"Seriously! This guy is showing off again and daring not to listen to me! He's just a small probationary Sergeant…"
Farida hunched over the steering wheel, her brows furrowed in distress, and her lips pouted in a huff, muttering to herself.
But as she watched Horatio walk away, she couldn't help but let out a muffled sigh, feeling somewhat empty inside for some reason.
It seemed he was the person she had interacted with the most since she grew up, apart from her personal maid, Lina.
She was exceptionally beautiful, with a noble background, and was recognized as a top-tier beauty among the aristocratic families of Abyss Port.
At her age, she would typically have an arranged marriage with someone of similar standing.
However, due to the negative effects of being an Untouchable, almost everyone inexplicably avoided her.
To establish connections with the Hood Family, some nobles had tried to 'hold their noses' and approach her, but all attempts ultimately failed.
Even those with stronger psychic perception would directly suffer epileptic seizures and collapse, convulsing on the ground, after getting close to her.
During the two years she spent avenging her mother, whenever she joined a bounty hunter vigilante squad, the team members either transferred to another team or resigned. She couldn't find a partner or friends.
Her mentor had no choice but to assign her as a Adeptus Arbites specialist, working alone.
Even the Naval Officers of the Imperial Navy only offered her a perfunctory salute, never engaging in deeper interactions.
This was not because the Naval Officers dared not pursue the Rear Admiral's daughter.
After all, if they could truly win the heart of Alexander Hood, the Rear Admiral's only daughter, their careers would skyrocket like a rocket.
The reality was that these soldiers, who had long roamed the void, had already developed a higher tolerance for Warp energy than ordinary people.
Getting too close to an Untouchable would make them feel unusually uncomfortable, even causing seasickness.
This was not a good thing for Naval personnel; returning home to their wives and then vomiting all over the house, and taking a long time to readjust after boarding their ship, was clearly not what they wanted.
Even her personal maid, Lina, only had weakened discomfort because she had been with her since childhood, enduring long-term exposure.
It was also due to years of such unspeakable social circumstances, combined with her mother's death and her father's constant absence in an unhealthy aristocratic family environment, that Farida's personality became poor and overbearing, arrogant, stubborn, sharp-tongued, and willful.
She knew in her heart that these traits were not good, but with a 'no one wants to be my friend anyway' defeatist attitude, she chose to live freely on her own.
Until this black-haired youth appeared, he seemed to possess a natural ability to synchronize with an Untouchable, not only unaffected by the Untouchable's negative influence but also capable of weakening her aura's effect on those around her.
And in just two short days, her face displayed a richness of expressions she had never shown before.
[He's a Childer of Loyalty Marine anyway, so why don't I ask Father to transfer him to be my personal guard?]
A bold thought surfaced in the girl's mind.
She suddenly shook her head violently.
[What am I thinking! Father would definitely transfer a female soldier. In his eyes, for Horatio to be worthy of standing behind her, he would need to be at least a Colonel Captain.]
But by the time he became a Colonel Captain, how old would he be then?!
The average age of an Imperial Navy Colonel Captain is 40, and even for exceptional talents, they only become Captains around 30.
By then, she would be 31! She would have waited until all the flowers withered!
[No! I'm not talking about marriage with him, what am I thinking? Seriously…]
The girl's cheeks flushed crimson, as she chided herself for her wild thoughts.
[Forget it! Forget it! This is so annoying! I'm going home!]
Farida turned the car around and sped away.
Horatio was drawn by the sound and looked back as the vehicle in the sky departed.
He whistled softly with his hands in his pockets, quickly blending into the crowd.
[I remember the Diviner is in a flashy caravan in the square.]
Horatio took in the sights of the streets and alleys while remaining vigilant of his surroundings.
The streets were bustling with pedestrians, and the buildings were filled with gaudy neon lights, with colorful signs blatantly spreading temptation.
Here, as long as one's purse was full enough, whether human or non-human, they could experience everything they desired, even if only for a fleeting moment.
Outside the makeshift circus tents set up on the road, clowns wearing somewhat eerie, dirty masks beckoned customers. Out of the corner of his eye, scantily clad Cat People girls, quirky Warlock jugglers, and comically plump Ogryn were waiting to take turns entertaining the audience.
Tables inside and outside the open-air eateries were overflowing with people, some drunk and dangerously waving bottles of Amasec, soon to vomit themselves into unconsciousness.
There were also hooded figures, their faces unseen, suspicious in every sense, setting up stalls laden with various trinkets from unknown origins, some seemingly bearing faint eight-pointed star markings.
There were more pickpockets here than in the Lower Hive, and their skills were even more refined—this rare place with no class barriers was the most likely to yield rich rewards.
Besides being wary of suspicious-looking individuals, the seemingly innocent children on the streets were, in fact, the ones to be more cautious of.
Though young, their pickpocketing skills were masterful.
Next to Horatio stood a peculiar building—it was built on the foundation of a flat-level residence, with all its windows widened and fitted with beautiful floor-to-ceiling windows, resembling a vibrant, kaleidoscopic crystal ball.
Behind each floor-to-ceiling window stood beautiful, sensual, and scantily clad women.
Under the ambiguous purple light, they danced with alluring movements, making extremely provocative gestures to every passerby, including these callow youths, inciting primal human desires.
As a physiologically healthy male, Horatio, though expressionless, couldn't help but react to the enticing curves.
'Cough, cough.' [I'd better get to business.] He awkwardly quickened his pace.
Although the public order was chaotic, the overall living standard and environment of F-4 Block were much higher than the Lower Hive he had previously stayed in.
It bore a striking resemblance to Night City in cyberpunk.
It was rare to see so many neon signs in the rigid Imperial world, but this was Abyss Port, a harbor city of human civilization that had always been relatively open.
On one hand, because the current planetary government was formed by the Rogue Trader Guild, the market was prosperous, and commerce flourished.
Secondly, the new religious ideology initiated by the Order of the Sacred Rose was far more popular here than the Ecclesiarchy itself; even nuns could marry without renouncing their vows and embrace happiness.
Coupled with the surge of liberal thought prevalent in the Imperial Navy, Rogue Trader, Charter Fleet, and civilian fleets, the influence of the Ecclesiarchy in the Gothic Sector seemed somewhat stretched and insufficient.
However, the price of prosperity was that the administrative difficulty of Abyss Port far exceeded that of any other planet.
Horatio stopped, looking left and right.
[It seems to be in this area, where is it?]
His gaze quickly scanned, finally landing on a flashy purple caravan.
[Found it!]
Horatio quickly jogged over.