Chapter 11: Two Slaps for You
Wen En stared expressionlessly at Romeo, who was sitting in front of him.
Perhaps because he was injured and had been doused with a glass of water, Romeo now looked like a wilted weed after a flood, completely lacking the fierce demeanor he had when they fought yesterday.
Wen En couldn’t be bothered with pleasantries and got straight to the point. He took out his work credentials. The card was printed with the acronym F.I.A.D. and a roaring lion’s head, the symbol of the organization.
“Let me introduce myself,” Wen En said with a cold expression. “My name is Wen En. I’m an agent of F.I.A.D.”
Wen En?
Hearing this name, Romeo was momentarily stunned. The name actually overlapped with the person in his memory.
No way, it can’t be him… Romeo repeated silently in his mind.
“I don’t think I need to introduce myself, do I, Mr. Special Agent?” Romeo looked at the roaring lion on the credentials. Its teeth looked so sharp that one could easily be devoured by it. Romeo smiled. Now, he deeply understood this point.
“Well then, Romeo, I’ll call you that for now. We have a few questions for you.”
“Sure,” Romeo leaned back, adjusting his posture to make himself more comfortable. “Actually, I’m more used to the name Roy.” The name Roy sounded more common, not so high-profile.
Wen En took out a portable, foldable electronic screen and opened a picture. Claire’s face appeared on the screen.
“Who is this?” Romeo was still playing dumb.
“We believe that you and your accomplice, Claire Channing, are connected to the disappearance of a gem called ‘Vulcan’,” Wen En said. “We hope you will tell us everything you know.”
“Vulcan?”
Romeo thought for a moment. Oh, the gem that was stored in the central bank’s vault a few years ago, right? Romeo did have some impression of it, but…
“Sir, with an attitude like yours, how would I dare to speak? What if I say something that offends you and you pour another glass of water on me?”
His wet blond hair hung limply on his forehead. Romeo shook his head and said.
Then don’t talk nonsense. Speak seriously, Wen En rolled his eyes internally and thought.
Wen En’s fingertips lightly tapped the electronic screen, and a page of densely packed text appeared. Wen En said:
“This is your criminal record, Romeo, or Mr. Roy. Just so you know, if you refuse to cooperate, we will confiscate all your assets and hand you over to the interstellar court. You might have to serve fifty years in prison.”
“Fifty years?!”
Romeo was stunned. By the time he got out of prison, he could go straight to a hospice to check in.
—Assuming he still had enough assets to pay for the hospice fees. Otherwise, after he got out, he would most likely die on the streets, his clothes stolen by other homeless people.
“That’s right, fifty years,” Wen En said mockingly. “Mr. Romeo, it’s too late for regrets now. From the beginning, you should not have done anything to challenge the authority of the Federal Interstellar Law.”
Romeo gritted his teeth, his face turning pale and then green. He had thought that this day might come, but it definitely wouldn’t be now. He still wanted to enjoy his life!
Wen En’s fingertips tapped the electronic screen, and a countdown timer appeared.
“I’ll give you thirty seconds to think it over,” Wen En said. By the time he finished, five seconds had already passed.
“Twenty-three, twenty-two, twenty-one…”
The Arabic numerals flashed and changed continuously, like a death countdown. Heavens, what could one possibly think about in thirty seconds? It took at least three minutes to take a piss.
“Thirteen, twelve, eleven…”
No, why is time passing so quickly? How did it suddenly go from double digits to single digits?
“Six, five, four…”
Wen En was like an ice sculpture in the polar regions, exuding a cold aura, devoid of joy or sorrow, completely unmoved.
Romeo shivered. The water that had been poured on him, the ice cubes that had been in it, had mostly melted, so why did he still feel so cold?
He looked up at Wen En. Wen En said without a trace of emotion:
“Three, two, one, time’s up.”
The moment he finished speaking, Wen En stood up, pulled out his gun, and gripped the handle with both hands. The dark muzzle was aimed at Romeo’s head. Since Romeo wouldn’t cooperate, he had to transfer him to the court.
Just as he was about to order Romeo to stand up, he heard Romeo shout:
“I’ll talk, I’ll talk!”
Wen En lowered his gun. Good, Romeo has finally temporarily surrendered.
“Can you put the gun away? I’m scared,” Romeo looked at him pitifully.
His wet hair stuck to his cheeks. Perhaps because he hadn’t rested well, there were some red blood vessels on his cheeks, making him look extremely vulnerable.
Unfortunately, Wen En wasn’t buying it. After all, he had been deceived once before; he had to learn his lesson.
“Cut the crap.”
Wen En sat down, but he didn’t put the gun back in its holster. Instead, he placed it directly on the table. His finger wasn’t on the trigger, just lightly resting on the handle. That was fine, but…
“Can you not point the muzzle at me?” Romeo said.
Wen En just looked at him without responding.
Alright, Wen En hadn’t said it, but Romeo knew what he meant.
“Okay, okay, Wen En. I trust that you’re a professional and there won’t be any accidental discharges.”
Romeo said, “Regarding Vulcan’s whereabouts, I don’t know much either. I’m just a hired hand. The client usually contacts Claire.”
“Give me some useful information,” Wen En interrupted him.
“Of course I know. Ugh, let me think. This was four or five years ago. I don’t remember some of the details that clearly,” Romeo grumbled.
“Oh, I remember now. The client who bought Vulcan was quite special. First, he was an anonymous client. We don’t know his name. But for us, as long as the payment is made, it doesn’t matter what name is used. Also, this person used gold for the transaction. We didn’t think much of it, because in this line of work, bartering is also very common. This way, it won’t be detected by the Interstellar Empire’s Skynet system.”
Romeo said:
“After we got Vulcan, the client gave us an address and told us to just leave the gem there.”
“What was the address?”
“Let me think,” Romeo blinked. “As I just said, this was a long time ago. There are many things I don’t remember clearly.”
“…”
Wen En sneered. “Are you trying to test my patience?”
He picked up the gun from the table and holstered it at his waist. Then, he stood up again.
What’s this? Is he so annoyed that he’s going to shoot me? Romeo swallowed and thought:
Oops, I’ve gone too far again.
In fact, Romeo was half right. He had indeed annoyed Wen En, but Wen En had no intention of shooting him.
Wen En placed his right hand on the table and lightly jumped up, sitting on the table in front of Romeo. His legs dangled over the edge, swinging back and forth, occasionally brushing against Romeo’s thighs.
What’s this? Romeo didn’t want to get the wrong idea, but this posture did bring him much closer to Wen En.
Wen En lowered his head, looking down at Romeo from above, like a solemn statue gazing at a repentant believer.
In an instant, the air froze, and time stopped.
Looking at that face, so strikingly similar yet subtly different, Romeo unconsciously thought of that hot, humid night.
That night, he had presented as an Alpha, transforming from an eighteen-year-old teenager into a true adult. And his guide had been a Beta with no pheromones.
Romeo still remembered the scent of lavender laundry detergent mixed with goat’s milk soap on that person.
—Unlike the primal, voracious scent of Omega pheromones, it was a scent deeply rooted in human society. For Romeo, who was in the midst of presenting, it held a more fatal attraction than Omega pheromones.
A scent that made him sink, yet quickly pulled him back to rationality from his fall.
“…”
Wen En’s face darkened.
What is this Alpha doing?
Romeo was pressing his face against Wen En’s arm, nuzzling back and forth, as if sniffing something.
No, not even Wen En’s dog, Jack, would dare to sniff him like this.
“Smell good?”
Wen En’s smile was not a smile.
“Sir, may I ask what scent of soap you use?” Romeo looked up and asked.
After that sniff, he was even more certain that the Beta in front of him was not the person in his memory. The Beta in front of him only had a faint scent of mint from a roll-on deodorant.
“…”
“Slap—”
A red handprint appeared on Romeo’s face.
Wen En’s face grew even darker.
He looked down at the Alpha’s subordinate doing sit-ups. Fine, verbal provocation is one thing, but why is this subordinate doing sit-ups now?
Instantly, Wen En’s opinion of Alphas worsened.
As expected, Alphas are all a bunch of animals and liars. To be able to indiscriminately do sit-ups in a situation where their own lives are at risk, it really refreshed Wen En’s worldview.
“…That hurts, sir,” Romeo said, licking his teeth.
That slap had made the corner of his mouth bleed.
“It’s supposed to hurt.”
Wen En sneered. He stomped on the place where the sit-ups were happening. Romeo let out a muffled grunt, cold sweat covering his forehead from the pain.
“You’re a prisoner now. How comfortable do you expect to be?”
Feeling the pressure increase, Romeo knew that Wen En was not joking. Heavens, he had really underestimated Wen En’s strength. This stomp had almost sent his subordinate to the afterlife.
“Sir, I was wrong,” Romeo said, his head covered in sweat, begging for mercy. “Please spare my subordinate. He’s about to be broken by you.”
“Slap—”
The moment he finished speaking, another slap came. This one was more than twice as hard as the last, and it made Romeo’s head buzz, his brain cells feeling like they were holding a rally.
“I’m not interested in listening to your rambling, nor do I want to distinguish which of your words are true and which are false, understand?”
Wen En grabbed the Alpha’s collar, held the gun in one hand, and poked the muzzle against the Alpha’s chin, saying fiercely.
“If you give me any more of this nonsense, I’ll send you to the sea to feed the sharks. Don’t think I’m joking. I always do what I say.”
“Hey, hey, calm down, sir.”
Fearing that Wen En really wanted to shoot him this time—at this distance, if the gun went off, Romeo would really be meeting God—Romeo knew Wen En wasn’t joking:
“The anonymous transaction for the gem took place in the lower district of Capital Star, at the Beka Hotel, room 207, 87 Green Avenue. But that place is just an ordinary hotel. I don’t think you’ll be able to find anything there. That’s all I know. Heavens, don’t point the gun at my head.”
“You’d better not have left anything out,” Wen En said fiercely.
“I really haven’t. I swear to God,” Romeo exclaimed. “I’m not stupid enough to joke with my own life.”
Hearing this, Wen En finally let go of Romeo’s collar.
If you had just said so earlier, it would have been over. I really don’t understand what this stupid Alpha was trying to do.
