♫ Still breathing
Nothing lasts forever
No tears of rain fall forever ♫
-- ReoNa, Untitled World

A slim, raven-haired woman sat on a leather couch, her arms stretched out as she crossed her legs. Though her posture was relaxed, the intensity burning in her midnight eyes suggests otherwise.

She was dressed in a chinese traditional costume, a ruqun; consisting of a blouse and a wrap-around skirt. Her blouse was of a crimson red colour, while her skirt was utterly black.

Her eyes, that resembled a fox, were fixated on the elevator doors located at the end of the quiet room.

The room she was in resembled an office, with most of its walls made of glass, with one side of the walls facing the open air. The skyscrapers in the distance lit up the quiet city.

One would assume it was her office, if it wasn't for the man laying down on his own blood on the ground beside her, bleeding out onto the expensive fur carpet.

"璐小姐。。。" (Miss Lu...)

The woman glanced down at the man struggling beneath her, but her eyes weren't focused on him.

"急躁。那是我该说吧。" (Impatient. That's what I should say.)

The man coughed, lifting his head up as if a stack of rocks were weighing down on him. He opened his mouth to speak, and the woman, Lu Ruoyi, picked up her gun resting on the couch beside her, shooting it thrice at the man, her eyes cold and angry.

A splatter of blood landed on her cheek, and someone rushed out from the shadows, a handkerchief in their hands. They reached out to wipe off the blood, but Ruoyi slapped it away.

"走开。" (Go away.)

It was a woman dressed in a suit and she bowed quickly, retreating back into the shadows.

Ruoyi noted the text written on her lenses, informing her that the marked target has arrived here. The elevator doors opened, and light flooded into the dimly lit room, illuminating the stormy look in Ruoyi's eyes.

A yellow-haired man immediately dashed out from the elevator, preparing to go down on his knees.

"情妇。" (Mistress.)

Ruoyi fired the gun at the man without hesitation. The yellow-haired man didn't flinch, even as the bullet grazed his cheek.

"算了，杀和打是你的重点。我错了。滚开 吧。" (Forget it, killing and fighting is your focus. My mistake, now get lost.)

Rui didn't budge an inch and Ruoyi only sighed, standing up from her seat and three people from the shadows moved along with her, one of them heading to the glass walls that led to the open air, sticking an object on it.

It expanded a second later, and it exploded, shattering the glass into pieces. Ruoyi was far enough to not get hit by any of the stray shards, and she continued gazing down at Rui who refused to move, still kneeling on one knee.

Ruoyi approached Rui, her hand caressing his cheek where she aimed her gun at. Rui squeezed his eyes close, clenching his jaw.

"对不起, 情妇。" (I'm sorry, Mistress.)

Ruoyi remained silent, pulling her hand back and observed the blood she wiped away from his cheek.

"情妇，一切都准备好了。" (Mistress, everything is prepared.)

One of the bodyguards stated, none of them glancing at Rui.

Ruoyi only nodded, heading to the shattered window and eventually, a large passenger drone that resembled a vehicle hovered outside. They boarded the vehicle, and Ruoyi glanced back, a cruel smile flitting past her lips as she pressed her lips against the bloodied hand.

Within seconds, they disappeared, leaving Rui behind and he slowly stood up.

Just like his mistress had ordered, he'll disappear and await for her orders once again.

He had disappointed her severely this time, and he didn't dare face her for the second time.

He brought his hand up, swiping in the air and began typing a message to send to someone.

兄弟，我失败了 ;_;。情妇不想看我, 又叫我滚开呢。你。。。要保护她。我走了 ;_; (Bro, I failed ;_;. The mistress doesn't want to see me anymore, she even told me to get lost. You...have to protect her. I'm going to disappear ;_; )

- 瑞 (Rui)

A few seconds after he sent the message, his lenses pinged, notifying him that the sender has replied to his message.

没用 (Useless)

- 月 (Yue)

Rui laughed bitterly. Kidnapping was not his forte, and if it weren't for his odd relationship with his mistress, he would be dead with missing fingers or limbs.

It was his second failure at a mission, and an important mission to his mistress.

He was humiliated.

***

Celeste didn't expect his life to end at the hands of a robot, or an artificial intelligence. However, there was nothing he could do now, with those sharp objects digging into his neck.

He winced, knowing he was dead, if he moved even an inch.

"Ar-Arwen! Hey, ju-just stop--"

"Arwen...shut up and let us in..." Peach murmured out suddenly.

Celeste snapped his eyes open and the objects around his neck loosened instantly.

"Permission from Peach granted, target will be regarded as a temporary ally. Protocols halted."

Maddog collapsed to the floor, pallid. He let out a shaky breath, eyes wide in disbelief.

Even Celeste had grown slightly pale.

A moment later, Arwen appeared as a hologram in front of them, an amiable expression on her face. Her presence startled the both of them.

"Master and 001, you are exhibiting symptoms of fright. I will prepare two cups of soothing warm tea, and play some soft music. The tea will be served in the living room. Please do rest easy, and let me know if there is anything else you require."

"Uh--uuh..."

"Assessing Peach's current condition, please allow me to brief moment to prepare a concise report."

She disappeared, and the room was suddenly drowned in the soft sounds of ambience music. The lighting in the house had even been adjusted to fit the atmosphere.

Celeste's arms trembled, and his hold on Peach loosened as he stumbled. Maddog immediately noticed that and scrambled to his feet, gesturing for Celeste to step inside.

A soft blue light shrouded Peach's body as they moved and Arwen appeared as a hologram yet again, bowing slightly, making them halt instinctively.

They still haven't recovered fully from the previous events.

"Peach is suffering from a minor concussion, a slight contusion and a small cut on her neck. No hemorrhage is present. She will require ample rest to fully recover. Cases of concussions varies from individual to individual, and the recovery period varies as well. It would be wise to observe Peach carefully for the next few days."

"So, she isn't in a serious condition?"

"Definitely not, Master."

The two men heaved a sigh of relief, and Maddog went on to utter a few more words of relief. Though, Celeste did find it strange that he felt relief for a woman he wanted to catch.

It didn't help that he had also brought her here, to her own house and carried her ever so gently.

"Man, Peach rarely gets herself injured and when she does, she really gets herself injured," Maddog commented, beckoning Celeste to move again. "Hurry up, come in and put her down."

"Where do I put--her..." Celeste began to question, stepping into the living room.

"..."

"...hah."

No matter how one looked at it, the entire place was a dumpsite.

It was horrendous, even Celeste was at a lost for words at the disgusting sight of trash littered at every part of the living room.

Empty bento boxes, dirty glass cups scattered across the tables and kitchen sinks, counters. Even the trash bags were overflowing with trash. There were even bits and pieces of leftover food on the ground.

"I forgot how filthy Peach can be--holy shit!" Maddog cursed out, almost stepping on an empty bento box with some leftover gravy. "Damn! Now I remember why I hardly stop by here anymore."

Celeste would have covered his mouth and nose if he had a free hand.

"Where do we go?" Celeste frowned deeply.

"Her bedroom. And careful not to step on anything, you really don't want to know what it is."

They carefully found their way past the living room and headed down the corridor that led to a few rooms, and Celeste cast a curious glance at one particular room that was completely dark.

Eventually they arrived at the bedroom, and Celeste realised that the rooms here didn't have any doors, it was only walls that acted as the doorways and nothing else. Maddog barged into the bedroom, and Celeste hesitated before stepping in, fortunately, her bedroom was clean.

There's only a bed and a table here...

Celeste thought to himself.

If it weren't for the trash laying about in the house, Celeste would be able to see how minimalistic this entire house was.

Even her bedsheets weren't fancy in any manner. For a woman living on her own with a robot, he would have expected the place to seem more...feminine.

"Okay, now put her down." Maddog demanded.

Celeste glanced down, catching a glimpse of her serene expression on her small, unblemished face, before placing her down on the bed. He then began to walk out without another word.

Maddog blinked repeatedly, stunned.

He assumed Celeste would at least throw an accusing glance at him or say something, but he simply walked away.

"Li-little Ash, hey, wher-where you going?" Maddog called out and Celeste paused, turning around.

"I can't be here." Celeste responded.