"Mint tea?" Skyfire opened the small bottle and brought it up to her nose and took a sniff.
Seeing this scene, Lin Ye couldn't help but smile. It seems like taking a bit of catnip wasn't a bad idea. There's just too many felines in Terra.
Plus, this kind of thing that can easily please them has no use for him and is quite cheap. Lin Ye plans to buy more once this whole Skadi thing blows over.
However, what Lin Ye did not expect was that Skyfire was able to recognize the plant in her hands.
After Skyfire sniffed, her brows furrowed, "Isn't this catnip? What mint tea?" She immediately called Lin Ye out on his bullshit.
Lin Ye's smile disappeared a little bit, "You...Do you know this thing?"
"Of course, they are usually sold at a pet shop. Why would you say it's a specialty of your hometown?" Skyfire looks at Lin Ye suspiciously, "Furthermore, this is for cats, why are you giving it to me...Wait, did you know that I've raised a cat?"
Lin Ye, who originally didn't know how to get out of the situation, finally found a way out.
"Yes, it's for your cat. I used to be a vet, you see. So I can roughly guess whether or not someone is a cat or a dog person. I assumed that you would have a pet cat, hence why I gave you the catnip."
Lin Ye reluctantly used a nonsense-sounding explanation for himself.
But what he didn't expect was that after he finished speaking, Her slightly wary eyes softened a little bit.
"Really? So you're a vet..." Her tone was much lower now. She seems to be a little lost in her thoughts
"You are right, I've raised a cat before but it's already in a better place now. I accept this gift. In return, I will not talk to the Ursus Military regarding your trip last night."
Although the process was a little different from what he had imagined, the result was already the best case scenario. This made Lin Ye breathe a sigh of relief.
"Thank you." he smiled.
"I also thank you for the gift on behalf of Phil," Skyfire shook the catnip in her hand. "He would've really liked this before he passed away."
"Phil" was probably her pet cat's name. When he learned that Skyfire was also a former cat person, Lin Ye began to view her in a more favorable light.
After all, he was the owner of seven cats in his previous life. And in this life, he has been a vet for two years. You could say that he has a small bond with other pet owners.
Then he brought Skyfire to the others.
"Everyone, Skyfire will be helping us with our research." Lin Ye introduced.
"Greetings, my name is Skyfire. I believe I can help you all." Skyfire says.
"Great to have you Skyfire." Lin Ye smiles at her.
Skyfire smiles back at him. "Glad to help."
When everyone felt that Lin Ye's attitude towards Skyfire was completely different from an hour or so ago, they couldn't help but be surprised.
They didn't believe they didn't talk for that long but it seems that he made them both comfortable with each other.
Magallan looks at Lin Ye suspiciously.
So, what Miss Silence said about Dr. Lin Ye was true then! He has ways with women!
Lin Ye was of course ignorant about this.
Skyfire being a high-achieving scholar, it's perfect for her to join them in the discussion. It's just that Lin Ye, a normal person, will find it difficult to join in the discussion that smart people will have.
He tried to listen for a while but found that he did not understand. The main members participating in the discussion are Magallan, Blue Poison, Skyfire, and Yumeng, the marine researcher from the Lungmen. Lin Ye, Frostleaf and Matoimaru are the ones that have a bit of trouble following them.
Initially, the professionals will be mindful of the non-professionals and use simple terms. But as the discussion became deeper, the vocabulary used would of course become more advanced. Resulting in the non-professional's confusion.
Lin Ye glances at his fellow normal people. He sees that Matoimaru is still listening but she seems to be fighting some demon on her eyelids.
Frostleaf gave up a long time ago and found solace in her headphones.
He really wanted to keep listening, because he needed all the information he could get to find Skadi.
But he understood that the topic was not in his field of work, making it hard for him to understand what's being said.
So after listening for about ten minutes, he moved away from the discussion without making a sound and decided to not disturb them.
He stopped about a few meters from them and stared at the ocean's rolling waves. Lin Ye sat in a cross-legged position and laid Maple down on his lap.
A gust of wind struck his face and the smell of salt entered his nostrils.
The smell reminded him a bit of Skadi. He feels a bit lonely now.
Skadi...Where are you?
"This is really not a good place to be in, isn't it?" Matoimaru's voice was heard behind Lin Ye. But before he could turn his head, she already sat down beside him. With a carefree voice, she continues,
"Although my country is also surrounded by the sea, I don't like the sea that much."
"... So, why are you here then?" Lin Ye asks.
"Because I don't understand it." Matoimaru said as she gave him a huge smile, and then she asked Lin Ye, "Then why are you here?"
Lin Ye's mouth twitches upward slightly "Because I don't understand it either."
"Haha!" Matoimaru laughed out loud when she heard his reply, and then spread her hands out," You are really a funny Doctor, Dr. Lin Ye."
Lin Ye also wanted to respond to her with a smile, but he couldn't. He tried to squeeze one out, but he didn't succeed. He gave up.
After that, the two were silent for a while. Matoimaru breaks the silence by asking him another question, "What kind of person is Skadi?"
"Hmm? Why suddenly ask about this?"
"I'm curious." Matoimaru says, "I can see that you're the one who wants to save Skadi the most out of all of us."
"Of course, I would want to save her. She is my colleague."
"Are you sure it's as simple as a colleague?" Matoimaru says with a smile, "You're more eager. Passionate, even."
"... What do you want to say?" Lin Ye truly doesn't understand what she is implying.
"As I said, I'm just a little curious. Doctor Lin Ye, I heard that it has not been a year since you joined Rhodes Island?"
Lin Ye nods, "Yes. I have only been with Rhodes Island for about half a year now."
"It's only half a year. Have you known Skadi for half a year?
"Are there any problems with me being on good terms with her for that long?" Lin Ye curiously asks her.
"No, there's no problem at all. But I have heard of her from rumours," Matoimaru turns her head and looks at Lin Ye, "And they are not the good kinds of rumours, you should know some of them."
"Those rumours are all false." He dismissed them easily.
"How do you know that they are false?" She asked, "Those rumours about her have been present in Rhodes Island long before you've joined, Dr. Lin Ye. So many people have already been in contact with Skadi and so many have worked with her too. If our assumptions really are false, then it should've been easy to dispel those rumours."
Listening to the rumours about Skadi, Lin Ye felt really irritated. If it was the usual, he could not give two shits about her opinion regarding Skadi. He believes that it's only a matter of time before Rhodes Island can see who Skadi truly is.
But now he's unsure if that day will truly come. There is still no news about Skadi's whereabouts yet, and the only clue they found is gone. Even if Lin Ye kept telling himself to calm down, his heart is still in turmoil.
The words of Matoimaru made Lin Ye realize that the vast majority of Rhodes Island employees still had a strong negative image of Skadi.
If something goes wrong for Skadi and she really can't return to Rhodes Island, then the legacy she left behind would always remain as 'That one murderous woman.' and other people's impression of her would never be able to change.
Lin Ye didn't know why he cared so much about others' impression of Skadi. And it was obvious that even Skadi didn't care about it either, but he was still eager to do something about this.
"Actually, I don't really believe those rumours."
Just when Lin Ye was tangled in his own thoughts, Matoimaru's slow words interrupted his turbulent thoughts, "Although I have only seen her once, I don't think she is the kind of person that the rumours portray her to be."
Lin Ye looked at her with a little surprise: "Have you met Skadi? Didn't you say that you haven't seen her before?"
"Well. I really haven't met her yet. Face to face, I mean." Matoimaru said with a smile, "She was sitting a good distance away with her back facing towards me. Of course, I didn't dare greet her."
"When did it happen?" Lin Ye listens.
"It was probably a year ago. Anyways, you were definitely not there," Matoimaru tilts her head, "But the time it happened is not important. What I want to say is that when I saw her, she was sitting on the edge of the deck alone, humming a soft tune. If it hadn't been for people around me to remind me that it was Skadi, I would never believe that she was the legendary Abyssal Hunter."
"Humming a song?" Lin Ye raised his eyebrows in intrigue.
"Yeah, it was a melancholic melody. She's obviously such a powerful person, but why did she sound so sad that time?" Matoimaru says in a low tone.
"At that moment, I realized that the person in the rumours and the person in front of me maybe really aren't the same at all. I dare say that she actually resembles me a bit. When I left my country and wandered in this strange land, I also liked to do what she did, staring out towards nowhere in a daze. So I think such a person shouldn't be so vicious...She's probably just... lonely."
Lin Ye began pondering. "Lonely, huh?"
Matoimaru touches her head and says with a smile, "Does it sound weird?
"No." Lin Ye takes a deep breath and lets it out, "I think it's good."
"Really? Speaking of which, although I haven't seen her face directly. I have seen a picture of her once and I noted that her eyes seem to be hiding something away from others. They say that eyes are the windows to one's soul. I think she is not as bad as the rumours say she is." says Matoimaru.
"Skadi is a great person." Lin Ye affirmed. He then turned his gaze towards the ocean once more, "And also very gentle." He added softly.
She smiled.
"Then you'll have to find her. If you can't find her, then this world would never know Skadi's true nature."
{Rhodes Island's Psychologist}
Draft by Jaq
Proofreader by tax evasion
Edit By Jaq