Chapter 230: Is This a Pick-Up Line?
Leonard! You're not in Tingen, so why are you in Backlund?!
For a moment, Klein even thought he had been dragged into a dream, or was hallucinating due to extreme tension.
He instinctively reached out and pinched himself hard.
It hurts!
Damn it! This isn't a dream!
Watching Leonard, who was aggressively approaching him, Klein's heart instantly sank to the bottom.
He subconsciously glanced at the glaring imitation Red Gloves uniform he was wearing. It's over, it's completely over. If Leonard really caught him, it would be impossible to explain!
"What should I do? What should I do!"
"Don't move!" Leonard clearly didn't give him much time to think. He pulled out his pistol and aimed the dark muzzle directly at Klein.
"Hands on your head! Squat down!"
Under Leonard's wary gaze, this "fake Red Gloves" seemed to be intimidated and acted quite cooperatively. He didn't make any resistive movements, only slowly raised his hands.
"Phew—"
Just as Leonard let out a slight sigh of relief, the "fake Red Gloves" curved his fingers slightly and snapped them crisply!
"Bang!"
A surging "flame current" instantly emerged from his fingertips, heading straight for Leonard's face!
This…
Almost instinctively, Leonard twisted his body sharply to the side, narrowly dodging the attack.
Damn it!
Leonard, having come to his senses, immediately raised his pistol and aimed!
In the darkness, Beyonders of the Sleepless Pathway possess far keener eyesight than other Beyonders!
"Bang!"
A silver demon-hunting bullet accurately struck the "fake Red Gloves" in the back!
However, the expected dull thud of the bullet entering flesh and the scream did not come. The "figure" that was hit twisted and collapsed rapidly like a punctured airbag, eventually turning into a crumpled paper man torn by the bullet, floating lightly to the ground.
Damn it! Leonard! You're really ruthless!
Klein, who had dodged the fatal shot with a "paper substitute," felt a lingering fear.
Taking advantage of the "flame current" igniting some surrounding debris, he performed another "flame leap," attempting to completely distance himself from Leonard!
"Don't even think about running!" Leonard's angry roar immediately came from behind him, accompanied by rapidly approaching footsteps.
Klein's mouth couldn't help but twitch.
The damage from "flame current" isn't high at all!
I never even thought of really hurting you just now! Otherwise, I would have just used "air bullets" on you directly!
You, aren't you usually so lazy?!
Now, why bother clinging to your old colleague!
"Here, no chanting allowed!"
Charles raised his hand and cast a large-scale "Prohibition," instantly silencing a group of Midnight Poets who were about to chant poems!
Transparent threads rapidly spread out, enveloping the affected Nighthawks!
"Ugh!" The Nighthawks entangled by the threads let out painful grunts and struggled fiercely.
"Everyone, spread out! Surround them!" Sost commanded.
"There are only two of them! They won't last long!"
"Nighthawks are fighting amongst themselves?"
Luo En and Xio were both dumbfounded watching the scene of several church personnel in identical uniforms fighting each other.
They had just escaped danger from that alley not long ago when they witnessed this scene, which could be called astonishing.
"Let's get out of here quickly, before we get caught in the crossfire—" Luo En was the first to regain his senses, lowering his voice to Xio. An internal conflict within an Official organization was definitely not something wild Beyonders like them should be watching.
"Mm." Xio immediately nodded in agreement. The two held their breath, lightened their footsteps, and cautiously moved quickly in the opposite direction of the battlefield.
But the two had just quietly slipped away not far when they heard chaotic footsteps and shouts from all directions, indicating that more Nighthawks were converging on this area.
"Go that way!" Luo En's "Calamity Premonition" ability warned frantically. He almost instinctively pointed in a direction that felt least "dangerous."
"That way is—"
Xio looked in the direction Luo En pointed, somewhat hesitant. That was the direction of her home.
"What's wrong? Is there a problem over there?"
Luo En didn't think that much, simply following his spiritual intuition.
"No—nothing." Xio gritted her teeth. Escaping was the priority now; she couldn't worry about so much.
Thanks to Luo En's unusually keen spiritual perception, they had several times turned in advance at the last minute, narrowly avoiding Nighthawk teams that were sweeping the area.
Unbeknownst to them, they had surprisingly run out of the chaotic East Borough and into a relatively quiet adjacent neighborhood, without incident.
Looking at the empty, deserted street with only the dim glow of gas lamps, Luo En breathed a sigh of relief and slowed his pace.
"That—let's stop here." Xio, who was following behind, suddenly spoke, her voice slightly breathless. "Thank you, you helped me again."
Luo En surveyed the surroundings, his expression suddenly becoming somewhat subtle and unnatural. "How—did we end up here? I remember, Xio and Fors's home seems to be nearby."
He immediately understood why Xio suddenly called a halt. If he didn't leave, Xio wouldn't dare to go home, to avoid exposing her residence.
Although he had helped her, letting an unfamiliar male with an unknown background know her exact address was clearly beyond Xio's acceptable limits.
"Alright then," Luo En nodded obligingly, "However, Miss, I still have a question I'd like to ask you."
"What question?" Xio looked at him warily.
"Have you—encountered that feeling of being entangled by an 'evil spirit' again recently?" Luo En asked, feigning concern.
"What?" Xio first froze, then suddenly reacted, her eyes widening as she looked at Luo En. "Wait! You—"
You're the gentleman from the last gathering who took my exorcism commission!"
"Correct, but no prize." Luo En smiled, admitting it generously. "I made a small disguise that time." He leaned slightly forward, closing the distance a bit.
"However, looking at you, Miss, it seems—you're alright now."
"That—I, I really am, fine."
Being stared at so closely, Xio inexplicably felt a wave of discomfort and constraint, her cheeks flushing slightly.
"I'm relieved that you're alright." Luo En chuckled. "Although my exorcism doesn't include after-sales service, I'm always happy to see a client safe and sound."
He straightened up, preparing to leave.
A crimson moonlight happened to shine on his face.
"Is it a full moon again? Tonight's moonlight is really dazzling!"
He seemed to suddenly remember something, stopped, turned his head, and said to Xio in a half-joking, half-serious tone: "By the way, Miss—as a return for my two times helping you, could you tell me your name?"
This… Is this a pick-up line?
Xio's expression instantly became unnatural.
She had been approached several times at those noble gatherings. But those were just normal social courtesies among nobles.
Although somewhat disheartened, her figure was indeed not the type generally favored by the public.
This was the first time she had experienced being asked for her name on a street late at night, almost like "taking advantage of someone's predicament."
Even Fors's novels didn't have such a plot, did they? If it were in the past, she might have been able to refuse firmly, but—the other party had helped her twice, and the return was just wanting to know her name. If she still didn't say it, wouldn't she be a bit harsh? "I—my name is—" Xio's cheeks grew redder, her lips pressed together, seemingly in an intense internal struggle.
However, before Xio could fully say her name, the relaxed and playful expression on Luo En's face instantly vanished. He stretched out his hand, pointing at a very ordinary-looking house not far away, and said in a very solemn tone:
"There's a very abnormal spiritual reaction in that house!"
"It seems something has happened!"
Xio looked in the direction he pointed.
That—that's my home!
Could Fors be in danger?!