Chapter 126: Cold shoulder

Rin listened with utter concentration. Bunny ended her story with a wistful sigh: "It’s such a pity... I used to dream of traveling to Norway to catch the Northern Lights."

"The auroras in Iceland are exceptionally breathtaking as well."

Rin fluttered his lashes softly. "In Finnish, the aurora is called Revontulet—the Firefox Fires. The Sámi people believed the lights were the dance of departed souls, leading to the far side of another realm."

"They say if you catch a glimpse of the auroras, you might chance upon loved ones who have passed."

Bunny opened her eyes wide in wonder. "Rin, you know so much! Is there somewhere you’ve always wanted to visit too?"

He fell quiet unexpectedly. Bunny assumed she had stumbled upon an unprogrammed bug in his system, until Rin offered a gentle murmur:

"I heard Capri Island in Italy is an extraordinarily beautiful island at sea... though I’ll never get the chance to go."

Struggling out of bed, Bunny prepared to wash up and grab breakfast; last night’s intense physical "battle" had left her stomach completely hollowed out.

Rin rested his chin quietly against his hands, his eyes following Bunny’s every move.

In truth, what he truly wanted to say was:

He wanted to be by her side—wherever that might be.

***

Bunny had vastly overestimated her physical recovery. Bracing herself against the corridor walls, she was forced to take a breather with every single step.

Walking like an eighty-year-old grandmother battling a herniated disc, she had to support her lower back the entire way.

Unable to locate Liam, she checked with Sunny, only to learn that the brat had run around showing off in front of every Sentinel early this morning.

He couldn’t wait to force every single one of them to inhale the thick, unmistakable scent of Bunny’s Guide pheromones clinging to his skin.

He targeted Rain in particular—giving that killer whale Sentinel payback for constantly mocking his inability to crawl into his wife’s bed!

That gloating, triumphant smirk on his face was purely obnoxious and begging for a beating.

He even had the audacity to execute a victory dance straight in front of Cyrus’s face.

Now, his victory dance had landed him straight into a grave.

The others were no match for him and could only curse him behind his back, but Cyrus was hardly one to tolerate his antics.

Right on cue, Liam earned himself a repeat performance—Cyrus beat him black and blue before dumping him back into the medical pod.

Yet Liam preferred taking a beating just to thoroughly disgust Cyrus; by the time he was dragged into the medical bay, he had barely a single breath left in him.

And while he lay unconscious, Xander seized the opportunity to give Liam a thorough thrashing of his own.

Let him play cool!

Out of genuine concern, Bunny paid a visit to the medical bay, only to run straight into Cyrus again inside the elevator—talk about enemies crossing narrow paths!

He was presumably heading out of the tower to patrol the energy substations. His black nano-tactical suit tapered neatly over broad shoulders and a narrow waist, half his face hidden behind the high collar, leaving only the sharp lines of his brow bone and deep-set eyes exposed.

The small, exquisitely crafted studs piercing his ear cartilage added a chilling, bad-boy edge to his aura.

Crossed firearms and blade hilts were strapped to his back. He seemed to forever patrol alone, refusing to team up with anyone else.

Because Cyrus saw zero need for backup.

Only ants traveled in swarms; top predators always walked alone.

Bunny greeted him politely. "Good morning, Cyrus."

After all, back on the ice sheet when she was about to be slaughtered like cattle, it was Cyrus who had pulled her back from the brink.

Though the man had an insufferable temper, his presence delivered maximum security—there was no denying that.

Yet Cyrus merely cast a cool, offhand glance in her direction, offering neither a response nor any other gesture.

Treating her like thin air—a complete and utter cold shoulder.

That lingering, thick scent of Liam’s Sentinel pheromones—a heavy, rich citrus-ink moss aroma—saturating the enclosed space second by second made Cyrus want to lose his temper out of pure, suffocating disgust.

Sentinels were naturally repelled by the pheromones of their own kind; the higher their rank, the more violent the repulsion.

To Cyrus, Liam’s scent was fundamentally no different from a pile of trash—though a healthy dose of personal bias certainly fueled that opinion.

The elevator doors slid open. Cyrus departed without looking back, leaving Bunny standing in place with a complete "what’s his problem" expression.

Seriously? What kind of tantrum was he throwing now?

Liam’s situation was far from optimistic. As fierce as his gloating had been, his beating had been twice as brutal; he would likely have to soak inside the medical pod for another day or two.

Bunny found herself in a tight spot.

Her heat cycle was set to last another couple of days—how could she manage without a human heating pad?

Having learned firsthand that Sentinel pheromones were vastly superior to synthetic suppressants, Bunny wanted nothing more than to dump those useless pills straight into the incinerator.

Come dinnertime, she picked up on an exceptionally bizarre atmosphere surrounding the dining table.

Aside from Cyrus, who had not yet returned to the tower, the remaining Sentinels were casting glances at her that were undeniably raw, intense, and burning.

They looked like a pack of starved, wild wolves with glowing green eyes, quietly encircling a plump, tender little rabbit.

Their sharp canine teeth were even itching uncontrollably.

A Guide in her heat cycle was no different from a walking, potent aphrodisiac to these Sentinels.

The higher their genetic match rate, the more frantic the effect.

Halfway through her meal, Bunny didn’t dare take another bite, terrified she was about to be devoured alive herself.

Her spoon tapped lightly against the bowl’s rim with a crisp sound. Xander raised his eyes: "Is the food not to your taste, Bunny?"

Bunny shook her head. "No... I’m just full."

Xander glanced at the generous portion of food still sitting on her plate, lost in thought.

The woman was clearly lying.

Her little anxieties were written all over her face; she simply didn’t know how to hide them.

Xander fetched a cloth napkin, gently dabbing the corners of her mouth, and laid bare the exact dilemma Bunny was wrestling with:

"Liam won’t be able to keep you company tonight."

Bunny flinched, a sharp jolt running down her spine. Having her private dilemma casually laid open left her feeling embarrassed enough to dig a whole fantasy castle with her toes.

Xander set the napkin down softly. His crystal-like pupils were as serene as a sunlit sea—a deep, brilliant blue that looked stunning, yet hid whatever lay beneath the surface.

Every single one of them knew she was currently in her heat cycle.

"Bunny, select a Sentinel to accompany you tonight."

As if anticipating her underlying hesitation, Xander added a reassuring follow-up: "Rest assured... without your explicit consent, none of us will touch you."

It would strictly be keeping her company while she slept.