Night Journey

Chapter 47 Chaotic Relationship

"Meifuni's friend?"

Cillian was puzzled, but still politely extended his hand.

"Yes, she talked to me about you and even saw your picture."

Valerie has a beautiful smile, a stylish short haircut, and wears sporty clothes.

"This must be your first time here. The way is a bit hard to find. Let me show you."

Valerie beckoned to Cillian, and he followed her through the crowd and into the alley.

After winding through the alley, deep inside, Cillian saw a colorful plaque.

"Ink House?"

Cillian read the names aloud.

"See, this is my first time here, it's really hard to find."

Valerie took Cillian's hand with a captivating smile. Cillian was somewhat uncomfortable with this sudden enthusiasm and was about to struggle when she pulled him into the Ink House.

The room was dimly lit, with only a few lights barely illuminating the blurry outlines. Further ahead, Cillian saw countless oil paintings hanging on the walls.

The oil paintings cover a wide variety of subjects, from landscapes and portraits to abstract symbols that Cillian couldn't understand. Further in, the space becomes more open, with several tables set up in the courtyard where guests are chatting quietly.

Wine racks and bookshelves were placed on either side of the room. As Cillian passed by a table, he saw the guests playing a board game.

As he walked deeper into the corridor, bursts of laughter emanated from the various private rooms. Some rooms were not closed, and through the cracks, Cillian could see that they were bathed in sunlight, with people sitting in front of easels, painting oil paintings.

In the month or so he had lived in Hull City, Cillian had been to many places, but this was the first time he had ever seen such a strange club.

Pushing open the door at the end of the corridor, Cillian met his colleagues. Since it was his first time there and he wasn't familiar with the area, he was the last to arrive.

“Cillian has arrived… Oh? Valerie is here too.”

Dailin noticed the two people who came in together and got up to greet them.

Hello everyone!

Valerie finally let go of Cillian's hand and greeted the others warmly.

“When I arrived, I saw Cillian circling outside, and we just happened to come in together.”

Dalyn asked in surprise, "You know Cillian?"

“I’ve heard it from Maefanie,” Valerie said, glancing at Maefanie sitting beside her. “I saw Cillian’s picture on your roster when I went to the City Guard Bureau to see her a while ago.”

Cillian happened to be off that day and didn't see Valerie.

After taking his seat, Cillian noticed that Elton, who never attended parties, was also there.

Elton explained, "I prefer this activity."

Maefuni hosts many events, such as dinners and movies, but Elton isn't interested in any of them, except for today's.

Anya moved a large box onto the table, which contained several folded maps, dice, and chess pieces.

"Is everyone here?"

"Everyone's here," Dai Lin said.

Valerie paused for a moment, then asked in confusion, "What happened to the others who played with us before?"

"Oh, you mean them? They died in an operation a while ago," Dai Lin said casually.

It was a sad thing, but the atmosphere in the room didn't become much colder because of it. Everyone present was used to this, even Cillian himself.

"Is this Cillian's first time participating in something like this?" Mefuni introduced enthusiastically. "Today we're playing board games!"

Valerie moved closer to Cillian, deliberately leaning her body against him.

Cillian moved aside slightly, and Valerie moved closer again, still with that sweet smile.

Cillian could only sigh helplessly and accept reality.

The game time flew by, and Cillian glanced at the increasingly gloomy sky outside the window before getting up to say goodbye.

"Everyone, it's my shift today, so I have to go now."

After patrolling the high walls for a month, Cillian was rotated to patrol the city. His work was much easier, but this was his first time patrolling the city, so he needed to go there a while in advance to get a feel for the situation.

"I'll take you out."

Dalin said this, and left with Cillian.

Reaching the outside of the ink house, Cillian took a deep breath and asked in confusion.

"What's the deal with this Valerie?"

"Oh? She's Meifuni's friend."

Dai Lin said, "I don't know their exact background, but they seem to be from a wealthy family, otherwise they wouldn't be hanging out with Meifuni."

“How did she get to know you?” Cillian didn’t understand. “Meifuni works here, so how did she get in touch with the City Guard?”

Dale continued, "She often came to see Mayfune, and over time they became familiar with each other, but she rarely participated in our gatherings, only coming occasionally."

Realizing that Cillian had many questions about Valerie, Daelin asked curiously.

"what happened?"

Cillian carefully chose his words, "She...she's being a little too enthusiastic towards me, which makes me feel uneasy."

Throughout the board game, Valerie acted very close to Cillian, constantly bringing up topics ranging from trivial personal information to specific past experiences.

Cillian resisted, but realizing that resistance was futile, he accepted reality to avoid embarrassment.

"Something's wrong?"

Dai Lin paused for a moment, then burst out laughing, "Do you have paranoia?"

He looked Cillian up and down. "To be honest, Cillian, you're quite good-looking. Although... although you're definitely not as good-looking as me, you're still good enough to win the hearts of a bunch of young girls."

"Maybe she likes someone like you? This is a great opportunity. If you manage to hook up with her, you won't have to work in this godforsaken place, the City Guard Bureau."

Cillian said coldly, "Are you serious?"

"fake."

Dalin's smile faded, replaced by a gloating expression. "Even if Valerie really likes you, she might find someone else in a couple of days. Young people, that happens all the time."

"Like Anya?"

After spending some time at the City Guard Bureau, Cillian roughly figured out the relationship between Dalin and Anya.

People say that Anya is a flirtatious woman who often juggles relationships with various men and has an ambiguous relationship with the director of the city garrison.

Dalin really liked Anya and pursued her relentlessly, but Anya rejected him time and time again, like a strange chase scene. In response to Cillian's sarcastic remark, Dalin raised his foot as if to kick him.

"You boy!"

After uttering a curse, he looked exhausted and sighed, "Some things are very complicated..."

"Tell me about it?"

Dai Lin dismissed him, saying, "Go and patrol the night!"

……

Valerie's intimate gesture was obvious, and everyone noticed it.

Anya whispered, "I advise you to stay away from Cillian. If you want to play with other people, you can go to a bar."

Valerie replied nonchalantly, "How could that be? I don't like him at all, but I heard you care a lot about that Cillian."

"I?"

Anya didn't expect the topic to steer back to her.

“Yes,” Valerie said, looking at her teasingly, “The usually glamorous Anya is actually so reserved in front of a newcomer, she doesn’t even dare to look him in the eye. Have you really fallen in love with him?”

Anya chuckled. "Fall in love? How foolish, Valerie."

“Indeed, that’s a stupid thing to say,” Valerie nodded firmly. “Anya, how could you, who lives off all sorts of men, possibly fall in love with someone truly?”

Valerie moved a few steps closer to Anya and spoke in a lower voice.

"Don't think I don't know those things. You only care about interests. You'll be with whoever has the benefit. Poor Dai Lin, he still thinks you're his true love."

Anya appeared nonchalant. "Dalin knows about my past. I've always been upright and honest."

“That Daelin is incredibly stupid,” Valerie provoked. “I will get Cillian as a humiliation for you.”

"Because of Dailin?"

Anya looked at Valerie with disdain and understood where her hostility came from.

"You've tried everything, but you still can't win Dailin's heart. I just beckon him, and he'll offer up everything for me. Doesn't that drive you crazy?"

Valerie said no more, snorted and walked to the side.

"What happened?"

After returning the board game, Meifuni went back indoors and saw the two still giving each other the cold shoulder. She wondered what had just happened.

"nothing."

Anya gave Maefoni a warm hug. Although Anya and Valerie were hostile to each other, Anya did not want it to affect Maefoni.

Valerie remained silent, also not wanting others to know about her feud with Anya.

Then, she provocatively pressed Meifuni for an answer.

"Meifuni, could you help me make an appointment with that Cillian?"

"Ok?"

Valerie said, enunciating each word clearly, "I'm very interested in him."

……

The sky was overcast.

Before his shift change, Cillian returned to the apartment. Bruce, as always, was holed up in the living room, tinkering with a pile of scrap metal.

A few days ago, Cillian received his first paycheck, just as Dalyn had promised. Even as an intern, the salary was still quite generous.

Cillian first paid off Dalyn's debt, then renewed the lease with the landlord for another month. He used the remaining money to buy the materials on Bruce's list.

Bruce lived up to expectations and successfully repaired the jet revolver in a few days.

Let me explain it to you simply.

Bruce said without looking up, "The jet revolver has the ability to enhance shooting. As long as source energy is injected, it can greatly increase the muzzle velocity and shooting intensity."

"And this, a special bullet for jet revolvers."

Cillian fiddled with the heavy jet revolver for a moment, then picked up a set of bullets, twelve in total, from the coffee table.

Brass-colored cartridge cases, bright red bullets.

"What kind of bullet is this?"

Cillian felt that the red color looked somewhat familiar.

"Soul Essence Bullet".

Bruce explained, "When it hits an enemy, the soul essence will spontaneously combust and explode, making it extremely lethal to chaotic forces."

“Oh, by the way, the soul essence used comes from your blood,” Bruce added. “Perhaps it’s just my imagination, but I feel that the purity of the soul essence in your blood is much higher.”

"is it?"

Ciri rubbed the red bullet head between his fingertips; its shiny surface resembled a sparkling ruby.

Holding the torch of holy blood.

The Deathbird calls this blood, and this blood is the very thing that ignited the tragedy in Baiya Town.

As Cillian gradually came to understand the full picture of the world, he also had some premonitions about the truth of the Torchbearer's Blood.

That was a terrible conjecture.

Cillian countered, "Can you detect anything unusual about my blood?"

“I only discovered it after a careful examination,” Bruce said. “If it were another torchbearer, the reaction to your blood would have been more sensitive.”

Bruce stopped what he was doing. He thought he knew Cillian well enough, but suddenly, it was as if another fog had been shrouded around Cillian.

"If you don't want anyone to notice this abnormality, you'd better bleed as little as possible."

"That might be a bit difficult."

Cillian gave an awkward laugh. To survive in such a crazy world, it was impossible without bloodshed.

“I think so too.” The dog-faced man wearing goggles said with a serious expression, “Then kill all the people who make you bleed, and there shouldn’t be any problem, right?”

These menacing words startled Cillian, but he then agreed.

"of course."

(End of this chapter)