Chapter 24: Wanting a Surprise Attack
Qin Huai stood at the entrance of Lin Jiangli’s office, clutching the documents. His eyelids were lazily half-raised as he watched the machine flickering with a soft glow not far away.
In truth, canceling a mission wouldn’t result in any real loss.
Canceling this mission wouldn’t even affect the relationship between him and Duan Ke. He could still fulfill his responsibilities as a keeper, kissing Duan Ke every week, living across from him, and inviting him over for dinner.
But just like Ji Qing, who had just left, after spending over three months with a mission target, canceling the mission would only take an instant.
But what about him and Duan Ke?
What would they become in the end?
Quite naturally, the image of that explicitly worded paper resurfaced in Qin Huai’s mind. Every word on it felt blinding to him, a stark reminder that he was not Duan Ke’s only choice.
…His name wasn’t even on it.
That soft, glutinous body, those cloyingly sweet kisses, the intimate and dependent way he called him “Brother”—all of it could be snatched away at any moment by someone on that list.
The mere thought made Qin Huai’s temples throb as if pierced by needles, his emotions veering toward loss of control.
His expression remained flat, but his breathing became imperceptibly rapid, his gloved hand faintly digging into his palm.
Yet, he was rational. Another voice inside him coldly questioned these thoughts.
A mission target.
An irrelevant person.
Why lose control of your emotions over him?
From soldier to Inquisitor, have you killed few monsters? Is Duan Ke any different from those monsters who died miserably under your gun?
Qin Huai leaned against the wall, quietly trying to convince himself. By the time he snapped back to reality, he found he had already turned on the monitor on his wrist.
Duan Ke’s location data appeared on the screen, the small red dot representing him moving at a steady pace.
His heart rate was a bit high, and his body temperature was slightly higher than usual.
…
Is he feeling unwell? Or is he nervous?
…Is there someone else with him?
Qin Huai lowered his eyes to the screen, remaining motionless, his face still appearing calm and composed. The sudden sound of footsteps nearby broke the silence of the office.
“Colonel Lin, I’m here to… Holy sh*t…!!!”
Qin Huai was interrupted. He looked up with extreme displeasure, meeting the gaze of a medical soldier who looked absolutely terrified.
Noticing the soldier’s gaze land on the red dot representing Duan Ke, Qin Huai clicked his tongue in extreme annoyance and raised his hand to switch off the monitor.
“So… Sorry! Sir! I didn’t mean to offend you!”
The medic bowed ninety degrees, cold sweat breaking out on his forehead.
Damn it, while on field duty the past two days, he saw people in the gossip group chat saying the Inquisitor had been acting weird lately, like he’d seen a ghost. Turns out the brothers weren’t lying!!
But the Inquisitor hasn’t just seen a ghost; he looks like he became one! What is with standing silently behind Colonel Lin’s office door?? The blue light of the monitor hitting the Inquisitor’s profile was truly scarier than a ghost!
The medic bent at the waist, not daring to move, stealing a careful glance at Qin Huai out of the corner of his eye.
It seemed okay. The officer’s attention wasn’t on a nobody like him at all. There was no anger, no disgust—just as robotic as usual.
Only then did the medic stand up, slightly relieved. After reporting his mission at the clock-in machine, he turned around just in time to see Qin Huai turning to leave.
“Ah… Sir, please wait a moment!”
The moment the medic spoke, he wanted to bite his own tongue off.
Damn professional ethics, why provoke him right now?? Wouldn’t it be fine to just let him leave??
Sweating profusely, the medic braced himself for Qin Huai to revoke his license. But Qin Huai just turned around and looked at him with zero emotion.
“What is it?”
The medic snapped out of it. “Oh… Oh! I wanted to ask about your injury.”
Seeing that Qin Huai didn’t seem inclined to kill him immediately, his heart settled back into his chest a little. He stepped closer and pointed to his own abdomen.
“You might not remember, but I was the one who performed the emergency treatment for that scorpion poison last time. You didn’t come back for a follow-up.”
“Um… although your self-healing ability is indeed strong, the injury was quite severe. It’s better if you take it seriously.”
The medic waited uneasily for Qin Huai’s answer.
Would the officer think he was being meddlesome? After all, he was just an ordinary medic and couldn’t interfere with the higher-ups’ affairs.
But to his surprise, Qin Huai showed no sign of displeasure.
Instead… he raised an eyebrow with an ambiguous expression.
“It’s already completely healed,” Qin Huai said.
The medic watched as Qin Huai rubbed his fingertips together, then gently traced a line across his own lower abdomen.
…It didn’t look like he was touching himself; it looked more like he was recalling the lingering warmth of someone else on that spot.
“Someone was very worried and already healed it for me.”
Qin Huai’s tone remained as flat and robotic as ever, but the tail end of his sentence pitched up almost imperceptibly.
Having said his piece, Qin Huai didn’t linger. He turned and walked away without pause, leaving the medic petrified at the office door.
Healed??
That was a huge hole! How long has it been? Are you kidding me??
The medic’s jaw practically hit the floor as he carefully thought about what kind of method could heal a human that quickly.
Thinking and thinking, he suddenly felt like he had touched upon something he shouldn’t think about—something quite terrifying. He shuddered all over and fled quickly, as if dodging a ghost.
After that small interlude, Qin Huai’s mood improved slightly. He decided to go home.
He had just checked Duan Ke’s location and saw that he was heading back to the rental apartment, so he decided not to stay overnight at the office and followed him back.
This way, if that roommate or anyone else tried to take advantage of the situation, he would notice immediately.
Qin Huai glanced at Duan Ke’s door; it was tightly shut. He hesitated for a moment but ultimately didn’t knock.
He could rationally observe that an uncontrollable emotion born of Duan Ke was invading his body. He needed some time to digest this emotion and return to rationality.
Qin Huai entered his own home, stood in the entryway, and began to unbutton his black gloves.
Just then, he heard a very slight noise coming from his bedroom.
It was very faint, enough to deceive anyone else, but not an Inquisitor.
Qin Huai lowered his eyes, his unbuttoning motions pausing not for a second. He cast a casual glance at the bedroom. The wardrobe door was open just a crack—a tiny gap barely wide enough for air to pass through. It wasn’t obvious, but it was there.
There was a little fellow who thought he was well-hidden, hiding inside.
Qin Huai thought with amusement.
[Author’s Note]
Duan Ke: No one can see through this succubus’s perfect disguise. [Pity] [Pity]
Qin Huai: A kitten playing hide-and-seek. Cute.
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