Chapter Seventeen
[The Seven Sins are feeling an overwhelming surge of emotions that they cannot convey due to host's restricted access of the Demonic Streamer System.]
[The Seven Sins have sent a message to the host : 'Well played :)' ]
Ren grinned at the blue screen, closing his eyes in satisfaction for discovering a loophole in the tutorial mission and benefiting himself. 'Tricking the system feels so peaceful.'
"Ren? What are you thinking?" Monica blinked, staring at Ren in confusion.
Ren shook his head at her, stroking Monica's cheek. "It's nothing. Alex must be on her way."
Just as Ren finished his statement, a purple roofless car appeared in front of them.
The vehicle was sleek. It had sharp angles and gleaming paint that seemed to drink in the afternoon light.
Its engine purred with restrained power, and the leather seats looked expensive enough to cost more than Monica's entire apartment building.
Alex sat behind the wheel, her platinum hair whipping in the breeze while her emerald eyes scanned the parking lot with the precision of a hawk surveying its territory.
She killed the engine after three minutes and vaulted over the door in a single move that would have looked ridiculous if she hadn't made it look so effortless.
"Monica." Alex crossed the distance in three quick strides, her hands reaching for her friend's face, tilting it left and right, checking for injuries. "Are you okay? Did they hurt you?"
"I'm fine, Alex." Monica's voice was small but steady. "Ren protected me."
Alex's gaze shifted to Ren, her expression unreadable as her eyes lingered on the dried blood on his cheek. Her jaw tightened almost imperceptibly.
"You're bleeding."
"It's just a scratch." Ren shrugged. "The car took most of the damage."
Alex's eyes flicked to the yellow car behind them. Even from this distance, the cracked windshield and shattered rear window were visible, the glass glittering on the asphalt like spilled diamonds.
Alex's expression didn't change, but something in her posture shifted. The flirty gym owner was gone. In her place stood someone who had seen violence before and recognized its signature.
"Who were they?" Alex's voice was quiet as she tried to control the anger bubbling up inside of her.
"No idea. They were in a black sedan. Tinted windows. Followed us from the hospital. Started shooting when we hit the highway." Ren rattled off the details like a report, his military training bleeding through.
Alex absorbed the information without flinching. "Did you see their faces?"
"Windshield was too dark. Couldn't make out anything."
"The car. Did you at least get the plate number?"
Ren opened his mouth to answer but Monica beat him to it. "Alex, they were trying to kill us! How can Ren remember the plate number while trying to save us?"
Alex pressed her lips together in irritation. "I see." She responded, stuffing her hand in her pocket to pull out her phone. However, before she could take it out, Ren's words made Monica and Alex's feets grow roots into the group.
"SYD-8427 9245 8866."
Alex raised her eyebrow at Ren before turning to Monica. "Ica, go sit in the car. I need to talk to Mr Esper alone."
"But, Alex-"
"It's fine, Monica. Go sit. You must be tired after everything that happened today." Ren smiled at Monica, gently stroking her head, making Monica's shoulders relax.
Without another question, Monica left Alex and Ren alone as she quietly walked to the car.
Alex waited until Monica settled into the passenger seat, the purple car's door closing with a satisfying thud. Only then did she turn back to Ren, her arms crossing over her chest. "Repeat the plate number, Mr. Esper."
"Haizz. Looks like Miss. Alex doesn't trust me, huh. But, that's fine. It's SYD-8427 9245 8866. Is Miss Alex satisfied with the answer?" Ren smiled, tilting his head and staring down at Alex's deeper cleavage nonchalantly.
"Sharp memory, awesome skills and loaded with money. You can't just be an ordinary professor. Mr. Esper, are you an already signed hunter with hidden identity?"
Alex's question momentarily freezed Ren. 'Signed hunter? What's that supposed to mean? I'm a cultivation reader for god's sake. Damn it! In the midst of everything, I completely forgot to access the past memories of Ren. Ugh! What to do now? Ah! Yes! I can do that.'
"Miss Alex has quite the sharp eye. How about we talk this over at some restaurant? Monica is quite hungry. She hasn't eaten anything since morning."
Alex's eyes narrowed at Ren's deflection, her arms still crossed beneath her chest in a way that made the gesture considerably more distracting than it probably needed to be.
"You're avoiding the question, Mr. Esper."
"I'm prioritizing my girlfriend's hunger over an interrogation," Ren countered smoothly, meeting her gaze without flinching. "Is that a crime, Miss Alex?"
A slow smile spread across Alex's face, the sharp edge in her eyes softening into something far more dangerous.
Her arms uncrossed, and she closed the distance between them with a few deliberate steps, her perfume which was something floral with an undertone of vanilla filled Ren's senses. 'She doesn't seem like the vanilla kind. If anything, Monica suits vanilla more.'
"You know," Alex murmured, her finger tracing the line of Ren's jaw, stopping just short of the dried blood on his cheek, "most men would be falling over themselves to answer my questions. Especially when I ask so nicely."
Ren caught her wrist, his grip firm but gentle. "Most men probably haven't just survived a car chase with a bullet grazing their cheek."
"And yet here you are," Alex breathed, her emerald eyes half-lidded as she leaned closer, her chest brushing against his arm, "looking like you do this every Tuesday."
Ren's grip on her wrist tightened almost imperceptibly. "Miss Alex—"
"Alex," she corrected, her free hand coming up to rest on his chest, fingers splaying against his shirt. "We're way past formalities, don't you think, Mr. Esper?"
From the purple car, Monica watched the exchange with wide eyes, her hands gripping the door handle like she might intervene at any moment.
Ren cleared his throat, gently but firmly stepping back and creating distance between them. "As flattering as this is, your friend is watching. And hungry. And probably wondering why her best friend is draped all over her boyfriend."
Alex's laugh was light, musical, and entirely unrepentant. "Jealousy looks good on her. Plus, don't capable men have a lot of women, Mr. Esper? I'm sure someone like you must have had a lot of women even before Monica."
"That's not–"
Ren started to draw an explanation but Alex beat him to it again. "But fine. We'll play it your way, Mr. Esper. For now. 'Cause I'm the one who needs you desperately~'
Alex winked at Ren before turning toward the car, her hips swaying with exaggerated deliberation as Ren's gaze landed on the huge peaches.
'Fuck!'
['LUST' and 'PRIDE' feel vengeful at the discovery of the loophole by the Host in the tutorial mission itself. A special mission has been extended by the two sins after a huge debate.]
[Special Mission Assigned : Smack That Booty, Scammer!]
[Screw That Booty, Scammer: Host must slap both of Alex's ass cheeks one time each while ensuring the fulfilment of the conditions listed below.]
[Conditions To Ensure Completion Of Special Mission:]
<1 - The host cannot spank Alex lightly. Each slap must leave a red mark.>
<2 - The host cannot let Alex know about his intentions to spank her and it should be done without her permission.>
[Rewards:]
<1 - SSS Rank Weapon Draw>
<2 - A Random Passive Skill>
[Punishment:]
<1 - Break Up With Monica>
<2 - Spend Three Days In Jail>
[Would you like to accept the special mission?]