I'm living off a woman in Arknights.

Page 82

She's fine with folding paper, carving with a knife, and taking photos, but when something happens, she can just put it in her pocket and get into battle mode.

When cooking, you might end up with your left hand holding a shield to block enemies while your right hand forgets to remove the wok with oil from the fire, causing oil to splatter everywhere and injure yourself.

Yun Yi felt a mix of worry and amusement when he thought about that scene, and he rubbed his forehead.

After she finished telling Hoshiguma about the scenario she envisioned, she spread her hands and said, "So, unless you have a ranged defense or a time-stopping ability, I really don't recommend that you focus on learning to cook."

Hoshiguma frowned and immediately nodded, "It is indeed troublesome—hmm?"

Halfway through her sentence, Hoshiguma suddenly turned her head and stared intently at the office door. Her thick, long, straight green hair fluttered and spread out, with one of the longer strands brushing against the Hannya placed to the side.

The end of the strand of hair was easily severed by the metallic blade of the Prajna, falling silently to the ground, then being brushed by the breeze and slowly rolling under the table.

Cutting hair in half with a breath?

Yun Yi, who happened to catch a glimpse of this scene, was startled. So sharp! This must be top-tier sharpness, right?

As she was secretly surprised, Hoshiguma's slightly tense body relaxed, and she turned to tell Yun Yi, "Miss Texas will be back soon. Her footsteps were a bit shorter when she landed, her steps on the right were heavier, and there was a second breathing sound. She must be carrying someone on one side..."

Hoshiguma paused, listened carefully again, and continued, "There was no struggling noise from that person, and Miss Texas's footsteps became steady and regular, but there were a few small steps that shifted her center of gravity—the other person must be unconscious or bound and unable to walk on their own."

“Unable to walk on its own…” Yun Yi raised an eyebrow and pondered. Texas was acting like a serious person right now, so it was hard to imagine that she would bring back someone unrelated.

So, does that mean she actually caught the guy who was suspected of being a wanted criminal?

"...They actually made it in time, and they actually caught them." Yun Yi looked completely bewildered. "Does this make sense?"

After committing a crime and being threatened, the man not only failed to escape immediately, but was also caught by Texas, who arrived quite some time later—was he an idiot?

"Perhaps something unexpected happened, holding back the person brought by Texas." Hoshiguma was also unsure of the situation, but that didn't stop her from offering a reasonable and useful guess.

At the time, while Yunyi was chatting with Texas, Hoshiguma was carefully studying the contract terms. She could only vaguely hear the two talking, but she didn't know the specific content.

However, her ears and brain, honed by years of processing information, were not idle; they automatically picked up parts of the conversation and pieced together a general outline.

Miss Texas is going to catch a wanted criminal who has most likely already escaped.

"Besides, regardless of the process, Miss Texas did successfully bring the person back." As Hoshiguma spoke, she bent down to pick up the Hannya, and stood up with a slight contraction and relaxation of her waist, which was wrapped in a black bodysuit.

She looked down at Yun Yi, her golden eyes sparkling with a smile. "She'll be here in about a minute or two. I'm sure Miss Texas will tell us the details later. Until then, we need to sign the contract as soon as possible. As for the specific arrangements for the studies... we'll discuss that later when we have time."

"Sign now?" Yun Yi had just begun to have some doubts when Hoshiguma's next words dispelled them.

Yes, Hoshiguma was going to sign a contract anyway, and the issue of the gift has already been resolved by learning to create objects imbued with emotions. Texas, who is currently unaware of this, is not present either. If not now, when?

Volume Two: Fireworks at Longmen: Chapter 9 Texas: The officers really trust Miss Yunyi.

Having figured it out, Yunyi put 001 on the ground, patted it to let it go play with 002, and then immediately stood up with Hoshiguma.

She quickly pointed her finger at Hoshiguma from a distance, saying briefly, "Just sign it."

The moment Yun Yi pointed at Hoshiguma, a semi-transparent blue floating panel appeared before Hoshiguma's eyes—a subsystem panel belonging to the contractor.

On the panel, all the terms of the contract were clearly written, a signature column popped up in the center, and a blue and gold pen floated quietly to the side.

Hoshiguma immediately picked up the pen and quickly scanned the regulations.

After reading the last line and confirming that it matched what she knew beforehand, she immediately put down the pen that had been hovering between her fingers and neatly signed her name in the signature column.

The moment the final dot was added, a familiar virtual chain shot out, buzzing as it connected directly to the foreheads of the two people, flashing three times before quietly disappearing.

Yun Yi, who was already used to it, touched his forehead, feeling a little regretful that his emotions were relatively stable this time, and he was unable to take the opportunity to enter that unknown space.

Thanks to the previous meticulous review of the terms, the hidden revisions to the contract terms, which ensured that both parties remembered them, had a negligible impact on Hoshiguma.

She merely frowned, but quickly regained her composure.

Hoshiguma glanced down at the futuristic subsystem panel in front of her, a hint of curiosity flashing in her eyes. After a brief look, she was about to operate it when she was interrupted by the sound of the door opening.

Hoshiguma and Yunyi looked up together.

With a slightly harsh creaking sound from the iron gate, Texas carried a figure into the office.

She casually tossed the man, who was slumped on her shoulder like a dead dog, into the office. She looked around at the door before stepping back in and closing the office door behind her.

Seeing the two looking at her, Texas calmly raised her chin slightly, gesturing for them to look at the person on the ground with their eyes closed.

Yun Yi looked down and, unexpectedly, yet logically, something happened.

The person on the ground was of the same race as Pelosi, and was wearing the same police uniform, but his appearance was very different from the "Police Officer Pelosi" she had seen before; he was a complete stranger.

Recalling her and Texas's previous speculations, Yun Yi immediately looked up at Texas, "Was it his ability that changed him, or did he find someone to be his substitute?"

Texas shook her head and walked to Yun Yi's side. "It's not a substitute; the aura is the same."

Hoshiguma, who was standing to the side, recognized the person at a glance and understood what the two were talking about.

She picked up where Texas left off, "The person on the ground is a specially wanted criminal with rare Originium Arts, which allows him to briefly simulate the memories of people he has read."

“What you saw earlier should be the person he was impersonating; this is his true appearance.” As she explained to Yun Yi, she immediately pulled out a pair of handcuffs from the desk next to her.

Hoshiguma, handcuffed, strode forward and squatted down. With one arm, she flipped the person lying on the ground over, and with two crisp, cold "click-clack" sounds, the man was mercilessly handcuffed behind his back.

The other party did not react at all, nor did his body convulse involuntarily. If Yun Yi had not seen his chest rising and falling slightly, he would have thought that the person had been killed by Texas.

Curious, Yun Yi crouched down a little closer to observe from a distance. The other person's lifeless appearance made her turn her head and look up at Texas, "Is he going to die?"

“No,” Texas’s wolf tail swayed slightly, “he is weakened by the backlash of Originium Arts.”

It wasn't even close to death.

During their conversation, Hoshiguma relentlessly searched Perot's entire body and quickly retrieved several pieces of metal from a hidden pocket inside his police uniform.

Hoshiguma quickly put them together.

Looking at the small metal device that had been assembled in her hand, she nodded in agreement with Texas's statement. She stood up and showed Yun Yi the object with the charred edges in her palm. "That's right. Look, his casting unit is obviously new, and the angle of the damage is more like it burst from the inside."

"..." Yun Yi remained silent. A spellcasting unit? Emerging from within?

Forgive her for speaking frankly, but she didn't understand any of this at all.

As if sensing something from her silence, Texas and Hoshiguma exchanged a glance, each looking at the other with a questioning look: "What's going on? Didn't you tell her anything?"

In the end, Hoshiguma withdrew her gaze first, took out a transparent plastic evidence bag from the pocket of her coat at her waist, stuffed the fragment of the spell unit in her palm into it, then zipped it up and put it back in her pocket.

During the installation of the casting unit, Hoshiguma briefly explained to Yunyi, "This is a casting unit, an essential device for ordinary people to use Originium Arts, which is equivalent to a power amplifier."

Just as Yun Yi's attention was drawn away by her actions and explanation, Texas spoke up from the other side, drawing her attention back to Perot, "Miss Yun Yi, what the officer meant earlier was—"

Texas glanced at Pero's pale face. "Only the backlash of Originium Arts, or the loss of control of the casting unit by a stronger being, could cause the damage described by the officer."

As Yun Yi pondered Texas's words, the other party continued without pausing, "When I arrived at the front desk, this wanted criminal was already unconscious. At that time, he was still in his original appearance until I finished searching the lobby and was about to take him back when he suddenly reverted to his original form."

“During this process, I did not detect any third party,” Texas said calmly, her ear twitching slightly. “Having ruled out interference from a powerful individual, the only remaining possibility is that he will be attacked by a backlash.”

"You were unconscious before you arrived?"

After listening to Texas's words, Yun Yi, who had been wondering why the other party hadn't left, immediately focused on this point: "No wonder he didn't run away. Was he ambushed by that other problematic police officer you mentioned who returned?"

Texas glanced at her, a glint of light flashing in her calm amber eyes. "I checked the surveillance footage, it's not like that."

"Surveillance?" ×2

Yunyi and Hoshiguma spoke at the same time. Yunyi looked puzzled, while Hoshiguma's thick eyebrows furrowed and the ends of his eyebrows turned up high.

Upon hearing the other person's simultaneous question, the two subconsciously turned to look at each other. After a moment of eye contact, Yunyi spread his hands, indicating that Hoshiguma, who was clearly more anxious, should speak first.

Hoshiguma nodded at her with a relaxed expression, then turned and frowned again, staring intently at Texas. "Miss Texas, where did you view the surveillance footage from the Guard Bureau lobby? How much of it did you watch?"

She emphasized the words "Guards Department," subtly conveying a sense of accusation, and the atmosphere between the two became tense.

Texas remained unfazed, calmly returning Hoshiguma's gaze with a completely unwavering expression. "The location we examined was a small compartment we found during the search of the main hall. The contents we examined covered the period from when Miss Yunyi and I entered the main hall until I returned to it."

No lie.

Hoshiguma quickly came to a conclusion. She immediately raised her hand and patted the back of her neck, revealing an apologetic smile. "I was too hasty. I'm sorry, I'm sorry."

Her smile instantly dispelled the heavy atmosphere around them.

Volume 2: Fireworks at Dragon Gate: Chapter 140 Yun Yi: Hoshiguma is a good buddy (?)!

"I understand." Texas replied casually to Hoshiguma, her gaze returning to Yun Yi. "What would you like to ask, Miss Yun Yi?"

Yun Yi's confusion had faded, and she shook her head to indicate that she had no more questions about the surveillance. "I was just wondering where the surveillance cameras were in the lobby. Turns out there are small cubicles."

When she entered the gate of the Guard Bureau, she had paid close attention but did not find any trace of a monitoring room, which aroused her suspicion.

Texas's reply to Hoshiguma had already given her the answer.

On the other hand, Hoshiguma confirmed that Texas truly understood her questioning and had not harbored any resentment.

She looked at the unconscious Perot man on the ground and picked up where she left off, "So, Miss Texas, did the surveillance footage show why this guy initially lost consciousness?"

Upon hearing this, Yun Yi looked at Texas curiously, "Right, if it wasn't a third party or you who caused him to faint, then how did he end up collapsing at the front desk?"

Was she experiencing a hypoglycemic episode? An unrelated guess flashed through her mind.

Texas leaned towards Yun Yi with her right wolf ear down, meeting her gaze. "Because of you."

"Me?" Yun Yi was about to point at herself when a guess suddenly popped into her mind. Her eye twitched, and she said speechlessly, "Could it be that this person was just putting on a brave face in front of me, and then fainted as soon as I left?"

Judging from the way the other person trembled uncontrollably and scrambled to their feet whenever they made eye contact with her, Yun Yi felt that her guess might be the truth.

“Yes, it’s pretty much the truth.” Texas nodded, then recounted the actual events recorded by the surveillance cameras: “The surveillance footage was black from the moment we entered the lobby until we left.”

Yun Yi scratched his face, guessing that recording her had caused a brief system crash. He was really strong now!

Texas's ears twitched slightly. She glanced at Yun Yi, who suddenly looked proud, then looked down at the person on the ground and continued, "In the surveillance footage that was later restored, this person collapsed on the ground, muttered something, raised his hand and pounded the ground once, and then fainted at a moment when his expression fluctuated greatly. I guess it was because of his fear of you."

She paused almost imperceptibly here, glancing at Hoshiguma's distinctive Hannya shield out of the corner of her eye, a flicker of emotion passing through her eyes, "After he fell unconscious, the 'police officer' who had left earlier returned, quickly observed him, and then left again using techniques that seemed to be those of an Eastern ninja."

The techniques of the Eastern Ninja? Hoshiguma's golden eyes flashed—it was a movement technique that only circulated within the secret organizations of the Eastern Nation.

She was prepared for the ninjas to be sent, and Hoshiguma's gaze swept across Texas's profile, but why was Texas able to see through it at a glance? That insight…

Hoshiguma raised an eyebrow slightly. Was the intelligence wrong? Not necessarily, we need to confirm it.

The thought had barely formed when Hoshiguma deftly slammed Hannya to the ground with a thud. Texas, sensing something, slightly raised her wolf ears, her amber eyes immediately sweeping over her, her wolf tail taut behind her. "Officer's curiosity is sharper than your shield."

"Well, it's my duty. Your eyesight is too sharp, so I had to confirm it—don't worry, Lungmen welcomes all international friends with no ill intentions."

Hoshiguma returned her a bright smile, then without hesitation, picked up the terminal, turned it on, and pulled up the message from Swire about hiring the other party to confirm the Texas intelligence once again.

—Highly likely originated from Syracuse, has been active in Lungmen since its emergence, is familiar with the national conditions of Colombia and other countries, and is highly trusted by Mr. Emperor…

Hoshiguma's gaze fell on the section about being familiar with the national conditions of multiple countries, and her mood was somewhat complicated. Swire's information was too vague. Colombia and multiple countries? Could you please specify which countries are included?

She even thought the intelligence was wrong.

Hoshiguma calmed herself down and put away the terminal. In her mind, she placed the Eastern Country within the familiar territory of Texas, and looked at the other party with a hint of curiosity.

It's rare to find foreigners who know about her hometown, the Eastern Kingdom, and as ninjas are a clandestine profession, even locals in the Eastern Kingdom rarely recognize them. It's a mystery where Texas got this information.

Yun Yi, who was squatting down, looked around at each other and gradually fell silent. But he wasn't exactly arrogant or confrontational. He coughed to break the deadlock and said, "I say, instead of staring at each other, why don't you help me analyze this?"

She clapped her hands, stood up, and returned to Texas's side, scratching her head with a puzzled look in her eyes. "Why are all the ninjas from the East out here? I didn't do anything, did I? Wanted criminals, ninjas, and that carload of people being chased by Swire and the others outside, why are they all coming to find me?"

“Miss Yunyi, the ninja may not be here for you.” Hoshiguma, carrying Peronan in one hand and Hannya in the other, stood up straight, demonstrating her extraordinary strength.

She shook the person in her hand as if he were a chick, completely at ease. "That ninja was sent by higher-ups to investigate the Guard Bureau, to screen for infiltrators like this guy—"

As she spoke, Hoshiguma tilted her head and glanced at the man in her hand who was otherwise unharmed except for the backlash from her Originium Arts. A look of doubt appeared in her eyes. "Hmm? Come to think of it, it's a bit strange that he wasn't taken away."

above?

Texas frowned slightly, then relaxed her brow. "As long as it's to our advantage."

"Haha, that's right! The more sources of information, the better." Hoshiguma laughed heartily, shrugging to put aside the doubts that were destined to remain unanswered for the time being. "I can't figure this out right now, so let's not think about it for now. Anyway, we'll get the answer eventually. For now..."

She dragged the person over to Yun Yi, who was still struggling with her decision, and threw her down. She then put her arm around Yun Yi and patted her shoulder. "Miss Yun Yi, don't worry. Actually, there seem to be many people pursuing you, but if you look closely, there's only one. The reason they're looking for you is nothing more than your groundbreaking technology."

Hoshiguma winked at Yunyi, leaned in and whispered in her ear, "Think about it, besides those of us who witnessed it firsthand, isn't there only one other being who can truly be aware of your existence?"

The refreshing scent of mint quickly enveloped Yunyi's senses as Hoshiguma approached.

Contrary to her aggressive demeanor, perhaps it was Hoshiguma's overly familiar attitude, or perhaps it was the overwhelmingly friendly aura emanating from her at that moment.

When Yun Yi was naturally put his arm around Hoshiguma's shoulder, he did not feel offended at all. When the tip of his ear was brushed by Hoshiguma's warm breath, he did not feel uncomfortable that his private space was violated.

Yun Yi only instinctively stiffened for a moment, but then, seeing the other person's extremely friendly gesture, he was inexplicably reminded of his childhood friend, and his tense body gradually relaxed unconsciously.

She was momentarily distracted by this familiar intimacy, but then her attention was drawn away by Hoshiguma's next words.

Yun Yi rested his chin on his hand in thought, then turned his head and whispered, "You mean that Wei Yanwu? He's the one who orchestrated all these things? Why? What happened to the cooperation?"