Monster - Chapter 123
Chapter 123: Distance
After staying at the motel for a full week, Lin Sandie was well-rested. Although she and Lou had entered into a relationship that was almost a cathartic release, she could sense that their emotional bond hadn't actually progressed. She even felt that Lou was avoiding her.
Lou would satisfy her desires, but to Lou, it was just a game of playing house.
Lin Sandie thought that perhaps Lou liked her a little, but what she truly wanted, Lou would never give.
And recently, Lou had probably been frightened by the obsessive nature of Lin Sandie's desires in this area. She was no longer willing to have deeper spiritual communication with Lin Sandie, treating her just as she treated every "NPC" in the Tower Worlds—easygoing and carefree. Lou was like someone who had been dead for a long time, having built a thick wall between herself and others. Inside that wall were only herself and the Little Rabbit, whose existence was uncertain. Outside were all the other people, and she didn't care about any of them.
Even after everything Lin Sandie had been through with her, that wall remained solid, impossible to break.
"Want some coffee?" Lin Sandie asked as she came down the stairs. She saw Lou standing in the first-floor lobby, dressed in denim shorts and a loose-fitting white and blue patterned shirt. Lou was looking up at her, a smile in her light-colored eyes.
Her hair was tied in a ponytail, and she wore a black baseball cap. If she had been wearing a pair of flip-flops, she would have looked even more like a tourist heading to the beach.
"Sure." Seeing Lou smile at her, Lin Sandie couldn't help but smile back, even though she wasn't in the mood. Today, as usual, she wore the black suit issued by the Rose Society. The trousers were straight, the clothes neatly ironed, and her pink hair was meticulously pinned up. Her face was expressionless, a complete contrast to the vacation-ready Lou. She looked like a grim-faced office worker, burdened by deep-seated grievances.
It was impossible to imagine she had an indulgent side.
Lately, Lin Sandie was always smiling at her.
Lou remained outwardly composed, but her mind recalled the sensation of those red lips kissing her body, the feeling of that cool skin against hers, the warmth of those slightly dry fingers sliding down her back. Her breathing involuntarily grew heavier. She turned her head to hide her reaction and noticed that the girl at the motel's front desk also seemed captivated by Lin Sandie's indescribable charm, her eyes fixed on her.
Lou blinked twice, then grabbed a paper cup and poured coffee for Lin Sandie. She looked up and smiled at her again. "Milk and sugar?"
"Both." Lin Sandie had already walked over. The front desk girl, who had been staring blankly at her, finally snapped out of it and gave her a shy smile.
Lin Sandie placed the key back on the counter, nodded her thanks, and picked up the coffee with milk and sugar, taking a sip.
"Shall we go?"
"Aren't you having breakfast?" Lou asked, puzzled.
"I ate when I was working out this morning." Lin Sandie was following Miu's earlier advice to exercise daily.
"Then let's go." Lou waved at the girl at the front desk, and the two women and one dog set off, continuing their journey to Star City.
Today, Lou was driving, and Lin Sandie sat in the passenger seat. After playing on her phone for a while, she suddenly asked, "When you were analyzing the factions in Leviathan, you said it was intriguing that Saya and the people from Bite Mark appeared at the same time. Did your Line ever track down the people from Bite Mark afterward?"
"I did," Lou said, glancing at Lin Sandie. The latter's complexion hadn't fully recovered, but with light makeup, she looked quite well. "But they're already dead. They didn't even have time to become zombies. The people from Bite Mark seem a bit stupid."
"I've been trying to interact with the Living Thing recently. The little fish seems to recognize me as its master. I can form a mental link with it and, in turn, control those zombies." Although she had spent most of her time fooling around with Lou these past few days, Lin Sandie hadn't forgotten what she needed to do. Testing the wondrous items she had acquired was an important task.
"The Living Thing itself has no defenses. It's normal for it to submit to anyone who obtains it. But can you still control them from this far away?" Lou was surprised by what Lin Sandie said; clearly, she hadn't been paying much attention to what Lin Sandie was doing lately.
"Most of them are dead. I can perceive parts of their memories. For those whose families were near Thriller Paradise, I had them walk home on their own during deserted nights and collapse at their doorsteps," Lin Sandie said, her tone flat as she held her phone and watched the road ahead. "For those who couldn't return home, I had them dig graves for each other and lie down right where they were."
Even though Lin Sandie's life was far from easy, she always tried her best to be kind whenever she could.
"What about the last person?" Lou asked jokingly, suppressing the flutter in her heart for Lin Sandie.
"They'll catch up soon. You know, I'm not like you all. I need bodyguards."
Hearing this, Lou clearly paused. She thought about how she would eventually have to part ways with Lin Sandie. Before Lin Sandie found a Sentinel of her own, it was necessary for her to have other assistants by her side.
But the mere thought of Lin Sandie one day having her own exclusive Sentinel, of that hidden side of her—the obsessive-compulsive neat freak who also loved to cry—being shown to another person, made Lou feel that dense, prickling sensation in her heart again. She didn't like this feeling.
"Who are they?" Lou asked with a composed expression, while mentally scolding herself for her unhealthy possessiveness over Lin Sandie.
"Mike and Wei. Although they're both dead, their bodies are still usable." This was also an experiment for what was to come. She couldn't be controlled by the Rose Society forever.
Before entering Disorder Land, she had received the enormous fortune Yan Ting left her. Besides using a portion to establish a foundation to help the families of those Yan Ting had killed, she used the rest on things she wanted to do herself.
"Are they following us now?" During the explosion, Lou had confirmed that Mike and Wei were completely dead and had stopped tracking them, so she didn't know their current whereabouts.
"No, they need some repairs," Lin Sandie said, speaking of the deceased Mike and Wei as if they were some kind of commodity.
"That's good."
"Can we make it to Star City before June?"
"We can if we hurry. We could switch to a faster car. Why do you ask?"
"I just got some intel. On June 2nd, there will be an auction in Star City. An auction for all kinds of Remnants, traded with points. All the major factions will be there." The Red Phone could gather information that wasn't publicly available. It was more willing to disclose the intelligence it collected to Lin Sandie than it had been to Lou.
"How many points do you have left?"
"A little over fifty of what you transferred to me." When Lou's leg was blown off, Lin Sandie had used points to buy a lot of expensive emergency medical supplies.
"Then we'll have to earn some points along the way."
"Although Tree can no longer use the Trojan Horse to see us, we did cause a huge scene back in Silver Stone City. There will probably be a lot of people looking for trouble with us. I've already had the phone keep an eye out. Anyone approaching us with a bounty on their head will automatically trigger a message to me."
Lou looked at Lin Sandie, finding it almost impossible to tear her gaze away from her face.
Lin Sandie, who had been looking down at her phone, looked up. Their eyes met. Lou subconsciously wanted to look away, but the moment the thought arose, her instincts told her not to. Two pairs of eyes, identical in color, reflected each other's image.
Lin Sandie gave Lou a smile, still reserved and subtle, but the corners of her mouth curved up a little higher this time.
Lou cleared her throat and, searching for something to say, said, "Thank you for making my leg grow back, Lin Sandie."
After smiling at Lou, Lin Sandie went back to looking at her phone with a deadpan expression. "You've helped me a lot too."
"How does the 'Scorpion' on your back feel?"
"A bit terrible," Lin Sandie said, her tone so calm it was as if she were talking about someone else. "I probably wouldn't feel anything now if I killed someone who had nothing to do with me. Although my reason would advise me against it, I lack a certain empathy for many people and things. I only measure gains and losses through logic."
"Hmm…" Lou pursed her lips. She had long since discovered that after getting the Scorpion, Lin Sandie's cuteness level had plummeted. She was still very charming, but Lou missed the little neat freak she had first met, the one who would get red-eyed while ordering her to put on clothes before sleeping.
"I only have feelings for you now," Lin Sandie added, without even lifting her head, still focused on her phone.
"So I'm that special to you~" A second ago, Lou had been scolding herself for her unhealthy possessiveness over Lin Sandie, but now her spirits couldn't help but soar at those words.
"Back in Taiyin Village, didn't you say I should set a bottom line for myself? At the time, you suggested I shouldn't hurt the cute Lou Lou…"
Even someone as thick-skinned as Lou couldn't stop a blush from creeping up her neck to her ears when she heard that. Especially since Lin Sandie was now looking up at her with a serious expression, which made her subconsciously think of this same face nuzzling against her skin.
"Uh, back then, you know…" At that time, Lin Sandie hadn't felt such a strong sense of déjà vu from Lou.
"I think your suggestion was excellent. I will abide by it." Lin Sandie smiled at Lou again.
But at that moment, Lou fell silent. She looked at Lin Sandie, the blush on her face gradually fading. The slightly swaying car fell quiet once more. Lou knew. She knew everything. How could she not know what Lin Sandie wanted?
And no matter how much she didn't want to admit it, as an experienced Sentinel, she would have died long ago in some Tower World mission if she constantly refused to face her own heart.
So when facing Lin Sandie, she could fool anyone, she could wrap their relationship in a sugar coating called "playing house," but she couldn't fool herself. To her, Lin Sandie was very different from everyone else.
This realization made Lou decide in her heart that once they reached Star City, she would find an excuse to part ways with Lin Sandie.
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