Maple suddenly let out a restrained shriek, as if she’d been violated, but it was so controlled that only the two of them could hear it.
Lin Yue’s mind went completely blank, with only the distinct softness beneath his fingertips remaining.
This feeling was far softer than Isabella’s hand.
Maple looked at Lin Yue with an amused expression, the corners of her lips curling into a triumphant smile as she said, “Mr. Lin Yue, how does it feel?”
Caught off guard, Lin Yue tried to pull his finger away, but instead Maple took advantage and they both tumbled onto the bed.
What’s going on?
A honey trap?
Am I about to be used for some shady scheme?
Panic started to set in for Lin Yue.
This girl, is she going to use this to threaten me into helping her climb up the ranks?
That’d be a disaster.
He had already changed the original story without permission—who knew what might happen next—but now his mind was filled with the image of that uncle barging in and catching him red-handed.
But most importantly, why?
Why is this girl’s personality so drastically different?
Lin Yue had suspected she was pretending, but never imagined she could act so completely like a different person—it was absurd.
“Aiya, what to do? Our hero who turns the tide is about to get caught up in a scandal…”
Maple grabbed Lin Yue’s tie, pressing her knee against his stomach as if warning him that if he tried anything, she’d take action immediately.
“Oh, I almost forgot you’re actually… a scumbag. Just look at that panicked face of yours—so satisfying!”
Everything was spinning wildly out of control.
Back in his own world, Lin Yue wasn’t exactly a model youth, but things like gambling, drugs, and brothels were totally foreign to him.
Now, faced with this situation, his mind turned to mush, completely dumbfounded.
“Did you plan this from the start?”
Lin Yue realized he really didn’t understand how dangerous the world could be.
“I didn’t at first, but… who told you to be so smart, seeing right through my disguise?”
With a sweet yet unrestrained smile, Maple tried to mess up Lin Yue’s clothes, clearly aiming for a certain result.
“So… you expected me to show up at your shop for an interview that day?”
Lin Yue asked in disbelief, never expecting this side character, who barely appeared in the original, to be so cunning. And he hadn’t even noticed.
“Let me think… Oh, originally, I just thought your face was decent enough to lure some clueless little girls into spending money at the shop. Seemed like a good deal.”
So it started from then?
“Then I told Laurel to hurry up and post the job opening. Efficient, right?”
Maple grinned as she asked, but Lin Yue was in no state to respond.
“Who could refuse a job with short hours, high pay, good benefits, and beautiful coworkers? Am I right, Mr. Pervert?”
Her labels were getting more and more outlandish.
How was he supposed to get out of this?
Just as Lin Yue was desperately searching for a way to resist, he suddenly remembered there was something he hadn’t said.
“Your hand—the one with the mole—does it have a nightingale symbol on it?!”
Maple, who had been about to call for help, froze at Lin Yue’s words.
In her moment of hesitation, Lin Yue immediately reversed their positions, pinning her beneath him, clamping his hand over her mouth.
With all the movement, her oversized glasses slid off, revealing a pair of beautiful eyes that had been hidden behind the lenses and her bangs.
“Mm! Mmm mmm!”
Feeling the hot, damp breath against his hand, Lin Yue finally let out a sigh of relief—at least now he could explain himself.
“If you promise not to shout, I’ll let go.”
Tears welled in Maple’s eyes as she nodded, humiliated.
But the moment Lin Yue released her, Maple bit down hard on his palm and shouted, “Help—mmm!”
What a wild little thing!
Lin Yue struggled to control the girl beneath him, realizing that when Maple lost her temper, she was far more terrifying than even someone like Isabella.
After several minutes of chaos, Maple finally wore herself out.
Face flushed, breathing heavily, her entire work uniform was in complete disarray—she really did look as if she’d just been ravished by Lin Yue.
“Can we talk properly now?”
Lin Yue’s hand was throbbing with pain, blood seeping from his palm—worse than being bitten by a mother leopard.
Is this woman a dog or something?
It hurts like hell.
As Lin Yue let go of his hand, he saw a single tear slip down her cheek, as if she had resigned herself to her fate.
I swear I didn’t do anything to you! You just refuse to talk properly!
“What do you want…to go public? Or let everyone know my true identity? Whatever, let them all die for all I care…”
Seeing her looking utterly devastated, Lin Yue was completely at a loss.
Why is this woman’s face and emotions so expressive…
“I’m not here for all that. Just now, downstairs, I only wanted to test you—to see if you were a member of the Nightingale Organization.”
“Huh?”
Hearing Lin Yue speak through gritted teeth as he shook out his hand, Maple seemed to come back to life, sitting up abruptly.
“You… you! Then why did you say you knew my true identity?!”
Lin Yue was just as dumbfounded by the agitated Maple in front of him.
“Maple? Are you okay? Why is there such a commotion up there?”
It was Aira.
In an instant, Maple switched personalities, smiling as she said, “N-no, it’s nothing. Just dropped something…”
“If Lin Yue’s bullying you, just tell me! I’ll have Rui’er bite him to death!”
Who’s bullying whom here…
“No, Lin Yue… he’s a real gentleman!”
Though for some reason, she seemed to put extra emphasis on “gentleman.”
After quickly tidying themselves up, the two sat side by side on Maple’s bed, silent as if at halftime during a world war.
“So, are you or aren’t you… with the Nightingale Organization…”
Lin Yue finally spoke.
“……”
Maple didn’t reply, just raised her left hand, channeling mana to reveal the symbol on her skin.
“Codename: Fox. Nightingale recruiting officer. Mainly responsible for scouting promising newcomers and making contact.”
Maple spoke blandly, as if it was all irrelevant to her.
“I originally wanted to cooperate with you, make it mutually beneficial, and maybe recruit you along the way… sigh…”
Maple suddenly shot Lin Yue a furious glare, annoyed as she said, “If you knew I was Fox, you should have just said so! Why talk about my ‘true identity’—I thought I’d slipped up somewhere…”
“How was I supposed to know your real personality was more important than your organization…”
Lin Yue grumbled helplessly.
“You don’t understand. For people like me, keeping up appearances is the ultimate survival rule. Being seen through is as deadly as having a knife at your throat…”
Suddenly, Maple grabbed Lin Yue’s tie again, meeting his eyes with a grave look as she threatened, “So if you ever expose me, I won’t mind taking you down with me!”
“Got it…”
Ambushed by a honey trap, bombarded with weird threats, and now a death pact—this day had to be the unluckiest of his life.
Just as Lin Yue was about to leave, Maple grabbed his hand from behind, sneering, “What, you think you can touch my chest and just walk away?”
Weren’t you the one who pulled my hand there in the first place…
Lin Yue couldn’t help but recall that softness again.
“What do you want?”
“What do I want… First, get ready to join Nightingale. I’ll arrange your hand mark and duties when the time comes.”
Maple tucked her messy hair behind her ear, looking oddly charming in her disheveled state.
“And if I refuse…”
Lin Yue’s mouth twitched.
“Refuse? Heh…”
Maple suddenly put on her usual sweet smile.
“Help! Lin—mmm!”
“I get it! I’ll join, okay?!”
Somehow, he’d boarded a pirate ship—one with a death sentence looming.
Was he doomed now…?
“Hmph, that’s more like it.”
Maple seemed almost surprised at how easily she’d roped him in, her mouth curling into a catlike smile.
“Anything else?”
Lin Yue was honestly scared of this unpredictable little tyrant, instinctively seeking instructions.
“Nothing much. Just think about supporting me as president. That’s got nothing to do with Nightingale—the chamber of commerce won’t treat you badly.”
With that, she put on her glasses, fixed her hair in the vanity mirror, and reverted to how she looked when he’d first come in.
“I’m counting on you, Lin Yue!”
Looking at the harmless expression on her face, Lin Yue sighed and opened the door.
If only I’d played the game a few more times…
“Aira, thanks for waiting!”
Maple hurried downstairs, grabbing Aira’s hands in both of hers with an expression of heartfelt gratitude.
“Lin Yue agreed to help me—even if it’s not quite how I imagined… thanks for bringing him over.”
Tch, Lin Yue, acting all unwilling.
Are you so annoyed to be with us?
You used to chase after me every day, and now that you’ve got what you wanted, you just let me be. How infuriating!
“If there’s nothing else, I’ll head back first. I have to prepare for the duel…”
Lin Yue left the café limping, as if all the strength had been drained from him.
He’d barely walked out when Aira caught up, grumbling, “Why are you walking so fast? I haven’t even finished my dessert yet…”
“You ran faster than me the other day at this time.”
Lin Yue’s eyes were dull, beginning to wonder if this girl was actually the final boss.
Why was she so temperamental?
Aira ignored him, looping her arm through his and leaning in to sniff.
“Sniff sniff… you smell just like Maple! I couldn’t tell in the café, but now it’s obvious.”
Dog nose?
Lin Yue covered his face in distress, only to realize his palm had stopped bleeding, but still hurt badly.
“What happened to you? Bitten by a dog?”
Aira gasped at the wound on his palm.
“Just think of it that way. I really want to go home…”
If Aira hadn’t dragged him over, none of this madness would’ve happened today. It was all her fault.
“Honestly… you don’t know any healing magic, so you’re just going to let it hurt?”
As she spoke, Aira used healing magic to tend his wound.
“You really haven’t changed since the first time we met. Always clumsy, always getting yourself hurt.”
After tending to his hand, Aira looked so pleased with herself that she hopped around happily, hands behind her back.
“Even during exams—you made such a mess, covered in blood, I thought you wouldn’t make it. If I hadn’t been so smart and called Lia, you’d have been done for!”
Thinking about it, Lin Yue realized she had always played a crucial role at key moments.
Without her, he might have hit ‘Game Over’ long ago.
“Do you think maybe Heaven sent me to be your angel? Hehe… just kidding.”
Looking at the setting sun on the horizon, Lin Yue’s heart warmed as he replied, “Maybe so…”
Aira had expected Lin Yue to deny such a cheesy line, but instead he seemed to accept it, even looking a bit moved.
“Aren’t you going to retort? Now you’re making me embarrassed…”
Seeing her like that, Lin Yue couldn’t help but smile, deciding to forgive her.
Just when he thought the topic was over, Aira suddenly pinched his shoulder with a dangerously sweet smile and said, “So, are you going to explain why you smell so strongly of Maple after going upstairs?”
Guess I still can’t escape…
…
“Huu…”
The pink-haired girl closed the door behind her and leaned against it, letting out a breath.
“What do I do, I’ve been found out…”
She quickly crouched down, burying her face in her knees.
Thinking of how she’d impulsively pressed his hand to her chest, she wanted to crawl into a hole.
“Why did I do that… So embarrassing…”
No one but her father had ever seen her like this.
Aside from her usual self, she also had the authoritative air she used when dealing with subordinates—the attitude she had planned to show Lin Yue.
Starting rumors was just the beginning; she’d wanted to get close to Lin Yue, slowly gather leverage on him, and make him do her bidding.
But while her imagination was beautiful, reality was harsh.
She’d thought her disguise was perfect, but the moment Lin Yue exposed her, she’d panicked, her whole plan falling apart, mind scrambling for a way to shut him up—leading to this mess.
But who’d have guessed, he didn’t even know what kind of person she was—by accident, he’d forced out her true face.
She touched the spot Lin Yue had pressed, feeling shy all over again.
Though she’d forced herself to stay calm and pulled him into her scheme, it still felt like a poor trade for a chest grab.
This was the first time she’d been touched by a man…
No, actually, he’d peeked at her before, but she’d gritted her teeth and let it go to keep her identity hidden.
“Lin Yue Hawk…”
Gritting her teeth, Maple resolved to wring every bit of value out of him and jotted it down in her little notebook.