After dinner, the children excitedly packed their luggage. They were about to have a new home!
Chen Tiannuo watched their joyful faces, a slight smile curling on his lips. 'This is how children are supposed to be.'
"Brother Tenno, where are we going?" a little girl ran up to him and asked.
"Do you know the waterfall inside the forest?"
"That place? I remember it was a cave, right?" another girl scratched her head.
"That was before. I remodeled it a bit—now it's livable." Chen Tiannuo added, "I even built a classroom inside~"
"So, we'll be having class in that classroom?"
"That's right. No more outdoor classes from now on."
Chen Tiannuo led the group of little ones toward the base.
Nothing really happened along the way, except the youngest sister took a tumble. She wasn't hurt—just got her clothes dirty.
"Ugh~ My clothes got dirty…"
Chen Tiannuo glanced at her, picked her up and said, "Why so careless? It's okay if your clothes are dirty. I bought a bunch of children's clothes, you can change into a clean one later."
"Okay~"
Not long after, they arrived outside the base. As for how concealed the base was now… well, after so many trips, Chen Tiannuo had widened the small path to five meters, so he could drive in and out for deliveries and such.
Speaking of which, that Kagetane Hiruko hadn't stirred up any trouble at the base.
Chen Tiannuo brought the children to the dormitory and let them choose their own rooms. But really, it didn't matter which one they picked—he had bought identical white beds for all, so there wasn't much to fight over.
The dorms were standard four-person rooms: bed on top, desk below. Beside the desk was a wardrobe stocked with some clothes. As for the size… he could just modify it using the Foundry—handcrafting everything would be way too troublesome and time-consuming.
Naturally, his own room wasn't here. It was next to the laboratory. Back when he was studying [The Scourge], he got so exhausted he ended up sleeping on a lab chair. So now, with his room right beside the lab, it was just more convenient for resting.
Before long, the children had chosen their rooms.
Chen Tiannuo gathered them together and said, "The classroom is right next door. Starting tomorrow morning, we'll have lessons. Go to bed early tonight."
"Okay~"
"My room is right over there." He pointed to a room across the hall. "If anything happens, come find me."
The children looked over and nodded. "Got it."
"Alright, go get some rest."
With that, Chen Tiannuo left and returned to his own room.
There wasn't much in his room—just a bed, a desk, a chair, and a wardrobe. That was it.
Chen Tiannuo lay down on the bed and fell into a deep sleep.
Meanwhile, far away, Rentaro and his group were still tirelessly searching for any trace of Kagetane Hiruko.
The next day.
Chen Tiannuo woke up full of energy. Just as he was about to get up, he sensed something off. Turning his head, he saw Donghui lying beside him.
"Donghui, why are you on my bed again?" Chen Tiannuo said helplessly, gently pinching her cheek. "Time to get up—I'm going to make breakfast."
"Mmm~" Donghui opened her eyes sleepily, hugged Chen Tiannuo tighter, nuzzled against him, and reluctantly let go.
'Why has Donghui been so clingy lately?'
Chen Tiannuo thought for a long time but couldn't figure it out, so he just tossed the thought aside.
"Forget it. Time to cook."
He went to the kitchen. With so many kids to feed, he didn't make anything too complex—just fried an egg for each one, poured a cup of milk, and added two slices of bread.
By the time breakfast was ready, more than twenty minutes had passed.
Donghui showed up beside him.
"Donghui, just in time. Come, help me wake the others," Chen Tiannuo said as he took off his apron.
"No need, they're already up." Donghui pointed behind her.
Chen Tiannuo turned around. Sure enough—they were all there.
Well, no need to say more—time to eat.
The kids sat quietly around the dining table, eating their breakfast in peace.
Bored, Chen Tiannuo pulled out his phone to see if there were any missions.
["Rentaro was seriously injured and is recovering in the hospital"]
???
He immediately called Kisara Tendo.
"Hello, Tenno. What's up?"
"Rentaro's injured? What happened?"
"Last night, he ran into Kagetane Hiruko. Got stabbed through the stomach. He's in ** Hospital now."
"Got it. Do you need me to come over?" Chen Tiannuo asked.
"Can you? And bring Enju too, please," Kisara Tendo said.
"Alright." Chen Tiannuo hung up.
He turned to Enju and said, "Enju, come with me to the hospital. Rentaro's hurt."
"What?!" Enju Aihara shot to her feet.
"Yeah, you heard right. He's at ** Hospital," Chen Tiannuo said, grabbing her just as she was about to run off. "We'll go together. I'll drive."
"Okay…"
After breakfast, Chen Tiannuo handed out several textbooks to each child.
"Go ahead and study for now. I have some business to take care of."
"Bye, Brother Tenno!"
"Mhm, see you."
Chen Tiannuo got in the car and drove off with Enju Aihara toward ** Hospital.
They sped down the road—
"Finally… made it…" Enju Aihara got out and immediately threw up, spewing a rainbow.
Watching her vomit rainbows, Chen Tiannuo couldn't help but say, "It wasn't that fast."
"That fast? Ugh…" Enju Aihara swore never to urge him to drive faster again.
Seeing she was almost done, Chen Tiannuo handed her a bottle of water.
"Thanks."
"Let's go. I already asked where Rentaro's room is," Chen Tiannuo said, leading the way.
They were almost there, but Enju Aihara still felt nervous—afraid Rentaro might already be gone.
Chen Tiannuo opened the door and entered first.
Immediately, he spotted Kisara Tendo slumped over Rentaro's bedside.
'This guy really is popular with women.'
Chen Tiannuo walked up and gently tapped her shoulder. "Boss, I brought some breakfast. Want some?"
Kisara Tendo, startled awake by the tap, still groggy, took the bag instinctively.
"Thanks."
"No problem. When can he recover?"
"Not sure, but at least a few days of rest…"
Rentaro stirred at their voices and slowly said, "How long was I out?"
"You've been asleep for over ten hours."
He touched his arm—he couldn't feel a thing.
"Right. The government sent us some intel. The box Kagetane Hiruko took—it contains a catalyst to summon Stage V."
"Stage V?!" Rentaro exclaimed.
Chen Tiannuo frowned. "Why didn't they tell us when it was taken? Why now?"
"I don't know either…" Kisara Tendo shook her head.
Chen Tiannuo was speechless. He said with a sigh, "Looks like I have to step in."
"I'll go tonight. For now, I need to find a few teachers to teach the kids. See you."
Without looking back, Chen Tiannuo walked out.