Chapter 50: Chapter 50: Oulos
The burly man named Armored·Behemoth stepped out and blocked her path.
"Why the rush?"
Oulos raised her hand to intercept.
She kept her eyes fixed on John, her gaze filled with curiosity and doubt. "Sorry, Mr. John, can you scan our information?"
John remained silent, accessing the information.
[File: German national, European Community STU incident wanted suspect, alleged involvement in terrorist attacks and arms smuggling (Special Affairs Bureau file), intermediary, vanished after the 71st political scandal of Messiah Company...]
Oulos’s eyeballs were also flickering.
She was certain John had recognized them, and couldn’t help but ask, "Who provided your prosthetic eye database?"
John tapped the elevator panel.
The cabin didn’t move.
"F*ck, what’s the situation?"
[Status: Out of operation [fault inspection]]
John initiated the scanning interface.
A yellow data stream existed between the elevator panel and the unfamiliar woman.
Oulos stood up.
"Don’t blame your Black Gold Gang brothers for not sending out a warning; we came on a secret visit, and they didn’t know someone was looking for you."
"Hmph—I came at the right time."
She put away her e-cigarette and knocked on the door.
"Mr. John, the elevator is temporarily out of service, why not sit down and chat?"
"Alright."
John knew he couldn’t escape. "That hulking guy behind you seems ready to crush my skull at any moment."
"You mean Behemoth? Oh, don’t worry, he’s actually quite simple and friendly... well, most of the time, anyway. I mean no harm, but I’m full of curiosity."
"How much compensation do I need to pay?"
"Money... Oh, you mean the drone? Actually, I have no connection to Tiebang Logistics; I’m wearing this uniform just to get close to you. Now that you’ve seen through it, it’s no longer necessary."
Oulos knocked on John’s door.
"I should have been sitting on your couch, but I hacked the building’s system and couldn’t break into your home... They say you’re a good driver, but no one mentioned your hacking skills."
Her confusion kept piling up.
"Honestly, you don’t seem like someone who plays in cyberspace. If you know an awesome hacker, could you introduce them to me?"
John still didn’t answer.
He walked forward and swiped the door open, receiving a Black Light access warning.
Oulos had taken down the apartment’s local network, preventing information from being transmitted. Although she hadn’t successfully hacked in, John still decided to bolster security measures.
Armored·Behemoth didn’t follow inside.
Oulos hummed a tune as she walked into the living room, her arms swaying to the blues from the speakers, seemingly approving of John’s taste in music.
"Want something to drink?"
John asked as if hosting a guest, though he was tense inside, the thrill akin to licking a blade after so long, suddenly being cornered...
Just downright stimulating.
"A glass of filtered water is enough, hey, I want to know how you..."
"Hey."
John put down his cup and interrupted her. "You have too many questions, can you introduce yourself first?"
"Oulos Grenada, you’ve scanned it, haven’t you? Stop pretending, your expression is far more honest than your words."
She pointed at herself.
"I’m mixing it up in Europe, familiar with Plato and Raqi Industry, here in Eden City for long-term business, probably staying for several years."
"You’re an intermediary, what do you want with me?"
"Intermediaries need mercenaries too, last time I came to Eden City, I wasn’t even as tall as a coffee machine; my contact book had few names. Someone recommended you, but I didn’t expect you’d already be tied to the tie clip."
"Just a matter of mutual need."
"Unpleasant dealings? Feel free to say so, he’s one of those with great performance but poor reputation in the circle."
Oulos’s wasp waist and bouncy bottom revealed a strip of gold amid the faux leather.
"Working with intermediaries who brag all the time is not very reassuring, huh?"
John deciphered her meaning, smiled helplessly, and retorted, "Mixing with newbies like you doesn’t seem promising either."
"You won’t know until you try."
Oulos said, suddenly pushing John onto the couch.
"WTF?"
John spilled the water in his hand.
He didn’t react, a weight on his waist, the fragrance mingling with the remnants of e-cigarette enveloped him, lips about to touch, the air tinged with ambiguity...
"I heard you had the tie clip check Tiebang Logistics’s employee information?"
Oulos pulled out a card and blocked it between their lips.
"No matter what you’re trying to find out, the management knows more than the underlings. Here’s an address of a Tiebang Logistics supervisor; once you’ve sorted it out, just call me there."
[New contact created - Oulos Grenada]
"Huh? What’s going on..."
John received the item, bewildered.
A business card from an old cargo compartment factory.
"You look good, but don’t rush, a man has to prove his character before proving his bed skills. Wish you a pleasant life, John~"
Oulos stood up, brushed John’s lips.
She smiled and took out her e-cigarette, glanced around the room, then left.
John’s mind was a bit muddled.
He opened the door, the corridor was empty, the elevator floor numbers were decreasing.
John returned to his room and immediately called the cabinet.
[Oulos... What? Can you spell that? Seems like no such person in Eden City, need me to check for you?]
"Forget it."
John pinched his brow. "I need to buy something; I’ll send the list later, ship it with the blueprint tomorrow."
John wanted to upgrade his home:
First, disconnect the system from the apartment’s local network, create a sub-server connected to the public network, so even if the building’s network goes down, it can automatically switch and send signals through the Atlanta Virtual Network.
John placed the order and hung up the phone.
This inexplicable intermediary left him puzzled.
John wanted more information; recalling Oulos’s nationality, he immediately sat up and called Eden Weitz.
[Tsk, John, mind the time.]
Eden was woken up.
"Oulos Grenada, do you know her?"
[Where did you hear that name?]
His tone turned serious.
"She was right in front of me just now, not long gone."
John described his encounter upon returning home tonight.
Eden pondered for a moment after hearing.
[Oulos emerged during the German gang riots, quite young, very active during the last company war, circling around several multinational corporations. I don’t know what in Eden City attracted her, but it’s definitely not a small affair.]
"So she’s a dangerous character, right? She has a bodyguard named Armored·Behemoth, whose arm is thicker than my head."
[You met two living legends today.]
Eden expressed slight surprise.
[Behemoth was a Messiah mercenary, disappeared after a company executive’s assassination during the European Community’s coup impacting Germany. Oulos vanished around the same time.]
"Two big shots, so why are they teasing me?"
[Unknown, but be cautious, especially avoid lying to her.]
Eden disclosed a bit of information to John.
[Oulos’s prosthetic eye is an experimental prosthetic body with micro-expression reading and emotional analysis computation capabilities, reportedly able to detect pulse and heart rate data, no use even if you’re a face-modded expressionless.]
"Wouldn’t politicians be trembling?"
[Mm-hmm, guessed right, that’s how she rose in Europe.]
"What should I do then?"
[If you’re determined to make it big in Eden City, when someone like Oulos Grenada has work for you, just agree to it.]
John didn’t respond.
He had no particular pursuit for fame or status; starting on the streets was merely because life had hit rock bottom, wanting to live a bit better.
Eden saw John’s silence and proactively asked.
[Ready to become a big shot?]