Chapter 63 – No One Understands You Better Than I Do

Zhao Xinning was taking Lin Xi to District 2 for a two-day trip.

She had planned the itinerary ages ago, and the first stop was:

The arcade.

District 2 of Z City had the biggest arcade in all of Z City. Zhao Xinning had specifically chosen it as the first stop of their “two-day tour” because she knew Lin Xi’s personality.

There was no way Lin Xi could resist the charm of an arcade.

Everything was under Zhao Xinning’s control.

Just as she had expected, they hadn’t even arrived yet, and Lin Xi was already excitedly looking up arcade guides on her phone.

“Xinning, you really do understand me best.” Lin Xi absolutely loved arcades.

Zhao Xinning smiled confidently. “Of course. No one understands you better than I do, Xi.”

After exiting the subway station, the two of them hailed a cab and headed straight for their destination.

This was Lin Xi’s first time visiting District 2 of Z City.

On the towering arcade building, a huge electronic screen was playing an advertisement for the arcade starring Magical Girl Misaka Shirai.

Lin Xi couldn’t help sighing in admiration. “Misaka Shirai really is worthy of being the most popular Magical Girl in Z City.”

“There’s no way anyone can shake Misaka Shirai from her throne.”

“Why not?” Zhao Xinning said. “Our Lin Xi Fan Club is definitely going to put in the work. Just you wait and see, Xi.”

Lin Xi: “…”

“Don’t do anything weird, okay? I’m scared I’ll die of embarrassment.”

“We would never!” Zhao Xinning took Lin Xi’s hand. “Anyway, let’s not talk about that. Hurry, let’s go in.”

They entered the arcade and went to the front desk, where Lin Xi exchanged money for a pile of game tokens.

Zhao Xinning rushed to pay. “I already said this is my treat. All expenses are on me.”

Since Shi Yu had paid her back, Lin Xi had money now. How could she let Zhao Xinning cover everything?

However, Zhao Xinning was very firm. If Lin Xi didn’t let her pay, she would be upset.

Lin Xi: “…”

Angel-sama really did love saving all living beings…

Lin Xi had no choice but to accept.

“If you’re at an arcade, you have to conquer the claw machines first!”

Lin Xi rubbed her hands together. Claw machines were her specialty.

She inserted a token, moved the joystick, grabbed, shifted…

Her movements were as fierce as a tiger’s.

“This one’s in the bag!”

Damn it!

The plushie she had grabbed dropped right beside the chute.

Lin Xi, who had wanted to show off her skills in front of Zhao Xinning, ended up showing off absolutely nothing.

When showing off failed, she absolutely could not reflect on herself. Lin Xi said, “Xinning, there is definitely something wrong with this machine. Let’s switch to another one.”

After switching through the entire row of machines and getting absolutely nothing, Lin Xi scratched her head awkwardly.

The claw machines in District 2 must be countering me!

My world-shaking technique has actually been sealed away by these stupid machines!

Damn it!

“Xi,” Zhao Xinning said indignantly, “I can’t believe all these machines have problems. Let’s go complain to the arcade manager!”

Lin Xi: “…”

No way. She actually believed me???

What a pure Angel-sama!

“Xinning, have you ever considered that maybe I’m just bad at this, and it’s not the machines’ fault?”

Zhao Xinning shook her head. “I believe in you.”

Lin Xi was deeply moved. “Xinning, you should try too. I can’t be the only one playing the whole time.”

“I… I don’t know how,” Zhao Xinning said. “I’ve never played this before.”

“It’s really simple. You were watching what I did just now, right?”

“Mm.”

“Then there you go. It doesn’t matter if you can’t grab anything. Even an expert like me keeps missing. As a newbie, you definitely don’t need to worry about it.”

While Lin Xi was still talking, there came a clunk as something dropped. Zhao Xinning reached into the machine’s slot and took out the little bear she had just won.

Lin Xi: “…”

…

Claw machine expert Lin Xi failed every attempt, while newbie rookie Zhao Xinning won two little bear plushies in a row and gave one to Lin Xi.

After that, the two of them went off together to try all kinds of arcade games.

Racing games, shooting games, basketball, dancing…

Their game tokens dwindled one by one.

After playing for more than two hours straight, Zhao Xinning suggested they relax with a movie.

There was a cinema on the third floor of the arcade.

“By the time the movie ends, it’ll be about noon. We can go have lunch right after.”

Watching a movie with Lin Xi was also part of Zhao Xinning’s date plan.

“Sure. Which movie?”

“That super popular animated movie, of course.”

Lin Xi had watched this movie with Xia Xun before, so Zhao Xinning was going to watch it with Lin Xi too. More than that, she was going to hold Lin Xi’s hand in the theater while they watched it together.

She would give Lin Xi a wonderful new experience to overwrite the memory of watching it with Xia Xun.

…

Sitting in the screening room, Lin Xi was already on her third viewing. Because of that, she was more concerned with something else-why had Zhao Xinning been holding her hand this whole time?

This feeling… It was practically like they were a couple…

No, no, no. Even fantasies needed limits.

She must have been reading too many girls’ love stories lately…

Halfway through the movie, Lin Xi suddenly needed to pee.

If this had been her first viewing, Lin Xi definitely would have held it in.

But this was her third time, and she knew the plot already. It wouldn’t matter if she stepped out to use the restroom.

Lin Xi quietly told Zhao Xinning.

“Do you want me to go with you?” Zhao Xinning whispered.

Lin Xi: “???”

“I’m not a three-year-old.”

Zhao Xinning also realized she was worrying a little too much about Lin Xi. Her face flushed slightly. “Okay. Go on.”

After coming out of the restroom, Lin Xi happened to see three people from the Countermeasures Bureau walk past the cinema entrance.

A bad feeling immediately rose in Lin Xi’s heart. When people from the Countermeasures Bureau showed up, it usually meant… a Dark Realm Disaster had appeared???

“There’s no alarm, and they aren’t evacuating the crowd. Are they planning to quietly deal with the threat to avoid causing panic?”

“Or do they not want to alert the Dark Realm Disaster they’re trying to eliminate?”

Whichever it was, a Dark Realm Disaster had appeared in the arcade.

This place was dangerous!

Lin Xi wanted to enter the screening room and take Zhao Xinning away.

But then she thought of how absorbed Zhao Xinning was in the movie…

In that case, Angel-sama’s protection would be left to her!

“I don’t care what kind of Dark Realm Disaster it is. As long as it’s not Special Grade like me, I’ll burn it to death in minutes.”

Once she made up her mind, Lin Xi acted immediately and tailed the three Countermeasures Bureau members.

If they could handle it, she wouldn’t have to intervene.

If they couldn’t, she could use the Fireball Spell from a distance and give them a hand without exposing herself.

If the Dark Realm Disaster that had appeared was insanely strong, then there was nothing to say-she would rush back to the cinema, grab Zhao Xinning, and run.

Lin Xi had considered every possible scenario.

Pretending to be an ordinary passerby, she quietly followed them.

“Why are they heading to the rooftop?”

“Is it on the roof?”

“No wonder they aren’t evacuating the crowd. The three of them are planning to deal with the Disaster on the rooftop and end the battle there…”

Lin Xi slowed her pace, widening the distance between them, and continued following.

“These three must be pretty confident they can handle the Dark Realm Disaster that appeared on the roof.”

“With them here, it should be fine.”

As Lin Xi climbed the final flight of stairs, she heard a dense burst of gunfire coming from the rooftop.

“That’s some serious firepower. Are they emptying their magazines???”

The gunfire lasted less than a minute. Before Lin Xi even finished climbing the stairs, the battle on the rooftop was over.

“Did they destroy the monster that quickly?”

“It must be a low-level Dark Realm Disaster.”

Since she was already here, Lin Xi poked her head around the doorframe and glanced outside.

She saw a “Birdman” as tall as an adult. Each of its two sharp talons had pierced through a person’s chest.

Its bloody maw was crushing the third person’s head.

All around it lay bullets that had been blocked by its wings.

The instant Lin Xi saw it, its amber vertical pupils turned toward her as well.