Chapter 46
Chapter 46: This Whole Screen Reeks of Insurance Sales~
Qian Qi planted one foot on the step like she owned the stage, and her voice suddenly gained a sing-song rhythm—like she’d been possessed by a karaoke champion.
“Ladies and gentlemen~ welcome to Qian Qi’s auction! I’m your host, Qian Qi, and I’ll be explaining live why every household needs defense fruit!”
She lifted the tin box high.
“Do you worry that one day a magic beast will crawl out of its nest and stomp you to death, leaving your parents alone, helpless, bullied with no one to protect them?”
“Do you worry that one day you’ll be ten minutes from escaping a dungeon alive… and then a d-rank magic beast crushes you under its foot?”
“Do you want life insurance for you and your family? A guarantee against future danger? Do you want to leave your children and grandchildren a precious inheritance?”
Her voice rose like an infomercial at midnight. “Then buy defense fruit! One defense fruit protects you for ten minutes when it matters! One defense fruit gives your family an extra layer of safety! One defense fruit is proof of your deep love for your future descendants! What are you still hesitating for? Buy defense fruit—happiness for the whole family!”
The crowd stared.
Someone blinked hard.
Wait… why did this feel like an insurance pitch sprayed across the entire screen?
They’d expected hot-blooded hero lines. Instead, this was aggressively practical.
“Don’t fear the ten thousand,” Qian Qi said solemnly. “Fear the one-in-ten-thousand chance. What if you’re just one defense fruit away from living?”
She sighed like she was suffering on their behalf. “I’m not cursing you, of course. But look at this society—magic beasts everywhere, danger everywhere. Buy a defense fruit policy, and don’t you gain a little more security?”
The crowd: …
The insurance vibe got stronger.
“Classmates!” Qian Qi boomed. “Hesitate when buying, regret when using! Don’t hesitate, don’t wander—trust Qian Qi’s recommendation! Qian Qi-brand defense fruit—whoever uses it knows!”
“Whether you buy it for yourself or your family, whether you sell it outside to awakened for a high price, or resell it to classmates who missed today’s match—it’s a perfect choice!”
She snapped her thumbs-up staff into the air like a gavel. “Today, only eight! One per person! Highest bidder wins!”
“Now we start with the first defense fruit—starting price 30,000! Each raise no less than 2,000!”
The second she finished, bids exploded.
“Thirty-five thousand!”
“Thirty-eight thousand!”
“Forty thousand!”
Students leaned over the railing, practically climbing over each other. Even students from other stands shoved in, desperate to see the miracle fruit up close.
The price climbed like it had wings.
Soon, it hit 120,000.
That was… about right.
120,000 could hire a d-rank awakener as a bodyguard for a whole day. Defense fruit only lasted ten minutes—but against a swarm of magic beasts, ten minutes of brief invincibility was worth real money.
“120,000!” Qian Qi shouted, staff raised. “Any higher? 120,000 once—120,000 twice—”
“130,000.”
Su Ang’s voice cut through the noise.
He’d been seated in the front row the whole time, calm as ever. Now he looked at the tin box in Qian Qi’s hand and spoke evenly. “I’ll bid 130,000.”
Qian Qi’s eyes lit up. She tapped the railing with her staff like an auctioneer hitting the block. “We’ve got 130,000! Any higher? 130,000—any higher?”
No one topped it.
“Sold!” Qian Qi pointed the staff at Su Ang like he’d just won a championship. “Congratulations, Classmate! Please pay and collect after the auction. Now—second defense fruit!”
The auction ran hot and fast. Each fruit sold for more than the last. Even the principal joined in and bought one, face stiff with pain as he transferred the money.
By two in the afternoon, all eight defense fruits were gone.
Still, students lingered, eyes drifting toward Qian Qi’s pocket with the hunger of wolves.
Qian Qi slapped a hand over her pocket. “Don’t be that hardcore, classmates!”
They groaned and finally began to disperse. The students who’d bought fruits rushed up, excited to pay and collect their prizes.
Su Ang stood and handed Qian Qi her lightbrain, which he’d held the whole time.
Qian Qi strapped it back on her wrist, smiling as the transfers chimed in one after another. She passed out the defense fruits and warned, “Protect them, all right? If you crush one, I’m not replacing it.”
“Got it, Big Shot!” the buyers said, grinning like they’d just purchased immortality.
When they left, Qian Qi turned to Su Ang, eyes bright. “Senior Su, that was you earlier, right? Controlling the contract beast?”
Su Ang looked down at her. She wore that “I’m about to get friendly” expression again, and he instinctively stepped back half a pace. “Yes. No need to thank me.”
“How could I not?” Qian Qi slapped her hands together. “You saved me. I have to give you a discount!”
Nearby, the principal immediately felt a sour twist in his chest. If he’d acted one second faster, would he have gotten a discount too?
Getting a discount from Qian Qi was basically a myth. A legendary achievement.
Then he watched Qian Qi pull a defense fruit from the tin box and put it into her own hand—
—and shove the tin box itself into Su Ang’s hands.
“Thank you for the life-saving help,” Qian Qi said proudly. “I’ll waive the packaging fee for you~”
The principal: …
Su Ang: …
Su Xing Le: … (facepalm)
The tin box was secondhand. And it wasn’t even hers. It was the one Su Xing Le had dug out of a closet yesterday.
But Qian Qi looked genuinely pleased with her own generosity.
Su Ang glanced down at the tin box and went silent for a beat.
He wondered if he’d been overly helpful.
Maybe Qian Qi had a backup plan all along, and he’d just forced a “life-saving favor” onto her.
He tightened his fingers around the tin box, smothered whatever strange feeling rose in his chest, and said evenly, “Thanks for the discount.”
Qian Qi nodded, satisfied.
Then she spun and shoved her payment code in the principal’s face. “Principal. Pay up.”
The principal’s mouth twitched. “Stop rushing me. Do you think I, the principal, won’t pay?”
He opened his lightbrain, and while transferring the money, he tried to sound casual. “Qian Qi. This defense fruit… where did it come from? I heard it’s the fruit of some kind of magic plant.”
Magic plant fruit wasn’t usually edible. It shouldn’t be this clean. No side effects. No backlash.
Had she improved it?
Qian Qi stared at him with a face so innocent it could’ve fooled a judge. “Yeah. It’s the fruit of a magic plant.”
She neatly dodged the real question.
The principal narrowed his eyes and pushed harder. “Then where did you find it?”
“Forgot,” Qian Qi said, still wearing that pure expression like a mask. “Back when I was starving to death, I ate snow on the mountain. I accidentally ate a defense fruit, and that’s how I discovered it blocks damage.”
The principal: …
The principal: ?
What the hell?