Chapter 321: Little Te, Could You Order Me a Cup of Nutrient Paste?

She was no longer sleepy at all. Springing up like a fish leaping, she suddenly blinked. “Huh?”

The white-haired girl stretched her body, looking a little disbelieving.

Because she lived far from school, her commute took ages every day. On top of that, she was always thinking about taking part-time jobs, so her sleep was constantly cut short. She never got enough.

But for some reason, she felt refreshed now, with a light, lively energy running through her whole body. Magic power flowed lightly within her, making her feel almost giddy.

It could honestly be called the most peaceful, comfortable sleep she had ever had in her life. Even the usual heavy exhaustion had been swept away.

She stared at the orb in disbelief. “Did you do this?”

Lin Guang’s voice sounded again. “Mm. I improved your sleep quality a little.”

“You can do that too…” Out of habit, she reached for her glasses beside her and put them on. As soon as she could make out the balance on the lenses, her eyes suddenly widened and she let out a shriek. “Holy shit!”

“Why did you suddenly spend 120 credits?!”

【Balance: 2017】

Vivi instinctively focused her gaze and opened the transaction history. She discovered that just the data charges for using the intercity aethernet last night had cost 20 credit points.

Data was practically the cheapest thing in the city. If Vivi had spent those 20 points just browsing ordinary webpages, she could have lain in bed at home and surfed for three months without using them all.

She snatched up the alloy orb from the workbench. “Did you use my glasses to shop last night?!”

In Vivi’s grip, the orange-yellow gem on the orb flickered. The same gentle, calm voice rang in her mind again.

“I have amnesia. I was only learning things I ought to know.”

Looking things up… Fine.

Vivi took a deep breath and reluctantly accepted that answer, then couldn’t help asking, “Then what else did you buy? Tianmei brand premium nutrient paste?! It’s not like I don’t have any in my fridge…”

Nearly a hundred credit points’ worth of nutrient paste! A brand even a country bumpkin like her had never heard of!

It was equivalent to buying a beginner E-rank potion on the black market!

About as much as three months’ worth of food if she scrimped and saved!

Rationally, she knew all her money had been earned by this orb, so she had no right to complain. But when it came to wasting money, she still couldn’t help getting worked up and baring her teeth.

“You got up at just the right time.”

Lin Guang merely said calmly, “It’s already at the door. Go pick it up.”

A message suddenly popped up on her lenses.

【The Tianmei brand premium nutrient paste (strawberry flavor) you ordered has been delivered to your door by a ‘Have You Eaten?’ courier. Please sign for it promptly.】

“What—”

The white-haired girl sprang out of bed, then hurried barefoot through the door, ready to shout down the hallway that she was refusing the delivery.

But the moment she opened the door, she saw her dog-eared roommate, who had been making quite a racket last night, standing outside. She was holding a box plastered with advertisements for premium nutrient paste, staring at Vivi in shock. Her gaze kept darting between Vivi and the box in her hands.

After a brief stupor, the roommate seemed to imagine something or other. A fawning smile suddenly spread across her face, which still had a lingering flush from last night.

She hurried over and handed the box to Vivi. Then, with practiced ease, she took an unopened pack of good cigarettes from her pocket and shoved it into Vivi’s hand.

“Damn, Vivi! You can afford nutrient paste that boosts magic power? Five hundred a box!” That shameless bitch winked at her, her tone full of ingratiation. “If you’ve got a way to make money, bring your girl along, will you?”

“…”

Five hundred credit points?

But she’d only paid a hundred.

What was going on…

Vivi opened her mouth, then closed it. In the end, she could only reply expressionlessly, “Nothing much. I just won the dead man’s lottery on a whim last night, so I’m treating myself to better food.”

“Oh, you should’ve said so sooner. You got me all excited for nothing.”

Her roommate’s expression changed in an instant. She rolled her eyes and reached out to snatch the pack of cigarettes back from Vivi.

But Vivi’s wrist twisted with extreme agility, effortlessly dodging the grab, and she casually stuffed the pack into her school uniform pocket.

As if! Once something was in her hands, there was no way she’d give it back.

She could at least sell the cigarettes for a few credit points on the black market.

Vivi ignored her roommate’s grumbling curses behind her, took the nutrient paste back into her room, and shut the door firmly. Then she looked at the orb and silently asked, excitement bubbling inside her. “What did you do?”

She saw the orange-yellow gem flicker.

“Simple. I stacked coupons, red packets, new-customer discounts, near-expiry products, and a flash sale that gave employees a few seconds of special pricing in the middle of the night. That’s all.”

“It’s a shame your internet is too slow. I couldn’t exploit a few loopholes, or I could’ve gotten it even cheaper.”

Vivi: “……….”

Where the hell have you brought me? Is this really the mysterious young lady who was so detached from worldly affairs yesterday, with amnesia?

You sure as hell adapted way too fast.

As a poor person, she of course knew those discounts were essentially advertising money that companies and platforms threw around to compete with each other. She often tried to snap them up herself, but she’d never seen anything discounted from five hundred to one hundred. That was an eighty-percent discount! How had she stacked them like that?

And besides, food that could help raise magic power was a luxury only the rich could afford, wasn’t it?

Looking at it this way, was it actually a pretty good deal…

The very next moment, the pink-haired girl appeared in her field of vision again, sitting on her desk with her long, pale legs swinging gently.

“To pass the magical girl qualification exam, you need to raise your magic power as much as possible within two and a half months, right?”

At those words, Vivi dragged her gaze away from the glimpse of the girl’s skirt and put on a serious expression.

“Right now, you’re malnourished. Your magical potential is inadequate, your body is depleted, and both your magic power and Magic Aptitude will be difficult to improve.”

“I’m guessing you plan to put every expense toward buying potions and other things. But that wouldn’t be wise. If you want to greatly increase your magic power in a short time, high-quality nutritional supplements are just as essential. Doing this will only slow you down badly.”

“Stop eating that stuff from now on.”

“……….”

For some reason, the pink-haired girl’s words carried an air of absolute certainty that made it impossible not to believe her.

She continued calmly, “Besides, given my current condition, I also need you to raise your magic power quickly so I can recover my strength through the feedback from our contract.”

“You can consider this my first formal request.”

—Recover?

Vivi froze and swallowed softly.

She thought about the girl’s current condition.

Only a brain remained… Honestly, she couldn’t begin to understand how the girl had survived. She could only conclude that she had once been an extraordinarily powerful superhuman, or that she wasn’t human at all.

And after spending all last night looking things up, had this girl named Teresa already settled on her goal from now on?