On the Ark.

"No, I'm here on a business trip."

"Is that so? Let me think... if I remember correctly, this building was booked by Rhodes Island." Mostima tilted her head and looked at Lin Ye. "Rhodes Island, the pharmaceutical company... do you work there?"

Lin Ye nodded.

"That's great! Is working at Rhodes Island interesting?"

"I'm fine, why do you ask?"

Mostima laughed and said, "Because I feel my job is no longer interesting, I want to change places. Do you have any suggestions?"

"Huh?" Lin Ye was a little confused, thinking that Mostima's train of thought was jumping around way too fast. Why did she suddenly want to change jobs? Wasn't she saying half an hour ago that she became a messenger of natural disasters because she wanted to find something she had lost? Although Lin Ye didn't know what that was, this kind of unsubstantiated statement was definitely the protagonist template. Shouldn't a protagonist follow their own path to the ends of the earth? How come half an hour later she's saying her job is too boring and she wants to change jobs?

And it was said to someone I'd only known for less than two hours.

Why should I tell him?

Lin Ye thought for a moment, then tentatively asked, "Do you want to work here?"

Mostima laughed and said, "Are you extending an invitation to me?"

Lin Ye thought to himself, "You were the one who said work was boring first, and he just asked casually." However, he definitely wouldn't say that aloud. Lin Ye had already witnessed Mostima's strength; the magic that instantly wiped out all the men in black was definitely top-tier even on Rhodes Island. If he recruited her to Rhodes Island… Kal'tsit would probably give him a raise again. So, he said quite seriously, "Yes, are you interested in that?"

"Hmm...you seem to have become much more serious all of a sudden."

“Changing jobs should be a serious matter,” Lin Ye said. “If you’re really interested, I can give you a proper introduction to our company.”

Mostima smoothed her wind-blown hair and said with a smile, "Are you planning to introduce it here?"

"Uh..." Lin Ye also sensed something was amiss, so he said, "How about we go sit at my place for a bit? My room is quite big, if you'd like, we can make some tea and chat slowly..."

Wait a minute, isn't it a bit too inappropriate for a guy to invite a girl to his room on the first date?

Lin Ye suddenly realized this.

This kind of invitation will probably be seen as him being a gangster boss, right? Even if Mostima is genuinely interested in joining, she'll definitely be startled by this abrupt invitation, and might even develop resentment towards Rhodes Island. She'll probably think everyone at Rhodes Island is as casual as him, and that he should have invited her to sit in the café next door instead. Onboarding usually happens in a café, right? It just doesn't feel right to do it in a hotel room.

Lin Ye was a little regretful. Just as he was hesitating whether it was a good idea to change his mind at this time, Mostima unexpectedly agreed.

"Okay," she said with a smile.

……

Ten minutes later, Lin Ye took Mostima back to his room. Although he felt something was off, he was already there, so he had to do what he had to do.

"Ahem, please have a seat," Lin Ye said to Mostima. "I'll make you some tea."

Then he immediately slipped away to the side.

He said he was making tea, but he actually called Zilan.

After all, introducing the company to others is the job of the human resources department, something Lin Ye had never done before, so he naturally needed to ask for help from professionals. Zi Lan was so angry when she answered Lin Ye's call that she almost swore: "Lin Ye... can't you even look at the time?! Why are you calling me at this hour?!"

Zilan was trying her best to keep her voice down, probably because she was afraid of waking her roommate.

Lin Ye felt a little embarrassed, as it was indeed quite late. But he had no choice; after all, his understanding of Rhodes Island was far less than Zilan's. Although he had been with the company for over a year, his impression of Rhodes Island was merely that of a pharmaceutical company, full of reliable and unreliable people. If he were to say something like that to Mostima, then getting the job would be a thing of the past.

So Lin Ye lowered his voice and told Zilan the general situation. After listening, Zilan knew that Lin Ye really had something important to do, and her resentment at being woken up dissipated a lot: "So that's how it is. Lateran people who can use magic seem quite interesting. But Lin Ye, weren't you on a business trip to Lungmen? Recruiting people shouldn't be your job, so how come you run into people like this while strolling through the night market?"

Lin Ye didn't know how to explain it. Was he supposed to tell Zilan that he got caught in a police raid while getting a haircut?

“Alright, in that case, I’ll send the general information to your phone now,” Zilan said. “Just tell me what’s on the phone.”

"OK, hurry up, hurry up, my water is about to boil."

"Okay, I'll get up and use the computer right away... Ah, it's so cold! Getting out of bed in the middle of the night is torture! Lin Ye, you have to get this sorted out for me!" Zilan's voice was already trembling.

Lin Ye couldn't bear to listen any longer, so he hung up the phone and took the brewed tea outside.

Then he found Mostima standing by his bedside, holding his Vector, and examining him closely.

Lin Ye always carried the Vector with him, even though he rarely used it now. He would still touch it every morning and evening, just to satisfy his craving for firearms, since every boy dreams of owning one. Last night, after touching it, he didn't put it away immediately, and this morning, urged by the Ranger, he ignored it and simply placed it on his bedside table.

Hearing the noise, Mostima turned around and looked at Lin Ye with a smile: "Isn't it a bit inappropriate to just casually place the Guardian Gun by the bed? If I were your enemy, you would be in danger right now."

Lin Ye said, "There are no bullets. I definitely put the bullets away."

"Does the absence of bullets mean you can just leave them by your bedside?"

Lin Ye remembered that the Angel race valued the Guardian Gun highly, and immediately apologized: "I'm sorry, I was a little careless."

"Hmm... don't be so nervous, I'm not blaming you." Mostima raised the Guardian Gun and said with a smile, "Besides, I moved your things without your permission, so I should be the one apologizing."

Lin Ye laughed as well: "In that case, we should be even. Let's have some tea."

Mostima accepted the tea and thanked him.

Lin Ye had originally intended to jump straight into the topic of job offers, but felt it would be abrupt, so he decided to start elsewhere. He had been worried about not having anything in common with Mostima, but now he did. Mostima was from Laterano, and he possessed the Laterano Guardian Gun, so he asked, "What do you think of my Guardian Gun?"

"Hmm? Are you asking me?"

“Of course, you’re a Lateran,” Lin Ye said. “You should be able to tell the quality of a gun at a glance.”

“A little bit,” Mostima said. “Actually, I don’t know much about guns, but this one is an exception because Noten uses it too. Although it hasn’t been tested with live ammunition, it’s definitely a very good gun in terms of appearance.”

"Who judges a gun by its appearance?" Although he said that, Lin Ye actually agreed with Mostima's point of view. Power is temporary, but coolness is eternal.

"It's not bad in terms of practicality either," Mostima said with a smile. "Otherwise, Exusiai wouldn't use this model. However, this model isn't without its problems. If I remember correctly, its power isn't top-tier."

Lin Ye nodded, saying with some regret, "That's true. The rate of fire is very fast, but the penetration is average."

In his past life, it might have been sufficient, but in this life, Vector's penetrating power was indeed somewhat lacking, and it was likely to be easily deflected by certain enemies. At this moment, Lin Ye suddenly realized that Mostima didn't seem to be using a Guardian Gun, which was extremely rare among the angels. Even angels who weren't yet eligible to receive a Guardian Gun would use bows or crossbows; Lin Ye had never seen anyone use a staff like Mostima before.

He posed the question to Mostima.

Mostima said softly, "My Guardian Gun? To be honest, I don't need it anymore."

"You don't need it anymore?"

“Yes, but I always carry it with me.” Mostima took out a black and white pistol from his pocket and handed it to Lin Ye. “This is my Guardian Gun… or rather, my former Guardian Gun.”

Lin Ye stared at the Guardian Gun in Mostima's hand, his mouth slightly agape.

Although he didn't know much about firearms, he recognized the gun at a glance because he had played a game called "Frontline of a Brothel".

This gun is called The Competitor.

“Its penetrating power is quite good,” Mostima said with a smile. “Let it stay by your side.”

Lin Ye nodded subconsciously, then realized something was wrong: "What did you say?"

"I said, this gun is for you."

Lin Ye was shocked: "This, how can this be? How could I possibly accept something so valuable?"

“It’s alright,” Mostima said softly. “I’ve wanted to do this for a long time.”

……

……

Author's Note: According to the official Arknights setting, the "gun" is actually a gun-shaped staff, but I still wrote it as a gun. There's no time to change it now, so I won't. As for Mostima's Guardian Gun, I looked it up but couldn't find it, so I used "Contender," which I feel suits Mostima quite well.

There haven't been many people sending me death threats these past few days, so I still owe fifteen chapters. If possible, I hope everyone can cast their monthly tickets for me~ By the way, if there are any more illustrations, who would you like to see?

Chapter 431 I've searched for him for half my life (3K)

To be honest, Lin Ye was a little dumbfounded when he saw Mostima hand him the Guardian Gun.

Even though Mostima said she had wanted to do this for a long time, Lin Ye didn't know whether he should accept it or not.

"What's wrong?" Mostima tilted his head and said with a smile, "Don't you like this gun?"

Lin Ye shook his head repeatedly: "Of course not."

“Oh.” Mostima nodded, with a knowing look on her face. “I get it, that means he doesn’t like me anymore.”

"How could that be?" Lin Ye subconsciously denied it, then realized something was wrong and covered his forehead, saying, "Wait, what are you talking about? I'm a little confused."

“It’s alright, take your time thinking about it.” Mostima’s smile grew even brighter. “There’s plenty of time anyway.”

Lin Ye gradually calmed down and then said, "Is the Guardian Gun really that important to the Lateran people? Why would you give it to me so casually?"

“I feel like what you said is a bit excessive. Is giving it to you such a casual thing?” Mostima put down the gun and sighed. “Although this gun may not be as important to me as other Lateran people, it’s not something to be taken lightly. Giving it to you is not a casual thing either.”

"...But we've only known each other for less than a day."

“Really? But I feel like we’ve known each other for quite a while now,” Mostima said with a smile. “Is this fate? Do you believe in the intuition of the Angels? If you do, then accept it. The reason I’ve kept this gun on me is so that one day I can hand it over to the person it’s meant to be.”

Mostima's words were somewhat convoluted, but Lin Ye could tell that she wasn't joking about giving him the Guardian Gun. This made Lin Ye a little conflicted. He didn't know if this was truly due to the angelic premonition Mostima mentioned, or if his strange affability made Mostima feel close to him.

Seeing someone reminds you of a former friend—this is a common occurrence in anime and also happens quite often in real life. For example, when the Ranger first met Lin Ye, he mentioned that Lin Ye reminded him of his deceased older brother, making him feel very close to him. So, Mostima felt the same way? Seeing Lin Ye reminded her of a close friend, and to fill the void in her heart, she chose to give away the Guardian Gun.

Lin Ye was already quite impressed with his own imagination to have come up with this idea; it seemed a waste of his talent not to write novels. Although this idea was a bit far-fetched, it was undeniably a possibility. Lin Ye was certain he had never met Mostima before, and he didn't believe Mostima was willing to give him the Guardian Gun because he was too handsome. Therefore, the only possibility was his ability.

Thinking of this, Lin Ye slowly reached out and took the Guardian Gun called "Competitor" from Mostima's hand. It was heavy and had a lot of weight to it.

"Since that's the case, I'll shamelessly accept it." Lin Ye felt like he was being a bit hypocritical, having gotten a good deal. "If you really don't want to use it, then give it to me. I'll keep it safe for you. If you want to take it back someday, just tell me. Anyway, you're coming back to the island with me, right?"

Mostima laughed and said, "At a time like this, are you still thinking about hiring?"

Lin Ye was speechless. He felt he had indeed been shameless. Faced with a girl he'd only known for less than half a day who had already given him a lavish gift, he hadn't even thought of reciprocating; instead, he was thinking about how to help HR recruit her. Although the onboarding consultation was Mostima's idea, Lin Ye still felt this behavior was utterly scummy. What benefits had Rhodes Island given him to make him… Oh right, just give her a gift in return, right?

Lin Ye slapped his forehead, thinking to himself that he was really getting more and more senile. So he told Mostima to wait a moment, and ran to the cabinet to take out the suitcase. Then he took out the Colt python, which hadn't been used for a long time but was still in very good condition.

"Here, this is for you." Lin Ye handed the python to Mostima. "Although you said you don't know how to use a gun anymore, it's still nice to keep it as a collectible."

Mostima looked at the python in Lin Ye's hand, but did not take it immediately. Instead, he said with a half-smile, "Are you trying to avoid owing me?"

Lin Ye was at a loss for words again, but Mostima didn't give him long to think about it. He smiled and reached out his hand to take the python.

“Just kidding,” Mostima said softly. “I’m very happy to receive your gift.”

Lin Ye finally breathed a sigh of relief. He didn't know whether the "Competitor" or the "Colt Python" was more valuable, but it was indeed the best return gift he could offer. The Vector was really difficult to give away, and [Maple] was even more impossible to give away, so the only thing he could give away was this pistol that had been with him the longest in this world.

Although it hadn't been used for a long time, Lin Ye still wiped it down every few days and kept it in good condition, so giving it away now wasn't shameful.

Seeing that Mostima had accepted the python, Lin Ye felt it was time to get down to business. Judging by the time, Zilan should have already sent the information. To avoid letting her efforts go to waste, Lin Ye decided to read the information aloud before formally inviting Mostima to join Rhodes Island. However, he hadn't expected that Mostima, after accepting the python, would intend to leave.

“It’s getting late,” Mostima said with a smile, glancing at the wall clock. “I should be going too.”

Lin Ye was stunned for a moment: "You're leaving already?"

Mostima squinted and smiled, saying, "Do you intend to leave me here overnight?"

“…Of course not.” Lin Ye shook his head. “Didn’t you say you wanted me to introduce the company? I haven’t even started yet.”