Deviant: No Longer Human

The relentless weather mirrored her growing unease.

When Wang Xiao had first arrived, it was noon. Now, enveloped in night\'s embrace, she felt the weight of uncertainty.

Both times of day were shrouded in the same, oppressive darkness.

Thankfully, the rain had ceased, but her anxiety hadn\'t.

Her thoughts were fixated on the three girls she had provided for Wang Xiao.

Now, they were alone with him in the room.

A sense of dread gnawed at her; the money she had received suddenly felt like a burden too heavy to bear.

Click!

The door swung open, and Wang Xiao emerged. Lian rushed toward him, her voice laced with concern. "What happened to them? Are they alive?"

Stretching his limbs, Wang Xiao looked at her, a frown creasing his forehead. "They\'re breathing," he said, closing the door behind him.

"Breathing?" Lian\'s heart sank. That wasn\'t the reassurance she had hoped for.

Wang Xiao, however, was preoccupied. His mind was elsewhere, fixated on more pressing matters.

He took out his phone, checking for a response from Li Zhiming, but found none.

Confusion simmered within him. Even the last batch of photos he had received from that despicable character offered no clues.

He scrolled through the photos from the last month, stopping at one that showed a group of gangsters. He held out the phone to Lian. "Recognize him?" he asked, his voice sharp.

Lian stared at the screen, her expression a mix of confusion and hesitation. "This..." she began, unsure.

Wang Xiao pressed on. "So, do you know who it is?"

Lian was silent, torn. It felt like an interrogation, and she was caught in the crossfire of her own principles. "I can\'t reveal information about clients," she said firmly.

"100k," Wang Xiao interjected, naming his price nonchalantly.

Lian\'s eyes widened in shock. "I-It\'s against my ethics," she stammered.

"500k," Wang Xiao countered, upping the ante without a second thought.

Lian nearly staggered, feeling as if she\'d been hit by a tidal wave of disbelief.

Was this man a god of wealth, casually throwing around sums like they were mere numbers on a screen?

"What now? Ethics or not?" Wang Xiao asked, his gaze intense as he dangled the card in front of her, tauntingly close.

"Hehe..." Lian let out a nervous chuckle, taking the card. Her resolve crumbled under the weight of Wang Xiao\'s offer. "Mr. Wang, what ethics are you talking about? This woman has long sold herself," she confessed, a bitter smile on her lips.

"Is he here?" Wang Xiao asked, his tone direct and businesslike.

Lian\'s demeanor shifted, her frivolity replaced by seriousness. "Yes," she confirmed.

"Let\'s go and see him, then," Wang Xiao proposed, his determination clear in his voice.

Descending the creaky staircase into the bustling heart of Herimpurs bar, the scene that greeted Wang Xiao and Lian was one of chaotic colorful light.

"Haha!" At the center of it all sat Mayor Gregory Hasting, a man of considerable girth with a neatly trimmed silver beard, his bald head gleaming under the dim lights.

He was dressed in an expensive-looking suit that seemed to struggle against his ample frame.

Surrounded by three giggling women, he was the picture of indulgence, a goblet of wine in one hand as he regaled his companions with stories, his laughter booming across the room.

Lian, with a subtle sense of urgency, tugged at Wang Xiao\'s arm, pulling him to the side. "That\'s him," she whispered, nodding discreetly towards Mayor Hasting. "The man in your photo, he belongs to Mayor Hasting\'s inner circle."

Wang Xiao\'s eyes narrowed as he observed the mayor, taking in the scene with a calculating gaze.

The mayor seemed oblivious to the gazes around him, lost in his own world of power and pleasure.

"Looks like our dear Mayor Hasting enjoys the finer things in life," Wang Xiao remarked dryly, his voice barely above a whisper.

Lian nodded, her eyes darting nervously around the room. "He\'s untouchable in this town. Everyone knows it, but no one dares to speak up. The man you\'re looking for is often seen with him, like a shadow. Be careful, Wang Xiao. Crossing the mayor could have serious consequences."

Wang Xiao\'s lips curled into a faint smile. "Sure," he remarked, without a hint of seriousness.

As they watched, Mayor Hasting raised his goblet for a refill, his booming laugh echoing through the bar. The women around him leaned in closer, hanging on his every word, lured to the power he wielded.

As Wang Xiao turned to leave the bar, his departure was as strange as his entrance.

"I think I\'m done for today. I\'ll see you later, Lian. Call me when Linda is here," Wang Xiao said, his tone calm yet firm, his gaze still on the Mayor\'s back.

"Huh? Going already?" Lian called after him, her voice tinged with surprise and a hint of disappointment.

She had braced herself for a confrontation, or at least some kind of interaction with Mayor Hasting.

Wang Xiao\'s abrupt decision to leave without engaging left her in a state of confusion.

As she watched him disappear through the bar\'s entrance, Lian felt a strange sense of relief mixed with apprehension.

On one hand, Wang Xiao\'s presence and his mysterious request had cast a shadow over her night.

On the other, his sudden departure left her with the daunting task of dealing with the powerful figures in the bar, figures like Mayor Hasting, who she couldn\'t afford to offend.

Lian sighed, a feeling of weariness washing over her. The night had taken unexpected turns, and now, with Wang Xiao\'s departure, it seemed to return to its usual rhythm of music, laughter, and the clinking of glasses.

But the undercurrent of something more sinister, something that had been briefly stirred up, still lingered in the air.

As she turned back to attend to her duties, Lian couldn\'t shake off the feeling that this was not the end of the story.

Wang Xiao\'s visit, his unusual requests, and his sudden exit felt like pieces of a larger puzzle, one that she was now unwittingly a part of.