Su Mo couldnât help but smile: "Just went out for a few minutes, and youâre already thinking of me?"
Qi Ling: "Yeah, every second I donât see you, Iâm thinking of you."
The girlâs soft voice stirred up ripples in his heart, bringing an indescribable feeling of excitement.
Su Mo murmured: "My heart suddenly beats so fast."
Qi Ling: "Oh? Why?"
Su Mo: "Maybe itâs because of what Iâm going to face next."
Qi Ling: "Dummy."
Su Mo: "Hmm?"
Qi Ling: "At times like this, you should say to a girl... well, forget it, youâre too dumb, Iâll teach you slowly later~"
Neither of them spoke again, quietly immersing in the tranquility of the morning.
"Dong, dong, dong..." Suddenly, a gentle rhythm came from the phone.
Su Mo recognized it, it was the sound of a heartbeat.
Qi Ling placed the phone on her chest, letting her heartbeat be heard by him.
Su Mo lay on the table with his eyes closed, pressing the phone to his ear, as if crossing dozens of kilometers to listen to Qi Lingâs heartbeat.
After another ten minutes, Qi Lingâs soft voice came: "Iâm here."
Su Mo: "Okay, go ahead."
Qi Ling: "They donât allow electronic devices here, I have to hang up now."
Su Mo: "Ling..."
Qi Ling: "Hmm?"
Su Mo: "Thank you."
Qi Ling: "Dummy, thank you is for outsiders and friends."
With a blind tone, the call ended.
Outside the window, at the far end of the cityâs skyline, the dawn sunlight tore through the sky, bringing the first ray of light to the world.
Su Mo sat by the window, quietly waiting for time to pass.
"Ring, ringâ" Shortly after hanging up with Qi Ling, another call came in.
Picking up, Sikinkovâs gloomy voice came: "Iâm downstairs, come down."
Su Mo leaned out the window, spotting a black car parked downstairs.
It was morning, the city waking from its slumber, the streets bustling with commuters.
Su Mo left the Edge Mansion, approaching the black car, seeing Sikinkov sitting in the back through the window.
Sikinkov showed no intention of getting out, so Su Mo opened the door and got in.
Sikinkov looked haggard, eyes bloodshot, who knows how many days without sleep, his expression somber like it could drip water.
He signaled the driver in the front seat, who then got out and left.
Now, only the two of them remained in the car.
Su Mo: "What canât you say over the phone?"
Sikinkov said nothing, just extended a hand, continuously flipping Su Moâs eyelids, as if inspecting something.
Su Mo asked curiously: "What are you doing?"
"Smack!" Without warning, Su Mo received a heavy slap.
Sikinkov pointed at his nose, angrily questioning: "Su Mo! Have you become stupid as a mercenary?!"
Su Moâs face stung painfully, slowly snapping out of his daze, hardly believing he got slapped so suddenly, looking at Sikinkov with shock and anger.
Sikinkov glared: "What look is that? Huh? Think being hit is unjust? Do you want to see what youâve been doing recently?!"
"For a woman, you stirred the mercenary realm into chaos... I wonât even mention it, thatâs just how you are. But what did you go and do afterward? You went to kill Lucifer? Are you freaking high?!"
Su Mo replied coldly: "He hurt the people around me like that, donât you think he deserves to die?"
Sikinkov roared: "Deserve to die! But you canât kill him! Because heâs Mammonâs son!"
Provoked by the scolding, Su Mo shouted back: "Then what should I do? Tell me!"
"A friend who saved my life several times, driven into a corner by Mammon, toyed with like a dog!"
"My territory, Mammonâs son comes when he wants, smashes it when he likes, Chu Nanyi got seriously injured by him, and my team I built became a laughingstock in all New Moon City!"
"And Dongdong, a 15-year-old kid, went alone to seek revenge on Lucifer, didnât even care about her own life, just to stand up for me, and sheâs still lying unconscious in the emergency room!"
"Tell me what to do? Smile and apologize to Lucifer? Beg for mercy? Grovel?"
Sikinkov responded with a bleak smile: "What can be done? He has a dad whoâs an executive at Hegemony Company, heâs just better than you, more valuable than you."
"I know, in the mercenary business itâs about licking blood off the knife, swift revenge, canât tolerate any loss."
"Youâre now the famous Seven Stars of New Moon, you can kill many people, thugs, mercenary peers, corporate backbones, all are within your reach."
He forcefully poked at his heart, his expression filled with sorrow: "Even one day, if I block your financial path, you could kill me, your director."
"But you canât touch company people! Especially canât offend those executives! Any offense is courting death!!!"
Su Mo coldly interrupted: "The manâs already dead, I know what Iâm doing. If youâre like Dress, here to sever ties, then go ahead."
"Brother." Sikinkovâs tone turned melancholy.
His gaze full of sorrow, his voice laden with struggle, trembling uncontrollably: "Youâre insisting on walking the path to the end this time, the higher-ups gave me a death order, I really have no choice..."
This statement sounded odd to Su Mo.
Suddenly, his gaze sharpened, scanning the passing pedestrians outside.
During the morning rush, the crowd seemed noisily bustling, nothing out of the ordinary.
But upon closer inspection, some pedestrians intentionally or unintentionally glanced this way, their eyes filled with an oppressive feeling.
Su Mo realized something, glaring coldly at Sikinkov: "You tricked me out, set me up?"