Legend Management Bureau Chapter 128

[ … words ]

Amidst the chaotic crowd, Chada’s rapier struck like a barrage of bullets, thrusting toward Du Yu’s vital spots with the speed of a gale.

Ying Ning twisted and dodged, steadily blocking Chada’s blade.

“Chada, listen to me. It really is dangerous here,” Du Yu said as he retreated. “Someone is trying to harm your daughter.”

“I know, and I am killing him right now.”

Du Yu knew words alone wouldn’t convince her. Chada was always highly guarded. He could only take advantage of the moment Ying Ning blocked her to reach into his pocket and pull out the letter.

Seeing Du Yu distracted, Chada yanked Cassie behind her. Suddenly intensifying her assault, her entire rapier bent into an eerie arc, sweeping forward with the whistling sound of a gale.

Du Yu hastily fished out the letter, unfolded it, and held it up in front of his face.

In that instant, Chada’s blade halted right in front of the paper.

She furrowed her brows.

Chada froze after reading the first line. It was indeed a secret code she had created for herself. She suspiciously pulled out her pocket watch and checked it. She had established three hundred and sixty-five different codes, a unique one for every single day of the year, precisely to prevent anyone from impersonating her future self.

“This really is today’s code…” Chada tucked her watch away, and the rapier in her hand vanished. “Were you sent by ‘me’?”

“Exactly,” Du Yu nodded. “Is there a safe place around here? I have something to tell you.”

Chada pondered for a moment before replying, “Follow me.”

The two slipped through the crowd and ducked into a narrow alley. Led by Chada, they entered an underground bar. Though the doors were open, the interior was dilapidated, and there wasn’t a single soul in sight.

Chada pushed the door open and led Du Yu inside. She picked Cassie up and set her on a chair, then turned to him. “It’s safe here. This is the bar my late husband used to run. No one comes here anymore. Whatever you need to say, say it here.”

Du Yu didn’t say a word. He simply tossed the letter she had written to herself over to her.

Chada caught it carefully, still maintaining a safe distance from him.

After quickly skimming it, a hint of awkwardness flashed across her face. “Sir… have you read the contents of this letter?”

Du Yu chuckled. “This letter doesn’t even have an envelope. How could I not see it?”

Chada was just as baffled. Why had she been so foolish? If the messenger knew what was written on it, how was she supposed to complete the task mentioned inside?

“Well then… sir,” Chada said, tucking the letter away. “What happened to my future self? Why would I write something like this?”

“The future you needs a massive amount of money,” Du Yu said, shaking his head. “An amount you could never save up in a lifetime.”

“Money?” Chada stared blankly. “Why?”

“Because your daughter died.” Du Yu glanced at Cassie, who was playing by herself on the side. “You need a fortune to hire other ‘Controllers’ to alter your past and bring your daughter back to life.”

“So that car today…” Chada suddenly recalled the incident.

“Yes. If that car hadn’t been sent flying, it would have directly crushed your precious girl. That was meant to be a major turning point in your life.”

“Damn it…” Chada broke into a cold sweat. “So… you’ve already saved my daughter?”

“Mhm,” Du Yu nodded. “My mission is already complete.”

Chada suddenly stood up and bowed deeply with absolute solemnity. “Thank you, sir! Thank you so much! Cassie is my only anchor left in this world!”

“There’s no need.” Du Yu let out a soft sigh. “Chada, I genuinely wanted to help you, but you wrote this kind of letter to yourself. Is that really appropriate?”

“I…” Chada hesitated. “I don’t know the reason either, sir. The future me must have gone through something terrible to become so distrustful of others…”

“Fair enough.”

Du Yu decided not to dwell on it. He walked over and gently patted Cassie’s head. The little girl stared up at the Asian man with wide, clear, curious eyes.

“Chada, open a portal and let me go back,” Du Yu requested. “Imprisoning me here will only bring you trouble. Your ‘true body’ is still on my turf; only your soul traveled to 1888. You can’t escape.”

“Hmm…” Chada seemed to be weighing her options. After a moment, she shook her head. “Sir, just as ‘I’ said, you really are a good person. But also just as ‘I’ said, I cannot let you return just yet. No one in this world would willingly disrupt their own plans.”

“Chada.” Du Yu looked at her with a deadpan expression. “I am not your enemy. Your enemies are the ones who want your daughter dead.”

“I don’t understand what you mean… sir.” Chada frowned. “What put my daughter in danger was an accident, but you make it sound like someone intentionally tried to murder her.”

“Exactly. That’s exactly what I mean.” Du Yu nodded firmly. “As I speak to you now, the ‘future you’ should be forming these memories simultaneously, right? So both of you need to listen closely.”

“Sir… are you angry…?”

“I’m not angry. I just want to tell you both that I saw the man who tried to run over your daughter with my own eyes. It was the same man who called you. They launched that car right in front of me.” Du Yu still felt a lingering dread. If he hadn’t been there, not only would Cassie have died, but that righteous, well-meaning guy would have been thrown in jail for drunk driving, forced to take all the blame.

“I don’t know what your relationship is with the man who called you, but I’d wager he’s your boss. They wanted to use Cassie’s death to chain you to the company forever. You’d be forced to work yourself to the bone, day and night, just to earn money… And even if you did scrape together enough, you’d just be handing it right back to them. I have no idea if they would actually resurrect your daughter, but I guarantee they’d find another way to keep you trapped. To them, you’re nothing more than a highly profitable, risk-free investment.”

Chada’s eyes widened in horror. “Which country are you from? Which company? Are you trying to poach me? Why would you say such terrible things? Why are you trying to drive a wedge between me and my superiors…?”

“Think about it yourself,” Du Yu replied in exasperation. “If you hadn’t been betrayed by the people you trusted most, why else would you become someone who refuses to trust anyone?”

With that, Du Yu stood up and rummaged around the bar for something to drink. But after finding nothing but empty bottles, he gave up.

Chada remained lost in thought, seemingly debating who she should trust—a man she had known for less than ten minutes, or the superiors she had worked alongside for years?

On the other side of the screen, the assembled immortals looked at the Chada in 1888. She had also fallen completely silent, as if long-buried memories were suddenly resurfacing in her mind.

“Actually… I should have figured it out a long time ago…” The two Chadas spoke simultaneously, their voices perfectly overlapping. “When my husband died under such mysterious circumstances, I should have known… The only people who could have killed him were the ones he trusted…”

Du Yu quietly watched the woman before him and asked, “So, what are you going to do now?”

“I…” The 1993 Chada looked pained. “Sir, regardless, thank you for telling me all this. I will send you back…”

“Don’t mention it. I’m just honoring a commitment I made. If you ever need help, just have your future self let me know.”

Chada offered a small nod and traced a portal in the air. She bowed to Du Yu once more. “Truly… thank you so much.”

Du Yu couldn’t shake the feeling that something was off, as if he had overlooked a crucial detail. Just before stepping into the portal, he glanced back at the 1993 Chada and asked, “Do you want me to bring the kid over so the future you can see her?”

“Huh?” Chada was taken aback. She thought about it for a second. “That shouldn’t be necessary, sir. Since you saved Cassie, the future me will naturally be able to see her…”

That made sense to Du Yu, so he nodded. But what was that nagging feeling in the back of his mind?

He pondered for a moment before asking, “Shouldn’t you… write me a letter or something?”

“Sir… you’re confused. Everything you’ve done will appear in my memories. There’s no need to write a letter.”

“Oh, right. Right.” Du Yu silently shook his head, gave Chada one last look, and stepped through the portal.

Though he felt like he had missed something, upon closer reflection, there was nothing obvious… Was he just overthinking it?

On the other side, Chada, Shiranui Asuka, and Ramla were sitting quietly around the dining table, silently waiting for Du Yu to return.

“Whoa, everyone’s here?” Du Yu stretched his stiff joints as soon as his feet hit the floor. “What a bizarre experience. Time-traveling into the past while already time-traveling.”

Chada stood up, her expression complicated. “Sir, I never imagined you would actually keep your word. You really saved my daughter…”

“Yep.” Du Yu nodded as if it were the most natural thing in the world. “I told you, ‘I do what I say, and I see it through.’ But why do you look so miserable…?”

“I don’t know, sir,” Chada replied, her face looking rather grim. “Even though I distinctly remember you saving my daughter, for some reason, I don’t have any memories of living with her all these years… My heart is still filled with pain…”

“That might just be some side effect of altering history. After all, what we’re doing goes way beyond normal human comprehension,” Du Yu suggested. “Who knows? The moment you go home and see your daughter, all those memories might come flooding back.”

“I hope so…” Chada nodded quietly. Then, she raised her voice, “Gods of Huaxia, please accept my sincerest apologies! Up until just a few moments ago, I was still planning to use money to save my daughter’s life. If it weren’t for your Controller here, I would have made a terrible mistake.”

“Don’t sweat it.” Du Yu stepped forward and patted Chada’s shoulder. “We have an old saying in China: ‘To realize one’s mistakes and correct them is a smack to the face.’ Those immortals won’t mind.”

Dong Qianqiu furrowed his brows slightly. “Du Yu, the saying is ‘To realize one’s mistakes and correct them is the greatest good.’ Why on earth are you going around smacking people’s faces for no reason?”