"Onii-chan, slow down~ Don't be so impatient~ It's so hot~ This one won't do! It's too big!"

Ignoring Tangerine’s pleas, I let out a primal roar, indulging in the most fundamental of human desires—hunger.

"Meat! Grilled meat! …Ugh! Hot, hot, HOT—*&%$#@!"

The inevitable consequence of stuffing my mouth with scorching-hot grilled meat? Choking. Not only that, but my tongue was on fire.

"I told you to cut the beef into smaller pieces before eating, didn't I?"

Tangerine lectured as she handed me a cup of cola. I tilted my head back and chugged it down in one go, letting out a satisfying burp.

"Commander, your sacrifice saved my stomach. If you ever need anything in the future, just say the word! I'd go through blades and flames for you!"

Zhao Zhao, now looking well-fed and glistening with oil, solemnly swore his loyalty to me. I wanted nothing more than to slice him up and toss him onto the grill for a nice medium-rare cook—but I doubt a mountain gorilla’s meat would be edible.

"Then move aside first! You're blocking my access to the meat!"

Once everyone else had eaten their fill, it was finally my turn to grill for myself.

Since I had eaten a late breakfast of stir-fried noodles, I initially thought I wouldn't be that hungry. But after enduring the torment of watching others feast while I stood by, my stomach had already swiftly digested those noodles into nothingness.

Haitang even had the audacity to call it "hunger marketing."

"Boss, grill this too."

Haitang disappeared for a while and returned with a large platter of beef.

One glance was enough to tell me—this was no ordinary beef!

The marbled fat was evenly distributed, forming a delicate frost-like pattern. The slices were thick and plump, their red hues gleaming under the light.

"Premium Wagyu beef, a reward just for you."

She actually went out of her way to buy such expensive meat just for me… In that instant, all my grievances and complaints vanished into thin air.

"All hail Haitang-sama!"

The barbecue lasted for over an hour, and by the time we left the cave, it was already 1:30 PM.

Even so, there was still plenty of time left in the afternoon—much more than in the morning. Determined to make up for the fun I had missed earlier, I was ready to dive into every attraction I could.

Since my adorable little sister Tangerine was bound to me, our group arrangement shifted a bit.

Haitang didn’t plan to stick with me. Instead, she and Yang Qi dragged along a near-comatose Xiao Cangyu—who had been rendered lifeless after her game console ran out of battery—on a mission to both enjoy the attractions and hunt down Bei Qiaojue.

Brother Feng Wu initially wanted to tag along, but one glare from Haitang sent him slinking back to his chair. After all, their little girls’ group didn’t want a scruffy, unshaven man trailing behind them.

Defeated, Feng Wu slumped into a lounge chair. Yan Liuzhuan gave him a comforting pat on the shoulder before taking a seat beside him.
Were these two quiet men really planning to spend the entire afternoon just sitting around like this?

Rinka hesitated between following me or Yan Liuzhuan but eventually chose to join my group.

What I didn’t expect was that Zhao Zhao also tagged along.

"I'm shocked. Why aren't you sneaking off to the deep water zone to ogle swimsuit-clad big sisters?"

"What do you mean 'ogle'? That sounds so rude. I call it 'discreet observation'! Besides, I ate too much at lunch—if I go diving now, I might just throw up."

Hearing Zhao Zhao’s shameless defense, Tangerine snorted in disgust. Clearly, she still didn’t like him. She darted to my other side, putting as much distance between them as possible.

Faced with this blatant rejection, Zhao Zhao awkwardly scratched his head and whispered to me:

"Commander… does Tangerine hate me?"

"You’re only realizing this now? She didn’t like you even when she was still a cat."

"I feel like she hates me even more now."

To avoid repeating any attractions Tangerine had already played in the morning, we decided to explore in the opposite direction.

The deep-water pool that Zhao Zhao had previously visited was also on the east side, where the attractions were more physically challenging and competitive.

One of them was "Path of the Brave"—a water-based obstacle course similar to those seen on TV. Ten floating platforms were arranged in a row, each connected by various tricky mechanisms leading to the finish line.

The park even put up a 500-yuan gift card at the goal, showing just how confident they were in the course’s difficulty.

"Let's give it a shot."

"Commander, are you sure you wanna play something like this?"

"Money makes the world go round. Who knows? I might actually make it through!"

Since it was an open and transparent attraction, we were able to observe the mechanics while waiting in line.

Although there were more than a dozen people ahead of us, the line moved quickly… mainly because every single contestant before us fell before reaching the fourth platform.

Tangerine was the first from our group to go. As a catgirl, her tail granted her extraordinary balance, allowing her to easily surpass the fourth stage. However, the fifth platform turned out to be a complete trap—the moment she stepped on it, the entire thing tilted 90 degrees, sending her plunging into the water.

Then it was my turn. As the protagonist, surely I—

—fell into the water at the second obstacle, a rolling log.

…Okay, yeah, I kinda expected that. My physical abilities were just that bad.

I clambered out of the water, joining Tangerine in watching the next challenger: our so-called ace, Zhao Zhao.

For a mountain gorilla like him, jumping, climbing, and dodging should have been a piece of cake. His muscles weren’t just for show—they were earned through years of playing basketball. Stability? Flexibility? He had them both.

At least, that’s what we thought.

On the third platform, he suddenly yelled, "It's just a rock! Watch me push it back with my Gundam strength!" and tried to stop a giant swinging hammer with his bare hands.

Needless to say, he was instantly sent flying into the water.

"What the hell was that?! Just dodge it!"

"If the platform weren’t so slippery, I totally could’ve stopped it!"

"WHY would you even want to stop it?!"

Surprisingly, it was Rinka who performed the best, making it all the way to the seventh platform—a monkey bar section requiring challengers to swing across. Unfortunately, her grip strength wasn’t enough, and she slipped into the water.

"Wow, Rinka, I didn't know you were so athletic!"

"I'm okay, I guess… I just don't want too much muscle."

Zhao Zhao, the muscle cultist, immediately took offense.

"Why does everyone hate muscles?! Muscles are amazing! They never betray your efforts! As long as you train diligently, the God of Muscles will bless you!"

Tangerine’s tail bristled as she snapped, "Oh, shut up! What use is a musclehead who falls on the third platform?!"

…Wait.

Did my cute little Tangerine just call third-round failures "useless"…?

Orange, my dear sister, did you forget that your beloved Onii-chan fell in round two?!

Since watching others flail around was surprisingly entertaining, we stuck around to watch more of the next challengers give it a shot. And, yep—just another string of poor souls who couldn’t make it past the third platform. We were just about to leave when...

…she showed up.

The one on Haitang's bounty list—Bei Qiaojue. A girl who, despite being one herself, went around charming other girls left and right. She even skipped the barbecue for it.

“It’s Sis Qiaojue! If it’s her, she can totally make it to the end!”

Tangerine waved excitedly from the sidelines, and Bei Qiaojue noticed, waving back with a dazzling, toothy grin.

So blinding. That’s the radiance of a true harem queen!

With a casual flick, she stripped off the shirt draped over her shoulders and tossed it to her two companions, revealing a sculpted, athletic body clad in a sleek black bikini.

Rinka, clearly stunned by her physique, murmured to himself, “I guess a little muscle wouldn’t look too bad.”

She bent down, stretched her legs, and did a quick warm-up at the start line. That playful grin vanished, replaced by a focused, serious gaze.

She bounded over the launchpad, breezed past the rolling log, danced around the pendulum hammer, and scaled the flip platform like she was born to do this… blazing her way to the ninth stage with no sign of slowing.

Damn, this girl’s smooth. Compared to her, me—the supposed main character—might as well be background scenery.

The final challenge before the finish was brutal: scale a steep incline under the blast of a high-pressure water jet, using only a dangling rope.

A pure test of strength and willpower.

Qiaojue, who had kept her cool the whole way, was now flushed red, teeth clenched as she fought her way up, step by painful step. But the closer she got to the source of the jet, the stronger the blast became.

There was a sizeable crowd watching, yet the whole place had gone dead quiet. Everyone was holding their breath, eyes locked on the short-haired girl braving the torrent. Not a single word was spoken, as if one sound might break her focus.

The only noise? My own involuntary gulp.

At last, Qiaojue overcame the final blast, powering up the incline and flopping onto the summit—utterly drained but victorious.

The crowd erupted in thunderous applause, like a hero had returned from slaying a dragon.

She was the first to beat the course since Water World’s soft opening. Her prize? A whopping 5,000 yuan shopping card.

Only one winner in all this time? Okay… maybe me wiping out at the second platform wasn’t that shameful after all.

Prize in hand, Qiaojue strolled over with her two girls in tow.

“You were amazing, Sis Qiaojue!”

Tangerine practically launched herself into Qiaojue’s arms and rubbed against her affectionately. She didn’t mind at all and looked like she was already used to it. She even looped an arm around Tangerine’s waist without missing a beat.

“I saw you make it to the fourth platform, Little Tangerine. That was impressive!”

I caught Tangerine’s tail flicking excitedly—uh oh. Is this playboy trying to steal my little sister too?

Qiaojue then turned to me, pinched my arm, poked my stomach, and even brushed her fingers along my chin.

“Am I a cat to you?” I grumbled, pulling my head away.

“Chang Kai-chan, your body’s way too weak. You should really train more~”

“I know I’m in bad shape, thanks. And can you not call me Chang Kai-chan?”

“Then… Lingmeng-chan?”

“….”

Left speechless, she just looked even more smug. She ruffled my hair like some suave older sister… despite being a year younger than me!?

“But wow, that last obstacle really was scary,” she added, visibly shaken at the memory.

“That water pressure… almost blasted my swimsuit off.”

……

Can I still switch timelines?