Superman Termination Manual

In the private room of the Host Club, Ke Mingye stood emotionlessly in a corner, adopting the posture of a bodyguard, as he played Snake on a spare phone with his head down.

Fan Quan sat opposite the Top Bull, recounting in Japanese how his hacker friend had managed to sniff him out.

"Is that so..." the Top Bull drawled with a breath of smoke, his reaction rather subdued, "It seems I wasn't careful enough, and that's how your people found a flaw in me. So, what do you want?"

"Before I answer that, I have a question," Fan Quan said.

"What question?"

"Does the organization know you are a player?"

"Of course, they do, and likewise, I'll introduce you to them," the Top Bull said.

Fan Quan continued to ask, "Won't they have any aversion? After all, the nature of players and Superhumans is similar."

"After a few missions together, they've basically accepted my presence."

Fan Quan nodded, "Okay, then let's continue the topic from before. We are here to make friends with you."

"Why go through the trouble of seeking me out specifically?"

"Your starting point is inside an Anti-Superhuman Organization, and you're the deputy head of one of its branches. The importance goes without saying," Fan Quan spoke slowly, "And we are a player team, completely aligned with your stance. Befriending us is beneficial not just for you but also for the Anti-Superhuman Organization backing you."

"What if I refuse?"

The Top Bull, with a cigarette dangling from his lips, asked in a hollow tone.

"You can refuse, but I'll come again in the future," Fan Quan said expressionlessly, "Hopefully, your ability to judge the situation will be sufficient to see the current scene clearly. You know nothing about us, while we not only grasp the ins and outs of your organization but also your identity. If we reveal your identity to the Superhero Association's branch in Japan, then..."

The Top Bull interrupted him, "It seems like you're not really giving me much choice. Introduce yourself and your three friends. Some other time, I'll take you to meet the leader of the Tengu Warfront's Tokyo division. The Black Tengu is just a small branch; the organization's main network is spread across the Tokyo Port Area, near Roppongi."

Fan Quan began introducing them one by one, gesturing towards Ke Mingye, "Spider Man." Then he pointed to Qing Meng, "Punk Girl," and finally to Ju Zipi, "This one is called Ju Zipi, he can work here as a Cowherd, and I've already thought of an artistic name for him, 'Rotten Orange,' as in a rotten tangerine. Fits the Cowherd vibe, doesn't it?"

"Does he have an orphan background?"

The Top Bull asked thoughtfully, wondering why this Fan Quan was so quick to sell out a teammate; could there be some deception?

Fan Quan shook his head, "No, but in these times, nobody cares about a missing ordinary college student. He will stay here as our diplomatic corps member, demonstrating our sincerity. When you need to run an instance or carry out a 'Tengu Warfront' mission, or if the Host Club is short-staffed, you can pull him in."

He paused, "But you'll have to prepare an identity for him and make him up appropriately, to prevent customers from China from recognizing him and causing a scandal with headlines like 'Chinese missing college student found working as a host in Japan's Kabukicho,' which wouldn't be good for your situation either."

"Don't worry about that; hiding someone's identity is quite simple," the Top Bull said.

"What are you talking about?"

Ju Zipi scratched his cheek, his face wearing a warm smile.

He didn't understand Japanese, but he felt that the reactions of the two were strange, occasionally casting glances at him, as if he had been sold off.

"Nothing," Fan Quan said.

In the conversation just now, he had hinted that they had a top-tier hacker on their side. For the remainder of the time, the Top Bull would surely be cautious and wouldn't let Cai Bing simply control their movements through surveillance footage.

Therefore, Fan Quan needed someone to stay inside this "Tengu Warfront" Anti-Superhuman Organization to watch their every move. Otherwise, just communicating through the friend panel with the Top Bull, it would be impossible to ascertain whether the information he provided was true or false.

Of those present, only Ju Zipi met the requirement, so he had no choice but to send him in.

The Top Bull continued to ask: "Will you stay around here for a while?"

"No, we might come over once a week, and occasionally it might be longer in between. So let's add each other as friends to keep in touch," Fan Quan said, sending a friend request to the Top Bull.

The Top Bull took a puff of his cigarette, accepted the friend request, then raised his head to look at Ju Zipi, "Has this Ju Zipi worked in a bar before?"

"I don't think so."

"Then he'll need some proper training," the Top Bull remarked, sizing up Ju Zipi's handsome face, "He's got the right physical qualifications to be a Cowherd."

Ke Mingye was utterly confused and turned his head to say, "Cultural man, your colonel's language, red bean paste, is very 'sugo'."

Fan Quan stepped beside him and quietly recounted his recent conversation with the Top Bull to Ke Mingye.

"Damn, you're really ruthless," Ke Mingye gasped in shock, looking at Ju Zipi with sympathy.

Ju Zipi squinted his eyes, smiling at them, "Um, if I don't understand I must ask, what's the situation now, why are you both looking at me?"

Fan Quan ignored him and asked Ke Mingye, "Do you have any objections?"

"I don't," he replied.

"And what about you?" Fan Quan turned to Qing Meng.

She spread her hands and said, "Why are you asking me about the affairs of you men? You're not seriously thinking of having me dress up as a man and work as a Cowherd, are you?"

Upon hearing those words, Fan Quan moved to Ju Zipi's left side, took a deep breath, and with a solemn face, wrapped his arm around Ju Zipi's left shoulder; Ke Mingye, with a brooding expression, walked to his right side and forcefully hugged his right shoulder.n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

The two of them began talking into his ears from both sides, resembling a comedy duo as they recounted the agreement they had just made with the Top Bull to Ju Zipi.

Ju Zipi was initially all smiles, but as he grasped the gravity of the situation, the smile on his face slowly stiffened.

"Wait a minute, but I don't speak Japanese," he quickly found an excuse.

Fan Quan consoled him, "The Japanese you've learned from anime is enough for now, and you can gradually learn the rest. The fifty sounds of Japanese are quite simple. It's a language that's relatively easy to pick up."

Ke Mingye patted him on the shoulder, "Trust me, Brother Ju Zipi, with your handsome face, in six months, you'll be the number one Cowherd at Black Tengu Club."

"That's a good idea," Fan Quan said. "Even if a year from now we haven't succeeded in eliminating Superhumans, at least in this splendid environment, you'll have seen all kinds of women. Coming here won't be a loss."

Ju Zipi covered his face and sighed, "Alright... I'll give it my best."

"Have you guys decided?" asked the Top Bull.

Fan Quan replied, "He stays with you. I hope you don't put him aside. Try to integrate him into your organization as much as possible."

The Top Bull shrugged, "With my secret in your hands, what else can I say? I'll try to accommodate your requests as much as possible."

"So... you really think of yourself as a Cowherd?" Fan Quan asked.

The Top Bull gave him a puzzled look and said slowly, "Don't your memories influence you? During this period, I often can't tell who I am."

"It's bearable," Fan Quan replied.

He skipped the topic and continued to ask, "How many players are there in this city of Tokyo?"

"Including myself, there are three," said the Top Bull. "We can set a time to meet again, and I'll bring the other two with me. I've been wondering how to contact other players in the world, and you boldly came knocking, which saved me a lot of trouble."

"That's perfect," Fan Quan said without hesitation. "Ju Zipi staying here also counts as adding strength to your team. Otherwise, with only three of you, it would be tough to fight in instances."

"Don't you now have only three people as well?"

"We have our ways," Fan Quan replied.

He thought to himself that once the smuggling ship arrived in Huanjing tomorrow, Huanjing would gain two more players. Of course, one of those players seemed to be a bit off mentally, and whether they could be a fighting force was questionable and would need to be observed for a while before any conclusions could be drawn.

"Well, that's settled then. I need to get back to work," said the Top Bull, pondering for a moment and then slowly rising from the sofa. "Thanks to you, the whole bar needs a renovation today."

"Goodbye."

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Fan Quan gave him a glance and then left the private room with the other three.

"How did I do as a bodyguard?" Ke Mingye asked, putting away his phone.

"You were quite persuasive," said Fan Quan casually.

Ju Zipi turned to look at them and asked anxiously, "So, I'm really not going to get shot here, am I?"

Ke Mingye reassured him, "Don't worry, if something like that really happens, we'll definitely come back to collect your body and blow them all up."

"It's good for you to stay here too, leveling up by racking up kill counts with Anti-Superhuman Organization, you'll develop faster and more safely than other players," Ke Mingye continued.

Fan Quan adjusted his glasses and tucked a book under his arm.

"Okay then, goodbye," Ju Zipi said, stopping in his tracks and smiling.

"Take care."

"Don't die."

"Good luck."

Each of them offered a parting word and then left Black Tengu Host Club. Ju Zipi stood still inside the establishment, watching their silhouettes disappear into the drizzling rain.