Chapter 18

Chapter 18

Hearing his answer, Mu Tieren’s eyes lit up. Before he could ask further, the blond boy sitting in the chair curiously asked, “But why would you ask me such a question?”

Mu Tieren didn’t hide anything. “I remember you told Jiang Tianming yesterday that he’s the unluckiest person in this generation?”

It seems someone did remember what happened yesterday. Despite Mu Tieren’s burly appearance, he’s actually quite observant.

At the time, he didn’t think much of what Su Bei said to Jiang Tianming, only finding the words somewhat interesting. But after seeing what happened to Jiang Tianming today, Mu Tieren suddenly felt that Su Bei’s words might not have been random.

After all, sitting next to a dead body in a crowded cafeteria, discovering the deceased, and then being harassed by the victim’s unreasonable family for it could indeed be considered incredibly unlucky.

If someone had already predicted this, maybe there’s also a way to resolve it.

Su Bei’s eyes flickered, and he lazily leaned back in his chair, smiling mischievously. “I was just joking. Don’t you think his black hair and eyes make him look like a villain from a novel?”

He then showed a disappointed expression. “Didn’t expect him to be a victim instead.”

The reason sounded completely unreliable, but Mu Tieren didn’t press further. He just glanced worriedly toward the door. “I wonder if they can handle this situation.”

He could already tell that just because Su Bei might have a solution didn’t mean he would offer to help.

Hearing this, Su Bei looked at him thoughtfully. “You’re really a caring class monitor.”

They’d only known each other for two days, yet Mu Tieren was already showing genuine concern for others. Was it just his nature, or was there something more to it?

Mu Tieren scratched his head, seemingly not catching the hidden meaning in Su Bei’s words, and smiled honestly. “Well, I am the class monitor, after all.”

After Mu Tieren left, Feng Lan gave Su Bei a probing look and suddenly spoke up. “You seemed a bit different from usual just now.”

Su Bei put down his phone, which he had been halfway through searching on, turned to him, and asked with interest, “Different how?”

Feng Lan thought seriously for a moment, then shook his head. “I can’t really say.”

Su Bei chuckled, but he knew Feng Lan was right. His behavior earlier wasn’t entirely in line with his usual character. It couldn’t be helped—if you want to stand out, you sometimes need to make some changes.

That’s right, Su Bei suspected that what had just happened might be recorded in a manga, so naturally, he had to act more in character.

The reason for this guess was because of the scene involving Meng Huai that he had seen today. If evaluating the protagonist was being recorded, what about discussions behind their back?

Especially when one of the people involved was Mu Tieren, who Su Bei believed would play a significant role in the upcoming plot.

As they spoke, the bell signaling the end of class rang, and Jiang Tianming and Lan Subing finally returned. However, both of them looked upset, with Lan Subing clearly still fuming.

Adjusting his expression, Su Bei smiled and moved closer. “Care to share what happened?”

In a bad mood, Jiang Tianming was about to refuse but suddenly remembered something. His eyes brightened as he changed his mind. “Was the hint you gave yesterday about the future related to this?”

“I don’t know,” Su Bei shrugged, spreading his hands in a gesture of helplessness. “But can you let me in on what happened?”

Jiang Tianming hesitated for a moment, exchanged a glance with Lan Subing, and finally nodded. “Alright, I’ll tell you.”

Soon, Su Bei learned the details of what had happened from Jiang Tianming.

The parents of the deceased, Sun Ming, were extremely wealthy, on par with the Lan family’s fortune. Sun Ming was their only child, born when they were older, so his death drove them to madness.

They knew that if even the Ability Academy couldn’t find the culprit, their chances of doing so were slim. So, out of anger, they turned their attention to the helpless Wu Mingbai.

The academy couldn’t protect him forever. Once Wu Mingbai left the school, he would likely face retaliation from the unreasonable couple. But even though the academy knew their plan, they couldn’t do anything about it because the couple hadn’t acted yet.

The final agreement was that if the school could find the culprit within two weeks, the couple would stop causing trouble. But if they couldn’t...

As Jiang Tianming recounted this, his eyes were filled with suppressed anger, and his dark gaze was a bit frightening. He was truly angry. The hardships he had endured before at least had some reason, but this time, it was pure misfortune.

Even though Su Bei had expected the protagonist group to get involved, he couldn’t help but twitch his lips at the situation. They were incredibly unlucky to encounter such unreasonable family members. They had merely discovered the deceased, yet they were being unjustly targeted for revenge.

This was even worse than doctors being harassed for not saving someone—after all, they had no obligation in this situation!

“So what are you planning to do?” Su Bei asked with genuine sympathy, even though it was more like the sympathy of someone who wouldn’t get involved.

When they heard this question, both of them looked frustrated. If they weren’t still unfamiliar with Su Bei and didn’t potentially need his help, Jiang Tianming would have rolled his eyes. “What else can we do? We’ll have to work with the school to find the culprit!”

Since the discovery of the deceased yesterday, the entire school had been sealed off by a barrier created by espers—nothing could get in or out, not even a fly. So even if the culprit could turn into smoke, they were still within the school.

Su Bei raised an eyebrow. “Is that all?”

As he asked, he silently called out to “Manga Awareness”: “‘Manga Awareness,’ are you there? Can’t the protagonist take revenge on others?”

“Manga Awareness” immediately responded: “This is a shonen manga. If the protagonist goes too far, it will lower the manga’s popularity.”

“So, it means they can do something, right?” Su Bei smirked.

Jiang Tianming paused. “What do you mean?”

Then he sighed bitterly. “What else can we do?”

He actually understood what Su Bei was implying—he was asking if their only option in the face of the couple’s threats was to compromise.

But the truth was, compromise was the only option they had at the moment. The Sun family was powerful and wealthy—two orphans couldn’t stand against them. Once they left the school’s protection, they would undoubtedly be doomed.

The Lan family could potentially compete with the Sun family, but it would likely end in mutual destruction. So, as long as the Sun family didn’t target Lan Subing, her family wouldn’t take any rash actions. After all, Jiang Tianming and Wu Mingbai were just her friends; they weren’t worth too much effort.

“Do you know? The Sun family is a family business, and that couple you saw earlier holds the top two positions in their company,” Su Bei said slowly.

This was information he had just looked up on his phone; large corporations like theirs have some information publicly available online.

Jiang Tianming was confused, but Lan Subing’s eyes flashed with a thoughtful expression.

Su Bei added another piece of public information: “To prevent the culprit from escaping, the school is currently on a lockdown—only entries are allowed, no exits. Based on Sun’s parents' request, they’ll be staying at the school for at least two weeks, maybe even longer.”

At this, Jiang Tianming began to understand, while Lan Subing, who had been trained by her family from a young age, asked in surprise, “Are you suggesting...?”

However, Su Bei felt he had said enough and didn’t answer her question. He simply waved it off and returned to his seat.

As soon as he sat down, “Manga Awareness” urgently asked, “Why are you doing this? What good does it do you to egg them on? If the protagonist group does something bad, the manga’s popularity will drop. If the author stops the manga abruptly, you won’t benefit either!”

It clearly understood what Su Bei meant. He had just mentioned two pieces of information, but they could be combined into one: the Sun family was now leaderless.

If Sun’s parents' connection to the outside world was cut off, their business would lack leadership. If they could find some dirt on them during this period, they could strike a fatal blow, potentially bankrupting the Sun family.

That’s why “Manga Awareness” was so anxious. This is a shonen manga, after all! How could the protagonist group plot against others?

Readers have high moral expectations for protagonists, especially in shonen manga. A protagonist with moral flaws could see their popularity plummet.

“Who said the protagonist group is doing something bad?” Su Bei feigned confusion. “If they follow my advice and use this time to dig up dirt on the Sun family, that would be doing society a favor!”

Hearing this, “Manga Awareness” suddenly understood. “You’re saying they should look for illegal activities?”

Su Bei smiled and nodded. “A couple who are so arrogant and recklessly threaten innocent students—how could they possibly be law-abiding citizens? If you search for illegal activities, you’re sure to find something!”

“Manga Awareness” thought it over and realized there was nothing wrong with this plan. If they could find evidence of the Sun family’s illegal activities and report them, it would be a perfectly legitimate form of retribution. Not only would there be no moral issues, but it would also give readers a satisfying sense of justice.

“But I have one more question.” After a long silence, “Manga Awareness” spoke again. “What’s in it for you?”

The author’s original plan was for the protagonist group to find the culprit, leading to Sun’s parents tearfully apologizing. Although Su Bei didn’t know the exact ending, it wouldn’t take much to guess something along those lines.

No matter the outcome, it wouldn’t make much difference to him. From what “Manga Awareness” had observed, Su Bei seemed like someone who only cared about his own gain. So why was he encouraging the protagonist group to take revenge on Sun’s parents?

“If the mountain won’t come to me, I’ll go to the mountain. I’ve already used most of the information I had before. If I don’t do this, how will I get more manga screen time?” Su Bei answered as if it were obvious.Ne/w novel chapters are published at novelhall.com

But what he didn’t mention was that this was just the reason he made up on the spot. The real reason was that he couldn’t stand the behavior of those parents. After all, he also had parents who were soldiers—how could he not have a sense of justice?

However, some things are better kept to oneself. If “Manga Awareness” thought he was just a profit-driven person, it would be more advantageous than letting it know he was a good person.

To be honest, if the protagonist group didn’t need to maintain a righteous image, his plan would have been to use the culprit to kill Sun’s parents.

However, the situation was different for the Class D students; their abilities were useful. Moreover, Wu Mingbai’s ability had the potential to place him in a different class, and the homeroom teacher didn’t want this incident to hold him back.

With this reminder, Meng Huai suddenly remembered and said, "Oh, right, you two as well. After these two weeks, make sure to catch up on your lessons, or you’ll be in trouble!"

As they left the office, the two exchanged a glance and headed to Class F together. From the current perspective, the person most likely to know something about this situation was Su Bei.

His behavior during this period almost made it clear that he knew something.

Upon entering Class F, Su Bei was still sitting in the corner. However, next to him was a red-haired boy, Mo Xiaotian from Class A.

Mo Xiaotian had been a frequent visitor to Class F these days, often coming by to hang out. He had a lively and cheerful personality and was friendly to everyone. Moreover, as a strong student from Class A, it didn’t take long for him to become well-liked by the entire class, including Jiang Tianming and Lan Subing.

The only one who didn’t like him was Wu Mingbai, who often said, "We have a character clash!"

Hearing his shameless words for the first time, even Lan Subing, who usually only complained silently in her mind, couldn’t help but say aloud, "Stop trying to leech off the ‘Little Sunshine’ persona, will you?"

Back to the present.

The two approached Su Bei’s seat, and Jiang Tianming spoke to Mo Xiaotian first, "Xiaotian, we need to talk to Su Bei."

Mo Xiaotian, who was happily chatting with Su Bei, blinked and asked, "Huh? Do you want me to leave now?"

"Yes, it seems you’re not welcome here," Wu Mingbai said cheerfully, but his words were laced with sarcasm.

Jiang Tianming unhesitatingly gave him a light smack on the head and then shook his head, "Ignore him. No, you don’t need to leave. Su Bei, can you come out with us for a moment?"

Finally able to escape from the chatterbox, Su Bei raised an eyebrow and quickly stood up, eager to say, "Let’s go."

He was truly regretting showing kindness to Mo Xiaotian that day. Although Mo Xiaotian was indeed a "Little Sunshine," it was common knowledge that such characters in manga often had two traits: "not understanding when people want them to leave" and being a "chatterbox."

He couldn’t understand how something as simple as "there’s always a new rose on Si Zhaohua’s desk every class" could be stretched into ten minutes of continuous talk by Mo Xiaotian.

He’d had enough!

They left the classroom and went to the playground. Although the playground was scattered with students, it was still quite spacious, giving the place an empty feel.

They casually found a quiet corner with some exercise equipment. Jiang Tianming and Wu Mingbai sat on the sit-up assist machine, while Su Bei effortlessly flipped onto the horizontal bar, swinging his legs as he asked, "So, what do you want to talk about?"

Jiang Tianming, who had already made up his mind, got straight to the point, "Do you know who the culprit is?"

Su Bei was momentarily stunned by the directness of the question, then raised an eyebrow, surprised by Jiang Tianming’s straightforwardness.

Perhaps realizing that his question was abrupt, Jiang Tianming quickly explained, "I just want to have some certainty."

Su Bei understood.

If he knew, they could trade for the information, giving them a so-called safety net. When it came to matters involving the safety of their companions, even someone as calm as Jiang Tianming couldn’t help but be a bit anxious.

Unfortunately, he didn’t know.

"I don’t know," Su Bei answered honestly. There was no need for him to lie about this. However, whether Jiang Tianming would overthink this answer was not something Su Bei was concerned about.

Regardless of the truth, this answer was within reason. Jiang Tianming wasn’t too disappointed and extended another invitation, "Would you like to investigate with me? Watching from the sidelines is more interesting when you’re actively involved, right?"

He had thought it through. Based on Su Bei’s previous behavior, he didn’t seem to harbor any ill intentions toward them in this matter. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have suggested they take action against Sun’s parents' company during this time.

Since that was the case, inviting Su Bei, someone who was truly capable, to join their team would undoubtedly help in finding the culprit.

"Agree! Agree!" The voice of the "Manga Awareness" suddenly urged, eager for Su Bei to join the main characters and move closer to the main storyline.

However, to its surprise, Su Bei declined, "If a spectator takes the stage, they become part of the play. That would be... boring."

As he said this, his brow furrowed slightly, his purple eyes deep and unreadable, and his gaze filled with an inexplicable weariness. The enthusiasm that had previously animated his expression was replaced by a distant apathy.

Being rejected was no surprise, but the brief flash of that strange expression on Su Bei’s face caught Jiang Tianming off guard. Why did he show such an expression? Was his invitation really that troubling for Su Bei?

Unfortunately, that look vanished as quickly as it appeared, and Su Bei’s face soon returned to its usual smile. "Once you’ve found the culprit, make sure you attend class properly. I don’t want my teammates dragging me down in the monthly exams."

After finishing his sentence, it seemed like he lost interest in the conversation. He lazily waved his hand and turned to leave.

Watching his back, Jiang Tianming blinked.

“‘After finding the culprit?’”

Is he really that confident they’ll find the culprit?

On the other side, the "Manga Awareness" kept chattering in Su Bei's ear: “Why did you refuse? Weren’t you always wanting to get closer to the main characters? Now, you finally have such a great opportunity, and the protagonist himself invited you! How could you refuse?”

“What’s your rush?” Su Bei suddenly asked, annoyed by the persistent questioning.

The voice of the "Manga Awareness" suddenly fell silent.

Was it feeling guilty? Su Bei sneered lightly, “It’s only been two weeks since the school year started, so even if I joined the main group, there’s no way we could start solving the power balance issue yet. So why are you in such a hurry? Why do you want me to join the main characters so badly?”

“I just thought that if you joined the main characters, you’d get more screen time, making it easier to mislead the readers,” the "Manga Awareness" explained.

However, this explanation didn’t convince Su Bei: “You know my goal is to mislead the readers, right? Since I need them to misunderstand my ability, it’s enough to show up at key moments to display my power. The more I talk, the more mistakes I might make. If I get more screen time, it would be easier to arouse suspicion. You couldn’t have overlooked that, could you?”

After waiting for two seconds without a response from the "Manga Awareness," Su Bei’s expression turned serious, his gaze cold and unreadable: “Let’s be honest—we’re in a partnership right now. If you don’t want me to slack off, I suggest you don’t try to deceive me.”

“...Alright, I do have some selfish reasons,” the "Manga Awareness" eventually admitted. “I hope you can form more bonds with the main characters so that your desire to save the world becomes stronger.”

Since reviving Su Bei, the "Manga Awareness" had never truly sensed a strong desire in him to save the world. Although Su Bei was indeed methodically misleading the readers to enhance his powers, the "Manga Awareness" believed that a significant part of his motivation for improving his abilities was to avoid dying as a minor character. And once he escaped his destined demise, he might just let himself go and stop caring about the world.

That’s why the "Manga Awareness" hoped Su Bei would join the main group, preferably being moved by Jiang Tianming and the others’ personalities, and develop a genuine desire to save the world.

Su Bei was noncommittal about this answer, but suddenly, as if struck by a random thought, he asked, “What would happen if I suddenly kidnapped Jiang Tianming and the others and took them to the North Pole?”

“Huh?”

The "Manga Awareness" was bewildered, not understanding how the topic had jumped to this: “Don’t be impulsive. If my behavior has upset you, I apologize, but please don’t mess with the plot.”

“I’m not planning to; I’m just curious,” Su Bei replied with a perfectly innocent expression. “Would the manga switch to a new protagonist? Or would it start focusing on Jiang Tianming and the others’ lives at the North Pole?”

He genuinely had no intention of doing such a thing; he was just exploring a possibility. If the main plot could be diverted so drastically, it would mean that many other things could also change.

The "Manga Awareness" was suspicious of his rebuttal, and after observing him for a while without detecting any flaws, it reluctantly answered, “Neither. The plot’s inertia would bring everything back to the main storyline. If you took them to the North Pole, the next school activity might just happen to take place there. But in any case, the plot won’t allow you to take them away from the school. Even if you tried, you’d definitely fail.”

“I see.” Su Bei nodded thoughtfully, then added with a chuckle, “I really don’t have such plans; you don’t have to be so on edge.”

He was simply contemplating that since the main storyline couldn’t be altered, joining the main group would force him to become entangled with it. Especially since Su Bei was following the "Fate" route, he’d be more susceptible to the plot’s influence. As a spectator, he could at least maintain his sanity, but if he became one of the main group, his thinking would inevitably change. At that point, the course of many events would be out of his control.

Was this the "Manga Awareness"’s plan?

No, if that were the case, the "Manga Awareness" wouldn’t have honestly answered his earlier question. After all, Su Bei knew very little about the manga world, so keeping things from him wouldn’t have been difficult.

Su Bei boldly speculated that the reason the "Manga Awareness" had answered him truthfully was because its desire for him to join the main group was genuine—at least, the "Manga Awareness" believed that was its true intention.

But in reality, this intention itself was influenced by the world. Although it wasn’t conscious of it, all of the "Manga Awareness"’s actions were driven by the interests of the manga world.

Just like before, when the "Manga Awareness" subconsciously tried to manipulate him, but once called out, it apologized decisively. This also proved that it had no ill intentions; it just wasn’t aware of its mistakes.

Everything was driven by the subconscious.

For Su Bei, this discovery wasn’t good news. If the "Manga Awareness" had harbored malice, it would have been easier to detect, like a black dot on white paper.

But the "Manga Awareness" had no malice; it was simply influenced by its subconscious, not realizing that what it was doing was wrong. It even believed it was acting in his best interest. Such well-meaning manipulation wouldn’t trigger his radar, and he would have to rely on his own judgment.

However, it wasn’t all bad news either—the "Manga Awareness" still bore goodwill toward Su Bei, which was a good thing. They were in a cooperative relationship now, and if they started to have conflicting intentions and infighting, that would be the real trouble.

Since the "Manga Awareness" was being unconsciously influenced by the world, the key was to ensure that this influence didn’t affect him.

Nodding to himself, Su Bei collected his thoughts and returned to the main topic. He firmly stated, “I will not join the protagonist group.”