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

"Phew—I'm fine, Gretchen, don't worry." Chen exhaled a breath of stale air, took out a handkerchief from his pocket, wiped the sweat from his forehead, and said.

If it weren't for the lingering, dull pain in Chen's body, or rather, her mind, she would have begun to doubt whether everything that had just happened was a dream...

P.S.: Oh, I got an appointment today.

I'm going to the hospital for a checkup tomorrow. I feel terrible.

Chapter 137 Gift

"Hmm... Are you really alright? Sister Xiaoshi seemed a little unhappy earlier..." Gretchen said in a low voice, looking at Chen who was wiping away cold sweat.

To be honest, the little girl had planned to attend this "sparring" in person, but to her surprise, her older sister Xiaoshi was still sulking about what happened before and hadn't pulled her, the "little traitor," into the space. She could only observe from afar through telepathy.

"It's really nothing, the sparring is over, but... did that Herrscher of Knowledge come by just now?" Meeting Gresh's worried gaze, Chen gently shook her head, then put down her handkerchief and asked with some doubt.

"Ugh...")

Faced with Chen's question, Gretchen thought for a moment, then began to recount with a serious expression, "In reality, there isn't one... but Sister Xiaoshi refused to let me enter the consciousness space, saying that I was a little traitor who was siding with outsiders... She seemed very angry at the time."

"?..."

Upon hearing these words, a question mark immediately appeared in Chen's mind.

No way, Gretchen is so cute and you turned her away! Turning her away is one thing, but you even called her a little traitor! How is she siding with outsiders... oh, with me, then never mind.

Once Chen realized what was happening, his emotions calmed down instantly, and he even wanted to praise his new sister.

"cough……"

Lost in thought, Chen coughed lightly at Gretsch's innocent and adorable gaze, quickly snapping back to reality. He said softly, "Gretsch, don't worry. The Herrscher of Knowledge didn't do anything to me. I did gain something from this sparring session in every aspect."

"Is that so... That's good then. But for your health, Sister Huijie, let's not go shopping for too long this afternoon." Hearing this, Greta nodded obediently.

"it is good."

-----------

At the same time, on the other side——

"Wait, old antique, are you really going to teach that girl? You're even going to help her modify her 'cultivation techniques,' what's the difference between that and taking on a disciple?" Xiao Shi, who had just emerged from the consciousness space, was shaking the person next to her, reminding her.

"Wake up! Even though you're not exactly an 'old fogey,' you should still think about what happens when an old fogey takes on disciples!"

"Don't get excited, Xiao Shi." Hua Yi, who was a little shaken, grabbed Xiao Shi's wrist and said helplessly, "It's just teaching, not taking on a disciple. Right now, I'm traveling the continent with you. Where would I have the energy to train a disciple?"

"In this situation, all I can do is try my best to teach her some skills during this period of time. As I said before, how far she can go in the future depends on herself."

"...Fine, fine, you really can't do anything with this old fogey." Xiao Shi, who was about to say something more, calmed down after hearing Hua's words about traveling with her, and stopped making a fuss.

She looks just like a proud little kitten whose fur has been successfully stroked.

"But since you're in charge of teaching, I'll be in charge of the assessment. Pshaw, do you really think you can escape this by changing your apprenticeship? Impossible!"

"Sigh... Xiao Shi, you know my premise." Looking at the childish appearance of the person in front of him, Hua shook his head helplessly and said.

"I know, I know, I'll be careful. Don't nag me, you old fogey." Xiao Shi nodded slightly and said skillfully.

"Alright, let's leave this at that for now. Let's eat lunch, or the food will get cold," Hua said, glancing at the food on the table and picking up her chopsticks.

Actually, they originally planned to find Chen and Gretchen after finishing their meal, but Xiao Shi couldn't resist. Noticing that the other party had finished eating, she seemed afraid that they would run away, so she directly pulled them into her space and started their agreed-upon sparring.

"it is good!"

----------

After the sparring session at noon, Chen did not feel physically tired, but as time went by, mental fatigue gradually became apparent.

Finally, because of Hua's instructions when she left and Gretchen's understanding, she did not choose to be stubborn. In the afternoon, she spent several more hours shopping with people, and after buying all the necessary gifts, she ended her shopping trip for the day.

Of course, Chen didn't rush to send Gretchen back to her hotel. Instead, he took her to the Guard Bureau. After all, the gift he had spent half the day shopping for and put a lot of thought into buying deserved to be delivered by her personally.

"Hey, looks like you guys had a good time today. But Old Chen, aren't you a little too tired?" Hoshiguma teased, looking at the two people, one big and one small, who had just returned with their bags full of purchases as they pushed open the office door.

"Tsk tsk, we're both shopping, but Chen, you seem to have even less stamina than little Greyshear~" Noticing the commotion in the office, Swire, who had been working hard all day, looked up and mocked.

"I encountered some things outside today and I'm a bit mentally exhausted."

Upon hearing this, Chen first explained softly to Hoshiguma, then turned to Swire and gave her a provocative smile, saying, "First of all, I don't think you'd be in a better state than me if we were in the same situation. Secondly, shopping is always enjoyable, no matter how tiring it is, when you have someone with you."

"?"

"Pfft...you, you bastard!"

Hearing Chen's provocative words, Swire's lips twitched, and she was about to curse him out, but after noticing the blue figure beside him, she changed her mind and said irritably, "You just wait and see later."

"Fine, I'll wait. What are you afraid of?" Chen raised an eyebrow and retorted, then lowered his head to look at Gretchen and said in a gentler tone, "Gretchen, you must be tired too. Don't stand at the door, go inside and rest."

"Um……"

Upon hearing this, Gretchen nodded gently, then obediently carried her things inside.

She had messaged Wen Yue after finishing shopping with Chen, and she didn't know when Wen Yue would come to pick her up, so she planned to distribute the gifts she had bought as soon as possible.

And then, and most importantly, without disturbing Hoshiguma herself, she wanted to get close to her; the little girl wanted to see Mei as soon as possible.

"Gifts for Sister Huaiya and Sister Xingxiong!"

Having made up her mind, Gretchen quickly took action, taking two items from what she was carrying and placing them on the table for the two of them.

"Thank you, Gretchen. Well then, I won't be polite. But as for a return gift, I'll have to wait a couple more days, because I'm still choosing one." After accepting Gretchen's gift, Hoshiguma smiled at her and said casually.

Compared to Hoshiguma, who already knew about the gifts and remained calm, Swire seemed slightly surprised. "Eh? We also got some of the gifts you bought today?"

"Wait, Hoshiguma, your attitude... you already knew?! Then why didn't you tell me? I wasn't prepared at all."

"I just wanted to give you a little surprise, Swire!"

"..."

Chapter 138 Why does the skirt fly?

As the sun slowly set, its afterglow streamed through the windows of the Guard Bureau building, adding a warm hue to the white-lit interior.

At this moment, in an office, three people are sitting at their desks, holding their phones, sending messages to each other in the quietest of spaces.

[Chen's Working Group]

[Hoshiguma]: "Hey Chen, it's about time. You should send Gretchen back or bring her home now. If she keeps sleeping next to me, she probably won't be able to sleep tonight."

[Chen]: "I know... but, Hoshiguma, you can call me that."

[Swire]: "You idiot, you're practically throwing your abacus beads at my face! Do the things that make kids angry yourself!"

[Chen]: "Char Siu Cat, what nonsense are you talking about? I just didn't want to wake people up."

[Schwarzman]: "Tsk tsk tsk, who would believe that!"

"..."

After a brief struggle on the phone, Hoshiguma watched her two friends glaring at each other in real life and bickering on the phone, and finally reluctantly became the "bad guy" called "Little Cutie".

Hoshiguma looked at the little cutie leaning against her and, not wanting to disturb her, even used her gentlest tone, "Little Gretchen, it's getting late, you should get up... If you keep sleeping, you might not be able to sleep tonight."

"Hmm..." Startled by the sudden call, Gretchen sat up groggily, then instinctively looked up at the source of the voice. "Hoshiguma-neechan... Ugh, I understand..."

"cough……"

Suddenly encountering Gretchen's bewildered little expression, Hoshiguma, overwhelmed by its cuteness, couldn't help but cough lightly and turn her face slightly to the side, but her hand couldn't resist placing it on Gretchen's fluffy little head and gently stroking it.

“???)……

Gretchen, still somewhat dazed and not fully awake, was a little confused, but still rubbed the hand on her head in compliance.

"You're awake. Have some water." Seeing that she was awake, Chen no longer restrained himself and stood up to pour a glass of water for Gretsch.

"Yes, thank you, Sister Huijie..." Upon hearing this, Gretchen did not refuse, nodded, and obediently picked up the water cup and drank.

"So, Gretchen, what are you planning to do next? Do you want to go out for dinner with me again and then I'll take you home, or do you want to have dinner with Miss Hua and the others and have them pick you up?" Looking at the well-behaved Gretchen in front of him, Chen couldn't help but pat her little head and ask.

"Hmm...no need, I have somewhere else to go tonight." Gretchen put down her cup and explained softly after hearing Chen's question.

Upon hearing this, Chen frowned slightly. "A new place to go? Is it safe?"

However, before Gretchen could answer, a familiar voice came through the slightly ajar office door, which was left open for easy access, and answered Chen's question in advance.

"Safety? Of course, there's no problem. If there's a problem with me, then that would be a really serious situation."

As the voice faded, the slightly ajar office door was pushed open from the outside, revealing the appearance of the person outside, which surprised the people in the office.

"Ah, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to eavesdrop on your conversation. I just happened to be here to pick up Gretchen." Looking at the three surprised juniors in the office, Wen Yue smiled gently at them and explained.

"Aunt Wen Yue, how do you know Gretchen?"

Looking at the person at the door who was all too familiar to him, Chen couldn't help but ask after his initial surprise.

"Um... I met her by going to see the fluffy girl, because of Taru."

A also prepared a letter for her. "Hearing Chen's question, Greta blinked her beautiful eyes gently and used vague words to defuse the situation.

Although the little girl felt that Chen probably knew that her uncle and aunt cared about her, there was no need to bring it up in public, as it might make things awkward for both of them.

"I see... It's not easy to find Aunt Wenyue. If something like this happens again, Gretchen, remember to tell me." Hearing this, Chen was still a little hesitant, but in the end, she accepted Gretchen's reason and patted her little head again, giving her instructions.

Hearing Gretchen's seemingly innocent yet conveniently extricated Wen Yue from her predicament, a smile flashed in her eyes. She added, "Heh~ The reason I invited Gretchen to my place tonight is the same as yours, Xiao Chen. Don't worry, I'll take good care of her."

Upon hearing this, Chen nodded gently. "Then, Aunt Wenyue, have you informed Miss Hua and the others about this?"

"of course."

"Alright then." Chen leaned down and whispered to Gretchen, "In that case, Gretchen, remember to have fun. If you need anything, feel free to contact me. I'm always here for you."

"Hmm???...Okay, I understand."

After Gretchen obediently agreed, Chen didn't waste any more time and started packing her things. He let her take what was convenient to take to Wen Yue, and left what was inconvenient to carry there for now.

……

"Well, see you next time, sisters..." Gretchen, who was ready, walked to Fumizuki's side, then turned around and waved to the people in the office.

"Okay, goodbye, Gretchen."

"Goodbye, little one."

"See you next time, little Gretchen. I'll definitely prepare the best gift for you later as a return gift!"

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

After leaving the office, Gretsch was led downstairs by Fumizuki when she suddenly heard her say meaningfully, "Little Gretsch, how would you like to come home with me today?"