Chapter 139: 138 Hero or Elite

Unaware of what had happened after he left, and following the good habit of seeing a task through to the end, Li Ang once again located the mission target based on the position shown in his soul vision.

Hmm... when he rescued her earlier he'd been running too fast to get a good look, but the back of this daughter of the Char Department Store owner seemed vaguely familiar?

Looking at the woman clinging to the iron fence above his head with her bottom sticking up, who had tried several times without managing to climb over, Li Ang hesitated briefly before tentatively speaking up:

"Miss Amy?"

"Eek!"

Hearing the voice from behind, the woman on the fence panicked; her left foot, which had barely been braced against the railing, slipped straight off, and she screamed as she fell flat on her back.

"Careful!"

Watching her head-over-heels posture and worried she might seriously hurt herself, Li Ang hurriedly rushed forward two steps and caught her in both arms. After steadying the pale-faced, baby-faced young lady on her feet and seeing she still looked shaken, he offered some reassurance:

"Don't worry, Miss Amy. The Maseni family's matter has already been resolved. You're safe now."

"I... Mr. Li Ang?"

Finally seeing Li Ang's face up close, Amy couldn't help but jump in fright as she recovered. Then, as if suddenly understanding something, she said in astonishment:

"Just now... was that you too? You're the one who rescued me?"

"That's right."

Looking at the familiar baby face before him, Li Ang said with no less surprise:

"You're actually the daughter of the Char Department Store owner?"

"I... I really am. I'm sorry, I never told you before..."

After answering Li Ang's question haltingly, the baby-faced young lady, who had a bellyful of questions of her own, couldn't help but ask with puzzled eyes:

"Just now... how did you just 'whoosh' and disappear? And did you plant bombs on the walls? Why does the wall explode wherever you go? And also..."

"Um... how about we wait until tomorrow? Your family is probably worried sick by now. Let me take you home first, and I'll tell you everything tomorrow."

After once again throwing out "definitely tomorrow" as an answer, and since he'd refused to answer her questions—and had plenty of his own he couldn't bring himself to ask either—Li Ang grabbed the railing as if bracing himself, then secretly used the power of his Holy Spirit Pendant to bend it, prying open a gap just wide enough for a person to pass through, and pulled the baby-faced young lady through with her head ducked.

Phew... finally escaped!

Although it was only one more fence to get past, for Amy, who had been locked up for several days, it was the definitive sign that she had escaped the Maseni family for good.

After unconsciously letting out a long breath, she patted her flat chest, then stealthily glanced at a certain man's back, feeling her heartbeat quicken slightly.

First, because of the department store incident, she'd found a man who seemed perfect husband material, and had just been preparing to move next door to him to get to know him better—only to be kidnapped on the way.

Then she'd been locked in a dim little black room for several terrifying days, until finally someone rescued her—and that someone turned out to be exactly the man she'd had her eye on!

Oh my, this really is...

Although the way he rescued her wasn't a princess carry, but rather being slung over his shoulder like a sack of rice—nearly making her throw up—it should still count as a hero saving a damsel in distress, right?

After secretly tightening her grip on his hand and feeling that strangely reassuring warmth, Amy couldn't help blushing slightly as she said softly:

"Mr. Li Ang, thank you for coming to save me! I'll definitely repay you properly!"

"That's really not necessary."

Hearing her words, Li Ang, who was waiting for a carriage by the roadside, shook his head and answered quite honestly:

"The main reason I came to rescue you was that your father came to our Bureau and asked for our help, and the Director assigned the mission to rescue you to me. As for payment, your father has already paid in advance."

"I see..."

The hero-rescuing-damsel scene suddenly took a turn, inexplicably shifting into a workplace professional vibe. The baby-faced young lady's face fell, and most of the pink bubbles in her mind were popped. However, hearing Li Ang mention old Char, her expression immediately tensed up again, and she bit her lip as she asked worriedly:

"Oh right, during the days I was kidnapped, my parents must have been worried sick. Are they all right now?"

"I haven't seen them, but they should be fine."

Li Ang thought for a moment, then answered:

"After your father came to us, our Director had someone look into his situation. They said your father looked a bit haggard, but his spirits were still pretty good. Your mother, on the other hand, worried herself sick and caught an illness, but it wasn't serious—she should be fine once you get back."

As long as they're both okay...

After getting the update on her parents, the baby-faced young lady felt a little relieved, then bit her lip again and tentatively invited:

"Mr. Li Ang, you've done my family such a huge favor, so... if it's convenient for you, could you come to our house as a guest in a couple of days? I'd like to thank you properly."

In a couple of days... isn't that exactly the Ryan family's title-inheritance ceremony? And the investigators from headquarters will probably arrive tomorrow morning, so it definitely won't work.

"It doesn't seem very convenient."

Li Ang thought for a moment, then shook his head:

"I happen to have something on in a couple of days, so I probably won't have the time. And you really don't need to thank me... Oh right, do you have any money on you?"

"Huh? Yes, yes!"

Hearing Li Ang's words, the baby-faced young lady hurriedly rummaged through her things, pulled out a delicate leather wallet from her skirt pocket, took out a stack of blank bearer checks with a face value of 10 gold wheels, and handed them over, then said somewhat embarrassedly:

"I was kidnapped rather suddenly, so I didn't bring much money. Is this enough?"

"..."

Never mind... forget I asked.

Looking at the checks before him—enough to cover nearly half a year's salary—Li Ang was silent for a moment, then wordlessly pushed the checks back. He fished around in his own pocket, found he didn't have enough copper wheels, and could only take out a silver wheel and hand it to her, then pointed at the approaching steam carriage and instructed:

"We're not going the same way. When the carriage comes, just get on and go straight home. Remember to hide your checks on the way—don't get kidnapped again right after I just rescued you.

Also, taking a carriage from Redwood Avenue to Char Department Store headquarters is about nine-something kilometers. Five kilometers costs two copper wheels, and the remaining four kilometers are one copper wheel per kilometer. If you get off half a street early, it's only six copper wheels... never mind, just give me my money back first!"

Although in their previous encounters he'd felt she wasn't the kind of naive young lady, he was still quite shaken when she pulled out a year's salary from her pocket. Worried she might actually try to pay the carriage fare with checks,

After handing the silver wheel to the coachman and getting back three copper wheels in change in advance, Li Ang carefully noted down the number on the back of the steam carriage, then watched the baby-faced young lady off with relief. Next, he hailed another carriage, got on, and counted out a handful of copper wheels to hand to the coachman.

"Thirty-five Bridge Street, Happiness Apartments."