Wear that one."

The mother took out her camera: "Stand a little closer to the window and take a pre-show photo. Remember to wash your face carefully this time, and look more alert. Don't make a mistake like last time."

Those are costumes for filming. What if they get dirty by accident?

"You wait."

Mai Sakurajima frowned, sighed, rummaged around for a bit, and went into the bathroom.

Should I mess up a few strands of hair?

Pretending not to notice, letting a piece of vegetable get stuck between your teeth?

Is it intentionally leaving a little toothpaste on the corner of your mouth?

Hmm—first I have to fool my mother into posting the photos on Twitter, and then I'll hope that some hater will do their part.

The first step was quite troublesome; actively creating a flaw that could fool them was indeed not an easy task.

Last time I wasn't feeling well and didn't wash my face properly, and my mother didn't notice. Plus, a certain hater had sharp eyes, which led to the post being bombarded with criticism...

Although it was a bit embarrassing, it gave me a completely new perspective.

Keep it up, Bai Liang and Bai Ying!

Mai Sakurajima dressed up 'carefully'.

……

……

early morning.

I got up early, ate breakfast, and casually told Hiratsuka Shizuka that I was skipping morning roll call. Then I used my phone to make a barrage of calls to my second-in-command!

"Hawooo..."

Angelina listlessly munched on her bread, rubbing the tears welling up in her eyes: "Bai Ying, what are you doing so early in the morning? It's rare that I don't have to go to school, I wanted to sleep a little longer..."

Bai Ying frowned and said, "9527, have you been disrespecting me more and more lately?"

"No, sir."

Angelina gulped down the bread in a few bites, then, cheeks puffed out, asked, "So why did you call me out? Is it another act?!"

Angelina suddenly became fully awake.

She remembered the nickname "Anjie Xuande" and felt a pang of pain. She thought of the disastrous but ultimately unsuccessful drama and felt depressed. She thought of the shame she felt every second of the performance, as if it were being laid bare in the sun, and wished she could turn around and run away immediately—but she couldn't escape!

I am just a pitiful and helpless superhuman, powerless to resist my superiors.

“Pain, heaviness, shame, withdrawal, and finally, the finishing touch of losing the highlight.” Bai Ying exclaimed, “I never expected that you, 9527, would have such superb acting skills, able to smoothly and naturally express emotional changes and a variety of feelings. You are truly a genius!”

Angelina replied curtly, "No, sir. I'm just a useless actor. You should go find Hachiman and Oreki instead."

"They don't have superpowers, they're just ordinary high school boys, what's the point of bringing them here?"

Bai Ying said, "Be serious, energetic, and normal later."

"Huh?" Angelina squinted. "Does the officer have the right to say that? Sigh? Where are we going?"

We chatted as we walked, and we were almost out of town.

“Go pick up my two colleagues,” Bai Ying said. “Well—in your logic, that means two superhumans, right?”

Angelina exclaimed in surprise, "So it wasn't a pyramid scheme?!"

The white-clad figure stepped aside, looking puzzled. "What strange things are you saying? Are you acting a little strange?"

What right does the officer have to say that?

Angelina was a little nervous. It turned out that she hadn't been tricked into joining a strange group that just happened to have superpowered people, but had actually joined a superpowered organization?

"Are those... those the higher-ups of our Tower of Babel?"

"What is Babita? We are the Scarlet Theatre Company."

Angelina: "?"

Bai Ying: "?"

“Oh, I remember now, I told you before that we’re called the Tower of Babel? Don’t worry about it, an organization is an organization. As a secret organization that doesn’t publicly announce its existence, the name doesn’t matter at all, so members can call us whatever they want.”

Bai Ying said without changing her expression, "The two colleagues we're picking up this time are called the Scarlet Troupe. You can think of them as a nickname and their ID card name."

"Oh, is that so?" Angelina was skeptical and doubtful. "...Sir, you're not lying to me, are you?"

"Why would I lie to you? Superpowers aren't something you can fake. You'll see when you meet them. They should fit your aesthetic in the world of superpowers."

Upon reaching the roadside, Bai Ying took out her phone and made a call: "Hey—have you arrived yet? Yeah, I'm waiting for you by the roadside."

After confirming the route, Bai Ying put down her phone, and Angelina finally became a little excited: "Sir! Who is the sergeant coming later?"

"What do you mean by 'the officers who are coming'? Just call them by their code names, and don't bother asking about their real names."

"Uh-huh!"

Exciting! Code name, real name, they sound so cool!

Bai Ying said, "A tall, thin man with facial paralysis, like someone with necrotic facial nerves, is the mouthpiece. He's in charge of vetting new recruits. He'll probably ask you a few questions. Just say whatever comes to mind. Don't worry about anything, after all, you're a superhuman."

"The other one is rather taciturn, walks silently, and looks a bit like an artsy young man. His name is Puppet Shadow. I invited him to help with the acting, so you don't need to worry about him."

Angelina asked in astonishment, "Why is there still acting?"

"If the Scarlet Theatre Troupe doesn't perform, what will they do? Sell jianbing (Chinese crepes) on the street and outwit the city management officers?"

Bai Ying said disdainfully, "With your stage skills, you're still a tiny bit far from being able to perform on stage. Even if I agree to let you go up and do a segment, the mouthpiece and the puppet shadow wouldn't agree. But since you're so enthusiastic, then you can do some off-stage peripheral work when the time comes."

If I could, I wouldn't even want to do a peripheral job.

Angelina's gaze was somewhat vacant.

Let's think about something happier—sigh, speaking of those two, how will they make their appearance? Will they teleport in an instant? Fly in from the sky? Or perhaps something more classical, slowly arriving in a carriage, or maybe even on horseback? They certainly won't be taking a bus…

It's definitely not a bus, it's a taxi.

The taxi stopped by the roadside, and a person got out with a suitcase. Looking around, he saw a white figure waving and walking towards him.

He was a tall, thin man with a black slanted hat on his head and dressed in a suit-like outfit. His hair was still jet black, and his expression was rather indifferent. Beneath his slightly grayish, tousled hair, his dark golden eyes were quite distinctive.

"Sir, is this the mouthpiece you were talking about?"

"No, he is Phantom."