Under the Veil of Night

(Special mention for web novel [without space between the two words] reader aistitch)

…

"Ugh…"

Neo propped his body and looked at the culprit who made him fall down. He saw a tennis ball rolling to the side of his head as his mind blanked a bit.

WHO'S THE IDIOT WHO PLACE THIS TENNIS BALL IN THE MIDDLE OF THE STREET?

Normally, Neo's reflex would be quite good. But since his mind had been quite preoccupied with annoyance thanks to numerous irritating people showing off their love to him, Neo was distracted. He knew for sure that today must be his worst day ever.

Neo was about to take the tennis ball when he saw a shadow took the ball. His eyes widened as he tilted his head, looking at that particular shadow.

"What is a stray cat doing here?"

Pulling the back neck of the cat, Neo lifted the cat up. The cat was white with parched yellow spots. She let the ball go and wriggled, trying to release herself from Neo's grasp.

Meow!

Neo ignored the cat's protest as he looked at the name tag. It was not a stray cat but a cat with an owner.

"Maylin, home address is…."

Looking at the address, Neo frowned. He was quite familiar with the road in this city, so he clearly knew that the address was directing him to a newly built mansion in this city. The owner was a rich businessman who wanted to try his luck in entering this city when it was still in the development stage.

He didn't remember the man had a cat with him. However, he did remember that he had a daughter who was still in high school. Probably this cat should belong to her.

"Let's go back to your home, Maylin."

Meow!

Maylin the cat struggled on Neo's arm. She tried to scratch him, but he was holding her firmly. It seemed that he knew how to handle a cat.

Neo picked the tennis ball from the ground as he began to walk. In any case, he knew that it would take some time before Kevin and the others would ask him to do his work again, so he should be able to make the trip there. He wondered why the cat would stray this far, though.

'Oh, wait, the mansion is accessible through this alley.'

Walking on the dark alley, Neo could sense some people were looking at him. It seemed that they were aiming at him. However, he just kept holding the cat carefully with one hand while his other hand was inside his pocket. To be exact, it was holding his small gun.

His eyes were looking at the group of people. If they dared to make a move, he would not hesitate to teach them a lesson.

Tep! Tep! Tep!

Neo walked with vigilance. However, those people didn't move from their position. Probably, they had sensed that they shouldn't do anything to him.

Coming out of the alleyway, Neo could see a large mansion in front of him. Not far from him, he could see a young girl with light blue hair looking around worriedly. She was probably around 15 or 16 years old with fair countenance. Right now, she was only wearing a slightly oversized shirt and short pants. Probably it was because the culture overseas was different from this city.

"Maylin! Where are you?" the young woman called out worriedly.

There was a man wearing a suit near the young woman. From the way it looked like, he must be the bodyguard of the young lady. He had a deadpan expression as he looked over the young lady.

"Miss Kate, the ball is a bit far, so Maylin will take some time to get it back."

"Maylin is really naughty," The woman, Katherine Ashley complained, yet her expression remained worried. She loved her cat so much, but she also knew that Maylin often played around when the naughty cat was excited. Because of that, she was trying her best to stay calm.

"Excuse me."

"Who is it?" The guard instinctively raised his hand to hold his gun that he kept inside his pocket.

Neo smiled mirthlessly when he saw the guard's reaction. He was not bad at all for a guard. However, even ordinary members in Ryukalin Clan could do much better compared to this bodyguard. It seemed that the standard overseas was not as good as here.

Well, as a famed City of Crime, he shouldn't have expected any less. People in this city were much more experienced when it came to handling violence and fights.

"Is this your cat?" Neo merely asked as he raised Maylin, who meowed again to complain.

MEOW!

If only Maylin could talk, she would have screamed at Neo to treat her gently. She was just a small cat!

"Maylin!" Ashley nearly screamed when she saw the cat in Neo's hand. She stretched out her slender hand, trying to reach the cat. However, the distance between her and Neo was still several metres away.

The guard looked at Neo with his eyes glowing dangerously. "Hand over the cat!"

Neo arched his eyebrows. This bodyguard truly didn't know the word relax and he should learn not to threaten too many people in this city. There were more experts in terms of battle in this city compared to many other cities. If he kept up with that stuck up attitude, it was clear that he would be targeted by many people who got offended.

Oh well, he was already feeling terribly annoyed by this time, so he would just put the cat down.

"Go back to your owner, Maylin."

Meow!

Not waiting anymore, Maylin ran on the road and headed to her owner's embrace. She meowed happily.

On the other hand, Neo was watching as the guard was still pointing the gun at him. He shook his head lightly. His hand tossed the ball up with little force. He knew that his build was not bulky like Mike or Patrick, which would easily make people think of him as a weak person. Of course, Neo himself knew that those who tried to belittle him usually ended up in hospital.

"Do you want your ball back?"

"Yes, please!" Ashley replied back cutely. She smiled brightly. "Please."

"Hand over the ball!" the bodyguard said sternly.

Neo: "…" if only this lady is not with that guard, she'll be much cuter. The guard is destroying the view.

"I'll give it to your bodyguard."

"Okay."

As Ashley looked down and stroked Maylin, the ball reached Neo's hand. He swung it towards the bodyguard's hand forcefully.

Thump!

The bodyguard's face paled considerably, but to his surprise, he was unable to move his finger to pull the trigger. His entire hand felt numb, which made him certain that Neo must have hit his accupoint with that one strike.

Ashley looked at her bodyguard then turned her head to the young man before her. She grinned. "Thank you for your help, I'm Ashley."

Neo arched his eyebrows at her sudden introduction. He chose to be a gentleman and replied back, "I'm Neo."

"Do you want to have lunch with me? It's my thanks for finding my cat!"

"Miss Ashley! Why do you want to eat with a stranger that…"

"Shut up!" Ashley glared at the bodyguard. For a moment, her innocent figure looked a bit scary as she acted harshly.

Neo's eyebrows arched when he saw the changes in the young lady's attitude. He thought that she was a pampered young miss from this family, but it seemed that he needed to do some more digging. Hmm, if he was not wrong, her name was actually Katherine Ashley Rin, right? Ashley was her middle name, but she sounded like she preferred her middle name more than her first name.

It would be an interesting side job for him to search for more information about this peculiar young lady.

Ashley turned around, her expression had turned normal again. She smiled. "Would you like to join me for lunch?"

Neo smiled.. "Sure."