Swire, Left Alone / The Question of Staying Overnight

To be honest, after these incidents, even someone as proud and energetic Swire felt a sense of frustration.

Even though she knew long ago that Pardofelis was not easy to capture and was a very capable person, the feeling only intensified when several "provocations" piled up and she was completely unable to deal with her.

"Ugh, this is so annoying!"

After lost in thought for a while, Swire suddenly sat up from the sofa and shouted irritably.

"Never mind, I'll go out for a walk to clear my head."

Having made his decision, the little tiger dragged his still somewhat tired body to his feet and went upstairs to change his clothes.

Since she had taken the day off and lacked the motivation to work hard at the Lungmen Guard Department, she decided to go out for a stroll. After all, lying at home wasting time was not her style.

On the rooftop of an abandoned residential building --

Ah~

Pardofelis, who was lying on a chair basking in the sun, yawned, then suddenly sat up, rubbed her eyes, and lazily said to the person next to her:

"From now on, you're free to do as Rope. I have some business to attend to, and I'll be taking the Canned Food with me this time. If you encounter any emergencies, give me a call, and I'll be right back."

"Meow~"

As Pardofelis finished speaking, the Canned Food lying in her arms poked out its fluffy little head and let out a soft, comforting bark at Rope.

After playing together and feeding each other for a while, the cat and rabbit have become very familiar with each other and their relationship has grown stronger.

"Understood, Miss Felis, you can go ahead with your work. I'll call you immediately if anything comes up." Hearing this, Rope with Pardofelis, squinted her hazy eyes and nodded gently.

"Okay, take care of yourself."

After saying that, Pardofelis stood up, stretched, and prepared to begin the next step.

Instead of going to buy goods or scout locations, she planned to secretly check on Swire and see how she was doing.

Of the four people in the group, Cat knows the current situation of three of them, but she hasn't seen the little tiger.

Having taken advantage of him so many times, it's necessary to check on the "boss's" mental state. After all, it wouldn't be good to upset him.

Speaking of this, Pardofelis couldn't help but recall the string of insults she received from Swire this morning; all I can say was that the language was pretty filthy...

Chapter 109 Swire

After parting ways with Rope, Pardofelis took the Canned Food to Swire's villa area to investigate and confirm the situation.

During this process, the cat also noticed a detail: perhaps because of the commotion last night, the number of surveillance cameras in this area had increased, and the restrictions on people entering and leaving had become stricter.

However, all of this was within her expectations, so she didn't pay much attention to it. Instead, she turned her head to look at the Canned Food slung over her shoulder.

"This time it's all up to you, Canned Food! You should remember where Swire's house is, right? Go check if she's home and how she is."

"Meow, meow~"

Hearing this, the Canned Food gently nuzzled Pardofelis's cheek and began to bargain softly. After all, how could a cat work for someone for free?

"Ten, that's the most I can have. You 'Canned Food already overweight, you can't keep eating like this!" Pardofelis said, unable to resist reaching out and pinching the can's round face as she listened to the Canned Food's bargaining.

"Meow!" Hearing Pardofelis say that she was fat, Canned Food little paws and made a disgruntled protest.

"Alright, I'll give you extra food tonight, go on your way."

"Meow." After hearing this, the Canned Food finally stopped protesting, gently shook its long tail, nimbly jumped off Pardofelis's shoulder, and ran towards the villa area.

Ah~

As she watched the Canned Food disappear from her sight, Pardofelis covered her mouth and yawned softly. Then she turned around, found a tree nearby, and lay down on it.

On the other side--

Dressed neatly, Swire was wandering aimlessly through the streets of Lungmen, completely unaware that a certain cat had sneaked into her house again.

"Sure enough, staying up all night makes you feel tired. I'm not going anywhere. I'll find a place to sit down." After wandering around for a while, Swire clearly felt the aftereffects of staying up all night and not getting enough sleep. She felt a little dizzy and lightheaded.

"I wonder what the others are doing. Should we call them out to join us?"

After having the idea, Swire didn't hesitate. She took out her phone and messaged her three other friends, asking if they wanted to go out for a chat.

After all, if I sleep too much during the day, I won't be able to sleep well tonight.

However, after the little tiger sent a series of messages and received a reply, she was surprised to find that the "clown" was actually herself!

As for Lin Yuhsia, she's not from the Lungmen Guard Department. She'll be following in her father's footsteps, so it's normal and understandable that she's busy.

But, Old Chen, what's going on with you and Hoshiguma? If she remembers correctly, all three of them should have taken the day off, right? How come, apart from herself, the other two have secretly returned to their posts and are working hard?

To be honest, Swire felt a sense of betrayal, as if she had agreed to play together, but her friend was secretly working hard behind her back.

"Seriously... never mind if you don't have time, I'll go ask Little Griseo." Swire muttered to herself before switching her focus and contacting Griseo.

She hasn't forgotten this new, adorable little friend. Old Chen isn't coming, huh? Going back with his homework, huh? We'll steal him away!

Ch'en sister (×) is my Swire!

"Ding-dong--"

"Hmm???"

Griseo was in the mall with Hua, stopped out of curiosity when her cell phone suddenly rang in her bag. She took the phone out to check it.

As for why they're curious, it's because family members know their own affairs. If it's a "large family," generally no one would use a mobile phone to contact each other except in special circumstances.

After all, there's the more convenient method of telepathy. So, any new messages on a mobile phone are usually sent by other people.

Then, unsurprisingly, when Griseo checked her phone, she saw a series of invitation messages from Swire. And, as if to reassure her guardian, she even thoughtfully included a general area to visit in the message.

"???)Um..."

Unfortunately, after quickly calculating her time for the day, Griseo decided to decline the invitation.

She was really busy today, not only did she keep buying things without stopping, but she also had to go with Hua to the Lungmen Guard Department to pick someone up later.

However, the little girl seemed to have thought of something. While she sent a message to Swire to politely decline, she contacted another person in her mind.

'Sister Pardofelis...'

"Got it. Let's go see Swire and check on her." Before Griseo could finish speaking, Pardofelis understood her meaning and said with a smile.

"Hmm, thank you... And Sister Pardofelis, please remember not to bully Sister Huaiya anymore." After hearing Pardofelis's reply, Griseo nodded gently, then seemed to remember something and earnestly gave her some instructions.

"Okay, we won't be buying from Swire's anymore, don't worry, Griseo!"

'???)Um!'

"Oh, even Griseo isn't free today?" Swire put down her phone, somewhat disappointed, after receiving Griseo's polite refusal.

Honestly, Little Tiger has already started considering the possibility of going back to work now...

"Fine, if no one's around, then no one's around. I'll go have fun by myself." After thinking for a moment, Swire finally shook her head and said helplessly.

She wasn't really in the mood for work today, and even if she went now, her efficiency wouldn't be high. She decided to go out for a walk some more, and then, when it got a little later, find a place to have a drink.

I'll go home early today and get some rest to get my sleep back from the stress of staying up all night.

Just as Swire was taking action, Pardofelis, who was living nearby and had received the news, also sprang into action.

After summoning the Canned Food back from the villa area, the cat headed towards the approximate range of Swire's movements given by Griseo.

"The distance is quite far, and I have to time it perfectly so no one suspects Griseo's sister... These days, jobs are getting harder and harder."

Despite her complaints, Pardofelis knew she was the one who provoked Swire first. Having taken advantage of her so many times, she should at least show some concern, both morally and logically.

Moreover, the relationship between the two people isn't, in a sense, purely one of thief and victim. What thief would simply steal something and then pay money?

If it were purely altruistic and devoid of emotion, Piano Cat wouldn't have paid this time. That's a lot of money—enough for her and Rope to have many lavish meals and help many people.

Chapter 110: The Issue of Staying Overnight

As time passed, the case was successfully resolved thanks to the hard work of the police officers.

Chen also learned many things he wanted to know through their agreement Senti, so it was fair to say that his trip this afternoon was worthwhile.

"Alright, you can go now. I don't know how you managed to knock someone unconscious without hurting them, but don't be so impulsive next time." Chen, who came in from outside with some documents, said to Senti, who was sitting in the office so bored he was practically growing mushrooms.

"!"

Upon hearing this, Senti practically jumped up from his chair and complained, "Finally, we can leave! The efficiency of your operations here is truly appalling!"

"If doing a good deed results in such a long detention, who will dare to do good deeds in the future!"

"... Excuse my bluntness, but we at Lungmen do not encourage the masses to do the 'good deeds' you mentioned." After hearing Senti's statement, Chen was silent for a moment, then said somewhat speechlessly.

Just as Chen could make Senti angry with a single sentence, Senti could often leave Chen speechless.

"Alright, enough of this nonsense, let's get going. I have other work to do."

In reality, for normal cases, people who do good deeds wouldn't take this long to give statements and be investigated at the Lungmen Guard Department.

However, this case was quite serious, involving a large number of people, and Senti's initial intimidating demeanor made it difficult to justify not detaining her as a suspect. This could be attributed to Chen knowing her and having a vague understanding of her fighting abilities.

"... Suddenly I didn't want to leave."

Hearing Chen Ganren's words, Senti raised an eyebrow, crossed her arms, and sat down again, as if she wasn't the one who had just been excitedly jumping up and down.

"I'm starting to seriously doubt whether you're as old as Griseo!" she said, staring at the person in front of her who was acting like a child, speaking each word with a forced smile.

"Hmph, I love seeing you get angry like this, but you can't do anything about it." Hearing Chen's words, Senti couldn't help but grin and retort.

After spending an afternoon getting used to Chen's way of speaking, Senti has become somewhat accustomed to it and is no longer as easily provoked as she was at the beginning. Sometimes she can even watch the drama unfold with a smile.

"..."

Upon hearing this, Chen didn't say anything more this time, but instead rubbed her increasingly throbbing temples for the umpteenth time. She must be crazy to be arguing with such an utterly childish guy.

While being tormented by Senti, Chen Ye began to miss his well-behaved, sensible, and incredibly cute younger sister, Griseo, even more. The two were worlds apart.

Of course, "cloud" refers to the lovely Griseo, and "mud" refers to the wretched brat in front of them.

"Call..."

Just as Chen took a deep breath, intending to kick this guy out of her office, there was a knock on the door behind her.

"Knock knock-"

"Um, Sister Hui-chieh, may I come in?"

Along with the knocking, came the voice of the person Chen had just been missing.

"Enter."

Upon learning the visitor's identity, Chen turned and opened the office door as he spoke.

However, to her surprise, Griseo was not the only one who came to see her this time. Behind her was a person who looked very similar to the guy in her office who called himself the "Herrscher of Reason".

Although they looked very similar, Chen could tell the biggest difference between them at a glance. Compared to the loud and boisterous kid in his office, the calm and composed demeanor of the person in front of him was almost overflowing.

"May I ask who you are?"

Chen quickly composed himself, snapping out of his daze, and asked the question in a manner that wouldn't seem impolite.

However, before Chen could get a reply from the person in front of her, Senti, who was sitting not far behind her, stepped forward and said, "Old fogies, why are you only arriving now? I'm so bored here!"

"Sigh... it's all because of you Senti, who always loves to stir up trouble and acts impulsively." Hearing Senti's complaints, Hua sighed helplessly, then extended his hand to Chen.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, officer. My name is Hua, and I'm Griseo's other older sister. I'm so sorry, it's my fault for not disciplining Senti Shi properly; he's caused you trouble today."

"..."

Although judging from her demeanor, the person in front of her should be very composed, Chen couldn't help but pause for a moment after Hua spoke her reasonable words before shaking her outstretched hand and saying, "It's a pleasure to meet you, Ms. Hua. My name is Ch'en, and I'm a police superintendent here."

"It's not really causing trouble; after all, it's all part of our job."

"Is that so? Then Officer Chen, can you tell me what Senti did this afternoon? Does she need to apologize and make amends?" Hua withdrew his hand and asked helplessly, pretending not to know the truth.

"Hmm? So she hasn't told her yet..." Upon hearing this, Chen Wei raised an eyebrow and then spoke.

Before she could finish speaking, Senti quickly interrupted, "You rascal, you're finished if you dare to tattle!"