novelraw Chapter 184: The Mysterious Neighbor
Chapter 184: The Mysterious Neighbor
New text rippled across the Palmfiend. Nicole seemed to share her doubt.
“Worried the intel’s bad? Yeah, I had my doubts too.”
“So the second I got the news, I dug deeper.”
“They made a backup plan. One specifically for the ‘Scarred Woman.’”
“If she shows while they’re hitting the garden, they’ll ditch the main objective. They’ll fall back to Plan B: cut a deal with Echo Quarry to develop it together.”
The text paused. A small, stylized symbol for surprise popped up.
Then, more text:
“And that’s Echo Quarry—their sworn enemies!”
“They’re actually willing to make peace.”
“Couldn’t get the exact split, but all signs point to them offering some serious ‘sincerity’ this time.”
“It was this part, the part about the deal, that I double- and triple-checked through other channels. That’s what sold me. The counter-attack is real.”
Pandora stared at the glowing text on the Palmfiend’s palm.
She thought it over.
The extra intel from Nicole made it… more believable.
Aldrich had clearly factored in the Scarred Woman, even to the point of suing for peace with Echo Quarry. That proved he was serious.
Besides, Nicole was a pro. These few lines were just the summary. The work she put into verifying it must have been extensive. If Nicole vouched for it, the counter-attack itself was probably happening.
But…
Was it really that simple?
Other possibilities still swirled in her mind.
Even if Nicole’s intel was good, and Aldrich was really moving on the garden, she couldn’t drop her guard.
Still, being wary was one thing. Turning down a chance to see what was really happening was another.
At the very least… she had to look.
Thinking this, Pandora didn’t text Nicole that she’d go.
Her finger tapped: “Got it. Sounds like things are about to get loud. Thanks for the heads up. If I get a chance, I’ll swing by.”
“But whether I go or not, the fee…”
She paused, then continued typing.
“…Just put a box of the new game discs on my tab.”
Nicole’s reply was instant.
“No need.”
“We’re ‘comrades’ on the same front.”
“Telling you about Aldrich and his crew… whether you join the op, or how you use the intel… as long as it hurts them, it helps me.”
“Logically and personally, I shouldn’t charge.”
The text vanished for a second, then a new line appeared.
“Of course, other intel is still standard price.”
“(Helplessly sticking tongue out.jpg)”
Pandora looked at the emoticon cobbled together from punctuation. The corner of her mouth quirked up.
“Alright. Your way.”
She thought for a moment, then added one more thing.
“Also, regarding that ‘Scarred Woman’… if you can contact her…”
“Maybe you could share the news with her, too.”
A moment later, Nicole replied.
“Of course.”
..................
Not far away.
Inside another house.
In a room, similarly dim behind drawn curtains.
Nicole’s sister, a white-haired girl with a deceptively young face, sat glued to a glowing screen. Her hands danced across a controller, deep in a new game. The screen’s light washed over her focused face, shifting and playing across her features.
Nicole pulled her attention from her own Palmfiend.
She glanced at her sister, lost in her own world, her gaze softening for a moment.
Then, she turned to the window.
Her gaze seemed to pierce the heavy curtains, looking toward a nearby house. The one belonging to her mysterious neighbor.
The truth was, even without Pandora’s reminder, she’d been planning to see this neighbor she’d only met a handful of times since moving in.
After moving in, their contact had been minimal. A few face-to-face chats about basic neighborhood intel, mostly about the market in Eden. That was it.
Usually, she only saw the other woman coming or going from Tsukimidaira, always in a hurry. She never knew exactly what she did. There were almost no rumors about her. Not on the street, not anywhere.
Until…
the Botanical Garden changed hands.
Before that, Nicole didn’t think this neighbor, Ember, would be a reliable partner against Aldrich. So she hadn’t shared her exclusive intel about the Quarry’s planned raid.
After that night, after Ember had shown up right on time…
A sliver of doubt had crept in.
Where had Ember gotten her intel? Theoretically, Nicole’s own data had prompted the Quarry to set the date. The knowledge that Echo Quarry would move that night should have been her exclusive news.
And yet, her neighbor had appeared at the Garden right on schedule.
More than that, judging by her performance, Ember seemed familiar with the situation on the ground.
So, either Ember had her own source inside the Quarry, or she’d been monitoring the Garden herself.
Either way, judging by her actions on the battlefield, her goal wasn’t just to grab resources like the Blood-Weep Worms.
Her position was clear: pro-Quarry, anti-Aldrich.
And if that was the case—whether she was targeting the whole Ascension Road faction or just Aldrich’s crew—this neighbor was a potential asset.
A very good one.