Unnecessary, Yet Joyful Things... Taking Group Photos

As the system notification sound rang out, the light barrier blocking everyone's path disappeared.

Qin Luo noticed a mini-map appearing in the top-left corner of his panel.

The map was divided into three lanes, with a jungle in the middle filled with wild monsters and resource points.

"Miss Su, let's go mid."

"Ah, Dean Qin, aren’t you going to support me as the ADC?"

"Shut up. Go help the jungler take the red buff."

"Oh... So I get the red buff at the start, huh..."

Arriving in the mid-lane, Qin Luo immediately hid in the bushes, waiting for an opportunity.

His opponent, Yan Qiuyue, arrived late—still pondering which items to buy earlier.

Standing under her tower, she smugly called out to Su Muwan, "Wanwan, don’t expect me to go easy on you! MOBA games are my specialty!"

"Hmph, just wait till I take first blood. Then we’ll see who’s laughing."

Su Muwan rolled her eyes dramatically and stepped forward to auto-attack the minions.

Not one to back down, Yan Qiuyue quickly moved in to last-hit as well.

But the moment she stepped just a few paces beyond her tower—

Qin Luo suddenly lunged from the bushes.

With a flick of his fan, a powerful whirlwind swept up both Yan Qiuyue and the minions, knocking them together.

Seizing the chance, Su Muwan unleashed her attacks, leveling up rapidly by hitting both the enemy and the minions.

Before Yan Qiuyue could even react, the moment the whirlwind ended—

Su Muwan’s newly unlocked skill froze her solid, leaving her helpless.

"Qin Luo! You ambushed me!" Yan Qiuyue shrieked, but it was too late.

Su Muwan went all out, spamming her abilities as icy spikes rained down on Yan Qiuyue and the surrounding minions.

Shivering from the freeze, Yan Qiuyue couldn’t fight back as her health bar plummeted.

"Wanwan, you’re taking revenge on me!"

"You two are so sneaky!!" she wailed.

"Tch. All’s fair in love and war—no mercy for friends in esports!"

"Besides, all’s fair in war, Qiuyue—evil cackle!"

Su Muwan smugly landed the final auto-attack.

[FIRST BLOOD!]

With Su Muwan securing first blood, the snowball effect began.

Qin Luo used his skills to group enemies perfectly, assisting Su Muwan in locking them down and dominating the battlefield.

Meanwhile...

Feng Yueke (Level 2) stared blankly at their empty jungle. "Qin Luo, why are there no monsters in our jungle?"

Qin Luo (Level 6) glanced at the two buff auras beneath Su Muwan’s feet (Level 8) and coughed lightly. "The enemy took them."

As time passed, the match reached the mid-game, and the gold gap between the teams widened.

Thanks to Su Muwan’s exceptional mechanics and Qin Luo’s support, their team steadily gained the upper hand.

Yan Qiuyue’s squad, relentlessly pressured by Su Muwan, found no opening for a comeback.

In the end, Qin Luo’s team pushed straight to the enemy base and destroyed their Nexus.

[VICTORY!]

Post-match stats:

[Qin Luo: 0/0/33 (6.0)]

[Su Muwan: 33/0/0 (16.0)]

...

.........

"Yesss! We won!"

Back in the champion select lobby, Su Muwan grinned triumphantly. "See that? I hard-carried this game!"

She pointed at the scoreboard and teased, "Qin Luo, you freeloader!"

"Yeah, yeah. The young miss is the best."

Qin Luo suppressed a laugh as he rubbed her head, casually opening a prize draw page and placing it in front of Su Muwan: "Here, Young Mistress, take a spin."

The latter snorted lightly. "With a 99% chance, how could I not get the skin?"

And then.

[Congratulations! You’ve won a ¥300 discount voucher for study materials—spend ¥3000 to save ¥300!]

Su Muwan: ?

Leaving the entertainment lounge.

The group caught the aroma of grilled food wafting through the air.

Su Muwan turned to Qin Luo, blinking expectantly.

Her meaning was obvious.

This time, Qin Luo definitely understood. He grinned. "Let’s go try it."

Su Muwan giggled.

The late-night open-air food street was fragrant with cumin and spice.

Everyone gathered around a long table laden with freshly grilled skewers.

"Young Mistress, try this."

Qin Luo handed Su Muwan a sugar-glazed grilled corn cob. "The boss says it’s their specialty—everyone raves about it."

Su Muwan took a bite, the sweet juices bursting on her tongue, so hot she gasped. "Hot, hot, hot! But so good!!"

"Qin Luo, you try it too."

"Of course, Young Mistress."

"Wait—let me feed you."

"Oh? Is this imported corn or something?"

"What imported—Qin Luo! You’re so gross!"

Laughter and chatter filled the street-side barbecue stall.

Xiao Tian gnawed wildly on a squid skewer.

Wang Yong, in high heels, chased Jiang Xueqi to return the raw ingredients she’d snatched from the vendor.

Feng Yueke, in turn, chased Wang Yong to stop her from chasing.

Meanwhile, Qin Luo and Su Muwan sat feeding each other, under a starry sky where clouds drifted like a flowing sea.

Suddenly.

Su Muwan nudged Qin Luo, munching as she asked, "Qin Luo, are you really okay with spoiling me like this today?"

Normally, Qin Luo wouldn’t let her indulge so freely—snacking on chips, gaming, then feasting on barbecue.

She’d seen that "kindly" expression he wore when scolding her for overeating.

"Because…"

Qin Luo turned to her, wiping a crumb from her lips. "The Young Mistress needs these things."

"The Dao, fate, destiny, war… We already carry too many 'must-dos.'"

"But sometimes…"

He glanced at their friends roughhousing in the distance, then gently ruffled Su Muwan’s hair.

Smiling, he said, "These 'unnecessary but joyful things'—that’s what living feels like."

The moment those words left his mouth.

Thump! Thump!

Su Muwan’s heart skipped a beat.

Around her, laughter and chasing blended with the scent of cumin and the night breeze, weaving into a soft tapestry in her mind.

Whoosh!

She suddenly yanked Qin Luo’s collar, pecking his lips amid the smoky air.

He kept smiling, unfazed.

"Pfft… As if some Qin Luo…"

"Could say something that cool."

Blushing under his amused gaze, Su Muwan huffed, "Next time, I’ll be the one saying stuff like that!"

Just then.

"Wanwan! Qin Luo! Over here!"

Yan Qiuyue’s voice cut through the crowd as she waved a brand-new camera, its price tag still attached.

"Quit being lovey-dovey and come here already!"

She called again, urgency in her tone.

Su Muwan and Qin Luo turned simultaneously to see Yan Qiuyue standing not far away.

Holding the camera that glowed with a spiritual light in his hand, he pointed the lens at them.

Alicia grabbed someone and said, "Look who I've brought!"

Everyone looked over.

There stood a girl in a white dress, hugging a chubby white dog.

Su Bailian hugged Boqi tightly, looking speechless. "Come on, why do you have to drag me here too?"

She was shocked.

She had deliberately stayed at the Su family's place a bit longer just to avoid running into Su Muwan.

What the heck?

Can she run into these two "living Buddhas" no matter where she goes?

"Hehe, what did you say?"

Alicia pushed her glasses and looked at Su Bailian with a smiling face.

"Eep! Of course... I was just joking..."

Su Bailian shrank her neck.

She was most afraid of Alicia, Su Muwan's good bestie who could see through her true nature.

Most importantly, this woman had fleeced her of a fortune before, which had made her heart ache so much.

"Come here quickly! Let's take a group photo together!"

Su Muwan blinked her eyes, and the blush on her cheeks hadn't completely faded yet.

She glanced at Qin Luo, who nodded with a smile, took her hand, and walked towards Yan Qiuyue.

"Come on, everyone, stand still!"

Yan Qiuyue directed, "Sister Zhu Lan, you stand here! Alicia and the 'dead green tea', you two stand over there!"

"I'm not a 'dead green tea'..."

"Xiao Tian, stop running around and stand here!"

Everyone lined up according to her instructions, with smiles on their faces.

Zhu Lan and Shen Fei stood on one side, Huang Lingyu and Huang Lingfeng squeezed in the middle, Jiang Xueqi and Xiao Tian stood in the front row, and Wang Yong and Jiang Zixuan stood in the back row.

"Wanwan, Qin Luo, you two stand in the middle!"

Yan Qiuyue pointed at the empty space in front of the camera and said with a smile.

Su Muwan walked over shyly.

After all, in her previous life, she had never had such an experience of taking a group photo.

Qin Luo followed behind her, still holding her hand.

The two stood in the middle. Su Muwan tilted her head slightly and leaned on Qin Luo's shoulder, with a shy smile on her face.

"Are you ready?"

Yan Qiuyue adjusted the angle of the camera to make sure everyone could be captured in the frame.

"Ready!"

Everyone replied in unison.

Hearing this, Yan Qiuyue immediately ran back to the group. "Let's count to three together!"

Everyone did as she said and shouted in unison.

"Three!"

"Two!"

"One... Cheese!"

The shutter clicked automatically. At the moment when the flash went off, everyone's smiles were frozen in the picture.

It was so beautiful, so intoxicating.

At least for Su Muwan, she felt that she would never forget the feeling of this moment.