Chapter 140: Chapter 130: Are You Going to Be Responsible for It for a Lifetime?
Gu Ning blinked, waiting for Barto to continue. ’No way to what? Why did he stop talking?’
Barto paused, then jabbed a finger at Cook. "He’s just a dog. Are you going to be responsible for him for the rest of his life?!"
Cook: "Woof."
Gu Ning fell silent. It was true that Cook was expensive, but she had never once considered giving up on him. Without Cook, she wouldn’t even be here.
Just that one time she was captured and taken to the Underground Arena—if Cook hadn’t risked his life to save her, she couldn’t imagine what those savage Beastmen would have done to her.
It was also because of that incident that the people from the Underground Arena retaliated, leaving him severely injured.
As long as Cook was okay, no amount of money was too much. She would find a way to earn it.
’I’ll just treat it as if I’m raising a rather expensive dog.’
She wrote on a piece of paper: *I’m not sure if I can take care of Cook for his whole life, but I will do my best.*
As long as she had a bite to eat, she would never give up on Cook, just as he had taken care of her in the past.
Seeing what she had written, a complicated look flashed in Barto’s eyes.
"Don’t be so quick to say that. I suggest you think it over. If you have the money, you can give him a good life here in Zone 19. Just don’t take him to the Upper District."
With that, Barto returned to his little den and lay down with his back to her.
Gu Ning was confused. If she had money, that was all the more reason to take Cook and leave Zone 19.
This place wasn’t exactly paradise. Besides, she had gone through so much trouble to get Cook’s contract stamped. Cook had a chance at a better life than this, and she refused to leave him here—not unless Cook himself told her he didn’t want to go.
Gu Ning found Barto’s advice strange. He had seemed to support her taking Cook out of Zone 19 before. He had even been angry when he found out she was working on Cook’s behalf. Why the sudden change of heart?
Gu Ning thought for a moment. Barto had told her not to take Cook to the Upper District. ’The Upper District...’
She had asked about Zone 5 on her Clawprint account before, and most of the private messages had also advised her against going to the Upper District.
’Could that be why Barto was trying to persuade her?’
Did he already know about the Upper District, or did he only look into it after hearing she was going to Zone 5?
Gu Ning stared at the small shape of Barto’s back. It suddenly occurred to her that Barto had never told her where he came from. She had never really tried to get to know the little fox; in the past, their relationship had always been one of mutual benefit.
But more often than not, the little fox’s concern for her and Cook went far beyond a simple financial transaction.
As she was lost in thought, Cook gently patted her on the shoulder.
Gu Ning turned to look at Cook.
Cook pointed to the Detection Device in her hand, then at Barto.
Gu Ning didn’t understand what Cook meant.
Cook simply took the device from her hand, walked over to Barto, and pricked him with it.
Barto shot up from his den. "You mutt, what are you doing?"
His expression changed the moment he caught sight of the Detection Device in Cook’s hand, and he immediately tried to snatch it.
Cook held the Detection Device high, returned to Gu Ning’s side, and shoved it into her hand.
"Give it to me!"
Barto turned to Gu Ning.
Gu Ning held the Detection Device up, not letting him grab it, while Cook grabbed the little fox by the scruff of his neck to stop him.
At first, Gu Ning was confused, but seeing how agitated Barto was, she sensed something was wrong. She brought the Detection Device closer to her face and took a careful look.
The reading on it had changed. Before, it was 64.7%. Now, it was 63.2%.
Barto’s aberration value was now almost as high as Cook’s.
Seeing this high aberration value, the little fox’s earlier words suddenly seemed to have a reason.
’Was he asking about Cook? Or was he asking... about himself?’
Barto struggled free from Cook’s grasp, snatched the Detection Device, and cleared the reading from it.
Gu Ning handed him a note: *I saw.*
Barto: "...The reading was wrong."
Gu Ning wrote: *Barto, tell me the truth.*
Barto looked up and met Gu Ning’s gaze. Her eyes, illuminated by the flashlight, were so bright he didn’t dare to look directly at them.
A fragile, long-neglected corner of his heart was like a crumbling wall. He hid behind it, and his first reaction to being discovered wasn’t happiness, but fear that the wall would be pushed over and crush him.
"None of your business." Barto instinctively tried to retreat, shrinking into his little den and pulling the blanket over himself to hide completely.
The more he acted this way, the more Gu Ning could see the little fox’s vulnerability and panic.
She looked at the box of Inhibitors on the table. If Cook was using one per day, did that mean Barto hadn’t used a single one?
Gu Ning fumbled in her pocket and pulled out the Blue Gold Degeneration Inhibitor that Cyril had given her earlier that day.
In the darkness, this Inhibitor shone even more brightly. The box of High-level inhibitors on the table looked dim in comparison, but the Blue Gold Inhibitor was only half the size.
Gu Ning looked up at Cook. She had originally intended to use this Inhibitor on him.
Cook bent down to lick her face, then nudged her forward with his head.
Gu Ning clutched the precious Inhibitor tightly. After a moment’s hesitation, she walked over to Barto and crouched down beside him.
"Go away..." Barto said in a muffled voice.
Gu Ning lifted a corner of the blanket and reached out to feel around. Not caring what part of him she touched, she jabbed the Inhibitor into him.
Barto shot up from his den again. "Why did you stab me in the butt?!"
Gu Ning opened her mouth. ’Ah... so that was his butt...’
She grabbed Barto’s arm and, before he could react, injected the rest of the Inhibitor.
"I have my own Inhibitors..." Barto suddenly froze, his eyes widening slowly. "This is..."
He snatched the Inhibitor, held it to his nose, and sniffed it hard. ’That smell...’
"Where did you get this?"
After asking, Barto fell silent again. Now that the Military Department had moved onto the construction site, Alex would naturally have ways to get it for her.
’But, her identity... do other people know now too?’
Barto frowned. Even if he didn’t know how far things had gone between her and Alex, knowing Gu Ning’s personality, she wouldn’t want more people to know her identity. Otherwise, she would have told him long ago...
’So, in the end, she still doesn’t trust me.’
But looking at the Inhibitor in his hand, the frustration in Barto’s heart subsided a little.
Unaware of the whirlwind of thoughts in Barto’s mind, Gu Ning just ruffled his head. She stood up, went to the bedroom to get her bedding, and directed Cook to move the coffee table against the wall.
"You... you’re not sleeping in the bedroom?"
Barto asked, watching Gu Ning spread her bedding on the floor.
After making her bed on the floor, Gu Ning handed him a note: *I’ll sleep in the living room from now on.*
"WOOF!" Cook licked her, then rolled around happily on the floor.
"From now on?" Barto’s heart stirred when he saw that. "You’re not going back to live with Alex?"
His tone was cautious and probing.
Gu Ning patted her quilt, sat down cross-legged, and wrote: *I’ll stay with you for now, until I leave Zone 19.*
Seeing the word "leave" on the note, the light in Barto’s eyes dimmed again.
Gu Ning handed him another note, asking: *Barto, are you sure you don’t want to leave Zone 19?*
Barto looked at the note and was silent for a moment. He turned and buried himself back in his den, saying nonchalantly, "I’m not leaving. I still have business in Zone 19. If I leave, I’ll have to start all over again."
With a woof, Cook ran over and dragged Barto, den and all, into the middle of the living room.
"Stupid dog, what are you doing?!"
Gu Ning straightened out Barto’s little den and lay down in it.
The little fox’s den was thick and soft, much more comfortable than her makeshift bed on the floor. It wasn’t too small, either; there was room for her.
Gu Ning patted the empty space beside her, looking at the little fox standing by the edge of the den.
Barto: "..."
He turned to walk away, but Cook gave him a hard shove, pushing him right into the den.
Barto and Gu Ning stared at each other face-to-face for a moment before he turned away. "Sleep on your own side. Don’t touch me. You stink, you reek of dog."
