Chapter 49

The car stopped in front of Lin Yifan and the others. Instinctively, he reached for the pistol hidden in his backpack, but was held back by Saya Takagi.

The car door opened, and a middle-aged man in a black uniform stepped out. His tense face looked as if he could devour someone at any moment.

Looking at the middle-aged man, his attire resembled that of an official army uniform from the Meiji period. The black military coat with two rows of golden buttons was particularly eye-catching. The straight-backed middle-aged man exuded a terrifying aura.

Saya Takagi hid behind Lin Yifan, turning her head away, afraid to look directly at the man.

Clearly, this towering middle-aged man was Saya Takagi's father—Sakuya Takagi.

Sakuya Takagi's face was stern, and his square face showed displeasure. "Saya, when did you start hanging around with him? I'm very disappointed to hear from your teacher that you've been skipping school."

"Dad, I..." Saya Takagi lowered her head, too afraid to speak in the presence of the terrifying Sakuya Takagi.

At this moment, Sakuya Takagi's gaze shifted to Lin Yifan. The two men locked eyes, and under the intimidating presence of the superior, Lin Yifan broke into a sweat but did not back down.

The leader of the right-wing group in this area, who could be called a politician, more resembled a samurai or a military leader from the Sengoku period.

Sakuya Takagi raised his head. "You, are you my daughter's classmate?"

"Yes," Lin Yifan replied calmly.

"Did you take my daughter away from school?"

Lin Yifan lifted his chin and met Sakuya Takagi's gaze. "Yes, it was me."

"Are you a Chinese?"

As soon as Sakuya Takagi said this, the atmosphere became extremely tense. Saya Takagi tugged at Lin Yifan's sleeve, signaling him not to speak the truth in front of her right-wing father.

Without hesitation, Lin Yifan replied straightforwardly, "Yes."

Saya Takagi gasped. Was Lin Yifan crazy? Wasn't he afraid of being cut down by this extremely xenophobic father?

Sakuya Takagi raised his hand, and the driver and his followers behind him smirked.

"Dad, no!" Saya Takagi emerged from behind Lin Yifan, but it was too late.

Sakuya Takagi placed his hand on Lin Yifan's shoulder and, to everyone's surprise, nodded. "Is that so? But you also protected my daughter."

Lin Yifan, who had been bracing himself to fight several strong men, was stunned. Sakuya Takagi did not react as he had expected, with intense hostility and sarcastic remarks, telling him to stay away from his daughter.

What was going on?

"Young man, are you interested in coming with me?" Sakuya Takagi made a rare gesture of invitation.

Lin Yifan glanced at Saya beside him, confused.

He had no intention of pursuing Saya, yet her father had come to him, inviting him to their home for tea?

Lin Yifan hesitated, and Sakuya Takagi spoke again. "Please, I don't need to play games with you. Given the current situation, I could easily kill you on the street."

Sakuya Takagi's words were loaded, especially the phrase "current situation," which made Lin Yifan ponder.

He turned his head to look at the distant street, where a firefight was still ongoing. A large number of Self-Defense Forces and helicopters were pouring in, chasing the few轮回者 from the Arbitrators.

Even a well-equipped hunting team would find it difficult to handle that situation. The bald, muscular man would probably resort to his sewer tactics again.

With the Self-Defense Forces swarming the area, Lin Yifan had no intention of going there. He decided to go to the Takagi house first and consider how to defend against or counter those people.

"Understood, I'll go with you." Lin Yifan walked confidently into the black car behind, while Saya Takagi remained hidden behind him, too afraid to face her father.

Just as the car was about to start, a voice called out from a distance, "Wait! Lin Yifan, you little brat, wait for me!"

Nan Liang, carrying a sniper rifle, ran over and pounded on the car window.

Lin Yifan lowered the window and saw Nan Liang's hand quickly reach in, grabbing his collar and whispering, "Tell me, what the hell was that? Aliens? People from the future?"

"Shh, keep it down! You saw it?" Lin Yifan was a bit surprised that Nan Liang had noticed the dimensional gate. But given the flashy entrance of the Steel Front, it would be hard for Nan Liang to miss it.

"Give me an explanation, what the hell was that? Otherwise, I'll have to report it to my superiors, and they're all after you!"

Nan Liang, unable to contain her excitement, almost pulled Lin Yifan out of the car.

"Stop! Since you saw it, I'll tell you tonight. Wait for me to get back. Don't look at me like that, I promise, I promise to tell you."

Lin Yifan felt the timing was right. Since Nan Liang had seen the轮回者, he might as well take the opportunity to tell her, though not directly. He was confident he could gradually make her accept it.

"Don't lie to me?" Nan Liang gave him a suspicious look.

"I promise!"

The driver was getting impatient, and the car in front had already turned the corner.

Beep, beep. The driver honked to urge them on.

Nan Liang recognized the car as belonging to the Takagi family and reluctantly let go, allowing Lin Yifan to sit back in the car.

Nan Liang grew smaller in their view until the car turned the corner and she disappeared from sight.

At this moment, Saya Takagi's small hand pressed on Lin Yifan's thigh, and she whispered, her forehead beaded with cold sweat, "What do you think... what does my father want with you?"

"What does he want? Who knows? We barely know each other, and it's not like we're meeting the parents so soon, right?" Lin Yifan said half-jokingly.

Saya Takagi gritted her teeth and punched Lin Yifan. "You've seen everything, what more do you want!"

"No... not really. We've only known each other for a few hours, and you already like me?" Lin Yifan turned around, feigning surprise.

Saya's face flushed, and she pushed Lin Yifan away. "Don't flatter yourself! How could I like someone like you? I just... I just can't stand it."

"Can't stand it?"

"I don't know! I don't know! I just can't stand it, but I don't like you!" The stubborn girl's eyes welled up with tears as she pounded Lin Yifan with her fists.

The driver, listening to the flirtatious banter inside the car, felt a bit awkward. The words "can't stand it" and "don't like you" sounded like opposites.

Blocking Saya's fists, Lin Yifan realized she was really hitting him, but her punches felt more like a massage.

"Hate you! Why did you treat me like that? You're the rudest, most impolite guy I've ever met! You... you're a jerk." Saya Takagi cried and hit him.

Actually, she was scared. She didn't have any feelings for Lin Yifan, but they had been through a lot together, including when she... killed someone. That feeling was deeply etched in her bones, hard to forget.

When she fired the gun, Saya Takagi felt nothing, but once she thought about it, she was terrified, especially seeing the body pushed into the corner like a doll. The shock only hit her when she recalled it.

Noticing Saya's abnormal emotions, Lin Yifan realized she wasn't just complaining but was also afraid.

Seeing her trembling body, Lin Yifan scratched his head, leaned down, and looked up at the crying Saya, asking softly, "Are you scared?"

"Yes... I remember that face." Saya's voice softened, like a lamb.

Saya had shot through the man's head, and his helmet and mask flew off. The轮回者, who looked no more than twenty-two, had a handsome face that was blank in death, lying in a puddle, his eyes lifeless and staring at the water.

Lin Yifan pursed his lips, reached out, and pulled Saya into his arms, letting her rest her head on his chest.

His lips close to Saya's ear, his warm breath made her heart flutter.

"Cry, cry into my chest, no one can hear you."

Saya burst into tears, sobbing softly on Lin Yifan's chest.

Seeing the driver turn his head, Lin Yifan glared at him fiercely. "Mind your own business, kid."

...

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