latelenovela Chapter 270 [Empire] Smell of Blood
Chapter 270 [Empire] Smell of Blood
"That doesn't sound like your style." I raised my eyebrows and looked at him with a hint of teasing.
Nightingale's smile deepened, a hint of thoughtfulness in her tone. "Loyalty doesn't necessarily mean loyalty to a location, nor does it necessarily mean eternal allegiance to a team. Shadow Mist values commitment to your allies. As long as you remain on our mission, or in other words, while you're still working with us, loyalty is your responsibility to the team, not a constraint. If you ever choose to leave, or pursue other goals, we won't force you to stay."
His words were watertight, but I wasn't easily persuaded. "That sounds reasonable, but can you guarantee that everyone in Shadow Mist will be so tolerant?"
"Of course not." He shrugged calmly. "Every team has its own bottom line and rules, and Shadow Mist is no exception. But if you think the word 'loyalty' is too heavy, we can use another word instead - 'trust'. Temporary trust is enough to exchange for mutual benefits, isn't it?"
I narrowed my eyes, weighing his words. I have to admit, this man, though seemingly gentle and casual, was incredibly skillful in his words. Without making a direct promise, he transformed the question of loyalty into one of trust.
"Okay." I chuckled and nodded. "That doesn't sound too bad. However, there's one thing I have to make clear up front—I can't completely obey orders. If anyone tries to control my actions or interfere with my decisions, I won't cooperate."
Nightingale raised her eyebrows slightly, seeming amused by my bluntness. "I'm not worried about that. You're a smart person, and smart people know when to cooperate and when to stand up for themselves. As long as you don't cross the line, Shadow Mist will never force you."
His words were clever, gently shifting the blame back onto me. Regardless, I tentatively nodded. "Okay, I might consider joining for now. I hope your team is as interesting as you say."
Nightingale smiled, with a hint of meaning in her eyes: "You won't be disappointed."
After donning their temporary internal communication bracelet, I didn't linger any longer and turned to leave. Before leaving, I took the piece of exotic beast meat that Nightingale had tricked me with. It was heavy, exuding a faint fishy smell, and seemed to have been torn.
"I really didn't suffer any loss," I thought to myself, a subtle smile playing on my face. After all, being able to take something from them was a small counterattack for the trick I had just been given. Even though Nightingale didn't say anything, I knew he must have noticed it, but he didn't stop me.
He just stood there, watching me leave, a faint smile on his face, as if approving of my behavior. That attitude made me a little unhappy, but I didn't say anything.
As I exited the alley, the stench of exotic beast meat mingled with the other odors in the air, making me frown. I placed the meat in the space button to isolate the smell, but I began to wonder what use this thing could have. After all, something Nightingale could use to test me couldn't be just ordinary exotic beast meat.
As soon as I pushed open Wen Ya's door, before I had time to change my shoes, I saw him peeking out of the studio, his brows slightly furrowed. A moment later, he walked towards me, his eyes sweeping over my body, lingering near my shoulder, as if confirming some subtle trace.
"You have..." He paused, his nose twitching slightly, his eyes becoming deeper. "What did you bring back? It smells very fishy."
His tone was calm, but the air seemed to freeze for a moment, and my heart skipped a beat.
"Nothing special." I answered in a normal tone, trying to avoid the topic.
However, Wen Ya was not easily fooled. He took a step forward, lowered his head and sniffed my collar carefully. His usually gentle eyes narrowed, with an unbearable scrutiny.
"This is... the smell of blood from an alien beast." He stood up straight, his tone a little colder, "Where have you been?"
I didn't expect Wen Ya to be so sensitive to smells.
"I just went to the market and looked at some things." I tried to make my tone sound nonchalant.
Wen Ya stared at me, clearly dissatisfied with my perfunctory response. He was silent for a moment, tilting his head slightly, as if suppressing some emotion, and then said, "Could you please not answer me with such a perfunctory attitude? The smell of exotic beast blood is not something you can just pick up at the market."
Although his tone was calm, I could sense a hint of anger and a deeper worry.
He was always like this, knowing everything about me, yet he was reluctant to press the issue, as if trying to give me some leeway. But this time, his reaction was noticeably more serious.
I took a deep breath, avoided his gaze, and tried to change the subject to something lighter: "I just brought back some materials, it's no big deal."
Wen Ya didn't respond, but just looked at me steadily. The complex emotions in her eyes almost made me breathless.
He didn't ask any further questions, but he didn't mean to let me go either, as if he was waiting for me to confess myself.
I could only answer evasively: "A classmate I knew before took me to a very interesting market... The things sold there were quite unique." After saying that, I tried my best to put on a relaxed expression, trying to hide the uneasiness in my heart.
Wen Ya didn't respond immediately, merely staring at me in silence, his gaze impossible to ignore. He seemed to be analysing my words, trying to discern some clue from my expression. His scrutinising gaze made me stiffen, but I managed to remain calm.
"It's quite strange?" He repeated my words, a hint of questioning and irony in his tone. "How strange is it that you brought back this smell?"
He walked over to the sofa and sat down, his eyes still fixed on me. His seemingly casual movements seemed to release an invisible pressure, giving me the illusion that there was nowhere to hide.
"Just...some exotic beast materials." I avoided his gaze and added casually, "My classmates said those things are quite valuable, so I took some back to see if they can be of any use."
Wen Ya's frown deepened upon hearing this. He rubbed his brows, as if suppressing some emotion: "Do you know how dangerous things related to exotic beasts are? Especially when you come into contact with them without preparation and understanding—"
He paused, as if realizing something was wrong, his eyes suddenly became sharp: "Wait, the 'market' you mentioned, isn't it...that kind of place?"