NOVEL NEXT Ch. 84
Chapter 84: Perhaps Little Corgi Doesn’t Want This Kind of Favor
Narcissism comes in many forms.
While marveling, Li Li read through the post’s “romance predictions,” finding the ship so compelling she almost believed it.
Of course, these were false prophecies that wouldn’t appear in the manga.
If there really was a cp, it’d be over, in every sense.
Single characters are far more popular than paired ones, and Li Li would never give herself a cp to tank her popularity.
Exiting the post, she browsed the forum more.
Due to the Manga Artist’s deliberate hints, many character fans sensed an impending knife.
【The Manga Artist hasn’t even dug into Heige’s backstory yet, and I already feel stabbed, damn it!】
【Lonely Ahoge Li had Little Corgi, so that’s why Heige treats Little Corgi differently, right?】
【Revenge—that word alone feels ominous!】
Of course, these were the minority. Most were happily discussing the new arc’s new characters.
【Red Crane, the perfect assistant with a bit of mama-san vibe; Dan, cute and a good doggo; demon miss, please stab me directly! So awesome! Completely different from the main story!】
1L Original Poster
Who’s going crazy in the middle of the night? It’s me!
Of course, the best is still Heige! My eternal top! So handsome I could die!
New arc updates every week to drool over, waaah, too awesome!
2L
To be honest, I’m actually a doggo.
So, who’s Heige’s little doggo? It’s me, it’s me! Woof woof woof!
3L
I could rewatch the dog-training scene a hundred times. Bad-boy Heige, I love him so much!
I noticed Heige loves teasing doggos—Little Corgi is a doggo, Dan is a doggo, why? Because I’m a doggo too?
Woof!
4L
If you count the cover, this chapter also had Ahoge Li!
Damn, I thought Ahoge Li would at least show up in a flashback.
I’m relying on the new arc for Ahoge Li’s appearance!
5L
Honestly, when Dan appeared with that aura, I thought it was over.
S-rank, yo! A rare concept-type ability user with a cool “Hunter” title, must be tough to beat.
In the main story, Corgi and the others only faced B-rank and A-rank.
My brain didn’t switch gears in time.
Then I realized I was overthinking.
This is the Heige arc, Heige bigshot’s solo stage.
So, a mere S-rank, heh.
6L
Watching the bullet comments, I thought Heige had some terminal illness.
I thought I missed something.
Turns out it’s not my fault for checking the forum.
This chapter of Kicking-Ass Ge clearly shows him shining in Ranmu City.
First, a moment of silence for the victims, then Heige the bigshot stirring things up, stirring things up, stirring things up, charge!
7L
Came for the title.
Heige is a treasure; he can be shipped with anyone!
This chapter had me shipping so hard, everyone’s so shippable!
8L
No CP, no CP! The bigshot is perfect alone!
Think about us single-stan fans!
...
[Difference between the main story protagonist and the new arc protagonist.]
1L Original Poster
Corgi: Getting beat, getting beat, getting beat.
Heige: Kicking ass, stirring things up, taming dogs.
Laughing so hard, so pitiful, Corgi. Is this what power looks like, hahahaha!
2L
‘Low-rank.’
‘Mid-rank.’
‘Too weak.’
‘What can you do?’
‘You can’t do anything.’
Heige’s quotes, classics forever celebrated.
3L
The main story is shonen hot-blood, the new arc is watching the bigshot go god-mode. Who’s thrilled? I’m thrilled, hahahaha!
4L
Poor pitiful Little Corgi: Should I just leave?
5L
Don’t be sad, Little Corgi.
Both are about taming dogs, both are about messing with minds.
Look at how Little Corgi and Dan were treated under Heige’s hand—Little Corgi won.
6L
Upstairs, don’t you think Little Corgi wouldn’t want this kind of special treatment, hahahaha.
...
[Let’s discuss: Ranmu City’s noble combat power vs. Troublemaker Ge’s combat power.]
1L Original Poster
Corgi’s enemies are A-rank, Heige’s enemies are SS-rank.
Reasonable suspicion: since Heige became the new arc protagonist, the enemies’ combat power got a boost.
Little Corgi, you’ve subtly lost.
2L
Tonight’s Little Corgi’s sad night, hahahahaha.
3L
Yiming is still growing, after all.
Heige the bigshot killed two S-ranks in the Illusory Reality Arc, but SS-rank is different from S-rank.
I feel like if Heige went head-on, he might not win.
4L
Upstairs is right.
The Ranmu Arc is a whole chapter.
If they let the bigshot go god-mode and flatten everything, what’s the point?
And in the Illusory Reality Arc, Heige didn’t flatten things right away either.
I feel like he’s doing things with a plan.
He killed Yue Qing when Yue Qing was alone, then killed Qu Yan when Qu Yan was at his most smug and relaxed—double kill, perfect.
And those opening lines of the new arc made it obvious.
Heige the bigshot is going after his revenge targets one by one, in his own order.
How do I put it? Unlike the carefree attitude he shows, he’s fooled a lot of people.
Even Qu Yan initially thought Heige didn’t care about the Former Ability Guild.
But that’s what makes him terrifying—a rational lunatic, methodically carrying out his plan, toying with his enemies’ minds, luring them into his traps.
The dog-taming scene made it clear.
He’s especially good at manipulating people.
An S-rank in front of him is like a baby.
Saying he’s going god-mode in Ranmu City isn’t an exaggeration.
With so much content in the first chapter, an entire region’s ability organization, S-rank ability users—who actually managed to hinder Heige?
And in the Ranmu Arc, Heige the bigshot is the protagonist.
No idea what he’s planning, but SS-rank isn’t a problem.
5L
If Heige the bigshot is really a villain, Little Corgi really can’t compete.
Thankfully, he’s on good terms with Li.
Good enough to give Little Corgi special treatment.
6L
You combat power fans are terrifying, and those character fans are terrifying too.
One side says Heige the bigshot is pitiful and tragic, the other says Heige the bigshot is scary as hell.
They’re crying next door, but stepping into this thread feels chilly and spooky.
7L
Heige the bigshot is strong, but Little Corgi and Heige the bigshot aren’t the same type of person, and the story styles are different.
No way to compare.
8L
Why compare? A villain protagonist, and one who’s fully aware of it—I love it, love it to death!
...
[I have a feeling the new arc won’t be peaceful.]
1L Original Poster
The manga artist is sharpening their knife for Heige!
2L
Wahhh, I can tell.
Even though Heige the bigshot always acts carefree, we can’t see what’s in his heart. Does he feel sad? Does he get hurt?
3L
He walks the path he chose and won’t look back.
4L
Shura Big Sis’s appearance was awesome.
She has an ahoge, an ahoge!
And I noticed she looks 70% like Ahoge Li, with the remaining 30% being her squinted eyes and different vibe.
Could she be Ahoge Li’s relative?
4L
Damn, that’s another big knife.
I’m already imagining Shura confronting Heige about why he didn’t protect Li.
5L
Former Ability Guild, the leader, the empire-wide wanted notice from the Ability Guild—he’s carrying so much.
6L
His smile is his disguise.
Who can know his heart?
Wahhhh, I’m crying so loud.
Just thinking about it hurts.
No one can understand him anymore.
...
Seeing this, Li Li said: Why don’t you all fight it out, and whoever wins gets to decide?
But she thought combat power fans and character fans could merge a bit.
After all, the manga artist is washing the coal ball for a beautiful, strong, and tragic vibe, but that doesn’t conflict with Heige’s strength.
She scrolled through the forum again.
[Doujin: Quick sketch of the smiley couple team!]
[Every screenshot from the new arc is worth obsessing over! Aaaah, Heige the bigshot is insanely cool!]
[Analysis thread: Former Ability Guild, leader, revenge, Heige’s identity.]
[Aaaah, Shura beautiful big sis!]
[Is Red Crane a guy? The name sounds girly.]
[All the female characters in the new arc are gorgeous, but has Dan come of age?]
Due to their looks, crossdressing bigshot Dan and Li, who crossdressed as a guy then back to female as ‘Shura,’ were seen as goddesses by some male readers.
Li Li could already imagine their reactions when the manga artist revealed Dan was a guy.
Looking at the forum, she couldn’t help but start thinking about her next steps.
In Ranmu City, one SS-rank and four S-rank ability users, just as the forum readers said—she had no intention of confronting them head-on.
The SS-rank ability user Lin Ran was indeed her enemy, but dealing with her was no easy task.
Li Li had an idea, though its success rate wasn’t high.
In short, it was a gamble—turn a bicycle into a motorcycle.
Lost in thought, Li Li glanced at the time.
Then she continued reviewing, preparing for finals.
After all, exams still had to be taken, and she needed to handle real-world matters first.
...
Before the second chapter of the Ranmu Arc manga updated, Li Li successfully survived finals.
Exam results wouldn’t come out until halfway through the break, so after finishing, Li Li packed her things to head home.
“Thinking about not seeing you for over two months makes me so sad, Lili,” her roommate said, throwing herself at Li Li with a bear hug, reluctant to let go.
Li Li patted her roommate’s head, comforting her, “If you miss me, just message me.”
Though she felt her roommate would likely forget about her once break started, off to have fun on her own.
Li Li’s home was local, making the trip back easy.
She finished her exam in the morning, and by noon, she was dragging her suitcase into the house.
Pushing open the door, she saw the familiar furnishings and smelled the homely scent of cooking, feeling a long-lost sense of comfort.
“Mom, I’m back,” she said as she stepped inside.
Her mother, wearing an apron, came out of the kitchen and said, “You’re back! We’re having your favorite cola chicken wings for lunch. Put your stuff down and come eat.”
Li Li grew up in a single-parent household, with just her mother.
During the school term, she’d make time to call home, and now that she was back, it felt as if she’d never left—warm and ordinary.
“Thirsty after the long trip?”
“Thirsty. I want milk tea.”
“That stuff makes you fat. Go pour yourself some water!”
And, of course, there was the familiar feeling of her desires being firmly throttled.
Goodbye, milk tea. Li Li bid a painful farewell to her milk tea freedom.
After lunch, Li Li washed the dishes, then leaned against her bedhead with her laptop.
She worked on her break schedule, then remembered to check the chatroom she’d joined for the cosplay stage play.
In the chatroom, doujin artists and cosplayers were active, discussing everyone’s break schedules.
The doujin artist, who doubled as the stage play’s scriptwriter, lived up to her username, Lazy, and still hadn’t finished the script.
[Lazy]: Since we’re all almost on break, how about we meet up sometime?
After some discussion, they realized they were free that afternoon, while some wouldn’t be available the next couple of days.
So, on the first day of break, Li Li headed out.
Was this considered a meetup? Li Li wondered.
When Li Li arrived at the agreed-upon café and pushed open the glass door, a yellow-and-white dog wagged its tail and bounded toward her.
It was a blue-eyed Little Corgi, tongue out, energetically circling Li Li, its tail practically blurring from wagging.
Li Li crouched down and petted the corgi’s fluffy head.
Just then, the dog’s owner hurriedly approached.
She was a girl, about Li Li’s age.
As she walked over, she said, “Wait, Yiming! Don’t jump on people!”
Li Li’s hand, petting the dog, paused.
“Um, what’s its name?” Li Li looked up, asking the owner.
Little Corgi—had he finally become a corgi?!