Chapter 40

I swear I’ve boned a Black Goat! I was just acting so well, but within a second, I managed to crash three times and completely exposed my identity. Leon could only curse under his breath at how ridiculous it was. Immediately afterward, he grabbed the Witch’s Broom and abruptly turned around, taking two steps to dart out of the conference room door, bumping face-to-face with the security manager whose expression was utterly ferocious.

“You…”

“You’re done!”

A flying kick slammed hard into the security manager’s face, sending both him and the rest of his sentence flying. Leon then snatched up the folder on the ground and bolted straight for the door, head down and charging ahead.

At this point, even the dumbest person should have realized something was off. Nearly simultaneously, five or six angry shouts erupted inside the conference room, eventually blending together like an orchestra into one single phrase:

“Grab him!!!!!!!!!”

…

You’ll never catch me!

Even though things inexplicably went south, Leon wasn’t in the least bit flustered.

Because aside from the tranquilizing effects of being a “martyr of alcohol,” thanks to Emma Senior’s personally imparted wisdom—”Rather than thinking about how to complete a task, you should first consider what to do if you fail.”

So when entering Water Power Corporation, Leon had already carefully observed the terrain and planned an escape route in case he was discovered, not worrying one bit about getting caught.

After quickly reviewing the surrounding situation in his mind, considering that there was a security team guarding against protestors at the main entrance of Water Power Corporation, Leon didn’t run toward the nearest direction. Instead, he reversed course and dashed deep into the company!

“Stop him!”

“Grab that guy!”

“Don’t let him escape!”

Amidst the chaotic shouting, the number of people chasing after Leon kept increasing, like a snowball rolling downhill, until they densely filled half the corridor.

Since he was carrying quite a few items, Leon couldn’t pick up speed. Soon enough, the “pursuers” were closing in on him. Several security guards with the best physical fitness were now less than three steps away, some even managing to shout loudly while still pursuing him.

“Drop the stuff!”

“There’s no way out!”

“Stop! You can’t escape!”

Who said I’m going to “run”?

Glancing back at the pursuers, Leon noticed the security guards were dangerously close. Having prepared beforehand, Leon narrowed his eyes and gripped the handle of the Witch’s Broom tightly. “Boom!”

The protective cover shielding the airflow exploded, and an odd gale suddenly swept through the supposedly enclosed indoor space, bizarrely targeting only the lower halves of the people.

The security guards trailing behind Leon were already leaning forward as they ran. When hit by this strange wind, they all toppled over like stalks of grass being cut down, crashing onto the floor tiles and bruising themselves badly. Some of the slower-reacting ones even passed out instantly.

While those following weren’t directly blown over by the storm, they tripped over the fallen security guards, mostly tumbling and rolling on the ground, blocking those behind them. The number of “pursuers” was instantly reduced by nearly half!

“Damn! Go around!”

“Move! Don’t block the way!”

“He’s going upstairs!”

It must be said, the physical fitness of Water Power Corporation’s security personnel was truly impressive. A few maintained their balance and didn’t fall, only slightly delayed. Those who fell less severely also gradually got up, gritting their teeth and continuing the chase, rushing after Leon into the stairwell.

However, something utterly baffling happened again.

Once inside the stairwell, Leon resembled a monkey returning to its forest. His already slim frame seemed weightless like paper, leaping gracefully up most of the stairs in a single bound.

When he used his free hand to pull on the railing to absorb the momentum, it seemed he still thought it wasn’t fast enough. Clutching the goat head and the file folder in one hand, holding the broom under his arm, he actually flipped into the gap between two flights of stairs.

In the stunned gaze of the security guards, the man dressed in the same uniform as them clearly refused to walk the stairs anymore. He started “swimming” upward through the gap in the stairwell as if the air around him provided buoyancy like water. With every stretch and contraction against the railing and the stairs, his not-so-muscular body shot up almost two meters at a time, faster than floating upwards with an empty wine barrel!

“You… why are you stopping?!?”

Panting heavily as he entered the stairwell, the pale-faced meeting chairman couldn’t help but roar furiously at the group of guards staring blankly upward: “Go after him! He took the records from the archive room! Even if you die here, you must… must… ah?”

That face full of anger turned red then white, white then red, finally becoming bluish-purple from holding its breath.

“Ah?!!??!!”

…

“Hahahaha, who would’ve thought! Our heart is right here in the Capital City!”

Ignoring the gale blowing towards him, the Black Goat dangling from the broomstick grinned wildly and laughed: “Your luck is really good! Just when I mentioned it to you, you immediately stumbled upon one, and it’s the strongest heart too!

Kid! Hurry up and get stronger! Once your strength is sufficient, in just an hour, I can help you wipe out the entire Lane Family and snatch our heart back!”

“Speaking of luck…”

Habitually ignoring the demon’s remarks from the Black Goat, Leon couldn’t help but frown after recalling the earlier situation:

“Don’t you think today’s a little strange?”

“Ah?”

“Until I left the conference room, my luck today was extraordinarily good.”

Sitting astride the broom, Leon extended his hand and began counting on his fingers: “I wanted to find your sheep… anomalous item, and immediately received information; I wanted to learn about Water Power Corporation’s compensation plan, and instantly found out about the board meeting; I wanted to sneak in and see who touched your heart, and immediately an incident occurred… Oh, and!”

Touching the pocket on the front of the security uniform, Leon frowned deeply and continued: “It’s fine that you fell out of the shopping bag because my turn was indeed a bit abrupt, but this pocket is strange.

To avoid losing my ID, I deliberately fastened the button on the pocket, yet as soon as I bent over, the thread holding the button snapped perfectly, tossing the Clearing Bureau ID out.

And that security manager, had he arrived even a moment earlier or later, nothing would have happened. But he showed up exactly at the worst possible time. Aren’t today’s coincidences just too many?”

Seems a bit excessive… and the number of good luck matches the bad luck? Hmm… I understand now! After reflecting thoughtfully and blinking, the Black Goat confidently declared: “Kid, today must be your birthday!”

??!!

Birthday? My birthday is still far away! And what does this have to do with my birthday?” “Hehe, this is the blessing stolen by your Clearing Bureau from the Master of Stars.”

Noticing Leon’s confusion, the Black Goat chuckled and counter-asked: “Do you really think the 87 branches of your Clearing Bureau were named randomly?

Kid, let me tell you, these eighty-seven branches themselves are a conceptual anomalous item, called something like ‘Star Map Protection.’

Its effect is to grant employees of the Clearing Bureau protection corresponding to their star palace on their birthdays, giving them wish-granting abilities akin to making dreams come true.

Of course, this wish-granting ability is degraded, only helping you achieve goals that might originally be possible. If you want to become the King of the World, you definitely won’t get anything.”

“That doesn’t sound right…”

After recalling the earlier situation again, Leon first nodded slightly but soon shook his head and disagreed:

“But half of my experiences today were bad luck!”

“Bad luck is appropriate; do you really think the Master of Stars has no temper?”

Apparently remembering something extremely amusing, the Black Goat chuckled and said: “Though forced to give you blessings, that Master of Stars is quite petty. They immediately countered with an equally potent curse.

Employees of the Clearing Bureau will experience bad luck equal to the number of conveniences gained from using the blessing on their birthdays. It’s like borrowing and repaying.”

“Seems plausible…”

Recalling the previous situation once more, Leon first nodded slightly but soon frowned and shook his head again:

“But my birthday has already passed—it’s not today!”

(End of chapter)