“Oh, so that’s it. If you value him, then he must be quite extraordinary,” Luo Ye said with a surprisingly gentle tone, which somewhat surprised Hong Yijia.
“Mm.” Lin Yilin’s response was hard to tell if it was perfunctory or concise.
“Heh heh, that’s quite good too. When I was out wandering alone, I also felt that some things really don’t need to be held onto so tightly. If you, Xiao Lin, can find a new partner on your own and continue on, it’s not a bad thing at all,” Luo Ye said, looking at the road ahead.
It was rush hour, and there were many vehicles on the road. The supercar couldn’t accelerate and seemed to have no advantage other than being conspicuous.
“Wow, are you still Ye-jie?” Hong Yijia asked, somewhat astonished.
“I’ve always been easy to talk to. When you joined the club back then, did I ever make things difficult for you?”
“You didn’t make things difficult, but some other things are hard to explain,” Hong Yijia said with an awkward smile.
Luo Ye said generously, “If you dare, list them, and I’ll try to improve.”
“Should that sentence really start with ‘If you dare’?” Hong Yijia retorted.
The two of them laughed out loud together.
Then, Luo Ye said to Lin Yilin again, “However, I’m still not at ease with you alone. After Edman’s death, are you going to insist on running the agency by yourself?”
Hong Yijia looked at Lin Yilin, sensing something amiss. With Ye-jie’s personality, she was probably about to get down to business.
It was only with them that Luo Ye would soften before getting tough.
“This…” Hong Yijia wanted to speak up to help, but Lin Yilin tugged her sleeve, stopping her.
Lin Yilin stared at Luo Ye through the rearview mirror, “Yes, I want to run the agency by myself.”
As if she didn’t sense the tense atmosphere from Lin Yilin and Hong Yijia, Luo Ye drove with one hand, “Running an agency by yourself, to be honest, isn’t much different from a free agent like me.”
“That’s my adoptive father’s agency,” Lin Yilin stated directly.
“Mm-hmm, I know. I also understand what you’re thinking. I know you, Xiao Lin. But, partnering with an Illusion is completely different from partnering with me.”
“I know that too,” Lin Yilin interjected.
Luo Ye continued on her own, “I can trust, but an Illusion has no one trustworthy. I taught you that from the very beginning.”
Lin Yilin was about to speak when Luo Ye followed up, “Yes, yes, the power of an Illusion is indispensable for confronting the reality of the Black World. If you want to achieve great things, you can’t do without them. I know this too, so I can understand and accept you pursuing those things for necessary power. After all, I also uphold the principle of interest above all else and constantly interact with those things.”
“Then what do you want to say?”
“How about joining a mature agency?” Luo Ye, after much preamble, finally put forth her true suggestion.
“What’s the point?”
“A mature agency, preferably a large one. I don’t know about Xixikoko here, Hong Yijia, can you help arrange it? It shouldn’t be too much trouble for you, right? Within another group, then I will allow you to continue your current work with a dangerous Illusion. Isn’t this a very reasonable proposal?”
Luo Ye spoke at length by herself, but the smile on her face held no warmth.
Hong Yijia’s previously cheerful smile also disappeared.
And even more so for Lin Yilin.
Silence fell in the car.
“Well, answer me?”
“How is this any different from asking me to abandon my adoptive father’s agency?”
“What does a name of an agency matter? With Hong Yijia’s help, your actions won’t be any different. You won’t even need to consider too many trivial matters, you can continue pursuing your interests, and you can be happy with your new toy. Your safety will also be guaranteed, and you can be baptized on a larger platform. I can’t think of anything bad about it,” Luo Ye said casually.
“Ye-jie, it’s not that easy for me to just arrange people,” Hong Yijia couldn’t help but say.
“Then I can only use my connections, but that would mean leaving Xixikoko even more.”
Before she finished speaking, Lin Yilin coldly uttered, “I refuse.”
“Reason.” Luo Ye was not surprised, her gaze not even on Lin Yilin.
“I don’t know.”
“Hey, hey, hey, if you were a bit more articulate like a hot-blooded anime protagonist, maybe you could make me laugh even louder. What kind of answer is that?” Luo Ye couldn’t help but laugh.
Lin Yilin symbolically forced out a sentence, “That’s my adoptive father’s agency. Although it was for a short time, I accumulated things there.”
“Are you kidding me, Xiao Lin…?” Luo Ye’s gaze turned cold. “Don’t I know you? We are the same kind of people. Do you really care about these things? It’s just an excuse for your interests, and a so-called sense of ritual disguised to cover up your unfeeling nature.”
“Or are you saying you feel you owe the old man something? That’s true, after all, he raised you, but he also never wanted you to put yourself in danger, right? My proposal should be absolutely perfect.”
“Don’t let strange emotions cloud your judgment when it’s necessary, Xiao Lin. We shouldn’t make such mistakes.”
“Don’t speak so harshly, Ye-jie. After all, you’re just concerned about Xiao Lin’s safety. These things can be taken slowly…”
“Don’t use your tricks on me, Hong Yijia. I don’t accept your ‘negotiation’,” Luo Ye interrupted Hong Yijia’s words and glanced at her in the rearview mirror.
The smile that had just appeared on Hong Yijia’s face instantly vanished. She crossed her legs, and her voice deepened from its deliberately exaggerated high pitch, “Refusing to negotiate is only because the stakes aren’t high enough, and the rhetoric isn’t direct enough to the core. Sorry, Ye-jie, this time I’m on Xiao Lin’s side. Besides, you’re so concerned now, but you didn’t even come to Uncle Edman’s funeral, did you?”
That unhinged, abstract demeanor suddenly transformed into a strong “queen.”
“That…” Luo Ye faltered for a moment. “I haven’t been in reality for the past two years.”
“Exactly, Ye-jie. You need to understand the boundaries. From your ‘rationality,’ what are we to Xiao Lin?” Hong Yijia lightly tapped her temple with her finger.
“Friends…” Luo Ye subconsciously followed Hong Yijia’s words.
“Are the words you just said what a friend who hasn’t seen you in two years should say?” Hong Yijia’s lips curved slightly.
Luo Ye was silent for a moment. “You’ve matured a lot, Hong Yijia. You used to be like a hamster in front of me.”
“Awkwardly changing the subject is a sign of being in the wrong, and I prefer the description of a rabbit, Ye-jie~.” Hong Yijia suddenly switched back to her normal state from her previous one.
“Heh.” Luo Ye scoffed, “Then I’ll follow this rationality. Since we are just ‘friends,’ and you’ve rejected my secure proposal, then hand over the Illusion you have.”
“Not as a friend, but as an ‘Illusion Hunter,’ I’m negotiating with you.”
Hong Yijia frowned.
She knew it would develop this way. If possible, she really didn’t want to fight. Although she knew Lin Yilin’s Illusion could gain an advantage over Luo Ye, Hong Yijia still wasn’t sure, as she hadn’t seen it firsthand.
Luo Ye’s strength was too deeply ingrained in the minds of those who knew her well.
“If you dare, bring it on.” Lin Yilin slowly spoke, but her words somewhat surprised both Luo Ye and Hong Yijia. It wasn’t like something Lin Yilin would say, which meant…
Luo Ye suddenly looked into the rearview mirror, and Hong Yijia also realized something, quickly turning her head.
“Lin Yilin” was shrouded in black. As the car drove into the shadow of the building, her face was momentarily obscured, only a pair of gray eyes were very prominent.
“I’m waiting for our next encounter, Illusion Hunter. If you can truly catch me, then that collector’s edition taboo is yours,” “Lin Yilin” grinned.
“…Heh heh, hahahahaha! So it’s you! No wonder Xixikoko has an Illusion of this level appearing! As expected of Xiao Lin, it’s only natural that she would attract an Illusion like you!” After a moment of astonishment, Luo Ye burst into laughter.
“Hey, stop laughing, watch the road,” “Lin Yilin” reminded her, speechless.
In fact, Luo Ye seemed to be laughing hysterically, but her driving hand remained steady. She was an experienced driver.
Luo Ye also calmed down, but her tone was still a bit hyped, “What a coincidence! Alright! For that collector’s edition taboo, I have no choice but to catch you, powerful Illusion.”
“Try it if you can. Before that, I’ll take good care of the taboo. Feel free to be jealous.”
“It’s already in my grasp. Be careful when you fight. If you can’t, wait for me.”
“Naturally, it won’t be your turn, and I also have a master model builder here.”
“Heh heh, if it gets broken, I’ll kill your so-called master as well.”
“Big talk, Red-haired Madwoman.”
The two of them exchanged threats, their smiles sinister.
Meanwhile, Hong Yijia next to them was full of question marks:
What are you two talking about? Weren’t we discussing Xiao Lin’s matters?
How is the entire car now filled with “taboo”?!