Lin Chen had just finished washing up when he heard a knock on the door.

Who could it be so late at night? Could it be those guys from the Black Cloud gang?

He opened the door and saw Vivian standing outside, her gaze lowered.

"Hey, Vivian, what's wrong? Weren't you at Bonnie's? Is something wrong this late at night?"

Vivian shook her head.

"Master, Vivian cannot help Master in battle. Does Master think... Vivian is useless?" Her emerald-like eyes welled up with moisture.

"Of course not. It's because I am stronger than Vivian that I can always protect you." Lin Chen comforted her with a smile.

"Thank you, Master."

After hearing Lin Chen's answer, the girl bowed and quickly left the doorway, disappearing into the depths of the corridor.

Why would she suddenly ask such a question?

Perhaps it was because she found out about the existence of that collar?

No, Vivian didn't seem surprised at the time. She must have known about the collar for a long time.

How could he abandon her just because of that?

Lin Chen closed the door and lay on the bed, staring at the ceiling, lost in thought.

As expected, the books were right. Girls' thoughts are complicated. He must pay more attention to Vivian's emotions.

But one thing will not change. He will always stand in front of Vivian and never let her rush to the front lines just to give her "meaning".

Since he has this power...

He will never be like the Puppet Masters in this world, letting Vivian fight in the front and getting hurt in his place.

He will never let Vivian suffer that tragic fate. He must find a way to remove this collar, no matter how powerful the forces protecting this secret are in this world!

It's just a broken collar. Two years is enough time for him to find a solution.

With these thoughts in mind, Lin Chen gradually fell asleep.

When he woke up, he vaguely felt a figure in front of him.

His cheeks suddenly turned red.

"Vivian?"

The golden-haired, green-eyed puppet maid was standing by his bed, leaning down to look at him.

From the slightly lowered neckline of her maid outfit, he could see the curves that belonged to a young girl, as well as the emerging contours.

Cough, this... this is too stimulating!

"Good morning, Master," Vivian said.

"What are you..."

"Vivian was waiting for Master to wake up, but didn't want to disturb Master's sleep. So I waited here."

Vivian straightened up and handed Lin Chen a warm towel to wipe his face and wake up.

"It's still warm."

Lin Chen was surprised. After wiping his face, he handed the towel back.

"Yes, once the temperature gets too cold, Vivian prepares a new one to ensure that Master can feel the most comfortable as soon as he wakes up."

"Um... there's no need for that."

Lin Chen sat up and realized that a certain part of his body was exposed due to the morning's circumstances... He quickly covered it with the blanket.

Vivian noticed Lin Chen's actions and her cheeks turned slightly red.

"That is a normal phenomenon, Master doesn't need to... to avoid me on purpose. If Master needs... Vivian can also... help Master with that."

Although she spoke formally, Vivian's cheeks became even redder and her voice softer.

"No, no... I'm not the kind of person who wants Vivian to do that!" Lin Chen quickly denied.

Besides, Vivian already had many misunderstandings about him.

If he were to act impulsively, their relationship would probably be completely distorted.

"Does Master want to have breakfast?"

"Yeah."

Vivian had already set up the food on the small table in the room with a heat-insulated cover to keep it warm and prevent it from getting cold too quickly.

"There's congee with toasted bread slices, as well as apple juice and orange jam." Vivian said. "Congee and toasted bread... I learned from Bonnie. I hope Master likes it."Lin Chen took a sip of barley porridge, the fragrance of the barley grains had just been released from stewing, making the porridge slightly sticky. The toast was baked to a crispy perfection, with a soft and fibrous interior, especially delightful when paired with jam.

"Amazing! Vivian, you're so talented!" Lin Chen exclaimed.

"It's all thanks to Bonny's teaching," Vivian replied. "Cooking isn't difficult if you remember the timing and ingredients. As a puppet maid, I have a precise sense of time."

Vivian looked at Lin Chen in confusion as he handed her a piece of toast spread with jam.

"You probably haven't had breakfast either, Vivian," Lin Chen said, receiving a shake of her head as confirmation of his assumption. "Come and eat with me. It feels a bit strange to eat alone..."

"Yes, master."

Lin Chen couldn't help but feel a slight distance in Vivian's response. He could only take it slowly.

"Hey, kid! Are you ready? The plan for the day starts in the morning. Don't waste this precious time doing strange things with the puppet maid!" The old man shouted downstairs.

Lin Chen sighed helplessly. Of course, he wouldn't do anything strange. He and Vivian went downstairs to find the old man waiting for them.

Bonny took the tray from Vivian and covered her puppet collar with her clothes. Today, she would be in charge of looking after the shop, avoiding unnecessary trouble by not revealing the identity of the puppet.

"By the way, what about those goblin puppets from yesterday? Did you forget them, old man?" Lin Chen asked.

The old man raised his hand and displayed the ring on his finger. "Here they are. It's a space ring that can store items, including puppets. Otherwise, some people's puppets are enormous, and we can't have them trailing us all the time, right?"

"If it's inconvenient for master, Vivian can be summoned from within the space ring when needed," Vivian suggested.

"No... In that case, it would feel like you're just an object. You're my family, Vivian!" Lin Chen replied.

"That's true," Bonny added. "The interior of the space ring is dark, divided into small compartments with transparent walls of magic. Inside, you can only curl up like an object in a corner, unable to move."

"That sounds miserable..."

At that moment, footsteps could be heard from outside the door. Could it be Black Cloud?

Entering the room was a group of puppet masters dressed in robes.

"Which one is Lin Chen?"

"I am," Lin Chen said.

"Congratulations, Mr. Lin Chen. I am here on behalf of the Puppet Master Academy - Bull Town Branch, to invite you to enroll and be ranked as a D-level student."

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