Chapter 10: The Border Collie on the Prairie

Wen Li set down the documents and heaved a deep sigh. If things continued this way, Yue Li would eventually be completely contaminated, turning into a walking core of pollution. No, that absolutely would not do! Wen Li still wanted to pet the Iron-Eater.

Suddenly, a flash of inspiration struck her, and an idea blossomed in her mind. She looked up, fixing a sincere and pitiable gaze on the sentinel standing to the side.

"Ban..."

"No."

The stoic sentinel rejected Wen Li’s experimental invitation.

"Ban, just this once. I promise the situation from last time won't happen again."

Ban reached up to adjust his monocle, watching the little one sitting in the chair, batting her watery, adorable eyes at him. "Miss, it is too risky."

Wen Li trotted over to him and tugged at his sleeve. "I will definitely be able to control it this time."

The tall sentinel was utterly helpless, clutching the inhibitor he carried with him. "Miss, I hope you will be able to control your strength this time."

Wen Li nodded like a chick pecking at rice. "Definitely, definitely."

The two sat facing each other at the white table. Wen Li tentatively took the sentinel’s hand. Ban’s hand was fair and slender, with distinct knuckles; Wen Li could clearly see the blue veins on the back of his hand. When they made contact, he flinched slightly, but quickly returned to normal. Feeling the warmth of his palm, Wen Li spoke softly.

"Starting now."

Ban looked as serious as a veteran official, but his hand, tightly gripping the inhibitor to the side, betrayed him. Wen Li compressed her mental energy into a thin thread and channeled it through their joined hands. She did not enter his mental sea directly, carefully controlling the speed; the equipment beside them showed that everything was normal. Excellent, progress was smooth!

Ban lowered his eyes, feeling a tingling sensation at the base of his spine, but the experiment remained within his control. Wen Li began to use the thin thread to attempt to open his mental sea, even politely knocking on the gate. Their joined hands tightened, and Wen Li playfully stuck out her tongue.

As the thin thread passed through the mental sea, Wen Li smelled the scent of soil and fresh grass. Ban’s mental sea was a vast, boundless grassland. Under a blue sky, a Border Collie was running freely.

A gentle breeze swept across the sea of grass, causing the lush green blades to rise and fall like waves, emitting a rustling sound. It also ruffled the Border Collie’s silky fur. It seemed to have discovered the intruder, standing perfectly still as it looked toward where Wen Li was located.

Wen Li dared not act rashly, fearing that even the slightest mental fluctuation might affect him. Fortunately, the Border Collie did not notice the blue thread hidden in the grass, and it went back to playing. Wen Li crept stealthily through the grass, slowly approaching the dog. She carefully poked her head out; the dog was digging at the ground ahead.

Excellent!

The blue thread wiggled forward, then looked up to see the dog playing with a small yellow flower. Excellent!

Just as she was about to get close, Wen Li looked up, only to find the Border Collie was nowhere to be seen.

Wen Li: "???" Where did my dog go?

The blue thread rose up to look around. That was strange; it was right here a moment ago.

Wen Li, continuing to crawl forward, paused, feeling something pressing down on her from behind. She looked back, and the curved blue thread straightened in terror. The Border Collie was pinning the end of the blue thread with one paw, tilting its head to look at her.

Only then did Wen Li notice that the Border Collie’s eyes were dim and lifeless; it... was blind.

A wave of unbearable heartache spread through her. Wen Li’s emotions were complex; such a meticulous, serious man, yet his mental projection... was actually... actually blind.

She recalled her own dark days at the Wen family, where the label of "disabled" was stuck firmly to her. Whenever people saw her, beyond praising her beautiful appearance, they mostly felt pity. They thought they hid it well, but the way they looked her up and down revealed only mockery and disdain. If that was the case for a Guide, what about a Sentinel, where strength was everything?

Such a beautiful Border Collie—if only those obsidian eyes could see.

The dog nudged the stunned blue thread with its nose. Wen Li lost control of her mental energy, and the blue thread emitted a soft glow. The warm energy nourished the grassland beneath their feet, and the Border Collie excitedly moved closer to her. Because it couldn't see, it took a long time for the dog to finally catch the blue thread in its mouth and run through the grasslands.

Wen (the blue thread) Li: "You really didn't have to!"

Clearly, the Border Collie loved this guest, carrying Wen Li up slopes and down hills as they ran. Seeing the dog so happy, Wen Li got carried away and manifested herself directly within Ban’s mental sea. When her hands truly touched the dog, Wen Li’s heart was filled with softness.

She didn't know how much time had passed, but suddenly she felt a powerful force pulling her out of the mental sea. When Wen Li opened her eyes, she saw Ban, his face flushed and breathing heavily.

The black-and-white-haired sentinel’s monocle was gone, and his usually perfectly fastened uniform buttons had been crudely ripped open. Most dire of all, because Wen Li’s mental energy had made direct contact with his mental projection, it had stimulated Ban so much that his ears and tail had popped out.

Wen Li checked the time—good heavens, the experiment had lasted two hours!

How long would it take to purify all of that? And this was even with the inhibitor Ban had taken; otherwise, he would have suffered a mental riot long ago.

Wen Li hurriedly let go and stood up to pour Ban some cold water. Just as she moved, she was pulled into an embrace filled with the scent of grass. Ban hugged her from behind, not letting her leave. The poor sentinel was overstimulated; his eyes were moist, and his fair face was flushed with a redness like he was drunk.

Ban lowered his head, his hair brushing against Wen Li’s neck, and he ambiguously and carefully pressed his lips against the girl’s cheek.

Wen Li was truly panicked now, patting the arm locked around her waist. "Ban! Ban!"

The sentinel’s lowered voice was incredibly sexy. His other hand toyed with Wen Li’s small, soft earlobe, while the fluffy Border Collie tail behind him wrapped around her thigh, rubbing against her.

"Yes, Miss, I am here."

Wen Li: "Obviously, I know you’re here!"

The aftereffect of purification was just like this: the sentinel would exhibit temporary dependency symptoms, sticking to her like chewing gum. The final result was that Wen Li sat in his lap analyzing data, while the sentinel held her like a doll until his aftereffects subsided.

Once sober, Ban returned to his usual self, acting as if nothing had happened, tidying everything up with his typical solemnity. Before leaving, he told Wen Li some bad news.

"Colonel Angus informed me that you are to be in his office at 7:00 PM."

Wen Li checked her optical computer. Great, it was 5:30. Heavens, why must she see her superior after work hours!

Angus was, as usual, looking down at some documents, but this time, Wen Li found an extra person in the office. A man with long hair, wearing a crisp white shirt and black trousers, sat lazily in a leather chair, holding a steaming cup of tea.

His waterfall of white hair was draped casually over his shoulders, and his fox-like eyes narrowed cunningly when he saw Wen Li.

"I've heard so much about you, Miss Wen."

His fingers tapped the edge of the porcelain cup with a slow, rhythmic beat. Wen Li looked up at Angus, asking with her eyes what this meant.

Angus didn't even look up as he explained, "A sentinel sent from the club."

Wen Li chuckled softly. "Leader, I’m only responsible for matters within the White Tower, aren't I?"