They had only taken a few steps when the sound of many urgent footsteps approached. The leader of the group saw the pair and called out, "Nandi, are you okay?" The question was in Thai. Daechir pretended not to understand and asked Nandi beside her, "What is he saying?"
"He's asking if you're my friend." Daechir sneered inwardly, deciding to play along to see what tricks they had up their sleeves. "Tell him we're friends, and that he should take us to Vega." The man was Paitun, who had rushed over with his men the moment he heard his sister had been taken hostage. Nandi spoke, "Brother, what's your plan to rescue me?"
"Don't be afraid. When I raise my hand, you drop to the ground. There are snipers positioned all around."
"Be careful. This girl has a stealth cloak. She must be from the City-State." Daechir heard every word of their exchange clearly but continued to play dumb. "Did he agree?" Nandi nodded. "He said he's happy to meet you and agrees to take you to Vega."
"Alright then, let's go." She took Nandi's hand, and they walked side-by-side, appearing quite close. The three snipers hidden in the area—one in a loft to the left, two in the bushes—never got their signal, and Daechir and Nandi walked further and further away. Paitun led his team in front, unable to find an opportunity. Finally, he couldn't help but turn his head and say, "Nandi, find a way to make her let go of your hand." Nandi had already tried several times, but her hand felt as if it were welded in place and couldn't be pulled free. "Brother, see that big tamarind tree up ahead? When we get there, I'll duck! You can shoot directly at her."
"No, that's too risky."
"What are you two talking about?" Daechir interjected. "He was asking how we met," Nandi continued to lie. "Is that so?" The words had barely left her mouth when Daechir suddenly struck, grabbing Nandi by the neck. She then pulled them both back to the corner of a building. It happened so suddenly that Paitun and his men had no time to react. "Get Vega over here now, or I'll kill this woman immediately." This time, she spoke in Thai. The men around them looked at each other, suddenly feeling like complete fools. "Daechir, calm down," Paitun said. "You know me?" Daechir was a little surprised. "Of course. A woman as beautiful as you is impossible to forget." Hearing Paitun praise her beauty, Daechir actually felt a flicker of fondness for him. In the past, she would have just laughed it off, but ever since Vega had disfigured her, she had become more self-conscious about her appearance, always feeling she wasn't as beautiful as before. She couldn't help but ask, "Do you really mean that?" Paitun brought his feet together, his expression solemn, and bowed in a knight's salute. "My honorable lady, I swear on my life that every word I have spoken is the truth." Daechir smiled sweetly. "I believe you, honorable knight."
"Thank you, my queen." Nandi stared in astonishment, not expecting her brother and this female assassin to start flirting. "Are you two going to go for coffee next?" she asked angrily. Her words broke the spell, snapping them both back to reality, their faces flushing with embarrassment. Paitun spoke first. "Daechir, please release my sister. I will take her place as your hostage."
"Since you are a knight, I will take you at your word," Daechir said, pushing Nandi away.
Paitun was overjoyed and stepped forward to meet her. As they got close, Nandi said, "Brother, ignore what I said before, just grab this woman!"
"No, I must honor my promise."
"Are you insane? She's an assassin."
"She is an assassin, but she didn't harm you, and she kept her promise."
"You're an idiot!" Nandi cursed. Paitun walked toward Daechir with a smile, not looking at all like a man becoming a hostage but more like a groom on his way to his wedding ceremony. Daechir was very pleased with him. She stepped forward, took his hand, and said, "You are a good man. Please don't deceive me. I have some questions for you."
"You want to find Vega?" Paitun asked.
"Yes. Tell me where she is."
"Why do you want to find her? I'd very much like to know the reason." Daechir touched her cheek, her voice filled with anger. "She almost killed me."
Paitun thought for a moment. "Alright, I'll take you to her. You two can settle things face to face."
"Brother, are you really insane?" Nandi, who had overheard their conversation from the side, cursed again.
"Stay out of my affairs. I'll handle this!"
"How are you going to explain this to Ethan? Vega is one of the Group of Seven." Paitun didn't answer, instead waving at the soldiers around them. "All of you, disperse. Don't linger here."
"No, you can't let that girl go!" Nandi immediately tried to stop them.
The soldiers were in a difficult position, unsure whose orders to follow. As they struggled with the dilemma, another group of people arrived. Seeing them, Nandi cried out in pleasant surprise, "Ethan, you're finally here!"
Daechir, however, called out, "So you're Ethan?"
Ethan nodded. "Ma'am, let's make a deal. You release Paitun, and I'll give you Vega."
"You didn't even bring her. How can we make a trade?"
Ethan smiled. "That's easy enough." With a light wave of his hand, Vega appeared behind him as if by magic. Daechir's beautiful eyes glared with fury. "Vega, you're not getting away this time!"
Vega wasn't afraid. She grinned. "You annoying pest, you followed me again. Look, what's that in the sky?" As she spoke, she pointed to the sky and tilted her head up.
Daechir followed her finger but saw nothing. Just as she was about to ask, she heard a "swoosh," felt her body tighten, and was suddenly unable to move. She looked down to see that her body was entangled in a sticky substance. Paitun quickly stepped forward to shield her. "Don't hurt her."
Nandi, watching from the side, couldn't take it anymore. "Brother, have you fallen in love with this woman?"
Vega stepped forward to explain. "She isn't even a woman. She's just a replica of my aunt."
Daechir struggled to break free, but she couldn't summon any strength. "What is this stuff?" she couldn't help but ask.
"In the future, this is used specifically to deal with robots. You can be our first test subject," Vega replied coldly.
Daechir was livid. "I should have killed you when I had the chance!" But no matter how unwilling she was, she was captured. Back in Zi City, De Silva waited anxiously for Daechir to return the cloak. It wasn't until two weeks later that he learned she had been captured by the Nine Stars United. Two more territories had been taken by them. With a traitor like Vega, they knew the City-State's every move and seized the advantage at every turn. De Silva's stealth robots were now completely useless. He couldn't help but curse his grandfather for resurrecting two people who should have stayed dead, creating the mess they were in now. He began to wonder if he should kill Alice while she was still under his control, to eliminate the threat for good.