Chapter 63 It Was My Dog

Chapter 63: My Dog Did It

"Speaking of which, how did you and Lu Wenchuan meet?" Fang Ran slightly tilted his head to look at Zhong Wan.

"Online..."

Zhong Wan hemmed and hawed. "We first met online."

"We had great conversations back then."

"But after he was transferred to District 4, I found out that Lu Tang is actually his cousin."

Zhong Wan clicked his tongue in annoyance. "He... planned this all along."

"Actually, he had already seen my photo long before."

Oh?

Fang Ran was a little surprised.

He could already connect the dots.

Lu Tang had a bubbly and generous personality and often shared glimpses into her life online.

Back when the three of them were close, she had indeed posted a photo of him and Zhong Wan together. At the time, some presumptuous Sentinels even tried to get to know the two of them through her.

Lu Wenchuan had probably noticed Zhong Wan back then and discreetly applied for a transfer to District 4.

The Fourth Security District occupied a unique position within the Federation.

It covered a vast area but had the highest danger index, and it guarded a long coastline.

Sentinels who were thrill-seekers loved coming here to test their limits, but most hoped to transfer away once they had accumulated enough points.

As a result, personnel turnover in District 4 was quite frequent.

There was no reason for Central Command to reject the application of an S-class Sentinel like Lu Wenchuan.

But for someone so icy and detached to go to such lengths...

It seemed he had real feelings for Zhong Wan.

Fang Ran had once worried for his friend, especially when Shen Ke appeared. He was afraid Lu Wenchuan might suddenly change his mind and break Zhong Wan’s heart.

But now, the two were getting along well, and Shen Ke wasn’t even a Guide.

Everything had changed.

Fang Ran smiled and patted his friend’s shoulder.

"Since you two are planning to match, and might even bond in the future, have you learned about his background?"

Zhong Wan was stumped by the question. After thinking for a moment, he said:

"Lu Wenchuan’s entire family works at the center of District 8. Except for his mother, everyone else is a Sentinel. In fact, his father holds a fairly high position in the District 8 headquarters."

He paused before adding, "Probably equivalent to Director Jin’s position."

"He also has a twin brother, an S-class Ice Sentinel like him, named..."

"Fall in!"

A loud shout from ahead suddenly cut Zhong Wan off.

The two looked in the direction of the voice and saw a dozen or so Sentinels lined up in front of a building.

Their movements were in sync, and their expressions were serious.

Clearly, this was a highly disciplined, well-drilled team.

Though they wore the same center uniforms, their aura was starkly different from the casual vibe of District 4.

"Why so many people?" Zhong Wan peered curiously, squinting for a better look. "Eight horizontal stripes on their sleeves?"

"Are they from District 8?" He turned to Fang Ran and asked, "Do we have any exchange programs with District 8 lately?"

Fang Ran shrugged nonchalantly. He was about to mention that he had also encountered some Sentinels from District 8 when the robot halted in front of him.

"Guide Fang Ran, the Personnel Department is located on the 10th floor of Building A2 ahead."

"Got it." Fang Ran pressed the confirmation button on the robot’s screen. "Thank you."

"Zhong Wan," he said to his friend beside him, "I’ll go check in first. I’ll touch base later."

"Alright."

......

After bidding farewell to Zhong Wan, Fang Ran followed the directions.

The building in front of the group of Sentinels was indeed Building A2, but they stood there motionless, as if waiting for someone.

As Fang Ran passed by them, he shot them a sidelong glance.

Their aura wasn’t as intense as that person from earlier, but they still seemed plenty strong on average.

Their ranks were likely all A-class or above.

Most Sentinels Fang Ran had met were cocky and lone-wolf types, preferring to act alone and lacking teamwork spirit.

Especially guys like Fu Zhangzhou...

But this group clearly had trained together long-term, and even their height and build were nearly identical.

This team was not a force to underestimate.

To be honest, they might even outclass the Guardians.

What was their purpose in coming to District 4?

Fang Ran shot one last look before turning away and stepping into the lobby of Building A2.

He made it smoothly to the 10th floor.

As the elevator doors opened, he saw a familiar figure once again.

Fang Liyu was in the elevator bay discussing something with someone else. When she saw Fang Ran step out of the elevator, her face brightened.

"Fang Ran, are you here to report?"

"Yes." Fang Ran nodded to her. "Sister Fang, it’s been a while."

Fang Liyu waved to the person beside her and closed the distance in a few strides.

Fang Ran then realized that the person was none other than Zhang Yi.

He was no longer wearing a white hospital coat but had changed into the gray uniform of the center's staff.

Seeing Fang Ran look over, Zhang Yi pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose and smiled, waving at him.

The center always used uniform colors to distinguish roles.

Sentinels had two uniforms, black and white; Guides at headquarters wore dark blue, while those at the subcenters wore blue.

Other staff without superpowers all wore gray uniforms.

Did this mean Zhang Yi had changed roles?

Fang Ran also greeted him and then said to Fang Liyu, "Sister Fang, I'll go in first to complete the onboarding paperwork."

Fang Liyu's eyes darted. "I'll walk you in. I don't have much to do today anyway."

She lowered her voice and leaned in closer. "There's something I need to tell you, about... Sentinel Fu Zhangzhou."

Fang Ran was jolted slightly.

Fu Zhangzhou?

That guy had only been gone for three days...

Had he gotten into trouble again?

He nodded to Fang Liyu and followed her into the HR office.

The processing went smoothly.

Fang Ran was originally a Guide at the center, and his file in the system was complete. Only some settings on the terminal needed to be updated.

"Guide Fang Ran, your terminal, please. I need to update the system for you."

Fang Ran quickly took out the terminal from his backpack and was about to hand it to the staff when he noticed dozens of unread messages.

"It's alright, you can check those first," the staff member said with a smile.

Hmm...

Fang Ran stared at the screen, his brow furrowed.

Without even thinking, he could guess who had sent them.

He intended to delete the messages directly, but it backfired.

His thumb slipped.

A high-definition, uncensored ab selfie popped up on the screen.

"Like it?"

Fang Ran's eyes widened instantly, and he slammed the terminal against his chest.

Seeing his alarmed expression, Fang Liyu and the staff member looked puzzled.

In truth, Fang Ran had acted quickly, and they'd barely caught a flash across the screen.

"Fang Ran, what's wrong?"

"Did something happen?"

"...It's nothing."

Fang Ran's heart was pounding. He managed a strained smile, his mouth twitching into an unnatural smile.

That bastard Fu Zhangzhou!

Was he trying to destroy his reputation?

"You don't look so good," Fang Liyu asked with concern. "Did you see something in the messages?"

"No, no, haha." Fang Ran shook his head and gave an awkward laugh.

"It's just... my dog at home accidentally set off the security alarm."

"It sent me a few photos."

Fang Liyu nodded, relieved, and smiled. "Oh, you have a dog? Your dog did that?"

"Yeah."

Fang Ran ground out:

"It was that damn dog of mine."