I'm on the Ark, and I start out as Gretchen.

"You wait there, I'll be right back!!" Swire snapped, then hung up the phone immediately.

"..."

Chen glanced at the phone that had been hung up, the sound of Swire's furious curses still echoing in his ears. Then, as if remembering something, he turned to look at Swire's villa, which no longer had a gate and was in a mess, and fell into an eerie silence.

At this moment, Chen began to seriously consider whether to honestly confess or shift the blame onto the other party...

……

Swire, whose base was raided twice tonight, received a message from her friend and, filled with anger, drove Hoshiguma back home at breakneck speed.

Of course, she didn't forget Chen's instructions. After entering the villa area where her family lived, she searched the area and took back all the "unconscious" people she could. She also arranged for someone to pick up those she couldn't carry.

Then, as soon as the car stopped in front of her house, Swire opened the car door and looked outside, she froze.

The lights in her yard and house had been turned on at some point, and under the light, everything was clearly visible, from the missing door of her villa to the mess in the yard.

"...?"

While Swire was still in a daze, Hoshiguma, who was sitting in the driver's seat, also got out of the car and saw the same scene. With a strange expression, she said, "Swire... has your house been ransacked?"

"It seems the Dragon Gate Thieves are quite adept at using the 'luring the tiger away from the mountain' tactic..."

"..."

Hearing Hoshiguma's words, Swire snapped out of her daze, her face turning completely dark. She felt that today was absolutely the most infuriating day of her many years of smooth sailing life, without a doubt!

"Let's go find the Dragon King and see what's going on!" The little tiger said through gritted teeth, each word practically spitting out from between his teeth.

"Um, Swire, why don't you calm down first? Getting angry all the time isn't good for your health!" As someone who had spent the whole night with Swire, Hoshiguma had been watching her friend's emotional fluctuations closely. Before, it wasn't so scary, but now she was genuinely afraid that her friend might just faint from anger.

"Phew—I'm alright!"

Upon hearing this, Swire took a deep breath, calming herself down before heading home.

"Ugh……"

Seeing his friend like this, Hoshiguma sighed, shrugged helplessly, and followed.

Miss Ghost now understands that Padofelis, the "Dragon Gate Thief," has become an obsession for her friend; she'll probably never be satisfied until she catches her.

-------------

Meanwhile, in Wei Yanwu's home, the study light was still on late at night—

"Looks like you lost tonight, Wei Yanwu. How does it feel?" Wen Yue, who was wearing a light nightgown and an outer coat, said with a smile as she stood by the desk.

"She gave too broad a range. Who would guess that a thief would steal something so big? Besides, it seems this guy has an accomplice he doesn't know about!" Wei Yanwu gritted his teeth, somewhat annoyed by his wife's teasing.

Wei Yanwu reviewed Pado's actions tonight, although not...

Excluding the possibility that she possesses special spatial abilities that would allow her to instantly teleport herself into the mall the moment the power is cut off outside.

However, he personally leans more towards the belief that this despicable little kitten has an accomplice they haven't been able to find...

"Heh~ It's rare to see you arguing with a kid. You lost this time, so be it. Didn't you prepare for the next round? The next round will involve a lot more." Hearing this, Wen Yue walked to Wei Yanwu's side, smiled and patted his shoulder.

"Who's arguing with that guy?" Wei Yanwu's lips twitched involuntarily after hearing Wen Yue's words. "But Wen Yue, you're right. Really, there are always people trying to get their hands on things."

Both of them knew perfectly well what had happened tonight; it was all just a "minor squabble" that occurred with their tacit approval—small actions that they were aware of and could control.

But the next time won't be the same. Wei Yanwu's entrustment and test of Pado is not as simple as this little thing. It is something that really involves the interests of many people.

……

"Aqiu!"

"Again!"

After a lot of effort, Pado finally got back to her new place. Before she could even wash up and crawl into her tent, she sneezed loudly. At the same time, a familiar feeling of being watched with ill intent arose.

Cat, who has always trusted her intuition, decided to avoid the Lungmen quartet for the next period of time.

As for why Lin Yuxia was suddenly added to the list of people to avoid, it wasn't just because she was confused by some unforeseen circumstance today, but also because...

Thinking about it, Pado gently lowered her head and glanced at the pale purple ornament she had been holding in her hand.

Chapter 103 High Spirits and Low Spirits

"Ah~"

Pado, who had slept soundly, squinted at the sunlight casting shadows on the tent, yawned, and slowly got up, groggily changing her clothes.

Sleeping in is nice, but the cat gets hungry. And I can't keep my little brother waiting outside.

"Miss Phyllis, you're awake? Here, I bought breakfast." As soon as Pado opened the tent and peeked out, a murmur came from not far away.

"Okay! We're coming right now!"

Upon hearing this, Pado's cat ears twitched slightly, and she instantly became interested. She crawled out of the tent to wash up.

……

"How did things go last night? Was Miss Phyllis injured?" After she sat down next to him and started eating breakfast, An Suo turned his head and asked the question he was curious about in a low voice.

"Yesterday's operation was quite successful overall!" Upon hearing this, Pado's tail curled up nimbly as she spoke happily.

"So, let's go out for a nice meal today!"

Cat suddenly remembered her promise to Xiao Shi and the others last night. In order not to "favor one over the other", she decided to take them out for a nice meal first.

"Ah... okay, it looks like Miss Phyllis is going to have to spend money again~" After hearing Pado's sudden words, An Suo was taken aback at first, then reacted and teased.

"Aww..., at least you're one of us, An Suo, so we can afford to treat you to a good meal!" Pado said, taking a bite of the bun in her hand, her voice a little muffled.

"By the way, let's not just talk about our side. How was things going on your end last night? We got back too late yesterday, so we didn't ask."

"I?"

"What could possibly happen to me? I just took some canned food to deliver some medicine, bought some food, and came back to sleep," An Suo said nonchalantly, waving his hand in response to Pa Duo's question.

"Oh dear, this is no simple task, it's a very important mission. You've worked hard, An Suo!" An Suo's words made Pa Duo raise an eyebrow, then she reached out and hugged her, grinning.

Even if you say that, I didn't...

Just as An Suo was about to retort and say something, the long tail with barbs behind Pado quietly swayed in front of her, stopping her from finishing her sentence.

After achieving its goal, the cat smiled and retracted its tail, patted An Suo on the shoulder, and encouraged him, "An Suo, don't underestimate yourself. Your mission last night saved a whole family!"

"Alright, alright, let's put that aside and discuss what kind of feast we should have today!"

"Since you've put it that way, Miss Phyllis, then I won't stand on ceremony!" An Suo's eyes flashed with helplessness upon hearing Pado's attempt to change the subject, before he said "fiercely."

"Hmm~"

-------

At the same time, on the other side——

Compared to the high spirits of Pado's group, several other people now seemed a little listless.

For example, the three with dark circles under their eyes were eating breakfast at Swire's house while watching the workers install the new front door.

"I'll transfer the money for replacing the gate to you later." Looking at the hardworking installer, Chen, the number one dark-circled man, seemed to have thought of something and broke the silence that filled the dining table by speaking.

Last night, Chen ultimately chose the former over the latter—honestly admitting the truth or shifting the blame.

"...No need, I don't need the money. Besides, this debt shouldn't be pinned on you, Lao Chen, damn it!" The second person with dark circles under his eyes, whose emotions had already calmed down and who was even somewhat listless, said...

As Swire spoke, he couldn't help but grit his teeth as he thought about what happened last night.

This time, the little tiger really hated Paddo so much he wanted to grind his teeth. You bastard, you really shouldn't fall into my hands in this lifetime, or else I'll... you bastard!

"Remember to send me any news about that Padofelis. I'll start investigating her myself. It's a dereliction of duty to let such a petty thief run rampant in Lungmen!" Seeing the atmosphere broken, Lin Yuxia, the third member of the Black Circles group, couldn't help but speak up.

Actually, she hadn't been this hostile towards Patophis, the "Dragon Gate Thief," before, but she couldn't resist being knocked unconscious and robbed!

Regardless of the truth, from Lin Yuxia's perspective, she was completely confused and knocked unconscious. When she woke up, she found herself covered in dirt and, upon inspection, discovered that something was missing from her body.

Although it was just a small accessory, nothing particularly valuable, it was a birthday gift from her mother last year, which she really liked, so she couldn't stand it! Padofelis immediately added it to her must-have list!

"I understand. I'll let you know if there's any news." With that, Swire waved her hand gently.

"The Guard Bureau has also taken leave, so you should all get some rest today."

"I'll drive Old Chen and Lin Yuxia back in a bit," Hoshiguma, the only one of the four who seemed to be in relatively good spirits and didn't have dark circles under his eyes, said helplessly, listening to the conversation between the three.

As for why only Hoshiguma among the four didn't have dark circles under her eyes, it all started last night. Shortly after Swire returned last night, Lin Yuxia also woke up. Then the four of them began exchanging information to understand the details of what happened that night.

Then, it would have been better if they hadn't been talking, because once they started, Swire and Lin Yuxia couldn't sleep at all.

Chen was doing slightly better, but her mood was still a bit complicated because of the battle that night. She couldn't sleep, so she looked at her sister's letter, and then she couldn't sleep at all.

So in the end, only Hoshiguma, with her easygoing and carefree personality, managed to get a good night's rest at Swire's house last night.

"Yes, thank you for your help, Hoshiguma."

"It's troublesome."

Faced with Hoshiguma's kind offer, Chen and Lin Yuxia didn't refuse and nodded in agreement. After all, they were both quite aware of their current situation.

"It's nothing, just a small matter!" Hoshiguma waved her hand dismissively upon hearing this, and then continued, "Then I'll take you back after you finish breakfast."

"Ah."

P.S.: Ugh, I'm dizzy and have a bit of a fever. My mental state has been terrible lately, and I've been having a lot of arguments with my parents. I need to work on my update speed; it's been lagging a bit.

Goodnight everyone. I'm planning to work out a detailed outline for the last few days of this month, and see if I can salvage my perfect attendance record next month.

Chapter 104 Angry Little Knowledge

After being taken home by Hoshiguma, Chen took a quick shower, changed into pajamas, and lay down on the bed with Talulah's letter box in her arms.

Having gone through a series of events since yesterday, she is currently in a rather unpleasant mood, filled with complex emotions and a touch of depression.

It's complicated because I read many of my older sister's letters and learned a lot about her past experiences and feelings. It's depressing because I felt my own weakness again… I lost so quickly.

Thinking about it, Chen lowered his eyes to hide his disappointment in himself, gently rubbed his still somewhat numb tiger's mouth, and clenched his fist with some resentment.

It's still not enough. If she were strong enough, would she be able to know the truths about the past? Would she be able to protect more people instead of being protected by others? Or even help Talulah...?

"..."

As time slowly passed, no matter how turbulent Chen's emotions were, no matter how unwilling she felt, physical exhaustion and drowsiness gradually dragged her into a dream and into a deep sleep.

But whether this dream was good or bad, no one but her knows.

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