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Arden agreed, and Caesar immediately sprang into action.
She excitedly carried a sofa out from the gas station and placed it on the open ground. Then, the others gathered some wildflowers and plants, arranging them on the sofa to make it look like a small garden.
Finally, they placed Belle on the sofa, her hands folded over her abdomen, looking genuinely as if she were dead.
"Ah~~what's your relationship with this dead person?"
Caesar asked Yiji with curiosity. After all, she had borrowed Belle's body and still wanted to know Yiji's identity.
"Hmm… probably my teacher."
Yiji had learned many advanced grouping techniques from Belle, as well as HDD systems and applications, so calling her a teacher wasn't wrong.
"So, your teacher's dead, huh… great! Then make sure you cry really hard later."
Caesar laughed heartlessly, as if having the "teacher" die was something to celebrate.
"..."
Yiji was speechless. But it seemed this was just one of the Outer Ring's rituals, and she could only climb aboard the pirate's ship and go all in.
Hope this ship doesn't sink!
Given Yiji's understanding of Belle, she probably wouldn't get mad over this "small matter."
"This accident is also my responsibility! We, the Sons of Calydon, must give our guest the highest standard of funeral rites!"
Caesar had already slipped into performance mode, staring at Belle on the sofa with a face full of extreme grief.
Let's give it… 70 points!
Yiji silently gave her evaluation from the side.
Given that she had watched the performances of top actors across New Eridu thanks to Suibian Film & Media, her standards were unusually high. A score of 70 wasn't bad at all—it meant Caesar could totally make a living as an actress.
"Lighter, the coffin duties are in your hands!"
Caesar said to a man in a leather jacket.
"..."
Yiji glanced at Lighter.
Too bad he's not Black!
Besides concerts, TV dramas, and movies, Suibian Film & Media also made short videos. One "Black Coffin Dance" left a deep impression on Yiji—the over-the-top performance and addictive music were irresistible.
"Feels like a heavy responsibility," Lighter replied.
"The funeral car must be driven smoothly, Piper!"
Caesar continued delegating tasks.
"Got it. I'll make sure Belle rides safely,"
Piper, dozing like a middle-aged man against the truck's cab, answered.
"..."
Yiji covered her face. She suddenly remembered something Arden had said at the Ballet Twins Hollow: "Can you even reach the clutch?"
Piper wasn't much better than Perlman.
Her legs probably can't reach the clutch either, right? No! More importantly, she can't reach the brake, and she's likely fatigued as well.
Yiji thought it was a total buff stacking situation.
"Burnice, the cremation flames are all yours!"
"Oh oh oh! Just burn everything clean, right?"
Burnice, thrilled at the idea of fire, immediately started waving her twin flamethrowers, scorching the air around Belle.
She's not actually going to cremate her, is she?
Seeing this, Yiji was speechless again. She finally understood: these Sons of Calydon weren't normal people!
"Yiji, little sister, I know you're sad, but you must restrain your grief. Is there anything you want to say to teacher's body?"
Once everything was ready, Caesar came to Yiji, looking at her with an expression of deep sorrow.
Caught up in Caesar's emotions and the tragedy of linking herself with the Sons of Calydon, Yiji quickly got into character.
"Teacher Belle, wake up! Wake up and look at me! Uwaaahhh…"
Yiji fell to her knees beside the sofa, clutching Belle's "body" and crying out.
Fully in character, she imagined Belle replaced by Arden. Thinking that one day Arden might truly leave this world, her emotions surged uncontrollably.
"..."
The onlookers were silent, taking out tissues to wipe their tears.
"In the end, I was too weak, powerless… I could only watch you leave!"
"I can do nothing…"
Yiji spoke the universal code for grief—usually, the "cheat" would appear at this point.
And indeed, something arrived. But it wasn't the cheat—it was the cheat's owner.
Ah~!
After the sound of brakes, Arden fell off the vehicle, looking confused at the scene.
"Belle…? She's not even dead!"
He immediately saw that Belle was still breathing, miles away from dead. "What are you all doing?"
"Uh… husband, we're just…"
Yiji gave a brief explanation, and Arden, finding it amusing, joined in.
"Waaahhh… it's all my fault, my medicine didn't cure you, I should've used acupuncture… if only I could…"
Completely forgetting the actual situation.
A moment later.
"Can you all play some earthly games instead?"
Belle's gritted voice reached their ears.
Arden stopped crying. He looked up to see Belle sitting up on the sofa, staring at them as if they were fools.
"Ah~~you woke up so fast, I just got into character."
Among them, Yiji, who was closest to Belle, smiled, though her emotions were still visible.
"If I didn't wake up now, I'd be cremated. Who even came up with this?"
Belle was clearly annoyed. Only Yiji and Arden had cried genuinely, which satisfied her somewhat; the rest would need to be held accountable.
"She did it!" x2
As expected, Arden and Yiji pointed at Caesar in unison, decisively "selling her out."
"Hahaha, we may have gone a bit too far, sorry!"
Caesar didn't mind Arden and Yiji's betrayal at all. She waved her hand with great momentum. "Though I wanted to indulge in the cremation thrill, there's also our blessings in it. Anyway, welcome to the Outer Ring. May you be reborn through fire."
Everything before had been leading to that final line. Belle, though speechless, accepted this setting as a rebirth once she saw through it.
…
Blazewood, a remote little town of only about thirty households, with sketchy water and power supply, gave Arden a sense of stepping back into the 70s or 80s.
"Hello, I am Arden Xu from Yunkui Summit, here by invitation."
Arden introduced himself.
"Welcome, Daoist Arden, to Blazewood. I am…"
After the "welcome ceremony," Caesar also formally introduced herself and the other Sons of Calydon.
"Welcome, welcome, a warm welcome!"
Perhaps because city folk were rare, Arden, Belle, and Yiji were soon surrounded by curious Blazewood residents.
===BREAK===
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