Super Gene

HMister Ji, you are good. Even your mere servant is so sensitive.” A voice sounded from the grapevine, before someone walked out.

Han Sen observed the body approaching and noted it was a woman wearing a battle suit. The mask she wore obscured her face, however.

On her head, she had white bunny ears. Han Sen and Mister Ji were facing her, so they couldn’t see if she also had a tail. Hanging on her back, though, was a saw-like knife. It was a little savage, especially when compared with her body shape.

Mister Ji looked at the woman and said coldly, “What is one of the Rebate doing here?”

The woman, still sounding casual, said, “Whatever you’re doing here, I want to do, too.”

“That means we’re enemies.” Mister Ji gave Han Sen a signal before approaching the woman slowly. His hand hovered above the sword attached to his waist.

Han Sen understood the signal and moved to flank the woman. He walked toward her from the other side.

The woman remained where she stood, as if she hadn’t seen the pair coming toward her. She merely said, “Three miles to the north of the oasis, there is a group of Chaos. If I shout, or the sounds of your weapons ring, they will be drawn here. Are you sure you want to do this now?”

“I don’t stand for bluffing.” Mister Ji laughed.

“If there were no Chaos, why would I be here? Go ahead, if you don’t believe me. We can all die together.” The woman didn’t buckle easily to the implied threat, and she held her ground resolutely.

That made Mister Ji hesitate a bit, too. He stopped approaching her and gestured for Han Sen to keep an eye on her.

Han Sen nodded. Mister Ji started sneaking in a northerly direction until he was out of sight.

“You don’t belong to Demon,” the woman remarked. She didn’t sound hostile when she spoke.

“You’re right, I am human,” Han Sen answered.

“How did you know I was here?” the woman asked Han Sen. She appeared to have been confused.

The woman was definitely not an ordinary Rebate. If Mister Ji knew her true identity, he’d have been shocked. And he wouldn’t have believed he was seeing her here, of all places.

Han Sen didn’t say anything more, and he simply continued to look at the woman.

The woman picked a grape and reclined back against a giant vine. She skinned the grape and placed it in her mouth. As she ate it, she said, “What is Mister Ji giving you? Whatever it is, I can double the offer. If you help me later, of course.”

Han Sen was shocked that the woman so boldly wanted him to betray Mister Ji. She had made the offer so casually, as if it was entirely normal.

Seeing Han Sen not give her an answer, the woman went on to say, “I’m afraid I am uncertain what Mister Ji is hoping to accomplish. He’s told you that he wants a xenogeneic fruit, am I right? If you believe that, you are dreadfully wrong. I can tell you right here, for free, that this xenogeneic fruit he has told you about is not the only thing that he wants. This place is extremely dangerous, so I suggest you think about this, lest you go and get yourself killed.”

“This is none of my business,” Han Sen said calmly. Even if the woman hadn’t said anything like this, he still had his own suspicions.

“You are an interesting fellow. My name is Yisha. What’s yours?” The woman looked at Han Sen with genuine interest. “Dollar,” Han Sen answered.

The woman’s expression said that she had never heard of humans nor a person named Dollar. The video of Han Sen laying waste to the centaurs hadn’t been circulating for very long. Perhaps she hadn’t gotten around to seeing it yet.

The woman seemed to think of something else, too. But she then appeared to quickly shelve the idea. The grapevines began to rustle, and a little later, Mister Ji came marching out towards them.

Mister Ji looked grim. It seemed as if Yisha had not been lying, and he had seen the Chaos.

“How long have you been here? And how long have the Chaos been in this area?” Mister Ji asked the woman.

“Is that how you ask people for information? This is the grace and etiquette of the Demons on full display?” Yisha asked sarcastically.

Mister Ji looked at Yisha. He had seen the Rebate before, but he didn’t know a ton about them.

“What is your name, lady?” Mister Ji asked politely, not seeming angered by her questions.

“Yisha,” Yisha answered.

Mister Ji receded into thought for a moment, and he tried to imagine where he might have heard that name before.

Mister Ji smiled and went on to say, “Lady Yisha, if we have come here for the same purpose and waltzed into the same predicament, why don’t we co-operate?”

“How?” Yisha asked emotionlessly.

“We deal with the Chaos, of course. And once that is done, we can go our separate ways. Finding the reward will be up to our individual effort again. What do you think?” Mister Ji smiled with his suggestion.

“Okay. How would you propose we deal with the Chaos? Do you think the three of us can take down four?” Yisha asked.

Mister Ji shook his head. “They might come at us in a group, in which case their numbers advantage will be difficult to deal with.”

“So, what is the plan?” Yisha said.

“I have heard the Rebate excel in both speed and agility. You are the best of the higher races, in those fields. If you can lure the Chaos into the oasis, Han Sen and I will strike. If we can take down two, the other two can betaken out easily.” Mister Ji looked sincere.

“Mister Ji, that is such a great plan. Minor suggestion: how about you lure them out, instead?” Yisha said drily.

Mister Ji responded quietly, “We don’t have the movement capabilities of the Rebate. And if we detected you when you were attempting to go unnoticed, the Chaos definitely will. It is best that Han Sen and I perform the sneak attack.”

Yisha frowned in thought. Then, surprisingly, she said, “Okay, I will lure out the Chaos. But I want half of the spoils. The other half goes to you two.”

“Sure.” Mister Ji smiled.

After the three of them settled on the plan, Han Sen and Mister Ji went into hiding. Yisha was going to attract the Chaos.

After Yisha left, Mister Ji told Han Sen, “When Yisha lures them here, don’t do anything. We will slide out of the oasis without being noticed.”