Girl, you form the head.

Chapter 10: Perhaps it's to the point where we can... [go to] the same lengths?

"Hui, get out of here, quick!"

"Don't come back again."

"You think you can escape? You can't escape, none of you can escape!"

……

Ruri suddenly woke up from her nightmare, her body springing up uncontrollably like a spring, and she began to gasp for breath, each breath heavy and short.

Again.

Ruri-e clutched her head in obvious pain, and soon her hands were covered in sweat.

"What, are you having trouble sleeping in a particular bed?"

A flat, monotone sound came from beside her. Ruri looked up and saw a man in a police uniform sitting not far away.

She was stunned for a moment before she gradually recalled what had happened yesterday.

Her escape is temporarily over. She is now living with, or rather, cooperating with, this man named Bai Chi.

Ruri's mind was in a mess, and for a moment she didn't know how to describe the state between the two of them.

“There were still some things we didn’t finish talking about last night,” Bai Chi said. “I originally wanted to talk to you after I took a shower, but when I came out I found you were already asleep, so I didn’t wake you up.”

Can you not fall asleep?
Ruri was already exhausted from her escape, and after encountering Bai Chi, she experienced a series of unheard-of events. She even shivered for several hours in the autumn night wearing only a coat. It's a miracle she didn't faint.

"What else do you want to talk about?"

Liuli Hui wrapped the blanket around herself tighter, because she realized that she was quite exposed. She was only wearing the coat that Bai Chi had given her yesterday, and her lower body was completely naked. If it weren't for the blanket, Bai Chi would have seen her naked again.

Huh? Why did you say "again"?

"Yesterday we talked about the past, but we didn't have time to talk about what will happen later."

"after?"

“Yes.” Bai Chi nodded. “I wanted to confirm that you’ve decided to cooperate with me, right?”

"Could I know the specifics?"

"Sure. Specifically, I'll take care of your food, clothing, shelter, and transportation, and you'll lend me your body."

"...You mean power, right?"

"What's the difference?"

One is a power transaction, the other is a physical transaction—how can there be no difference?

Ruri suppressed her urge to correct Bai Chi: "You want to use the power of the Shadow Knights to investigate that case?"

"Yes."

"So how long will you need to investigate?"

"Naturally, we'll keep going until we find out the truth."

"How long exactly?" Liuli Hui looked at Bai Chi. "You've been investigating for ten years with no results. What if you investigate for another ten years and still find nothing? Am I supposed to follow you for another ten years?"

“Of course not,” Bai Chi said. “You can terminate the cooperation at any time.”

“I understand.” Ruri nodded. “But I have one request.”

"You said."

“If I encounter an enemy I don’t want to face, or if I don’t want to fight, you can’t force me to transform.” Ruri looked into Byakuchi’s eyes. “I only have this one request.”

"An enemy you don't want to face?" Bai Chi pondered for a moment, but chose not to ask further. "I understand. I can accept this request. Besides, if you're unwilling, I couldn't force you anyway."

Ruri almost forgot about that.

For the Twin Knights to unleash their true power, they do indeed need the combined efforts of two people; forcing one person to do so is utterly meaningless.

"And what about you?" Ruri asked again, "What if my wishes conflict with yours?"

“It doesn’t matter,” Bai Chi replied. “I’ll go find other women.”

Ruri-e: "..."

Although I know that Bai Chi is talking about finding other people to transform into other Dual Knights, why does it sound so strange?
“Then I hope you will keep my existence a secret from other women… I mean, from the fusion materials,” Ruri said. “If you find them.”

"no problem."

"Then I have no problem either."

Ruri breathed a slight sigh of relief. Her biggest worry was that her identity would be exposed, or that she would be found by people from her hometown. If she discovered that there was such a risk, she would never fight under any circumstances.

As for the rest, none of that matters.

"Then it's settled." Bai Chi nodded. "Take this with you."

Bai Chi handed a cell phone and a SIM card to Liu Li Hui, who looked at him with some confusion: "What's this?"

“This is my phone, you can use it now,” Bai Chi said. “The other one is a Skyrail pass. Once you’re familiar with the route, you can use the Skyrail to get to anywhere in City C within an hour.”

"...If possible, I still don't really want to go out."

"You have to go out," Bai Chi said seriously. "The fusion transformation requires two people to be together, and I can't stay at home all the time. If there's an emergency, I'll need you to come find me. Of course, if time allows, I'll try my best to come and pick you up in person."

Ruri-e then remembered that the transformation of the two required close contact, so it was indeed unlikely that she could stay at home forever.

She hesitated for a moment: "I... have never ridden the Skyrail."

"Never ridden the Skyrail before?" Bai Chi asked, somewhat surprised. "Why? Is it because you don't have the money?"

"No, it's just that this kind of thing doesn't exist in my hometown."

"I see, so you're from the countryside." Bai Chi nodded. "I understand now."

You don't understand anything.

Ruri took a deep breath and once again suppressed the urge to make a sarcastic remark.

So be it, she's from the countryside. It's better than knowing where her real hometown is.

“In that case, I’ll try my best to pick you up before you learn how to ride the Skyrail,” Bai Chi said after a moment’s thought. “But you still need to learn these things as soon as possible. By the way, you know how to use a cell phone, right?”

"Of course I will." Ruri frowned slightly. "Do you think I'm an idiot?"

"Then there's no problem." Bai Chi nodded slightly. "I'll call you when I need you. You just need to be prepared in advance."

As he spoke, Bai Chi glanced at the time.

"I should go to work now. I probably won't need you today," Bai Chi said. "You'd better familiarize yourself with the surrounding area so that you won't be unsure how to get out when I need you."

After saying that, Bai Chi was about to leave, but before leaving, he remembered something and said to Liu Li Hui, "Oh, your clothes are unwearable, I've already thrown them away. I'll buy you a new set when I get off work. Do you have any preferences regarding the style?"

Ruri shook her head: "No requests."

"That's fine then." Bai Chi was completely relieved and went to work.

Liuli Hui was still sitting on the bed, watching Bai Chi's figure disappear behind the window, and then she breathed a sigh of relief.

Regardless, she was still a little uncomfortable being alone in a room with a grown man, especially since she was wearing white clothes and no pants on her lower body, which made her feel quite self-conscious.

Now I can finally feel more at ease.

But he really underestimated me. He even asked me if I knew how to use a mobile phone.

Even if my hometown is backward, it's not... um?

Staring at the phone in front of her, Ruri's expression gradually became blank. Why is this phone so strange?
Why... are there no buttons?
……

When Bai Chi returned to the police station, the once bustling station suddenly fell silent.

Although Bai Chi was used to the effect of his own silencer when he appeared, he could still feel that the atmosphere today was heavier than usual.

But he still didn't ask anything and quickly returned to his office.

He still had some things to do, such as first giving Ruri a legal identity.

Although Bai Chi did not press Liu Li Hui's identity excessively, it does not mean that he knew nothing about Liu Li Hui's origins.

The ominous and unusual nature of the situation, coupled with a lack of basic understanding of modern society, both point to that mysterious and closed-off neighboring country—Gaoyang.

The people of Gaoyang Kingdom, especially their illegal immigrants, often commit heinous crimes after arriving in the country. Bai Chi's archives contain many records of their crimes.

Ruri-e is most likely from this country, but compared to those heinous criminals, she looks much more harmless.

Of course, it doesn't matter if she's not harmless or not, because all Bai Chi cares about is her body. He doesn't care what kind of person she is.

However, for the sake of convenience in the future, Bai Chi decided to give her a temporary identity first, which was not a difficult task for him, who was in charge of the archives.

Just then, there was a knock on the door of the archives room. After receiving a response from Bai Chi, Xia Tian cautiously poked her head in: "Um, Senior Bai Chi, the director is looking for you."

……

As Bai Chi walked into the chief's office, the police officers in Hanguang District immediately began to whisper among themselves.

Do you think he will accept it?

"He wouldn't refuse, would he? Please, after doing something like this, do you still think he's a peace-loving person?"

"To be honest, I never thought he was that kind of person."

"They'll definitely go. Who wouldn't want to be transferred to headquarters?"

"The General Administration is not a place for people like us without connections to go. And even if we did go, what could we do? Even with a first-class merit, we still wouldn't be able to make it in the General Administration. And look at his personality, tsk tsk tsk, who would even pay him any attention?"

"But no matter what, it wouldn't be a bad thing for us if he were transferred."

"To be honest, I really don't want to be around such a scheming guy."

Listening to the discussions of the seniors, Xia Tian felt a little uneasy.

According to the seniors, Bai Chi wanted to take all the credit last night, which is why he acted alone.

Although Xia Tian thought it was illogical for an ordinary policeman to go and hunt down a third-level special agent on his own for the sake of merit, the seniors all thought so, after all, they gave enough reasons - Bai Chi lived in Happiness Alley, and no one knew the roads of that place better than him, so what was wrong with secretly shooting a shot?
This reason was still far-fetched, but as a junior, Xia Tian couldn't go against his seniors, so he could only sigh silently in his heart.

There's nothing we can do about it; Senior Bai Chi's reputation is just too bad.
A moment later, Bai Chi walked out of the director's office. Everyone looked over, but because Bai Chi still had that expressionless look, no one could figure out what he and the director had talked about.

It wasn't until they saw Bai Chi return to his office, pack his things, put on his suit, and prepare to leave that everyone realized—oh, he's leaving, he's really leaving!

Immediately, the people who had been looking rather serious broke into smiles. If Bai Chi hadn't been still there, they probably would have jumped up and started celebrating.

Seeing this scene, Xia Tian couldn't help but sigh inwardly.

Xia Tian wondered if it was because he and Bai Chi were both top students at the police academy, but he always felt that Bai Chi's crime did not deserve to be so serious.

Sigh, I hope Senior Bai Chi can change his personality a little after he goes to headquarters, then...

"Officer Xia Tian." Just as Bai Chi was about to leave, he seemed to suddenly remember something and turned back to look at Xia Tian. "Could you come with me?"

Summer tilted her head to the side.

"what?"

……

A few minutes later, Xia Tian sat in Bai Chi's passenger seat, still a little confused: "Senior Bai Chi, what are you doing?"

Bai Chi replied, "The director asked me to go to the headquarters to collect an award."

"To receive an award?" Xia Tian blinked. "Wasn't he being transferred to headquarters?"

"No. Who told you I was going to be transferred to General Administration?"

"Uh, just guessing, just guessing." Xia Tian said somewhat awkwardly.

So Senior Bai Chi hasn't been transferred yet.

How to put it? Xia Tian didn't know whether she should be happy or disappointed.

Bai Chi looked at Xia Tian with a meaningful expression: "Don't worry, I've already figured it out."

Xia Tian was taken aback: "What did you see?"

“I know everything those people are saying.”

Summer was shocked.

Does "he knows everything" mean... that he fully understands why the other police officers dislike him?

Since you know this, why do you still do it...?

"Did you make them angry?"

"……what?"

"This kind of thing is normal, don't take it to heart," Bai Chi said while driving. "When you first start working, you're not used to it. Occasionally you'll make a mistake and get scolded by your seniors. This happens in every industry, just relax."

Summer fell silent.

She thought she already knew a little about Bai Chi, but when Bai Chi actually spoke, she realized how naive she had been.

The police car drove along the bustling street. Outside the police car, the city was noisy and bustling, but inside the police car, it was eerily quiet.

After what seemed like an eternity, Xia Tian finally broke the silence: "Is this why you brought me out?"

Bai Chi nodded: "Yes, I'm afraid the atmosphere there will be too oppressive, and you won't be able to stand it."

Summer's lips twitched slightly, and it took her a lot of effort to change the retort that was about to come out into "Thank you so much."

"You're welcome."

After they finished speaking, they both fell silent.

Looking at Bai Chi's expressionless face, Xia Tian began to regret not refusing to come out with him.

This is too embarrassing.

Just then, Bai Chi spoke up again: "Well, if you really want to thank me, that's fine too."

Summer is here again.

When should I thank you?

Oh no, could this all be a trap set by Bai Chi? What should I do next? Borrow money?
Xia Tian tensed up. Before she could speak, Bai Chi continued, "It's like this, I recently met a girl, but I don't quite know how to approach her."

Upon hearing this, Xia Tian immediately felt relieved.

Oh, it turns out it's a relationship counseling session. She thought she wanted to borrow money from me.

I never expected that such a serious and rigid senior would have such a naive side.

Thinking of this, Xia Tian's gaze softened considerably as she looked at Bai Chi, and her tone became more lively. She blinked and asked playfully, "Is that so? Then, senior, how far do you want to go with this girl?"

"We could be naked together, wouldn't we?" Bai Chi replied.

Summer's smile froze.

(End of this chapter)