"Master, here are the details that we gathered in Hong Kong." Adia passed a tablet computer to Ru and stood back in line with the other members of Black Mist squad.
"Anything particular that I should know about?" Ru asked as her eyes were skimming through the data before her on the screen.
No-one spoke to answer as they kept sharing looks with each other. Sensing their reluctance, Ru said in a neutral manner, "Jack!"
"Always at your service master," the youngest of the squad spoke submissively.
"Are you going to hide things from your master?" The way Ru spoke sent chills to Jack’s spine making him gulp down his swallow.
"Absolutely not, master." Ru expected that answer. She knew very well that since Jack was the youngest, he always treated her as his everything. For Jack, Ru was not just a master, she was his savior and he would do anything to repay her.
"Start talking," hearing Ru’s order, Jack straightened up.
"There is a particularly odd thing that came to our attention," Jack started with a strange expression. "We came across another girl like the one who tried to kill you back in London."
"Where is she?" Ru immediately asked.
Jack bit down his lips and answered, "We lost her."
Ru slammed her hand on the table before her making the other’s startle up. She rubbed her temples as she questioned, "How are you sure that the one who attacked me and the one who came across you have any kind of connection?"
Connor was the one to answer that question, "The one we came across was also mute." Ru’s eyes widened as she looked at Connor to keep going, "Apart from that, she had the same look of bloodthirst in her eyes. Her movements and way of execution everything matched with the assassin we have in our dungeon."
"Go, get busy," Ru waved her fingers asking them to leave her alone.
’Mute? Female? This can’t be a coincidence now, can it?’ Ru was lost in her thoughts when she felt the presence of someone close by. "What is it, Jack?"
Jack was startled but he instantly composed himself and said, "I forgot to tell you something, master."
Ru turned around to look at him and asked, "What is it?"
Jack dug out a piece of cloth from his pocket and extended it towards her saying, "When I was fighting with that assassin, I accidentally tore a piece of her dress. You might wanna see it closely."
Ru took the piece from his hand and Jack turned around to leave. Ru held the cloth in hand and couldn’t tell why this kid wanted her to look at it closely. She rubbed her hand over it, tried to smell it but couldn’t decide what was she supposed to be looking for.
While she was busy frowning, her phone rang making her groan in irritation. Seeing the caller id, a smug smile bloomed on her thin lips. "Oh my! Your Royal Highness, your bed has just been delivered. When would you be gracing my humble abode with your presence?"
"I’m on the plane. Going to France for some urgent work." Adrian’s somber voice was transmitted from the other end.
"Oho! Is everything alright with his highness? I hope you won’t be needing any assistance." It was a pity that Ru couldn’t see his contorted face at the moment. Nonetheless, she was enjoying the helplessness in his voice.
On the other side, if Adrian knew her thoughts, he would have strangled her by now. "No, I don’t need your assistance. I can certainly handle my own business." Adrian spoke with indignation.
"Then I hope his highness can deal with law and press all the while maintaining his code of fighting with problems like any other civilian." Adrian’s eyes went round as he understood her meaning.
"You! You did it! I should have guessed. Ugh!" Adrian was irked and now, stood at the edge of his patience. It was no wonder that suddenly his vineyard was facing a lawsuit and that whole incident of wine not being properly brewed or whatnot had been spread to the media.
"Took you long enough to figure it out."
"Mr. Knight, may I ask why you love to attack me so openly?" Adrian spoke clenching his jaw.
"It must be because I hate hiding in the dark to attack," Ru answered matter-of-factly.
"You idiot! I wish I never have to see you again!" Adrian screamed through the phone making Ru push the phone away from her ear.
"Trust me, I’m not a fan of seeing you either. Also, if this mission went as I want it to, you won’t see this lord ever again." Ru’s voice had changed to an intense tone making Adrian feel weird.
"Hey! What do you mean?" Adrian received no reply since the line was cut. He stared at the phone screen as he kept thinking of those words, ’Won’t see him again? Why?’ Suddenly, Adrian realized that he didn’t like the sound of this certain phrase at all. His favorite hobby had become to frustrate Mr. Knight, how could he just get over it? ’He must be messing with me again!’ He shook his head and decided not to believe Ru’s words.
But what he didn’t know was that Ru meant what she said. Her only reason to stay as Lord Alev Knight was to look for her memories that she lost. Look for the source of pain that prickled her body and burned her soul every time.
After hanging up the call, as if remembering something, Ru picked the piece of cloth and went to a room on the third floor of the apartment. She opened a wooden cabinet and mixed up a few chemicals in a glass container before dipping the cloth in it.
True to her speculations, the black cloth suddenly had writing on it in, visible in white color. When she looked closely, she realized it wasn’t writing. Rather it was a female gender symbol. But the symbol’s peculiarity was the fact that in the circle head, there was written: 19. She stared at it for a long time in shock.
She went to the huge mirror wall in the room and took off her black jacket and lifted the full-sleeve shirt underneath. Turning her taut body sideways, she looked at the side of her ribcage. The tattoo on her body and on that cloth was identical except for two things: One, hers had the number four engraved in the circle head and two, her tattoo’s circle head had two devil horns.
She always told herself that she had that symbol since she was famous for being called ’four’ back in her clan because it sounded like the death in Mandarine. But today, she had to stop convincing her mind.
She staggered back a bit as she kept staring at that tattoo on her own body. Where it came from? She didn’t know. Why was it on her body? She didn’t know that either. What did it mean? She knew nothing.
But now she knew one thing, coincidences can happen but not this much. How was it possible that seeing that assassin who tried to kill her, she felt sympathy instead of rage? How was it possible that she found the same symbol on someone’s clothes as she had on her own body. That surely wasn’t her family’s symbol.
’Now, I have all the more reason to believe that I’m close to finding whatever I lost!’ she determined in her mind and pulled her jacket back on. ’Whoever you are, I’ll find you! Even if the cost of finding you is to lose my life!’