Ark Simulator, Aren't I Incorporeal?

"Boring." Lin Yuhsia kicked aside the hard drive array blocking her way. "You could have easily done all this by the hotel pool."

Su Rui smiled and placed his palm on the core server. Suddenly, the LED lights inside the chassis started tap dancing, and blue light spelled out "HELLO" along the ventilation holes. The terrorists' meticulously encrypted battle plan, fund flow, and member list were now scrolling on the monitor in the form of emojis.

Hoshiguma, chewing gum, leaned against the doorframe. "Seriously, you don't even use a USB drive?"

"Downloading." Su Rui pointed to his temple. The emergency lights on the ceiling suddenly began flashing Morse code in sync with his words, and the airflow from the ventilation system formed the prelude to the Dossoles city anthem.

The backup generator on the third basement level suddenly started.

In an instant, all the lights in the building turned a warm yellow. One by one, the explosive charges hidden by the terrorists in the load-bearing walls lit up with small red lights, obediently detonating their fuses like Christmas tree decorations. Suddenly, the coffee machine at the end of the corridor started running, the sound of grinding beans wafting out latte art, with the mayor's requested information summary floating on the milk foam.

"Done." Su Rui caught the Mark that was thrown to him and took a sip of the perfectly balanced double shot of espresso.

Chen Hui-chieh's sword tassel moved automatically without wind. "You should have said earlier that it could be used remotely..."

"But this is more ceremonial." Su Rui stomped on the ground, and all the unconscious terrorists suddenly rolled over in unison, revealing the handcuff keys tucked into their waistbands.

Lin Yuhsia's nails dug into her palms: "So you deliberately made us—"

"Look," Hoshiguma suddenly pointed to the monitor screen.

All the monitors switched to a live feed of the four people at the hotel pool this morning: Chen Hui-chieh used a tassel to fish out Su Rui's sunscreen, Lin Yuhsia stuffed a listening device into his chilled lemonade, and Hoshiguma was hiding a miniature tracker in his slippers.

Su Rui blinked. "A sense of ritual needs an audience."

As the server gave its final buzz, all the windows in the building suddenly fogged up, and water vapor condensed on the windows to form the betting records of the four people from the previous night—an odds table about whether Su Rui would discover the trap.

On the way back in the SUV, Hoshiguma gripped the steering wheel and laughed wildly, "So you knew that Old Chen installed a sonic weapon in the sword tassel?"

In the rearview mirror, Chen Hui-chieh's ear tips were so red they looked like they could bleed. Lin Yuhsia was frantically deleting something on the terminal; the "Eavesdropping Records" folder on the screen was automatically shredding.

Su Rui gazed at the neon lights flashing past the window; the rain in Dossoles had stopped sometime earlier. His retina still held the last data he'd received—a thank-you letter from the mayor containing the itinerary for the "double underwater volcano diving" trip that the four of them had secretly booked that morning.

"Are you going out on fieldwork again tomorrow?" he asked softly.

A bounty has been placed on chapter 653 of volume 11.

In the early morning in Dossoles, the sunlight spreads across the streets as softly as melted butter.

Su Rui walked alone on the seaside promenade, the sea breeze gently ruffling the hem of his clothes. He wasn't wearing his glasses today, and his amber eyes looked exceptionally clear in the morning light, like honey pierced by sunlight.

"Um, that..."

A faint voice came from the side. Su Rui turned his head and saw three girls in swimsuits looking at him, their faces flushed. The one in the lead nervously clutched the hem of her skirt. "Excuse me, could we take a picture together?"

Su Rui smiled gently, "Sorry, I'd like to take a walk alone today."

"Just one, just one!" another girl hurriedly pulled out her phone. "You're so beautiful... oh no! It's just that the background is perfect for taking pictures!"

Just as Su Rui was about to politely decline, she suddenly heard a flurry of footsteps.

"I'm so sorry!"

A silver-white figure stumbled and squeezed between them. Rafiela — the Liberi girl codenamed "Quill"—was clutching her scythe, which was almost as tall as her, looking bewildered. Her pale purple eyes glistened with tears. "He... he's off today..."

The three girls were stunned. The girl in front of them, who seemed even more nervous than them, was clutching Su Rui's sleeve with trembling fingers, like a small animal guarding its food.

"I... I'm his..." the Quill's voice trailed off, "Bodyguard..."

The sickle fell to the ground with a clatter.

Su Rui bent down to help her pick up her weapon and noticed that the girl's ears were already bright red. He suppressed a laugh and handed the sickle back, saying, "Thanks for helping me out."

The Quill hurriedly took the sickle, almost dropping it again. "N-no problem..."

The girls looked at each other, then suddenly burst out laughing, "You guys are so cute! We won't bother you then~"

Once they were out of sight, Quill finally breathed a sigh of relief, practically shrinking into his oversized uniform jacket.

Su Rui looked at the tuft of hair sticking up on the top of her head. "Did Chen Hui-chieh send you?"

"Mmm, mmm..." she murmured, her head bowed, shuffling her shoe along the ground. "Tell me... tell me you'll be harassed..."

"Was that considered harassment?"

The Quill suddenly looked up, its eyes a little red. "The way they looked at you..." Its fingers tightened around the sickle, "Like... like they wanted to devour you..."

A sea breeze blew by, and her silvery-white hair brushed against the back of Su Rui's hand, tickling her.

In the café, Quill held a cup of hot milk in both hands, sipping it slowly. Su Rui noticed that before each sip, Feather Pen would take a deep breath as if summoning courage, then quickly pull it back after burning her tongue.

"Would you like some honey?" He pushed the sugar jar towards him.

"Th-thank you..." She timidly scooped up half a spoonful, then suddenly looked up in a flustered manner as if remembering something, "No, it won't affect the mission! I, I'm perfectly alert!"

Su Rui couldn't help but chuckle, "I didn't doubt that." However, Chen and the others are quite thoughtful... It seems that a solo stroll is out of the question.

Sunlight streamed through the glass window, casting dappled shadows beneath her eyelashes. It wasn't until the third tourist who tried to strike up a conversation was intimidated by her gaze that Su Rui realized how surprisingly powerful those pale purple eyes could be when they stared—if one ignored the fact that she was nervously biting her straw.

You don't need to be so nervous.

"I... I'm not nervous!" In her excitement Quill knocked over the sugar jar, and in her frantic attempt to steady it, she spilled milk all over her skirt. "Ah..."

Su Rui handed her a handkerchief, her fingers trembling as she took it. "I'm... I'm so sorry... it's my first time on a solo escort mission..."

"Well done," Su Rui said, pointing to another man leaving sheepishly outside the window. "Much gentler than Chen Hui-chieh."

The Quill's eyes suddenly lit up. "R-really?"

"Yeah, last time she just threw the guy who tried to pick her up into the fountain."

The girl suddenly burst out laughing, then quickly covered her mouth, her shoulders shaking. Su Rui looked at her smiling eyes and noticed a faint dimple on her right cheek.

On the way back, as we passed an ice cream truck, Quill gaze lingered on the strawberry-flavored poster for a couple more seconds.

"Want some?"

"No, no!" she shook her head frantically, "During the mission, I can't..."

Su Rui had already bought two ice cream cones and handed her the pink one. "It's break time now."

Anyway, Su Rui came here to relax, and there aren't really any truly threatening individuals here.

She carefully took the Quill, tentatively licked it with the tip of her tongue, and her eyes instantly narrowed into crescents. Cream got on the tip of her nose, but she was completely unaware of it.

"There are thugs!"

The sudden shout made the Quill tremble, and the ice cream cone nearly slipped from its grasp. Five masked men rushed out of the alleyway, the leader brandishing a crossbow and shouting, "Mr. Su Rui! Please come with us—"

"Please, please wait a moment!"

Quill frantically shoved the ice cream cone into Su Rui, nearly tripping over her own scythe as she turned. When she finally got into a fighting stance, she cried out, "No, don't touch him!"

The thugs froze—the tearful girl was holding a weapon with trembling hands, strawberry ice cream slowly sliding down the scythe blade.

"I... I'm very good!" She sniffed, and accidentally pressed the sickle mechanism. The blade "whooshed" and flew three meters away, slicing the lamppost in two.

silence.

The thugs silently put away their weapons and turned to leave.

The Quill stood frozen in place, and finally, a drop of cream dripped from the tip of its nose. Su Rui stepped forward, took the weapon from her, and wiped the ice cream off her face with a handkerchief. "Really impressive."

"Ugh..." She buried her face in her hands, "I messed it up..."

A sea breeze carrying the scent of flowers wafted by, and Su Rui gently patted her trembling shoulder. "But the protection was successful, and that's the most important thing."

However, Su Rui frowned slightly as she watched the group of thugs flee in panic.

"Do they... know me?"

He gently raised his hand, a faint blue light emanating from his fingertips, and invisible data flowed through the air. In an instant, his consciousness spread along the electronic network of the city—the surveillance cameras on the street corner, the wireless network in the coffee shop, even the communicator dropped by the thug... Information flooded into his mind like a tide.

Three seconds later, Su Rui withdrew her hand, her expression somewhat subtle.

"I see."

The Quill was frantically putting away the sickle when it heard this. It looked up and asked, "W-what's wrong?"

Su Rui smiled. "It's nothing, I just discovered..." He paused, his tone nonchalant, "... that my name seems to have been on the black market bounty list for a week now."

"A bounty?!" Quill's eyes widened, and the object in his hand fell to the ground with a clatter. "That's... that's very dangerous—"

"And the price isn't cheap either," Su Rui added, as if amused. "Enough to stay in the most expensive hotel in Dossoles for half a year."

Volume 11, Chapter 654: Have a drink, taking a break today.

The Quill frantically searched for the communicator. "I... I need to notify Commander Chen--"

"No need." Su Rui gently pressed her hand down. "Today is a day off, right?"

The girl's fingers froze. His palm was warm, and the touch made her forget to move for a moment.

"But... however..."

"Besides," Su Rui said casually, gazing at the shimmering sea in the distance, "This isn't the first time I've had a bounty on my head."

The Quill opened its mouth as if to say something, but in the end it just lowered its head and muttered softly, "At least let me follow you..."

Su Rui looked at the tuft of silver hair sticking up on the top of her head and couldn't help but reach out and ruffle it. "Then I'll leave it to you."

They walked slowly along the coastline, the sunlight casting long shadows of the two. Quill held the sickle like a giant cane, occasionally stealing glances at Su Rui's profile.

"Okay, are you curious?" she suddenly asked.

"Um?"

"Why... why didn't you care..." she twisted her fingers, "It was so dangerous..."

Su Rui stopped and looked at a wisp of cloud where the sea met the sky.

"You know what?" he said softly, "In the world of data, fame is like the ocean waves—it surges in today and may recede tomorrow." He turned to the Quill and smiled. "The scenery before us is more worthy of our attention."

The Quill nodded as if it understood, then suddenly noticed that Su Rui's gaze was fixed on her.

"For example?" she stammered.

"For example," Su Rui pointed to the tip of her nose, "You have ice cream on here."

"Waaaaah--!"

She frantically tried to erase the Quill, forgetting that she was still holding a sickle, which crashed to the ground at her feet with a clatter. Su Rui smiled and handed her a handkerchief, which she took, her ears turning bright red.

As evening fell, they sat on the harbor pier, watching the sunset turn the sea gold. The Quill's sickle leaned to one side, gleaming warmly in the afterglow.

"Actually..." Su Rui suddenly spoke up, "A good reputation also has its advantages."

"Huh?"

"For example," he pointed to several furtive figures in the distance, "They run away as soon as they see you."

Sure enough, the suspected stalkers immediately scattered, pretending to be passersby, as soon as they saw the sickle on the Quill.

The Quill blinked, then suddenly straightened its back. "I... I will protect you!"

Her voice was louder than usual, startling a flock of seagulls. Looking at her serious expression, Su Rui couldn't help but chuckle.

"Yes, I believe you."

The waves gently lapped against the rocks on the shore. Su Rui's name might be repeatedly mentioned in some dark corner, but at this moment—

In the sunset, only the Quill's silver hair, ruffled by the sea breeze, and her fingers tightly gripping the hem of his clothes were visible.

The Quill gently tugged at Su Rui's sleeve.

"Um, that..." She lowered her head, drawing small circles on the ground with her toes, "There's another place... I want to take you there."

Su Rui raised an eyebrow. "Hmm?"

A faint blush rose to Quill cheeks in the twilight. "I... I actually..." she took a deep breath, "... run a small bar here."

Su Rui was somewhat surprised. "A bartender?"

"Mmm, mmm!" She nodded, her eyes sparkling. "Although... although we mainly do intelligence exchange... we're closed today." As if afraid he'd refuse, she quickly added, "Just... just the two of us..."

A sea breeze blew by, carrying a salty, damp scent. Su Rui looked at her fingers, which were twisted together in nervous tension, and suddenly smiled, "Okay."

The bar was tucked away at the end of an inconspicuous alley. Its sign was a simple wooden board with a Quill and a wine glass painted on it in fluorescent paint. When you pushed open the door, the wind chimes tinkled crisply.

"W-Welcome..." Quill instinctively uttered professional jargon, then quickly covered his mouth, "Ah, no..."

Su Rui looked around. The bar wasn't big, but it was decorated very warmly—warm yellow wall lamps, a dark brown solid wood bar counter, and various kinds of glasses and several hand-drawn cocktail recipes hanging on the walls. There was even an old-fashioned piano in the corner, with a half-finished glass of lemonade on the lid.

"You usually manage everything by yourself?"