The scanner glided slowly over the medical case.
Every movement precisely bypassed the spot where the silver needle could trigger
her trap.
Serena watched his movements, one eyebrow arching slightly as her usually lazy gaze sparked with newfound interest.
This man was definitely not an ordinary mercenary.
He had seen it.
He had spotted the hidden trap she purposely set inside the case.
Yet, he said nothing, simply avoiding it as if nothing were amiss.
That level of acute awareness was not something honed by just surviving a few years in an ordinary war zone.
For some inexplicable reason, a wave of familiarity washed over Serena once again.
But the face hidden behind the black mask and those striking grayish-blue eyes were distinctly unfamiliar.
Jerrick's scanning speed was remarkably efficient.
There were no unnecessary touches, no probing of her vials under the guise of an inspection.
From start to finish, it was purely professional.
Soon, the scan concluded.
Jerrick withdrew the scanner. "No anomalies."
Serena stood nearby with her arms crossed, the corner of her eyes curling up. "Done?"
A smirk played on her lips. "Since Mr. Fenris is such a stickler for the rules, wouldn't you like to conduct a pat-down, too?"
Director Silas Kaelen stood frozen.
A wave of anxiety washed over him.
Why was every word exchanged between these two so incredibly dangerous?
Jerrick acted as if he hadn't caught the teasing provocation in her words. "No need," he said coldly.
Serena scoffed, snapping her medical case shut and picking it up to leave.
But Jerrick didn't step aside.
His tall frame stood dead center in the corridor, effectively blocking her path.
"How much longer can the asset inside last?" he asked, his voice icy.
Serena paused, tilting her head to give him a half-smile. "Why does a glorified patrol dog care whether the asset lives or dies?"
Jerrick remained expressionless. "If it loses control again, I'm the one who has to clean up the mess."
Neither of them exposed the other's true intentions.
But in that single moment, both realized they were dealing with someone far more complex than their surface identities suggested.
What he was really asking had absolutely nothing to do with security risks.
Serena narrowed her sharp eyes, a subtle smirk touching her lips.
She was already calculating who this so-called Fenris truly was behind the mask.
What did he actually want from the sentient cargo?
To be stationed outside the specialized medical wing and the Sanctum Vault's Outer Perimeter, while simultaneously being ordered to inspect The Panacea meant his clearance within the ship's security hierarchy was incredibly high.
Yet his posture, the invisible, suffocating aura he projected... none of it felt like a mercenary merely working for a paycheck.
He felt more like someone who had boarded this ship with a hidden agenda.
Naturally, Serena wasn't about to blow his cover right then and there.
She curled her lips into a lazy smile. "Since the ship paid a fortune for my services, it won't be a problem."
"As long as nobody touches the thing inside, it won't die before we reach Whitecliffe Harbor."
Jerrick's gaze grew heavier.
That single sentence leaked a few critical pieces of intel.
The thing inside was indeed sentient.
Furthermore, it was meant to be delivered intact to Whitecliffe Harbor.
This was more than enough to
confirm that the asset in the specialized medical wing was highly
likely one of the semi-finished human specimens from the Black
Sun, just as Dr. Geoffrey Grant had warned.
FindNovel.net
And The Panacea standing before him was the only person with legitimate
clearance to get close to it.
Jerrick stared at Serena, his mind racing.
He needed a way to use Serena and Hazel's names to test her.
If he could extract more intel from The Panacea, it might prove far more effective
than trying to brute-force his way into the vault.
However, with Director Silas Kaelen and the ship's security standing right there, this was hardly the time.
It clearly wasn't the moment to speak up.
Seeing that the two had finally
stopped trading verbal blows, Director Kaelen quickly interjected "By the way Your Excellency, since you and Mr. Fenris are n now acquainted, Fenris Squad with be handling your perimeter escorts and exit inspections every time you enter the specialized medical wing, the Sanctum Vault's Outer Perimeter, or any restricted zone."