Ch'en sat in the surveillance room with an expressionless face, watching the monitors as her subordinate vanished from the screen in an instant.
"I never noticed her running speed was that fast before. It seems making her a prison guard might have been a waste of talent."
Watching the now-empty corridor on the screen, Ch'en couldn't help but sigh. She hadn't expected to inadvertently discover a hidden gem among her staff.
"Running like that? Isn't it just because she was terrified by you, the 'Pink Sausage Dragon'? Otherwise, why would she flee like a mouse seeing a cat?"
Sitting beside her, how could Swire possibly let such a perfect opportunity pass? Before Ch'en's words even hit the floor, Swire instinctively countered her old rival.
At this point, the two of them didn't even need to think to trade barbs. Even if you got them both drunk to the point of unconsciousness, they could probably keep arguing until the next day on sheer willpower alone.
"Still better than being unable to catch a mouse and only serving as a mascot for the LGD! All you do day in and day out is act cute; you can't find anything useful."
Ch'en looked at Swire with a look of pure disdain, then casually picked up her brewed coffee and took a leisurely sip. However, those words were like a spark landing directly in Swire's ear. Swire's tail stood straight up in anger as she roared at Ch'en.
"Who are you calling a mascot? I'm just not suited for high-intensity combat! What's wrong with specializing in battlefield control? Do I have to charge in and stand face-to-face with the enemy like you do?"
Swire had enough self-awareness to know she couldn't beat Ch'en in a fight; that was a fact that hadn't changed in years. But if this "Sausage" was going to insist on harping on it, Swire would make sure Ch'en knew that even if this Feline didn't always show her claws, she wasn't a "sick cat" to be looked down upon!
"Alright, alright. Now isn't the time for a feud, is it? Work comes first, Officers. It would be a real problem if personal emotions started affecting our duties, wouldn't it?"
Hoshiguma stepped in to mitigate the habitual bickering. Fortunately, the friction between these two never actually compromised their performance; they treated this constant arguing more like a shared hobby.
"But... looking at it this way, those two aren't as fragile as they claimed to be! They are definitely battle-hardened characters; otherwise, they couldn't have pulled off that performance so easily."
Hoshiguma seriously reminded them of the actual topic of discussion, preventing them from bickering for half an hour only to realize they'd have to stay late for overtime again.
Regarding that prison guard—how could she have simply agreed to their request? When they made the proposal, the surveillance room staff naturally reported it to the officers and obtained their permission to let the act play out.
"Isn't it obvious? Someone who can run from Laterano to Ursus for a trip and then come to Lungmen without a single bodyguard—how could they possibly lack combat capability?"
Swire had long known these two weren't "mascot" types. It was a tactical commander's intuition!
"Taking down those guys from Penguin Logistics so easily isn't simple, even if they were unarmed! Not to mention how much ease she showed while doing it."
Ch'en gave high praise to the combat skills of the two women, especially Jeanne. Even for Ch'en, subduing those three without hurting them wouldn't have been that easy. After all, they were delivery workers for Penguin Logistics. That "Penguin" who constantly jumped between the light and dark sides of the law didn't keep simple thugs on his payroll.
Even though they claimed to be "ordinary couriers," in Ch'en's eyes, they were enforcers! And the type of enforcers that always stirred up massive trouble!
"I'll ask Chief Wei about Exusiai's situation. Even though the likelihood of them being suspects is low, it's better to understand who these people are now that they've arrived in Lungmen."
Before Ch'en could even open her mouth, Swire took the initiative to handle this chore. Although it would normally be more appropriate for Ch'en to go to Wei Yenwu, given their complicated family environment... it was better to let Swire handle it.
"I'll leave it to you, then. However, I think the chances of getting useful intel from him are slim. Setting aside whether he's willing to help, that Penguin isn't the type to sell out his subordinates."
At the mention of Chief Wei, Ch'en, who was drinking coffee, suddenly paused. After a long silence, she finally squeezed out that sentence. Then, she rewound the video to the moment Jeanne sparred with the three and watched it repeatedly. She scrutinized the woman named Jeanne with intense focus.
"What's wrong with you? Don't tell me you've actually taken a liking to her? You're staring at the video like your eyes are about to fall in."
Swire felt strange; it was the first time she had seen Ch'en so preoccupied with a stranger. Had she discovered something? Or was she actually coveting this good-looking woman?
"If that mouth of yours doesn't know how to speak, then keep it shut! Stop spouting brainless nonsense whenever you feel like it!"
Ch'en glared at Swire, her words practically forced through her gritted teeth. She never imagined her lifelong reputation would be ruined by a bit of gossip. Then, she turned back to continue watching Jeanne's extremely fluid fighting style, studying her every move as if trying to see something hidden within her actions.
"Then what is it? You haven't blinked once staring at her. Have you been possessed or something? Do I need to get some black dog blood to break the curse for you?"
Sometimes, it was truly hard to tell if these two were on good or bad terms. Even when Swire was clearly worried, she couldn't help but slip in a few insults.
"I'm a Dragon. Have you ever heard of a Dragon getting possessed and needing black dog blood to fix it? Ridiculous. It's just... some of her tiny movements and the tone of her voice remind me of an acquaintance. But I just can't remember who it is."
Ch'en tapped her head in frustration, annoyed at her own memory. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't pin down who that familiar person was.
Her words prompted Swire to start observing Jeanne's movements seriously as well. But after watching the footage several times, she couldn't find a single trace of "familiarity."
"Are you sure you aren't remembering wrong? I know almost everyone you know, and I don't see any resemblance to anyone."
Swire frowned slightly. She couldn't see even a hint of what Ch'en was talking about.
This wasn't surprising. Although Jeanne and Talulah had lived together for a long time—meaning Jeanne's manner of speaking and certain behaviors would naturally mirror Talulah's—Talulah had been separated from them for a very long time. Her own mannerisms had undergone massive changes. An average person would never make the connection.
The reason Ch'en felt that familiarity was because she had spent her childhood day and night by Talulah's side, and her constant longing for her sister made her sensitive to these echoes. But these clues were currently too faint to be useful.
"Maybe. Perhaps it's just my imagination. After all, nobody can really explain these things."
Looking at Jeanne on the monitor, Ch'en let out a sigh as if giving up. She then left the room, seemingly deciding not to think about it anymore.