Chapter 16: The Pursuit

“The kitchen corridor,” Wuxue murmured as she studied the map.

Based on Lanxiang’s route, Wuxue decided she’d leave through the kitchen. There would be plenty of people there to provide cover, and the corridor opened onto a three-way junction, giving anyone waiting to meet her more options.

Wuxue found a spot with a clear view of the kitchen corridor. Sure enough, a luxury car was waiting outside.

If this had been Wuxue’s own job, she’d already have a sniper rifle trained on the exit.

This awkward mission left her with only the clumsiest option.

Run.

She raced down from the twelfth floor as fast as she could.

Wuxue charged into the stairwell, leaping down the steps with one hand sliding along the railing. The stairwell wasn’t safe. Somehow, her movements had been discovered. People kept rushing into the stairwell from floors above and below. Wuxue drew the gun Skok had given her and fired at them as she ran.

She barely looked back. Her first shot went upward, and someone tumbled down from the floor above. Wuxue leaped to the next landing. As soon as her feet touched the ground, two people appeared in front of her, raising their guns. She flicked her hand and sent two knives flying from behind her. One struck a gun; the other buried itself in the second person’s chest.

There was no time to fight. Wuxue kept running. In the gaps between shots, she checked the map to track Lanxiang. Her target had already reached the kitchen.

Wuxue picked up the pace. The bullets belonged to Skok, so she had no reason to spare them. She pushed forward, dropping almost everyone with a single shot. Her pursuers fired back, but Wuxue’s barrage kept them pinned down. Not one of their shots hit her.

She fought her way forward. Her luck had been terrible lately, but she was still a top-tier hunter. She made it down without much trouble, and fewer pursuers were coming after her now. Before long, she reached the kitchen.

There was no one left in the kitchen. The place was in shambles, as if a shootout had just taken place. Several bodies lay on the floor. Strangely, every one of them had been killed with a knife, the wounds in their lungs or throats.

Wuxue immediately thought of the shooter she’d seen upstairs. Now she understood why fewer and fewer people had been blocking her in the stairwell. They’d all been busy dealing with that mysterious figure.

Wuxue slowed down and checked that her gun was loaded. She watched for the slightest movement around her. She couldn’t let herself end up dead before she killed Lanxiang.

A sharp clink sounded behind her, as if someone had kicked a piece of cookware. Su Wuxue swung her gun around and crept toward the noise. Then she lunged toward the spot it had come from.

The person in front of her was none other than her target, Lanxiang.

Wuxue’s heart leaped. Maybe her luck was finally turning.

Lanxiang, that stunning beauty, had tears in her eyes. Wuxue was less the type to fall for a pretty face than the type to value her own life. Without a moment’s hesitation, she raised her gun and started to pull the trigger.

Someone behind her suddenly tackled her. Before she could fire, Wuxue hit the floor.

She quickly wriggled out of the worst of it, kicked her attacker off, and slammed the butt of her gun into their head.

“Ow! Lanxiang, run!”

The voice sounded familiar.

“Lady Vino?” Wuxue kept her gun trained on her.

Sure enough, it was Vino. She stood directly between Wuxue and Lanxiang. “Please, let Lanxiang go. How much do you want? I’ll pay you.”

If it had been anyone else, Wuxue might have taken them both out on the spot. But Vino was a noblewoman. Kidnapping her today wasn’t a serious offense, especially since Vino had her own reasons for using Wuxue to provoke Lanxiang.

Killing a noble without an employer specifically naming her as the target was another matter. Wuxue didn’t want to survive this job only to be hunted by the Vino family.

“Get out of the way!” Wuxue shouted.

Vino threw herself over Lanxiang. “You’re a bounty hunter, aren’t you? Who sent you to kill her? Was it the Count? How much did they offer? Change sides. I’ll pay double. No, triple. I’ll pay triple. Just let us go.”

“Lady Vino, move, or I’ll stop being nice.”

Wuxue had already decided to knock the woman out and get her out of the way.

“Wuxue… I finally found you… I was so scared on my own.”

Shisan’s voice drew closer. Then she dropped onto Wuxue in another flying tackle. Wuxue hit the floor again, but this time she couldn’t get free so easily. No matter how she twisted, Shisan kept gaining the upper hand and pinning her down.

While they struggled, Vino seized the chance to snatch the gun from Wuxue’s hand.

“Luo Shisan, get off me!” Wuxue yelled. Shisan was nothing but dead weight. Every time she appeared, something went wrong.

“Oh.”

Shisan replied miserably and slowly climbed off her. “Don’t leave me behind again.”

This was no time to argue about who had abandoned whom. Wuxue had barely gotten to her feet when Vino was already pointing the gun at her head.

“Please, let Lanxiang go,” Vino said.

Wuxue could see the gun trembling in Vino’s hands. Given how willing Vino was to die for Lanxiang, Wuxue believed she could bring herself to pull the trigger. Whether she could actually hit anything was another question, but Wuxue didn’t want to take the risk until she had a chance to act.

“Is she worth it? She’s someone else’s Golden Canary.”

Wuxue put the question to her.

Vino’s expression stiffened. The gun in her hand shook even harder.

“Are you really willing to risk your life for a woman like her?” Wuxue knew better than to soften the blow.

“She’s not a Golden Canary! Not to me!” Vino cried angrily. Beneath her beautiful gray hair, her eyes glistened with tears.

“Why are you crying? Hey, don’t be sad…” Shisan started searching for a tissue.

“So the lady is a lovesick girl,” Wuxue said with a cold laugh. She’d seen tears like these far too many times.

“Vino, they’re after me. You should go,” Lanxiang said from behind her. Then she stood and squared her shoulders. “If you want to kill me, then do it.”

“Don’t move!” Vino warned Wuxue, swinging the gun around. She turned back to Lanxiang. “Please, just go… I’m begging you. Run!”

“Wuxue, please let them go.” Seeing Vino and Lanxiang fighting to protect each other, Shisan began wiping away her own tears instead of handing Vino a tissue.

“I’m not leaving. I have nowhere to go once I walk out of here,” Lanxiang said. “Could you take me home with you? I’m a woman, and so are you. You’re a noblewoman. Your family will never accept me. Don’t you understand?”

“I could buy you a house,” Vino said, struggling for an answer. “You could stay there. Just you.”

“How would that be any different from things now? I’d still be a Golden Canary.”

Lanxiang sounded utterly defeated.

“I…” Vino began, but in the end, she swallowed her words.

Wuxue had understood the truth of Vino and Lanxiang’s relationship from their conversation the day before. They were a pair of star-crossed lovers. Vino’s family wouldn’t let them be together, and Lanxiang didn’t dare turn down the offer of another noble.

Of course, their love story had nothing to do with Wuxue. Aside from the affection she still held for Qiongna, she could set aside anyone and anything else.

She was a hunter. Only one of her and her prey could survive.

“Lady Vino, get a grip. You come from a noble family and have everything going for you. Why get mixed up in this?” Wuxue edged closer as she spoke. Time was running out, and a formidable killer was still somewhere in the building. She had to end this quickly.

“You don’t understand!” Vino lost control of herself. She aimed at Wuxue and pulled the trigger.

But the surprise wasn’t Vino. It was Shisan.

The instant Vino fired, Shisan grabbed the muzzle. The bullet whizzed past Wuxue’s face.

“Ah! That’s hot!”

The heat from the gun barrel made Shisan yank her hand away. Just like that, she threw away the perfect chance to take the gun back.

Once the first shot had been fired, it wouldn’t be long before the next. Wuxue rolled away, putting distance between herself and Vino. Then she drew the second gun from her waist. Unlike Vino, she didn’t hesitate. She aimed at Lanxiang and fired.

The gunshot had barely faded when someone screamed.

Vino cried out in pain. Anger made people quick to react. As soon as Wuxue drew her gun, Vino had thrown herself over Lanxiang again. The bullet had struck Vino in the shoulder.

Vino fired repeatedly at Wuxue. Her shots were scattered, but Wuxue still couldn’t afford to move carelessly. She watched the two women in the reflections on the floor and saw Shisan betray her.

Shisan was sitting on the floor, using a rag to wipe the blood from Vino’s clothes. Lanxiang was fleeing in a panic.

There was no time to waste. Wuxue couldn’t let Lanxiang get out of range.

She braced herself against the gunfire and held her breath. Bullets sparked against the floor around her, but Wuxue didn’t flinch. She had only a few chances.

The first shot grazed Lanxiang’s calf. Wuxue roughly gauged the trajectory.

The second shot—

Wuxue never got it off. A flash of fire appeared directly in front of her. A gunshot rang out, and Lanxiang fell to the ground.