【Interstellar Contract Magician】Ruyuanke

Chapter 358 [Empire] Smoothie Sundae Goblet

In the afternoon, I decided to go to school. I knew how willful I'd been lately, but no matter what, I didn't want to cause any real trouble for Shan Qi. He might not be a frequent presence in my life, but as my foster parent, his name inevitably carries a lot of responsibility. Furthermore, I didn't want him to be called to school for my truancy. His time, universally acknowledged as "valuable," wasn't something that could be simply estimated in terms of interstellar coins.

After packing up, I briefly explained a few things to Wen Ya and left. The sun was still glaring as I walked along, but the scorching summer heat of the city simulation system made me squint. Fortunately, the route I chose was shaded by trees, and the occasional breeze provided a slight coolness.

The school buildings came into view from afar, and the familiar scene made me feel like I hadn't seen it for a long time.

Walking into the campus, I slowed my pace. Students were gathered in groups of two or three, some running on the playground, others discussing lessons under trees, and occasionally I could hear the sound of a lecture coming from a classroom. It all looked almost exactly as I remembered it.

However, my feelings are much more complicated. On the one hand, I really want to have nothing to do with this place anymore; on the other hand, I also know that this place is still an indispensable part of my identity.

Finally, I reached the office door, took a deep breath, and pushed it open. Most of the teachers inside were busy grading assignments or handling daily affairs, but the one in charge of me was alone, looking up something at the desk. When he saw me come in, his expression was startled at first, then instantly turned serious.

"Yang Ruyuan." He put down the information in his hand, crossed his arms over his chest, and his eyes were filled with a hint of suppressed anger. "You finally decided to come?"

I lowered my head, smiled slightly, and tried to act humble: "Teacher, I know I haven't been behaving properly recently, so I came here today to explain the situation."

"On purpose?" The teacher snorted, clearly not buying it. "Do you know how long you've been absent from class? If it weren't for your parents, this matter would have been reported long ago."

My heart tightened slightly, knowing that the "foster" he mentioned was Shan Qi. If this incident really alarmed him, then I was afraid that it would not be as simple as coming to school.

"I know it's my fault," I whispered, a hint of sincerity in my tone. "However, I did have some special reasons during this period. Now that I'm back, I want to try my best to make up for the lessons I took earlier."

The teacher's frown relaxed slightly, apparently having no reason to vent his anger. He stared at me for a moment, then sighed, "I hope you're serious. Now that you're here, catch up on your progress. Otherwise, I'll ask your guardian to come over, no matter how busy he is."

"I understand." I nodded, feeling relieved.

As I left the office, I felt a lot more relaxed. While the teacher's attitude hadn't completely softened, at least I didn't have to worry about Shan Qi being "invited" by the school. All that remained was to catch up on my studies as quickly as possible and then plan my next steps.

I was thinking about how to arrange my next classes when I suddenly passed by an ice cream shop. My eyes accidentally swept across the window and my gaze was fixed on a familiar figure.

nightingale?

I was stunned for a moment. It was unusual to see him sitting quietly by the window, looking quite relaxed. He was dressed in casual clothes, a stark contrast to his usual heavily armored appearance. He looked like an ordinary passerby. But what surprised me most wasn't that he was in this dessert shop, but that he was holding a massive smoothie sundae, piled high with colorful fruits and cream. The visual effect was quite stunning.

Seeing me stop, he looked up at me, as if he had already noticed my presence. Then, he raised an eyebrow at me, with a faint smile on his lips, and there was a hint of familiar teasing in that smile.

I stood there, a little doubting my own eyes. Was this still the Nightingale I knew? That cold, capable, high-ranking mercenary who always kept aloof from strangers, actually showed up in a dessert shop and ordered something so...pink and tender?

I couldn't help but push the door open and walked in, walking towards his desk, my steps feeling a little brisk.

"Nightingale, what are you doing..." I looked at the sundae, my eyes sizing it up and down, the corners of my mouth slightly raised, "Don't tell me you like to eat this kind of thing."

Nightingale took a bite of his spoon and lazily leaned back in his chair, not at all embarrassed by being caught. He slowly put down the spoon, glanced down at the sundae filled with cream and fruit, then looked back up at me. "What? Are you surprised?"

"Surprise? I'm shocked." I pulled out a chair and sat down, unable to help but laugh and shake my head. "I always thought your face only appeared in bars or on the battlefield. I didn't expect a dessert shop could accommodate you."

Nightingale shrugged lazily. "Life is full of surprises, just get used to it. And the ice cream here is pretty good, why not try it?"

I wanted to continue teasing him, but the cool air, coupled with the heat from the long journey, suddenly made me want to say, "The ice cream is good." Then I looked at the sundae: the icy smoothie and the fluffy cream blended together, the fruit garnished on top looked fresh and delicious, and it seemed very tempting.

"Okay, I want to see how delicious it is." I got up and ordered a similar ice cream. After bringing it back, I sat opposite him and started to taste it.

After the first bite, the cool and sweet taste instantly melted on the tip of the tongue, and even the previous fatigue seemed to be swept away.

"Not bad, right?" Nightingale looked at my expression and raised her eyebrows slightly, seeming to be quite satisfied with my reaction.

"Well, it's okay." I pretended to be calm, but I had to admit in my heart that his recommendation was indeed reliable.

The two of us sat quietly, sharing a cup of dessert and occasionally chatting about trivial topics. This rare tranquility suddenly made me feel that even in a busy city and under the pressure of work, life is not all cold and stressful.

Nightingale scooped up a piece of fruit with a spoon, looked up at the dazzling sunlight outside the window, and said lightly: "It's nice to stop occasionally like this, right?"

I was stunned for a moment, then lowered my head to take a bite of the ice cream, and replied with a smile: "Indeed, it's quite good."

"Nightingale, I might be busy with classes in the future." I whispered, looking down as I stirred the shaved ice in the tall ice cream cone. The sweet shaved ice swirled in the glass, gradually turning into a smooth liquid.

"What are your plans?" I looked up at him, my tone nonchalant, as if asking casually, but there was a hint of curiosity in my heart.

Nightingale paused slightly as he spooned the last bite of his sundae. Hearing my question, he slowly lowered the spoon and gazed out the window. The sun was still bright, and pedestrians and cars were constantly passing through the street. His expression remained the same, still lazy, but with a hint of deep thought.

"Plans?" He raised the corners of his mouth slightly, with his usual playful smile, "Just continue to accept the missions. Is it possible that I will also accompany you to class?"

I couldn't help but laugh, "You? In class? That scene...it's ridiculous just thinking about it."

"So," he raised an eyebrow, leaning back in his chair with his arms folded across his chest, "you have your classes to attend to, and I have my tasks to do, that makes sense. I can't just sit around and wait for you to come find me after school, right?"

"Sounds like a lazy guy." I joked, lowered my head and scooped a mouthful of smoothie into my mouth. The cool sweetness made the whole afternoon seem less hot.

"Of course not." He laughed lazily. "However, since you plan to go back to school and study hard, I'll give you less trouble. From now on, try to choose tasks that you can do alone. If you're really busy, don't worry too much about unnecessary things."

I was stunned for a moment; I hadn't expected him to say that. He always approached everything with a nonchalant attitude, but this sentence revealed a rare seriousness that surprised me.

"You are quite thoughtful, Nightingale." I joked with a smile, trying to ease the complicated emotions in my heart.

"Thoughtful?" He snorted, propping his chin with his hand. There was a hint of helplessness in his tone, a hint of real and fake. "Don't think too much about it. I just don't want to bother with your school troubles. Don't expect me to take on the responsibility of raising you."

I laughed and shook my head. "Don't worry, my caregivers have enough to do. I don't need you to get involved."

Nightingale didn't respond, but simply lowered her head and continued stirring the remaining smoothie at the bottom of the cup. The sunlight from the window shone through the glass onto his face, and her eyes, which usually carried a hint of coldness, now seemed particularly gentle.

This brief encounter made me realize that no matter what the future holds, we are all gradually adapting to our own pace and finding our own paths. Perhaps, that is enough.