Chapter 398

Riza Hawkeye held her pistol level in front of her and flashed into the room.

After entering the room, Riza Hawkeye found the living room was dim. The lights in the dining room nearby were on, and a man was sitting at her dining table with a steaming bowl of noodles in front of him.

"Who are you?"

Because the man was looking down at his noodles, Riza Hawkeye could not see his face clearly.

"Let's talk. Don't point that gun at me."

Riza Hawkeye frowned, feeling a slight anger in her heart.

"Stand up, put your hands over your head, and lie on the ground!"

Riza Hawkeye was a sniper who had been on the battlefield, and Su Xiao clearly felt a cold, sharp killing intent.

"I'm just eating a bowl of noodles. Are you going to arrest me for this?"

Su Xiao turned his head. When Riza Hawkeye saw Su Xiao's face, her pupils constricted.

"The devil of the Ishval Extermination Campaign, the Flame Alchemist."

Riza Hawkeye retreated a few steps and this time clicked the safety off her pistol.

"What are you doing in my house?"

"Coming to save your life."

"Huh?"

Riza Hawkeye was full of astonishment.

Su Xiao kept his head down eating noodles, and Xiang Ignoring Bubu Wang was doing the same, but Xiang Ignoring Bubu Wang soon finished the noodles in its own bowl and turned its attention to Su Xiao's bowl.

"My noodles are delicious. Don't you want to try some?"

Riza Hawkeye was expressionless; she felt something was wrong with that sentence.

"I've already had dinner."

Su Xiao chewed the noodles, put down his chopsticks, took a few photos from his pocket, and threw them onto the dining table.

"You should be grateful to me. If it weren't for the fact that my relationship with the homunculi just broke down, you would already be dead—and executed legitimately, at that."

Riza Hawkeye's peripheral vision caught the photos. When she saw the content on them, she walked forward quickly.

"This is?"

Riza Hawkeye picked up the photos, her face filled with disbelief.

"Colluding with enemy officers. If I remember correctly, that's punishable by hanging."

Su Xiao picked up his chopsticks and continued eating.

"These photos..."

Riza Hawkeye studied the photos in her hand. After a preliminary examination, she discovered these photos were not spliced or synthesized.

"Impossible. I have never even met the officer in the photos."

"You indeed haven't met him, but the photos are right here, and that's enough to send you to a military tribunal. Let's set that aside for a moment—what progress have you made in your investigation?"

"Investigation into what?"

Riza Hawkeye became alert again.

"The secrets of this country."

"What are you talking about? I don't understand."

"Is that so? Then let me give you a hint: Fifth Laboratory, Philosopher's Stone, homunculi, Promised Day."

"You..."

Riza Hawkeye looked at Su Xiao in shock.

"No need to be so surprised. I know everything about them. An hour ago, I was still an accomplice."

"Put down the chopsticks and put these on."

Riza Hawkeye took out an old-fashioned pair of handcuffs. Her heart beat faster; the truth they had been investigating was right before her eyes.

*Zzz~. *

The sound of wire tightening came. Riza Hawkeye felt a cold, sharp sensation inside her clothes.

"If you want to fight, let that guy Mustang come. Your close-combat ability is too weak."

Su Xiao finished his dinner and lit a cigarette. His bare-body physique attribute had already reached 33 points, so smoking would not cause damage to his body.

Riza Hawkeye was sensible and slowly lowered her gun.

"What is your goal?"

"It's a bit complicated to explain. You'll understand later."

Su Xiao took out a long cloth bag and threw it in front of Riza Hawkeye.

"Get in."

"What?"

Riza Hawkeye glanced at the bag. It wasn't very big; it would be difficult for her to get inside.

"I came here tonight to kill you, so don't talk nonsense."

Seeing Su Xiao's gaze grow colder, Riza Hawkeye gritted her teeth and climbed into the bag.

Su Xiao took out a bag of plasma and sprinkled it into the cloth bag.

"What is this? Prop blood? No, this is human blood!"

"Prop blood wouldn't fool those people."

Su Xiao zipped up the bag and kicked it, hitting Riza Hawkeye right on the back of the neck, knocking her unconscious.

The reason Riza Hawkeye was so cooperative was that she was entangled by the Jie Duan Xian; if she had dared to move, she would have been shredded by the sharp metal wires immediately.

Su Xiao took out a mid-level alchemy bomb and threw it into the room.

"Woo~."

A threatening low growl came. The small black-and-white spotted puppy bit Su Xiao's pant leg. Although it was trembling all over, it didn't retreat a single step. It was Hayate, protecting its master.

Su Xiao grabbed the puppy by the neck, knocked it unconscious, and threw it into the bag as well.

*Boom! *

The mid-level alchemy bomb exploded. The impact shattered all the glass in the room, and flames spread throughout.

Su Xiao carried the bag downstairs. Blood seeped out from the bag and dripped onto the ground.

Not long after Su Xiao left, Envy appeared on a nearby rooftop.

Looking at the raging fire in the room and the blood-stained bag in Su Xiao's hand, a smile appeared on Envy's face.

"Is this really feasible?"

An eye appeared in the shadows behind Envy.

"Of course it's feasible. Later, I will notify Colonel Mustang. Under Mustang's pursuit, he will either fight back or hide in the shadows, which will make him easier to use. Pawns must have the awareness of being pawns."

"Boring plan."

The eye in the shadows closed, seemingly unimpressed by Envy's plan.

"Huh?"

Envy was very annoyed.

"Don't be too clever; humans are much more cunning than you imagine."

"Tch."

Envy jumped off the roof; he still had follow-up matters to handle.

……

At two o'clock that night, in a desolate mountain near Central City.

Riza Hawkeye was bathing in a small river; her body was covered in blood.

Su Xiao sat by the river, but Riza Hawkeye didn't seem to care much.

"Hurry up, time is running out."

"Almost done."

Riza Hawkeye climbed onto the bank naked. It wasn't that Riza Hawkeye was particularly open, but she had seen too much life and death; during the war, the dormitories she lived in were even co-ed.

Su Xiao tossed over a new set of clothes; he had some appreciation for a woman like Riza Hawkeye who didn't stand on ceremony.

Riza Hawkeye changed behind a tree, picked up a box, turned, and walked into the forest, climbing a tree over ten meters tall.

Not long after, the sound of hurried footsteps approached.

"Right around here, the bloodstains are still here."

"Quick, search carefully! I want to see the person if they're alive, and the corpse if they're dead!"

A voice filled with coldness and anger came; just hearing the voice, one could feel that person's hatred.

Several figures rushed near Su Xiao; it was Colonel Mustang and his confidants.

Seeing Su Xiao leaning against the tree trunk, Mustang's hands trembled slightly.

He was all too familiar with this face. During the Ishval Extermination Campaign, this person had blown up countless Ishvalans. He was once a "comrade-in-arms," and now he was a "mortal enemy."

"Flame... Alchemist!"

Mustang roared, bloodshot eyes appearing. He raised one hand, wearing the white glove imprinted with an alchemy circle.

"Riza Hawkeye, you can come out now."

Hearing Su Xiao's words, Mustang was stunned.

"Colonel, I'm fine."

Riza Hawkeye shouted from the tree. Upon hearing this voice, Mustang was filled with wild joy.