Chapter 28
The demons were horrified. This human had touched Master Delmoko’s wings! Those wings had slain countless monsters! He was lucky to still have his hand!
But nothing happened. Sootball hesitated, avoiding the touch, but his gaze remained fixed on Lin Ran, a strange protectiveness towards this unfamiliar human.
“Master Delmoko? What should we do with him?” the demons asked.
“…” Sootball spoke in a language Lin Ran didn’t understand. Judging by the demons’ shocked expressions, the order was unusual.
Lin Ran guessed he was being “confined,” though the room was beautiful, with human refreshments. If this was how intruders were treated, he suspected many would try to get caught. Only his cloak, held by Sootball, wasn’t returned. But the Phantom Stone, the cloak’s most valuable component, had been brought by Sootball and Snowball. It belonged to Sootball, in a way.
As long as he wasn’t in danger, the worst outcome was wasting the Time Mirror. He examined the room, finding a study filled with books.
Demon World Chronicles (Revised Edition)? He paused, then picked it up, realizing the study was in use. A pen lay on the desk, uncapped. Was this Sootball’s study?
Meanwhile, Nemo held the cloak, his gaze fixed on the Phantom Stone.
“Master Delmoko, this is a high-quality Phantom Stone. A human couldn’t obtain it. A conspiracy!””The Feather Clan! Mount Anduin is their territory!” the demons said, convinced the stone masked the intruder.
“We can trace it with moon magic,” another demon suggested.
Nemo enveloped the cloak in his dark purple aura, the temperature plummeting.
The image that appeared was… himself, as a cub, with a small snow leopard, carrying the Phantom Stone from Mount Anduin, their bravery captivating the demons.
Then, the scene shifted to the cub offering the stone to a human, who gently pinched its ear. The cub’s chirps sounded incredibly cute.
The demons were stunned. A fabrication! Their Master Delmoko, letting a human touch his ears?!
[You’re covered in dirt. No bed tonight. You’re too messy…] The familiar human voice and the image of the little Luna Clan cub snuggling against him left the demons speechless. The scene, though absurd, was heartwarming. Even the bath scene was adorable.
They looked at Nemo with a newfound appreciation. Even fearsome beasts were clingy as cubs?
“But… doesn’t that human look exactly like the intruder?!” one demon exclaimed, and the others gasped, realizing the resemblance. But the human in the image looked the same age. How?
Lost in their discussion, they didn’t notice Nemo leaving. He knew the human in the image was both him and not him. The cub in the image had better wings and had awakened his ability much earlier…
Lin Ran, in the study, was startled by the opening door. He looked up and saw the teenage Sootball.
“A-Ran…?” Sootball said hesitantly.
Lin Ran: ! It was the first time he had heard Sootball say his name so clearly.
As if sensing his thoughts, Sootball transformed back into his cub form and jumped into Lin Ran’s arms.
“Sootball? Really you?” Lin Ran hugged him, noticing subtle differences.
“Didn’t you see a doctor about your wings?” he asked, checking the small wings.
This time, Nemo didn’t resist, letting him touch the deformed bones, his eyes fixed on Lin Ran.
Lin Ran, touching the wings, remembered the Chronicles. So, Sootball’s wings never healed in the original storyline. Without player intervention, this was the ending?
“Does it hurt?” he asked.
Sootball shook its head.
Lin Ran hugged him tightly. “You’re in such bad shape, baby.”
“Cheep…” Sootball whimpered.
“Why did this happen… Where are Oni and Yorke?” Lin Ran asked.
Sootball took his hand and flew, showing him a vast, dried riverbed.
“The River of Demon Energy… it’s gone,” he said. Demonic energy was dwindling, and “Demon World” had merged with the human world.
As for his parents… Sootball led him to a grand hall filled with crystals, each containing a sleeping Luna Clan demon. They weren’t gone, just dormant.
Lin Ran thought of the vampire legends in “Demon World.” Luna, like the moon. And their true forms were bats.
“Can they wake up?” he asked, looking at the beautiful woman he sensed was Oni.
“…Perhaps, when the demonic energy returns.”
“It’s gone,” Sootball said quietly.
[Beep—Time Mirror duration ending!]
But as he was being pulled back, a dark purple aura stopped him. Sootball, in human form, grabbed his hand, his eyes filled with determination.
Lin Ran was stunned. It was the most intense emotion he had seen from Sootball. And his aura was a dark, almost black, purple.
Meanwhile, Sootball, playing with Yuanbao and Snowball, suddenly stopped.
“Mew…?” An Xun nudged him. He looked asleep.
It tried to wake him, then hesitated. Should it find Yuanbao or A-Ran?
Suddenly, a loud “Cheep cheep cheep—!” startled it. Sootball was shaking his head and opening his eyes.
“Mew…?”
“Cheep! A-RAN—” Sootball chirped and flew towards the house. He had dreamt of stopping A-Ran from leaving.
[Beep—Time Mirror usage complete!][Error code 991361.][Time Mirror danger level: S-rank.][Activated hidden quest: “Crisis of the Luna Clan.”]
Lin Ran, back in his house, was trying to remember the last scene. The system had displayed an error message as Sootball grabbed his hand. But then, Sootball had transformed back and jumped into his arms, and he was back. He hadn’t been able to bring back the cloak.
“Cheep!? Cheep cheep—” The door burst open, and Sootball flew into his arms.
“Sootball?” He hugged it. It was sweaty but still smelled of peaches.
“Mew…” Snowball followed, then also being hugged and petted.
Lin Ran felt like he was truly back. Everything was perfect, unlike the Mirror World.
“Cheep…” Sootball looked at him with a mix of emotions, as if understanding his worry. It liked A-Ran and was afraid of losing him.
“Cheep!” I like A-Ran.
[Affection +1, current affection: Max! Distributing reward…]
Lin Ran smiled at its clinginess. “Weren’t you playing with Yuanbao?”
“It’s good that he’s teaching you. Just be careful…” he said, lifting Sootball.
If the demons in the Mirror World heard this, they would protest. That “poor little cub” was a fearsome protector!
But in Lin Ran’s eyes, his cubs were always vulnerable.
“Cheep!” Sootball chirped, determined.
An Xun looked at its paws, wondering when it would awaken.
“Roar—” Shao Mian, realizing the cubs were gone, panicked, thinking he had lost them. He felt guilty, even considering relocating.
But after tracking their scent, he realized they had simply gone home! He arrived at the house, glaring at them.
“Cheep…” Sootball realized it had forgotten about Yuanbao.
“Yuanbao, you’re back? Why didn’t you come back together?” Lin Ran asked.
Sootball was grabbed by the lion and carried off for training. An Xun, worried, followed. Lin Ran decided to have a barbecue.
That night, the cubs returned, exhausted. They whined as he fed them. But Shao Mian snatched Sootball from his arms.
Lin Ran: ?
“Roar—” You’re not supposed to do that!
“Is this wrong?”
Shao Mian nodded.
“Okay, then eat by yourselves. You worked hard, Yuanbao,” Lin Ran said, giving him a large lamb leg. Shao Mian accepted it and disappeared.
“He’s not eating with us?” Lin Ran felt exhausted.
“Time for bed,” he said, putting the cubs in their baskets and logging out.
An Xun watched him disappear. But Sootball also logged out. An Xun hesitated. Should he log out too?
Lin Ran, preparing for bed, wondered about the reward for maxing Sootball’s affection.
He fell asleep. Then, a notification appeared:
[Beep—Max affection reward “Always By Your Side” distributed!]
The next morning, he was woken by his grandmother’s scream. A “flying rat…”
“Lin-zai— Stay upstairs! It’s a dark thing!” Grandma said, holding a broom.
“…?” Lin Ran looked downstairs, thinking he was hallucinating. How could Sootball be here?
“Cheep—!” Sootball, seeing him, flew into his arms. The new reward allowed it to visit the real world. It had activated it, appearing in this unfamiliar place. Its watch had no signal. It had hidden in the kitchen, then ventured out, almost being hit by Grandma’s broom.
Lin Ran, holding Sootball, knew he wasn’t dreaming. Sootball was here. Was this reward a bit too real?!
