Hoshiguma's words made Ch'en's hair stand on end; she was in a state of utter disbelief regarding the sentence she had just heard.
"Hahahahahaha... I never thought someone would actually take a liking to a 'Pink Sausage Dragon' like you! Who knew you actually had a bit of femininity in you! Though, it might not be that—if a woman's fallen for you, it might just be because you've got too much 'manly' energy..."
Nearby, Swire wasn't about to let such a golden opportunity pass. She doubled over on her desk, laughing unreservedly. Between bouts of laughter, she slammed her hand on the desk, spitting out words that made Ch'en's blood boil.
"If you don't know how to speak, then keep that 'Char Siu' mouth shut, or I'll really chop you up like real Char Siu. And Hoshiguma, what do you mean she 'fell for me'? I didn't feel a single spark of that!"
Ch'en took this matter quite seriously. Did that Jeanne say something about pursuing her after she left the room? This was the main hall! There were plenty of officers working overtime! If this was true, Ch'en Hui-chieh's lifelong reputation would be ruined in a single day. How was she supposed to show her face at work tomorrow?
"Hahaha... maybe it's just that you're too dense in that department? You've never had any romantic experience, so you likely wouldn't notice... Ugh!"
Before Swire could finish, Ch'en grabbed a baozi from the side and stuffed it directly into her mouth. Looking at the desk covered in documents, Swire found herself in a position where she couldn't swallow and certainly couldn't spit it out.
"Mmph... Gulp! Are you trying to assassinate me? Shoving a whole baozi in my mouth—if I hadn't practiced sword-swallowing, I would've choked to death. You really don't have any romantic experience... Gulp!"
"Save it! I bought these three baozi as a midnight snack. We just finished dinner and you've already downed two of them."
Ch'en fed Swire with an expressionless face, her casualness resembling someone tossing food to a tiger at the zoo.
"She didn't say anything explicitly, but she inquired very specifically about your lifestyle. Even when I hinted that your background wasn't simple, she showed no interest. Instead, she kept focusing on your daily habits, what you usually like, and so on..."
Seeing that the two had finished their antics, Hoshiguma finally spoke. Ch'en fell into deep thought regarding Hoshiguma's description of Jeanne, searching her memory to see if this was someone she had met before.
But no matter how she racked her brain, she couldn't remember meeting such a person. Why would the other party pay such close attention to her personal preferences? Was it to target her?
"I don't get it. Logically, I've never met her; today was definitely the first time. But her attitude is indeed strange, and that is certainly worth paying attention to."
After much thought, Ch'en couldn't find a rational explanation for Jeanne's behavior. However, her sharp intuition told her that Jeanne's interest in her was definitely not what Hoshiguma suggested.
"What's there to be conflicted about? She's much better looking than you are. If she's fallen for you, it's not like you're losing out. If you ask me, you should just... Alright, I was wrong, I'll shut up, okay?"
Swire, wanting to get a few more jabs in, obediently closed her mouth when she saw Ch'en slowly reach for the last baozi on the desk. She indeed enjoyed mocking this "Pink Sausage Dragon" whenever possible, but that didn't mean she was blind to the situation—pushing the "Pink Sausage Dragon" toward violence was a bad move.
"According to you, if she isn't interested in you romantically, why is she so focused on you? There has to be a reason for this kind of thing, right?"
"I'm not sure. But let's not spread a word of this to anyone else. We'll just wait for her next move. No matter what she wants, as long as she's aiming for me, she will definitely appear before me again."
Ch'en decided that, given the current circumstances, waiting for Jeanne to make the first move was the most realistic approach and the most energy-efficient behavior during this busy time.
On the other side, Jeanne had no idea that her subconscious actions had caused such a massive misunderstanding. However, if she knew what the three of them were discussing, her first thought probably wouldn't be to clear the air, but rather: If this were true, how would Talulah and I address each other?
"Hey, Jeanne, let's discuss something!"
At that moment, Lemuen walked up to Jeanne with a mischievous grin, her tone sounding quite mysterious. Jeanne glanced at Lemuen; from that smirk, she could tell this big sister was plotting how to prank her "little" sister and was planning to drag Jeanne into it.
"What are you planning? I'm telling you, I'm a kind and good person. As someone with faith, I absolutely won't do the things you're thinking of!"
Jeanne looked incredibly righteous as she spoke, as if she wasn't the one who had doodled on Talulah before. However, a nearby officer who overheard her looked at Jeanne with admiration, clearly believing her nonsense.
"Think about it—my sister and her friends don't know you, right? So, you go in alone to greet them, and then they..."
Lemuen ignored Jeanne's self-righteousness and whispered directly into her ear. Hearing the plan, Jeanne broke into a delighted smile and high-fived Lemuen in agreement.
"You liar! Give me back all the respect I just had for you! Where did that partner of justice go?!"
The nearby officer, watching Jeanne evolve into a "fun-seeker," felt an endless urge to complain, but suppressed it for the sake of her professional dignity.
"Um... 'little' sister officer, I have a request that you simply must grant us. Once we succeed, we will remember your help..."
At this moment, Jeanne's aura shifted, turning into that of a holy maiden. For a second, the officer felt as if she were seeing the light, and a voice in her heart questioned why she would ever want to refuse...
"Ugh... I promise, I'll promise anything! Just stop talking, okay? Even as a police officer, I have my dignity."
"Pair of 3s!" "Pair of Kings!" "Pass! Wait, I feel like something is wrong with these cards! Exusiai, are you hiding cards?!" "3, 4, 5, 6, 7! How is that possible? I, Exusiai, am famously trustworthy when it comes to cards. How could I possibly cheat?" "Four 5s, Bomb!"
As Texas's four 5s hit the floor, Croissant immediately threw down her own cards, presenting the decisive evidence.
"Five 6s, Bomb! Exusiai, what else do you have to say?! I didn't point it out before because I wanted to see if you'd tell the truth!"
Exusiai stared at the magical five 6s and four 5s in silence. The next moment, she flashed a grin, hoping to laugh it off.
"Don't think you're getting away with this! I want to see just how many cards you have left! Good grief, if I hadn't drawn these cards myself, I wouldn't have known. Just how far did you go with this cheating?!"
Gambling wasn't allowed in the LGD, but Croissant—who hadn't won a single game since they got here—was not about to let Exusiai off easily. She grabbed Exusiai's arm and shook it vigorously; in no time, a pile of stray poker cards fluttered out.
"Do you have anything else to say, Exusiai? If you don't, I'm going to start swinging!"
Croissant remembered the at least twenty forehead-flicks she had received from Exusiai and approached her with a "kind" smile.
"Wait! I really know I was wrong! Don't come over here! Texas, why are you just watching? Save me!"
Unfortunately, Texas didn't help her escape Croissant's clutches; instead, she held Exusiai down to help Croissant get her revenge. She had been flicked quite a few times herself—how could she let her off so easily?
"Waaaaahhh..."
"Alright, quit it, you three! Someone from Penguin Logistics is here to pick you up! Whatever scores you have to settle, do it when you get back."
Just as Exusiai was in despair, an angelic guard appeared before them. But the moment the iron gate was opened, the guard was knocked unconscious by the person behind her.
"Good evening, everyone from Penguin Logistics! I am the one here to take you out. Please follow me. A friend of mine wants to catch up with one of you, so please do not refuse my invitation."
As she spoke, the three of them clearly felt the woman with platinum-blonde hair look toward Exusiai. Those emotionless, cold slit pupils made their skin crawl.