"Hey, Zold!"
Chongji's eyes lit up when he saw him, grinning as he hurried over while waving his hand.
But then, he suddenly slowed down, seeing the two kids hiding behind Zold.
A brief moment passed.
Then, Chongji nodded slightly, turning solemn.
"Why didn't you tell me? Who's the mother? Do I know her…"
Zold was not amused in the slightest, shaking his head.
"These are my cousins. Their parents died during the Spiritual Descent, but their relatives are from abroad. I took them in for now until their relatives return here."
"Oh."
Not expecting such a dark twist, Chongji opened his mouth awkwardly. After a moment, he recovered and shifted his gaze to the twins, greeting them with a small wave.
"Yo, what's up. I'm Chongji Duren, your uncle's one and only friend."
"..."
Leo and Lia looked at Zold, then at Chongji, confusion clouding their faces.
No matter how they looked at it, the two didn't seem similar at all.
How could they be friends?
However, as it would be rude to ignore someone, Leo quickly replied, "Hello, I'm Leo and this is my sister Lia. It's nice to meet you!"
Chongji grinned, flashing a thumbs up, "It's nice to meet you too, kid. No need to be so formal with me."
Then, glancing between the three of them, he asked curiously, "What are you three doing outside?"
Zold replied calmly, "I'm taking them to the Association to register their identities."
Chongji raised his brows, "Just them? How about you?"
"I already registered on the first day," Zold said, shaking his head.
"Huh. I registered on the second day," Chongji smiled, then he let out a smug laugh, "I got C-Rank, how about you?"
Zold thought for a moment before answering, "D-rank."
"Hohoho, looks like I'll have to protect you from now on, bro." Chongji shook his head, patting Zold's shoulders. Then, he patted his chest, grinning widely. "Tell me, who's getting on your nerves lately? Stelle? Hulio? Or even Old Joules? Leave it to me!"
"So stupid…"
Zold sighed, shaking his head. He felt like his energy would get drained if he kept talking to Chongji.
"Alright, enough chatting. We have to go. Take care."
But when the three of them walked ahead, Chongji quickly followed them:
"Sweet! Do you mind if I join you three?"
Hearing that, Zold glanced at him in disdain, "Don't you have other more important things to do?"
"Come on!"
Chongji pleaded, clasping his hands.
"It's been a while since we met. I simply want to catch up with you. Pretty please?"
Zold frowned. However, after some thought, he allowed Chongji to join them.
"Suit yourself."
"Nice!"
Chongji smiled, walking up to Zold's side. Then, as if he remembered something interesting, he asked curiously, "Oh yeah, have you seen the viral post trending in the university forums recently?"
Zold replied, "No."
"Seriously?" Chongji widened his eyes in surprise. But seeing Zold's deadpan expression, he realized that he wasn't joking, making him sigh, "Something tells me you just don't care about university anymore…"
"Correct."
Zold nodded slightly.
"Where did the honest, studious, and academic god Zold Starks go?" Chongji recalled, shaking his head. "Ever since you and Stelle broke up, you've really changed. I can't tell if it's a good thing or not."
Hearing that, Zold was quiet, letting him continue.
"... But," Chongji mused, glancing at him. "You're still my bro regardless. Just don't keep everything to yourself. Call me if you need a drink, or if you just want to play some League. I'll be here."
"... Where did that come from?"
Zold couldn't help but be amused, but deep inside, he wasn't surprised. It was rare for anyone to comfort him, and even if they did, he would just feel a sense of discomfort. But since it was from Chongji, he didn't mind.
To be precise, he was already used to it.
Chongji could be rude, brash, and emotional, but he was never a bad friend.
Even in his previous life, the man often checked up on him, making sure he never felt alone.
"Thanks." Zold smiled slightly, returning the gesture. "You too."
"Yeah…"
Chongji muttered, turning quiet. Zold couldn't help but notice his sudden change, but before he could ask, the man immediately changed the topic.
"Right, the viral post in the university," Chongji nodded, telling the story with awe, "Apparently, a student from our university went to the Zoo on the day of the calamity, killing all the released monsters and saving the kids stranded there. The university even announced on their page that whoever did that should contact them, and they will be rewarded heavily."
Hearing that, Zold's expression turned strange.
Seeing his reaction, Chongji raised his brows.
"... Something the matter?"
Zold shook his head with a slight smile.
"No, it's nothing."
Listening to both of them, Leo looked at Zold curiously.
It sounded like something the teacher would do… no way, right?
After walking for a while, they all arrived at the city hall's entrance.
Since the Association was just recently established, it had no building yet, so each city used its respective city hall to receive Awakeners.
Entering the main hall, Zold wasn't surprised to see a lot of people already waiting in line.
"What talent did you awaken? I awakened an offensive-type one…"
"See that man over there? He's the first person registered to have B-rank talent!"
"The one talking with the mayor?"
Hearing the commotion, everyone looked at the floor above them, seeing the mayor of the city and a red-haired man talking to each other.
"Follow me. Chongji, just wait there."
Zold said to the twins and Chongji. The latter nodded and didn't push this time, simply waving his hand:
"Alright, I'll wait for you here."
Leading the twins away, Zold walked to one of the city hall's staff and showed his Association ID.
When the city hall staff saw it, they saw the bold title printed beneath his name and immediately straightened up in fear.
"Si-sir…!"
"I have two kids here that I need to register." Zold glanced at the staff calmly. "I don't have a lot of time."
The staff quickly understood his words, nodding repeatedly.
"Of course, sir. I understand! We'll make sure it finishes as soon as possible!"
"Good."
The staff didn't waste anymore time and pulled the twins away.
Zold shifted his gaze to the twins.
"Follow him."
The twins nodded, leaving with the staff.
Once their backs had vanished from his view, Zold glanced at his ID before hiding it.
'Having a high status is really convenient…'
He smiled wryly.
After that was done, he returned to Chongji.
"What did you do?"
Chongji asked, furrowing his brows. He had naturally seen the whole exchange, only he didn't understand what had happened.
Zold glanced at him but didn't feel like explaining. The whole story was too complicated to be explained in a few words, and with Chongji's personality, he likely would be driven mad by the man's questions.
He answered, "Just asked the staff to lead them to the bathroom."
Chongji frowned, feeling suspicious. "Really?"
Zold shrugged, not elaborating.
"Hmm…" Chongji stared for a moment, then shrugged as well. "Forget it, it doesn't matter. Anyway, are you planning on waiting here?"
Just as Zold was about to answer, a huge commotion suddenly erupted in the hall.
"A person with C-rank talent came out? Where?"
"C-rank talent… that's insanely good. I've read that they get 1,000,000 dollars in benefits and more."
"More than good, he can probably live the rest of his life comfortably. Oh, look, he has a cute girlfriend too. Damn it!"
Many looked at the person with envy. The person was a tall man with a lean build, and beside him, a beautiful girl hugged his arm.
"Big deal…" Chongji clicked his tongue, but when he saw the couple, he immediately froze. He nervously shifted his gaze to Zold, afraid his friend would be hurt.
But he has nothing to worry about.
Zold simply glanced at the couple and quickly lost interest.
However, across the hall, the girl's eyes lit up when she saw him.
"Zold! You're alive!"
Hearing that, Chongji felt a vein pop on his head.
"That damn bitch Stelle…!"