Apocalypse Forecast

”Hmm?”

Huai Shi was baffled.

”This place is about to become a battlefield between the Dongxia Genealogy and the Yingzhou Phylogeny—no, between Dongxia and Yingzhou,” Tony said. ”Given my status, it’s not suitable for me to remain.”

”And you still claim you’re not from the Astronomical Society?!”

”I only said my status makes it unsuitable for me to stay. Don’t twist my words!” Tony’s horse face was a mask of innocence. ”You have to be responsible for what you say.”

He’ll just deny it to the end, won’t he!

After a moment’s thought, Huai Shi asked, ”Do I have to leave too?”

”You’re not on the Astronomical Society’s list of competing teams, nor are you representing them... You claim to be from the Astronomical Society, but do you have your ID?”

”No...”

”Exactly,” Tony shrugged. ”Whether you stay or go is up to you. However, for a grassroots operative like yourself, this is a rare opportunity. It’s best to seize it if you can. No need to overthink things.”

”So, what exactly did you come here for?”

”I was just about to tell you. Please stop interrupting me, alright?”

”Fine, fine, go on.”

Huai Shi picked up his teacup, eyeing Tony skeptically. He was curious to see what Tony was truly up to.

”Originally, I estimated only a few favorites to win this competition: Ye Xueya, Ruan Qingye, Bai Wu, Nanjo Kenichi... But now, with some dropping out and others meeting misfortune, only three or four remain.”

Tony continued leisurely, ”Ye Xueya has already advanced, so I most likely can’t defeat him. Even if I stayed, I’d only be second best. But I haven’t fought you yet...”

He paused, a hint of anticipation in his eyes beneath the plastic horse face. ”So, before I leave, could we have a little match?”

So he just came looking for a fight?

Is that why he’s so insistent on denying he’s from the Astronomical Society?

Huai Shi’s expression twitched.

”Is it inconvenient?”

Seeming to notice Huai Shi’s depleted Source Substance, Tony waved his hand. ”No problem, we can do it another way.”

With that, he produced a deck of playing cards from somewhere, shuffling them expertly. The cards danced in the Horse-headed Man’s grasp, creating an uncanny sight.

Huai Shi shook his head. ”Sorry, I don’t play.”

A sly smile spread across the horse face, as if he’d expected this. ”That’s fine. We can just draw cards and compare for the highest.”

What is he after?!

Coming all this way before leaving, just to draw cards with me?

”Ah, as a reward for indulging my unreasonable request.”

He suddenly pulled a box from his pocket and placed it on the table. ”I won’t need it after I leave anyway. How about I give this to you?”

The box opened, revealing an ancient fan.

The surface of the fan was tattered, its ribs blackened with faint traces of insect damage. The once-white fan now looked yellowed and dilapidated, like a piece of junk.

Tony said, ”If I’m not mistaken, this should come in handy in the next phase of the competition. Whether you keep it or hand it over to the Jurisdiction Bureau is up to you.”

”Accept his offer,” Raven’s voice sounded in his ear. ”With this, you can infiltrate the core shadow region of the Central District.”

Huai Shi was puzzled. ”Why would I go to all that trouble to sneak in there?”

”There’s something there crucial for your advancement. Now, are you going or not?”

”I accept.”

Huai Shi instantly snatched the box and stuffed it into his robes, his decisiveness a stark contrast to the hesitation he’d shown moments before.

Tony’s horse face registered surprise. He hadn’t expected Huai Shi to cave so readily and smoothly for the reward. It took him a moment to catch his breath.

I should have known. Why did I bother with all that talk...

”So, we each draw one card and compare, right?” Huai Shi scooted his chair forward. ”Let’s get this over with.”

Win or lose, I’ve already got the goods. No loss for me.

”Ah, perhaps we should make it a bit more formal.”

Tony pondered for a moment, then suggested, ”How about this: we each draw five cards. In each round, we select one to reveal. Best two out of three wins. How does that sound?”

Huai Shi was skeptical. ”That simple?”

”Yes.”

A smile touched the horse face. ”Just that simple.”

In that instant, countless playing cards in Tony’s hand suddenly flew into the air. The white cards, adorned with intricate designs on their backs, seemed to sprout wings as they scattered in all directions.

Huai Shi paused, noticing the delight in Tony’s eyes. Though it was a fleeting moment, Tony’s unhurried voice echoed in his ears, ”If you’re not quick, the cards will all fly away.”

Lightning Reflexes, activate!

Huai Shi shot out his hand, trying to grab the swirling mass of cards before him. But for some reason, in that almost frozen instant, he couldn’t see a single face.

Layer upon layer of cards danced, perfectly concealing each other’s suits and values, leaving Huai Shi unsure where to begin.

Then, abruptly, the swirling colors transformed into dozens of tiny Flying Birds. They flitted about chaotically, slippery and elusive, evading Huai Shi’s grasp no matter how swift his movements.

Seeing Huai Shi’s bewildered expression, the smile on Tony’s horse face widened.

When Huai Shi finally stopped, five of the birds landed before him, silently transforming back into five face-down cards on the table.

Apart from five similar cards that landed before Tony, all the other playing cards vanished instantly.

”What was that just now?” Huai Shi asked.

”A trick I learned from a fortune-teller on the Gilsey border. Impressive, right? It’s great for bluffing, but once you see through it, it’s nothing special. Don’t worry about it,” Tony said. He looked down at the cards before Huai Shi. ”Shall we begin?”

A game of high card?

Is it really just as simple as comparing the highest card?

Huai Shi frowned.

He reached out and, with a deadpan expression, casually flipped over a card.

Hearts 10.

”A 10 on the first draw? You’ve got a strong foundation,” Tony remarked with a click of his tongue, then flipped his own card.

Spades 7.

Neither high nor low, neither good nor bad.

He lost.

Next was the second round. Huai Shi reached out and flipped another card.

Ace of Hearts.

The lowest value.

”It seems your current development faces some challenges. You’ll need to work hard. If you stagnate, you might find yourself in a difficult situation.”

Tony finished speaking and flipped his card.

Hearts 7.

Still, neither high nor low, neither good nor bad.

He won the second round.

”So, the last round decides the winner, eh?”

Tony nodded thoughtfully and flipped one of his remaining three cards: Clubs 7.

Three sevens in a row?

A coincidence? Or some kind of fated outcome?

Huai Shi hesitated for a long time, staring at his last three cards. A one-in-three choice.

He reached out and flipped a card.

—Queen of Hearts!

Two out of three.

Huai Shi had won.

”...”

Tony was silent, his horse-like face a picture of bewilderment.

He looked as if he’d seen a ghost.

After a long pause, he cleared his throat twice and forced an awkward laugh.

”My, newcomers these days are truly formidable,” he nodded, sighing. ”You have a great future ahead. Once you overcome your current predicament, it will be very promising indeed.”

What is all this nonsense?

Huai Shi was still utterly confused, but he saw Tony put his mask and sunglasses back on and rise to leave, looking like he was about to flee.

”Well then, I’ll bid you farewell, Mr. Huai Shi.” He extended his hand, and they shook. ”I hope you achieve a good rank.”

He’s leaving just like that?

He shows up out of nowhere for a random game of cards, and then just leaves?

What was he after?!

”That was just a little joke earlier. I hope you don’t mind.”

At the entrance of the art museum, Tony, seemingly smiling, raised his hand to wave goodbye to Huai Shi. ”I hope we meet again somewhere else next time.”

He hoisted his backpack, then leaped into a gigantic Hand of Steel that suddenly extended from the void, and vanished.

His arrival was strange, his departure abrupt.

Completely baffling.

Huai Shi stood at the entrance, staring blankly for a long time, his face a mask of confusion.

”Yes, it’s me.”

Inside the cockpit of the giant robot, Tony, heading towards the exit area, answered a call. ”The investigation on the new recruit, Huai Shi, is complete.”

”And the results?”

”He doesn’t seem like a malicious kid. In fact, he’s surprisingly straightforward,” Tony said lightly. ”The divination results were quite normal. Past, present, or future, it’s all hearts, no spades signifying [Golden Dawn]. He might be a successor cultivated by some of the old-timers still around in Utopia. You know how it is, those old geezers have never approved of the Jurisdiction Bureau’s methods, so it’s quite normal for them to keep things from us.”

The person on the other end of the call pondered for a moment, then asked, ”Is there any possibility of recruiting him?”

Tony chuckled. ”Recruiting him wouldn’t be an issue; young people are quite gullible. We could just offer more money; the benefits in the tech department have always been good. But the question is—who would end up recruiting whom?”

”...Is that what the divination indicated?”

”In the Casting Iron Army, you, Boss, have the highest achievement, the Spades 10. Guess what he got?”

Without waiting for a guess, Tony stated bluntly,

”—Queen of Hearts.”

The person on the phone was silent for a long while, then gasped. ”Mother of God, does that mean the little bastard might make it to the Central Decision Making Room in the future?”

”It’s just a possibility. Boss, consider his background; he might be an agent trained by one of those old freaks.”

Tony picked at the nostrils of his horse mask, his tone a mix of envy and resignation. ”How can our humble little pond raise a Leviathan? Aren’t you afraid he’ll become the next Lord Raspu? Please, don’t suddenly assign me tasks to investigate formidable outsiders like him anymore, okay? I was so scared just now I nearly had a heart attack.”

”Let’s just pretend I never asked.”

The sigh on the other end of the line was tinged with frustration. ”Draft a report for me later, and remember to omit this part. I won’t change it; I’ll submit it directly.”

After a brief silence, both men on the call let out long, resigned sighs.

”Life is getting tougher and tougher...”

In the quiet lounge of the Xiematai Art Museum.

After Tony turned and left, from the shadows behind Huai Shi’s chair, the silhouette of a bird slowly emerged, its crimson eyes opening.

Gazing in the direction Tony had departed, its expression turned mocking.

”Playing fortune-teller before the ”Book of Fate”. You’re still too green, kid...”

She casually flicked her wing, flipping over the two cards Huai Shi hadn’t revealed.

Under the soft light, the five cards of the same suit shimmered gently.

Five hearts.

—10, J, Q, K, A.

Observing the true outcome hidden beneath the fragmented clues, Raven, satisfied, retracted her gaze and silently returned to the shadows.

In the dead silence, a faint breeze rustled through, and the cards on the table noiselessly turned to dust.

Vanished.