SWDnovel Chapter 141 Or... should we take a two-pronged approach?
Chapter 141 Or... should we take a two-pronged approach?
Vivian's downward momentum was abruptly halted.
Still shaken, she stumbled into a strong, secure embrace.
She felt a warm body temperature through her clothes, and those strong arms were firmly supporting her waist and back—an unexpected sense of security instantly enveloped her.
She looked up, her deep blue eyes still brimming with lingering panic, her pupils reflecting a young, Eastern face.
It's Lin Feng.
He bent slightly, maintaining the posture of catching her, steadily supporting all her weight.
His face showed neither the obsequious greed often seen on prison guards, nor the smugness one would expect after rescuing a damsel in distress; only a calm and focused expression.
It was as if reaching out to stop her from falling was the most natural thing in the world.
"Watch out, Dr. Vivian, the floor is slippery."
His voice wasn't loud, but it reached her ears clearly, carrying a strange soothing quality.
In an instant, the surrounding sounds returned.
The clatter of cutlery, the cacophony of the prison guards' mixed frustration and relief... but all of this seemed to have nothing to do with them.
Vivian's heart was still beating fast, but the fear she had felt earlier had quietly transformed into an indescribable thrill.
Two blushes involuntarily crept onto her fair cheeks.
........................
Studio:
"Ahhh! Hero saves the damsel in distress! Brother Feng was so cool!"
"Something's up! Dr. Vivian is blushing!"
"These two are such a perfect match! A composed Eastern prison guard x a cool Western doctor, I'm shipping them!"
"What did I tell you?! The romance is finally here! That hug just now, it felt so destiny-like!"
"Go, Feng! Let this foreign doctor see the charm of an Eastern man!"
"From a psychological perspective, people are more likely to feel strong affection when they are rescued in a crisis. Lin Feng, your chance has come!"
"The doctor seems to have a crush on Feng! The way she looks at him is different!"
"Aren't you together yet? I order you two to get married right now! I'll double the wedding gift money!"
........................
[Ding! Vivian's favorability +10]
Current favorability rating: 20/100
The cold system notification sounded in his mind, and Lin Feng's eyes flickered almost imperceptibly.
It became.
At the same time, I achieved 20 points of favorability with Leng Meng and Vivian...
A subtle, thrilling feeling, like walking on a tightrope, quietly crept into my heart.
"Perhaps... we could try a two-pronged approach?" A bold idea naturally emerged.
Maintaining and improving relationships with these two key figures simultaneously will bring benefits far exceeding those of a single strategy route.
However, this newly formed, slightly swirling thought was immediately suppressed by his powerful rationality.
"No, Lin Feng, you've only gained a slight advantage at the start, how dare you try to have your cake and eat it too?"
"They're all S-class monsters. If you mess things up and they find out you're maneuvering among them...aren't you afraid they'll tear you apart?"
He instantly regained his composure.
We must remain calm, more so than ever before.
However... the idea of "taking a two-pronged approach" was not completely extinguished.
The risks are enormous, but the rewards are equally tempting.
A two-pronged approach may not be impossible, but it must be approached with greater caution.
In the blink of an eye, Lin Feng felt Vivian's waist tighten slightly in his arms—
She had already gained her balance, and then took half a step forward, subtly slipping out of his embrace.
Only then did Lin Feng notice that despite the violent jolting just now, the plate Vivian was holding hadn't shaken at all.
The food remained perfectly still in its place, without even a drop of the rich soup spilling out.
S-class is S-class!
Lin Feng had no doubt that even if he hadn't intervened, the medical officer probably wouldn't have actually fallen to the ground; at most, he would have just been a little frightened and disheveled.
"Thank you." Vivian stopped, her azure eyes looking at Lin Feng, her voice gentle.
Lin Feng simply nodded slightly in response.
Vivian said nothing more, turned and walked to table B-10 next to her, her demeanor returning to its usual elegance and aloofness.
After she sat down, she picked up her cutlery and began to eat quietly.
An invisible pressure, belonging to an S-class being, quietly permeated the air centered on her.
Several prison guards who were initially itching to approach him ultimately suppressed their urge to strike up a conversation under the chilling aura emanating from him.
At that moment, Russell, a chosen one from the country of Asa, carrying a tray, walked casually in this direction.
He was tall and sturdy, with neatly trimmed short, light-gold hair and a pair of sharp blue eyes set in deep-set eye sockets.
Although he was wearing the same dark gray police uniform as other trainee prison guards, his straight back and steady gait still revealed the traces of rigorous training he had undergone.
His gaze seemed to calmly sweep across the surroundings, but it had already subtly swept over the legs of table A-13 several times, with a clear target—the piece of paper cleverly hidden at the bottom of the table leg.
[Cafeteria Rule 6: There is a wobbly table leg on the northwest corner table (number A-13). Sometimes, fragments of notes left by previous diners are hidden underneath it. Please retrieve them without attracting the attention of others.]
Soon, he arrived at table A-13, and with a "careless" flick of his wrist, a stainless steel spoon fell to the ground with a crisp thud.
"Sorry," he said softly, and immediately bent down to pick it up.
Just as he crouched down, the hand that was reaching for the spoon suddenly changed direction and stabbed straight at the bottom of the table leg with lightning speed!
But just as his fingertips touched the piece of paper that held the secret—
A large, well-defined hand, surprisingly, arrived first and grabbed his wrist like an iron clamp!
The powerful force instantly immobilized him.
Russell was jolted and looked up abruptly.
The one who made the move was a prison guard in black who had been quietly eating just moments before!
The other person had already leaned in close without him noticing, and their cold gaze held him firmly in place.
"Disturbing a regular prison guard's meal," the guard said, a cold smile twisting his lips. "Don't you know the rules?!"
Before he finished speaking, he seemingly casually grabbed Russell's right arm, which hadn't yet retracted, and gently tugged it—
"Pfft!"
Accompanied by the sounds of muscles tearing and bones breaking, blood gushed out violently like a burst water pipe!
Russell's entire right arm was ripped off from his shoulder!
"ah--!!!"
A piercing scream shattered the noise in the cafeteria.
The prison guard in black ignored Russell's horrific condition. He indifferently raised the severed arm, opened his mouth full of fine, sharp teeth, and bit down hard!
"Click...click..."
The chilling sound of chewing echoed through the deathly silent cafeteria, and blood flowed down his lips, quickly spreading a large, glaring dark red stain on the front of his uniform.
The faces of all the trainee prison guards turned deathly pale instantly!
Just then, Vivian suddenly stood up, her high heels making a clear clicking sound as they hit the ground.
She walked straight to Russell, who lay in a pool of blood, and said solemnly:
"Your injury can't be left untreated. Come with me to the infirmary right away."
Driven by the instinct for survival, Russell gritted his teeth and, despite the excruciating pain, struggled to his feet, staggering and almost stumbling, as he followed closely behind the white figure, fleeing the perilous cafeteria...