ATAPOW Chapter 22
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Chapter 22: Reporting
‘Lin Tuo… Lin Tuo? Hmm… This name seems to be a bit familiar.’
Ji Bai slightly knitted his eyebrows as he entered into a state of contemplation.
That’s right!! Isn’t this that refined-looking joker from yesterday afternoon?
“Seems like I have dialed the wrong number. Sorry for the inconvenience, I will be hanging up now.”
“Wai- Hold on a moment! Uhm, are you looking for my brother, Ji Bai, mister?” Ji Bai hurriedly stopped Lin Tuo, who was about to hang up. His puerile and sweet tone fired up Lin Tuo’s emotions, who was on the other end of the call.
‘This little girl’s voice is so pleasant to hear. It sounds so sweet and lovely like the taste of spring water…’
“Ah, yes yes. I’m looking for Ji Bai. Speaking of which, are you Ji Bai’s little sister? ‘…Eh, I don’t recall that he mentioned having a little sister before.’ After being silent for a moment, Lin Tuo said, his tone clearly contained a trace of doubt.
“Eh~ Actually, I’m a distant cousin of senior Ji Bai’~ It just happened to be the holiday season, that’s why I decided to come over here and play around for 2 days~”
“Oh, I see…”
“Yes, yes~” Ji Bai quietly heaved a sigh.
“Well then, little girl. Can you allow me to make a rude request?” The tone on the other side suddenly turned serious.
“Eh?”
“The public security in the border town isn’t too good these past two days because there have been a bunch of demonic human traffickers running rampant! For young girls like you, it’s very dangerous to leave home to go sightseeing! At this moment, you need a reliable and ferocious man that is capable of giving you a sense of security and protection. If you wish to head out next time, please give me a call! While ol’ Lin is indeed incapable, simply dealing with a bunch of evil demons is still a cinch for him!”
‘You, protect me?’
As he thought of the display the guy had shown him yesterday afternoon, Ji Bai felt a sense of scorn in his heart.
‘This guy isn’t thinking of picking me up, is he? Logically speaking, is he really gonna get it on with a jailbait? Does he really not understand the consequence of a minimum of three years in prison and the highest a death penalty?’
“…Of course~ Thank you, big brother!” He replied with a smile; while in his mind, Ji Bai impatiently scorned about how Lin Tuo was taking his time talking and not getting to the point.
“Erm, so mister Lin Tuo is here to find my elder brother, right? Please wait a moment~ I’ll call him now.” Realizing that Lin Tuo was preparing to steer the momentum of the conversation into weird territory, Ji Bai launched a preemptive strike. He put on a fake smile as he placed the subject of conversation towards himself.
“Helloooo… Hello? Eh??” Lin Tuo was still planning to say something more, however, the sweet and puerile tone of the loli had suddenly disappeared; What quickly took its place was the lazy voice of a male.
“Hello, are you the culturalized gangster? Why are you looking for me?”
“C-Culturalized gangster!? …You… Youngster, don’t always spend your day thinking of how to sensationalize stuff1! Do you know what the term ‘respecting the old and loving the young’ is?” Because he heard traces of disdain and scorn coming from the lazy voice, the corner of Lin Tuo’s mouth began to twitch.
‘Why did two siblings that live together in the same roof turn out so differently? The sister is so cute and polite, while the brother makes people want to bash his head in!’
“Alright, state your business. Otherwise, I’m hanging up.”
“You youngsters are simply too young, too simple! Don’t you know how to respect a senior that’s older than you? …Forget it, let’s get back to the main point. Lan Yi wants me to notify you to report to our branch. It’s a branch at a border town that’s located in Ink town, it’s situated in the Falling Origin District. Our contact will be there when you reach the place.”
‘Contact? Why do I feel like I’m being dragged into a pirate ship?’ Ji Bai slightly knitted his eyebrows.
“Wait… Hold on a moment! Falling Origin District? That’s such a far journey and you guys aren’t expressing any form of gesture? Surely it isn’t too much of an excessive part for you guys to order a carriage and pick me up, right?
“Forget that! You expect us to order a carriage for you? Do you know how expensive the travel expenses are going to be when it’s that far away? We might as well send a limousine down to you!” Lin Tuo sulkily said.
“That will do, when is the limousine arriving?”
“‘That will do’, your ass! Limousine pick-up? I don’t have such a privilege even as a senior and a seasoned veteran in the organization! That must be some wonderful dream you’re having right there, huh?”
“Alright! Alright, alright… But you ought to write off my travel expenses, no? If that’s denied as well, I’ll have no choice but to decline right now.” Ji Bai touched his shriveled wallet. As his supply of blood bags had been exhausted, he was truly in desperate straits and had no choice but to plan for the future.
“If you reach here before 7, I’ll help you apply for reimbursement. However, you can forget about it if you’re late by even a second.” Lin Tuo flatly replied.
Ji Bai abruptly raised his head and looked at the clock that was hanging by his wall. The stubby and short hour hand was shockingly pointing at the place between 5 and 6. He then looked at the stretch of darkness outside his window.
“Dang! It’s still the middle of winter and your chivalric order is expecting people to report there before sunrise?!”
“It’s up to you. But if you miss this opportunity, there won’t be another one. Give me a call once you’ve gotten off…”
‘How stingy can this guy be? No wonder he’s still single.’ Traces of scorn appeared on Lin Tuo’s expression. He had completely forgotten that he too was a bachelor like him.
“Oh, that’s right! Speaking of which, your sister…”
‘Beep. beep. beeeeeep…’ Ji Bai had no intention of waiting for Lin Tuo to finish his words and directly hung up the call.
“Could this middle-aged man be a lolicon?” Ji Bai placed his phone in his pockets as his lips formed a wicked smile.
‘By taking advantage of the skies still being dark, I can easily turn myself into a vampire and fly directly to the Falling Origin district. Once it comes time to apply for reimbursement, I can just report that I took a taxi there. This will allow me to reap a profit. Yahoo~’
‘What? That’s too shameless? I’m sure you haven’t experienced true poverty, it’s the type of poverty that will almost make one wear a miniskirt and engage in compensated dating! People who say things like those are truly too blissful. They ought to be thrown into Siberia and grow potatoes for a few days!’
If it wasn’t for how he had meticulously planned and accounted for every single dollar he used, Ji Bai would maybe be the top ‘model’ of some brothel right now.
A scarlet radiance flashed and a swarm of small, black bats surrounded him like stars around the moon as it flew in all directions. A silver-haired loli wearing a gothic white black-laced dress opened her eyes. She stood tiptoed and opened the window before leaping out. Underneath the silent moonlight, her petite body turned into a crowd of small, tightly-clustered bats that streaked across the black skies.