Clang—!
Following a loud crash, Cicero, the Blood Skull gang leader who had just been full of bluster, threatening Old Jack to hand over the 'Silver Knight,' was now unceremoniously thrown out of the Rusty Nail Pub. He landed in an extremely undignified pose, backside up, sprawled miserably on the street.
"Big Bro!"
His underlings, who had been waiting outside, immediately prepared to help him up. But before they could even lift Cicero, one after another, dark figures came flying out of the pub, pinning Cicero firmly underneath them.
Seeing this, the underlings outside looked at the pub's main entrance with terrified expressions. Not long after, a terrifying, two-meter-plus, suit-clad brute with horns on his head slowly emerged from the pub's shadows.
"And you go~"
With a light whistle from Liu Ma, he threw the last two Blood Skull henchmen onto the street outside like trash, letting them join Cicero in their human pile-up game.
After doing all that, Liu Ma elegantly patted non-existent dust from his suit. Then, he pulled out a handkerchief, wiping his proudly displayed horns while laughing and speaking to the man beside him: "See, old man? I told you these bone-frames aren't even a warm-up for me."
Old Jack, cigar clenched in his teeth, held his overheating double-barreled steam shotgun, which continuously emitted white steam. He exhaled a smoke ring, speaking with the tone of a seasoned veteran: "Kid, a single mouse isn't much to fear, but a whole pack of them..."
"Then we'll wait until they gather into a nest, I suppose."
With that, Liu Ma tucked the handkerchief into his chest pocket, preparing to stretch. But just then, his data terminal suddenly rang.
[Beep beep beep! Your most beloved Big Sis is calling~ Your most beloved Big Sis is calling~]
Hearing the sickly sweet ringtone exclusively for his Big Sis, Liu Ma, the 2.2-meter suit-clad brute, instantly turned to stone on the spot. He tremblingly pulled out his data terminal, nervously watching the screen, where the 'Big Sis' video call reminder flashed continuously.
"O-Old man! I'll leave this to you! I need to take a video call!"
With that, Liu Ma nervously scurried to a corner of the pub. "Yes! Yes! You're right! Uh, Big Sis, please don't start yelling at me yet, let me explain..."
Watching Liu Ma constantly nodding and bowing in the corner, Old Jack subtly perked up his ears with great interest, his gossip-loving instincts fully engaged. Although he couldn't clearly hear the specific content of Liu Ma's conversation with the mysterious Big Sis, phrases like 'whitewashing scheme,' 'difficulty in gang transformation,' 'street rules,' and 'group business expansion' drifted over intermittently.
Hearing these, Old Jack couldn't help but exhale another smoke ring, his gaze becoming subtle. After all, he had originally thought Liu Ma was just an enthusiastic young punk who hadn't experienced the harsh realities of society. But now, it seemed Liu Ma's background might be far more complex than he imagined. After all, an ordinary gang couldn't afford a Star Envoy genius like him, who clearly had a bright future. It had to be an extremely formidable large gang.
And at this moment, the dimensional viewers on Station 13 also showed slightly changed expressions, just like Old Jack. After all, they had all believed Liu Ma's nonsense before, thinking this guy was truly working for some legitimate big company!
'Shocking! A certain Minotaur man actually did this in broad daylight!'
'Bro, what happened to working for a big company? You're clearly involved with a yakuza organization!'
'So even gangs are starting to care about image management these days?!'
'Who is that 'Big Sis'?'
Under the curious gazes of the dimensional viewers, Liu Ma was already covered in sweat.
"Yes! Mission guaranteed completion!"
"Big Sis, don't worry, I definitely won't mess things up again this time, I promise you..."
Hearing Liu Ma say all that, the Big Sis on the other end of the data terminal finally seemed willing to let him off the hook. The video call then ended.
After doing all that, Liu Ma collapsed onto the sofa, as if his soul had been drained. And it was worth noting that even when he was brutally beaten by Andromeda of the Hidden Star Society, he hadn't shown such a tired expression. It was clear how much he feared this 'Big Sis.'
However, Old Jack could sense that Liu Ma's 'fear' of that mysterious Big Sis wasn't due to overwhelming terror, but rather a desire not to disappoint her expectations. Therefore, after dealing with the Blood Skull henchmen outside, Old Jack chuckled as he came over to Liu Ma, patting his shoulder and saying, "Let's go, let's go together to see what's up with that young bald eagle."
"You and that guy Kong have really given me quite a bit of trouble this time."
Hearing that, Liu Ma immediately stood up and walked with Old Jack towards the second floor of the pub. And the anime's scene then switched after the two walked upstairs.
[New Federation, Seven Floating Cities · Stargazer Corridor]
[Star Envoy Association Headquarters, Stargazer · First Intelligent Mechanoid Research Institute]
The lazy afternoon sun streamed through the research institute's specialized glass, illuminating a woman with cascading silver hair in the garden. The woman sat alone at a white round table, her emerald eyes reflecting the gently rippling red tea in her teacup.
What was strange was that the woman was clearly by herself. Yet, on her table, there were two servings of afternoon tea desserts, as if she were waiting for someone. But only the researchers familiar with her knew the truth. She wasn't waiting for anyone; it was merely a peculiar habit that others couldn't comprehend. Because it wasn't just afternoon tea; anything related to desserts and other interesting small objects, she would specifically leave out two servings. Even though the researchers had never seen her give the extra serving to anyone, she consistently maintained this odd habit.
Just like the two pink and blue dolphin plushies she always kept in their designated spots in her lab... It was as if those two dolphin plushies held some extraordinary significance for her.
Caroline looked down at her reflection in the coffee on the table, and in a voice only she could hear, she whispered, "As expected, my memory is flawed."
With that, Caroline picked up a strawberry cake from the table and elegantly began to eat. But strangely, although Caroline was eating the strawberry cake, there was no particular expression on her face. It was as if eating this item wasn't her hobby, but merely a routine task.
Even Caroline herself didn't know why she had this strange habit. Because she, personally... didn't actually like sweets.
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