Shrouded Seascape

Chapter 973: Companion

Gao Zhiming grinned with delight, and his eyes were filled with the joy of having someone to share his food with. Anna gazed at the innocent and adorable smiling face before her, and the cogs in her mind came to a halt.

Sending him away was the most rational choice, but her heart softened upon seeing his adorable face. She truly wanted to keep the adorable boy by her side.

This was rare. Anna had killed countless people without a single instance of her heart going soft, but her heart actually grew soft at the sight of the boy before her.

Anna opened her mouth slightly and ate the steamed dumpling. When she bit down gently, the broth that smelled of crabs instantly filled her mouth.

The meat filling was fresh and delicious, and it had an exquisite taste. Gao Zhiming was right—the soup dumplings were indeed quite tasty. No wonder business was so good.

Another soup dumpling was presented to her, and Anna shook her head gently at the sight of it. "I'm done. Just hurry up and eat. We'll go back once you're done."

"Oh," Gao Zhiming muttered before stuffing the soup dumpling into his mouth.

His face reflected pure bliss as he chewed.

After finishing breakfast, Gao Zhiming held Anna's hand and skipped on the colorful paving stones. For him, there was no greater joy than being able to eat his fill.

When Anna pushed open the door to her residence, she saw the Fhtagnists gathered in a circle in the living room. Their solemn expressions made the supposedly cozy living room feel quite eerie instead.

The Fhtagnists pressed their silver pendants to their glabellas, muttering prayers in low voices. Their prayers lacked consonants, making them difficult to understand.

However, Anna could tell that they were clumsily imitating the whispers in their ears.

Upon seeing the High Priestess, the praying Fhtagnists stood up one by one and approached her with reverent expressions.n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

The first to speak was a bespectacled man. He appeared gentle, but his words couldn't be further from gentle as he said, "High Priestess, we're all ready to capture some sacrifices! It's been so many days since the last one. We've been delaying the ritual for quite some time now.

"If we don't make up for the delay, the Great One will blame us."

"No rituals for now. We're at a critical juncture. Killing people is too risky, and our location might get exposed."

"Then, can we start proselytizing?" the Fhtagnist asked, "We must let more people know of the Great One's might. Actually, can I contact my family and ask them to join us?"

Religion, by nature, was expansionist. A religion could not be considered a religion if its followers weren't actively seeking to convert people into their own faith.

Anna frowned, and there was a hint of displeasure in her voice as she asked, "Do you want to get locked up again? The IMF is still searching for us. Doing as you say is tantamount to painting a target on ourselves. It's like saying that we're here."

Anna let go of Gao Zhiming's hand and walked toward her bedroom.

"Follow me," she said, sounding irritated.

The Fhtagnists followed Anna, leaving Gao Zhiming alone.

Gao Zhiming looked uneasy as he glanced at the others in the living room.

Just then, Tobba, wearing only a pair of shorts, walked over to the boy. He circled Gao Zhiming while clicking his tongue in amazement.

"Great, not bad at all. Gotta say you look invigorated after just a haircut. Qualified to be my sidekick."

Gao Zhiming cast a curious gaze at Tobba. He had already met Tobba yesterday, but he still couldn't quite wrap his head around the bizarre fact that an infant could talk and walk. It was truly bizarre.

"Name's Tobba. From now on, you'll roll with me, got it? I'm your boss."

Gao Zhiming pouted, looking disgruntled. He was obviously older than Tobba, so how could the latter become his boss?

"What's up with that look? You're looking down on me, aren't you? Well, let me tell you something—I'm the big boss here. With just one word from me, Anna will send you back where you came from."

Gao Zhiming was only eight years old, but he clearly wasn't that easy to fool. "You're lying. Big Sis isn't afraid of you at all. She even told you to get lost last night."

"Oh, you're talking back to me? See that lady over there? She's one of my people. I just need to say the word, and she'll throw you out," Tobba said, speaking with conviction as he pointed at Li Lu on the sofa.

Gao Zhiming was clearly still unwilling to accept the arrangement, but he wisely closed his mouth when he saw Li Lu glancing over at them.

Tobba nodded with satisfaction at the sight. Then, he leaned in and sniffed at Gao Zhiming's clothes. "You've had breakfast?"

"Mmhmm. I ate soup dumplings."

"Soup dumplings? They do taste really good. Too bad I don't have any teeth right now. Can't eat them yet," Tobba remarked with a face full of regret.

"Come with me. I'll introduce you to some folks," Tobba said. He put his hands behind his back and walked toward the clown.

"Well, let me introduce you to this guy. His name is Joseph. As you can see, he's a clown, but he's our companion as well. He's a very important fighter. Of course, he's one of my sidekicks as well."

The clown playing chess by itself looked up and nodded at Gao Zhiming. It flipped its hand covered with a white glove, and a plastic toy car appeared on its palm.

Gao Zhiming's eyes widened at the sight. "Wow, that was great! Is he a magician?"

"Mmhmm, you could say that. He can make people disappear, too."

Tobba snatched the toy car and led Gao Zhiming to Li Lu.

"She's one of my people, so be polite. Call her 'Auntie.'"

"Hello, Auntie," Gao Zhiming said, bowing nervously to Li Lu.

"Hello," Li Lu replied, staring curiously at the boy before her. She truly couldn't understand why that madwoman had sought this boy out and was treating him so well, too.

When the madwoman gently lifted the boy into the car back then, Li Lu was almost convinced that 315 was an ordinary human being capable of feeling emotions.

"Do you have any special abilities? Like breathing fire or any special ability at all?" Li Lu asked, sounding curious.

Tobba answered his mother's question, saying, "Come on, that is such a dumb question. No wonder they say—'once pregnant, three years stupid[1].' If he had any special ability, would he be scavenging food from the garbage on the streets?"

"I don't scavenge food from the garbage on the streets. We collect trash to sell for money to buy food." Gao Zhiming corrected softly.

"Same thing, same thing." Tobba waved his hand dismissively and led Gao Zhiming to Li Long.

"He's… Wait, what's your name again?" Tobba asked, looking perplexed.

Li Long revealed a strained smile. He wasn't really curious about Gao Zhiming. He was in a daze, with his mind fully occupied by thoughts of leaving this place.

He truly wanted to leave, but Wang Sheng's promised job had yet to arrive, so he dared not leave. If he were to leave, how would he sustain himself? Was he supposed to feed on air?

If he left now and Wang Sheng returned with his promised job, the joke would be on him. After all, Wang Sheng had promised him a stable job with a monthly salary of twenty thousand yuan.

Just then, Tobba clapped his hands as if he had been struck by a realization. "Oh, I remember you now. He's called Li Long. He's... Wait, what do you do again?"

"Lil' Tobba, why don't you go play somewhere else? I'm busy right now."

"How impudent! 'Lil' Tobba'? Really? Who do you think you're talking to? Based on what Anna had told me, I've been in this joint way earlier than you, so show some respect, will you?!"

1. the original saying is 一孕傻三年 basically, baby brain or momnesia ☜