"Little Boss."

A snowball hit Gu Ning on the shoulder, making her stumble backward.

Gu Ning looked toward the voice and saw Seth rolling around on the snowy ground. He seemed to love the snow.

Seth packed another snowball and threw it at her, looking like he wanted to start a snowball fight.

Just as Gu Ning was about to dodge, a hand reached out in front of her and blocked it.

"You should consider whether Little Boss can handle you hitting her like that," Jite said, chiding Seth slightly.

Seth scratched his head. He figured Little Boss was mostly recovered, and since she was a Mixed Breed, she should be pretty tough. He just wanted to play with her for a bit.

Jite brushed the snow off Gu Ning’s shoulder and said, "Seth has some Ice Wolf blood in him. He gets excited whenever he sees snow."

"Do you like the snow?" Jite asked.

Gu Ning: ’...What do you think?’

Gu Ning glanced up at him. Her silence spoke volumes.

Seeing how thickly she was dressed, Jite fell silent for a moment before asking, "Are you a timber wolf? Did you grow up in Zone 5?"

He asked, seemingly nonchalant, "Or did you grow up somewhere warmer?"

Gu Ning didn’t answer Jite. She couldn’t. 𝗳𝐫𝚎𝗲𝚠𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝘃𝚎𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝗺

"BEEP BEEP..."

A clear, loud sound rang out as Alex pulled up in front of Gu Ning on a motorcycle.

Gu Ning took a closer look. The vehicle was similar to the one Alex had used to take her home last time, with one wheel in the front and two in the back. The tires were tall and thick, but the body was much smaller.

’Is he going to take me back?’

A thrill of excitement went through Gu Ning. She had been thinking that since she was already out, she could go back to see Cook and Barto. After all, they lived just across from the construction site.

"Get on." Alex scooted back, clearing the space in front of him, and looked at Gu Ning.

Without a word, Gu Ning stepped right on.

Seeing that she was just standing there, Alex paused for a moment before starting the small motorcycle and driving forward.

"Why is the Boss taking Little Boss for a ride on such a small vehicle?"

Seth stood in the snow, watching their figures recede into the distance. "There’s not even room for us."

Jite stood with him and said, "So the Boss built that vehicle specifically for Little Boss."

Seth turned to look at him. "What?"

Jite said, "Don’t you think the Boss is a little... special toward Little Boss?"

Seth’s gaze returned to Gu Ning and Alex. "Special how? Specially nice? Little Boss degenerated at such a young age. It’s only normal that the Boss wants to take extra care of her."

Jite: "We’ve been running with the Boss since we were kids. Have you ever seen him share a room with anyone?"

Seth thought for a moment, then shook his head.

Jite: "Have you ever seen him wash anyone’s clothes?"

Seth thought again. "He washed ours when we were little."

Back then, when they were too lazy to bathe after training, the Boss would throw them into the river to get clean before they were allowed out. But sometimes, he’d also wash their clothes for them while he was at it.

Jite: "That was when we were just a few years old. Little Boss is at least an adult."

Forget being an adult; even when they were little, the Boss never took care of their daily chores so meticulously. He always made them learn to take care of themselves.

"Hmm..." Seth mulled it over. "Now that you mention it, the Boss really is a little... special toward Little Boss."

He couldn’t help but remember the smaller-sized toiletries arranged on the sink in Alex’s bathroom.

"And the Boss only lets Little Boss use his bathroom, not us..."

"Do you smell it?" Jite tilted his head toward him and asked in a low voice.

Seth: "Smell what?"

Seeing Seth’s clueless expression, Jite opened his mouth, but then swallowed his words.

Meanwhile, Gu Ning waited happily for Alex to take her back, only to watch him drive right past the main gate.

At first, she thought he was going to take her out through a different gate, since she saw the main one was already closed. But instead, Alex turned back and just did a lap around the building.

Gu Ning turned her head and asked him, "Alex, where go?"

Hearing her speak, Alex stopped the vehicle. "Where do you want to go?"

Gu Ning pointed toward the main gate. "Can... go back?"

Alex glanced at the gate. "You want to go back to where you were living before?"

Gu Ning nodded.

Alex paused, then said, "We can’t go out for now. The military has moved into the construction sites, and they’re all under lockdown. You need an ID check to get out, and security is even tighter at night. I’ll figure something out. How about I take you out during the day?"

After hearing this, Gu Ning had no choice but to suppress her desire to leave.

’An ID check would definitely be a problem. I wouldn’t pass one.’

She didn’t want to cause Alex any more trouble, either, so she said, "No need. You... tell Cook... for me... safe."