The next day, dawn broke.
Mike got out of bed.
Skye came over with a tray holding a sandwich and orange juice.
"Thank you."
He almost forgot the last time he had a proper breakfast.
Slap!
"What are you doing?!"
Skye slapped Mike's hand away and glared at him, "This is Bobby's."
Mike: "…"
Bobby sniffed the orange juice, clumsily held the cup with both paws, and gulped it down…
"Ha~"
Bobby showed a satisfied expression.
Skye took the sandwich and put it to Little Fire Dragon's mouth.
"Kani." Bobby shook his head and patted his belly.
Only then did Mike notice that Bobby's belly was round.
"What did you feed him this morning?" Mike asked.
"Just two fried steaks." Skye's expression was innocent as she put the sandwich to Mike's mouth, "Here, yours…"
Just yesterday they were so intimate, their lips intertwined, and now he could only eat what someone else had left?
"I'm going to brush my teeth."
Mike ran to the bathroom. He felt something unusual on his chest, and with a gentle tear, he peeled off a thick layer of hardened black grime.
"Stinky!"
Mike pinched his nose, threw the hardened grime into the toilet, and flushed it away. He also took a shower, making up for yesterday's.
When Mike came out of the bathroom wrapped in a towel, Skye had re-fried two steaks, made a cup of coffee, and a cup of juice.
Mike took a big bite out of the sandwich, chewing heartily, "I'm starving."
Skye glanced at Mike sideways: "You usually don't eat breakfast, do you?"
"Hehe." Mike played dumb.
He and other female exercise enthusiasts exercised until dawn, then slept until the afternoon—what breakfast would he eat then?!
He took another bite, finishing the rest of the sandwich, and Mike said: "Conservation of energy… treating injuries consumed too much body energy, so I need to replenish it."
He hadn't felt it when he first woke up, but the more he ate, the hungrier he got. Mike felt a bit like a reincarnated starving ghost, not bothering with a knife and fork, directly grabbing the steak and shoving it into his mouth, eating with meat juice all over his mouth, flowing down the corners of his lips onto his chest.
"Really, like a child." Skye quickly took a tissue to wipe off the meat juice, "This piece is for you too, I'll just have coffee."
Skye cut her own steak into pieces and pushed it in front of Mike. At this point, Mike didn't bother with politeness, grabbing it and eating.
After two steaks, Mike felt much better, gulping down the juice.
"Is that enough? There's still a battle axe steak in the fridge, already marinated. Should I bake it in the oven?"
"Good." Mike kissed Skye, "You're so good."
"Eww!" Skye wiped her mouth in disgust, "It's all meat juice."
Mike grinned, smiling triumphantly.
Skye went downstairs, with Bobby following behind her, like a little shadow.
Mike changed his clothes, then turned on the news.
The news first reported the explosion in Hell's Kitchen. According to firefighters' speculation, it was highly likely caused by a natural gas leak. The specific reason would await expert investigation.
Then there was a strange break in a supporting pillar on the top floor of a high-rise building, causing the entire rooftop to slide off the building. Fortunately, there were no other buildings around the structure, so no casualties were reported.
"Both news reports are related to me. Am I going to become the Conan of the Marvel branch?"
Mike muttered to himself.
He watched the news for a while; on one side, politicians were boasting and promoting their country while angrily criticizing other nations, and on the other, street brawls were happening, with citizens calmly walking by while drinking coffee, their composure inexplicably heartbreaking.
As the news continued, Mike opened his computer. Fat Jerry and Coulson had each sent an email.
Fat Jerry's email was a list of notable gunmen recently in New York.
Coulson sent several video screenshots and photos. One person looked very familiar.
"Sykes?"
"A gunman hired by Vampire Kingdom?"
"No, if it was Vampire Kingdom, an ambush at the Vampire Kingdom headquarters building would be better."
"Could Sykes be a triple agent?"
Continuing to scroll down, Mike saw a photo of Sykes shot in the head.
"Silenced… I'm not surprised at all."
"The mastermind is cautious and ruthless. I probably won't find any other clues. However… as long as I encounter the gunman again, I'll definitely recognize him at a glance, even if he's wearing a helmet."
Skye came up with a baking tray, and Mike quickly closed his laptop.
"Is there something I can't see, are you chatting with other girls?" Skye narrowed her eyes.
Mike honestly opened the computer, "No, I'm checking on the gunman who ambushed me yesterday. The pictures are a bit bloody."
Skye saw the photo of Sykes shot in the head and looked pained.
After a moment of silence, Mike said: "Skye, I don't want to lie. If this person had fallen into my hands, he definitely wouldn't have died so comfortably."
"This person and the gunman knew where I live… The gunman was very skilled and probably very confident. If they weren't so confident and took you, Old Earl, and Chloe hostage, what would I do? If any of you were harmed, what would I do?"
"So, I must make my enemies understand that if they secretly attack me or those around me, no matter who they are, how much wealth they have, what power and status they possess, they will face the fiercest counterattack. Only then will they consider whether they can bear the consequences of their actions before they act."
"Setting aside the above reasons, this person is named Sykes, and he is a Ghoul Clan. Ghoul Clan are humans who work for Vampires. They help Vampires capture humans and do things for Vampires during the day that Vampires cannot do."
Skye's eyes widened, "Ghoul Clan, why would they do that?"
She couldn't understand such behavior.
"I don't know, maybe they're afraid of death, maybe they worship so-called higher beings, or maybe they truly have unavoidable difficulties. Ghoul Clan… from a human perspective, this is absolutely unforgivable behavior."
Mike gently embraced Skye, "I'm sorry to make you go through all this. I'm sorry to add so much danger to your future."
Skye leaned on Mike's chest and whispered: "It was my own choice, wasn't it… And, Bobby, you'll protect me well, won't you?"
Bobby saw Mike and Skye hugging and wanted to join in, but he was too short. He could only circle around them. Hearing Skye's words, Little Fire Dragon immediately stood up straight, patting his chest with his little paws: "Kani! Kani!"
"I'm not that fragile, I told you before." Skye rubbed her nose, "Let's eat."
The battle axe steak, including bone and meat, weighed three or four pounds. Skye ate a little, cut some for Bobby to taste, and most of it went into Mike's stomach.
Noise came from downstairs.
Skye panicked, "Oh no, Old Earl is coming to open the door."
Mike smiled faintly: "Why are you panicking?"
Skye bit her lip, "I'm wearing yesterday's clothes, Old Earl will definitely think we… Oh dear, it's Saturday today, Chloe is here too. What do I do, what do I do? It's all your fault!"
"How about you hide upstairs until Old Earl gets off work?" Mike suggested.
"I won't hide, it's not something to be ashamed of." Skye put her hands on her hips.
Mike placed his hands on Skye's shoulders, looking directly into her eyes.
"That's right, you said it's nothing to be ashamed of, so why panic? Or rather, think about how to explain Bobby's situation, unless you want to keep Bobby's existence a secret from them forever…"