Chapter 68: THIS IS THE BLACK MARKET
"Alright. I got it."
Lin Yue closed the system store and set her phone aside.
The morning light had grown brighter, and the house was beginning to stir. She looked at the empty space beside her on the bed, at the pillow where Uriel should have been.
He had not returned.
She wondered when he would come back.
He had said before morning, but the morning was here and he was still gone. She pushed the thought aside and focused on what she could control.
Auriel stirred beside her, his little face scrunching up. His eyes opened, gold and hazy, and he let out a soft whimper.
"Good morning, little one." Lin Yue murmured. She lifted him from the bed and carried him to the bathroom.
The bath was quick but careful.
Warm water, soft washcloth, gentle hands.
Auriel kicked his legs and cooed, splashing slightly.
Lin Yue smiled despite herself.
After the bath, she dried him with a fluffy towel and carried him to the changing table.
Lotion first, then a clean diaper, then a tiny onesie with little wolf ears on the hood. She brushed his platinum curls until they lay soft and smooth.
"There," she said, holding him up. "You look perfect."
Auriel cooed, waving his tiny fists.
Lin Yue dressed herself next—a simple but elegant dress in soft green, her hair styled in loose waves. She secured a baby carrier across her chest and settled Auriel inside. His head rested against her collarbone, and he seemed content.
She picked up her phone and checked for messages.
None.
She walked to the door and opened it.
The corridor was empty, but as she descended the stairs, she saw them.
The men in black suits from the night before, standing in the entrance hall.
The lead guard stepped forward.
"Good morning, Madam. Where are you going?"
Lin Yue adjusted the baby carrier and met his eyes. "I am going on a scouting mission. We need to hire new staff, and Uriel is not here. So I am handling it myself."
The guard’s expression tightened. "His Majesty would not approve, Madam. He ordered us to keep you safe inside the estate."
"Then you will come with me." Lin Yue’s voice was calm, steady. "You and one other. And Mira will accompany us as well. That is four people total. I will be perfectly safe."
The guard hesitated.
Lin Yue raised an eyebrow. "Are you refusing an order from the lady of this house?"
He bowed his head. "No, Madam. I will arrange it."
"Good. We leave in ten minutes."
She turned and walked toward the kitchen to find Mira, Auriel snug against her chest, her steps light but determined.
Uriel was not here.
So she would do what needed to be done.
Lin Yue found Mira in the kitchen, reviewing a list of supplies on a tablet.
The older woman looked up when she entered, her deer ears perking forward.
"Madam? Is something wrong?"
"Nothing is wrong. We are going out." Lin Yue adjusted Auriel in the carrier, making sure he was secure. "We need to find new staff, and Uriel is not here to help. So we will do it ourselves."
Mira set the tablet down. "Now, Madam?"
"Now. The guards are coming with us. You and I will do the interviews. I need someone who knows the house and can spot a liar."
Mira hesitated for only a moment, then nodded. "I will get my coat."
Ten minutes later, Lin Yue stood in the entrance hall, Auriel snug against her chest. Mira stood beside her, her expression calm but alert. Two guards waited by the door—the lead guard from earlier and a younger man with sharp eyes and a steady posture.
The lead guard spoke. "Madam, I have arranged for a car. It will take us to the hiring center in the city. We should not be gone longer than a few hours."
Lin Yue nodded. "Then let us go."
The car was sleek and black, with tinted windows and leather seats. Lin Yue settled into the back with Mira beside her, while the two guards took the front. The engine hummed to life, and they pulled out of the estate gates.
The city unfolded beyond the windows, tall buildings, crowded streets, flying vehicles weaving between the towers. Lin Yue watched it all pass, her hand resting on Auriel’s back.
She wondered where Uriel was.
What he was doing.
Whether he had slept at all.
Then she pushed the thought aside, again. Wherever he was, he’d be fine.
"Madam," Mira said quietly, "the hiring center is not far. They keep records of available workers. We can review profiles and conduct interviews on the spot."
Lin Yue nodded. "That will work. I want to see their references and their work histories. No one gets hired without a thorough check."
Mira smiled slightly. "You are learning quickly, Madam."
Lin Yue glanced down at Auriel. He was awake, his gold eyes blinking up at her. "I have to. There is no one else to do it."
The hiring center was supposed to be their destination, but one wrong turn led to another, another, until the car rolled to a stop in a district Lin Yue had never seen before.
The buildings here were older, the streets narrower, the people fewer.
The guards exchanged uneasy glances.
"Madam, we should not be here," the lead guard said. "This is not a safe area."
Lin Yue looked out the window. "Then why did we come here?"
"Our navigation system was tampered with," the younger guard admitted. "Someone rerouted us."
Mira’s face had gone pale. "Madam, this is the black market. We should leave. Immediately."
But Lin Yue was already opening the door. Auriel was awake in the carrier, his gold eyes wide, his tiny hand pressed against her chest.
She stepped out onto the cracked pavement, and the smell hit her—stale water, unwashed bodies, something metallic and sharp.
"Madam!" The guards scrambled out after her, but Lin Yue was already walking.
Rows of beings chained to the walls of a crumbling building.
They were not like the beastfolk she had seen in the palace or the markets.
These creatures were something else—neither fully human nor fully beast.
