On another front, Rulu also attempted to contact the Rebels, and successfully reached Captain Guan. Over the phone, Rulu asked him what had happened in the days since they had parted ways.

  Captain Guan told him that their withdrawal had gone smoothly—they had encountered no resistance from the Sanctuary's forces. Both his own men and General Li's army had evacuated Blue Sea City safely and successfully rendezvoused outside the city.

  Captain Guan then asked about Rulu's current situation, and how he had managed to cover their retreat. Rulu replied that he was safe, but as for the details, it wasn't convenient to discuss over the phone.

  Captain Guan then extended an invitation for Rulu to visit the Rebels' base outside Blue Sea City, saying they wished to express their gratitude for his help. Rulu declined, saying he still had matters to attend to in Blue Sea City and couldn't accept the invitation.

  Captain Guan insisted, saying that General Li very much wanted to meet him and had something important to discuss—and urged Rulu to find the time to come regardless. Hearing this, Rulu reluctantly agreed and said he would make the trip in a few days. Captain Guan immediately arranged a time and pce to meet, after which the two ended the call.

  Not long after cutting off contact with Captain Guan, Rulu reached out to Shari, a friend from his school days, and arranged to meet her. The moment Shari heard that Rulu wanted to see her, she agreed at once. That afternoon, Rulu arrived punctually at the upscale tea restaurant where they had agreed to meet, and found that Shari had already cimed a table and was waiting for him.

  "Rulu, over here!" Seeing Rulu appear, Shari immediately stood up and waved to him with a bright expression. Rulu made his way over and took the seat beside her.

  "Rulu, what would you like to eat? I'll order for you." Shari wore a gentle smile as she picked up the menu and looked it over carefully.

  Rulu said: "I'm not hungry right now. Just get me a drink."

  "Now that you mention it, I'm not particurly hungry either. I'll just have a drink too." Shari set down the menu and called the server over for two gsses of orange juice.

  Rulu sipped his drink and chatted with Shari. He asked how Sphinx and A-Niu had been tely. Shari said they were both fine—she had asked her father to speak with the school on their behalf, and it had been arranged for Sphinx and A-Niu to stay at the school indefinitely, with no risk of being turned away. The school would even help cover their day-to-day expenses.

  "Thank you, Shari," Rulu said. "I keep asking you to handle these things for me."

  "Don't mention it," Shari replied. "A-Niu and Sphinx are my schoolmates too. They may not be human, but I don't want to see them driven out of school either. Though I am a little curious, Rulu—why did you need me to do all this? A few days back you also had me arrange for Sphinx and A-Niu to slip out of school in secret. I remember that was the same day a terrorist group attacked Blue Sea City. Was something important going on?"

  Rulu's expression stiffened slightly. He said vaguely: "Ah, well… you know Nana and I are in hiding right now. That day I heard the terrorists were going to attack Blue Sea City, and I was worried Nana might be in danger—so I had A-Niu and Sphinx come help me protect her."

  "Ah, I see." Shari nodded, a pensive look crossing her face. "Speaking of which, the terrorist attack not long ago was a massive incident. From what I heard, the terrorists actually pushed their way into the city and fought a pitched battle with the Sanctuary's forces. A lot of innocent civilians were caught in the crossfire. Thankfully nothing happened to my family."

  Rulu feigned surprise and said: "Really? The news hasn't been reporting much about it tely, so I don't know many of the details. You seem to know quite a bit—can you tell me more?"

  Shari gnced around cautiously, and once she was satisfied no one nearby could hear, she said carefully: "I only know this because my father told me. After I tell you, please don't go repeating it to anyone."

  "I understand. Go ahead."

  "Alright then." Shari pressed a finger to her lips and spoke from memory: "According to my father, the terrorist organization assembled a very rge force and unched an assault on Blue Sea City. Their goal was to rescue some of their people who had been captured. The Sanctuary sent troops to stop them, but in the end the terrorists managed to free their people anyway. General Feihu was killed in action, and the newly appointed Governor Suwen was badly wounded. By any measure, it was a major defeat for the Sanctuary."

  "Is that so. What a shame," Rulu said with an expression of practiced sympathy. Then he asked: "After all that happened, did the Sanctuary take any action to strike back against the terrorist organization?"

  Shari said: "Apparently not. According to my father, after the incident, Governor Suwen not only didn't issue any orders to retaliate against the terrorists—he actually prohibited the Sanctuary's forces from taking any offensive action against them whatsoever. He didn't even send anyone after the assassin who had attacked him. My father thinks it's because Governor Suwen was threatened by the terrorists during the incident and was left so shaken by the whole ordeal that it changed his thinking."

  "Hmph. Smart of him. Otherwise he really wouldn't have survived." Rulu murmured under his breath, his expression darkening. Hearing his words, Shari looked at him with puzzlement. "Hmm? What did you just say, Rulu?"