Translator: Noodletown Translations Editor: Noodletown Translations
The hour hand had moved past five o’clock by the time Chubby Harry dropped down onto the ground. He started to chug a bottle of water as his sweat ran down his body, and it looked as if someone had poured a bucket of water onto him.
Mu Fan took off the protective equipment on his hands and threw it to his sides, and he said without sounding tired at all, “Harry, the training for today is over. I don’t know any combat techniques, so all I can do is be a good practice partner for you. If you have persistence in this, then I believe that there will be changes for sure.”
Chubby Harry was exhausted from a whole afternoon of training, and he was too tired to talk. He wiped the sweat off his face and said in a low tone, “I’m giving all I’ve got… Let’s continue tomorrow. Brother Chubby will show those people what I am capable of.”
The metal door closed slowly behind them as they walked out of the training room after each taking a quick shower. Chubby Harry walked unsteadily with his hands on the wall for support, and his fancy suit no longer showed his demeanor, nor was he attracted by the curvy figure of the female receptionist. If one was close enough, they would barely be able to hear him as he murmured, “I want to go home, I’m almost there… I want to go home…”
Mu Fan followed Harry as they walked downstairs and saw that there were a bunch of people packing up their clothes on the first-floor lobby.
“Time to get our pay!” a big man said as he quickly walked past Mu Fan.
Mu Fan looked in the direction he headed, and there was already a small group of people, including some of those he had seen at lunch. It seemed like it was time to pick up their pay for today.
Seeing this, Mu Fan called out to Chubby Harry, who was half-dead from the training and walking in the front, “Harry, I have to go there and pick up my pay for today. You go first.”
“Oh, okay. Where do you live?” Chubby Harry asked, forcing himself to act normally. “I’ll give you a ride home.”
“It’s okay. The Budokan is probably going to arrange tomorrow’s work for us, so you can just go ahead and leave first.” Mu Fan didn’t want Harry to drop him off at home because he was used to jogging back. Also, he didn’t want anybody to know anything about Black.
“Alright. I’ll arrange it with Uncle Wu when I get back, and I’ll see you tomorrow then. I’m super exhausted from today. I can’t; I feel like I’m about to die.” Chubby Harry was frowning from fatigue as he turned around and dragged his body towards the main gate.
“Name and venue please,” the staff asked Mu Fan as he walked over after Harry left.
“Mu Fan, second floor VIP training room No. 9.”
“Mmm, Mu Fan. This is your pay for today.” The staff handed over 500 star coins after verifying with the e-file, and Mu Fan received the money with both hands as this was the first time that he earned so much in a day.
“Be here at eight o’clock sharp tomorrow. Money will be deducted for being late,” the staff notified Mu Fan as a routine reminder.
Mu Fan nodded and held his money as he walked towards the changeroom, and his brows pinched slightly together and then relaxed when he saw some of his colleagues with bruises on their bodies.
When Mu Fan exited the Budokan, he was in that set of worn-out clothes again, except that the smell of gasoline wasn’t as strong as before.
…
Nighttime always crept up early on Planet Loga as it was located on the border of the UGF territories. Mu Fan looked up towards the starry night sky as he inhaled the mixed air deeply and looked around at the people around him who were in fancy suits and beautiful dresses. The nightlife in District 22 had begun, and the neon lights lit up the city center.
Mu Fan was in a good mood as he touched the 500 star coins that were lying in his pocket quietly. Oh, and also that Chubby Harry, Mu Fan smiled as he thought about this boy.
After walking a few blocks and making a few turns, Mu Fan arrived at the end of the city district. He stretched a bit as he looked back at the city and then turned around. Next, he swung his arms and started to jog into the suburbs.
“What the hell was that?” A driver in a hover vehicle that was driving towards the city shivered as he just saw a black shadow dashing around when he was about to throw his cigarette butt out of the window. He suddenly remembered all the scary rumors at night when he threw out the cigarette butt. “I better drive fast; it’s too dangerous out here at night.”
Mu Fan wasn’t aware at all that someone in the hover vehicle driving towards the city had noticed him, and he wouldn’t have cared even if he was aware. His world was quite simple; he wanted to stay alive. Now, there was an extra goal – earn enough money for an optical computer. As for his future goals, he wanted to own and pilot a mech in the vast universe. Of course, he was still unsure of how to achieve this goal, but that was for his future self to worry about. Mu Fan was moved by what Chubby Harry had said to him, and it left him with an inexplicable feeling. He felt like the sky in his world was too simple and monotonous; he wanted to go beyond and see the fascinating world outside.
Mu Fan’s mind had flown elsewhere, but his feet always stepped precisely on the flat rocks and pavement in the night. His body dodged the branches and walls by only a few millimeters as he jogged back. He was like a ghost at night with his quick movements and incredible endurance.
With a thud, one of his feet stepped onto half of a dry tree branch that was sticking out of the ground at an angle, and his body folded in mid-air with inertia lightly as he flipped over the branch with his back brushing against it.
Mu Fan glanced at his sides. There were animals moving in the forest nearby; he heard the sounds of animal activity. However, he didn’t care much this time as he was satisfied with his lunch, and he didn’t need to worry about food anymore. Go home first! Go home!
…
The abandoned factory sat there on the ground quietly. The sky had completely turned dark, and the factory blended into the dark night. There was no light at all, but Mu Fan’s eyes were as bright as ever.
“No traces on the ground to indicate any other people’s entry; the inspection line beside the wall wasn’t moved; the stack of bonfire wood is in the same shape. Emm… No footprints beside Black Egg.”
“Black!!! Mu Fan, please call me Black and not Black Egg!” Mu Fan was rubbing his chin as he inspected the warning measures that he left in the morning, and he got scared by the voice that passed through the pile of junk.
“Weren’t you in self-inspection mode?” Mu Fan’s expression didn’t seem embarrassed at all.
“When keywords are heard, I will automatically wake up from self-inspection mode.” Mu Fan could hear the slight anger in the voice that came from under the pile of junk.
Mu Fan lit up the bonfire speechlessly and dug Black’s vessel out of the pile of junk as he looked at the antenna that had a white ball on top rising. He was face-to-face with it.
“Why do you look slightly different now?”
“I used 30% of the A.I. to activate 10% of the emotion simulation function. Mr. Black differs from a normal A.I. as I’m an intelligent life that has consciousness and is capable of independent thinking. This has to be distinguished,” the white ball said as it twisted with force, having seen Mu Fan’s emotionless expression.
“Oh,” Mu Fan answered indifferently.
Then, he said before Black could protest, “We will have an optical computer soon.”
“Ding!” The white ball suddenly projected an emoji of a blue smiley face into the air.
“Mu Fan, I have completed basic level-1 self-inspection. Level-2 program inspection and self-recovery don’t require the current vessel.” The blue smiley face stared at Mu Fan.
“Black Egg.”
“Yes.”
“Black Egg.”
“Please give your orders, Mr. Host.”
“Black Egg.”
“Speak, Mu Fan.”
“Black Egg.”
“Eh…”
…
Mu Fan was finally satisfied as he nodded at the blue smiley face projected by Black. “I’m working at the Budokan, and I made a new friend today. He asked me to teach him combat techniques and enter the PO Battle Network together. He also promised to give me an optical computer.”
“Optical computer?! Battle Network?!” The blue smiley face suddenly turned into surprise. “What time?”
“Chubby Harry will come again tomorrow.”
“Mu Fan, I need the database of your current world. I will customize a training plan specially designed for your body based on the data. I need the optical computer to connect to the network for virtual personality completion. Please bring me with you.”
Mu Fan’s eyebrows twitched as he stared at the large egg-shaped object in front of him.
As if Black had noticed Mu Fan’s confusion, the white ball suddenly retracted into its hull. After a few seconds of silence, a small mechanical arm reached out with a tray on top. A basic ring laid there in the tray without any luxurious gems on it, nor was it coated with gold. It was a simple ring without any patterns, and it was only slightly thicker than a normal ring.