Chapter 16 - strategy

The focus of their conversation shifted to the conflict between the Weiting consortium and the Bond Group. It's inconceivable that Mr. Jonas' real target is the nondescript purple-haired girl in the corner.

After all, if she had no secrets, Jonas wouldn't go to so much trouble to kidnap her.

Eiffel suddenly remembered a sentence Jonas had once said to her.

—A good hunter must first learn to hide his thoughts"

As Eiffel looked at the dark-haired boy in the back seat, she felt increasingly unable to fathom his thoughts.

Eiffel averted her eyes and turned her attention to the worried expression on the purple girl's face next to her.

The girl's anxious expression resembled that of a frightened small animal, making it difficult for Eiffel to connect her to the hacker genius Jonas had described.

Seemingly frightened by the unfamiliar surroundings, the girl remained curled up in the corner.

Her eyes occasionally wandered to Jonas beside her, but quickly retreated when he moved, like a frightened ostrich.

Sensing the girl's nervousness, Jonas spoke calmly, "You needn't be nervous, Miss Ellis, I'm not going to hurt you."

In an attempt to ease the girl's anxiety, she became even more nervous upon hearing this, raising her head and speaking somewhat incoherently, "Have... did I do something wrong?"

When Jonas saw this, he didn't know how to react. He watched this oversensitive girl and opened his mouth, but couldn't bring himself to say anything.

The fact that Jonas received no reply seemed to confirm the girl's thoughts even more.

She became completely flustered and spoke with a bit of a stutter to save the young man's impression: "Please don't hit me, I'll correct myself..."

Before she could finish speaking, the expected insults and blows failed to materialize. Ellis felt a hand on her head.

"No one will hit you anymore."

The warmth emanating from the palm left Ellis speechless for a moment, unable to speak for a long time, mumbling softly and lowering her head.

The car drove on slowly, the pedestrians and buildings backing away.

The car fell silent again.

The sunlight streaming in through the window fell on the pale skin of the girl's thighs and made her involuntarily retreat into the shadows, as if she wanted to hide completely.

Ellis glanced at the man next to her from time to time, but quickly backed away after a quick glance, as if she was afraid of being noticed by him.

And Jonas narrowed his eyes too, allowing Ellis to give him bold glances.

As the sunlight streamed through the man's hair, it colored the tips with a golden hue.

Suddenly, a strange thought occurred to Ellis.

The moment this thought occurred, even Ellis himself was startled.

The girl shook her head quickly and tried to banish the thought.

...

In the Seltzer district, in a villa.

The purple-haired girl was wearing a white dress reminiscent of an angel who had fallen to earth.

Innocent and ignorant, but attentive and curious about everything around her.

Ellis wore a slightly oversized dress, looked at herself in the mirror and was somewhat perplexed.

She looked at Jonas next to her and timidly asked: "Can I wear my original clothes again?"

It wasn't that she felt uncomfortable in the dress, but rather too comfortable, making her feel a little out of place.

The silk texture gave her a feeling of unreality, as if she were a soap bubble that could burst at any moment.

The girl wasn't ready to allow hope, because allowing hope would mean facing despair again.

"Don't you like it?" Jonas asked.

"It's not that I don't like it, but..."

Ellis wanted to explain something, but she stuttered and heard the man in front of her laugh and say, "As long as you like it."

Jonas' words left Ellis a little perplexed, he spoke softly, "I'll remove the chip from your sex partner later."

"Huh?"

When Ellis heard this, he stood motionless for a long time, unable to react.

"You, tell me...?"

She opened her mouth, but for some reason she couldn't say anything.

The man in front of her seemed to have become a phantom, as if no matter what she said, he'd tell her in no uncertain terms that what he had just said was a lie.

She was afraid and dared not speak.

Jonas ignored the girl's abnormal behavior and unfastened the chain that bound the girl as if to say, "You're free."

"What I need is Ellis Chelsea... not a mindless sex companion."

He said, as if repeating a fact.

Ellis looked at the man in front of her with a smile, opened her mouth, but couldn't say anything.

— "I need you, Ellis Chelsea."

It was the first time anyone had ever said those words to her.

The feelings that had been building up in her heart instantly turned into a flood that washed away her consciousness, and everything blurred before her.

She didn't know why she was crying and she couldn't stop, no matter what.

The girl kept wiping her eyes with her sleeve as if to give vent to the grief that had haunted her during this time