On the Ark.

Lin Ye was stunned.

Holy crap, just a minute ago you said you'd cover my retreat, how come you're abandoning me and running away now? And so decisively at that?

He couldn't help but glance back, only to find that the group behind him wasn't in much better shape. The Emperor stood on the sofa, pointed at Stino's nose, and uttered a string of harsh words. After he finished speaking, he realized that he was all alone. Croissant had run away with Sora in her arms, and Exusiai was close behind. The Emperor was stunned for a moment, then let out an angry roar.

"Oh my god! You bunch of bastards, how could you sell me out?! Wait for me, you idiots! I'm the boss!"

"Boss, hurry up!" Exusiai shouted back to the Emperor, "We'll be waiting for you up ahead."

This completely stunned Lin Ye. It turned out these people weren't intentionally trying to sell him out; they were even willing to betray their own boss when they ran. There was nothing to complain about then, and Lin Ye could only turn tail and run. As soon as he turned around, five or six men in black chased after him. But this was already quite good; at least twenty were chasing the Emperor, and ten were chasing Texas. Compared to them, the pressure he faced was the least.

However, he's clearly not an employee of Tencent Logistics! Why is he being targeted and attacked?!

When did he transmigrate into a gangster novel?!

Lin Ye couldn't figure it out, so he could only run for his life. Luckily, he found the side door of the bar before he got very far, and after running out, he entered a small alley. He didn't know the way, so he just ran blindly, with the men in black continuing to chase him. Texas had said that everything would be fine as long as he got out of the bar, but now it seemed like complete nonsense; these guys behind him clearly weren't going to let him go.

At this moment, Lin Ye could only pray that he could quickly run out of the alley and onto the street. These guys probably wouldn't dare to attack him on the street. Wait, why didn't he call Chen?! Being chased by gangsters, of course you should call the police… police officers, is this common sense even necessary to consider?

Thinking this, Lin Ye immediately took out his phone, but as soon as he dialed Chen's number, he bumped into someone because he wasn't paying attention to where he was going.

"Ouch." The one who was knocked down was a girl.

She sat on the ground, covering her forehead, the snacks she was holding scattered all over the floor.

Lin Ye fell onto her, and while apologizing, he got up and met a pair of blue eyes. The blue eyes stared at Lin Ye, and the owner of the eyes slightly opened his mouth.

"Sorry, sorry, sorry." Lin Ye immediately stood up. "Did you hurt yourself... uh?"

As Lin Ye stood up, he noticed the halo around the girl's blue hair, and the horns beneath it.

Is this an angel or a demon?

Lin Ye didn't react immediately, and there was no time for him to react. The men in black behind him had already caught up. As reckless gangsters, they swung their knives at Lin Ye. Lin Ye had a chance to dodge, but if he did, the girl beneath him would be injured.

For a split second, he hesitated.

The consequence of hesitation was an extra wound on his back.

Blood splattered out and landed on the girl's face.

This ignited Lin Ye's anger, which he had long since reached his limit of tolerance for.

So just before the next strike came down, everyone heard the clear sound of Qingyue drawing her sword.

His body, under threat, automatically triggered the Leap Strike. Lin Ye hadn't actually considered that he'd need to use Leap Strike to fight these henchmen, but things had come to this point, and he couldn't care less. He could have run away before, but not now; he couldn't let an innocent girl passing by get caught in the crossfire.

Then [Maple] was drawn, its fiery red blade carrying the power of the god Kalan, easily severing the black-clad man's hand.

Because his movements were so fast, by the time the man in black reacted, his hand was already gone.

"*Fuck you (Chinese swear word)*, are you out of your mind?" Lin Ye stood in front of the girl, glaring at the men in black. "Come on, it's just a fight, right? We Rhodes Island doctors aren't afraid of this kind of thing! Come on!"

The men in black were startled by Lin Ye's sudden outburst. They didn't know why Lin Ye, who had been running away frantically just a moment ago, had suddenly become so assertive.

Unbeknownst to the men in black, the girl being protected by Lin Ye had slowly tightened her grip on the staff behind her.

……

……

Author's BB: I lay in bed all afternoon and the fever finally broke. I'll just write 4K for today and try to start paying off my debts the day after tomorrow (tomorrow is my birthday, haha, and I'll take my silly cat to get his testicles removed).

Chapter 428 Long Time No See, Master... Lin Ye (4K)

Lin Ye hadn't encountered such a low-level battle in a long time.

This is so low-level that it doesn't need quotes, because it truly is low-level. Although the opponents are all wielding machetes, it's really just a street brawl. Since Lin Ye joined Rhodes Island, the battles he's encountered have basically been life-or-death situations, and his opponents are far beyond what these gangsters can compare to (after all, he's even fought deep-sea monsters).

This wasn't even as dangerous as when he faced the infected in the Chernobog hospital. So Lin Ye wasn't particularly nervous, just a little headache, because Texas had warned him that this level of fighting absolutely couldn't result in death. Therefore, Lin Ye didn't dare fight with his bare hands, afraid of accidentally killing them.

This was a first for him, because in the past, he'd always been in fights where he'd be hacked to death unless he fought with his life on the line, so there was no holding back. But this time, his opponent was a complete weakling, so he had to… hmm? When did he become so accustomed to killing people?

Lin Ye's lips twitched slightly. He thought to himself that it would have been great if he had brought Vector with him. With a gun in hand, all he had to do was fire a burst into the air, and these guys wouldn't dare come any closer. Although he felt that cutting off one of the men in black's hands was already a pretty good deterrent, the men in black exchanged glances and still didn't intend to retreat, probably thinking that Lin Ye alone couldn't cause any trouble.

This put Lin Ye in a difficult position. Now that [Maple] had been drawn, it was unlikely that he would show any mercy in the fight. He could only pray that these guys were tough, and then think about how to explain to Chen or Swire when he was taken to the Guard Bureau. After all, he was just a victim, and nobody wanted to kill anyone... Hmm, did he forget something?

Lin Ye suddenly remembered that there was a lady standing behind him, who he couldn't tell was either an angel or a demon. Although he was very curious about her identity, the situation was urgent and he couldn't turn around to take a good look. So he took a deep breath and said, "Miss Angel, I'm sorry to have dragged you into this. But don't worry, this has nothing to do with you. You should leave here as soon as possible."

This passerby was really unlucky. He was eating snacks and strolling down the street when Lin Ye bumped into him and witnessed such a bloody scene. If someone with a weaker mentality were to witness this, they probably wouldn't be able to sleep tonight. But in a way, he was also quite unlucky. If he hadn't bumped into this person, he probably could have run out of the alley and onto the street in one breath. With so many passersby watching, Lin Ye didn't believe that these thugs would dare to continue chasing him.

So, meeting each other is bad luck for both of them.

Lin Ye sighed softly to himself. There had been no sound behind him for a long time, and he assumed the girl had left, so he prepared to make his move. But just then, a hand landed on his shoulder. He turned around instinctively and met those pale blue eyes again. He saw something glittering in those eyes.

“When I went out this morning, I met a tarot reader from Sami at the end of the street.” The girl spoke softly, her voice like a gentle melody. “As I walked past the reader, she called out to me and gave me a tarot card that smelled of roses, saying that I would have a very good day. At the time, I didn’t quite believe it, because I never have any good luck.”

Lin Ye was completely confused: "What did you say? What tarot reader?"

“A year ago today, I passed by a great temple in Yan Kingdom. It was a beautiful place, and in autumn, the maple leaves covered the temple. The abbot there told me that as long as you are sincere, you will see the person you want to see again,” the girl said. “But I didn’t believe it, because I haven’t seen the person I wanted to see since I lost him.”

Lin Ye wondered if this excessively beautiful angel had something wrong with her head. Why was she dragging a stranger who had just knocked her down into talking about all this nonsense? Didn't she see that group of thugs on the other side who looked like they were about to be messed with, already eager to attack? No, they weren't just eager to attack; these guys had already charged at her.

"Damn! Are you kidding me?!" Lin Ye gripped [Maple] tightly, thinking he'd teach them a lesson today. He took a step forward and said, "You'd better get out of here, I'll handle this..."

"I was just kidding."

The girl standing next to Lin Ye stepped in front of him, raising her white staff as she spoke to the men in black. Lin Ye then noticed that she was a sorcerer. The moment she raised her staff, powerful arcane energy gathered before Lin Ye and then radiated outwards, instantly engulfing all the men in black.

Three seconds later, there were no more men in black standing in the alley.

Lin Ye couldn't help but open his mouth wide.

The girl slowly turned around, her blue eyes sparkling like jewels under the angelic halo.

"Just kidding," the girl said softly. "I didn't meet any astrologers this morning. At the end of the street is a steamed bun shop selling breakfast. I didn't meet any abbots a year ago either, because you have to pay to enter a temple to draw lots, and I didn't want to go in. But today really is my lucky day, because..." The girl started rambling on, then paused, and then smiled at Lin Ye, saying softly, "Long time no see, Master... Lin Ye."

……

Standing by the river, feeling the river breeze and holding a hot milk tea in her hands, Lin Ye felt that what had happened today was too surreal.

First, he encountered the unreliable boss of Penguin Logistics, who insisted on dragging him, a man, to a bar to keep him company while he drank. Keeping him company wasn't a big deal, since he hadn't suffered any loss; he could just consider it a free meal. However, he inexplicably got caught up in a gang fight (or rather, the Penguin Logistics boss was just plain stupid), and was chased by thugs wielding machetes for a whole street. Just when he thought he could escape, he bumped into an innocent girl.

There was no other way; he couldn't let a passerby get involved. Lin Ye prepared for battle, even drawing his [Maple] sword, but he had no chance to fight. The girl he initially thought was just a passerby turned out to be a sorcerer, effortlessly defeating all the men in black present, leaving Lin Ye stunned. And that wasn't all; the girl even recognized him, uttering a series of inexplicable remarks before expertly calling out his name.

So the plot twists and turns ultimately evolved from a "gang fight" into a scene where the protagonist is standing by the river, enjoying the view and drinking milk tea with the girl he just met. Frankly, if such a completely seamless plot twist occurred in a movie, the screenwriter and director would be criticized by the audience. But now…

Looking at the steaming milk tea in his hand, Lin Ye thought to himself, "Is life really more magical than art?"

"Is your injury healed?" the girl standing next to Lin Ye asked him.

"Hmm... I don't feel anything anymore," Lin Ye said. "Your medicine is quite effective."

"Really? Looks like it wasn't a waste of money." The girl nodded and said with a smile, "I thought I'd been ripped off."

Was the medication he was given still untested?

Lin Ye silently complained in his heart, but didn't say it aloud. Instead, he said, "Um..."

“Mostima,” the girl said. “It’s not an easy name to remember, but I hope you can.”

“Mostima, I’ve got it.” Lin Ye nodded, then asked, “I just wanted to ask, have we met before?”

"Hmm? Why do you ask that?"

“Because you clearly know me,” Lin Ye said, “but I don’t know you.”

Mostima looked at Lin Ye and smiled: "Don't you recognize me? Won't you think about it again?"

Having already said that, Lin Ye could only look at Mostima's face more carefully, then search his memory, but he really couldn't find any recollection of this woman. Logically speaking, a girl as beautiful as her would be hard to forget if you had ever had contact with her; if he couldn't remember anything at all, it could only mean that you really hadn't had any contact with her.

So Lin Ye could only shake his head, while Mostima seemed to have already guessed Lin Ye's answer, his expression remaining unchanged: "Since you can't remember, let's just forget about it and get to know each other again."

"Getting to know each other again is such a weird idea," Lin Ye said. "Can't you give me a hint?"

"hint?"

"Yes, when did you meet my hint?"

“There’s no point in giving advice on this,” Mostima said. “Well, there’s really no need to worry about it too much.”

How could I not care?

Lin Ye pondered for a moment, then suddenly remembered the cartoon he had seen at the Penguin Logistics branch during the day. As if he had grasped some clue, he immediately asked, "Are you a member of Penguin Logistics?"

Mostima was somewhat surprised: "Do you know Penguin Logistics?"

Of course I know.

Lin Ye thought to himself, "What do you think is the reason I'm being chased by gangsters today?"

He explained the whole story to Mostima, who immediately laughed: "Hahaha, is that how it is? Those guys are still so unreliable, but you'll get used to it."

"How could I possibly get used to this?" Lin Ye sighed. "The difference between me and them is like the difference between normal and abnormal people."

“It’s not that exaggerated,” Mostima said. “They can be normal sometimes.”

You already said it was only occasionally, right? You've already let it slip!

Lin Ye then remembered something and said to Mostima, "By the way, Exusiai asked me to pass on a message to you."

"Exusiai?"

“Yes.” Lin Ye repeated what Exusiai had told him during the day to Mostima.

After listening, Mostima wore a complicated expression: "How could this be?"

"Hmm?" Lin Ye sensed from Mostima's expression that there seemed to be a story to tell. "What's wrong?"

Mostima said, "Why did Exusiai meet you before me? That's not fair."

Lin Ye: "..."

Is it because of this?

Wait a minute, when Lin Ye learned that Mostima was a Penguin Logistics operator, he thought Exusiai had told her about his identity. It seems that wasn't the case at all? Was his guess wrong? But if that's the case, how did Mostima even know him? I'm so curious!

Lin Ye hated being kept in the dark, but he wasn't familiar with Mostima and couldn't force her to talk, especially since he was clearly no match for her. Therefore, he could only try to subtly probe her from other angles.

He immediately set his sights on Mostima's horns.

Exusiai is a Lateran, and there are many Lateran on Rhodes Island, but Lin Ye didn't see any horns on their heads. Horns are supposed to be exclusive to Sarkaz, but Mostima happens to have the angelic halo unique to Lateran.

So he couldn't help but ask, "Are you a Lateran?"

"Are you asking this question because of my horns?" Mostima keenly sensed Lin Ye's meaning, which made Lin Ye feel a little embarrassed. Mostima, however, was not embarrassed at all. Instead, she smiled lightly and said, "There's no need for that expression. It's a very normal thing. Almost everyone who meets me for the first time asks me this question."