Aiden Morgan silently fastened his seatbelt in the back.
He hadn’t expected the girl to be such a steady driver. Even on the open road, she kept her speed at a constant 60 mph.
Cars whizzed past them one after another. So even honked in recognition, belonging to familiar factions, but Aurora Sinclair remained unhurried.
Aiden Morgan said, "There’s no speed limit on this road."
Aurora Sinclair nodded. "Morgan told not to speed."
Alvin Morgan, his eyes on his phone, said flatly, "Safety first."
"..."
Just as Aiden Morgan was about to doze off, the car screeched to a sudden halt. An obscene gesture was extended from the modified SUV in front of them.
Then, the vehicle deliberately blocked their path, brake-checking them intermittently just to be a nuisance.
Suddenly, Aurora Sinclair’s lips tightened. With a grim expression, she shifted gears and slamd on the accelerator. Their car shot forward, aiming straight for the other SUV’s rear end.
"Turn left, brake, shift, hard right—" Alvin Morgan directed calmly, holding onto the grab handle.
Their car scraped past the modified SUV.
The car behind them also sped up, pulling up alongside them.
Aurora Sinclair kept accelerating. The speedoter needle broke past 250 and headed straight for 300.
Both were modified SUVs, and neither was slow. For a mont, they were neck and neck.
Finally, the road ahead began to narrow. Without slowing down, Aurora Sinclair yanked the wheel to the right. Their car slamd into the other vehicle, knocking it askew, then accelerated again, pulling half a car length ahead.
Not to be outdone, the other car ramd their rear bumper like a mad dog.
A loud SCREECH—
The shriek of brakes was ear-piercing.
Aurora Sinclair executed a perfect fishtail maneuver in the SUV.
The Black Wolves’ modified car following them seized the opportunity, ramming the rear of the other SUV and forcing it off the road.
Aurora Sinclair took her chance and shot through the narrow passage.
"Hahaha... That’s so fierce driving. Don’t tell our boss taught you that?" Aiden Morgan glanced back. The car they’d run off the road had a black skull flag mounted on its front.
Aurora Sinclair nodded. "And flying planes."
Aiden Morgan’s smile froze for a second before he burst out laughing again.
’This girl’s got a great personality!’
***
The rest of the journey was smooth, taking them directly to the Royal Palace in Masovia.
"Commander Alpha, this way, please..." The Royal Palace’s head steward greeted them as soon as he saw them.
The Black Wolves, the Miners, and the White Bears were all major factions that worked with the Royal Family. Even the King had to show them so respect, so it was only natural that the servants would have the best attitude towards them.
After leading them down a long corridor, the head steward brought the three of them into a banquet hall.
The room was already filled with people. A handso, blond-haired, blue-eyed man suddenly approached them. He had a bandage on his cheek, but it did nothing to diminish his charm. Nearby, several masked won from the Royal Family and nobility were giving him flirtatious looks.
"Commander Alpha, you’re finally here, my dear friend!" Liel Hunter spread his arms wide for a big hug with Aiden Morgan.
Aurora Sinclair suddenly shot out a hand and gripped his wrist. Liel Hunter froze, then gave a sheepish laugh as he dropped the transparent listening device from his fingers onto the floor.
Aiden Morgan stiffened, pushed him away, and glared at him.
"Heh heh, have The Black Wolves started recruiting female rcenaries?" True to his thick-skinned nature, Liel Hunter showed no sign of embarrassnt. He even took two steps toward Aurora Sinclair and gave her a gentlemanly bow.
"Hello, beautiful Miss rcenary."
But Aurora Sinclair simply took a step back, pursed her lips, and crushed the listening device on the floor under her foot.
The crunching sound made Liel Hunter pause, a flicker of amusent in his eyes.
’This is the first ti a woman hasn’t been captivated by my looks.’
"Is this how you Miners treat your saviors?" Aiden Morgan stepped sideways, blocking Liel Hunter’s view of Aurora Sinclair.
"To use one of your Veridian sayings: a gentleman doesn’t covet what another man has. I just don’t want to compete with you during the bidding." Liel Hunter blinked, putting on an innocent expression.
"Fine then. The Black Wolves will take the largest blue diamond and The Pink Diamond Mine," Aiden Morgan retorted bluntly. Liel’s smile froze on his face. He secretly ground his teeth. ’Those treacherous Black Wolves!’
***
As they were speaking, another faction entered. The expressions on their faces were grim, as if they’d just had an unpleasant encounter.
After scanning the room, their gazes landed on them.
Their bald leader strode over, radiating aggression.
"Commander Alpha, your driver’s got so skills!" The bald man’s eyes swept over Aurora Sinclair’s face, a cruel smile forming. "Little lady, you’ve got such soft, delicate skin. I bet you haven’t been... "
Before he could finish, Aiden Morgan’s fist flew out. "Watch your damn mouth!"
The rcenaries on both sides imdiately started shoving, ready to brawl right then and there, but they were stopped by The Royal Guard stationed around the banquet hall.
The leader of Black Skull wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, spat, and gave a cold, dark snort before leading his n to the other side of the room.
But for so reason, the Black Skull leader was suddenly struck in the calf by sothing and dropped to his knees. This drew a wave of laughter from the onlookers, with the Miners’ rcenaries booing him especially loudly.
Gritting his teeth, the Black Skull leader whipped his head around, trying to see who had attacked him. But after a quick scan, he saw that everyone was just looking at him with mockery. He had no choice but to get up and continue toward his seat.
A smile played on Alvin Morgan’s lips as he nonchalantly handed Aurora Sinclair another bunch of grapes.
A glint flashed in Liel Hunter’s eyes. He had clearly seen The Black Wolves’ female rcenary flick a grape seed at the Black Skull leader.
’The Black Wolves are certainly full of talent.’
He imdiately picked up a glass of wine and sidled up to Aiden Morgan again. "Where did you hire your female rcenary?" he asked with interest. "I’d like to hire one, too."
Aiden Morgan shot him a glance, snorted, and ignored him.
Liel Hunter then drifted over to Aurora Sinclair to try his luck. "Beautiful, how much are The Black Wolves paying you? I’ll give you triple. Co join us Miners."
Beside them, Alvin Morgan let out a soft chuckle. "Aren’t you afraid Sam Ledger will invite you out for coffee?"
Liel Hunter’s expression changed instantly. He stared at Alvin Morgan in shock.
"You... you... are..."
Alvin Morgan, still wearing his sunglasses, gave another handso smile. Speaking in Liel Hunter’s native language, he said, "You dare try to poach my woman?"
Liel Hunter’s eyes widened even further. He stared back and forth between the two of them for a long mont, looking as if he’d seen a ghost.
Aurora Sinclair popped a grape into her mouth and turned to ask, "What language was that?"
"A non-Arian language. Want to learn?"
Aurora Sinclair nodded, then haltingly tried to repeat what he had just said, mimicking his pronunciation.
"Start with the basics. Let’s learn so greetings first."
Aurora Sinclair nodded with interest.
"This language has different greetings based on familiarity. To greet him, you’d say..." Alvin Morgan pronounced a formal "hello" for her.
Aurora Sinclair repeated it a couple of tis and quickly got the hang of it.
"If you want to greet , you should say..." Alvin Morgan paused for a mont, then said with a smile, "Purudu da aiyishi."
The mont Liel Hunter heard that, he sputtered...
’In that language, "Purudu da aiyishi" ans "I like you."’
"Puru... du da... aiyishi."
The smile on Alvin Morgan’s face deepened, and he reached out to pat her on the head.
Aurora Sinclair mumbled it to herself a couple more tis, then looked at Alvin Morgan, her eyes shining.
"Morgan, purudu da aiyishi."
"Purudu da aiyishi."
Liel Hunter’s mouth twitched. He clutched his chest and looked to the heavens, speechless.
’Damn it! Did I just get a giant serving of PDA shoved in my face?’
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