441: 8.41 Just An Instinct

8.41 Just An Instinct

So worse had really come to worst, Lu Yizhou heaved a deep sigh. He straightened up, heartbeat still adjusting to the short marathon he had attempted earlier. Irene's stamina was really lacking, it actually reminded Lu Yizhou when he was still CEO Lu all over again. How awful!0

Lu Yizhou must have looked really disheveled right now. His hair was a mess atop of his head with beads of sweat dripping down his chin. His skirt was stained with dirt and creases. Nowhere did he look like a proper lady at all but he still tipped his chin up and raised a brow in a bold manner. "I have no idea that taking a walk outside the manor is not allowed in this household."

Luca Knox's dark eyes bore down on him, as though trying to dissect his head to see what was running through his mind. Lu Yizhou met him with an disinterested gaze. "I have no idea that you're so… naive, Lady Irene," he spat out, lips curling into a sardonic smile. "I thought Baines had informed you of the house rules."

As if he was a djinn who appeared when summoned, Baines showed up out of nowhere and said respectfully from behind Luca, "That's right, Master. This is such a lamentable incident. This servant has clearly told everyone the rules, especially the third and most important one." Baines let out a disappointed sigh, even though Lu Yizhou could see a flash of glee in his murky eyes. As if he was… delighted that he could finally punish the person who broke the rule. "I told you that we will be watching, Lady Irene."

Lu Yizhou crossed his arms over his chest, defiant. The mockery on his crooked smile was evident. "That's funny. I think you have confronted the wrong person, Master Luca. Tell me, which eyes of yours see that happening? Which information have I given away?" 

From the beginning, there had been a hole in the rule which Lu Yizhou could take advantage of. Yes, he might be questioning the two women and yes, they might have answered him. But they did it all 'willingly'. If Luca must punish someone, then he should punish the two women first because they were the one who broke the rule.

Throughout the whole conversation he had with the two women, Lu Yizhou had been the receiver and not the other way around. Based on that, the rule should have become invalid against him. Of course, unless they could prove that Lu Yizhou was using 'Devil's Whisper' to cajole the information out of the two — which they were unable to.

Luca must have come to the same decision because the corner of his lips turned down, his smile vanished to be replaced with a scowl. For a split second, Lu Yizhou thought that Luca was going to order his creepy raven to gouge his eyes out but in the end, the man only took a deep breath, the tension on his body melting away.

"Lady Irene is right," he forced the words out of gritted teeth as he gave Lu Yizhou a tight-lipped smile full of daggers. "This is an oversight on my part. She is only asking and the ones we should demand an answer from are the two women. But unfortunately, their carriage has gone far away and it's not possible to catch up to them anymore."

[[Side quest[2/?]: Gain Master Knox's trust. Progress: -1000/10000]]

Wow, Lu Yizhou almost whistled. He must have really infuriated the man so much for his trust level to plunge all of a sudden. Well, Lu Yizhou had never put much hope in that side quest since the beginning. Rather than trying to obtain a random person's trust, there were so many things he could do instead. He was a busy man and had no time for unrelated personnel. 

Now that he had officially become a fish bone stuck on Luca's throat, it would be better not to sit close to him anymore on the dining table lest he would find a sudden fork flying to his eyes. Lu Yizhou made a mental note to himself.

When Master Luca stalked away with an irritated huff, Lu Yizhou lifted one end of his skirt and bowed to him in mock politeness. He then turned to Baines and asked in a guileless tone, "Is there something you want to add, Baines?"

The man's murky eyes were fixed on him heavily, so heavy like it was a tangible force. The feeling of the cold poisonous snake that slithered across his skin was quite… familiar. Lu Yizhou tried to recall where he had felt it before. Right… it was the time when he suddenly sleepwalked and almost went out of the room by himself! He measured the old head servant with a calculating gaze. Could it be his doing…?

Compared to Master Luca, Lu Yizhou was even more wary of Baines for some reason he couldn't explain. It was just instinct but somehow… he had a hunch that the one he should look out for was Baines. 

"We will be watching you more intently, Lady Irene." Baines left that one disturbing sentence before turning away to catch up with his master. 

In an instant, 666's cheers echoed in his mind.

[666: Oh my Admin God, 666 thought that we are done for! 666 thought that we would be dragged into somewhere unknown and die a miserable death! Fortunately, Host is awesome! Why didn't you tell 666 that you have a brilliant plan up your sleeves?! Oh my Admin God, scared 666 to death… QAQ]

Ozzie, who was sweet and sensible and anything unlike 666, picked up on Lu Yizhou's perplexed mood and stroked the tip of her tail across his cheek. 'Daddy, are you okay?'

Lu Yizhou's gaze still trailed after the door which Baines had disappeared into. 'Do you think that Baines is the bug?'

Ozzie almost choked by the sudden bomb Lu Yizhou dropped out of nowhere, 'He—He's the bug? Are you sure meow?!'

[666: Wait— how?!] 

'Just an instinct,' Lu Yizhou shook his head, sighing. 

Tonight, he told himself. Tonight he would try to use 'Devil's Whisper' on Baines after curfew. He had used it on him once before to know that it was definitely working. Lu Yizhou could not rely on Luca to get to Madam anymore. No matter what, he had to steadily get rid of the people around her one by one, starting from Baines. And there was also the matter of a third person inside the master bedroom…

Could that be the lady in black Lu Yizhou was searching for? Had they been hiding behind Madam all this while?

Lu Yizhou ruminated on his thoughts as he made his way to the library. Idly, he checked on the progress of the side quest and was pleasantly surprised that there was progress already. 

[[Side quest(6/?): Obtain more clues about the mystery of the Knox Family in the library. Number of clues: 1/3]]

Huh, they were not that useless after all. What clue could they have possibly obtained?

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