The Magician of Clow

Chapter 1510 That’s it, let’s eat first

A bright winter morning.

As the first rays of sunlight quietly pierced through the gap in the curtains, the darkness of the night silently receded from the room.
The rooms in the cabin gradually became brighter.

A soft blanket, a tousled quilt, a rolled-up T-shirt revealing his midriff—on the bedroom bed, a tall young man is lazily dreaming.

In this peaceful scene, golden spots of sunlight slowly crept onto the bed, onto his arms and abs. The sunlight soothed his skin, its warmth seeping into his blood, and the bedding, warmed by the sun, emitted a soft, fluffy scent.
Feeling a soft, warm sensation like the downy feathers of a fledgling bird, Meng Lang slowly opened his eyes from his sleep.

Waking up to the gentlest wake-up call of winter, I lazily yawned while still sprawled in bed before slowly sitting up and going to the window. With a "whoosh," I pulled back the curtains.

Then, as the sunlight poured in all at once,
He stretched lazily out the window.

The sky was a clear, deep blue, stretching as far as the eye could see with a touch of winter chill. The sun shone brightly, clear and radiant yet gentle and warm. The surface of the campus lake was slightly frozen, and faint birdsong echoed from the bare branches along the shore.
This scene unfolds in the morning light, exuding a tranquil beauty unique to a winter morning.

Another new day begins.
Gazing at the beautiful scenery outside the window, after a quick wash, and welcoming a perfect morning, Meng Lang walked out of the room, scratching his stomach with a refreshed expression.
Then I saw a lifeless-looking Fang Ran hanging from the balcony railing.

Meng Lang remained silent.

Something completely out of place appeared.
It was supposed to be a perfect morning, but this scene completely ruined it. I just woke up and this happened...
Meng Lang couldn't help but have a subtle expression, recalling what he had said after seeing him return last night.
"Based on past experience, bro, you've already completely exposed what you've been doing in New York before you even tried to cover it up or salvage the situation."

Finally, the next morning, she hung listlessly from the balcony railing.

Wait, are the flags being recovered so quickly?

As expected of you, brother.
At this moment, Meng Lang couldn't help but feel a surge of admiration, especially thinking about Fang Ran's deep sorrow and worry for the Queen last night.
Then look at him now, hanging on the railing like a dried-up salted fish, spitting out his soul.

Meng Lang: emmm
Pfft (laughs)!
"Brother Meng, you're awake."

Seeing him, Gou Yu, who had already gotten up, came out of the kitchen carrying a coffee pot.
Good morning, Xiao Huo.

Hearing Gou Yu's voice, Meng Lang greeted him, walked to the kitchen counter, poured himself a cup of coffee, and took a satisfied sip.

Then his eyes silently glanced at the 'large salted fish' hanging on the balcony:
"So, that guy over there is..."

Gou Yu responded with a mixture of amusement and exasperation:

"I don't know, the captain was already like that when I got up."

"You got up and this is how you are?"

Hearing Gou Yu's testimony, Meng Lang's expression was peculiar, but connecting it to past cases, he guessed the reason in just 0.01 seconds. Then, with the serious expression of a veteran detective, he pinched his chin:

"There's only one truth: it's obvious that Her Majesty the Queen has recovered and has subjected my brother to severe torture for what he did in North America."

"Then my brother first tried to argue and was beaten for half the night. Later he couldn't take it anymore and admitted it, but he had caused too much trouble and was beaten for half the night again."

While that might indeed be the case, Brother Meng, couldn't you put it another way?
Gou Yu felt a pang of shame at this incredibly vivid speculation.

And speaking of this almost-guessed answer, recalling how, ever since Fang Ran returned, he had been racking his brains trying to dig up dirt on him and report him, but unexpectedly, before he could even make a move, his younger brother had already surrendered himself to the authorities when he woke up one morning.
Looking at Fang Ran's distraught appearance at this moment, and thinking about how he dragged her into the scene, hid the photos, caused her to die, boast and show off, and all the ridiculous things that happened in the past,
A surge of satisfaction, a feeling of finally getting revenge, welled up inside me, like the exhilarating feeling of soaking in a hot spring on the coldest days of winter.
Meng Lang sat down at the small table, swirling his coffee in the clear morning light, and sighed with a Zen-like smile:

"What a perfect morning!"

Brother Meng, could you please stop gloating?
Seeing Meng Lang's radiant, serene smile, which clearly showed he didn't care about anyone's life or death, Gou Yu chuckled helplessly and sighed, then sat down at the small table.

Just as the two were exchanging a few words, it seemed that the remaining psychic energy on the mechanical rope had finally run out, or perhaps it was simply time to turn dawn after hanging there all night.
There was a snap,
The dried salted fish on the balcony was slapped stiffly onto the floor, then seemed to become one with the floor and remained motionless.

Meng Lang and Gou Yu watched in silence.

The air fell silent for two seconds.

Is this thing dead?
Seeing that Fang Ran hadn't uttered a sound after falling, Meng Lang finally couldn't hold back any longer. He got up, walked to Fang Ran's side, took out a twig, and poked him, asking:
"Hey bro, are you still alive?"

But at that moment, Fang Ran, who had been lying motionless and silent just a second ago, suddenly sprang up from the ground like a zombie lying in ambush.

Immediately afterwards, with a fierce look on his face and gritting his teeth, he lunged at Meng Lang:
"Dude, you jinx! I'll kill you!!!"

"Fuck!!"

Caught off guard by Fang Ran's sudden attack, Meng Lang was startled, but fortunately he hadn't used his hands directly. He quickly tried to defend and suppress the attack.

However, this was expected, and Fang Ran used the same trick again, viciously pulling down his pants!

The two quickly began wrestling on the ground. Watching their ugly struggle—tearing at each other's clothes, trying to trap each other with their legs—Gou Yu picked up his coffee at the small table, glanced at the beautiful winter scenery outside the window, and sighed helplessly.
Sigh, it was supposed to be a perfect morning.
Then five minutes later

In the early morning light, golden sunlight streamed into the cabin, creating a tranquil atmosphere. In this setting, the ugly confrontation, where neither side could gain the upper hand, temporarily ceased.
Around the small table, Fang Ran and the other two sat in their respective seats.

"So, bro, what's up with you hanging there like a ghost so early in the morning?"

Still bothered by what he'd seen when he opened the door that morning, Meng Lang silently glanced at Fang Ran and asked a question. Gou Yu, standing nearby, also chimed in with curiosity:
"Yes, Captain, what happened?"

When the two of them suddenly asked her the reason, and recalling her terrible experience last night, Fang Ran glared angrily at Meng Lang:
"It's all my brother's fault for jinxing me!!"

Upon hearing this statement, both Meng Lang and Gou Yu seemed to realize something, and then, under their questioning gazes,
He reluctantly recounted what had happened.
"Hmm, bro, you mean Her Majesty really did regain her memories last night, and then not only dragged you into the underworld and beat you up, but also hung you up all night after you confessed everything?"

After listening to Fang Ran's explanation, Meng Lang stroked his chin and solemnly summarized.

Then he pondered for a moment...
"Pfft—!!! Hahahaha! It really is! Hahahaha! You deserved it, bro! Serves you right for showing off before! Hahahaha!!"

Meng Lang completely lost control and burst into laughter. Fang Ran, standing to the side, turned pale and collapsed onto the carpet, his face contorted with convulsions as he laughed uncontrollably.
He laughed for quite a while before he calmed down, sat up, and his expression returned to its normal seriousness.

Then, less than two seconds later, he burst out laughing again and fell to the ground.

"Hahaha! He actually got beaten up all night! Ahhh, I can't take it anymore! I'm dying of laughter!!!"

Seeing this guy's exaggerated smile, Fang Ran was so angry she was trembling all over in the dead of winter. Finally, unable to bear it any longer, she pounced on him again, her fur standing on end.
"Dude, you bastard. I'll kill you!!"

Watching Meng Lang burst into laughter, utterly powerless to resist, and pinned down by Fang Ran in this pathetic state, Gou Yu couldn't help but display a somewhat peculiar expression.

After hearing Fang Ran explain Ling's condition last night, I was worried about what would happen next, but I didn't expect it to actually be as Meng Lang casually said.

"But no matter what, Captain, it's something to be happy about that Her Majesty has fully recovered."

Upon realizing he couldn't strangle his older brother, Fang Ran sat back down. Hearing Gou Yu's words, Fang Ran felt slightly relieved.

But then, Meng Lang, who had finally broken free from his restraints, spoke up, patting his shoulder with an earnest and heartfelt tone:

"Yeah, bro, isn't this great? Being tested by an A-rank at their peak is invaluable experience."

Nonsense! So you weren't the one getting beaten up, bro!
Hearing these words, he stared at him speechlessly with wide eyes, but before he could utter the words, a sense of emptiness and powerlessness welled up from his stomach.

Fang Ran suddenly felt as if all her energy had been drained, and she collapsed onto the table.

"Xiao Huo, I'm so hungry."

It wasn't just the extremely intense clashes in the underworld; more importantly, afterwards, he was thoroughly beaten and hung up until just now, without even a sip of water all night.

So Fang Ran's expression of utter dejection wasn't an act; his sudden outburst just now was merely a final burst of energy before death.

So, although he really wanted to beat his older brother to a pulp, he decided to eat first.

Hearing Fang Ran's weak groan, and knowing that breakfast was still some time away, Gou Yu smiled helplessly and got up to go to the kitchen.

"Captain, why don't you have a cup of coffee first? I'll go see what I should make for breakfast."

Now only Fang Ran and Meng Lang were left at the small table. Looking at Fang Ran, who appeared utterly dejected and practically smoking after being thoroughly beaten, they realized...
Meng Lang's smile stretched almost to his ears, and he offered words of comfort with a profound, almost masterful smile:
"Hey bro, don't be so down. Try to think of the bright side of things."

"You should know that A-level high-level technologists are all super-rich, and the weapons of the ultimate power are ridiculously expensive. It is very normal for one shell to cost as much as a house."

Last night, hearing him say that came true and I was hung up and beaten. Hearing Meng Lang start things up like that again, I just rolled my eyes in exasperation.

Fang Ran remained motionless, slumped over the small table, continuing to speak in a dry, lifeless voice:

"Brother, what exactly are you trying to say?"

Hearing him ask that, Meng Lang gave him a thumbs up with a beaming smile:
"What I mean is that Her Majesty the Queen spent a fortune to give you a beating, so you can proudly declare that..."

"Three sentences, and a rich woman spent tens of millions for you in one night."

Fang Ran: "."

Fang Ran's lips twitched at his unusual angle, but before she could react, Meng Lang added with a smile:
"Of course, it's also possible that Her Majesty wants to clear out a batch of old weapons."

Dude, if you don't know how to comfort people, just shut up!
　It's been a while since I wrote a slice-of-life chapter, and I'm a bit lost on what to write next. Many of the slice-of-life ideas I've accumulated require specific contexts. Anyway, I'll just write a couple of slice-of-life chapters to catch my breath. I originally planned to post the interlude chapter with this one, but as you can see, I've been stuck on this one until now. I've been writing since I woke up until almost 11 am to finish it.
　　(End of this chapter)