[Calm down.] Jiang Lijin said calmly to Xiao Yi in her mind.
Xiao Yi's voice sounded a bit indignant: [But he is insulting you, Host!]
[If I rush up and argue with him right now, I'll be playing right into his hands.] Jiang Lijin explained patiently, as if she were teaching a child. [Don't you see Felwin standing to the side, enjoying the show? She would love nothing more than for me to make a scene.]
Xiao Yi seemed to pause for a moment. [...I guess you are right.]
Then Xiao Yi fell silent and said no more.
Jiang Lijin pulled her thoughts back and looked at the two people at the doorway.
Arden was still standing there, glaring at her so arrogantly he practically had his nose in the air. Felwin stood behind him, maintaining her gentle and innocent facade, but her eyes clearly gleamed with anticipation.
What was she anticipating? Did she want Jiang Lijin to lose control? To get into a shouting match with Arden right here in Chiron's office?
Although this was the administrative area of the hospital and there weren't many beastmen passing by, a few had already heard Arden's voice and were craning their necks to look over.
Jiang Lijin tilted her head, a slight smile curving her lips. She reached out and pushed the door wide open, leaving it ajar. Then she turned, walked over to the sofa, and plopped down.
The sofa faced the door perfectly. After sitting down, Jiang Lijin adjusted her posture, crossing her legs, folding her arms over her chest, and leaning back comfortably against the cushions.
She just sat there watching the two at the door, her gaze tranquil and a faint smile lingering on her lips.
Arden froze. He had assumed that, given Jiang Lijin's recent temperament, she would storm out to argue with him, snap back with a few sharp words, or infuriate him with some sarcastic remarks. But instead? She just sat down?
What was the meaning of this?
Arden's fury flared up again in an instant.
"You—!" He lifted his foot, ready to charge into the office as if to drag Jiang Lijin off the sofa.
Jiang Lijin did not move. She spoke in a lazy drawl, "Lord Arden, you had better think carefully before you come in."
Arden's footsteps halted.
Jiang Lijin continued at a leisurely pace, "This is Lord Chiron's office. If you trespass without his permission, and Lord Chiron returns later to find something missing from his office—"
She paused, the curve of her smile deepening. "I imagine it would be quite difficult for Lord Arden to prove his innocence, wouldn't it?"
Arden's expression changed.
"After all, there are no security cameras in this office. As for me, I can always say that Lord Chiron asked me to wait here for him. After all, I am his... well... cleaner. But for you, it won't be so easy to explain."
Arden stood at the door with one foot raised, unable to bring it down. His face flushed bright red, his eyes brimming with rage, yet that anger was now tinged with a hint of unease.
Jiang Lijin was right. Chiron was, after all, an SSS-rank beastman. His office was his private territory, and barging in without permission was already considered highly disrespectful. If Jiang Lijin maliciously decided to frame him, he really would have a hard time clearing his name.
Gritting his teeth, Arden pulled his foot back. But he was unwilling to just let the matter drop. He stood at the doorway, his chest heaving heavily.
Seeing this, Felwin quickly took a step forward, tugged gently at Arden's sleeve, and said softly, "Arden, why don't we come back another day? It looks like Lord Chiron isn't here right now. It will be the same if we visit another time."
Her voice was soft and sweet, carrying just the right amount of gentleness.
But hearing this only made Arden's expression uglier. Come back another day? Wouldn't that mean admitting defeat in front of Felwin? Being blocked at the door by a C-rank piece of trash he had dumped, too afraid to go in, and then slinking away with his tail between his legs? If word of this got out, where would his pride be? When had he, Arden, ever swallowed such an insult?
"I'm not leaving!" Arden said through gritted teeth. "We will wait right here for Lord Chiron to return. I want to ask him myself—" He glared at Jiang Lijin, his voice dripping with malice. "Since when does his cleaner have the authority to bar guests from entering? Furthermore, as a cleaner, it's one thing if she doesn't do her work, but to boldly sit on the sofa and slack off? Did Lord Chiron spend his star coins to hire you to lounge around?"
The more he spoke, the more self-righteous he felt: "You should be on your knees in gratitude just to have found a cleaning job, yet you dare to slack off!"
His voice echoed down the corridor, growing louder and more brazen. A few beastmen glanced over, but upon realizing it was Lord Chiron's office, they quickly scurried away.
Jiang Lijin sat on the sofa with her legs crossed, just watching him. Her expression remained completely unchanged, her gaze as calm as if she were watching a clown perform.
She even felt a little urge to laugh.
...
Chiron was walking down the corridor toward his office. Just as he turned the corner, he saw two people standing outside his door.
One was a male, red-haired and tall, glaring fiercely into the open office as if he wanted to eat someone alive. Beside him stood a female in a light pink dress, her head slightly bowed, looking like a delicate little bird relying on the male.
Chiron's footsteps paused slightly.
His gaze swept over the female, and he recalled that she was the one he had seen over the past couple of days—Felwin. But why was she at the hospital, and why was she outside his office?
It was then he realized that Felwin was the S-rank female who frequently came to the hospital to perform purifications and had an excellent reputation on the forums. He remembered having a rather good impression of her previously.
An S-rank female willing to come to the hospital every week to help purify males without mates was indeed rare. When she visited, Chiron would occasionally hear his subordinates mention how many purifications she had done that day and how many people she had helped.
At the time, he had thought she was probably a good female.
But now, what surfaced in Chiron's mind was the expression on Jiang Lijin's face when she had mentioned Felwin's name. The disgust had been impossible to hide, as if she were talking about something filthy. Suddenly, he found himself unable to like the female standing at his door; he even felt an inexplicable sense of alienation toward her.
Chiron felt he was being a bit irrational, but it didn't matter.
His gaze then shifted to the red-haired male. This one also looked somewhat familiar, like he had seen him somewhere before. Chiron searched his memory and quickly found the answer.
In Jiang Lijin's file, there were three photos of her former beastman husbands: Rex, Kieran, and Arden. This red-haired man was Arden, an S-rank male and an A-rank registered hunter in the Free Mercenary Guild.
Why were these two together?
He continued walking forward, his leather shoes making soft sounds against the floor.
Felwin noticed him first. She abruptly lifted her previously bowed head, her almond eyes lighting up instantly as if the person she had been waiting for had finally arrived. She took a half-step forward to greet him: "Lord Chiron."
Chiron glanced at her, gave a brief nod, and said nothing. He didn't even break his stride, walking right past her and straight into his office.
Felwin's smile froze for a moment.
Even Arden was stunned. He had not expected Chiron to be so aloof, walking straight past without saying a single word. But on second thought, he felt it made sense. Chiron was, after all, a 3S-class powerhouse, the most elite existence in the entire galaxy. It was perfectly normal for him not to know Arden. He figured he could just go in and introduce himself once Chiron had settled into his seat.
He stood at the doorway, holding his breath, waiting for a good show. From his angle, he could clearly see Jiang Lijin sitting on the sofa with her legs crossed, looking the very picture of leisure.
A cleaner slacking off on the sofa in the owner's office, caught red-handed by the owner himself—there was no way she was not going to get yelled at, right?
The corners of Arden's mouth were already twitching upward into a smirk. Felwin stood to the side as well, wearing a subtle smile.
They waited for Chiron to start scolding her.
Chiron did speak, but his tone was calm and even carried a hint of politeness.
"You will have to wait a little longer," Chiron said as he walked up to Jiang Lijin. "There is a document I need to process. Just sit here for a bit."
Jiang Lijin pulled her gaze away from the window and looked at him. "Sure, I do not have anything else going on anyway."
Chiron nodded. "I will take care of it, and we can go home soon."
These words reached the ears of the two people at the door, going off like a bomb.
Their expressions instantly froze.
