Clown Game
Chapter 415 - 393: One Month Later

Chapter 415: Chapter 393: One Month Later

A month’s time is very short, so short that a new anime had only updated a few episodes, so short that a game had not been completed, so short that summer homework had not yet been started, and the scenes from the day vacation began seemed only separated by one night, so short it seemed like the rent just paid was due again. At the same time, a month’s time is also very long, long enough for a heartbroken person to find new love, long enough for a suddenly wealthy person to end up on the streets, long enough for a corpse to rot into a maggot’s nest, long enough to make a city barren, overturn the world, long enough to forever dissipate someone in the chaos of time.

One month ago, on a certain day, K city welcomed its first snow, the snowflakes were tiny and frail, melting into water-like crystals upon touching the ground, being splashed away by passing vehicles, disappearing in the noise.

That day, Lin Fan received a pen, all black, with no brand name; it was wrapped carelessly in a box, left at the door of his seaside cottage, unmarked and without an address—no one knew how it had appeared there...

Along with the pen, there was also a card, black, depicting a phoenix? Or perhaps a crow, in any case, a type of bird, which was spreading its wings, anthropomorphically gripping in its beak... a flower?

The artwork on this card was really crude, more like a random doodle, but still, a strong wave of shock and sadness surged in Lin Fan’s heart, so much so that it compelled him to want to shout or burst into tears, yet he did not know why.

It seemed as if something had dissipated in his mind.

That day, a nurse’s phone mysteriously displayed an anonymous blank number, that day, a lot of garbled data appeared in A-Ming’s database, that day, the coffee shop owner Little Yu spilled a cup of milk tea, that day, a name disappeared from the Dead Sea Script, that day, a volcano erupted on a small island along the equator, ejecting a giant covered in lava and blood from the crater’s mouth, that day, many things vanished, many things changed, that day, a person was forever forgotten, with no one knowing who he/she was or what they had done, just like many years past.

...

In the sky, above the clouds, a common 737 airplane flew by. Inside the cabin, a flight attendant was offering drinks to all passengers, a service that since its inception had oddly given customers a sense of unexplained superiority.

"Hello sir, may I offer you a beverage?" the 20-year-old trained voice was soothing... though sometimes too gentle to be fully clear.

On the seat, a tall German, his blond hair and straight figure made him stand out strikingly among a crowd of greasy corpulence.

"Do you have alcohol?" he asked.

The flight attendant apologetically responded, "I’m sorry, we only have juice, cola, and water."

"Then I don’t need anything," the German man said with a hint of resignation, and then smacked his lips, seemingly trying to savor some taste of alcohol from his own saliva.

This behavior erased all the flight attendant’s favorable impression of him, so she turned to another passenger sitting inside.

"Hello sir, what drink would you like?"

On the seat, an old man over 50, his build a stark contrast to the tall man beside him, and he was wearing a leather apron typical of a factory, with what seemed like oil stains on it.

"No, I don’t need anything," he shook his head and said, his hands tightly gripping the armrests, looking extremely nervous.

Perhaps it was his age, along with a facial expression resembling that of someone flying for the first time, that made the flight attendant somewhat concerned, so she kindly reminded him.

"Sir, our flight still has 5 hours to go, during such a long time you might feel thirsty..."

"No no, I really don’t need it," the passenger interrupted, saying, "Apparently when there are sudden changes in air pressure at high altitudes, having too much water in your bladder can cause it to burst..."

The flight attendant professionally flashed a smile and explained, "Sir, our flight is very safe. The situation you mentioned will not happen, so please rest assured."

However, the man clearly did not want to talk any further, and leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes.

Seeing this, the flight attendant could only sigh helplessly in her heart and continued walking forward.

In the seats ahead were two young people, a man and a woman. The man was dressed in a hoodie with the hood pulled over his head, skillfully twirling a black pen in his hand. The woman sitting next to him was fast asleep, her snores faintly audible. Her clothes looked unwashed for a long time, with water stains visible on the collar.

"Excuse me..."

Before she could finish, "Just a glass of water will do," said the boy, indicating that the woman next to him did not need any beverages.

The flight attendant steadily handed over a glass of water and soon moved to the next row of seats.

"Hello sir, please... uh..." She suddenly paused mid-sentence, startled because the passenger in front of her was avidly staring at her... or rather, at the drinks in the cart. His face was rather shocking—not only were his cheeks elongated and his skin pale, but the scars at the corners of his mouth were unavoidably frightening at first glance.

At this moment, the flight attendant realized her reaction was unprofessional and quickly presented a gentle face, "May I get you a drink?"

"Hmm—" the passenger drew out his response, "Orange juice, it looks sweeter," he said thoughtfully, his voice sounding a bit shrill.

"Certainly, sir," she said politely and handed him the orange juice.

"Oh, do you have sugar here?" he asked just after receiving the beverage.

"Yes, would you like some coffee as well?"

"No no, just sugar is fine..." he replied.

"" The flight attendant paused briefly again, but despite her thoughts, she still handed over a few sugar cubes to this peculiar person. When she asked the man wearing the baseball cap if he needed anything, the previous passenger quickly interjected, "Ah, him, just get him the same as mine, sugar and all."

The man in the baseball cap frowned unhappily but did not object, so the flight attendant had to do as requested, and watched as the scarred man threw sugar into the orange juice and gulped down his glass. He then brought the other glass in front of himself.

The flight attendant continued pushing the cart forward, wondering why there were so many odd people on the plane today.

Just then,

"Beautiful lady, I suggest you stop serving drinks to others, because people often wet their pants when they are scared, and falling from a high altitude with water in your stomach or bladder can be really uncomfortable..."

The sharp voice came from behind her.