Restricted Fantasy Invasion

Chapter 31

By the side of the handsome boy carrying a backpack, a black cat that no one else could see suddenly appeared.

Meow-chan blinked its emerald eyes, occasionally glancing back at a certain someone who had been following not far behind.

That person was not translucent, but wore a bucket hat, sunglasses, and a mask to conceal their identity, and had been trailing Yan Huan at a measured distance ever since he left school.

"Meow~"

Meow-chan let out a meow, lifted its head, and aimed for Yan Huan's shoulder.

Its paw pads marched in place for a moment, then with a slight push, it leapt up and landed lightly on his shoulder.

Its liquid-like body nimbly moved from his right shoulder to his left, then poked its furry cat head forward to look at Yan Huan.

Soft, sleek fur slid along Yan Huan's neck, and finally, the belatedly curling tail traced across his Adam's apple.

Yan Huan blinked, then heard Meow-chan say,

"Bai Yi still seems to be following you, meow."

"I know. If she wants to be a stalker, let her."

Yan Huan conversed with Meow-chan in his mind while also recalling what had just happened in the classroom, sketching out his thoughts.

I more or less understand the effect of her modifier. I've read plenty of similar doujin before, so I basically know all the ways these things can be played...

"I think, when her modifier is activated, there are actually more points she can manipulate than Ye Shiyu's, and after gender-swapping the effect isn't as intense-if this modifier doesn't have any additional functions, that is."

The target of Indifference is mainly herself. In essence, as long as Yan Huan pretends not to notice her, that's enough-there's no hard control or compulsory effect. It's actually the easiest modifier to handle among them.

"But, I don't know much about her as a person. Her personality, her habits, or why she holds such a deep grudge against me."

Meow-chan glanced back at the sneaky Bai Yi behind them and asked,

"So, were you planning to use the same trick as with Ye Shiyu just now? Take advantage of her conscience?"

Yan Huan shook his head.

I just wanted to probe her a bit, so I played the victim a little.

"When someone is confronted with the consequences of their own wrongdoing, some feel remorse, some don't care at all, and some even get more excited."

As he spoke, Yan Huan had already reached the bus stop.

He glanced at his phone and said softly,

"In social situations, you have to use different approaches with different people. I think it's the same when dealing with these modifier hosts."

Meow-chan tilted its head and nodded, looking as if it deeply agreed.

"Mm, I got it."

In reality, it didn't understand at all!

But it felt like it must be something impressive!

Anyway, just following Yan Huan's lead can't be wrong!

"You didn't get it at all. I haven't figured it out either. She's just been standing behind me silently, using Indifference and wearing a mask. I basically didn't notice anything."

"Meow!"

Meow-chan reached out to pat his face, but caught sight of him opening his browser out of the corner of its eye, revealing the search engine page.

"But, she's sort of a public figure. There should be info about her online."

So he planned to use the internet to search for information on Bai Yi.

Before he even searched, Yan Huan saw related searches pop up below the search bar.

"Bai Yi movie"

"Why is Bai Yi's acting so bad"

"Bai Yi meme pics"

"Is Bai Yi male or female"

Yan Huan clicked search, and only then did he get to Bai Yi's entry.

The first thing that caught his eye was a profile photo of her in a JK uniform, her airy bangs curved at the front.

Her eyes seemed to meet yours across the screen, just like that favorite girl in your class whose gaze accidentally collides with yours, and both of you freeze for a split second.

Normally, you'd shyly look away the next second, but the photo freezes that moment, turning it into a heart-flutter.

"Bai Yi: Linmen girl actress, new-generation idol, singer."

"With her pure and beautiful looks: discovered at age 11 through Linmen Yasaka Entertainment's trainee selection, became a child star, then transitioned two years later. Her debut on the variety show 'Youth' stunned everyone, and she was hailed by netizens at home and abroad as 'the idol with the freshest youthfulness.'"

Yasaka Entertainment

That brings up some not-so-great memories.

Yan Huan continued reading downward.

"Acting career: Starred in her first art romance film 'Falling in Love After Dusk,' telling the story of the heroine Ameng (played by Bai Yi) meeting, getting to know, and falling in love with Aning (also played by Bai Yi) from a parallel world."

"Plot summary: The introverted girl Ameng, who grew up in an unhappy family, and Aning, who comes from a happy family in a parallel world but is rebellious in personality, gradually develop feelings for each other as their world-lines intertwine after dusk."

"Box office: Released in Dongzhou (excluding Longguo), both market response and reviews were poor, and Bai Yi's performance as Aning was even described by some media as 'disastrous acting.' But a year later, the film was nominated at the Xizhou Rainbow Film Festival."

Rainbow Film Festival awards.

Ah, now he remembered what kind of film award that was.

How to describe it?

Let's put it this way: last year's gold prize winner was a period drama from Sakura Country.

It told the story of a Black samurai seeking revenge for his lord, launching an assassination against the enemy leader.

When the villain asked why he was so obsessed, he coughed up blood and shouted,

"Even if we're both men, don't underestimate my love for my lord!!"

That's about the kind of content that could move the judges of this award.

Scrolling further down the entry, most of it was about her appearances on variety shows and at events.

Only at the very end did it mention a line or two about the songs she had written and performed.

When Youth Is in Crisis," "Star Not Moon.

A few pop songs.

After reading everything, Yan Huan realized there were only two possible places where he and she could have crossed paths.

One was Yasaka Entertainment, the other was Yuanyue Academy.

Yuanyue Academy was less likely, since she hardly ever came to school.

But Yasaka Entertainment...

As mentioned before, Yan Huan had tried many ways to get out of the southern district, and being a child star was one of them.

He never planned to go into that field, since he didn't think he was good at acting or liked being in the spotlight.

But a talent scout from Yasaka came to the southern district to talk to him, saying he could try out as a trainee first, with a monthly salary-and a pretty decent one at that.

Yan Huan just wanted to earn some living expenses and tuition over the summer.

But unexpectedly, he was in such high demand that things went ridiculously smoothly once he got there.

He didn't even need to audition-Yasaka insisted on signing him no matter what, with a "whatever offer you want, I'll give it" attitude.

Everything seemed great, right?

If you ignored the way the boss looked at him, like he wanted to eat him alive.

Yes, Yasaka's boss was a ruthless old man who only liked little boys.

The kind of guy who, if a demon wanted to possess a male artist under Yasaka, would demand the boy quit first.

How could Yan Huan not run in that situation?

If he didn't run, was he just waiting to get bent over?

So, the boy as straight as rebar was full of resistance, flat-out rejected all of Yasaka's offers, and then bailed.

"Ding ding ding"

"Jinghe Yuanyue Station, arrived."

The bus's arrival announcement snapped Yan Huan back to reality. He looked up, still a bit confused.

Could it be...

Was it because of what happened at Yasaka?

But how could anything from there have offended her?

Could she have started shipping weird CPs at just eleven years old?

Yan Huan wondered in confusion, taking out his earbud case and putting on his earphones.

He opened his music app and typed in "Bai Yi."

Nice, there's actually a licensed version.

"Passengers, please board in an orderly fashion~"

"Meow~"

Meow-chan on his shoulder moved even faster than its cute meow, leaping lightly onto the bus.

Yan Huan first clicked on a song by Bai Yi called "Star Not Moon," then stepped onto the bus.

There weren't many people on board, so he found a window seat in the back row.

"Lonely night, starlight twinkling"

"Clearly lively, winking~"

"The galaxy splashes down, the moon claims the view"

"Each shines bright, why compare?"

Mm.

It sounds pretty good, and the voice is very clear. I wonder if she's self-taught in vocal music.

Bai Yi's melodious singing, accompanied by the guitar, drifted over, making Yan Huan, who was leaning against the window, glance at his phone screen again.

"Lyrics: Bai Yi, Composer: Bai Yi, Arrangement: Bai Yi"

At that moment, a fully masked person boarded the bus at the door.

She glanced in Yan Huan's direction, then quietly sat even further back, in the very last row.

Stare~

Yan Huan paid her no mind at all, just leaned against the window, listening to music and watching the silhouettes outside, lost in thought.

In his arms, a plump black cat sat upright with its paws folded, then looked back at him.

"Meow~"

With a slight smile, he quietly took out one earbud and placed it into one of its perked-up ears.

It didn't hear any music, but Meow-chan got unbearably itchy instead.

It quickly shook its head and wiggled, scratching its ear with its hind paw and protesting aloud,

"Meow!"

"Beep beep."

"Beep beep."

It wasn't until the phone in her hand rang that Bai Yi's nearly drowsy, muddled mind finally cleared up a bit.

The ride from Jinghe District to the Southern District was really long. Yesterday she'd run away from home in a panic, and today she'd spent the whole day out. Just tilting her head made her a little sleepy.

Looking ahead and seeing that the boy was still leaning against the window listening to music, she finally relaxed a little.

She glanced at her phone and saw a few new messages had come in.

"Yi Nuo-jie:"

"Xiao Yi, the police just called me."

"Your mom is searching all over the place for you."

Seeing this message, Bai Yi's mind instantly snapped awake.

She immediately sat up straight, frowning as she started typing,

"Don't worry about her, Yi Nuo-jie, just say you don't know where I went."

The name on the other end changed to "typing..."

I'm not going to sell you out, but you can't keep this up forever, right? You and your mom have to solve your issues.

"Where are you now?"

I'm

I'm following that guy.

Just as Bai Yi was about to casually brush it off with a few words, the bus slowly came to a stop, and Yan Huan in front of her slung on his backpack and stood up.

We've arrived!

Bai Yi quickly locked her phone and quietly followed Yan Huan off the bus.

The bus stop was near a crossroads, one of the liveliest spots in the Southern District.

The sun had already set, and the night in the Southern District belonged to neon lights, noise, and the scent of street food.

This atmosphere seemed to embrace the boy, leading him into a bar called "Nursery Rhyme."

In contrast, Bai Yi, with her face tightly covered, looked completely out of place.

Passersby kept glancing at her, making Bai Yi very uncomfortable as she lowered her head and hurried by.

Between her fingers, she was clutching a delicate pocket watch without even realizing it.

Does he work at that bar?

Just as Bai Yi was sizing up the bar, which was already pretty full, her phone rang again in her hand.

"Beep beep."

She glanced down and saw that it was a call from plane.

"Yi Nuo-jie"

Bai Yi didn't doubt it and answered the call, bringing it to her ear.

"Yi Nuo-jie, you-"

"Bai Yi, where on earth are you?!" It was Zuo Jiangqin's voice.

Bai Yi's body stiffened a little. She said in disbelief,

"Mom?"

"So you do remember I'm your mom? Running out all night and not coming home-do you know how worried I am?!"

Hearing her mother's slightly trembling voice, Bai Yi pressed her lips together, still unable to harden her heart.

Yet at this moment, the part of her heart stung by her mother's words still throbbed faintly.

That pain refused to reconcile, forcing her to rebel.

Even if rebelling always led to conflict.

After a moment of silence, she finally gritted her teeth and said,

"I'll go home by myself later, you don't need to come looking for me."

"What do you mean I don't need to come looking for you?! If I hadn't, I wouldn't have known you're still in touch with that Li Yi Nuo!"

As expected, Zuo Jiangqin was infuriated by Bai Yi's resistance.

"I told you not to hang out with those kinds of people! You got led astray by that tattooed girl! You're ignoring the bright future ahead of you and just want to mess around every day. Just wait till I get my hands on you. Where are you?!"

Hearing this, the anger Bai Yi had been holding in was also ignited.

She covered her phone and yelled into it,

"Everything's my fault, everything's someone else's fault! Did you never do anything wrong?!"

"What did I do wrong, tell me? I gave birth to you, raised you, took care of your food and clothes every day. What are you dissatisfied with?"

"You-"

Bai Yi's face turned red. She gripped her phone, about to say something, when she realized a lot of people on the street were looking over.

Embarrassment rushed to her face. With tears in her eyes, she hurriedly clutched her phone and walked toward a side alley.

But during that brief silence, Zuo Jiangqin on the other end truly lost her temper.

From last night to tonight, she'd been searching for a whole day, and she believed it was all Bai Yi's immaturity.

"Look at you-slacking off in class, not participating in activities, half-hearted in everything. How could I not worry? I say a couple of things and you're already unhappy. Am I supposed to worship you or something?!"

"Do I need you to do that? You never once asked for my opinion! Whether it's joining activities or going to Yuanyue, you decide everything! Since you've decided it all, then you go do it-what do you need me for?"

"Who do you think I'm doing this for? It's all for your own good! These resources are things others beg for but can't get! Do you know how many favors your uncle owes for you? You think the entertainment industry is so easy?"

At this moment, on the other end of the line, in a room on the second floor of a tattoo parlor, a bunch of police officers and a tattooed woman with colored hair and a lip ring, surrounded by police, all sighed at the same time.

They'd already told Zuo Jiangqin-no matter what, just persuade the child to come home first.

But the moment Zuo Jiangqin heard the chaotic noise over there and thought of Bai Yi's stubbornness, she lost her temper again.

Especially after Bai Yi talked back, her anger only grew.

You have me and Uncle Jiang helping you out. Does that Yan Huan at your school have that? He's got no parents and still has to work part-time to make a living! If you don't want to go into showbiz and aren't satisfied with our plans, fine! Then show some results in something else!

"Your grades have been a mess since you were little! You love writing songs so much-how many people care about your music? Good songs need publishing and exposure, let alone your amateur stuff! You can't do anything well, but you always have something to complain about. What's there to complain about, huh?!"

On this end, with her mouth and nose covered by a mask, the air already felt stifling. Listening to her mother deny all her choices, Bai Yi felt even more suffocated.

Especially when she finally heard her mother criticize her songs.

Of course she felt angry, as if she had a thousand things to say-but for some reason, she couldn't hold back her tears at all.

"Zuo Jiangqin, I really hate you the most."

The next second, she suddenly hurled her phone away.

"Bang!"

The phone, without a case, instantly smashed against the wall. The glass screen cracked dramatically before hitting the ground hard.

Inside, Zuo Jiangqin's voice came through intermittently,

"...Did you...hear me..."

Then the screen went completely dark, and the voice cut off.

Bai Yi leaned against the wall, head down. On the inside of her sunglasses, droplets gathered and then poured down, dripping onto her mask.

Her body gradually went limp, sliding down the wall until she finally sat on the ground.

Hugging her knees, she finally couldn't hold back her tears anymore,

"Wuwuwuwuwuwuwu..."

She really didn't know what to do, or how to make her mother satisfied.

She knew she didn't work hard enough at her studies; she knew the road to being a celebrity wasn't easy, and nothing would go perfectly.

But did all that really contradict her own desires?

She just didn't want to be compared to Yan Huan anymore, didn't want to hear her mother always praise others and tell her to learn from them.

She just wanted to do a little of what she liked, wanted her mother to seriously listen to her songs and say, "Not bad."

But all along, nothing she wanted ever came true.

From beginning to end, what she got

was only denial.

"Wuwuwu... wuwuwu."

"Click."

Just as Bai Yi was crying on this nameless side alley, the door to the alley suddenly opened.

Bai Yi hurriedly looked up. Through the double veil of her tears and sunglasses, she could only vaguely make out a figure holding a garbage bag and dressed in bartender's attire.

The other person seemed a little surprised too, not expecting someone to be crying here.

Then, a familiar voice came,

"Miss, this is the garbage area, you can't sit here."

"."

Seriously? I'm here heartbroken, and you're telling me whether I can sit here?

Bai Yi stared up in a daze.

And as she looked up, adjusting her angle, she caught a clear glimpse through an untouched patch of her sunglasses-a smiling young man.

Yan Huan?!

This... this was the back door of the bar where he worked!

By now he had already walked up to Bai Yi, tossing the garbage into the bin beside her.

Bai Yi belatedly tried to get up and leave, but then she heard him say,

Want to come inside the shop and rest for a bit?

"."

Bai Yi sniffled and shook her head almost imperceptibly.

She lifted her hand to wipe the inside of her sunglasses, then awkwardly pointed at her phone beside her, and said softly,

"My phone's broken. I can't pay."

"It's fine, you can sit for a while, no charge."

Yan Huan smiled gently and picked up her phone, which had fallen to the ground and was now sporting a shattered screen.

Then, he handed it back to her,

"There are still seats inside. If it gets crowded later, you can leave then-it's not too late."

Bai Yi looked up at him, studying him for a moment, unsure what to do.

But Yan Huan simply pressed the phone firmly into her hand, then walked ahead to lead the way,

"Follow me."

"...Okay."

Bai Yi had no choice but to follow.

Entering through the back door of the bar, this was the inner area, with just a table or two-normally no customers would come here, except for that drunkard Tong Yingtong who'd sneak drinks here.

Yan Huan let Bai Yi rest here, and by the way, said,

"This is the southern district, miss. It's best to be careful in these little streets and alleys-don't go in alone, understand?"

He poured her a cup of warm water and thoughtfully included a straw,

"People in the southern district don't care whether you're covering your face or not. For them, it's as exciting as opening a blind box."

"Mm-hmm."

Staring at the hot water in front of her, Bai Yi didn't drink it. She just turned her head and looked at him again.

The closer she got, the more Bai Yi realized how true it was that the station boss had picked him out at a glance back then.

Ha, so good at studying, and he could be student council president...

The more Bai Yi thought about it, the more heartbroken she felt.

Her mother's words were like a scalpel, slicing open everything inside her.

Even the only thing she liked-singing-had been denied. She really didn't know...

"Ding ding."

The shop's bell rang, but Bai Yi didn't know what it meant. She just heard Yan Huan say,

"Just sit here for now. Leave whenever you want, but remember to be careful when you go."

She hung her head, and after a moment of silence, suddenly asked hoarsely,

"Um... you look really handsome. Hasn't any talent scout ever tried to recruit you to become a celebrity?"

"Well, there have been a few."

"...Then why didn't you go?"

Yan Huan blinked, just about to say something, when the bell rang again from over there.

He turned to look, then turned back to the girl in front of him, who was sitting with her head down, her whole body unconsciously curled up.

She really did look crushed.

The closer and more familiar someone is, the deeper the hurt they can cause you.

Actually, Yan Huan had overheard her conversation with her mother just now.

When he saw she hadn't caught up, Yan Huan even wondered where she'd gone.

But he couldn't just go looking for her, so he decided to keep working and see what happened.

Who knew that when he went to throw out the trash, he'd stumble on this drama.

He more or less understood now why Bai Yi disliked him so much.

Can you really blame her entirely?

Yan Huan didn't know either.

But from the perspective of resolving the modifier, it was necessary to look after her a little more right now.

He thought for a moment, then smiled and said,

"Although being recognized does feel nice, I've always felt that's not what I want to do, so I never went."

"Ding ding."

"...But that's because you have a choice, right?"

"Ding ding."

"Is working here considered having a choice?"

"Ding ding."

"."

Bai Yi was so thrown by his helpless self-mockery that she stopped crying.

She lowered her gaze, just about to say something, when she saw, beside Yan Huan, a beautiful red-haired woman with an expression somewhere between 'I'll kill you' and 'I'll kill myself'.

She was holding a bell in her hand, apparently a "magical capitalist tool" for calling employees to work.

Oh.

After seeing Bai Yi crying with her mask on, her expression leaned even more toward 'I'll kill you'.

Tong Yingtong glanced at Bai Yi. Actually, ever since Yan Huan had brought Bai Yi in, she'd felt something was about to happen, and now it had.

Quitting smoking and drinking was already annoying enough-

You think you're being kind, saving someone, but you don't realize how easy it is to get tangled up with a bad woman this way.

See? The moment you came in, you got stuck talking endlessly.

Later, she'll add a plane, cling to you for dear life, give you more money...

Wouldn't that just make you a bad woman's lapdog?

And you're just a first-year, with no dating experience, and you're the type of boy girls like most-those bad women love boys like you.

Xiaohuan, the water runs deep in the southern district. You can't handle it.

Protecting pure employees is the boss's duty, after all.

Yan Huan blinked and looked at Tong Yingtong beside him,

"Tong... Sister Tong?"

He was just about to say something when he saw Sister Tong sit down in front of Bai Yi, wave her hand at Yan Huan, and instruct,

"Go on, get busy. The customers are getting impatient."

Then she turned to Bai Yi, who still had tears in her eyes, took out a cigarette case, and said,

"Leave this to me-I'll take care of it."

(End of this chapter)