On the Ark.

He didn't pay because he simply couldn't afford it. But he really needed the box of bullets; after all, in this world, for those who couldn't use Originium energy, firearms were their only reliable and comforting companions. So he had to buy it on credit from Jessica, with installments, to get the half-box of bullets.

Lin Ye now only hopes that his salary will be higher after he becomes a full-time employee, so that he won't have to pay off his debts for thirty years for just half a box of bullets.

Just as he was thinking this, the phone rang.

It was Furong calling. As soon as I answered, Furong's anxious voice came through.

"Dr. Lin Ye, is Nightingale with you?"

Author's BB:

In the last post, someone said Melantha's personality had changed, which puzzled me. I even checked the game myself, but I couldn't see a trace of "soft girl" vibes in her character art or background description. Then I turned on her voice acting... and the difference from the art was just too huge! Okay, looks like I need to be much more careful in the future. This time it's my fault. I've been incredibly busy lately, so (of course, due to objective reasons)... I'll be more mindful in the future.

Some of you might be wondering why I don't even know anything about Melantha. The truth is, I genuinely don't know anything about her because I haven't trained her at all. To be precise, I haven't trained a single three-star operator... As for which operators I'm training, I won't say. Just focus on your studies.

Chapter 43 The Devil Doesn't Cry

The nightingale has disappeared; Hibiscus hasn't seen her all day.

In other words, Nightingale didn't go back after leaving the training ground. This gave Lin Ye a headache, because Nightingale's place was less than fifty meters away from the training ground; unless someone was mentally ill, it was impossible for her to get lost.

So, the nightingale "ran away from home".

This was the only possibility Lin Ye could think of, and Fu Rong thought so too. After all, Nightingale had suffered a blow in the training room, and her mental state was very unstable, making her prone to impulsive actions.

Thinking of this, Lin Ye felt extremely regretful. He should have sent Nightingale back to the intensive care unit and then gone to find Jessica.

Lin Ye checked the time.

Fifty minutes have passed since Nightingale left the training room. While fifty minutes is enough for her to leave Rhodes Island, it's impossible for her to escape undetected, as every entrance and exit to Rhodes Island is secured. Although Nightingale possesses extremely high "six-star" privileges, like Shining, these privileges were deactivated after her illness, making it virtually impossible for her to leave Rhodes Island without her identification card. And as long as she remains within Rhodes Island, she will undoubtedly be found.

Having figured this out, Lin Ye comforted Furong: "It's alright, Nightingale is definitely still on Rhodes Island, we'll find her."

Despite being a demon, Hibiscus remained remarkably calm under these circumstances, requiring no comfort from Lin Ye. She even preemptively responded: "I've already informed Miss Zilan and Miss Fen; they've checked the surveillance footage and mobilized a considerable number of people to search for Nightingale. Dr. Lin Ye, I hope you will too…"

"Okay, I'll go find her right away." Lin Ye readily agreed.

"Thank you for your help."

"No way, she's my patient." Lin Ye sighed. "Besides... never mind."

Lin Ye hung up the phone, and without realizing it, he walked to the front of the training room and stood there.

How can we find a little girl who has run away from home?

Lin Ye had no experience with this.

So, how do we find a lost kitten if we think about it differently?

Lin Ye pondered for a moment, then walked in the opposite direction from the intensive care unit.

Five minutes later, he saw Nightingale next to the trash can. Nightingale was sitting against the wall, hugging her legs, looking up at the setting sun. Her face, which was tinged with pale gold by the sunset, was covered with grime.

Lin Ye couldn't help but rub his forehead.

You actually came here...

Hearing footsteps, Nightingale turned her head. When she saw Lin Ye, her dim eyes lit up as if by flames. But it was only for a fleeting moment; she quickly looked away, as if she hadn't seen Lin Ye at all.

Lin Ye sighed and walked towards the nightingale.

"Are you angry?" Lin Ye asked Nightingale.

The nightingale did not speak.

Why did you come here?

The nightingale seemed not to hear.

“Running away from home isn’t a good idea,” Lin Ye said. “It will make people worry, and you don’t want others to worry about you, do you?”

Nightingale's expression softened slightly. She pouted and said, "I didn't run away from home."

"It's obviously there."

"There's clearly none."

"Why are you here if you didn't run away from home?" Lin Ye said. "You couldn't possibly be lost, could you? Your place is only fifty meters away from the training room. Only an idiot would get lost on such a short distance. You did run away from home."

The moment Lin Ye finished speaking, Nightingale's eyes grew even colder, as if covered with a thick layer of frost.

Seeing Nightingale's expression, Lin Ye seemed to understand something, and his mouth dropped open in disbelief: "You're really lost?!"

“No!” Nightingale said, “I ran away from home.”

Lin Ye: "..."

Actually, Nightingale didn't know what was going on either. She clearly remembered that her accommodation was on the left side of the training room when she entered, so she walked to the left when she came out. But for some reason, her accommodation disappeared. She walked for a long, long time without seeing a single familiar house. It was such an unfamiliar place, and she was hungry. She wandered around aimlessly and got lost, finally ending up sitting here.

Sitting here, she only had two thoughts in her mind.

I want to eat pineapple buns, I want pineapple buns. Although I used to think pineapple buns were awful, seeing my own dejected look still makes me laugh, shamelessly laughing.

Why laugh at her? She clearly tried her best, really tried, to leave this place and see the outside world. She tried so hard to heal the "injured" operators, even though her hands were trembling uncontrollably, she still used all her strength to pick up the staff, so why is she still not qualified? Everyone said she used to be a very capable person, a healer no less skilled than Shining, so why is she like this now?

The nightingale couldn't figure it out, so she sat in front of the trash can, lost in thought, when she saw Pineapple Bun arrive. She was very happy that Pineapple Bun had come to see her.

But after a few words of conversation, she felt it was better to keep her distance from things like pineapple buns.

Seeing his face, Nightingale felt a little angry, though she didn't know why.

"Go away," Nightingale said to Lin Ye. "I want to stay here alone."

"why?"

"Because I ran away from home."

"No way, you're just lost," Lin Ye said. "Only stray cats and dogs run into garbage dumps when they've run away from home."

"Then I'll be a stray cat."

“You are clearly a demon,” Lin Ye said. “You haven’t even forgotten your own race, have you?”

Nightingale didn't want to answer Lin Ye anymore; she found him annoying.

"Let's go, I'll take you to eat pineapple buns," Lin Ye said. "You can eat as many as you want."

Nightingale stared coldly at Lin Ye.

Thinking you can appease her anger with just a few pineapple buns? That's far too easy.

"Come on, the cafeteria will close if we're any later," Lin Ye said seriously.

Nightingale's resolute gaze wavered slightly, but she still shook her head and said, contradicting herself, "I don't like pineapple buns."

"Really? When did you change your mind?"

Nightingale really didn't want to talk to Lin Ye anymore. She lowered her head, hugged her knees, and thought that no matter what Lin Ye said next, she would not pay attention to him and would definitely not go with him.

Then Nightingale heard a rustling sound; it seemed that Lin Ye was taking something out of his pocket.

Are you getting a pineapple bun?

Nightingale felt a sense of anticipation, though she quickly suppressed it.

Even if it were a pineapple bun, she would never leave.

She, the Nightingale—no, Liz—would rather starve to death, jump into a garbage dump, or be tempted by a pineapple bun than…

Lin Ye tapped her head.

She subconsciously raised her head, and then Lin Ye stuffed the chocolate biscuit he had gotten from Jessica into Nightingale's mouth.

A bittersweet flavor spread through the nightingale's mouth.

"If you don't want pineapple buns, let's try something different," Lin Ye said. "Also, I'm sorry."

Nightingale, with a biscuit in her mouth, looked at Lin Ye with a puzzled expression.

"I shouldn't have left you behind," Lin Ye said softly. "Believe me, it won't happen again."

The nightingale blinked, then slowly lowered its head.

She felt she was no longer a qualified demon.

Because demons don't cry.

Chapter Forty-Four Untitled

"So the matter is resolved?" Ansel, who was lying on the bed reading a book, looked up at Lin Ye, who had just come out of the bathroom, and raised an eyebrow. "Is Nightingale ready to go to Lungmen for treatment?"

Lin Ye, who had been busy all day, dried his hair as he answered Ansel, "Yes, Nightingale already knows that she went to Lungmen for treatment, not to carry out a mission."

"Didn't she resist?" Ansel asked. "Nightingale should have been averse to 'treatment,' which is why we were reluctant to tell her the truth in the first place."

"It's alright, but I think it's better to just tell her directly next time." Lin Ye hung the towel on the rack. "After all, she's an adult, although... well, there's no 'although'."

Ansel gave a faint smile: "You were the last to meet Nightingale, yet now you seem to know her the most."

"Maybe," Lin Ye replied with a smile, jokingly adding, "After all, I have a lot of work experience."

Ansel's smile gradually disappeared upon hearing the word "work experience".

Work experience – Veterinary work experience – Injections, medication, sterilization – Sterilization – Even after coming to Rhodes Island, this guy still thinks about sterilization all the time!

Ansel's gaze gradually turned cold.

However, Lin Ye was completely unaware, only muttering that the air conditioner temperature was set a little too low.

After a moment of silence, Ansel spoke again: "But then again, in Rhodes Island, you're probably the only one who can keep up with Nightingale's way of thinking. Shining can't either."

"Hmm? Why do you say that?"

“We were all looking for Nightingale in the evening, and we even checked the security footage,” Ansel said. “We searched almost all the major buildings, but we couldn’t find Nightingale. Yet you found her in just a few minutes. That can’t be explained by chance.”

Lin Ye couldn't help but think to himself that it really was a coincidence; after all, their surveillance cameras couldn't possibly be installed on a garbage dump. And Nightingale's thought process… what thought process? This unlucky kid just went in the wrong direction. However, he only thought these things in his mind and wouldn't say them aloud; there was no need to refute a guess that would make him seem impressive.

"You'll be going to Lungmen tomorrow too, right?" Ansel started reading again.

“Yes.” Lin Ye sighed. “Actually, I’ve always felt that something was off.”

"Ok?"

"Tell me, I'm supposed to be a psychologist, but I haven't done any of the work a psychologist should do," Lin Ye complained. "First, I was taken care of like a nanny for Nightingale, then I was asked to persuade their country's saintess to go home obediently, and now I have to go out on official business as a nanny... Come to think of it, I haven't even been officially hired yet."