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Winnie gave a terse reply, speaking less than three sentences throughout the conversation.
Xavier and Josiah only heard her uttering “yes” and “okay,” in a foreign language.
Although they did not know the content of the discussion during that phone call, both of them noticed
her facial expression had turned more solemn than before.
Xavier was worried about her. “What’s the matter? Did something happen?”
Winnie gazed at him and slightly furrowed her brows.
Although they promised to trust and not lie to one another, she had yet to be able to confide in him
entirely.
She scratched her forehead and said, “It’s nothing. I’m just feeling a little anxious because we are
about to cross the border.”
“Don’t worry.” Xavier lifted his hand to rearrange Winnie’s stray hair strands and smiled faintly at her.
“Even if the sky collapses, the taller people will be there to hold it up, and you will always have my
support no matter what.”
“Don’t forget about me!” Josiah made a gesture of comparing their heights and chirped at Winnie,
“See? I’m taller than you too.”
She glanced at them and nodded. “Let’s go.”
Soon, they entered a small village in northern Manchernius.
Winnie followed the coordinates provided to her by Lucas and arrived at a local inn.
As that village was near the border of Chanaea, most locals there were fluent in Chanaea. Hence,
communication was not an issue there.
Winnie talked to the inn’s owner and confirmed the booking of the room Lucas had placed in advance.
Josiah saw that only one room was reserved, so he secured the room next to Winnie’s.
Subsequently, the party moved to the second floor.
They chatted while walking upstairs.
Xavier asked Winnie in an undertone, “Where is the person your friend helped you to find? When will
we meet up with them?”
She looked down at her wristwatch. “Soon. They should be here looking for me in approximately half
an hour.”
“Half an hour, you say? That’s perfect. I shall go in and take a shower first.” Josiah tugged at the front
of his shirt and could not help but grumble, “This place is too hot. I really cannot stand the temperature
here. You two can take a stroll here. I want to go back to the room first.”
With that, he jogged ahead.
A few moments later, Winnie and Xavier heard the sound of Josiah unlocking the door.
However, in lesser than three seconds after he pushed the door open and entered the room, Josiah
was seen to be gradually stepping back out with his hands raised.
Winnie and Xavier exchanged glances and knitted their brows instantaneously.
The few mercenaries who were dressed like locals beside them swiftly placed their hands around the
back of their waists. All of them seemed ready to spring into action at any moment.
Winnie also immediately retrieved a small silver handgun from her boot shaft and hid it in her pocket.
Sensing her intention to move forward, Xavier grabbed her arm at once and pulled her to one side.
“You should stay back for now. Let them check out what’s going on first.”
Winnie frowned. “But Josiah is there. I’m a woman, so I’ll appear more approachable. I will check out
the circumstances first, and if things turn south, we’ll let the mercenaries handle the situation. We
should minimize being caught up in a conflict with others at a place like this.”
She spoke adamantly, and with that, she pushed Xavier’s hand aside and strode forward.
Upon arriving at the doorway, she saw someone pointing a gun at Josiah’s head while the latter was so
nervous he did not dare to make a sound.
However, after seeing the gunman’s face, she swiftly let out a sigh of relief.
Winnie had seen a picture of that man before. He was the team leader of the mercenaries Lucas had
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇthelped her find.
“Hello, I suppose you are Mason, and I believe you should be familiar with my face.”
“Yes. I’ve seen a photo of you. You’re my boss, Ms. Garland.” said the man, Mason, while sizing up
Winnie.
“That’s right.” Winnie understood how a smile could go a long way, so she pointed at Josiah while
flashing a grin. “This is a friend of mine who is accompanying me this time. He booked the room next to
mine, so please put away your gun.”
That man named Mason Manfield immediately lowered his weapon. Seemingly to explain, he said, “I
received news that you’ll be coming alone, and when I arrive, this room next to yours was still
unoccupied.”
“That’s right. That was the previous arrangement, but I changed my mind and brought along a few
more companions prior to my departure. Where is the rest of your team? Should I book another room
for you all?”
Mason had a decisive manner of speech. “That’s not needed. I’ve already received the deposit. My
team’s current mission is to safeguard and assist you. You don’t have to bother yourself with anything
else except to transfer the remaining payment to us after the job is done,” he said while keeping his
gun.
At the same time, he also summoned his other teammate inside the room over.
“You can memorize our faces for the time being. My other teammates are staying upstairs. We’ll get
acquainted when we depart later.”
Winnie smiled politely. “You’re a straightforward person, Mr. Mason. Tentatively, we should meet up half
an hour later, but since we’re already here, let’s have a discussion.”
Mason was an efficient and taciturn man. He nodded and uttered curtly, “Follow me, Ms. Garland.”
“Okay,” Winnie answered before turning around to call Xavier over.
Right after she entered the room, she saw removed a black handbag from underneath the bed.
He placed the bag on the table and said to Winnie, “Mr. Marsh told me to give this to you. Please take a
look.”
“Okay,” she responded and proceeded to pull open the zip.
Inside the bag were two custom-made phones, a few guns, and a sufficient amount of magazines. All
the items available were as Lucas had described.
She nodded and said, “Cool, everything is here. I’ll discuss the plan with you later.”
“All right. I’ve saved my contact details in the two phones, and my men will be protecting you in secret.”
He left with his teammate after saying that.
Josiah hastily shut the door after they left.
Winnie took out the phones from inside the bag. “These phones come with two systems, one is basic
and the other with encrypted mode. The encrypted mode allows us to use the device without being
easily detected by ordinary people. However, my friend only prepared two devices. One of the phones
is for standby purposes, but there are three of us.”
“You guys can use the phone. I don’t need it. I’ll use my own phone.” Josiah fathomed Winnie’s
concern, so he quickly expressed his stance.
“Okay.” After all, that wasn’t the time for them to be indecisive, so Winnie handed the other device to
Xavier at once and taught him the method and password to access the encrypted interface of the
phone.
She began distributing the guns after both of them inserted their SIM cards into the phones.
Xavier and Josiah fell silent when they saw how skilled Winnie was in assembling, aiming, and pulling
the trigger of the guns.
Noticing their unusual behavior, she could not help but turn her head around to glance at them.
“Why are you two looking at me like that? Is it that weird for me to be good with guns? Don’t forget that
I stayed in Yartran for a long time, and it is legal for people there to possess firearms.”
Josiah adjusted his glasses. “Anyway, it’s because your movements are too smooth.”
She smiled. “I shall take that as a compliment, then. By the way, are you two good at shooting?”
“I guess I’m all right. I’ve never lost in playing shooting games,” Josiah replied.
Winnie rolled her eyes at him. “Do you have the time to play games when you’re so busy all the time?”
Josiah fiddled with the gun in his hand. “There is always time as long as you are determined to do
something.”
Xavier scoffed. “Don’t take his words seriously. If not because he had to take over the family’s hospital,
perhaps he would’ve become an Olympics gold medalist in shooting.”
“Amazing!” She turned around and gave Josiah a thumbs-up. Then, she asked Xavier, “What about
you? How’s your shooting skill?”
Josiah uttered non-exaggeratedly, “Him! Let’s put it this way. I learned shooting from him.”
“Really?” A surprised look flashed across Winnie’s eyes when she reshifted her gaze onto Xavier.
Xavier gave a more humble response than Josiah. “But I’ve only practiced in the shooting range. I don’t
have any real-life gunfight experience.”
“Real-life scenarios are indeed different from practice. In real life, there will be a lot of uncertainties, so
a person’s state of mind will be highly tested during these circumstances. Nevertheless, one will get
used to it after experiencing it a few times,” Winnie elaborated nonchalantly while wearing a smile.
Xavier’s gaze darkened as he took in her casual demeanor.
At that instant, he had countless things on his mind that he wanted to say to her, but he didn’t know
where to start.
Staring at Winnie, Xavier suddenly grasped her hand and dragged her out of the room.
“What are you doing?” She knitted her brows but didn’t resist as she feared she might injure the wound
on his arm.
Hastily, Winnie merely kept her gun and followed him back to her room next door.
As soon as they entered the room, he pushed her onto the bed before she could place the card into the
cardholder and switch on the lights.
“What are you doing—” Before she could finish the rest of her sentence, Winnie felt Xavier’s lips
pressed against hers.
Then, the sensation of a domineering kiss overwhelmed her instantly.
He caressed her body with his large hands, prompting them to succumb to fiery desires.
Winnie was someone who had a clear understanding of her yearnings, and she would never conceal
her wants at any time.
Disregarding the injury on his arm, she ripped apart his shirt without hesitation.
The button of his shirt fell to the timber floor with a dull thud. At that moment, Winnie even temporarily
lost her rationale.
In the end, if it wasn’t because of the smell of blood from Xavier’s wound wafting into her nose, she
might have chosen to see their intimate activity to the end.
Panting heavily, she rolled over on the bed and said, “Let’s stop. You’re crazy. You know you’re injured,
yet you seduced me.”
“I’m sorry, Winnie.” Xavier turned on the bed and pulled her into his embrace. He buried his face in the
curve of her neck and took deep breaths. His voice sounded deep and hoarse as he added, “Actually, I
can still continue.”
“Forget it.” She closed her eyes and recollected herself. “I don’t want this to turn into a bloodbath.”
Xavier chuckled. “Bloodbath? What ridiculous description is this?”
“This is all your fault for suddenly getting turned on!”
“Yes. This is all my fault.” He held her tighter. “I was out of my mind at that moment. Do you know
why?”
“Why?” Winnie slowly rolled over and lay in his arms.
“When I listened to you described your real-life battle experiences so casually and how good you were
at handling guns, I suddenly realized how little I know about you. I don’t know anything about the things
you’ve been through in the past. You didn’t even know of my existence when you went through tough
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏmtimes and were terrified. If I can turn back time, I’ll go back in time to when you were little and stay by
your side as you grow up.”
Winnie fell silent and was stunned. She did not expect he would tell her such a romantic speech at that
time.
Sensing the guilt and affection brimming in his eyes, she was genuinely touched by his sincerity.
“You’re so silly.” She poked his aquiline nose while beaming at him. “Do you like me that much?”
Xavier gulped and uttered hoarsely, “Yes.”
Then, he pressed her against his chest, took a deep breath, and spoke with all seriousness.
“After the initial phase of our relationship, where everything was new and exciting, you’ve been
integrated into my life and are now an inextricable part of my body and soul. I love you more than
anything else in this world.”
She was running out of breath as he hugged her tightly, but she did not struggle or put up any form of
resistance.
Instead, Winnie merely listened to her heart.
“I love you too, Xavier.”
He kissed the top of her head. “Okay. I know your feeling towards me is not as intense as mine, but
that’s alright as long as you love me.”
“Who said that? Who are you to say my feelings are not as strong as yours?”
He chuckled. “Dummy. I can give up my life for you at any time without hesitation. This has already
become part of my instinct, driving me to take action before my mind can give me a signal on what to
do. Are you able to do the same?”
She opened her mouth to retort, but no words came to her for a few seconds. “I’ll never let you face
any danger on your own, but I’ve yet to accomplish the reflective action you mentioned. Give me some
time, okay?”
Xavier grinned without saying a word. He simply leaned forward and repeatedly kissed the girl in his
arms, showering her with so much love she could drown in his affection.
At three o’clock in the afternoon, Winnie woke Xavier up from his deep slumber.
Five minutes later, Mason, the team leader of Winnie’s mercenaries, the leader of Xavier’s hired
soldiers, and Josiah were all gathered inside her room.
She placed a map on the table and pointed at a location in the middle of the map.
“I received a piece of reliable information earlier saying that my granny and Jacinta are still alive.
However, they and Zyon were brought to a place called Lightspring. They are most likely heading to the
Horton residence. The person in charge of the Horton residence is Harold Horton. He’s one of the three
most powerful figures in this area. It will not be easy for us to rescue them from the Horton residence
unscathed. Captain Manfield, you and your men are more familiar with Lightspring, so do you have any
constructive suggestions?”
Mason thought for a few moments before saying, “Harold is not an influential veteran figure before.
Initially, the medication production and logistics were handled by the other two tycoons here, but since
Harold’s arrival, the situation had evolved into a tripartite situation. A newcomer like him can expand his
business to a large scale mainly because he controls vast amounts of firearms, which means he has
absolute power. Therefore, it is a little far-fetched for us to dream of rescuing those people directly from
his territory. I think what we should do now is to confirm whether the people we are looking for are truly
at the Horton residence or not. I don’t want all of us to lose our lives simply because we rely on a piece
of fake information. Only after confirming the location of our target can we formulate a strategy to
rescue them.”
Winnie nodded. “You’re more familiar with this area, so I’ll follow your lead. Let’s depart as soon as
possible. We’ll gather an hour later. Is that all right?”
“No problem. We can depart at any time. I’ll go and inform my teammates.”
She bobbed her head in response and opened the door to see Mason out.
After Mason left, Winnie immediately asked Xavier, “Where is Yulissa now? I think we should take
action separately.”
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