Jin’s minions gathered following the announcement, and many were already giggling at the sight of the Giant Beckoning Panda holding onto the Diamond Panda Medal.
For those who had visited their loved ones in the various worlds, they had been given an additional hour grace period before they had to report to the Instant Lottery Service Instance.
Mr Patsu and Bear Cub One were already checking their mikes while some of the Panda NPCs were used as the backstage crew that coordinated with them to ensure that everything went as per their impromptu plans.
“What are we here for?” Rex yawned as he teleported into the instance the moment he had received the message from the System. He assumed it would be some sort of emergency, so he was surprised to see that it was merely a gathering.
“Ah… Chinese New Year. My, my, it’s been a long time since I had the chance to celebrate it.” Rex thought nostalgically as he saw Pei waving him to take a seat at the front rows.
“Wow, what is happening? Why gather these many people?” Rex asked as he saw the incoming crowd was quickly reaching massive numbers.
“Jin is giving away System Points in the form of a lottery, and there are more System Points to be earned if you participate in the games that Lynn and Qiu Yue are creati – ahem have created.”
“Ah, if I’m not wrong, Lynn’s the girl that cooked for me, right?” Rex’s mood suddenly perked up quite a bit.
“Aren’t you a bit too old for love, Rex?” Pei teased him as she sniggered.
“She just reminds me of my step sister… that’s all.” Rex replied quickly, and suddenly he could feel a familiar vibe behind him.
“Yes, Kraft, my brother. That step sister. Don’t you put any funny ideas into Pei’s head! You’ve caused enough trouble all those centuries back then.” Rex reminded him, and Kraft grabbed his brother by his shoulders.
“As you said, it’s been centuries. Have you still not forgiven me for that incident?” Kraft asked with a low apologetic voice.
“Forgive? You nearly made my step mother go into fits! Everyone around her nearly panicked because of you! Because of you, I had to rush back from the western kingdoms to properly explain to Mother.” Rex exclaimed, and Kraft let go of his Bro’s shoulders and jumped to sit right beside him.
“Surely, it does not help when your step sister was giving mixed signals when you arrived.” Kraft teased his brother once more.
“YES! And who’s fault is that? For putting some of Evon’s experimental ‘medicine’? ” Rex rolled his eyes and somehow reminisced the Chinese New Year gatherings with his old family.
“You know, you don’t really have to stay behind for this gathering thing. I heard from Kiyu that you’ve worked nonstop to reform Demopolis ever since becoming King.” Kraft expressed concern while acknowledging that Rex had changed the Demon Metropolis name into something a little catchy while signifying that they had a new owner.
“I appreciate your concern, but I am fine. If you are so worried about my well being, feel free to help me with some administrative tasks after this is over. For now, allow me to learn what kind of man our master is.” Rex said as this was the best time to observe Jin.
As a diplomat, he had learned that reading non-verbal language was a skill that’s honest to a fault. It could not fool an experienced observer such as him. However, he already gave Jin a plus point when he created this indoor theatre. With thousands of monsters coming happily and amidst the wide smiles and loud laughter spoke volumes of their master.
Rex had already seen Jin’s minions fight bitterly for his cause no matter how small it was, but now he observed how laid-back they had become. There was no argument that the monsters’ treatment also portrayed Jin’s attitude.
“Ehh, testing mike one, two, three. Good, it seems to be working fine. *Ahem* Welcome everyone, please take the seat allocated to you by the system. You are free to change between your pals if you want. Just make sure the exchange is mutual. There is no strict seating for this particular event, except for big guys like Derpy and Mechataur. Your seats are fixed. Also welcome back, Mechataur, glad to see you lively up and running again.” Jin addressed his audience.
Obviously, he was surprised by its appearance and the incidents that had happened during his recovery period. The most notable of them all was when the System reported that Ayse, Weslie and even Rei were combing through the castle which Moloch ordered to transport back to the System’s embrace.
And without a doubt, the System had done a deep scan to ensure that there were no more rats hiding in the castle’s hidden crevices before allowing the science team to take a look at it. And yeah, the Mousefolks were sent in to exterminate the hiding remnants which had even surprised the System, causing it to perform extra scans to ensure that it was entirely clear of rats before they started investigating the ruined castle. (There was no time to capture them for the Spiralling Sewers Instance, since they want to make sure the castle did not crumble any further.)
Nonetheless, Jin felt that Moloch had made the right choice. By taking the floating castle into custody, the science team could not only salvage the Castle Mecha but also thoroughly check whether the rat leaders had left some clue behind. While Gold felt that the Scholars of the North and South might have left fake evidence, Jin believed it was better to have something than nothing to work on.
“What bullshit? What do you mean I have to sit at one location and not move? That is a violation of my-!” Mechataur was about to shout his usual line of protest, but before he could continue to ramble, Niu Lang had already powered it down and had popped it out of the cockpit, apologising to Jin for his partner’s outrage. (The Bull Head was still yapping and complaining non stop that Niu Lang had tied his mouth with a metal chain.)
But the noise did not die down. Soon, the random chatters in the theatre got more boisterous and louder until it was as per the time set by the announcement.
“Alright, guys it’s time for our very first Chinese New Year giveaway! Is anybody excited for it? There will be loads of System Points for the taking and not to mention, some exclusive prizes which our Master, Jin has managed to convince the System to give out. So, are you all ready for this?!” Mr Patsu started his welcome message, and everyone in the indoor theatre began to cheer with anticipation.
“Then what are we waiting for? Let’s officially welcome our one and only Master, Xie Jin!” Bear Cub One shouted and another round of furious applause heated up the atmosphere.
Even Jin could feel a warm feeling of fuzziness within his heart when he came out of the stage again, now all dressed so formally for the occasion.
Only his formal attire… was yet another panda suit. (as usual)
