stjorthotic Chapter 139 You should pay for the number of bowls you ate!
Chapter 139 You should pay for the number of bowls you ate!
Chapter 140 You should pay for the number of bowls you ate!
Sena was like a canary just released from its beautiful cage, full of novelty and curiosity about everything. Her bright eyes kept scanning the stalls selling exotic candies, shimmering magical ornaments, and tempting local delicacies.
Winnie, standing beside her, seemed much more nervous, trying her best to fulfill her duty as a guard, but appearing somewhat overwhelmed.
"Winnie, look! That colorful windmill that spins by itself! It's so pretty!"
Sena spotted a new target, pointing to magical gadgets on a stall not far away.
The windmill, made of colored glass and fine mithril, slowly rotates on its own in the breeze, refracting dazzling spots of light.
"Miss, that—that looks like something for younger children—"
Winnie tried to dissuade him gently, but her worry deepened.
She kept in mind Master Kyle's instructions to ensure Miss Sena's absolute safety at all times, despite the noise and chaos.
The bustling market made her instinctively uneasy.
"Oh, look! It's alright! It's so much fun!"
Sena didn't care at all; her attention was drawn to something else entirely, like a magnet, and she was instantly captivated by the enormous, sizzling, and fragrant grilled meat skewers on a nearby stall.
"Wow! This looks even better! It looks delicious! Let's buy two skewers!"
She didn't give Winnie any chance to object, excitedly pulling her to squeeze in front of the bustling barbecue stall, taking out a few shiny silver coins from her delicate little purse, and handing them over impatiently.
Winnie sighed, resignedly watching the throngs of people around her with nervousness, scrutinizing every face that approached her with wariness!
He watched helplessly as Sena, like a happy little squirrel, held up two skewers of oily grilled meat that were almost bigger than her face and ate them with no regard for her image, her mouth covered in glistening sauce.
"Miss, shouldn't we go back now?"
While Sena was swallowing, Winnie tried to persuade her again.
"It's getting late. Young Master Kyle should be almost done with his business. If he finds out we've been out for too long—"
"My brother's been acting all mysterious lately, talking to those people behind closed doors for ages, he doesn't have time for me!"
Sena muttered to herself, nimbly dodging a drop of oil that was about to drip, but her eyes sparkled as if she had discovered a new continent, glancing at a street corner in the distance that was surrounded by a group of young apprentices.
"Hey? It's so lively over there! It sounds like someone's putting on a show! Let's go check it out!"
She grabbed Winnie's hand again and excitedly ran towards the gathered crowd.
Winnie could only follow passively, her unease growing stronger like a surging tide.
Winnie's heart remained in suspense; a vague unease clung to her like a persistent, insidious ailment. She felt as if a shadowy, malevolent gaze was watching them from the shadows.
But every time she turned around sharply and looked around warily, all she saw were bustling, ordinary-looking strangers with all sorts of expressions.
Under the sunlight, the city of Sel was still bustling and full of vitality, and everything seemed normal.
Maybe—I'm just too nervous? Am I being overly anxious?
Young Master Kyle also said that the city of Sel has academy patrol teams that patrol day and night, and the security has always been very good; there won't be any trouble.
Winnie tried to reassure herself, attempting to suppress the inexplicable unease growing in her heart, and gripped Sena's hand even tighter to ensure that this overly lively young lady was always within her absolute protective range, within her reach and sight.
However, Winnie's trained instincts, which belonged to a guard, were not unfounded.
Less than fifty meters away from them, on the second floor of a street-facing teahouse, behind a seemingly ordinary, slightly ajar wooden window, a cold gaze had just withdrawn.
Sean stood in the shadows behind the window, expressionless, watching the girl downstairs, dressed in an exquisite robe, oblivious to the impending doom, still smiling innocently. Like a naive little fish lured by false bait, she swam happily into the dense crowd watching the street puppet show.
A barely perceptible, cold smile curved the corners of his lips, disappearing in an instant.
He raised his hand, holding an unremarkable communication bone fragment that resembled the leg bone of some kind of dark bird. He brought it to his pale lips, his voice low yet clear, piercing through the barriers of space to reach a specific receiving point far away: "Target confirmed. Relaxed, completely unguarded, entirely absorbed in play. Only one apprentice of the same rank is by his side; his experience is clearly limited, he's tense but lacks judgment, and is not a cause for concern."
After a brief silence, Lilith's calm, emotionless response came from the bone fragment, concise and efficient, like a machine: "Received. Successful replacement! Executed as planned, over."
"I wish you success in your mission, sir."
Sean finished speaking calmly, then his fingertips twitched slightly, cutting off the communication.
He gave one last indifferent glance to the girl downstairs, who was still laughing heartily at the puppet's exaggerated and clumsy performance, lost in the crowd, and then turned away without hesitation.
The figure seemed to be swallowed by shadows, slowly retreating into the deeper darkness of the teahouse's private room, disappearing without a trace, like a drop of water merging into the ocean, as if it had never existed there at all.
Downstairs, the bustling street was still bathed in the afternoon sun, filled with the sounds of people and the everyday life of the city.
Sena was laughing so hard at the puppet's comical mistake that she was doubled over, her cheeks flushed like ripe apples, and her eyes sparkling with unbridled joy.
She was completely unaware that an invisible and dangerous net had been silently woven around her, disguised as the most ordinary street disputes, and was rapidly and fatally tightening.
"Look at that! That stall! It looks so delicious!"
Sena's attention always shifts very quickly. Suddenly, she pointed to a steaming wonton stall (let's call it that, it sounds familiar) and exclaimed excitedly.
After saying that, without even letting Winnie see what the stall looked like, he took the initiative and pulled her along, quickly squeezing through the crowd.
"Boss! Two bowls of our signature wontons, please!"
Sena squeezed to the front of the stall and called out in a clear voice.
"Alright! Please have a seat, ladies, it will be ready shortly!"
The stall owner was a middle-aged man who looked honest and kind. He wore a faded apron, responded enthusiastically, and started making wontons with quick and efficient hands.
Before long, two bowls of steaming hot, fragrant wontons were served on the small table next to them.
"Ladies, your food is hot! Be careful!"
The boss greeted us with a smile.
"Thank you, boss!"
Sena eagerly picked up her spoon, blew on it, and took small bites, a satisfied smile spreading across her face. Winnie, on the other hand, sat down somewhat absentmindedly, her eyes still scanning her surroundings warily, barely touching the bowl of wontons.
As she watched Sena happily eating and the seemingly ordinary and honest owner wiping the table, her unease grew stronger.
She noticed that as the shop owner bent down to wipe the items, his eyes seemed to quickly sweep over them from the corner of his eye—that look in his eyes—
He is definitely not as simple as he appears on the surface.
Sena quickly finished a large bowl of food and patted her still-unchanged belly with satisfaction.
"It's so delicious! We'll definitely come back to this place next time! We'll also check out other places; there are bound to be many more delicious options!"
She stood up, pulled Winnie, who had barely touched her chopsticks, and walked over to the boss.
"Boss! How much?"
Seeing the two customers approach, the owner immediately beamed and said warmly, "Ladies, you've eaten four bowls in total. Thank you! Just two silver coins will do!"
"Four bowls?"
Sena's satisfied smile froze instantly, replaced by immense confusion and a hint of resentment at being wrongly accused.
She clearly remembered that she and Winnie each ate only one bowl, and there were clearly only two empty bowls on the table!
"Boss, you've miscalculated, haven't you?"
Sena frowned, pointed to where they had just been sitting, her voice clear and assertive, typical of a young girl.
"We only ate two bowls! Look, there are only two empty bowls over there—"
Her voice stopped abruptly.
Because right in the direction she was pointing, the waiter who had been quietly tidying up the table next to them had just served them two steaming bowls of wontons that looked like they had never been touched, and they were neatly placed next to the empty bowls they had used before!
Four identical bowls, emitting faint steam almost simultaneously, stood silently in their arrangement, like irrefutable evidence of the boss's words.
Sena froze, her pink lips slightly parted, her azure eyes filled with disbelief and bewilderment.
She clearly—clearly didn't see that waiter come over to add more bowls!
And they didn't eat anything at all! What's going on?
Winnie reacted even faster. Her heart sank, and the unease she had been feeling all along reached its peak, turning into a chill that spread throughout her body!
This isn't right! This is really wrong! This is a trap!
She immediately stepped forward, shielding the still somewhat bewildered Sena, who was trying to understand the situation, behind her. She warily stared at the strange boss with a beaming smile but a hint of smugness in his eyes, and at the waiter who stood motionless by the table like a soulless puppet after putting down his bowl.
"Boss, I think you must have misremembered or confused it."
Winnie tried to keep her voice calm, but her slightly trembling fingertips and quickened heartbeat betrayed the turmoil within her.
"We only ordered two bowls, and we only ate two bowls. Those two bowls weren't ours at all; we had absolutely no idea what happened."
"Miss, what you're saying—"
The boss's smile remained unchanged, even appearing more "sincere" and "helpless." He rubbed his hands together and pointed to the four bowls that seemed to bear witness.
"I've been doing business on this street for over ten years, and I rely on honesty and integrity. I've never cheated my customers."
These four bowls were clearly just taken off your table; look, they're still steaming hot.
Perhaps this lively young lady ate too quickly, or maybe she forgot? Or perhaps—are the two ladies trying to play a joke on our restaurant and dine and dash?
He raised his voice slightly and said the words "free meal" in a tone that seemed aggrieved but was actually inflammatory, which immediately attracted the curious eyes of more passers-by and nearby vendors.
Some people started pointing and whispering about Sena and Winnie, their eyes filled with suspicion and scrutiny.
Sena's face flushed bright red, a mixture of anger and embarrassment.
She has been pampered and protected since childhood. How could she have ever been publicly slandered and accused like this?
"You're talking nonsense! We didn't! How could anyone from the Arnold family dine and dash!"
She stomped her feet in anger, her voice trembling with obvious sobs due to extreme grievance and agitation, and her azure eyes misted over.
"Since you don't want to dine and dash, that's for the best."
The boss's smile remained unchanged as he cheerfully stretched out his hand, palm open, and pointed at Sena.
"Well then, thank you for your patronage! Two silver coins! Thank you for your patronage, Miss!"
Seeing that more and more people were gathering around her, and with whispers and strange looks coming at her like needles, Winnie's face turned extremely ugly.
She knew something was amiss, but with everyone watching, continuing the argument would only worsen the situation for her mistress. She just wanted to end it all as quickly as possible and leave this strange and troublesome place.
"Alright, two silver coins it is!"
Winnie suppressed her anger and quickly took out two shiny silver coins from her pocket, preparing to hand them over.
"We've given it, and that's the end of it—"
"Don't give it to me!"
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