Shi Tian nearly stumbled in place when heard Vanessa agreeing to lend her Ancient Technology to him.
Turning around and looking at her with a dumbfounded expression, he asked, “What did you just say?”
He needed to confirm that his ears weren’t listening wrong, even though the chance of it happening was close to zero.
After all, he had barely done any convincing– no, it was more precise to say that he didn’t even attempt to persuade her at all.
In fact, he was even betting that she would not lend them it.
His main reason for rushing back here was to make sure she was safe and sound. 𝐨𝘃𝗹.
He might act like he didn’t care about her, but that was because Shi Tian does not want to establish any friendship with anyone.
This was to prevent himself from being attached too closely to someone that could become a weakness. But most importantly, it was to avoid the possibility that his enemies might use this as leverage to harm them to get back at him.
Vanessa was already targeted once and nearly lost her life, so Shi Tian didn’t want to involve her in even more danger.
Guilt, sadness, and despair of losing someone you cared about, Shi Tian does not want to experience any of these emotions, even if he would only experience them briefly thanks to his passive ability.
Meanwhile, Vanessa smiled briefly when she finally caught his reaction to be nearly identical to the one she had in mind.
“No wonder why you didn’t persuade me. It seems like you cared about my safety despite the coldness you always displayed.” Vanessa smirked, seemingly teasing him for having such a childish mindset.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about. If you want to lend it, then that would be the best-case scenario.” Shi Tian was able to compose himself and replied swiftly.
Having a calm mindset was a great blessing, allowing him to always be able to think of reasonable and logical responses quickly.
Alas, that didn’t mean his logical and reasonable response would always work against others, especially once they realized his true intention.
“Sure buddy, I’ll wait for you in the living room so we can discuss further about it. In the meantime, you can stay here and think of some good excuses.” Vanessa snickered coldly, shaking her head and leaving.
‘And this is why you shouldn’t interact with women for too long.’ Shi Tian exclaimed inwardly, feeling like he had just been exposed cleanly in front of her.
Sighing softly, Shi Tian took out his Cellos device and began texting Mary.
Nathan: Vanessa agreed to lend her Ancient Technology to us.
Mary: Great, you sure are capable Nathan! It was almost as if your charm was enough to swoon over others.
Nathan: Goodbye.
Mary: Wait a minute, Nathan.
Mary: Hello Nathan? Did you really leave? You didn’t leave me “on read”, right? *crying emoji*
Mary: *crying emoji* *crying emoji* *crying emoji*
When Shi Tian saw Mary keep spamming him with crying emoji nonstop, he shook his head and turned it to silent mode.
That way, he won’t be annoyed by the constant notification of someone texting him.
Meanwhile, in Optic Mech, Mary was twitching her mouth, showing a frustrated expression.
“This damn Nathan really ignored me. Didn’t I just type a small joke?” Mary clicked her tongue.
“Oh, since when did you and Nathan become that close to sending text messages to each other?” Ironically, Isaac Aaronax had entered right at the moment when Mary was pouting, hearing what she had just said.
At first, Mary was shocked by a voice, but once she realized it was Isaac Aaronax, she stood up from her chair and showed him the Cellos device text messages.
“See this, Nathan. Look at your good apprentice. Ignoring me when I taught him the Fleet Footwork movement technique and even gave him the boosters’ suit to equip without asking for any payment. Is this how you teach your apprentice?” She pouted and complained to him.
Isaac Aaronax laughed heartily when he heard her pouting like a little girl.
“I’m serious, Mechanist Isaac. Do you want me to beat you up?” Mary clenched her fist and threatened.
Alas, it only made the situation worse for her, given that Isaac Aaronax could no longer contain himself.
Laughing even wilder, tears of joy started seeping out of his eyes.
“Did you go crazy after reading those damn blueprints all day long?” She twitched her mouth and asked, appalled by his reaction.
A few minutes had gone by until Isaac Aaronax was finally able to regain his composure. He patted Mary’s shoulder lightly and smiled brightly.
“Haven’t you realized how much you had changed after going to the wilderness this time?”
“Changed? What do you mean by that?”
Isaac Aaronax chuckled softly when he realized she was really clueless.
“Give me a second,” he said calmly, walking to his table and searching for something.
“Here, look in the mirror and see your reflection.” Isaac Aaronax retrieved a small mirror and told Mary to glance at it.
Confused, Mary looked at her reflection without much emotion. “Just my reflection, nothing else.” She said coolly.
“Haven’t you noticed how much brighter you have become?” Isaac Aaronax smiled and pointed it out.
“It has been a long time since you have come to me and complained like a little girl. And look at the smile you have been flashing ever since you returned. It’s not the fake smile you put up when you were acting as a receptionist but a genuine smile.” He added.
“T-That is…” Speechless, Mary didn’t know what else to say.
She wanted to deny it, but once Isaac Aaronax had pointed it out for her. She had looked at her reflection and she noticed the changes that he said were true.
“Let me guess, you and Nathan have been–” Before Isaac Aaronax could finish his sentence, Mary interrupted him.
“We are not a couple.” She denied it firmly.
Meanwhile, Isaac Aaronax held a deadpan expression. “What I wanted to say was that you two have been cooperating well enough, allowing you to relax and reveal your true self.”