"Albe-what? Then your brother's debts will be paid by you."
Fu Hua's lips curved into a mocking smirk, her gaze locking onto Fu Lin as if she could see right through him.
"Ol...Old Antique, listen to me..."
Fu Shi felt the tension in the air. Her heartbeat quickened, her breathing became rapid, and she tried to explain, but Fu Hua gave her no chance.
"If he's not Fu Lin, then I have no reason to hold back. Fu Shi, I'm sorry, but I won't be able to keep my promise to you."
Fu Hua gave Fu Shi an apologetic look, flexed her wrist, and assumed a combat stance.
---------------------------
Fu Lin's heart skipped a beat, and he cast a pleading look at Fu Shi.
Fu Shi shrugged, looked away, and whistled as if she hadn't seen anything.
But perhaps Fu Lin's gaze was too intense. Within just a few seconds, Fu Shi surrendered, sighed, and said,
"Sigh, Fu Lin, you've already been exposed. Hmm—my bad."
Fu Lin blinked blankly, momentarily at a loss for words. But as he watched Fu Hua gradually approach, he knew he could no longer play dumb.
Fu Lin lowered his head, sighed, and said helplessly, "Yes, I am Fu Lin."
A hint of relief flickered in Fu Lin's eyes, as if he had long been prepared for this day to come.
Fu Hua's imposing aura suddenly diminished. She looked down at Fu Lin, adjusted her glasses, and asked, "Then what about Albedo…?"
Fu Hua's voice was filled with curiosity, as if she was hoping for a perfect answer that could clear all her doubts.
Fu Lin glanced at Fu Hua, hesitated for a moment, and then muttered softly, "That's me too."
"Bronya found it!" Bronya's voice suddenly rang out, drawing everyone's attention. Kiana and Mei also walked in from outside.
"Bronya, what did you find?" Kiana asked curiously, a hint of confusion flashing in her eyes.
Bronya's fingers flew across the electronic screen. She gave Kiana a glance, as if looking at an idiot, and said, "Dummy, of course, it's information related to Fu Lin."
Bronya's response left Kiana slightly disappointed. She had expected Bronya to uncover something even more important.
Still, she was curious about the information Bronya had found. Even though she had gotten along well with Fu Lin, she had never known anything about his past or origins.
"What does it say? Let me see!"
Bronya pushed Kiana away in disgust as she tried to peek.
"Idiot Kiana, wait a moment. Bronya retrieved this from the Schicksal Headquarters database—it takes some time."
"Schicksal Headquarters?" Fu Hua muttered under her breath, her suspicions about Otto growing even stronger.
"It's ready!" With a flick of Bronya's fingertip, the retrieved information was projected in front of everyone.
Even Fu Lin couldn't help but look up, curious about the file named after him. His eyes were filled with doubt.
Under everyone's watchful eyes, Bronya lightly tapped on the file. Just when she thought it would open easily, a red window popped up.
[Access Denied]
"There's another hidden firewall…?"
Staring at the "Access Denied" message on the screen, Bronya's eyes flashed with surprise. But she quickly adjusted and started typing rapidly.
[Access Denied]
[Access Denied]
[Access Denied]
[Access Denied]
Time seemed to freeze, each second stretching unbearably long. More and more denial pop-ups filled the screen.
The group began whispering among themselves, exchanging speculations about Fu Lin's true identity. Eventually, their gazes all landed on him, filled with suspicion.
"Ahem… Why are you all looking at me? I have no idea what's going on either. I'm really just an ordinary person." Fu Lin cleared his throat, trying to shift their attention away from him, but unconsciously took a step backward.
No one believed he was just an ordinary person.
Especially Fu Hua—there was no way she would believe it. After all, what kind of "ordinary person" could take her full-force punch and be up and running again after just a night's rest?
Bronya's once-fluid typing began to slow down, and finally, with a final keystroke, it stopped completely.
Bronya stared at the screen. After all this effort, this was the result? She had never expected this outcome.
"Sorry, Bronya did her best… This is all I could get…"
Everyone's eyes shifted to the projected screen. Their jaws dropped as they stared at the bounty notice, their gazes darting back and forth between the projection and Fu Lin, as if he were some rare specimen.
Himeko and Theresa exchanged glances, a gleam flashing in their eyes. Clearly, they had reached the same conclusion.
Himeko was thinking about covering repair costs for the dorm, while Theresa was thinking about funding the latest volume of the Honkai Homu manga.
"One zero, two zeros, three zeros… So many zeros! I can barely count them with both hands! Fu Lin, I didn't know you were worth this much money?!"
"With that much money, we could buy so much delicious food!"
Kiana counted the digits on the bounty notice with her fingers, her blue eyes practically turning into the shape of gold coins.
"Hey, you guys… You're not seriously thinking of turning me in to Otto, right? You wouldn't… right?"
Fu Lin licked his dry lips, a deep chill creeping over his body. He felt like he was being stared down by a pack of starving wolves with glowing green eyes.
Mei sighed helplessly and cast him an apologetic glance.