Chapter 92: The Essence of Charm

“Oh, another maiden has joined the rear garden,” the elder whispered as Yu Miao walked away.

Chen Fan gave him a contemptuous glance and pressed the elder down with his thumb. “Why do you always let your mind wander? Looks like you need purification.”

The elder protested, “I know you better than any girl does. Do you think you can hide your little thoughts from me?”

“You’re just imagining things,” Chen Fan replied, utterly unconcerned. His feelings toward Miao were merely those of simple appreciation.

“All right, I understand this time.” The elder closed his eyes, quickly reading Chen Fan’s intentions, and wisely shut his mouth.

Walking along, Chen Fan complained, “Hey, why can’t this half-blood let beautiful women passing by confess to me? Even a flirtatious glance would do. These attempts to chat me up are so clumsy, no finesse at all, and the acting is ridiculously exaggerated. Can’t they be a bit more professional?”

“Hm? Are you already impatient to raise a household?” The elder grinned mischievously.

Chen Fan explained, “What kind of talk is that? I just want to satisfy my humble sense of pride. Imagine if crowds of young ladies brought me flowers—what a historic scene that would be! I’d never forget it.”

“A crowd, huh? That’s tough. Three or five, perhaps, if you try your luck in the Cowboy District. You might even attract some burly, fierce women to take you away.” The elder coughed and laughed as he spoke.

Chen Fan retorted, “You’re still the same—sharp-tongued and fiery. Can’t you try being a motivational mentor for once?”

“You can’t see through me. I am who I am; no need to live behind a persona.” Though he said this, the elder put on a performance: “Life isn’t just poetry and distant horizons. If the path is blocked, break through with your fists.”

“Wait, that’s toxic motivation,” Chen Fan interrupted the elder’s impromptu speech, finding himself already at the dormitory door.

“There’s no universal cure-all. You’re too frail for strong medicine, never able to stand tall. Using poison to fight poison might save you yet.”

“Who says I can’t stand tall? Watch this.”

Refusing to believe him, Chen Fan insisted on proving himself, suddenly standing on tiptoe and banging his head against the doorframe with a loud thud.

“It’s not just your body—your mind isn’t working either. You clearly need a stronger remedy,” the elder remarked coolly.

“Tch, I’m ignoring you. I’ll play Werewolf for a while.” Chen Fan rubbed his head, tossed his backpack aside, and logged into the Sirius APP on his phone.

Ever since he’d played a few VR sessions, Chen Fan’s interest in simple face-to-face games had waned, let alone the online version, where you couldn’t even see the players in person. The only surprise left in online play was seeing what bizarre costumes people wore on camera.

“Hopefully I’ll meet a few beautiful female streamers this time.”

Without hesitation, Chen Fan entered the streamer section. The only reason he could access it was due to the sheer number of games he’d played, boosting his rank, though his win rate was abysmal—he was practically repelling others.

“Matching players for you…”

Chen Fan entered the room and happily took seat number six.

“Hey, hey, hey, number six, buddy, try your mic,” the room host called out to Chen Fan. Judging by the accent, he sounded like he was from the northeast, but it wasn’t quite authentic.

“Hey, hey, hey, can you hear me?” Chen Fan responded casually.

“Alright, buddy, get ready. I’m starting now.”

Looking around, Chen Fan realized the room was a den of dragons and tigers. Streamers from Twitch, Cat Tooth, Fire Cat, Slow Hand, Le Fish, and Panda Live were all present, though most had unfamiliar IDs, likely minor streamers.

“The game begins. Please confirm your identity.”

Chen Fan widened his eyes as a shiny gun barrel appeared in the center of the screen.

“Night falls, please close your eyes. Ooo~”

The wolf’s howl BGM was a hallmark of Werewolf, and Chen Fan would sometimes imitate it when bored.

“Fan, what are you up to?” Xu Changhui suddenly popped his head out of the bathroom, startling Chen Fan.

“Whoa, someone’s in the dorm. I’m playing Werewolf. What’s up?”

Xu Changhui smiled. “Oh, that’s it. I heard the wolf howl and got curious.”

Glancing at the inscrutable Xu Changhui, Chen Fan turned his attention back to the game.

“If you want to run for sheriff, please raise your hand.”

Since it was an online game, Chen Fan decided to play boldly. With his win rate already at rock bottom, he pressed the sheriff button without hesitation.

“So I’m the first to speak.”

Chen Fan saw that the system had automatically selected seat six as the first speaker.

“I’m a strong role, here to prevent anyone from jumping for the badge. Confident enough to lead the team. If you trust me, give me the badge. That’s all.” Chen Fan smoothed his bangs in front of the camera, ready to let himself shine.

Suddenly, he noticed several people sending him flowers. Judging by their IDs, they were probably girls.

Where there were flowers, slippers weren’t far behind. A streamer from Le Fish with a prefix started hurling slippers at him madly.

“Tch, passing the mic to you. Let’s see what you have to say.” Chen Fan clicked his tongue and handed over the mic.

The Le Fish streamer had long hair in a “Kill Matt” style, a spiky purple do reminiscent of the old Burial Family’s signature look. He blew a puff of smoke upward, lifting his bangs from his face.

“Who are you? Who do you think you are? I’m telling you, you’re a strong role, but why fight me for the sheriff badge? Yesterday I checked the player below me, this girl, she’s a good person. Show her some respect. Being the boss isn’t just talk.”

The youthful tone made Chen Fan suspect he was no older than sixteen. A streetwise kid, speaking with swagger—Chen Fan just smiled.

Number eight was a pretty streamer from Le Fish, and from her non-mainstream avatar, likely also underage. Sure enough, when her camera switched on, Chen Fan saw three years minimum beckoning to him.

“How can you say that about my number six idol? He’s so charming, so dignified! Can’t we just play the game nicely? Why all the spitting? I’m a genuinely good person, don’t vote me out, I just want to survive a few more rounds.”

Chen Fan was already complaining. “If elementary school logic isn’t working, go practice some exam papers. Werewolf isn’t a sim game, what’s the point of acting all coy?”

The elder drifted quietly to Chen Fan’s side, crossing his legs. “Streamers need to be entertaining. Playing by the rules is exhausting, isn’t the point of games to have fun?”

“You’ve received lots of flowers now; must be overjoyed. Maybe you should build a few more Nightingale Palaces and marry some nannies early,” the elder added with a jab.

“Get lost.” Chen Fan dumped a handful of toothpicks from the container and pinned the elder’s card to the wall.