【Interstellar Contract Magician】Ruyuanke

Chapter 331 [Empire] Take it as it comes

"Where do you usually sleep?" I suddenly asked, my voice not loud, but it broke the silence in the car.

Nightingale paused while adjusting the navigation system, looked up at me, raised her brows slightly, and smiled meaningfully: "Why, are you concerned about me?"

"Don't be so conceited," I rolled my eyes and leaned back in my seat, my tone calm but with a hint of teasing, "People like you, running around all the time, really make me curious about how you managed to get through the night."

Nightingale chuckled, relaxed in his chair, and stretched. "Ah, that's a good question. Do you want to hear the truth, or a funny version?"

"What's the interesting version?" I asked playfully, following his lead.

"Interesting version..." Nightingale dragged out her voice in a mysterious tone, "Of course I have a secret base. There, I have the most comfortable bed, the most secure protection system, and even a top-notch private chef and a team of servants to serve me, so that I can rest without worrying about any danger."

"That sounds quite 'Nightingale-esque,'" I scoffed, clearly not taking his nonsense seriously. "What about the truth?"

Nightingale glanced at me lazily, a hint of helplessness appearing on the corner of her smile. "To be honest, I sleep wherever I can. In cars, makeshift bases, and occasionally even abandoned buildings and bunkers. Anywhere I can get by for the night will do. Anyway, comfort has never been my priority; staying alive is."

This was Nightingale's style—casual yet practical. I stared at him for a few seconds, then suddenly felt a little surprised. "That doesn't sound like you. Logically, wouldn't you be more of a pampered person?"

Nightingale shook her head slightly, her tone a little nonchalant: "Enjoyment is conditional. You have to be lucky enough first. My life is not lucky enough, so I can only make do with what I have." He said it lightly, but it seemed like he was casually stating some irrefutable truth.

I was silent for a while, then suddenly laughed: "It seems that you are more reliable than I thought. At least you know how to persevere."

Nightingale smiled even wider, the corners of her mouth curved with a hint of sarcasm. "What about you? Where do you sleep again? I don't believe you always have a fixed good place."

"Guess." I kept it a secret on purpose, with a hint of provocation in my tone.

Nightingale snorted softly and tapped the steering wheel with her fingers. "Forget it, I won't guess. I'm afraid that once I guess the truth, I'll find that you're even worse off than me. That would be so boring."

We didn't speak anymore, and the car was briefly quiet again.

"As for us," Nightingale suddenly spoke again, with a voice full of inexplicable complex emotions, "where we sleep is not important. What's important is that we make sure we can wake up tomorrow."

I listened to this and raised the corners of my mouth slightly: "I agree with this."

I didn't reply, but simply leaned back in my seat, adjusted myself to a more comfortable position, and slowly closed my eyes. Drowsiness and fatigue washed over me like a tide, engulfing my consciousness.

The atmosphere inside the suspended car then quieted down, leaving only the low hum of the engine and the faint echo of the wind outside the car.

Nightingale glanced at me, and seeing that I had really closed my eyes, he sneered indifferently: "You are so bold, you actually dare to fall asleep at a time like this." He turned his head, put his hands casually on the steering wheel, and adjusted the track of the automatic driving.

In the back seat of the car, the layers of frozen "jellyfish" still lay quietly, their tentacles swaying slightly under the ice shell, as if they had sensed something, or were testing the possibility of escape.

Nightingale's eyes involuntarily glanced at the back seat, and then she revealed a half-smile: "What's the matter, little guy, do you want to break the ice and run away?"

Of course, the jellyfish didn't respond, simply remaining quietly within the ice, its smooth tentacles emitting an eerie blue light. A subtle sense of oppression permeated the air, causing Nightingale to instinctively frown.

"Tsk..." Nightingale touched her chin and muttered softly, "This thing doesn't look like a fuel-efficient lamp at all."

He sighed, leaned back in his seat, and stared at the frozen monster with a complicated expression. For a moment, the carriage was plunged into a strange "eye-to-eye" scene - on one side, the lazy yet vigilant Nightingale, on the other side, the quiet but threatening Jellyfish.

"Okay, when you really make trouble, I'd like to see who is more troublesome." Nightingale smiled, with a hint of cynical ridicule in her tone, and a hint of suppressed vigilance.

The jellyfish still didn't move, but the faint blue light in the ice seemed to become brighter, as if responding to some silent confrontation.

Nightingale shook his head and stopped looking at it. While adjusting the navigation of the hovercraft, he glanced at me and saw that my breathing was steady and I had completely entered a light sleep state.

"Madman." He muttered softly, but I didn't know whether he was talking about me or himself.

Just as Nightingale finished teasing the jellyfish and turned her attention back to driving, I suddenly opened my eyes. My voice was not loud, but it directly broke the silence in the hovercar: "Nightingale, you spend so much time and energy on a newcomer like me. Do you think I have potential?"

He was obviously startled by my sudden voice. He glanced at me sideways, his lips curled up slightly with his usual mockery: "Hey, can't sleep? What? Are you starting to doubt why I'm so nice to you?"

"Don't beat around the bush." ​​I stared at him, my tone adding a hint of seriousness. "Why are you willing to spend time partnering with me? And taking me on such a high-risk mission?"

Nightingale's smile remained unchanged, but his eyes were noticeably more serious. He leaned back in his chair, as if thinking, and after a moment, he slowly spoke, "Potential? I guess so. But..."

He paused, a hint of teasing on the corner of his mouth, "More importantly, you are interesting."

"Interesting?" I raised my eyebrows, clearly dissatisfied with the answer. "You're saying that I am fun for you, so you're willing to drag me along? Nightingale, that doesn't sound like a very reliable reason."

Nightingale chuckled and tapped her fingers on the steering wheel. Her tone was casual. "Whether they're reliable or not depends on how you interpret it. You know, people like us can't trust anyone to truly help anyone, right? Instead of looking for an ordinary partner, I'd rather choose someone who I find exciting and interesting."

"So, my value to you is that I can 'stimulate' you?" I said with a hint of sarcasm, but my eyes never left his face. "That doesn't sound like your style."

Nightingale shrugged and smiled calmly, "You can understand it that way. But don't underestimate its value. Some people can bring money, some can bring life, and some people... like you, can bring new unknowns and possibilities."

His eyes flickered slightly, and his tone became deeper. "You haven't fully realized your potential yet, but your madness and persistence make me think it's worth a gamble. You know, there aren't many people in this world who dare to dance with danger like you."

I was stunned for a few seconds, then sneered, "Nightingale, your evaluation sounds quite high, but in reality... isn't it just a matter of how long I can last?"

Nightingale narrowed her eyes and stared at me with an unclear expression, but her smile didn't fade. "Whether you can hold on or not depends on you. I can give you a chance and even walk with you for a while, but whether you can survive or not is ultimately up to you."

The air was silent for a moment. I tapped my fingers on the armrest of the seat and stared ahead thoughtfully.

"Nightingale," I suddenly spoke, my tone calm but with a hint of tentativeness, "What if I can hold on?"

Nightingale laughed softly. He steadied his grip on the steering wheel, and a meaningful smile appeared on his lips. "If you can hold on... then I might start to think that partnering with you is the best thing I've ever done."