Chapter 640: Following the Wire to Your Door

"Hm?"

Just as the Black Goat suddenly reneged and demanded Leon immediately take it back, a female reporter wearing a wide-brimmed wool hat in the Sun News editorial office suddenly tensed, reached back to pat her rear, and her dark, glossy eyes flickered with surprise.

"Nicole?"

Though her movement was large, the reporter made no sound—not even the rustle of fabric—so no one noticed, except the colleague beside her, whose sleeve had brushed against her, who tilted his head and whispered a warning:

"Be careful, the boss is itching to yell—don't let him lock onto you!"

"Mm-hmm, but don't worry, he won't be bossy much longer."

She nodded slightly to the well-meaning colleague, then habitually pulled down her wool hat, pressing down a small tuft of hair that had curled at her temple, before secretly snorting at the boss scowling mid-rant and leaning sideways to murmur with a smile:

"Old Martin's status at home is pathetic—he can't even stand up to his two-hundred-pound shrew of a wife, so he can only vent on us during meetings."

"So getting scolded a couple times doesn't matter—next month, when I become head of the News Force, I'll make sure these useless meetings, which only let some impotent old man blow off steam, never happen again!"

"Mmm…"

The colleague beside her couldn't help but twitch her lips, biting her cheeks raw to suppress a laugh, her face flushed crimson.

After taking several deep breaths to steady herself, the female colleague couldn't help whispering in complaint:

"Nicole, don't get me in trouble—if I'd laughed out loud just now, Old Martin would've pointed at my nose and yelled for an hour!"

"Sorry, sorry."

After offering a completely insincere apology, the reporter flipped her wrist and pulled out a theater ticket, slipping the real sincerity into her colleague's hand.

"This is my apology—how's that?"

This… is a ticket to the Morning Star Troupe's performance? And it's the special edition signed by Master Wang Erde, granting access to the backstage to shake his hand after the show!

Lowering her head to sneak a glance at the ticket in her palm, the colleague's eyes lit up with joy—but she quickly snapped back, eyeing the smiling reporter with suspicion:

"Not good enough! You suddenly give me something this expensive—you've got some trouble you want me to handle, or worse, take the blame for!"

"Bingo! You're so smart!"

The reporter winked playfully, then slightly clenched her thighs, her delicate face flushing pink as she squirmed with embarrassment:

"Um… I slept late yesterday, and this morning I was afraid I'd pass out, so I drank a few extra cups of coffee. Old Martin's nonsense today was unusually long—he went on for over an hour and still hasn't finished, so… could you…?"

Got it—you're desperate to pee and need someone to cover for you.

But today's a story-planning meeting—when it's your turn to stand and pitch your news topics, if you're not back, I'll get double the scolding for you.

Double scolding… Master Wang Erde's ticket… Fine, worth it!

After hesitating a moment while clutching the ticket, the colleague sighed, slipped it into her pocket, then slid her chair forward to block most of the reporter's body.

"Hurry back!"

"Mmm, you're the best, Maggie~mua~"

After blowing her friend a heartfelt kiss, the reporter leaned back slightly, using her colleague's body to shield her from others' view, then stealthily extended her foot, clad in calf-leather boots, and gently hooked open the slightly ajar back door of the meeting room.

"Squeak~"

With a soft creak from the old hinge, the reporter, who had just been sitting upright at her desk, slipped soundlessly out of the room—no one noticed her departure.

…

Has she already left?

Having escaped the meeting room and hurried to the newspaper office entrance, the reporter frowned as she sensed the fluctuation had vanished, then asked, as if speaking to no one:

"Didn't you just tell me you sensed another part of your presence? Where did it go?"

Long silence.

Just as the reporter's patience neared its end, a voice, as if half-asleep, finally droned out:

'Ran off.' Of course it ran off—I came all the way here and found no one! The question is, where did it go!

The reporter's face darkened; she snorted irritably:

"Direction! Location! Features! Spit it out! Don't make me ask! Where's the other seventh of you?!"

'…'

'…'

'Don't know.'

'…'

This damn lazy demon!

She'd used a precious signed ticket just to come out here and find nothing—furious, she stomped her foot, but had no power over the lazy demon fragment, so she gritted her teeth and walked back into the office building.

Annoying demon! I'll never speak to you again—I'll be a pig if I do!

'By the way.'

As the reporter seethed inwardly, a fluffy, invisible goat tail floating behind her rear slowly spoke:

'Someone from the Cleanup Bureau is waiting in your office.'

?!!

Hearing the tail's warning, the reporter's brows lifted slightly—she immediately ignored her own oath and eyed the tail with suspicion:

"Who's waiting? How many? Are they here to arrest me?"

'…'

"Talk, damn it!!!"

'Male. One. Your fan.'

"Huh???"

…

"This is Mr. Leon, who collected three years' worth of dual-issue stamps and earned our newspaper's access pass."

After introducing Leon's identity, the smiling guide gestured toward the woman in the wool hat and added:

"This is Nicole of the News Force—she's written over four hundred popular news pieces and more than a hundred in-depth reports since joining six years ago, beloved by Sun News readers."

"Whether in the popular edition or the quality edition, Nicole's reporting has a loyal following—but readers who subscribe to both editions for three full years like you are rare… You two chat—I'll leave you to it."

After clearly elevating both parties' status, the guide rose and exited the office without lingering.

Once the guide left, the two, each with suspicions about the other's identity, fell silent for a moment—then the reporter spoke first:

"Mr. Leon, you…"

"I came to ask you a few questions."

As Leon spoke, he pulled out pre-prepared newspapers from his shopping bag and laid them one by one on the desk.

"Charl Department Store Massive Sale: Man Hospitalized After Being 'Crushed by Cash'"

"Shocking! The Lyon Family Massacred Last Night—The Killer Is This Person!"

"Duke Can't Beat Cabbage? A Full Review of the Lyon Family Crisis!"

"Publicly Slaps the Prince—New Lyon Duke Suspected of Manic Disorder!"

"Beauty Over Power? The Lionheart Duke Suspected of Becoming a Royal Son-in-Law!"

"…"

"I just want to ask you."

Pointing at the newspapers on the desk, Leon watched her expression closely, his face full of irritation:

"You've written about me eight times in the past month—and none of it's flattering. What's your grudge? When gathering material for your reports, do you have to keep picking on me alone?"

(End of Chapter)