"So it was you."
At this moment, the girl was covering her skirt in shame and distress, preventing the scenery beneath from being fully exposed to the gravity and the smirking youth before her.
Caught.
She hadn't failed in three years, yet today she had stumbled into the hands of a rich boy?
She didn't even know how he had seen through her. After following this person into a deserted corner, she was suddenly grabbed by one foot and hoisted up.
Lin sized up the girl in his hand, who looked a bit younger than him. With a ferocious expression, he glared at her: "Speak! Your name!"
"Eek! Don't—don't be angry, Big Brother! My name is Pardofelis, let's talk this through…" Pardo stammered, terrified by his savage look—he looked like he might bite her head off the next second. Her cute, petite face turned pale.
"Don't be angry? Hmph… do you have any idea who you stole from!"
Pardo's face grew even more terrified. For a rich boy to say something like that, was he going to sink her to the bottom of a river?
"Have mercy! Big Brother, I was wrong! I had eyes but couldn't see Mount Tai! You are handsome, suave, elegant, reasonable, a man of great character, a pillar of society, graceful, a man with a tiger's heart sniffing a rose! Please just let me go this once!"
Lin was suddenly amused by her string of flattery. He couldn't help but laugh. "You've practiced that a lot, haven't you? Begging for mercy the moment you're caught."
"Not much, not much, just about three hundred times." Seeing Lin expression soften, Pardo breathed a sigh of relief and said with a forced smile.
"Still grinning? Lead the way!" Lin face changed again, scaring Pardo until her body shook.
After being set down, she tearfully led Lin to find the stolen goods. Why did this Big Brother's mood change so fast?
…
"Everything is here! Big Brother, since you've found all your things, why don't we just…"
Pardo watched Lin with trepidation as he knelt beside the mascot suit, counting his stolen items. He slowly put his wallet, keys, and other belongings into his pocket one by one. He didn't touch the others' things, but he was certainly taking all of his back.
Indeed, everything was there; Pardo hadn't had time to fence the goods before Lin caught her.
According to Lin past temper, he wouldn't necessarily let Pardo go so easily, but on the way here, he had asked why she did such things. Surprisingly… it made him not hate her.
Pardo had lived alone since she was a child, growing up in solitude with no place to go and no fixed residence. The only thing she knew how to do was what she had learned from cats: how to hide her presence and move silently. Thus, the only thing she could do was steal.
She didn't steal from just anyone. Generally, the people she stole from weren't good people, and most of the money she stole was given to those even poorer who couldn't survive.
"Are you saying I look like a bad person?" Lin glared at her.
She immediately flashed a flattering smile: "That… Big Brother, you were wearing a hat and a mask back then, looking all sneaky—you really didn't look like a good person. If you had shown your true face from the start, how could I have possibly…"
"Are you saying this is my fault?"
"No! No! It's all my fault!" Pardo apologized bitterly.
She didn't understand; Lin was so good-looking, why was he so mean?
In the past, Lin would have shown mercy to someone like Pardo who had her difficulties. After all, he considered himself a very kind-hearted person.
…But why did he do what he did now?
Yes, Pardo was very pitiful, and combined with her outstanding looks, it made one feel even more protective. He had indeed recovered all his things, but why should he let her go?
Just because he was a good person?
Are—you—kidding—me?
Did Prometheus consider him when she pinned him down?
Did Mobius consider him when she led him all the way from the basement to the swimming pool?
Or did the Sakura sisters consider him when they teamed up to ambush him, or Eden when she used his "girlfriend" to threaten him?
The question was, why should he consider Pardo now?
Lin gave a cold hoot. His gaze swept shamelessly over Pardo's body, making her skin crawl as she trembled.
…How does this little brat not look malnourished at all?
"..." Lin arrogant and undisguised eyes stared at two specific spots on Pardo's body. This seemed even better developed than Prometheus, didn't it? He frowned and asked, "You aren't lying to me? You really live from hand to mouth?"
"I…"
From Pardo's shifty eyes, Lin already had his answer.
"I—I—I just make sure to eat well each time! After all, no matter how poor you are, you shouldn't let your stomach suffer!"
"..."
This girl really was a master thief; reaching this level was quite a feat. Furthermore, Lin was certain Pardo wasn't as homeless as she claimed. Her clothes and the mascot suit were very clean; she definitely had a place to stay.
"Tsk, tsk, tsk, you're still lying to me." Lin shook his head with a sigh, his right hand gripping Pardo's shoulder like a steel pincer. "Truly an irredeemable child. You need some punishment."
"Wha—what?"
Pardo's smile was strained. She seemed to have sensed something and tried to break free from Lin hand, but beneath Lin casual expression was an extraordinarily large amount of force.
"You stole my car keys and wallet today, which caused me to miss my date with my girlfriend. Sigh…" Lin lied without changing his expression, putting on a regretful look. "We had agreed to get married after she graduated, but now we've simply broken up…"
In reality, Yama hadn't come out for the date because of her exams, and Eden was someone he had personally sent off to the airport.
But… it didn't matter. The reason didn't matter. What mattered was… he only needed a reason.
"Eh—eh—eh?! Is that how it is?!"
Pardo was incredibly flustered, her pretty face full of panic and uncertainty.
"Yes, so…"
The regret vanished from his face. In its place was an evil, malicious, and filthy, strange smile.
Before Pardo could react, she had been pinned against the wall, both his hands pressing against either side of her head.
"You should compensate me, shouldn't you?"
"…Eh? Me? No… Me?! That's not right!" Pardo finally understood what Lin gaze, which had scanned her body multiple times, meant. Shivering, she tried to escape, but she had nowhere to go. "L-Lin… Brother Lin… I'm not pretty, and my figure isn't good. I'm… I'm the type that even if you fed me to a tiger, a single bite would be nothing but bone! Brother Lin!"
"How could that be? My cute little Pardo."
Lin fingers brushed gently past her face.
"Whether there's any meat, wouldn't I know once I taste it for myself?"
"No… Mmph! Mmph-mmph!"
[This chapter has not passed review]
[The content of this chapter has not passed review]