Chapter 319
At this moment, Aivina had lost the defiance she had just shown. Her face was nearly as red as her ears, and she slid down the wall, using this tactic to escape from Charles's "clutches."
What a perfect opportunity!
Seizing the moment, Aivina darted under Charles's arm and took a few steps toward the bathroom. Once she had created some distance, she turned back and stuck out her tongue at Charles before diving into the bathroom.
Walking into a trap?
Watching Aivina's escape route, Charles shook her head with a smile and followed her in.
The door opened, she stepped inside, and then it closed, leaving only a brief, muffled gasp from Aivina, as if something had quickly blocked her voice.
...
Rustle, rustle, rustle—
At the desk, Charles was jotting something down in her notebook.
It seemed she was listing plans for the future, writing down tasks to complete before leaving Boren City.
For instance, dealing with the "Chaos Squad" still lingering in Boren City, and the unaddressed siege explosives from the Blackwater Party.
None of these were major threats, but they couldn't be forgotten.
Meanwhile, Aivina, dressed in her nightgown, sat on the bed, hugging her knees and peeking at Charles, who was busy writing. Her eyes were slightly red, and her expression was a mix of panic and concern, though she bore no visible injuries.
It seemed she had paid a heavy price for the small advantage she had taken earlier.
At this moment, Charles appeared to have finished her memo. She set down her pen and walked over to the edge of the bed, sitting down and looking at Aivina.
Aivina let out a soft hum, turning her face away, unable to meet Charles's gaze.
Charles looked at Aivina, her expression tinged with a hint of helplessness.
If one were to look directly at Charles, they would see the impressive "mark" on her face.
A clear red scratch ran across her right cheek, nearly reaching the corner of her mouth, which also seemed slightly damaged, as if it had been bitten.
If she were to remove her nightgown and count the scratches on her body, there would be even more.
Aivina was like a delicate flower, flinching at the slightest touch. The bathtub was small, making it difficult to maneuver, and in her effort to avoid hurting Aivina, Charles ended up getting hurt herself.
Next time, she definitely needed to tie her up—Charles thought to herself again.
At this moment, Aivina, noticing that Charles had been silent for a while, quietly turned her head to glance at her. Upon seeing the wounds on Charles's face, she bit her lip, feeling a wave of guilt wash over her.
Injuring Charles was never her intention; it was just that every time Charles's hand brushed against her chest or other sensitive areas, she would instinctively resist—this was her natural reaction.
It wasn't that she was rejecting Charles; it was just that strange, ticklish sensation that she found hard to adapt to.
Aivina's delicate body seemed overly sensitive.
Moreover, the roles should have been reversed; if Charles hadn’t resisted, neither of them would have gotten hurt...
"I'm sorry... Charles..."
In the end, feeling remorseful, Aivina lowered her head and quietly apologized to Charles.
"It's okay,"
Charles shook her head and gently asked, "Do you feel any better now?"
"I didn't mean to, Charles, I just..."
"It's fine."
Charles climbed onto the bed, reached out, and gently ruffled Aivina's hair, saying, "These little scratches will heal after a good night's sleep."
Having faced death countless times, Charles truly didn’t think much of these minor injuries.
But the more considerate and gentle Charles was, the more guilt Aivina felt in her heart.
"Sit here... right here..."
Aivina patted the empty space beside her.
Once Charles knelt in front of her on her right side, Aivina took a deep breath, as if making a decision, and grasped Charles's left hand.
"This way... this should work..."
Charles was pulled forward by Aivina, taking only two steps before she saw Aivina guiding her hand toward her own body.
Aivina slowly lowered the straps of her nightgown and pressed Charles's hand against her chest.
The soft sensation in her palm made Charles's heart skip a beat. She instinctively wanted to withdraw her hand, but Aivina held it firmly in place.
"Aivina..."
The dim light cast a warm glow on their faces as Charles leaned slightly forward, gazing at Aivina, who was tightly pressing her lips together.
This time, Aivina didn’t shy away; instead, she leaned in slightly, meeting Charles halfway.
Girls in love never tire of kissing.
...
In the year 741 of the Holy Era, on July 9th, morning.
The two, entwined in sleep, woke up almost simultaneously. After a brief morning kiss, Charles and Aivina washed up, changed clothes, and headed to the dining room.
At the table, Nia looked at the state of Charles's face and sighed silently.
In the end, she helped Charles put on a thin iron mask to cover her wounds a bit.
Aivina still had a lot of handover matters to attend to at her mine, leaving her with little free time. After breakfast, she took Nia out.
As for Charles, she decided to take care of the siege explosives first.
During breakfast, Charles briefly mentioned this issue to Aivina, who offered a surprisingly simple solution.
That was to anonymously report it to the police station.
This was military-grade material, and it was in a stolen state. For any department in the police station, this was a major case that could not be overlooked.
At the very least, it would warrant a couple of promotions.
Originally, Aivina planned to send someone to handle this, but Charles felt that wasn’t secure enough. She asked Aivina for an official recommendation letter, intending to resolve the matter herself.
After all, these explosives were likely the most powerful offensive weapons available in Boren City right now, having proven effective in multiple simulations.
There were even those who encouraged the Joy Society to use them to assassinate Aivina, resulting in her being severely injured in the simulations.
Charles would not forget this.
Including the initial involvement of the Blackwater Party.
Before leaving, everything had to be settled... Consider it a cleanup of toxic waste for Boren City.
However, just as Charles was about to leave, two letters and a large package of attachments were personally delivered to Aivina's residence by Lucy, specifically for Charles.
One letter was addressed to Lucy, commending her for her contributions in this mission, capturing the "subversive" of the Joy Society, uncovering the truth behind the Dedton Manor sacrifice case, and allowing her to return to Ansu City for recognition.
The Dedton Group was in urgent need of an explanation for this incident to its members, especially those big shots who frequently came to "stock up." Now, with Lucy presenting this perfect "scapegoat," a promotion and raise were certainly in the cards.
The other letter was an appointment letter for Charles. It seemed the higher-ups at the Dedton Group had reviewed Lucy's submitted recommendations and approved this personnel change.
Holding the silver employee card in her hand and seeing the neatly packed uniform in the bag, Charles realized that by accepting this, she had secured a position within a major company—she was now someone of status.
Moreover, with the employee card, she could withdraw her weekly salary from any bank, essentially functioning as a debit card—this concept was nearly a century ahead of other companies.
Most importantly, using the employee card to purchase items at Dedton Manor incurred only a 5% fee. Although there was a monthly limit to prevent employees from reselling items, it was more than enough for Charles.
After all, the items bought in simulations wouldn’t have real-world limits.
After delivering the items, Lucy learned that Charles was also heading to Ansu City. She decided to delay her reward for a few more days and travel on the same carriage as Charles to Ansu City, as a show of loyalty and alignment.
Once Lucy left, Charles took the recommendation letter and Dedton employee card and departed the manor in a carriage.
Chapter 179: Let the Bell Tower District Explode Again.
The reason for heading there was purely because it was on the way, and she wanted to check on Tara's recovery.
If Tara had already healed, then Charles wouldn’t need to go through the trouble of arranging an anonymous report and personally following up to ensure it was resolved—she could simply take Tara along to handle the matter.
Though Charles could manage alone, she felt it unnecessary to waste her limited life points on such tasks.
Having a loyal subordinate at hand was an opportunity too good to pass up.
The carriage stopped in front of the clinic, where the nurses seemed to recognize Charles. One nurse, dressed in a black long dress with a white apron and a white headscarf, approached her.
"Miss Charles, Dr. Adele is out and hasn't returned yet. Would you like to wait for her here?"
The nurse inquired, looking at Charles.
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