"Miss Robin? You look like you could use some help..."
Robin had barely stepped out of the supermarket, lugging a heavy bag, when a voice called out from nearby. It was Zhong Wanhong, the middle-aged man in the black uniform of the Bureau of Anomalous Investigations.
Fatigue lined his face, but he managed a weary smile as he greeted Robin, speaking with a playful tone.
"Perfect," Robin replied without pretense. She strode over to him and thrust the bag into his hands.
Her current body was stronger than she'd expected; she could have managed the trip home herself. But with a willing porter at her disposal, why pass up the opportunity?
"Uh..." The man seemed taken aback by her directness, pausing briefly before accepting the bag and heading toward Robin's current "home."
Robin followed closely behind. After flexing her wrist, she hesitated before speaking. "Actually, I'm not..."
Before Robin could finish speaking, Zhong Wanhong interrupted her, pinching the bridge of his nose with his free hand. "That's not important anymore. What matters is, what's your impression of this world?"
"Um... well, it seems pretty good?"
"You wouldn't do anything to harm it, would you?"
"No, no, absolutely not! How could I? Look at me—I can barely lift a bag!" Robin waved her hands frantically.
A brief silence settled between them, broken only by the rhythmic tapping of their footsteps. After a while, as they reached the residential complex, Zhong Wanhong spoke again. "Do you have any wishes? Or perhaps anything you want to do right now?"
"Wishes..." Robin had only been in this world for less than a day. She couldn't possibly have developed grand aspirations like "protecting the world" or "unraveling the secrets of the Dimensional Rift." Her desires were far more pragmatic. Compared to this unfamiliar world, all she wanted was to return to her own.
Back in her original world, Robin had parents, siblings, friends, and a career just beginning to blossom. She wasn't starting from scratch; she had so much she couldn't bear to leave behind.
I wonder how my parents are doing now. Finding out I died in a car accident... they must be devastated.
Robin didn't subscribe to the "when in Rome" mentality. Her apparent acceptance of her transmigration was simply because she knew she had no choice. She probably couldn't go back. What else could she do but accept it?
Wail, scream, and throw a tantrum? What good would that do?
As for the second part of Zhong Wanhong's question, Robin pondered for a moment before replying, "What I want to do... probably sing."
Completing the System's objectives to unlock her next Identity was the only course of action she could think of, the only thing she could actually do right now.
Soon, they arrived at Robin's new home. Zhong Wanhong placed the bag beside the shoe rack, turned to the girl beside him, and produced two items from his pocket. "Your ID card. I also got you a new SIM card."
"So fast?" Robin blinked in surprise. How long had it been? The efficiency was astonishing.
"In this day and age," Zhong Wanhong said, "efficiency is paramount. If we dawdled every time a disaster struck, people would be dead before help arrived. Anything related to Dimensional Rifts is handled with extreme efficiency now, and you're no exception."
Robin took the two items and immediately examined her new ID card. The most striking feature was the photograph on the left: a girl with long, pale blue hair sat rigidly upright, staring straight ahead.
It looked like the photo had been taken the moment she sat down in the interrogation room.
On the right were her details:
Name: Robin; Gender: Female; Date of Birth: June 30, 2027.
"2027?" Robin murmured in confusion.
"I just filled in a random birthday for you," Zhong Wanhong explained. "According to this date, today's your 18th birthday. I hope you don't mind? You don't look much older, and girls always want to appear younger, don't they?"
After all, during the interrogation, Robin's default identity had still been Qin Chuming. Zhong Wanhong hadn't bothered to ask about her actual age.
"Um..." Robin felt incredibly awkward. Now that Zhong Wanhong knew she wasn't Qin Chuming, did he assume she had always been a girl?
But explaining would only make things more awkward, wouldn't it?
Robin reluctantly lowered her head to examine the ID card. The address matched her current residence, followed by a long string of digits—her new identification number.
Seeing that Robin didn't object, Zhong Wanhong pulled a pink teddy bear keychain from his pocket and handed it to her. "Happy birthday," he said. "If there's nothing else, I'll be going."
Despite saying this, he couldn't resist adding before leaving, "The bank card I gave you will automatically deposit ten thousand yuan monthly for living expenses—a government subsidy for special individuals like you."
"If the money isn't enough, or if you need anything else, don't hesitate to contact me. I'll do my best to help. Just... please don't resort to illegal activities because of financial struggles!"
"I won't," Robin replied wearily.
"That's all that matters," Zhong Wanhong said, leaving his phone number with Robin before turning to leave. But before she could close the door, he paused after only a few steps and turned back. "One more thing you should know: the Bureau of Anomalous Investigations won't trust you completely right away. You'll be under surveillance for a while."
"Of course, this isn't surveillance in the traditional sense. Rest assured, there are no cameras or hidden devices in this house. The Bureau will simply track your movements—where you go after leaving home—to prevent anything undesirable from happening. I hope you understand."
"Mm," Robin nodded. Only then did Zhong Wanhong finally depart.
Once the door was closed, Robin let out a sigh of relief. Zhong Wanhong's earlier rambling had given her the strong impression of an elder cautioning a younger relative. Still, she could clearly see his genuine concern for her.
Taking a pair of plain blue slippers from the bag, Robin carried her phone and SIM card to the living room to charge her device.