KOF: Rise of the King of Fighters

Although Yan Yue had removed his disguise, he was still wearing sunglasses. He closed his eyes, took a few deep breaths, and began to concentrate, slowly spreading his perception as if an invisible net were covering the entire bar.

A cacophony of sounds flooded his ears: the hushed conversations of people, footsteps, the clinking of cutlery, and so on. These sounds intertwined, creating a noisy background, but Yan Yue remained undisturbed. Instead, he carefully discerned each subtle sound, trying to glean useful information from them.

After a while, Yan Yue finally heard some indistinct sounds.

"...The experiment seems to have been a success..." The voice carried a hint of surprise.

"...Won't this pose a threat to us?" another voice asked worriedly.

"Regardless, we at Nests must ensure the plan..."

Yan Yue's heart skipped a beat. As expected, the NESTS organization was also on this ship, and they had clearly infiltrated the tourists. This made Yan Yue very uneasy, because NESTS had probably already begun using Orochi's power for human experiments, which was definitely not a good thing.

Yan Yue wanted to continue gathering information, but just then, an evil aura suddenly appeared within his perception range.

"Not good, this is the aura of the Eight Heroes!" Yan Yue thought to herself, her expression instantly turning serious.

Yan Yue quickly withdrew his [Perception Domain], fearing that the other party would notice. He forced himself to remain calm, picked up his wine glass, and took a sip as if nothing had happened. Since being tricked by Mai Zhuo last time, he had learned his lesson and knew that his perception could be detected by the Eight Heroes, so Yan Yue was being extra cautious at this moment.

Not long after, Mai Zhuo walked in, dressed in work clothes. She was graceful, elegant, and her cool and aloof demeanor made her even more charming.

Mai Zhuo walked straight to the bar and chatted with the staff member next to her, occasionally letting out a silvery laugh. At the same time, she also took a few bottles of unidentified red wine from the bar.

Yan Yue sat not far from the bar, with her back to Mai Zhuo, pretending to drink her cold fruit wine casually.

At this moment, Yan Yue dared not use her senses to inquire about Mai Zhuo's conversation, for fear of being discovered again.

Time ticked by, and Mai Zhuo finally finished her conversation with the staff, picked up a few bottles of wine, and gracefully turned and walked out of the bar. Yan Yue secretly breathed a sigh of relief, thinking that at least she hadn't been exposed this time.

As night fell, the crowd in the bar gradually dispersed, leaving only a few people chatting idly. The bar became somewhat quiet, with only the sounds of music and clinking glasses echoing in the air.

Not long after Mai Zhuo left, Yan Yue sat at the bar, lost in thought, her mind replaying everything that had just happened. After a while, Yan Yue used the communicator to tell Heidern in detail what she had learned. Then, Yan Yue took a sip, put down her glass, and hurriedly left the bar.

Yan Yue walked out of the bar, through a narrow corridor, and headed towards the fighters' lounge.

But just then, a charming voice came from behind: "Handsome young man, what a coincidence, we meet again~"

Upon hearing that familiar voice, Yan Yue stiffened abruptly, a look of tension appearing on his face, but he quickly tried to relax.

After all, with so many fighters gathered on the ship, Mature wouldn't make a move. However, Yan Yue still felt quite helpless, and couldn't help but sigh softly, "Sigh, I've been discovered again..."

Wearing high heels, Mai Zhuo walked gracefully to Yan Yue and said softly, "I spotted you from far away~" Her voice was like a gentle breeze, soft and charming.

Mai Zhuo's lips curled into a charming smile as she reached out to remove Yan Yue's sunglasses. However, just as she was about to touch the sunglasses, Yan Yue suddenly became alert.

"Hey! Wait a minute." After saying that, Yan Yue quickly took off her sunglasses, revealing her face to Mai Zhuo.

A flicker of surprise crossed Mai Zhuo's eyes, but she quickly regained her composure. She smiled knowingly and said, "Hehe~ So you really are Yan Yue, the one who defeated Geese."

Yan Yue knew that Mai Zhuo probably already knew his identity and information. So, he asked in return, "Now I'm quite curious, beautiful lady, how did you find out about me?"

Mai Zhuo smiled gently and replied, "Your aura is quite different from ordinary people. I can sense it easily." As she spoke, she leaned gently against the wall, her beautiful eyes fixed on Yan Yue, as if trying to see right through him.

Yan Yue stopped chatting and leaned against the opposite wall with a cold expression, questioning Mai Zhuo: "Is there a bomb on this ship?"

Mai Zhuo's lips curled into a slight smile, a sly glint in her eyes. She replied with a smile, "Yes, indeed~"

Yan Yue's gaze sharpened further as he pressed on, "Shouldn't Kusanagi Shizuru be in your hands?"

Mai Zhuo raised an eyebrow slightly, still wearing that mysterious smile, and slowly nodded in acknowledgment, "You're quite well-informed, aren't you?"

Yan Yue frowned deeply and asked in a serious tone, "What exactly is your purpose?"

However, Mai Zhuo didn't seem inclined to reveal her plans easily. She pouted and complained deliberately, "Why should I tell you? I already answered your questions very kindly, and you didn't even thank me!"

After hearing this, Yan Yue calmly replied, "Thank you for before, Sister Mai Zhuo."

"This is so true~"

"If you're not going to tell me, then forget it. I'll find out." After saying that, Yan Yue turned around and left the corridor to return to the fighters' lounge.

Just then, Mai Zhuo stared intently at Yan Yue with an inscrutable look in her eyes, a slight smile playing on her lips, and slowly said, "Aren't you worried that I'll tell the owner of this ship about this? After all, I'm his secretary."

Yan Yue's face remained expressionless as she calmly replied, "You wouldn't do that."

Mai Zhuo raised an eyebrow and asked curiously, "Oh? Why are you so sure?"

Yan Yue took a deep breath, turned around, and answered firmly, "Because this ship is actually Rugal's aircraft carrier—Black Noah. And I suspect that he is using the power of Orochi in order to become stronger."

Upon hearing these words, Mai Zhuo's expression froze instantly, a hint of shock appearing in her eyes.

Yan Yue noticed Mature's unusual behavior, but did not stop talking and continued, "I just heard Rugal conducting some kind of experiment using the power of Orochi."

"As a member of the Eight Heroes, you probably don't want your boss to know, right?" Yan Yue's tone was unusually calm, yet it contained a threatening undertone.

Yan Yue knew perfectly well that Mature, as one of the Eight Orochi Warriors, posed a great danger, and that she was constantly plotting to revive Orochi. The Eight Orochi Warriors would certainly punish Rugal for blaspheming Orochi's power.

At this moment, in order to rescue Kusanagi Shizuru and ensure everyone's escape, Engetsu had no time to consider anything else. He decided to take a gamble and use this to his advantage to subdue her.

Mai Zhuo looked somewhat nervous, staring at the boy in front of her in silence for a long time. She was surprised and curious that Yan Yue, despite his young age, was so thoughtful and knew so much inside information.

"You were absolutely right..." As the voice rang out, Mai Zhuo slowly walked out of the darkness.

Yan Yue suddenly lost sight of Mai Zhuo and became wary. He wanted to distance himself from Mai Zhuo, but just then, Yan Yue suddenly felt a pair of soft hands cupping his cheeks. Immediately afterward, Mai Zhuo appeared behind him like a ghost and embraced him.

Yan Yue's expression changed slightly. Just as he was about to break free, he heard a soft and charming voice coming from his ear: "Little Yan Yue~ I'm becoming more and more interested in you. Let me tell you some more things."

Yan Yue suppressed her discomfort and calmly said, "Thank you very much, Sister Mai Zhuo."

"Hmm, very polite~" Mature chuckled, then pressed her body tightly against Engetsu's back, and continued, "Kusanagi Shizuru is on the lowest level of this ship, but... he has become a little different now."

"Uncle was affected by the power of the giant snake?" Yan Yue frowned slightly upon hearing this and asked in a low voice.

However, Mature did not answer his question directly, but continued, "Rugal's target is actually Kyo Kusanagi..."

"Then..." Yan Yue thought of something and was about to ask when Mai Zhuo interrupted her.

"Hehehe..." Mai Zhuo suddenly moved from behind Yan Yue to face her, her arms still wrapped around Yan Yue's neck. "You have to keep my affairs a secret, or I'll get angry~"

"Alright, I should go back now. Little Yan Yue~ Let's meet again next time~" Mai Zhuo disappeared without waiting for Yan Yue to finish speaking.

Yan Yue realized that Mai Zhuo had really left, so she hurriedly returned to the fighters' lounge.