Chapter 1: What Can I Say
Night at Casablanca International Airport—the wind was gentle and the moon was bright.
In front of the boarding gate, a group of figures stood out clearly under the dim yellow light.
The focus of attention was a tall, handsome man with a touch of weariness between his brows—Rango.
Cobb looked at him, a complex emotion welling up in his heart, and sighed softly.
"After you get back to New York, remember to say hello to the kids for me. Also, don't do anything illegal anymore. The money you've earned over the years is enough for you to buy a ranch out West and settle down."
"Ha! Cobb, you underestimate this kid way too much. I bet you anything, this guy Rango will definitely be a regular at the NYPD after he gets back to New York."
"That's right, he's charmed every woman from Rabat to Cairo. Now it's the turn of the girls in New York to fall for him!"
"Hahaha."
Listening to the teasing, Rango shrugged helplessly. After so many years living as an outlaw, what he'd gained besides the millions of dollars in the bank were just these old buddies.
"Hey, why do I only hear you guys saying goodbye to Rango? What about me? Don't you have anything to say to me?"
Just then, a disgruntled voice came from below the crowd. A teddy bear, whose height only reached Rango's knees, was unhappily spreading its paws and looking at everyone.
Seeing this scene, even the somewhat downcast Cobb couldn't help but smile. This was their team's mascot.
"How could we forget you, Ted?"
Cobb bent down and rubbed Ted's furry head, then raised an eyebrow and teased, "But you better be careful. I heard that New York's got its share of trouble. Don't get yourself into a mess on your first day back."
"Ha! Don't worry, Ted, I'm sure the stores in New York have extra-small protection you can use."
"Hahaha."
After everyone finished teasing, Rango smiled and patted Ted's depressed head, then said to Cobb, "It's about time. We should board."
Cobb nodded, waved goodbye to him with the others. "Take care of yourself, and if you can, don't forget to come back and see us."
"Count on it. You guys won't get rid of me that easily."
Rango smiled and punched Cobb's chest twice, nodded to the others behind him, then led Ted toward the boarding gate without looking back.
Just then, a voice suddenly came from behind. Arthur, the dream architect on the team, shouted to him, "Aren't you going to say something, Rango? We don't know when we'll see each other next!"
Rango's steps paused. After a long moment, he slowly turned back and smiled. "Man."
He spread his arms and shook his head with emotion. "What can I say? Rango Out!"
The plane slowly entered the clouds.
In the first-class cabin, Rango adjusted the seat angle, looking at Morocco gradually receding outside the window, an unspeakable melancholy welling up in his heart.
Ever since dropping out of NYU because he couldn't afford the tuition and refused to drown in student loan debt, he'd followed his upperclassman and old neighbor, Cobb, to Africa.
To be honest, when Cobb first approached him, Rango knew his buddy definitely wasn't doing anything legal overseas.
These days, if you wanted to make money legitimately, there were tech startups everywhere in Silicon Valley. Why bother working so hard in Africa to earn cash?
Plus, Cobb's face looked eerily similar to the campus heartthrob's. At first, Rango thought this guy was inviting him to do conflict diamond business.
That's right—Rango was a reincarnated soul. After growing up from infancy, Cobb was the first familiar face he'd encountered.
At first, he thought it was just a coincidence, but after encountering more and more familiar faces later, he realized what kind of world he'd been reborn into.
With a "roll with the punches" attitude, he wasn't too scared or resistant. Besides, speaking frankly... he'd been a huge movie and TV buff in his previous life. Familiar with countless stories and pop culture, he had an advantage in this world that ordinary people couldn't match.
So he straightforwardly accepted the olive branch Cobb extended and went to Africa with the guy.
At least earn some startup capital. Diamonds were still valuable—specifically, certified ones.
As for uncertified diamonds? They weren't worth more than gravel from a Jersey Shore parking lot!
As it turned out, when he arrived, he discovered that the business his brother was doing wasn't diamonds but "dreams"!
Although they were in Africa, the landscape suddenly shifted.
The reason Cobb valued him was twofold: first, because he was his childhood neighbor and knew his background, making him trustworthy; second, he knew Rango was broke, and each member of a dream-theft operation could pull at least hundreds of thousands of dollars, enough to retire after a few years.
At first, Rango thought that after joining the dream-stealing team, he'd be appointed as a dream architect or a forger. However, to his surprise, as soon as he got off the plane, Cobb signed him up for several martial arts classes and hired a live-fire shooting instructor to train him.
He was appointed by Cobb as the Dream Protector on the team. His duty was to eliminate external threats while they were stealing dreams, so their operation could proceed smoothly.
Because of this, he'd developed exceptional skills and precise marksmanship over the years. It could be said that while gaining money, he'd also gained a formidable physique.
"Phew."
Letting out a light breath, Rango pulled down the window shade and lay back on the luxurious seat with mixed emotions.
Ted, beside him, seemed to sense his somewhat low mood, cleared his throat, and said, "Hey, want to hear a joke?"
Rango turned his head to look at the bear and shrugged. "If it starts with 'knock knock,' then forget it."
"Of course not," Ted said, pointing at him with exaggerated flair. "This is definitely my best joke. You'll know once you hear it."
After clearing his throat, he said, "Why did the mute woman wear yoga pants?"
"Hmm."
Taking the water glass handed by the flight attendant, Rango frowned and said, "Because they're comfortable? Easy to move in? For working out?"
"None of the above."
Ted spread his paws and said, "To make it easier for people to read her lips!"
"Pfft."
Rango coughed, patting his chest, and gave Ted an annoyed glance. The bear still looked completely innocent.
Only this guy could come up with such an inappropriate joke.
It was really strange—ever since he'd first met Ted in his childhood, Rango knew exactly what kind of character this seemingly cute doll was.
So in the following years, he'd paid great attention to the bear's moral education, but in the end, Ted still became this smoking, drinking... thing.
Was it a bad influence from the environment?
"Rango."
Ted suddenly asked in a low voice, "How is that thing now? Has it changed?"
At the words, Rango secretly glanced at his palm. The next second, a circular blue pattern appeared.
The entire circle was divided into four parts, depicting a teddy bear, a porcelain doll, a dagger, and a winged dragon respectively.
Except for the ted bear section, which was dim, the other three images glowed blue.
Below this circular pattern, on his wrist, was something resembling a progress bar, showing 99%.
That's right—he was a reincarnated soul with a system.
Of course, this wasn't unusual, but his system couldn't give him items for signing in nor enhance his stamina or speed by adding points.
The instructions were simple: absorb extraordinary energy, fill the progress bar, and then you could start drawing to summon.
After drawing a summon, you could also extract a skill from it for your own use.
As for the initial summons, there were only the four things shown in his palm, and when he first awakened the system, it gave him one free draw opportunity.
Thus, his childhood gained a good bear that smoked, drank, and swore.
However, Rango was actually pretty lucky. Although he didn't manage to draw the winged dragon, at least he didn't draw the porcelain doll.
Although he didn't know what the summon represented by Porcelain Doll was, having a bear by his side was better than a creepy doll, right?
"Still the same."
Rango said, "It's been years, stuck at 99 and won't budge. I don't know what company manufactured this system."
Shaking his head, he closed his palm to retract the system, then took out a brand-new photo from his jacket pocket.
This had been sent from a children's home in upstate New York a few days ago.
In the photo, a girl with a delicate and pretty appearance but a hint of shadow between her brows came into view.
Emma.
This was the child left behind by Rango's sister, who'd died in childbirth. In other words, Rango was her biological uncle.
Just a few days ago, Rango's brother-in-law had died unexpectedly at home under mysterious circumstances, leaving only this girl at the scene.
Rango's return to the States this time was largely for her.
"Accidental death."
Gazing at the girl in the photo—whose face was beautiful but whose eyes revealed darkness—Rango's eyes couldn't help but narrow slightly.
"Sir, would you like to dine now? We offer complimentary cocktails and champagne, as well as various appetizers."
Just then, the flight attendant who'd served water earlier walked over again, crouched in front of Rango, her eyes full of charm.
Ted was already used to this scene.
Anyone with a handsome face reminiscent of young Brad Pitt and a body like Chris Hemsworth would receive endless attention from women.
"Thank you, but I'm good. I'll let you know when I need something, uh... Ms. Sandy."
Rango glanced at the woman's name tag, then put on a polite smile and declined.
"Okay."
After the flight attendant walked away somewhat disappointed, Ted said in disbelief, "What are you doing, Rango? This is first class—each ticket cost over ten grand! If you don't have a mile-high moment with this flight attendant who looks like young Charlize Theron, didn't we waste that money?!"
"..."
Thinking of the tens of thousands of dollars spent on tickets for both of them, Rango couldn't help but wince with a bit of regret.
Nodding, he adjusted his mood and directly waved to the flight attendant who was secretly glancing at him from across the cabin.
When her gaze turned over, Rango opened his clenched hand, and a diamond necklace dangled from his finger.
African stones—he had several other pieces like this in his bag.
"Sandy, I think this must have slipped off your neck."
After saying that, he stood up and walked behind the flight attendant, thoughtfully helping her put it on.
At this moment, Sandy was already stunned by his generous gesture, and she pressed her chest, feigning refusal:
"What? Oh, no, I couldn't possibly—"
A few minutes later, in the first-class restroom:
"Oh my God! YES! YES! YES!!!"
New story beginning. Hope you enjoy the ride!