About the time I was picked up and adopted by Tallulah

...with the wind and the sound of waves?

"That's all, Miss Director. You should have been prepared for this day, right?"

Click!

The phone was hung up without any hesitation, and those original "guards" had been instigated to rebel at some point, and now surrounded him like they were guarding prisoners.

"Come with us. If you want Miss Ceylon to survive, then cooperate with us."

One of the bodyguards pushed up his sunglasses and said so.

“…Ah, I know.”

Hei responded indifferently, then walked towards the SUV parked at the door under the escort and surveillance of the guards.

What else can I do now?

Hei kept thinking, his phone had been taken away, and he couldn't ask anyone for help. Those guards loyal to him and Master Hermann's faction might have been sent away in advance...

"Hmm? Isn't this Miss Hei? Are you going on patrol today too?"

"—!"

Just as Hei was thinking, a male voice that was relatively unfamiliar, but not completely unfamiliar, came from the other side of the street.

Restaurant manager?

Hei blinked. The manager of the seaside restaurant that he, Orson and Kelsey went to yesterday passed by here for some reason and was greeting them with a smile.

The guards around him also immediately took up fighting stances.

"——I have an appointment here and other plans later. I don't even have time for a nap."

Hei hesitated for a moment and said this to the other party.

The guards around him immediately grasped the daggers and crossbows in their hands, but Hei only said this sentence and there was no other suspicious words afterwards, so the guards just let it go.

"Is that so? Come back next time when you're free, Miss Hei!"

The restaurant owner waved his hand, and Hei got into the armored car.

After a bumpy ride, which felt like about 30 minutes, Hei was taken off the armored vehicle, and here was an abandoned mining area.

Based on his many years of experience as a mercenary, this is a very suitable place to deal with corpses.

Before Hei could take a closer look at his surroundings, he felt a sudden and violent blow to the head.

——If a scar is left, will Orson no longer like to rub this area?

Hei thought so before he lost consciousness and fell to the ground.

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24. This Prince Charming is just lame

Hei was born into a family of gem dealers in Rem Billiton.

Her childhood was free of worries and pressures. While most of her peers were forced to enter mines and ruins to make a living, digging and mining amidst the scorching heat of source stone dust and powder, Hei could simply sit in her room, carefree and tinkering with all kinds of novel and lovely gems.

That's right, Hei likes shiny and 'bright' things - such as the gems sold by his parents.

Those things were extremely dazzling, brilliant and crystal clear. Although they were worth a lot of money, Hei's parents didn't mind their children playing with these commodities on a daily basis.

One day, a new batch of gems were accepted by Hei's family as usual. According to the previous process, Hei would first "screen" a few of his favorite and most interesting gems, and then wait for his parents to come back for a "second selection" and package the suitable finished products for transportation and sale.

Among the countless sparkling gems of various shapes and colors, Hei found a dark brown, extremely deep, yet extremely beautiful "gem".

When Hei's parents returned home, they saw Hei sitting on the sofa, happily fiddling with the "gem" in his hand.

The parents who saw the scene screamed and ran towards Hei desperately.

Hei had never come into contact with the so-called "ore disease", so naturally she didn't know that the "wonderful gem" she was fiddling with in her hand was actually a source stone with a high concentration of contaminated radiation.

Hei was infected with oripathy.

Hei's parents were naturally very dissatisfied with this result. Why were there source stones mixed in a good batch of goods?

In order to get an explanation from Hei, the two went to the supplier's location in person. Before leaving, the parents did not say anything to Hei. They just told Hei that he had a troublesome disease, but not to worry, his parents would help him get an explanation and would definitely not let him suffer any loss.

Hei nodded to her parents. Because of work, her parents often went on business trips, and Hei would wait obediently at home alone.

However, this time, Hei made a small request. She hoped to go on a 'business trip' with her parents.

The parents did not hesitate for too long. It was rather that they were worried that Hei's identity as an infected person would be exposed, so they took Hei with them without much hesitation.

Hei was very excited to leave home. She imagined the outside world in her mind, wondering whether it would be as bright, sparkling and beautiful as those gems.

But Hei's fantasy was shattered by a crossbow arrow.

The father in the driver's seat didn't react at all. He was suddenly pierced through the head by a crossbow bolt that flew through the car window. The mother in the passenger seat opened her mouth, but before she could even scream, her throat and abdomen were completely pierced by the incoming crossbow bolts.

The vehicle lost control and crashed into the rock wall on the side of the road, and Hei, who was sitting in the back seat, also hit the back of the driver's seat hard.

As his consciousness blurred, Hei could only see a few guys dressed like mercenaries surrounding him. They were checking his motionless parents, and when they noticed him, they showed expressions of surprise or ridicule on their faces.

According to reports, a leading local gem dealer, RIM Billiton, was once again on his way to a family dinner when his car's brakes failed, resulting in a car accident that tragically killed his entire family. This will usher in a reshuffle in the local gem market.

It was a long time later that Hei saw this report, because at that moment, her life had completely changed.

The colorful and sparkling light of the gem was completely swallowed up, leaving only endless malice and darkness.

Because it was unexpected, Hei was initially accepted by the mercenary group that killed her, and this mercenary group intended to sell her as a 'slave'.

Although most of the cities on the Terra continent appear bright and beautiful, supported by laws and rules, there are still many dark corners that can still devour people.

However, the process of selling Hei as a "slave" was not ideal. Her "noble" status did not bring her many advantages. On the contrary, because she had been "spoiled" all along, Hei had almost no life skills.

After several failed attempts at selling, Hei was finally bought by a merchant from Casimir, but the merchant did not intend to use him as a slave, but as 'bait'.

Hei and several children of similar age were thrown into a cage. Everyone looked around in fear, and at this moment, an Originium worm was thrown in from the outside of the cage.

The businessman really liked this kind of real-life massacre show, but this time, when the businessman was enjoying the one-sided fight with a glass of red wine, he suddenly noticed that this time it was not the "Originium Worm" that survived.

The jeweler's daughter whom he bought, the little girl who was obviously good for nothing, used the hand bones of the children being eaten around her as a "dagger" and killed the Originium worm.

The businessman's eyes widened, and then his expression twisted a little. What he wanted to see was not a "counterattack by a small character", but "being slaughtered without any resistance" in the face of absolute power.

The merchant was about to release another Originium Bug, but a crossbow arrow pierced his head at this moment.

The leader of the mercenary group killed his "buyer" and pulled Hei out of the cage full of corpses.

At this moment, she was no longer a "slave" but a "mercenary".

Later, Hei's life changed again. Because of her survival instinct rooted in her genes, she was noticed by the mercenary leader and joined the team that killed her parents.

The original Hei did not have the ability to support her in participating in the battle, but this did not mean that she did not have the "task" she was capable of.

A girl who looks harmless may not be good at fighting on the battlefield, but she is very suitable for assassination.

It was the first time that Hei saw a living person in front of her, being pierced by a crossbow arrow shot by her when she pulled the trigger. The person was spitting out blood and looking at her with disbelief. When she reached out to try to touch her, she vomited without any resistance.

Then came the second, third, and fourth time—

Hei was used to the feeling of life disappearing in front of him, and he was also used to the experience of taking the lives of others with his fingers.

Afterwards, Hei's physical skills, skills and mind also "grew" together, and before she knew it, she had become a "veteran" in the mercenary group.

She clearly felt her own 'degradation', but what terrified her was that she did not feel any discomfort with such a life.

Maybe... maybe the reason why I longed for gems so much was because I originally belonged to the darkness, so I wanted to follow those beautiful lights?

Hei, who thought in this way, welcomed his own "light" in a subsequent mission.

The mercenary group's mission this time is to go to Xiosta, a small city-state that has just been put on the right track, and kill the mayor who is responsible for running this city-state.

Hei went to Xiosta alone. She arrived at the target location, prepared for the assassination, and then—

"What are you doing here, big sister?"

She met Ceylon, who was still a young boy.

That little girl was so clingy and strangely familiar. The moment she saw him, she treated Hei like an older sister.

The mission would probably fail if they continued to be entangled like this. Hei was very clear about this. However, when she and Ceylon looked into each other's eyes, some emotions hidden in her heart were revealed again.

A girl as pure and flawless as a 'jewel', the very existence he had been searching for since childhood...

Hei was shaken, but she did not let the light attract her attention. To her, she was already covered in blood and mud, and it was impossible for her to touch the "gem" again.

but……

After that, many things happened, including the entry of Master Herman, Hei's rebellion, his departure from the mercenary group, and his becoming the mayor's personal bodyguard.

When he came to his senses, Hei was already guarding Ceylon. The mercenary began to relearn the etiquette that he had forgotten for a long time, and began to learn how to protect people by killing.

Even though Hei and Ceylon got together, Hei still felt out of place. Those past experiences did not disappear, but instead bound Hei like a shadow, making her unable to breathe.

Perhaps this is my fate, to be in the darkness, soaked in blood, guarding the light in my sight—

Thinking this way, Hei, who had already given up trying to break free from the shadows, met the young man who looked unreliable but had a chivalrous temperament.

------

"—"

Hei woke up from his coma. The first thing he felt was a swelling and stinging pain in his head, followed by a sticky feeling of something solidified on his cheeks and forehead, and then the swelling of his wrists from being tightened.

After her vision and consciousness became slightly out of focus and dizzy, Hei slowly regained consciousness. She realized that her hands and feet were tied to a chair and placed in the center of an abandoned mine, surrounded by four or five bodyguards who originally belonged to the Dolkos family.

"Oh, are you awake, Chief?"

One of the bodyguards noticed Hei's awakening and immediately took off his glasses and approached with an offensive smile.

"What benefits did you receive?"

Hei didn't say anything extra to the bodyguard, but directly asked him why he betrayed Hermann.

"That's a pretty direct question, Director. 30 years' salary and a bag of obsidian. That's a pretty good deal, isn't it?"

The bodyguard peeled off the blood scab on Hei's forehead and responded with a smile.

"...It seems like you think your life is only worth this much. What happened to Miss Ceylon and Master Hermann? - Ahem!!"

Hei mocked the bodyguard in front of him, and then tried to ask about Ceylon and the mayor.

But before she could finish her words, she felt a heavy blow in her abdomen.

"I always thought you were a smart man, Director, but why do you seem to be completely unaware of your situation? Cronin handed you over to us. In other words, you are no longer the Director of some crappy Security Bureau. You are just a kitten at our mercy. The only reason you are still alive and open your eyes is because we think you are still useful. Hahaha! Do you understand, former Director?"

The bodyguard stared at Hei fiercely and then burst into laughter.

"Ah, I understand. I need to stop Cronin's destructive activities against Xiosta. If you withdraw now, I can turn a blind eye to your actions."

Hei responded to the bodyguard indifferently, but this sentence and Hei's expression, which was no different from usual, seemed to be the fuse that completely ignited the other party's anger.

"You guy-!"

"Well……!"

The bodyguard suddenly pushed Hei backwards. Because his limbs were fixed to the chair, Hei had no ability to resist and fell backwards.

After pushing Hei down, the bodyguard immediately pressed on Hei. The expression on his face no longer had the initial gloating, but was instead filled with distortion and mania.

"Still don't you understand your own situation? You, that cold, indifferent attitude of yours that never takes anyone seriously, that suffocating, terrifying look when carrying out missions, and that attitude of never saying a single word except to that young lady—this humiliation has lasted for far too long!"

"What are you talking about... Ugh!"

Hei didn't understand what the bodyguard was talking about, so the other party pulled his collar up in an extremely rough manner.

"How strange... I joined the Guard because I admired you, but right now, you don't frighten me at all—haha, you're just a woman after all—"

tear--

The bodyguard pulled out a dagger from his waist, put it directly against Hei's abdomen and swung his hand upwards, cutting the suit Hei was wearing in half. The suit that Ceylon had carefully selected for him for his 'date' with Orson was cut in half.

"...!"

The sudden exposure of her skin made Hei struggle violently, but her hands could only feel the burning swelling and she couldn't even move a finger.

"You probably don't know, Chief, but there are those who are angry at your 'disregard', those who are unhappy with your overly harsh rules, and of course, there are also... hehe, those who simply covet your body."

Several other bodyguards also gathered around. From the looks these people gave him, Hei realized what they meant when they said "he still has value".

Hei never felt that there was anything wrong with the Security Bureau under his command. After all, this place was different from Longmen. A tourist city-state could not afford a state machine of the scale of the Guard Bureau. In order to protect this city-state, Hei could only manage these guards with 120% of his requirements.

And because of his own personality, his instinctive resistance to others, or his usual behavior - it seems that he is not an "excellent boss" who is popular with the people.