The Reversal and the Search / The So-Called Test

"Seriously, we're pretty capable. As long as we have enough money, we can get anything! So, Swire, don't you really want to give it a try?"

"Heh~ Let's put aside whether what you said, Pardofelis, is true or not. I just remembered something." At this point, Swire couldn't help but raise an eyebrow, then said with considerable certainty:

"The things Lin Yuhsia lost last night are with you now, right? Although it's getting late... if you don't want her to keep watching you, you'd better return them quickly."

"Haha, what is it? I have no idea." Hearing this, Pardofelis guiltily looked away and pretended to be clueless with a laugh.

Without Swire explaining in detail, Maomao already guessed what the lost item she was talking about was... If nothing unexpected happened, it should be the ornament she picked up during her retreat last night.

Although she found it, now that it's in her hands, she's not going to return it easily... How can you get it back without giving something in return?

"Heh~ Playing dumb, huh?"

Seeing the person in front of her starting to act up again, Swire smiled and once again reached up and placed her hand on her face, then pinched it.

"Hmm...that thing has become one of our collectibles. Swire, if you really want it, we can reluctantly give you a discount..." Pardofelis, whose weakness had been exposed again, glanced at Swire and whispered, trying to bargain.

Charging money for selling things is a matter of course; discounts are acceptable, but giving things away for free is absolutely unacceptable—that's a cat's principle! Not even Swire can break it...

"You really dare to say that!" Upon hearing this, Swire almost laughed in anger. If she remembered correctly, she had asked him to return "stolen goods," hadn't she?

As expected, outlaws like this should be sent to the Lungmen Guard Department and locked up!

"Waaah, this is a principle... If the principle is broken, it will be difficult for us to sell things and get jobs in the future!"

Although her little face was still being pinched and she was showing a pitiful expression, Pardofelis did not choose to give in this time!

"You..." Just as Swire was speechless and about to say something, the door to the private room was suddenly opened, and a waiter walked in carrying dishes.

Upon seeing an outsider enter, she quickly withdrew her hand, unsure of what to say next.

After the waiter efficiently served all the dishes the two had ordered, he suddenly approached them with a bottle of wine and said in a gentle tone, "The dishes are all served. This wine is a recent brew from our restaurant, and we'd like to offer it to our guests for their enjoyment. We hope you have a pleasant meal."

After placing the wine on the table, the waiter quietly withdrew.

"Hmm... fruit wine?"

After watching the waiter leave, Pardofelis curiously picked up the wine on the table, opened it, smelled it, and said...

"It doesn't look very strong. Let's try some; we haven't had any alcohol since we got here!" Cat said, perking up, picking up a glass and pouring herself a small cup. Then she looked at the person next to her and asked:

"Would you Swire?"

"No, and Pardofelis, don't change the subject!" Swire gently shook her head in response to Pardofelis's question.

"Oh dear, I just can't do anything with you these days!" With that, Pardofelis put down the wine bottle in her hand, looked helplessly at the person beside her, and slowly stood up.

"?"

"!"

Seeing Pardofelis's sudden action, Swire couldn't help but be slightly taken aback, somewhat confused. However, the next moment, she couldn't help but widen her eyes.

The reason was simple: Pardofelis, who had been standing helplessly to the side, suddenly leaned close and pressed her down into the seat...

"Since you've said this is a principle, then if you want something, you have to exchange it for something else... Swire, what can you give us?"

P. S.: I'm feeling down, so please don't wait for the next one... it might be very late.

Chapter 121 Reversal and Body Search

"Since it's been said that this is a principle, then if you want to get something, you have to exchange it for something else... Swire, what can you give us?" Pardofelis, who had Swire down in her seat, said with a smile in her ear at very close range.

"!"

"Pardofelis! Just talk to me, don't get so close!!" Swire's face flushed red as she was suddenly pressed so close to the same person again, and she shouted angrily while pushing the person away.

This is outrageous Swire have any dignity?!

"We're all girls, what's wrong with being closer... Swire, why are you always looking down on us?" Pardofelis, who had been pushed a little further away by Swire, couldn't help but complain.

"Since you know I dislike you, you'd better hurry up and do it properly!" With that, Swire, unable to bear it any longer, smacked Pardofelis on the head.

"Ouch! That hurts..."

A moment later--

"(?∧?)..."

Pardofelis, who had been hit, was now rubbing her head, sitting obediently in her seat, looking at the person next to her with a wronged and accusing expression.

"Ahem... Who told you to suddenly get so close? Okay, sorry..." Even Swire felt a little guilty and apologized softly after being stared at like that.

"That's more like it... If this continues, Swire, you'll lose me!" After hearing what Swire wanted to hear, Pardofelis finally stopped her accusing expression and stopped trying to push her luck.

After saying these words, the cat kept moving around, seemingly taking a small object out of its pocket but actually from its spatial storage, and placing it on the table.

"This is... Lin Yuhsia's lost jewelry?"

Looking at the familiar purple ornament placed in front of her, Swire said with a somewhat surprised expression.

Clearly, the little tiger hadn't expected Pardofelis to so readily hand over what she called her "collection"... Looks like force does have some effect?

Thinking about it, she couldn't help but look at the person next to her with a strange expression.

However, this seemingly innocuous glance immediately revealed something amiss to Swire. While the person beside her wore a resentful and unwilling expression, her tail belied something else entirely...

Seeing the long tail behind Pardofelis standing tall and swaying gently and rhythmically, indicating that its owner was in a good mood, the little tiger suddenly felt a chill in its heart and had a bad feeling.

"..."

The moment the premonition struck, Swire lowered her head to check her belongings, and sure enough, she was missing a small, inconspicuous accessory...

Having figured out what was going on, the little tiger first looked at the ornaments on the table, and then at the person beside him who had become somewhat guilty and avoided eye contact since he started checking the things.

For a moment, she didn't know whether to curse or acknowledge that the person truly had principles, and that it really was a matter of exchanging one thing for another... But when was that? Just now?

"Pardofelis, can't you just behave yourself?! Hurry up and give me back my jewelry! I bought it during my last vacation, and this is the first time I'm wearing it!"

With that, Swire suddenly turned her attack and pounced on Pardofelis, mimicking the actions Patto had just taken from her with a forced smile.

Normally, the little tiger wouldn't even be able to touch the cat's clothes, but unfortunately, the two are handcuffed together.

Even if she's not as strong as someone else, she can still use that to tackle someone to the ground.

"Huh? Swire, what are you talking about? Didn't we already give you the jewelry?!" Completely surprised that Swire would copy her, Pardofelis looked down at the person towering over her and quickly shook her head, pretending to be dumb.

"Hmph, keep pretending!" Upon hearing this, Swire raised an eyebrow slightly, unmoved, and said, "Since you're unwilling to hand it over yourself, then I'll do it myself!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the little tiger, who had been supporting himself on both sides, freed one hand and reached for the pocket on Pardofelis's body.

"Hey! No, Swire, you're searching me without permission! You don't have a warrant!" With that, Pardofelis grabbed her hand and struggled slightly.

As for why it didn't struggle violently, it's simply because the cat was afraid of accidentally throwing the person off it or kicking over the table or something...

If it's the former, then there's big trouble, and you'll inevitably be retaliated against (bullied). The latter would be a huge waste.

"Don't move, or I'll bite you again!" With that, Swire gave Pardofelis a "fierce" look, flashing her white canine teeth with a slightly embarrassed expression.

"!"

Upon hearing this, Pardofelis was stunned for a moment, then looked at Swire with an incredulous expression. Wait, why is this a threat?! Aren't you a fair and just Lungmen police officer? You can't play games!

"... Don't look at me like that, I was just checking." Meeting the incredulous look in someone's cat-like eyes, Swire's lips twitched involuntarily as she spoke.

After saying that, the little tiger stopped dawdling, quickly reached into Pardofelis's clothes pockets, and then quickly got up and stopped pressing down on her.

"?"

Seeing Swire quickly get up and sit back down as if nothing had happened, Pardofelis's initial disbelief was quickly replaced by confusion.

Cat originally thought Swire was looking for the trinkets she had just acquired, but now it seems... that's not the case.

Such a casual and crude body search method shouldn't have made it so easy to find her, even if she hadn't stored her belongings in her spatial storage.

But if it's not about confirming whether something is there, then it must be about confirming something else, right?

"..."

Swire was indeed confirming things, just as Pardofelis had suspected, and wasn't simply looking for her lost jewelry.

Although she was generally quite frugal in her daily life, she didn't really care about such a small item. Besides, how many small items had been taken from her by someone else already?

The reason the little tiger endured the shame of pinning the person down and "searching" her was simply to confirm his guess about Pardofelis's abilities.

When she failed to find her phone or other items in his pocket, she became absolutely certain that this elusive individual beside her possessed spatial abilities. The extent of these abilities was unclear, but they were definitely present...

Otherwise, there's absolutely no way to explain the sudden disappearance of things like last night's piano and today's phone...

Swire had watched the surveillance video from yesterday many times, and she had been keeping a close eye on Pardofelis all afternoon, so she wasn't naive enough to think that the disappearance of these things was some kind of magic trick.

P. S.: I suddenly remembered something and wanted to confirm something with you guys. If I remember correctly, Specter arrived on the island because Rhodes Island happened to learn of her whereabouts and went to rescue her? I don't think there's a specific time she arrived on the island in the game?

Chapter 122 The So-Called Test

"Oh dear, although I don't know what you confirmed with me, Swire, you could have just asked!" Pardofelis said helplessly as she watched Swire get up from her and sit back down, lost in thought.

"It's better to verify some things yourself. Besides, if I ask you, will you answer truthfully?" Hearing this, Swire raised her eyebrows slightly, not denying Pardofelis's words, but asking in return.

"If it's Swire, we'll answer truthfully! But it depends on the question. Some things we can say directly, and some things..." As she spoke, Pardofelis grinned and made a money gesture towards Swire.

"You really are a money-grubber." Swire's lips twitched as she retorted after hearing Pardofelis's words.

But despite the complaints, after their previous conversation, Little Tiger probably now understood why this guy liked money so much...

What kind of food could someone who grew up alongside stray cats possibly find? How many people raised in that kind of environment wouldn't want money to buy food?

"Sigh, there's nothing I can do. In this world, you can only live well if you have enough money, not to mention that helping others costs a lot of money." After sighing, Pardofelis seemed to suddenly remember something, picked up a spoon with her left hand, and said:

"Hey Swire, aren't you hungry? If we keep fooling around like this, the food'll get cold!"

"... You have the nerve to say that? You started it first!" Reminded by Pardofelis, Swire finally realized she was hungry, picked up her chopsticks, and said irritably.

"Hehe, don't fuss over such a small thing." Hearing this, Pardofelis couldn't help but smile guiltily, trying to get away with it by being cute.

After taking a bite of rice from her bowl, Swire couldn't help but let out a soft snort and said, "Hmph, I'll remember this! You could have just asked me for that little thing directly!"

"If I want it, will you give it to me, Swire?" Hearing this strangely familiar sentence, Pardofelis, who was awkwardly eating with her left hand holding a spoon, asked without looking up.

"Of course not!!"

"That's right, that's why things are like this now. Besides, Swire, you don't have any evidence!" With that, Pardofelis took a big gulp of her wine before smiling at Swire and continuing, "Hehe~ No one will believe you if you say something without evidence!"

"Hey, the wine at this shop is pretty good." As soon as she finished speaking, Pardofelis couldn't help but pick up her glass again and take another sip.

"?"

Hearing Pardofelis's infuriating words, Swire bulged with veins, and she gritted her teeth, saying each word clearly, "Well, it must have been really difficult for you to get so close and use your abilities so as not to leave a trace!"

It would have been better if Pardofelis hadn't mentioned it, because the mention of the little tiger reminded her of the two times someone had gotten so close to her, both times in an attempt to steal her things...

What's even more infuriating is that she shamefully blushed both times! This made her feel incredibly embarrassed and ashamed when she thought about it afterwards! * Lungmen profanity*!!

"Cough cough... We were wrong."

Hearing this, Pardofelis, not understanding what Swire was really angry about, assumed she was upset because she had stolen something from her, so she quickly coughed twice and changed the subject, saying:

"Don't be angry, it's not good to get upset! Would you like some drinks? They taste really good."

"..."

Swire didn't respond to the person's attempt to change the subject. Instead, after glancing at her wine glass and observing her unchanging expression, he nodded slightly.

She finally realized that if she took someone seriously and was too meticulous in her interactions, she would always lose! She would only be the one who suffered...

"Give!"

After seeing Swire nod, Pardofelis deftly grabbed the bottle, poured her a glass of wine, and pushed it in front of her.

After figuring things out, Swire, whose mood had quickly calmed down, took a sip of wine and commented, "Hmm... the taste is indeed quite good."

"Right, right!" Pardofelis nodded in agreement.

"Alright, let's get back to business. If entrusting someone with a task makes you a boss, then what exactly is this so-called investment you're talking about? Don't tell me it's about investing money in you to steal other people's things?"

After asking her question, Swire didn't observe Pardofelis's expression as she had before. Instead, she quietly lowered her head to eat, waiting for Patto's reply.

"Of course not, Swire, do you remember what we said before about giving Miss Fumizuki a 40% discount on her commission?" Pardofelis shook her head slightly in response to Swire's question.

"Remember."

"Then you should understand the essence of this matter, right?"

"Of course, I'm not stupid, stop with the nonsense and just say it!"