OBS Chapter 535 Understanding
Chapter 535 Understanding
"Crack!"
Just as Liavid raised her glass, the banquet hall was plunged into darkness. Although some candles on the tables were still burning, the dim, empty light only deepened the darkness in other areas.
Howard had no choice but to do this. He wasn't afraid that Liavid would actually drink the poisoned wine, but he was worried that Christina wouldn't be able to withstand the pressure, because he could see that Christina's expression had already shown signs of losing control when Liavid picked up the wine.
What's really ingenious is that the bar where Christina and her friends were located happened to be without candles. Just as the eyes need to adjust when suddenly going from darkness to light, they also need to transition when going from light to darkness.
But Christina, who was well-prepared, had memorized the locations of everything and everyone, so even if she lost her sight, it wouldn't affect her.
The guests in the banquet hall stirred due to the sudden darkness, which ironically provided Christina with another cover. Christina closed her eyes, tapped the gemstone in her ring three times, and small spikes protruded from the ring's base.
Then, Christina pretended to be startled and let out a small gasp. So, even if her next actions were somewhat illogical, they were done in an irrational state after being startled.
According to Christina's plan, after exclaiming in surprise, she was to first make a falling motion. In the process, she was to knock over the glass of wine on the bar counter to destroy the evidence, and at the same time knock the glass out of Liaved's hand to prevent Liaved from drinking the poisoned wine.
Then, as she falls and gets up, she will grasp Alex's hand and inject the poison. In the chaos and with the tiny spikes on the ring, Alex might not even realize that he has been pricked by something.
However, just as she pretended to fall, something unexpected happened.
Someone caught her before she fell, especially before she knocked over the bar and the drinks in Liavid's hands.
"Watch out, Christina."
Christina heard Liaved's gentle voice and felt her mother's hand around her waist, preventing her from falling.
Christina was immediately terrified. She instinctively struggled to break free from her mother, but Liaved pulled her closer and held her tightly.
“Don’t be afraid,” Liavid said. “I’m here.”
Liavid's embrace was devoid of warmth, as cold as metal. Christina pressed her ear against her mother's chest, but instead of a heartbeat, she heard the sound of gears turning.
But her mother's embrace gave Christina a moment of inexplicable peace. In that instant, it seemed as if all the strength was draining from her body, giving her a desire to stay close forever. But it lasted only a moment, and soon an even greater fear struck.
No matter what, even if the mission cannot be completed, she cannot let her mother be put in danger.
So she began to struggle again, but Liavid grabbed her with her other arm. However, it was more of a restraint than an embrace; Liavid held Christina firmly in place, making her unable to move an inch.
Soon, the banquet hall was restored to power and lighting, and Christina realized that the hand that was embracing her was not her mother's.
Two slender mechanical arms emerged from behind Liavid. These arms had two joints and consisted only of a skeleton and circuitry without a protective shell, clearly not tools that Liavid frequently used.
These two mechanical arms, like ropes, "locked" Christina in Liaved's arms, rendering her completely immobile.
Liavid's left hand remained steadily holding the liqueur Christina had mixed.
Christina: "Mom..."
Liavid released Christina, and the two mechanical arms folded back into the storage compartment on her back. Then, Liavid raised her usual mechanical right hand and gently patted Christina's head.
"It's alright, child."
Then Liavid raised her glass to Alex and drank it down in one gulp.
"jingle--"
Finally, Liavid covered her lips, spat the olive pit into the glass, and put the empty glass back on the bar counter.
“Ms. Liavid.” Howard arrived at that moment, greeted Liavid, bent down, put his hand on Christina’s shoulder, and said, “Christina, Cecil is looking for you. He asked if you remember where he put the Radiance of Macurag.”
"I..." Christina was still in a daze, so Howard gently pinched her shoulder, and Christina immediately came to her senses and replied, "I... I should remember."
Howard then looked at Liavid: "Ms. Liavid?"
Liavid nodded slightly, and Howard released Christina, saying, "Go on, Cecil is waiting for you. He's been showing off his collection to a lady, and he'll be embarrassed if he can't produce it."
Christina seemed to want to say something more, but Howard certainly wouldn't give her the chance, so he gently pushed her on the back: "Come with me, don't keep Mr. Cecil waiting too long."
Of everyone present, Christina was the only one who didn't understand the situation, which was why Howard came. With more and more variables, Christina might not be able to handle it, so he had to get her out of the room as soon as possible to protect her.
As for myself, it would be even better if I could leave with Christina.
"Mr. Howard." But as expected, someone called out to him from behind; the voice was male.
If it's not Liavid, then it can only be Alex.
Howard then nudged Christina again, signaling her to continue looking for Cecil, while he turned back to the middle-aged man, feigning a puzzled expression.
"Excuse me, who are you?"
“My name is Alex Hellvinson, and obviously, I also work for the Hellvinson family.”
Howard: "It's an honor to meet you, but I don't think we've met before."
“Yes, that is a real pity,” Alex said. “But I have heard of you before, but I have never had the chance to visit you. It is my good fortune to meet you here today.”
“Alex is the Minister of Finance and Foreign Trade for the Hellvinson family.” Liavid said at this point, “He is a very important person to the family. The route of the Deep Blue Universe that you were on was ultimately determined by him.”
Howard: "Then I really thank you."
But Alex simply shook his head, ignoring Howard's thanks and sarcasm, and said, "Mr. Howard, I noticed Christina has a ring on her hand. I guess it's a gift from you, isn't it?"
“Yes,” Howard immediately admitted.
Otherwise, what can they do but deny it? In front of Cecil and Christina's mother, they could say, "Your son gave your daughter a ring?" Although the three people present seemed to have a good idea of what the ring was all about, it was fine as long as they didn't say it out loud.
“In my hometown, giving rings is a very common practice.” To stop Alex from going on, Howard chimed in: “Usually, amethyst is given for marriage proposals, symbolizing charm and love between lovers; while rubies are given for children, the vibrant red conveying blessings for their healthy growth. There are even emeralds in the style of enemies, the green always reminiscent of poison, representing relentless hatred.”
“Oh, really?” Alex chuckled. “Then it seems I misunderstood.”
Author's Note: I'm truly sorry, dear readers, but I simply can't fit the 300-word limit for my author's note. To be specific, my new book, "Warhammer 30K: The Fool's Lone Wilderness," has already started releasing chapters. The content in these chapters consists of some plot points that have been separated from the main book and don't fit the narrative rhythm. The story should be more exciting and mature.
This book, "Jianbing Guozi," is my first book. At first, I really intended it as a practice piece for writing light novels, but the more I wrote, the more the story's structure led it down a completely different path. The new book is about my original Primarch story, and it won't be very long (probably). Both books share the same world, and this Primarch will also appear in this book later.
Furthermore, there's a possibility of a standalone short story about Freya in the future, tentatively titled "Crossing the Abyss of Nothingness," which would be Freya's origin story. "Crossing the Abyss of Nothingness" might be a standalone story or added to a jianbing (Chinese crepe) series; the specifics are still undecided, as it's not as well-developed as "The Fool's Lone Wolf's Wasteland." Finally, thank you all for reading. Regarding this book, rest assured, I will continue to update it. However, I feel my thoughts on this book have "dried up," and forcing myself to write will only leave both myself and everyone else dissatisfied. I need to adjust my pace and wait for my thoughts to naturally flourish before I can create a higher-quality plot.