Chapter 24: Chapter 20: He’s a Brother
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General store, Bai Wei sat with her right hand supporting her cheek, as if she was thinking about something, somewhat lost in thought.
“Young lady!” A white-haired lady at the entrance waved her hand.
“Ah…” Bai Wei was startled and said nervously, “Auntie, I’m sorry, how can I help you?”
“A bag of compressed biscuits,” the old lady said with a smile. “Young lady, you shouldn’t follow that Xu Mo boy and pick up bad habits, calling me Auntie. I’m quite old now.”
Bai Wei picked up a bag of compressed biscuits from the shelf and smiled as she handed them over. “Auntie, you’re still young.”
“Such a sweet mouth.” The old lady was particularly happy when she paid.
“Take care, Auntie.”
After seeing the old lady out, Bai Wei’s expression fell, and she muttered to herself, “What are you thinking about?”
Lately, she had been distracted often, occasionally recalling the cold-hearted hunter she had encountered in the black market. She had settled here as per his instructions, and some time had passed, but he had never appeared or come to find her.
Perhaps he would never show up again.
“But when I make money, I still need to repay him,” Bai Wei thought to herself.
“Sister Bai Wei.” A voice came from behind. Bai Wei turned her gaze and smiled. “Good morning, Xu Mo. Are you going out?”
Since Xu Mo and Miss Mia returned last time, they’ve been acting a bit unusually. They didn’t mention what had happened. On that day, both Xu Mo and Miss Mia were very quiet, and they hadn’t talked about it in the following days. But Bai Wei noticed that Miss Mia’s attitude towards Xu Mo seemed to have shifted slightly, although she couldn’t pinpoint exactly how.
“Yes, I’m going for a walk,” Xu Mo nodded with a smile. Since returning, he hadn’t left the house and had been practicing his breathing technique at home.
“Come back soon.” Bai Wei said.
Xu Mo walked out of the general store and saw a graceful figure approaching him; it was Elsa.
Elsa seemed to have dressed up intentionally, exuding a pure aura in place of her usual elegance, and was lightly scented with perfume. Seeing Xu Mo, Elsa smiled sweetly and called out, “Xu Mo.”
“Miss Elsa, Miss Mia is upstairs. You can have Sister Bai Wei call her,” Xu Mo said and then turned to leave.
Elsa watched Xu Mo’s receding figure, feeling somewhat frustrated. It seemed Xu Mo held a grudge, but she hadn’t done it on purpose.
In the past few days, as Elsa thought more about it, she found it increasingly suspicious. Xu Mo didn’t seem like an ordinary servant. Moreover, she discovered that the chauffeur her father arranged for her wasn’t simple either.
Additionally, were those musical pieces really composed by Mia?
Given Elsa’s understanding of Mia, it was highly unlikely.
So, who else could it be besides Mia?
She recalled Xu Mo’s various actions and Mia’s attitude towards him, and she had a guess in her mind.
Xu Mo likely had a remarkable talent in music.
Moreover, he was intelligent, brave, and fearless.
If only he wasn’t a servant!
Xu Mo had no idea Elsa was thinking about all this. His understanding of Elsa was that she was inherently kind, though proud, and had a decently privileged background in the underworld.
As for anything more, he wasn’t interested.
The black market was as bustling and chaotic as ever, with fights happening all around, and women’s shouts were abundant, too.
Xu Mo observed the house numbers in the black market, his eyes scanning the area. With his strong perception, the house numbers in the black market presented themselves clearly and orderly in his mind.
Walking along the streets of the black market, Xu Mo wandered through, gradually distancing himself from the busy main road and heading down a side path.
In a corner of the black market, this area was much quieter compared to the main road, with mostly native residents of the black market frequenting here.
Xu Mo stopped in front of a storefront and looked up. The sign read, 425!
Looking at the small storefront, it appeared cramped and cluttered inside, with only a young man about Xu Mo’s age sitting there, bored, playing with a Rubik’s Cube. His hands moved quickly, solving the Cube in just a few seconds, repeatedly scrambling and solving it deftly.
The storefront was pitifully small, but the back was quite large, like a huge box, clearly indicating there was more inside. Xu Mo noticed an iron door, blocking his perception.
Before Xu Mo could speak, the young man fiddling with the Rubik’s Cube said, “We’re closed.”
Xu Mo glanced inside the store, which looked like a hardware shop or a machinery repair shop, messy and disorganized.
“I’m looking for someone,” Xu Mo said.
The young man finally looked at Xu Mo, showing no surprise at his masked face—after all, one could see anything in the black market.
Xu Mo noted the young man appeared even younger than him, with very fair hands.
Squinting his eyes, Xu Mo asked, “Who are you looking for?”
“Sister Butterfly,” Xu Mo replied.
“Don’t know her.” The young man’s expression remained unchanged upon hearing Xu Mo’s words, continuing to play with the Rubik’s Cube as if he genuinely didn’t know her, making Xu Mo doubt if he’d found the right place.
Extending his hand, Xu Mo pulled out a dagger and placed it on the table.
The young man’s hands froze, staring at the dagger on the table. This dagger didn’t look very shiny or particularly sharp, but it had two words engraved on it: Skywalker!
“Where did you get this?” The young man squinted his eyes and stared intently at Xu Mo, a hint of coldness in his gaze.
“Someone gave it to me and told me to find Sister Butterfly,” Xu Mo replied.
“Who?” The young man continued to ask.
“The church,” Xu Mo said.
The young man stared at Xu Mo for a few moments, then jumped off his seat, closed the shop, and turned to say, “Follow me.”
Xu Mo walked around the table and followed the young man into the back of the shop. Inside there was a narrow door, which led to the iron door. The young man placed his hand on a spot, and the iron door opened, making Xu Mo’s eyes light up with curiosity.
Beyond the iron door was a narrow passageway. The young man gestured for Xu Mo to enter, and Xu Mo walked in without hesitation, with the young man following and closing the door behind them.
Inside felt like a sealed space. Passing through the long, narrow passage, Xu Mo glanced sideways, his pupils narrowing slightly.
This place looked like an old abandoned factory, possibly a small military factory, with weapon parts scattered everywhere.
Inside the abandoned factory, there were many assembled guns and various weapons, and in the middle, there was an old fighting arena.
A muscular man with a bare upper body appeared in front of him, standing at two meters tall, his frame all solid muscle. He had been staring at Xu Mo since he walked in.
“Bang!”
Suddenly, the sound of a gunshot rang out, causing the closed space to vibrate. The noise was somewhat piercing, but Xu Mo remained unfazed, having anticipated it.
Someone was practicing shooting ahead.
Gunshots continued to ring out. Xu Mo stopped as he reached the shooting range. In front of him, a woman in tight black leather was practicing. Xu Mo glanced at the moving targets; each shot was dead center.
A moment later, the woman finally stopped, turning to scrutinize Xu Mo.
Xu Mo also scrutinized her; the tight leather suit perfectly outlined her S-shaped figure. She had an oval face, and her long black hair was tied back.
Not just her figure, but everything about her—appearance, height, demeanor—was impeccable. Counting his previous life, Xu Mo had never seen anyone like her.
“It’s her!” Xu Mo thought to himself.
The young man handed Xu Mo’s dagger to her and whispered a few words. The woman listened quietly, staring at Xu Mo. “Hunter?”
“It’s me,” Xu Mo nodded.
“Buzz!” The woman suddenly moved, taking two steps forward. Her long, slender leg lifted and, in an instant, exploded with tremendous power, full of violent beauty. The pointed high heel of her shoe slashed towards Xu Mo’s face like a dagger.
Xu Mo sensed her movement and leaned backward. The high heel swept past his face, stopping unreasonably close, then descended straight down, defying inertia.
Xu Mo pushed off the ground with his right foot, retreating. His physical prowess was now incomparable to before.
The high heel hit the ground with a sound, and the heel didn’t break. The woman charged forward, kicking straight at Xu Mo again. This kick was fast. Although Xu Mo predicted the trajectory, he couldn’t completely avoid it.
Instead of dodging, he reached out to grab her leg. As expected, he caught her ankle, but the force was overwhelming.
“Oof!”
Xu Mo was struck and knocked down. Stubbornly, he didn’t let go, trying to bring her down with him, only to see her body lift off the ground, sweeping her other leg towards him. Xu Mo had to release her, narrowly avoiding the kick.
Stumbling back, Xu Mo glanced at his chest. It hurt, but he could tell she had held back, reducing her strength upon impact.
“Good reflexes,” the woman said, staring at Xu Mo. “Where’s your hidden weapon?”
“No need,” Xu Mo responded.
“Why were you at the church?” The woman asked again.
“Attending a concert,” Xu Mo replied.
The woman seemed surprised, looking at Xu Mo. “Since you’re already here, shouldn’t you be honest?”
Xu Mo took off the hood of his cloak, then removed his mask.
Having decided to come here, he had naturally prepared for it. He could tell from the experiences of that day that this was a special organization, and leaving without revealing his identity was unlikely.
With his mask off, Xu Mo revealed a somewhat youthful face, surprising the woman. She had maintained her composure since Xu Mo arrived, but finding that the “Hunter” in the fighting arena was a fifteen or sixteen-year-old boy startled her.
“So, you’re a little brother!” The woman suddenly smiled enticingly, with a hint of captivating charm!