Mint Green Leaves

Chi Chuchun ran quickly, a voice in her heart guiding her direction, her silhouette tracing her steps, and the wind whispered past her ears.

On both sides were the bustling crowds of Dragonfly Town. On the screens of the prosperous commercial street, a boy’s confession letter was displayed. Giant glass curtain walls reflected a pale golden light, and stylishly dressed girls chatted and laughed, following the ebb and flow of people, pointing towards the setting sun.

“Hey, watch where you’re going!”

The girl, on her skateboard, leaped onto a railing and slid down rapidly, carelessly rushing into the crowd. People around her quickly made way.

Chi Chuchun put her index and middle fingers to her forehead, flicked them forward, and flashed a smile with her small canine teeth: “Sorry, I’m in a hurry!”

She was prepared. Even if the online friend named Yuzu didn't look ideal, it didn’t matter, as long as he was clean, neatly dressed, and stood tall. Even now, Chi Chuchun felt a little unreal, like a prince on a white horse rushing towards a princess in a fairy tale.

That was Yuzu, the listener who patiently heard her pour out her heart on countless nights, who comforted her when she was sad, who helped her brainstorm solutions when she caused trouble, and who could make her burst into laughter with just a word or two when she was bored.

How could she, with such a Yuzu, feel disappointed because of his appearance?

Chi Chuchun swayed on her skateboard, and before long, arrived at the entrance of a bar. With a light kick, she sent the skateboard flying up into her arms. She looked around but didn’t see the girl. Just as she was about to go ask someone, a text message arrived.

【Yuzu: Yuzu has long blonde hair and amber eyes. Try to find her in the crowd?】

Chi Chuchun was first stunned, then quickly showed an interested expression. She loved this kind of small romantic gesture. A spot-the-difference game, right? Her perception was keen; wouldn't it be easy to find the other person?

She quickly scanned the crowd, roughly dividing them into three sections. The first were office workers coming from the commercial street on the left, most of them looking haggard. She didn't think Yuzu would be the type with heavy dark circles under her eyes. Ahead was the water park; aside from elderly men and women, there was only a chestnut-haired girl sitting on a bench, her hat brim pulled low, reading a book.

As for the right side, that was the entertainment street. Some unruly hooligans were either holding in-store game consoles, or grabbing unlucky patrons by their collars, or winking and haggling with the proprietress over adult DVDs. People subconsciously distanced themselves from places where they felt uncomfortable.

Based on her understanding of Yuzu’s personality, the other person would definitely not be hiding in a smoky game arcade waiting for her. She would surely be observing her from a place where she could take in the entire street at a glance.

【Yuzu: Thirty seconds left.】

【Camellia: Why is there a time limit? That's cheating, you never said that before!】

She typed that, but Chi Chuchun’s steps didn’t stop. She walked quickly towards the park, approached the chestnut-haired girl sitting upright on the bench, and frankly picked up the book from the girl’s hand, waving it in front of her eyes:

“There, I found you.”

The chestnut-haired girl chuckled and looked up. She had a pair of beautiful amber eyes: “Are you so sure it’s me? Want to guess again?”

“Yuzu said she had blonde hair and golden eyes, but she didn’t say she wouldn’t disguise herself. You’re pretending to read, but you were actually typing messages to me just now, weren’t you?”

“I won’t fall into anyone’s trap that easily.”

Chi Chuchun lifted her head, looking smug. A few seconds later, Yuzu sent her another message. Her expression stiffened as she scrutinized the chestnut-haired girl in front of her. The girl hadn’t moved just now, had she?

Hesitantly, she opened the new message.

【Yuzu: Look behind you.】

She turned around and saw the girl standing in the afterglow, waving at her. Her smile was like warm sunshine, and her long blonde hair was striking in the flowing pale golden light.

Chi Chuchun’s eyes widened slightly. She turned to look at the previous chestnut-haired girl; the spot where she had been sitting was now empty, as if she had never been there.

Chi Chuchun paused. Before Xu Xiaoyou could react, she lunged into her arms, her face filled with joy and surprise: “Yuzu, is it really you?”

All the previous apprehension, nervousness, and insecurity vanished, replaced by an intense delight that filled Chi Chuchun’s heart. The other person far exceeded her highest expectations; her gentle, serene eyes were exactly like what she had long imagined.

Xu Xiaoyou hadn’t expected the girl to react so strongly. Catching her, she stumbled back a few steps, nearly falling to the ground. She managed to brace herself against the railing. A gust of wind blew from the artificial lake, as if to carry the girls' light bodies into the sky.

A sense of guilt suddenly arose in Xu Xiaoyou. Based on her analysis of Camellia’s personality, this romantic meeting would be right up her alley, but she hadn’t expected such an extreme reaction. If she could see the favorability rating, the other person's initial favorability towards her must have already skyrocketed.

It made her feel like some greasy scoundrel whose specialty was tricking beautiful girls, which was quite uncomfortable.

Realizing this was their first meeting, Chi Chuchun cleared her throat and stepped back a few paces, becoming a little more reserved:

“Just call me Mori no Natsu Kuri.”

“That’s not your real name, is it?” Xu Xiaoyou said casually.

Chi Chuchun scratched her face, looking a bit flustered.

“The female protagonist in the Gundam Warriors of the Thirteenth Unit is named that. Even though it’s an old anime series, aren’t you afraid of being recognized using it directly as an alias?”

Facing Xu Xiaoyou’s teasing, Chi Chuchun cleared her throat, thinking, ‘As expected of Yuzu. Her deadpan, sharp-tongued remarks are exactly like those on Line (Curtain).’

She pretended to be mysterious: “In short, I have my own unspeakable reasons for my real name. You can call me Natsu Kuri or Kuri. Come with me, they’re waiting for you.”

Xu Xiaoyou’s mouth twitched. She saw men inside the bar preening, dressed provocatively, dancing seductively—a somewhat jarring sight. “Is this really a respectable establishment?”

“Dragonfly Town is known as Red Heaven’s red-light district. These ‘green leaf shops’ are everywhere. Our business isn’t exactly above board, so this is perfect for a cover.”

Upon entering the shop, Xu Xiaoyou smelled the perfume of Emerald City in the air. This expensive women's perfume was often found in the upper echelons of the Star of Art's society, alongside Rose Garden, as standard for noblewomen at galas.

The name of this green leaf shop was Mint Green Leaves. Unlike the flower shops in the Star of Art where stamens and pistils mingled, Red Heaven's adult entertainment industry often catered to specific clientele.

The target clients of Mint Green Leaves were typically older women with considerable income and wealth, who felt rather empty and lonely internally. Xu Xiaoyou had already seen no fewer than three 'green leaves' fawningly serving a single 'flower'—bringing tea, pouring water, singing, and opening champagne towers were minor tasks. When these wealthy women had fun, these tender young 'green leaves' would have to obediently go upstairs, and no one knew what they’d experience.

A disheveled ‘green leaf’ with dull eyes, clutching his round, perky backside, was descending the stairs and bumped directly into Xu Xiaoyou.

The young ‘green leaf’, having just endured some torment, had no choice but to put on an ingratiating service smile, intending to introduce the shop's services to Xu Xiaoyou. But Natsu Kuri stopped him, the girl's face full of displeasure as she waved him off: “Go on, go on. This is my friend. Don’t bring your perfume-laced bodies near us.”

“Understood, Sister Meijiu.”

The young 'green leaf' respectfully bowed, then shamelessly went to open a wine bottle for a lady in a corner booth. Xu Xiaoyou raised an eyebrow.

She saw a middle-aged woman in a loose dressing gown, holding a cane, descending the stairs with a yawn. She gave Xu Xiaoyou a scrutinizing look, seemed to hesitate, then said:

“Come upstairs with me. I’ll pay you ten times the hourly rate.”

Xu Xiaoyou felt a chill. Most of the ‘green leaves’ in this shop were rather effeminate, their gender hard to distinguish. Her attire today leaned towards neutrality: an informal bartender’s uniform over a white shirt, her long golden hair tied in a low ponytail reaching her black vest, and a pair of round-toed boots under her tapered pants. Her figure was slender. By any measure, she should have been distinguishable from the alluring ‘green leaves’ in the shop.

The woman licked her crimson lips: “I just like playing with the innocent ones. Who are you trying to seduce dressed like that?”

Natsu Kuri quickly stepped forward, waving her hand: “Sister Tao, this is my friend, not a new employee of the shop.”

The woman, addressed as Sister Tao, kept her wolf-like gaze fixed on Xu Xiaoyou's slender waist: “Is that so? What a pity.”

This little one was surprisingly to her taste. In this situation, whether it was a man or a woman no longer mattered to her.

Xu Xiaoyou’s internal radar started blaring warnings. She knew her charm card was subtly taking effect, and a wave of discomfort washed over her. She quickly avoided the woman’s gaze. Just before the elevator doors closed, a figure worth noting emerged.

The man was considerably taller than the other ‘green leaves’ in the shop and not effeminate. He had blonde hair, black eyes, and fair skin, with a European face. Tight pants accentuated his perky buttocks, and a white shirt was almost straining against the contours of his muscles, exposing his powerful chest. A black leather belt hung loosely on his waist, revealing a Gallant Deeds tattoo on his abdomen.

Xu Xiaoyou’s gaze was not on the man’s exceptionally perky backside, but rather fixed on the Queen of Spades symbol on his shoulder.

The man also looked over just before the elevator doors closed, raised the crystal glass in his hand, and cast a flirtatious wink at her in the refracting light.

Damn it, the shape of that man’s pupils was even a black heart. This guy was the Queen of Spades of the Dawn Society!

Xu Xiaoyou immediately identified the man’s identity, an infinite alarm blaring in her heart. Why was someone from the Dawn Society here? He was clearly male, so why was he the Queen of Spades, a queen symbolizing soldiers, spears, and death?

She felt an incredibly strong sense of danger from the man, certain he was far stronger than any Dawn Society member she had ever met. She had only felt such oppression when facing Scarlet.

As he passed by her, she couldn’t even sense his aura. He was at least a grade 5 fixer. Why would such a person appear in Dragonfly Town?

Could her identity as Dark Gold Rose have been exposed? Had he come here at the association’s behest?

The calm of the past half-month had never caused Xu Xiaoyou to lower her guard. No one knew how the undercurrents beneath the surface were surging, or whether the seemingly peaceful daily life foretold an impending storm.

Xu Xiaoyou even entertained the thought of leaving immediately, but after a moment's reflection, she quickly calmed down. If he really was sent by the association to apprehend her, he should have acted just now. But the man clearly recognized her; that meaningful look earlier...

“That’s Ivy, the manager of Mint Green Leaves, Yuzu. Don’t tell me you’re interested in a greasy guy like that,” Natsu Kuri teased, seeing Xu Xiaoyou standing motionless.

“How could I be?” Xu Xiaoyou pressed her fingertips to her temple, trying to calm herself a little. Anya wasn't with her, and penniless, her card slot only held a few escape skill cards. She absolutely could not get into a direct conflict with a grade 5 fixer.

She decided to wait and see.

Outside the old freight elevator compartment was a vertical rock wall. Through the rusty bracket structure, she saw the scene below the Mint Green Leaves bar. The first basement level was an equipment room, where several heavily modified jeeps were parked. Anesthetic guns, freeze rounds, crystal-axis stun batons, and other equipment were all available, even some military-grade bulletproof vests and gas masks.

As the temperature dropped a few degrees, a faint smell of mold mixed with gasoline wafted through. Xu Xiaoyou saw the second basement level. The operations room was about a hundred square meters, divided into four sections: a monitoring area, a training area, a planning room, and an area completely encased in steel armor, whose purpose was still unclear.

“If the Mountain Crow family really mobilizes military forces to attack here, we’ll hide in there. It’s made of two-hundred-millimeter-thick alloy steel plates, built to the standards of old-era bank vaults, with high-density rebar mesh inside. They could shell it with tanks for three days and three nights, and they wouldn’t blast it open.”

Natsu Kuri’s voice was full of undisguised pride as she said this. She had designed the Night Walkers’ underground stronghold according to the specifications of an apocalyptic bastion.

Noticing that many people’s photos were pinned to a blackboard in the planning area, connected by red lines like in a spy movie, with different colored notes containing information attached beneath each photo, Xu Xiaoyou recalled what she had seen on TV before, and asked:

“So, what exactly do the Night Walkers do?”

Natsu Kuri put her hands on her hips: “You’ll find out soon enough. Come with me.”

The elevator doors slowly opened, and a chilling wind blew out. The air temperature seemed to drop a few degrees. Xu Xiaoyou saw the scene of the third basement level: a deep vertical shaft, about twenty meters high when looking up from the bottom, supported by massive stone pillars that several people could barely encircle. It was impossible to see the end, only pitch blackness.

Most of the cell doors on both sides were tightly shut. Inside, electric chairs, blood-stained pliers, eye-spreaders, and other such tools were all available; it was practically a prison, or rather, it was a prison.

In front of one cell, she saw Chi Tianyi from a few days ago. He had been stripped bare, with only a pair of pants remaining, his fingernails completely pulled out. He lay on a pile of dry straw that could scratch skin, his corpulent body like a pig awaiting slaughter.

“Hey.”

Natsu Kuri walked to the front of the iron cage and leaned forward slightly. Chi Tianyi inside was startled awake. Seeing the girl, he reacted as if he had seen a demon, trembling all over in fear and cowering in the corner:

“I really don’t know anything! Please, let me go! If they find out I told you those things, they’ll brutally kill me…”

Natsu Kuri expressionlessly picked up a high-pressure water hose and blasted Chi Tianyi. The man inside screamed and thrashed from the cold, and soon became bruised purple and motionless.

The water stream stopped, and the girl’s clear voice echoed through the underground prison: “Did those girls beg you like this before they suffered at your evil clutches?”

“You want me to let you go? Why don’t you ask yourself how you treated those girls?”

“You damned bitch, when I get out of here, I’ll definitely…”

His response was a swift high-pressure jet of water that slammed him hard against the wall, knocking out several teeth.

Chi Tianyi’s face contorted with malice. He lunged at the iron cage, making it clang dully, no longer caring about any strict hierarchy or etiquette of lord and subject. He cursed the red-haired girl with the crudest and most vulgar language, but the red-haired girl only looked at him coldly, her tone devoid of emotion:

“You scum, I will personally send you to hell.”