Chapter 116: Observing the Constellations (Part 1/2)
Chapter 116: Observing the Constellations (Part 1/2)
Translator: Strivon
In Frost River Reality Area A, at the border where the private room areas and the public arena intersected, a group of people looked at each other in dismay. He Yueyin had stopped talking because Red Fox had oddly entered a state of silence. No matter what they did, he did not respond at all. The fierce emotions he had before was like a bonfire that had burned out, vanishing in a puff of smoke.
"She's okay at giving orders but her ability to talk heart to heart is quite average in my opinion," Zhang Yingying whispered to Bai Xinyan, acting as quite the typical armchair expert.
Bai Xinyan tightened her grasp on Zhang Yingying's neck to shut her up.
He Yueyin was as quiet as ever. Her eyes looked downcast as she muttered to herself.
On a large street, Bamboo Pole quickly made his way toward Frost River Reality. At the same time, he utilized the surrounding monitoring cameras to lock onto Red Fox's image after a few swivels. The angle of the image was not good but he was still able to see Red Fox with his eye-catching red jacket. Red Fox stood like a stump in the middle of a stream of people. He appeared still and spellbound. It was unknown what thoughts were running through his mind.
Bamboo Pole let out a sigh of relief. "It is good that he hasn't directly charged inside. Those words were actually effective..."
Papercut strove hard to catch up with Bamboo Pole's pace, his subtly plump body swaying back and forth. He tried suggesting. "Can we check the corpse's head to make sure?"
The two specifically avoided using the encrypted channel so as to avoid provoking Red Fox.
Bamboo Pole thought about it. He shook his head. "It's too dangerous."
According to the new dynamic map provided by Luo Nan, the corpse marked as an Oblatum Knight was the closest enemy from He Yueyin and the others. However, the various Oblatum Knights were not too far away from each other.
Right now, the situation in Frost River Reality Area A was like a bizarre game of Chinese chess. The river dividing the rival territories was the border between the private room area and the public arena. It separated the Society and the Order of Justice into two sides on this chessboard.
The Society may have laid out their rooks, knights, and cannons, but they had not really made a move. On the other side, the enemy's king and bishops were rolled into one mass but their other pieces were readily available. Their formation was rigid and tight. Normally rooks, knights, cannons, and pawns were used to grind at the enemy king's preparations in a game. However, if the Society were to cross the river into enemy territory in real life, then there would be a lot of pressure for the Society to bear.
Papercut could only shrug helplessly after hearing Bamboo Pole's explanation. "Bad things will happen if we go check. Bad things will happen if we don't check. Isn't this madness!? If so, Boss Luo should say some words to clarify things, right?"
Originally, Papercut was not on any side in the dispute between Red Fox and Luo Nan but Red Fox's intense and decisive reaction had more or less evoked a few sympathetic thoughts within Papercut. At the same time, Luo Nan's long period of silence made Papercut feel a bit dissatisfied.
Though Luo Nan was still a teenager, he needed to display sufficient professional accomplishments and teamwork ability. After all, he had entered this circle of ability users and was participating in their operations. This was especially true in dangerous times such as now. A single ‘weasel’ could kill off their entire team with just a thought. As a teammate, who would not be wary of Luo Nan? Although Red Fox’s reaction was drastic, his words held some truth to them.
Papercut cast a glance at the encrypted channel. He then saw a young, infantile face quite unexpectedly. He did not know what was going on. Cat Eyes, who was sharing her perspective, had her sights fixed on Luo Nan's face for quite some time.
This young and inexperienced looking high school student had been silent since the contention started. He was not emotionally moved at all, whether it be by mocking words or actions of support. Upon further inspection, Luo Nan should still be focused on his all-encompassing senses. His eyes were vacant and his gaze ethereal. His attention was not on the matter with Red Fox.
Luo Nan's actions could be praised for being responsible and diligent, undisturbed by either praise or humiliation. However, his actions could also be criticized for being too arrogant and reclusive, selfish and cold-blooded!
Kids these days...
Papercut leaned toward the latter with his views but he was ultimately more moderate than Red Fox. In the end, he just sent Cat Eyes a private message. "Hey, Kitty. Do you know what's up with him?"
Cat Eyes did not respond to him instantly. Her perspective did not change at all either... Was she entranced and just watching?
Papercut felt helpless. He could only send another message. "Is there a way to verify the Order's methods without provoking them?"
The instant he sent this message, he inexplicably recalled the Society's mid-level training course, ‘Teamwork’. The famous instructor had concluded, “When the common messaging channel in the team becomes idle and private messages become prevalent, the breakup of the team becomes close at hand."
Papercut frowned and he looked at Luo Nan's avatar inside the encrypted channel. He felt even more horrible. At this moment, Cat Eyes' perspective swayed. It seemed like there was also someone was beckoning to her on the side.
"Kitty, what do you say?" Inside Frost River Reality, Zhang Yingying could not hold her self back any longer. She forcefully pried Bai Xinyan's arm a bit from her throat and called out to Cat Eyes.
Papercut was not the only one to have felt the horrible team atmosphere right now. Zhang Yingying had stood staunchly by Luo Nan's side but her mind was extremely clear. Luo Nan was the focal point of the conflict but the way this kid handled things was closed off. It was extremely inappropriate.
Right now, acting as the mysterious quiet guy is not popular anymore! Everyone likes cheery extroverted men!
But Luo Nan, this brother, really could not be wakened up. Bai Xinyan, who possessed the perspective of a doctor, recommended Zhang Yingying to not disturb Luo Nan while he was engaging in his mental senses. This was to avoid mishaps from occurring.
As for He Yueyin, this senior staff member who gave the impression of being callous and intelligent was quite reserved tonight for some unknown reason. She did not speak what was on her mind and kept her thoughts hidden. The target this time was vague. Things were completely different than last week's mission with the Human-Faced Arachnid. It appeared that He Yueyin had yet to truly clarify what their mission was so far and this made Red Fox angry to the point of his brain exploding.
Zhang Yingying could only helplessly consult with Cat Eyes, who held the most expertise in this core issue. If Cat Eyes could understand Luo Nan's intentions and help explain things or perhaps testify for him, then this tight knot of a problem would likely loosen up.
Cat Eyes did not respond right after she was beckoned. There was a lag of two seconds before she suddenly turned her head in a fashion that was just like she had been startled awake. Such an action gave Zhang Yingying a fright. "You're fine, right?"
"I'm fine." Cat Eyes reached out her hand and straightened her flat-brimmed cap, which had been crooked up until now. The shadow that fell from the brim covered half her cheeks. "What did you say just now?"
Zhang Yingying looked at her dubiously and said, "I'm talking about verifying things. Red Fox is unwilling to forgive Luo Nan and Luo Nan, this fellow, is so passive that you won't even get a fart out of him even if you smack him a couple times. Do you have a way to verify what he's saying is correct?... something more dependable?"
On the other side, Papercut nodded in hidden agreement. His thoughts were the same as Zhang Yingying's. But soon he saw that Cat Eyes did not have an answer. Instead, her gaze shifted once again back to Luo Nan's face. Her gaze was a bit deviated at first but then it sprung back. It was as if that young and infantile face possessed some sort of inconceivable magnetic-like force.
She was enchanted by his rhythm!
Papercut could not hold back from cursing in his mind. Yet at this very moment, Cat Eyes' vision suddenly concentrated with a high degree of focus. It was to the point that her entire field of vision became blurred.
There was only one thing clear. They were slowly lifting up, right in the center of the interface where Cat Eyes' shared perspective could be seen. They were pupils that were somewhat bright and mottled.
They were Luo Nan's pupils.
This character, who was the focal point of the contention, seemed to have finally heard everyone's doubts and dissatisfactions at last. At least for now, he had walked out from his enclosed logic and had finally interacted with the external world.
The target of Luo Nan's gaze was Cat Eyes. Since Papercut was following Cat Eyes' shared perspective, it was the same as looking through Cat Eyes' eyes and locking gazes with Luo Nan.
Well, ‘locking gazes’ was not precisely correct. It should be described as a one-sided observation...
For some inexplicable reason, Papercut felt a cold shiver run suddenly run through his body when his gaze locked with Luo Nan's pupils, which were far from being described as clear. In this very moment, the rain which fell endlessly from the sky grew colder by several degrees and this coldness seeped down to the bones.
The faint cry of Bamboo Pole's voice entered his ear. "Those eyes are like a demon's..."