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墨書 Inktalez
Zhang Qiu sighed while holding a towel, realizing that living together with a man and a woman was indeed inconvenient. Just as he was pondering how to hand it to Lucia, she said, "You can just come in."
"Ah?" Zhang Qiu exclaimed in shock.
"What do you mean 'ah'? I'm lying in the bathtub with a layer of soap bubbles on the water surface; you won't see anything."
"Oh, I see." Zhang Qiu silently sought forgiveness for his erroneous thoughts and then said, "So I'll go in now?"
"Come on in."
Zhang Qiu opened the bathroom door, and a wave of humidity hit him. Through the mist, he saw Lucia lying in the tub, with soap bubbles floating on the water. Lucia extended an arm and smiled lightly, saying, "Come over here; how am I supposed to reach you if you're standing there?"
Zhang Qiu stepped into the bathroom, where the scent of shower gel mingled with a pleasant fragrance that only women had. Lucia took the towel from Zhang Qiu's hand, causing ripples in the water as her body moved. Her milky skin was partially visible beneath the water. Zhang Qiu quickly looked away and said, "Here's your towel; I'm going out now."
Without waiting for Lucia to respond, Zhang Qiu exited. Lucia watched his figure disappear at the door and chuckled softly.
Zhang Qiu lay on the soft bed, continuing to read a book he had already gotten through one-third of when there was a knock at the door. He cautiously got up and stood behind the door, asking, "Who is it?"
"It's me."
Recognizing K's voice, Zhang Qiu opened the door. K stepped inside but was stopped by Zhang Qiu, who said, "Let's go to your room."
"I'm here to talk to both of you."
"Lucia is taking a shower; it's not convenient right now. Once she's done, we'll both come over to find you."
K nodded and returned to his own room. After closing the door, Zhang Qiu heard Lucia ask from behind the sliding bathroom door, "Is there something going on?"
"K is looking for us to discuss something. I already told him you're in the shower. We'll go find him together once you're done."
"I'll hurry up."
"No need; if it were urgent, K wouldn't wait." Zhang Qiu felt he understood K's personality somewhat.
Zhang Qiu stopped reading and walked to the window to look outside. In the distance, layers of mountains surrounded the largest city of the Tanzania Kingdom, Bam. In the center of the city, tall buildings were organically integrated with subtropical rainforests, with dense trees, large grassy areas, and shrubs visible everywhere. Zhang Qiu appreciated the layout of this city, especially the fresh air.
Zhang Qiu was lost in thought and didn't notice that Lucia had come out of the bathroom. Feeling a gentle pat on his shoulder, Zhang Qiu instinctively grabbed the person and twisted them to the side. A soft cry made Zhang Qiu realize he had made a mistake. Lucia stumbled aside but fortunately fell onto the bed, preventing any further injury.
Zhang Qiu quickly turned around and said, "I'm sorry, Lucia, I..." Before he could finish his sentence, he froze in place.
Lucia rubbed her wrist that Zhang Qiu had twisted and complained, "You reacted so strongly; do you know how much that hurts?"
Seeing Zhang Qiu's strange expression, Lucia followed his gaze downwards and felt her face flush with embarrassment. She quickly pulled up her fallen towel and turned away, exclaiming, "Don't look!"
"I won't look," Zhang Qiu awkwardly turned away. "You get dressed; I'll take you to see K."
Not daring to turn back, Zhang Qiu heard rustling sounds behind him, followed by Lucia's soft voice saying, "Okay, you can turn around now."
Zhang Qiu turned back to face Lucia. Her face was still flushed as she lowered her head to tidy her beautiful golden hair. Feeling embarrassed himself, Zhang Qiu stammered, "Let's go find K."
"Mm."
Zhang Qiu noticed Lucia nodding lightly; it was the first time he had seen her shy. Previously, Lucia had always been lively.
Zhang Qiu knocked on K's door, and a cautious voice came from inside: "Who is it?"
"Zhang Qiu."
"With Lucia," Lucia added.
The door opened, and K stood inside, stepping aside to say, "Come in."
Zhang Qiu and Lucia entered as K shut the door with a bang. Zhang Qiu looked around K's room; it was quite similar to his own but with slightly different decorations on the walls and darker overall lighting. Even though it wasn't dark yet, K had already drawn the curtains.
Zhang Qiu turned to K and said, "Why are you closing the curtains? Don't you think it's too dark?"
"Sunlight is not needed for the mission. I suggest you draw the curtains like I do, so no one can observe you from the rooftops or hills across the way."
"Who would observe us?"
"The enemy."
Lucia pressed, "Who is the enemy?"
"More accurately, potential enemies."
"Alright, alright," Zhang Qiu said, not wanting to waste time on the curtains. "K, you called us here. What’s the matter?"
"You are the captain of this operation. I want to know when we will depart, where we are going, who we will meet, and how we will meet them."
Zhang Qiu did not answer K right away but instead asked Lucia, "If we leave now, can you handle it physically?"
"Of course! I train every day," Lucia said, her blush fading as she replaced it with a bright smile.
"We'll depart in ten minutes to the political center of this country, which is also the center of this city—the Royal Palace. The person we need to meet is Prince of Nasantia, Banan Muwadis."
As Zhang Qiu spoke, he took out his phone and found the news screenshot that Yang Yu had shown him earlier to show K. The photo depicted Prince Banan surrounded by military guards, bending down to face an angry crowd, a third jade pendant hanging around his neck.
K stared at the photo for two seconds and said, "Got it. One more question: how are we going to meet him?"
"By participating in the parade."
"Participating in the parade?" K expressed doubt about Zhang Qiu's suggestion while contemplating whether he should contact home. Before leaving, Professor Bai had repeatedly emphasized that following Zhang Qiu's orders was contingent upon not causing serious consequences. Recklessly joining a national parade was not a good idea.
"You heard me right. Tanzania has been experiencing protests for days, and Prince Banan has personally taken to the streets to engage with the public. This presents us with a fantastic opportunity."
Before setting off, Zhang Qiu had thought countless times about how to make contact with Prince Banan. Tanzania is a typical dual monarchy constitutional state where the king holds actual power, making it nearly impossible for commoners to converse with the prince. After studying that news report numerous times, Zhang Qiu devised a plan to blend into the parade and speak with the prince. This method seemed bold but was currently the best approach available.
The only concern for Zhang Qiu was whether Prince Banan's worldview aligned with the 21st century, given that the Tanzania Kingdom was currently in a situation of conflict with its people. Zhang Qiu truly did not dare to hold out too much hope for Prince Banan.
"Then let's set off immediately," Lucia said eagerly. Nothing was more exciting than meeting the heir of the third jade pendant.
"No!" K intervened, "You cannot interfere in this country's internal affairs."
"I'm not trying to interfere in this country's internal affairs; we just want to meet Prince Banan."
"That is also not allowed! I do not agree with this approach. If something goes wrong, it could even lead to an international dispute. We cannot proceed like this." K's tone and demeanor were firm, exuding a sense of righteousness.
Zhang Qiu shook his head and replied, "You cannot do this; your identity is special. If you are discovered, it could cause a dispute. But I am different. I am just an ordinary student using my summer vacation to travel with Lucia, the leader who once visited my high school for an exchange program. No one will suspect us."
"Lucia, let's go," Zhang Qiu said as he pulled Lucia toward the door, stopping to turn around and ask, "We're just going out to observe the situation today. Are you sure you don't want to join us?"
K remained silent, but at the moment Zhang Qiu and Lucia stepped out, K rushed over, locked the door, and followed closely behind Zhang Qiu.
Zhang Qiu turned back and smiled, "Now that's what I call a partner. Don't worry; I won't act recklessly."
The three of them—Zhang Qiu, Lucia, and K—made their way to the lobby on the first floor and were about to exit when a waiter called out to them with a smile, "Ladies and gentlemen, may I ask if you are going out?"
"Yes."
"Sir, the domestic situation has been quite chaotic recently. It will be dark soon, and for your safety, I do not recommend going out at this time."
"Thank you."
Zhang Qiu looked at Lucia and K, sensing their inquiries from their expressions. He smiled and said, "The plan remains unchanged."
K merely nodded slightly while Lucia felt a surge of excitement and exclaimed, "I love the spirit of adventure!"
The waiter watched as the three guests disregarded his advice and left, shaking his head helplessly. Such incidents had already occurred twice today; earlier, a couple from Denmark had also ignored warnings and gone out to explore.
Walking down the street, Zhang Qiu did not feel the tense atmosphere; on the contrary, he felt quite relaxed. Being in a foreign land, everything around him was full of novelty, and Zhang Qiu wished he could remember every place he visited. He already had a plan to organize a trip after returning home, taking his Brothers out to explore.
Following the map's guidance towards the palace, Zhang Qiu felt his stomach growl halfway and asked Lucia, "Is there a plan for us to eat there?"
"Of course! Are you hungry too? Let's go eat."
When it came to eating, Lucia was very enthusiastic, while K remained as cold as ever. Zhang Qiu and Lucia were used to K's demeanor and ignored him, heading directly to the restaurant Lucia had planned.
The restaurant Lucia chose was relatively inexpensive, and the food offered was average—not particularly delicious but enough to fill their stomachs. Starving, Zhang Qiu quickly devoured two beef burgers before moving on to other dishes. Lucia smiled and said, "There’s a special dish here; do you want to try it?"
"Sure! What is it?" Zhang Qiu had a keen interest in unique foods.
"This dish is called ripe; it's made from raw beef entrails cooked with a special sauce. It has a particularly strong flavor, and you need quite a bit of courage to try it!"
"Ah?" After hearing Lucia's description, Zhang Qiu immediately changed his mind. "Maybe I'll pass on that."
"I want to try it," K suddenly said.
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