Free Web NovelChapter 575: Chapter 575: The Secret Rendezvous of the Underground Lover_1
That evening in Uptown Silvertown, the Dewdrop Tavern.
Aiden looked around as he entered the tavern. The dim lighting made it difficult to see the seats further away, so he had to search from table to table. The place was mostly filled with small tables for two, often occupied by couples whispering intimately in each other’s ears. Aiden noticed that some of the couples had a significant age difference, resembling extramarital affairs, and some were even same-sex couples. Each small table was adorned with different decorative items.
After searching for half a minute, Aiden finally spotted a small table with a bottle of water and a rose on it, where an unfamiliar woman he had never seen before was sitting.
Aiden walked straight over and asked tentatively, "Miss Deborah?"
"Mr. Aiden?" The woman lifted her face to scrutinize him closely, her eyes widening slightly, "You actually chose a woman’s appearance?"
"If you’re going to disguise yourself, might as well go all out." He confirmed her identity and sat down by the small table.
After communicating through letters, the two had decided to use "substitute" arcane words to change their appearances to avoid the pursuit of paparazzi. In her reply, Deborah had mentioned she would be at this tavern, and to look for a water bottle and a rose on the table as a secret signal.
"You didn’t have to... Well, it’s better this way. The appearance of a strange man would have actually made me a bit nervous." Deborah raised her hand to summon the server and ordered a glass of spirits on ice, then handed the menu to Aiden.
"Lemon cocktail, thank you." Aiden chose the drink closest to juice.
"Why choose this dimly-lit tavern? I almost couldn’t find your location," Aiden said.
"Mr. Aiden, you must have noticed, right? This tavern’s main customers are clandestine lovers seeking a secret rendezvous. Those loves hard to be accepted by society, hidden underground, not known to the public, including affairs, homosexuality, and one-night stands, all congregate here," Deborah said with an air of mystery.
"I noticed, so why choose this kind of... ’problematic place’?" Aiden frowned slightly.
Even he, a "local," was completely unaware of such a ghostly place, and he had no idea where Deborah had heard about it.
"Don’t you think the setting suits us perfectly? A newly debuted star and a government official, our underground romance hidden from the media’s gaze!" Deborah said with an excited smile.
"Hey!"
"Just kidding, just kidding. I just thought it was more private and suitable for discussion," Deborah said with a chuckle.
"I was seriously ambushed by your reporters today, almost couldn’t even make it into my office," Aiden said.
"Me too, I saw that report. I didn’t expect to be secretly photographed," Deborah said, still smiling.
"Why do I feel... like you’re actually enjoying this?" Aiden raised an eyebrow.
"Hehe, even though it’s a scandal, it’s a scandal with the person I care about. Even if it’s not true, I’m very happy," Deborah said cheerfully.
Seeing her like this, Aiden suddenly had an uneasy premonition: "Let me just confirm, you didn’t say anything strange when those reporters were chasing you down for an interview, did you?"
"..." Deborah paused for a second, then answered, "Nope."
"What was that hesitation just now?" Aiden eyed Deborah suspiciously.
"I really don’t have it anymore," Deborah said, avoiding Aiden’s gaze.
"Miss Deborah, please look into my eyes and answer my question—no! Just tell me straight, how exactly did you respond when those journalists asked about our relationship?" Aiden pressed her relentlessly.
He knew this reaction from Deborah all too well, it reeked of lies, just like those of criminals who felt undone while being interrogated.
After a while, Deborah slowly brought her gaze back, then placed her index finger to her lips, closed one eye, and said in a playful tone, "Secret."
"Please, don’t mess with my head, just answer my question honestly," Aiden smiled "amiably." freewēbnoveℓ.com
"No, I mean..." Deborah shrank back, her voice suddenly lowering, "that’s exactly what I answered." freewёbn૦νeɭ.com
"What!?" Aiden was shocked on the spot.
"Hehe, I’m really sorry..." Deborah laughed apologetically.
"I can’t feel any remorse from you with that jesting face of yours." In that moment, Aiden felt a familiar sensation of having his nerves struck—the same feeling he constantly got from a certain succubus in the prison.
He had just dealt with that individual today.
"When asked that kind of question, I really didn’t want to deny it, you should be able to understand that feeling, right?" Deborah quickly defended herself.
"I don’t understand," Aiden said emotionlessly.
"Then let me... make it up to you a little, please close your eyes," Deborah suggested with a hopeful expression.
"Enough with the flirting," Aiden sighed in resignation, "Miss Deborah, don’t forget our real purpose here."
"Pursuing romance and pursuing justice do not conflict in my eyes, my father and mother were like that," Deborah claimed as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
"Your parents are hardly an example for reality; they truly are characters from a book," Aiden shook his head, "Their experiences are enough to fill stories."
He suddenly paused after saying that.
Adaptation—the majority of "The Hound’s Chivalry" was adapted from the stories of the Hunter Duboman and the Chameleon Thief Liv, but was that really all there was to it?
If the events they were currently experiencing were orchestrated by the "Fantasist" following the plot of a novel, perhaps the story between Duboman and the Thief Liv might also be the same?
If the mysterious person who had threatened the Witch’s Gathering to back off Duboman was indeed the "Fantasist," and moreover, a ruler... then Duboman and the Thief Liv might just be pawns for some deity’s amusement, much like himself.
Duboman, the Thief Liv, Deborah... how much of their story was deliberately contrived?
"Mr. Aiden, why have you suddenly become so serious?" Deborah said, flustered by the change in Aiden’s demeanor, "Did I do something too excessive? I am so sorry, truly sorry! I will go and clear it up right away, please don’t be angry with me!"
"No, I was just thinking about something else," Aiden came back to his senses and waved his hand dismissively, "I don’t care much about that anymore. Those journalists are only after eye-grabbing material. Your clarifying it wouldn’t make much difference. When other, more attention-grabbing news comes along, they’ll forget all about this matter. Let’s just focus on what we need to do. Speaking of which, I have an idea about the preliminary investigation into the doppelganger incident."
