Chapter 72: The Start of a Waiter's Career

Arriving on the first floor, Yan Jing first went to the restroom to wash his hands.

The bloodstains thinned under the rushing water and vanished, leaving behind only a faint metallic scent.

"Long time no see."

Yan Jing looked up at Chen Nian, who had suddenly appeared in the mirror, and smiled.

Chen Nian was currently wearing a Cleaner's uniform and cradling a disc-shaped object in his hands.

"Long time no see."

His eyes calm above his mask, Chen Nian set the disc on the floor.

Dark weird energy surged from his hands into a cube atop the disc.

"Whir—"

The patterns on the disc lit up. As if jolted to life, it began a slow crawl toward the toilet stalls ahead.

Wherever it passed, the clinging grime vanished, leaving behind spotless streaks.

Upon reaching a corner, the disc actually folded itself, clinging to the wall as it continued to clean.

"An impressive invention."

Yan Jing said in admiration.

Chen Nian did not continue the topic, instead saying slowly, "You've become much stronger than the last time we met."

"People always improve."

Yan Jing smiled.

"But you still haven't given me what you promised last time."

Chen Nian's tone was calm.

"True. I was a little short on luck, so I didn't manage to record anything."

Yan Jing sounded regretful. "But I happen to have your item with me, so I can return it."

"Forget it. There's no need."

Chen Nian shook his head. He was no longer interested in the relationship between Yi Ji and Mantou.

He wasn't blind.

As for the voice recorder, it wasn't a rare item.

But Yan Jing remained resolute. He pulled out the voice recorder and tossed it to Chen Nian:

"Returning this to its rightful owner. Until next time, sir."

With that, Yan Jing turned and left.

Yan Jing soon stepped out of the restroom.

Chen Nian stared at the voice recorder in his hand, hesitating again and again.

Finally, he pressed the play button.

"Five minutes. By the time those foolish idiots get here, you'll already be a pile of meat. Don't worry..."

This was...

Listening to the recording, Chen Nian's pupils suddenly shrank.

...

Meanwhile, as Yan Jing walked toward the main reception hall, a system prompt surfaced before his eyes.

[A certain Inner World entity's favorability toward you has greatly increased.]

Looking at the new prompt, a slight smile curled the corners of Yan Jing's calm mouth.

When he reached the entrance of the reception hall, he was surprised to find that Old Master Liu wasn't among the welcoming team today.

Remembering what the old man had said during their meal yesterday, Yan Jing felt an inexplicable, ominous premonition.

"Don't cause too big of a scene, Old Master..."

Stepping into the reception hall, Yan Jing gazed toward the dining area.

The banquet had not yet begun, so the number of dining guests was noticeably smaller than in the evening.

But since there were fewer than thirty players present, there were still more than enough guests to go around.

With a single glance across the room, he saw that almost all the players had already formed their teams.

The short, fat man and the Slender Girl who had invited him earlier had teamed up with a gloomy-looking man to form the sixth group.

The remaining four or five stragglers had grouped together to form the seventh team.

Now, aside from Yan Jing himself, only the Squinting Man remained entirely on his own.

"Time to get to work."

Yan Jing searched for a target and quickly homed in on a customer he already had information about.

So, after making some preparations, he walked over.

"Hello, madam. I noticed you don't have a dedicated waiter yet. Might I have the honor?"

Yan Jing smiled at the Inner World resident before him, who had an octopus atop her neck.

"Mhm."

The Inner World resident nodded. Just as she opened her mouth to speak, Yan Jing produced a warm, damp towel from behind his back and smiled.

"I believe you might need this."

The octopus woman froze. She had indeed wanted to ask Yan Jing for a wet towel to wipe and moisturize the tentacles around her neck, but she hadn't known how to ask.

Yan Jing smiled slightly.

"I've been observing you for a while, and you seemed a bit troubled."

"Shall I help you? Or would you prefer to do it yourself to control the pressure..."

"I—I'll do it."

A trace of fluster crept into the octopus woman's voice.

For some reason, even though the waiter in front of her was human, she felt a strange sensation in her heart.

She had certainly heard plenty of stories from her friends about crossing paths with humans...

But she couldn't do that.

As she wiped her face with the towel, she sneaked a quiet glance up at the masked Yan Jing.

By now, Yan Jing had brought over a damp napkin, taking the initiative to help roll and tie up the tentacles she had wiped down.

This scene made the octopus woman's heart pound. Whenever she got carried away during meals, her tentacles would thrash around and accidentally touch her food.

Very few people usually noticed this about her...

[A certain Inner World entity's favorability toward you is steadily increasing.]

In Yan Jing's mind, the information about the octopus woman surfaced piece by piece.

[Personality: Shy, gentle, innocent, slightly boy-crazy.

Craves romance, does not reject physical contact.

Notes: The target is very self-conscious about her face and will look favorably upon anyone who notices this. She requires a warm, damp towel while dining and prefers waiters with gentle temperaments...

Demands: If the target is in a bad mood, she will demand the waiter wipe the tentacles on her face, and require that the process cause her absolutely no discomfort.

If the target is in a good mood, she will merely ask the waiter to chat with her for a while to demonstrate her approachability.]

Soon, his thirty-minute service shift was over.

The octopus woman stared at Yan Jing, completely transfixed. Her eyes were practically glued to him, carrying an indescribably tender expression.

"Madam, thank you for listening to my stories, and thank you for the positive review, but now I must continue working."

Yan Jing smiled gently. "Though I don't know how this task of mine will turn out, I am very glad to have met you."

With that, Yan Jing turned to leave.

"Wait—"

The octopus woman suddenly called out to him.

"You said earlier that as long as you get five positive reviews, you'll be fine, right?"

She twirled a fingertip around one of her tentacles, her voice dropping a fraction lower.

"I... I happen to have a few friends dining here as well. I might be able to help."

"No, there is no need to trouble you."

Yan Jing looked back at her, his expression turning earnest. "I can manage on my own. Please, just enjoy the rest of your journey."

With that, he turned and walked away, leaving behind a wistful octopus woman who gazed at his retreating back.

"He's different from the others."

The octopus woman murmured to herself, "He doesn't know my identity, and he isn't here for some special purpose. He's right. I shouldn't make the relationship between us too complicated."

Meanwhile, Yan Jing secretly let out a sigh of relief.

It was his first time operating like this, and he hadn't quite grasped the right limits. He would have to be more careful next time.

Although the octopus woman was essentially going to give him several positive reviews for free, it clearly didn't come without a price.

Once he provoked unnecessary trouble, the losses would far outweigh the gains.

Soon, he locked onto his next target and walked over.

"Hello, Miss. I noticed you don't have a dedicated waiter yet. Might I have the honor?"