Ch'en Hui-chieh's face flushed scarlet. Swire's jaw dropped. Even Hoshiguma widened her eyes.
What they saw was not simply Felix calling her "Hui-chieh" so naturally. What shocked them was that Old Ch'en, the fearless "Rice Noodle Dragon," was actually embarrassed.
Good heavens. Ch'en Hui-chieh had always been the very image of a strong woman. She would bleed before she ever cried. She rushed to the front lines of every case. Injuries were routine for her. Even during the most dangerous hostage rescue operation, when an enemy-planted thunderblast detonated right in her face and shattered her ribs, she still charged forward as if nothing had happened to save the hostages.
A woman who wouldn't even blink at blades or flames… blushing?
Let me see this!
Swire instantly whipped out her phone and rapid-fired several photos of Ch'en Hui-chieh's face, then sprinted back toward the elevator and mashed the close button.
Ding—
The elevator doors shut. Only then did Ch'en Hui-chieh snap back to reality. Her expression darkened to pitch black. Murderous intent flashed in her eyes. The long sword at her waist seemed to tremble, as if ready to leap from its sheath. For a moment, it looked like she was about to break the window and dive down after Swire, but rationality prevailed. She forced herself to calm down and took the next elevator.
"Tsk."
Hoshiguma clicked her tongue. Seeing Felix's bewildered expression, she patted his shoulder. "Why don't you come to our office for a bit? We have tea and snacks."
"Then I'll take you up on your offer, Officer Hoshiguma ."
"Just call me Hoshiguma."
She waved casually and smiled, leading Felix into the office for tea.
On the desk lay a mountain of unfinished documents. After handing him a guest cup, Hoshiguma sat on the sofa with zero concern for her image. She didn't actually like tea, but since she wasn't allowed to drink beer on duty, she had to endure until after work.
Felix glanced over the towering stack of files and sighed. This kind of work confined one to a single office, a single city. But this was Ch'en Hui-chieh's conviction. How could she ever put it down so easily?
Perhaps it would take the events of 3.0 for her to change.
Just as he thought that, the office door opened. Ch'en Hui-chieh and Swire entered. Swire's face was streaked with tear marks—clearly freshly corrected and disciplined. Her phone was now in Ch'en Hui-chieh's hand, and Ch'en was tapping furiously at two different spots on the screen, clearly deleting photos.
"Hmph… honestly, it was just a name. What's with all the fuss."
Ch'en Hui-chieh let out a snort, tossed the phone back at the devastated Swire, and Swire answered with her own huff. She sat down and began flipping through files, determined to ignore Ch'en Hui-chieh completely.
"Are you here for official business or personal business?"
After sitting down, Ch'en exhaled slowly. The woman usually so tough and unyielding showed a rare softness before Felix.
"Personal. I wanted to ask you out to dinner."
Hoshiguma's eyes widened so much it looked painful. The corners of her mouth curled up uncontrollably. Swire wiped away her fake tears and perked up like someone ready to eat popcorn.
"D-dinner? At this hour? I'm still working, you know. Really…"
Ch'en Hui-chieh tripped over her words. She glanced at the clock. "But… well… it just so happens it's the end of my shift. You two handle the rest."
"Oh…"
"Ohohoh…"
Hoshiguma and Swire exchanged a look of utter disbelief. When had Ch'en Hui-chieh ever left work on time? She was always the last one in the office. Usually, during a normal day, Swire clocked out as soon as possible, while Hoshiguma stayed a bit longer out of kindness. But even she would leave after a while. The only constant was Ch'en Hui-chieh, who sometimes made Hoshiguma wonder if she secretly slept in the L.G.D. building.
Ch'en Hui-chieh let out a stiff, awkward cough and followed Felix out like she was sneaking away after committing a crime. Only she knew the turmoil in her heart. She, the head of the Inspectorate, was leaving this early. Swire would definitely pry about it tomorrow. Hoshiguma would give her those warm, knowing eyes.
Sigh. This was basically social death.
But what irritated Ch'en Hui-chieh even more was that sewer-dwelling pink rat. Their encounters were neither frequent nor rare, yet every single time, that woman's attitude carried the air of a condescending "official wife looking down on a servant." It made Ch'en Hui-chieh's temper flare sky-high, and she often felt the urge to cut her down with one clean stroke.
She wanted to ask about it, but Lin Yühsia merely gave her a cold sneer, which only stoked her anger further.
"What's wrong? A little tired?"
Felix turned to her with concern. For reasons she couldn't explain, his voice brought her a faint sense of peace. At the same time, a deep exhaustion washed over her—how long had it been since she last saw a sunset after getting off work?
"Mm."
She nodded lightly, but a moment later forced herself to straighten up. "No, don't worry about me… I'm fine."
Seeing her look so tense and uncertain, Felix was genuinely surprised and amused. He nodded. "Then go home and rest. We'll order takeout today."
"…Alright."
Faced with Felix's matter-of-fact tone, Ch'en Hui-chieh didn't refuse. She only gave a small nod.
Her home wasn't close to the L.G.D. headquarters. To be fair, the L.G.D.'s salary was hardly low. Most officers could support their families and still afford to eat out a few times a month. Nine had mentioned before that as the head of the Inspectorate, Ch'en's income was quite high—more than enough for a single woman to live comfortably.
In truth, Ch'en lived in a middle-class residential area. She never bought property; she simply rented a one-bedroom apartment. To her, "home" was just a place to sleep now and then, so she didn't demand much from it.
When she opened the door, what greeted Felix was an immaculate single-person apartment—almost too immaculate. There was no trace of daily life. A thin layer of dust coated the table. Neither the desk nor the kitchen held any bottles or jars. Instead of a lived-in home, it resembled a real estate model room on display.
A model room would probably have more decoration.
"Haven't been back for a week."
Ch'en Hui-chieh gave a small smile. She placed her keys aside, removed her sword and left it in the hallway. From the shoe cabinet, she took out a pair of guest slippers. "The last time someone visited was Hoshiguma and Swire. We had a little drink together."
"Usually, I eat dinner at the L.G.D. and come home afterward. Most days I just fall asleep. Sometimes I'll watch the news or check Lungmen's situation."
She stepped into the kitchen—though calling it a kitchen was generous, given that nothing suggested it had ever been used for cooking. She bent down, grabbed a can of beer from the mini-fridge, and asked, "Felix, what would you like to drink?"
"Beer."
"Alright."
She took out a few ice cubes, set the chilled beer on the counter, then went to fetch two glasses.
Ch'en Hui-chieh didn't have many friends. Only a handful, really. But she never once felt lonely. She had never considered the idea.
Rather than befriending politicians or business elites, she believed her heart was better placed with Lungmen. Only then could she go further.
Felix sat casually at the dining table. There were four chairs, though realistically only one was ever used—if any at all.
Ch'en brought the beer over. Felix thanked her and accepted it. He summoned Clever and said, "Search for the highest-rated and most-ordered takeout restaurant in Lungmen. Based on health index, order two meats, one vegetable, and two servings of rice."
"Understood."
The tiny drone glowed softly and began processing. In just a few seconds, it delivered the result.
"Order placed at Lungmen Jiechan Fang."
Ch'en Hui-chieh took a sip of her beer opposite him and let out a long exhale. She finally felt alive again.
Once revived, she glanced curiously at the small drone floating beside Felix. She knew he invented it, and though intrigued, she hadn't asked.
"This is Clever."
Seeing she kept quiet, Felix smiled and explained on his own. "You can think of it as a highly intelligent drone that can receive and execute commands."
"With Clever's help, everything—exploration or daily life—will become much more convenient."
Ch'en Hui-chieh nodded as if she understood only half of it. "I remember that Chief Wei ordered a batch of drones from Tomorrow's Development before. We're still using that batch."
"I'll talk to Governor Wei about a new order."
Felix took a sip of beer. "Hui-chieh, I hope this will help you."
Ch'en Hui-chieh turned her head away, her expression slightly unnatural. "I thought you'd try to convince me to leave with you. To go to that giant landship you built outside the city."
Felix sighed. "How could I bear to make you leave Lungmen?"
"You…"
"Hui-chieh, aren't there things you still want to accomplish in Lungmen? Your resolve is rooted here, isn't it?"
He smiled as he pressed gently, "Before you find your own answer, I won't invite you. I won't add more pressure on you."
Ch'en Hui-chieh felt real relief at those words. There had been pressure in her heart. Ever since Lin Yühsia and Felix had grown closer, she often felt left behind in a pathetic way. What made it worse was that the distance wasn't created by Felix, but by herself.
She had been using work as an excuse, putting Lungmen's matters above everything else, and as a result she had made no progress at all.
Lin Yühsia had already accepted part of the Rat King's assets and was managing them flawlessly. As both rival and friend, Ch'en Hui-chieh couldn't find a single negative thing to say. Lin Yühsia had already gone so far ahead, while she herself was still struggling in place.
Being left behind never felt good. But Ch'en Hui-chieh was someone who could be easily satisfied; once swamped in official duties, she forgot about those unpleasant feelings her rival gave her, and even forgot about time itself.
She was simple in some ways, complicated in others. Those two extremes didn't conflict within her at all.
"Tell me what you've been doing all this time. I'm curious."
They moved to a more comfortable spot. Rather than the dining table, the place where Hoshiguma and Swire always sat when visiting was the couch in front of the television. They would drink beer, watch movies, and complain about life. It was their way of releasing stress.
Ch'en Hui-chieh leaned back on the sofa and turned on the TV, letting the low ambient noise fill the quiet room. Then she turned her face toward Felix, clearly waiting for an answer.
Felix didn't hold back. He explained everything that had happened since they parted. What shocked Ch'en Hui-chieh the most was that Tomorrow's Development, once just a small organization, had transformed after Kazdel civil war into the ruling power of Kazdel. For someone who lived her entire life within Lungmen's confines, it was a heavy blow.
In the corners she knew nothing about, Felix's status had already risen to a height she could only look up to.
Now, Felix's authority was nearly equal to Wei Yenwu's. Lungmen was ruled by Wei Yenwu's voice alone, and Kazdel was ruled by Felix's.
The food delivery arrived without them noticing. Felix saw that Ch'en Hui-chieh had grown slightly tipsy—she seemed to be drinking too quickly. He went to the door, received the delivery, and brought the boxes back, handing one to her.
"Thanks."
Her tone was noticeably lighter for no clear reason. There was a looseness in her voice. Perhaps hearing Felix speak honestly made her feel at ease, or maybe she simply felt closer after learning more about his past. She took another large gulp of beer.
"Eat something."
Felix silently pushed a plate toward her. Her cheeks were flushed. She murmured an affirmative sound.
"Wei Yenwu is my uncle."
Her tone was indifferent, yet there was a trace of sarcasm she couldn't hide. "But he's not a very competent uncle."
"He may be a good officer, a good executor of his duties, but he's definitely not a good uncle."
It was as if she was finally letting everything out.
"I had an older sister. More than ten years ago, because of an incident, she left Lungmen."
"Your goal… is to find your sister?"
"That might be one of my goals."
Ch'en Hui-chieh pressed her lips together. "What I question is why something like that happened in Lungmen. Why such a terrifying attack happened to us… to her."
"I remember fragments of that day. My sister was crying, while my uncle watched with a cold and calm face as the people who took her led her away. No matter what, I'll never forget that memory."
The distortion in Ch'en Hui-chieh's expression showed itself. Perhaps it was more than distortion. To Felix, it was her resolve.
"After that, I went to Victoria's Military Academy to learn how to become a soldier. Then I returned to Lungmen, changed from soldier to guard, all for the sake of making Lungmen better than before."
Felix took a small bun and bit into it. "Your sister's name. What is it?"
"She is… Talulah."