Chapter 409: Unmasking Secrets at the Banquet

His heart skipped a beat.

Watching Blood Nightingale suddenly grow serious with eyes devoid of any other emotion, Yenir couldn’t help but pause. He hadn’t expected her to blurt out that line out of the blue.

There was no hint of coquettish expression or deliberately seductive glances.

For some reason, Blood Nightingale now looked more like her true self.

Amid the noisy applause and the clatter of microphones, everything seemed to vanish in an instant.

Under the dim lighting, Yenir saw through all the pretenses—Blood Nightingale was simply a very pretty girl. Even the once spellbinding red dress now looked awkwardly oversized on her, as if a child were trying on an adult’s garment.

That damn woman—was she really all that?

Suppressing the strange feeling in his heart, Yenir furrowed his brows and decided not to overthink it, assuming that Blood Nightingale was just playing some kind of game with him.

“Enough with the games. Do you know the secret about Yinglong?!”

“Me? You’d be better off offing my head.”

As soon as the words left his mouth, Yenir glared intently at the girl. Right now, only Yinglong’s information mattered; he didn’t have time for anything else.

No reply came.

The two seemed detached from the crowd. Blood Nightingale kept staring at him until, seconds later, a flicker of unusual emotion crossed her eyes. Then she reverted to the familiar look Yenir was used to:

“I’m just joking. There’s no way I’d ever want you.”

“I was merely curious—are you a eunuch? I just can’t believe you didn’t even flinch.”

“Or do you actually prefer men?”

Dodging the question.

Seeing that Blood Nightingale seemed poised to use this as leverage against him, Yenir’s expression suddenly shifted to one of impatience. He knew she had realized he needed her cooperation.

This woman was testing whether her own survival or Yenir’s scheme was more important.

“Why don’t you try and find out?”

“Don’t think you can pin me down with just that. Even if you keep silent, I can piece together part of the truth. Even if the intel isn’t available, it won’t derail my plan.”

Glancing coldly at the girl, Yenir sparked no further words.

In his mind, he never believed Yinglong had any real weaknesses. He had never planned on clashing head-on.

Thus, the secret in Blood Nightingale’s hands might maximize his gains, but it wasn’t crucial enough to force his hand.

Trying to trap him? No chance! All he needed was for Blood Nightingale to follow his lead and reveal Yinglong’s movements!

“Oh? Is that so?”

Completely ignoring Yenir’s remark, Blood Nightingale now acted as if she were sure she could finish him off. While she stared fixedly at Yinglong as if listening to his speech along with everyone else, she subtly shifted her leg to pull Yenir’s chair closer to her.

“I couldn’t stretch like that earlier.”

After speaking, Blood Nightingale blinked innocently as she slid her foot under Yenir’s outer robe:

“Is that so?”

“How does it feel? Can you sense anything?”

Yenir: ……..

………….

“Ladies and gentlemen, I believe you all feel the threat emanating from the Military!”

“How laughable! They used to watch us struggle at Far Frontier with cold indifference, and not a single soldier was sent to our aid!”

“But now look! We’ve built our own Safe Zone. How can the Military demand we hand over our power with just one sentence?”

“Every survivor at Far Frontier clawed their way to safety with their own blood and sweat!”

…

“Again, I propose that all commanders and senior personnel unite with one another to—”

…

“Enough! Commander Yinglong is absolutely right! The border has always been the Military’s responsibility. They stayed there to maintain their own dignity! What business is it of ours? Just because people from other battle zones enter Far Frontier, does that mean we’re destined for war!?”

“I beg to differ! Isn’t the world in ruins? There’s no nation left—only humans!”

…

On stage, Yinglong delivered a rousing speech, his gaze sweeping across the audience like that of a fierce eagle.

He knew that not everyone below truly agreed with him; many, in fact, were his own operatives strategically planted in the crowd.

But that didn’t matter; he only needed a pretext to unite them all.

Does the Military want to dictate terms here? What a joke! This was his domain! Even if the Military reached their breaking point and started a war, so what? Even if more lives were lost, Far Frontier would still be his!

Smiling as most of the Safe Zone’s top brass, either pressured or eager to join forces, sided with him, Yinglong couldn’t help but flash a sly smile.

But inadvertently, his gaze fell on Blood Nightingale not far off.

Noticing her oddly casual posture and the way she leaned over as if whispering to her little brother, he raised a brow in mild surprise.

So close? Something just doesn’t add up.

And why is that kid hanging his head, looking so nervous?

After a few more glances and no sign of anything amiss, Yinglong shook his head and turned his attention away. He assumed that Miss Blood Nightingale was simply trying to calm her younger companion.

After all, he was just a kid from the Canglang Safe Zone—nothing worth worrying about.

Yet, Blood Nightingale did have a caring side; she knew just how to look after others’ feelings.

……………

Down below, Yenir, who had been silently staring with his head bowed, suddenly felt his face twitch involuntarily.

He couldn’t take it anymore.

At that moment, he felt utterly toyed with, as if that damn woman was deliberately provoking him.

Frankly, whether in his past life or this one, he never imagined he’d end up like a lifeless puppet, being relentlessly teased.

Now, he regretted ever partnering with Blood Nightingale—it was nothing short of torture…

Every nerve in his body stood on high alert, fearing that Yinglong might notice something was off.

His body tensed continuously, worried that Blood Nightingale’s actions would go too far.

After the banquet, he felt more exhausted than if he’d fought a Third-Stage Mutant.

Moreover, his mind kept churning over Yinglong’s ulterior motives, comparing his speech today with memories from his past life.

“If it feels good, why hold back? Scream out…”

Noticing Yenir’s unresponsive expression, Blood Nightingale shifted her feet repeatedly, letting out a cold laugh as she paid no heed to his growing silence.

Indeed, the very words she just uttered were exactly what Yenir had told her the previous night.

That bastard had once mocked her without a second thought, spouting whatever insults he could to break down her defenses.

Now that the tables had turned, she was determined to let Yenir taste his own medicine.

For some reason, watching Yenir restrain a twitching smile as he fought to control his expression felt incredibly satisfying to her. She knew that though Yenir appeared unfazed, his reactions were as genuine as they came.

“Beg me…”

“Having such a hard time holding back? Beg me and I might just give in…”

She repeated Yenir’s words verbatim, grinning like a sly fox stealing a forbidden treat. At that moment, Blood Nightingale finally sensed the pleasure Yenir had felt the previous night.

Just as she was about to say something more, Yenir abruptly lifted his head as if spotting a savior. His eyes fixed on Yinglong descending the stage.

“Yinglong’s back!”

Frozen in shock at Yinglong’s arrival, the girl dared not continue and hastily retracted her leg, scrambling to pull her shoe back on.

Before Yenir could exhale in relief and plan his escape, Blood Nightingale unexpectedly rose and strode toward the exit of the Banquet Hall.

The very next second, a message popped up in his private inbox.

“My legs are shot. Come with me to the Restroom.”

Stunned, Yenir stared at Blood Nightingale’s back. Taking a deep breath, he slowly closed his eyes.

He could already imagine what Blood Nightingale was up to, all the way down to his toes.

This woman was clearly picking a fight with him.

“Miss Blood Nightingale, don’t you think our next move is far more important? Why degrade yourself like this? You wouldn’t really think I’d get so riled up with Yinglong, would you?”

With a determined tone, Yenir replied, his mind solely fixated on escaping as he sighed inwardly. He couldn’t shake the feeling that something about Blood Nightingale was off.

Logically speaking, she had no reason to act this way.

“If you don’t follow me within ten seconds, I’ll tell Yinglong how much you adore your older sister.”

“Besides, aren’t you curious about Yinglong’s secret?”

Message received.

In silence, Yenir watched her back as she almost left the venue. Finally, he let out a long sigh and slowly stood up.

He knew that even if he had to venture into a den of lions, he’d have to take the risk.