The Distance Between Hearts.

Wraith pulled a sealed black leather bag from under the bar, placed it on the counter, and said softly:

"These are the items needed for the mission, allocated by headquarters."

"This place will be your base for now. Of course, if you need any equipment, you can let me know in advance. Although we don't have high-end items like Valkyrie armor here, we have everything else you could need."

Wraith snapped her fingers, and the liquor cabinet behind her disappeared to the sides with a barely audible click of a mechanism, replaced by a wall displaying all sorts of weapons.

This place is less like a bar and more like a shady weapons shop, with the owner having extensive connections and seemingly a collecting hobby.

This wall is filled with specialties from almost every country and weapons exclusive to Schicksal, making it a very thoughtful equipment arsenal.

Su Qing'an and Fu Hua exchanged a glance and shook their heads simultaneously. Both understood each other's strength. While firearms weren't entirely useless, carrying them was a hassle and a weakness unless absolutely necessary.

The disadvantages outweigh the advantages.

They were heading to an auction house, a place where items related to the Honkai were being auctioned. Security was extremely tight, and it wasn't easy to bring weapons in.

Wraith shrugged, seemingly unsurprised by their choice. Perhaps asking such a question was just a routine matter. Valkyrie rarely went on missions fully armed; their basic Valkyrie armor was sufficient for most situations. In a special place like Singapore, a large number of firearms would only make subsequent reports extremely difficult.

"Okay." She waved her hand, and the counter filled with vodka and champagne redecorated the bar, making the atmosphere perfectly normal again.

To maintain its regular operation as a cover, Wraith works as a proper male waiter at night.

Those heartbroken individuals drowning their sorrows in alcohol, naive and ignorant young people, and girls in pleated skirts or hoodies—all swell with emotion and desire amidst the artificial lighting and the evaporation of alcohol, indulging in fleeting fantasies in the hazy night.

But with just a snap of the fingers of the bartender, the seemingly peaceful world before them would unfold in a completely different way.

In a sense, it's both magical and interesting.

Su Qing'an made no attempt to hide Wraith's presence; he unfastened his black leather bag and took out a file folder.

He handed Fu Hua a modestly designed invitation card, which listed the invitee's identity and was filled with words of praise.

The statement ends with a formula.

[A tribute to Miss Anastasia, we look forward to your visit.]

Su Qing'an looked at the only remaining piece of paper in the file folder containing her identity information and said:

"This should be your identity, Hua."

Fu Hua took the invitation and glanced at it. The text was all written in German. Theoretically, both of them looked like Shenzhou people, so it was really a bit inconsiderate to set them up as foreign heiresses.

Su Qing'an finished glancing at the papers in his hand and said:

"According to the settings above, Anastasia is of mixed Chinese and Russian descent, with an appearance more like that of Shenzhou person. The issue of her eye color should be fine if she covers it up with colored contact lenses. The invitation above indicates that you can bring a waiter. Hmm, it seems that this is the role I need to play."

Fu Hua took the paper from the boy's hand, glanced at it briefly, and said:

"Anastasia came to this auction to find a cure for her incurable leg ailment. Given her background, she has been unable to walk for a long time, so the person impersonating her will spend most of this mission in a wheelchair."

Wraith thoughtfully provided a wheelchair, indicating that there was no need to worry about logistical issues. She said:

"I've already prepared the outfits for you. The young lady and butler theme is old-fashioned and unoriginal, but it seems like it would look interesting on you two."

Wraith smiled and nodded to herself, observing the two who were completely ignoring her and were methodically discussing the details of the mission. The way their eyes darted around was just like an older woman at the entrance of a residential complex, watching young couples pass by, her expression always carrying a meaningful and enthusiastic air.

Fu Hua said:

"The mandate from Schicksal is to reclaim some weapons powered by Honkai Energy. This auction is suspected to be backed by other forces to make money. It hasn't been around for long, and it seems to be a quick cash grab."

Su Qing'an pointed to a sentence on the invitation.

It was written in German above.

[Here you will find what you are looking for, dear Miss Anastasia.]

He asked:

So the promotional slogan above is fake?

Fu Hua thought for a moment and replied:

"It's fake. Even within Schicksal, there isn't a reagent so convenient that it can cure any type of intractable disease, unless this auction itself was prepared for Anastasia."

"But this doesn't make sense. If it's a quick cash grab, such a complicated process wouldn't be in the other party's interest. So, the most likely explanation is that it's just a scam."

"This auction house must have contacted many wealthy families like Anastasia's, who have physical disabilities but lack access to detailed knowledge about Honkai. After gathering intelligence, they cast a wide net, and naturally, many people will fall for it."

Su Qing'an frowned and said:

"However, in families that are generally wealthy, it is rare for someone to simply believe what the other party says, attend the auction, and obediently spend a lot of money on shopping."

"Simply put, the other party is a newly established auction house, and its reputation is not enough to fool a fool."

Fu Hua smiled and said:

"Regarding this issue, I believe the auction house will give us enough reasons to trust them."

Su Qing'an understood, and he said:

"They will advertise."

The girl nodded and said:

"Yes, in addition to this invitation, the real Anastasia should have also received an advertisement that forced her to believe, or rather, made her willing enough to believe, its authenticity."

"And this advertisement will likely reappear after we arrive at the auction; otherwise, how could it entice the wealthy to spend lavishly?"

Su Qing'an confirmed some information in the other party's words, and he asked:

"Huh, do you mean Anastasia is a real person?"

Fu Hua gave an affirmative answer, saying:

"Schicksal won't leave any loopholes in the logistics for those carrying out the mission, and the least likely way to do so is to obtain a genuine invitation. If I'm not mistaken, the real Anastasia has become a training ground for other B-rank Valkyrie."

Su Qing'an nodded:

"Your mission is to keep an eye on her and keep the news under wraps, right?"

Fu Hua confirmed:

"That's roughly it, so theoretically we don't need to worry about our identities being exposed."

Su Qing'an offered his opinion:

"What about the difference in appearance? Theoretically, Anastasia isn't a small client for the auction house."

"According to the information, her family has been in business for generations and has a huge amount of liquid funds at any time. In addition, she is very much loved by her family. If they really believe that Anastasia's legs can be cured, it is not impossible for them to spend tens of millions of dollars."

"It's hard to find a sucker of this caliber these days, so while she might not be the most important client, she's definitely on the priority list. The other party should know her appearance very well."

Fu Hua said:

"The Logistics Department won't cause us unnecessary trouble. If impersonating Anastasia requires a lot of factors, it's better to find someone whose assets just meet the threshold for being scammed to use as an identity. That way, it won't attract attention and it'll be more convenient."

"But the Logistics Department didn't do that; instead, they assigned this identity, which means the other party didn't know Anastasia's appearance."

"Did you notice something in the message? This young lady has mild depression, autism, and social anxiety symptoms. This might be why they don't know what she looks like. Anastasia probably rarely appears in public."

"It's not difficult to know what she looks like, but with their strategy of casting a wide net, examining every detail of every baiting point would be a waste of time, because they have no idea who will take the bait."

"And your identity is also marked with information. Theoretically, you don't need to give us any more information if you bring just anyone, but since we've given it to you, it means it's useful."

"I see."

Su Qing'an understood Fu Hua's meaning. If Anastasia was autistic and socially anxious, then it would be impossible for her to attend the auction alone. It would be logical for her to come with someone she trusted.

So this butler is also real, and perhaps, as Wraith said, this is a real-life couple pairing of a young lady and her butler.

Built on the other party's makeshift platform, this series of logically sound connections forms a flawless disguise.

The Logistics Department's considerations were incredibly thorough, but Fu Hua, who saw through the other party's intentions almost immediately and went straight to the heart of the matter, possessed a keen judgment and intelligence that Su Qing'an had never discovered before.

Fu Hua glanced at Wraith, who was smiling beside her, and said seriously:

"Su Qing'an, the CIA of Schicksal is responsible for the logistics of mission information. Wraith and her colleagues are very meticulous and demanding in every aspect of information. So under normal circumstances, Valkyrie can complete the mission without having to think and just follow the advice of the Logistics Department."

"However, not relying too heavily on all information is also a necessary balance, so you need to learn to strike a balance between trust and skepticism."

She gazed at the boy listening attentively, thinking to herself that he still needed to grow.

Su Qing'an has seen too few things, and this lack of experience will sooner or later become something he will have to consciously make up for.

But this doesn't mean that Su Qing'an isn't outstanding in Fu Hua's eyes; on the contrary, she admires this young man very much.

In just six months, his life of the past ten years or so was completely turned upside down, dragged from peaceful times to his current miserable state.

He must face the fate of his body being slowly Honkai and decayed alone for the rest of his life, but even Su Qing'an cannot discover the dark side in the boy's heart during their daily life together.

Faced with this endless despair and the pain that seeped into her bones in the dead of night, Su Qing'an's way of coping always seemed to be that indifferent attitude.

No one can see into his heart, not even his closest friends.

Fu Hua herself had experienced the feeling of the world being turned upside down before. Although her memory was gone, the lingering fear from her naive self seemed to leave a faint, smoky imprint.

Therefore, she could understand that Su Qing'an was very strong, unlike herself, who had gradually become resilient through the trials of time.

This boy seems to have an innate resilience. Even though he is far from mature yet, it doesn't matter. Take it slow. Before the final time comes, I can still teach him some things.

These thoughts flashed through Fu Hua's mind in an instant, but she felt a sense of bewilderment and confusion.

When exactly was it?

I... have started to care about this person in front of me.

Aside from the initial sense of familiarity that led to a slight intimacy, our relationship naturally progressed to its current state.

There was a suitable distance between them, and the subtle firelight seemed to convey a faint warmth from a distant place.

We can always move forward, and we can always drift further away.

An invisible wall around the heart is perhaps the reason why it's difficult to open one's heart...

She stopped her thoughts there and said:

"Alright, that's enough lecturing."

"Let's scout the location first. The footwork you learned from Rita should be perfect for this. Once we've confirmed the situation, we can go straight in and carry out the mission."

Wraith said quietly:

"He also has the ability to influence machine surveillance. To the enemy, perhaps the codename Wraith is more suitable for him than for me."

Fu Hua wasn't surprised. She was the first to know about Su Qing'an's new skill, and she had already been surprised. Now, she felt no emotion at all, and even wanted to laugh at Wraith, who seemed to be suffering.

Su Qing'an nodded and looked at Wraith, asking:

"We're not very close to the mission location. Is there any transportation available to provide assistance?"

Upon hearing this, Wraith's appearance changed instantly; almost in the blink of an eye, she transformed from a charming waitress into a much taller man. She pulled a pair of sunglasses from behind the counter, put them on, and said with a deep laugh:

"Of course, the Logistics Department exists precisely to handle these scattered details."

"Come with me."