Rice pushed the door open and entered, his gaze falling upon Pierre. After a moment's contemplation, he stepped forward and said in a low voice, "Cousin, I have a favor to ask of you."
Pierre burst into hearty laughter. "My dear brother, to hear such a request from your lips—truly astonishing! Who would have thought? You, begging me for something? Well then, what is it you seek?"
Taking a slow drag from his cigar, Rice spoke gravely, "I need your help to find someone."
"Oh? And who exactly are we looking for?"
"An Asian man. He often wears a black trench coat." Rice deliberately withheld Lin's identity and affiliations, for Lin was tied to the rebel organization K.
"An Asian, is it? And what did he do to earn your enmity? Well, that's your affair, not mine. But let me be clear—my services come at a price. Still, since you're my cousin, I'll offer you a discount."
Accustomed to Pierre's mercenary temperament, Rice reached into his pocket and tossed a thick wad of Alliance currency onto the desk. "Here's five thousand. Will that suffice?"
Pierre's eyes lit up at the sight of the money. "More than enough, more than enough. Julie, help my dear cousin track this man down."
One of the female soldiers monitoring the screens stood and gestured to Rice. "Commander Rice, come with me. Let's locate your target."
Cigar in mouth, Rice approached Julie, who possessed a sun-kissed complexion and striking eyes. Her full lips exuded a sensual allure that often captivated the men who encountered her.
Standing behind her, he watched as her fingers danced rapidly over a densely packed keyboard. Three monitors before her split into countless video feeds, each showing a different sector of Godo City.
"Commander Rice, does he reside here in Godo?"
Rice shook his head. "Unlikely. He's an Asian man, black hair, always in a black trench coat—he should stand out."
Julie nodded. "Understood." Her fingers resumed their deft rhythm across the keys.
"When did he enter Godo?"
"Around three days ago."
"Three days ago… that would be the 24th." Adjusting the timestamp, Julie initiated the facial recognition system. Tiny boxes flitted across faces captured by surveillance, analyzing them one by one. Several feeds enlarged, revealing Asian men—but none in trench coats.
Rice squinted at the footage, puffing thoughtfully. At last, the man clad in black appeared onscreen. Rice furrowed his brow. "That's him."
Julie locked onto the target, a red arrow bouncing above Lin's head, tracking his every move through the city.
"I want to see where he was last spotted."
Julie nodded, tapped away, and the final scene displayed Lin at the entrance of the black market, conversing with a familiar figure.
Rice recognized him instantly—Grasse, the arms dealer from whom the X Mercenaries often resupplied. Realization struck Rice like lightning: no wonder Grasse possessed better weapons and a steady stream of ammunition—he was in league with the K organization.
With ties to K, even fighter jets would be within his reach.
After their exchange, Lin vanished from the footage. No matter how thoroughly Julie searched, he did not reappear.
"That's enough, darling," Rice said with a faint smirk. "I know where to find him now. I'm off."
Without bidding Pierre farewell, he turned on his heel and strode from the room.
Pierre watched him go, silent. Then, sipping from his glass, he walked over to Julie and placed a hand on her shoulder, his tone casual but probing. "So, who exactly was my cousin looking for?"
Julie hesitated, her expression tightening. She replayed the last image of Lin and said, "This is the man. Handsome, isn't he?" Like many Western women, she found Lin's sharp features and aloof charm dangerously attractive.
Pierre took a slow sip of whiskey. "Enlarge the image."
Julie tapped a few keys. Lin's visage filled the screen, clear and striking.
"Who is he?" Pierre mused aloud. "Search the Alliance military database—let's see what we can learn."
Turning, he shouted to the guards outside, "Assign someone to tail Rice. I want to know exactly what that man is up to."
"Yes, sir!" came the swift reply as the soldiers dispersed.
Julie initiated the database search, uploading Lin's face into the system. Thousands of images flashed by in seconds. As Pierre drained his whiskey, the feed halted. A profile appeared.
Pierre read it closely. A lascivious grin tugged at the corners of his mouth. "Looks like I'm about to strike gold again."
For the entry listed Lin as a top-priority fugitive of the Alliance—wanted, with a bounty of 100,000 credits.
—
Meanwhile, Rice made his way to the black market, heading straight for Grasse's stall.
Grasse, with the keen eyes of a seasoned merchant, spotted him from afar and broke into a wide smile. Assuming the X Mercenaries had come to restock, he called out in his usual oily tone, "My dearest Commander Rice! It's been far too long!"