Reboot: Mechanic

341  Flexing

Just like most people watching the scene, Shi Tian was seemingly caught off-guard by Vanessa's identity. All along, Shi Tian merely thought Vanessa held a somewhat high status in Chronosworth City, but definitely not this high. Hell, her identity alone could easily send anyone in Gearits City to shambles with a single command of hers.

'With such high status and the fact that she snuck out alone here for some fun. No wonder she was targeted.' Shi Tian thought to himself. If he was jealous of Vanessa's status and position, then even he would have sent assassins to kill Vanessa. After all, if Vanessa died, it meant a power struggle in Chronosworth City to change hands. 'Screw the respecting and not prying for information. I'm going to ask her for the details of Chronosworth City even if it was impolite.' Shi Tian clenched his fist and swore inwardly. His prior restraint in not prying for information, out of respect or perhaps a fear of being seen as intrusive, now seemed like a missed opportunity. The sense of inadequacy in not probing for more information about Vanessa and her background left him feeling unprepared and somewhat foolish amidst the current revelation. He realized that his hesitance had caused him to miss out on crucial details that could have given him a better understanding of Vanessa's situation.

"Why was I so foolish?" Shi Tian questioned himself, having realized intelligence does not equal wisdom.

Sure, he might have intelligence, but without wisdom to allow him to make good judgments was detrimental. Wisdom came through experience, perhaps without us even realizing it, and intelligence, in all its many forms, was often something inherent or something people consciously work on improving.

The realization dawned on Shi Tian that understanding more about the power structures between cities and their governing families was not just a matter of curiosity but a matter of survival. The potential consequences of crossing someone as influential as Vanessa or her family, the Ariston Family, loomed ominously.

'Vanessa isn't a grudgeful person, right?' Shi Tian wondered silently, his eyes remained locked on the scene in which Olivia Harrett was getting frightened. While Shi Tian was pondering over his fate, Olivia Harrett, on the other hand, was not faring much better.

In fact, she was beginning to panic and wondering how her father might punish her for causing such a gigantic mess. Normally, the mess she caused was within Gearits City, so her father could still cover it up for her, prompting her to not have to worry about a single consequence of her actions.

Spoiled?

Yes, but that was because she knew she could afford to be spoiled and not receive any consequences.

However, the mess this time was related to another city– one that was even more advanced than Gearits City. Who knows if her father could still bail her out in such circumstances? "So what is it, Miss Heir?" Vanessa suddenly asked coldly. "Are you still trying to detain me? But I'm afraid you might not even have the capability to attempt such an act." As humiliating as that sounded, Olivia Harrett could only clench her fist in anger, suppressing her emotion deep within her heart. "What's the matter? Cat got your tongue?" Vanessa snickered and stepped forward, placing her hands on her hip. "Weren't you so authoritative earlier, blabbering your mouth left and right? Why did you turn into a mute now?" She added, insulting her further.

Now that she had revealed her identity to everyone, she was done trying to play low-key or so she had tried. Vanessa realized that her identity factor alone could divert most of the trouble, and understood just how important her status was. Just look at the current scenario. Had she not revealed her status, not a single person would have given her adequate respect.

However, once her status was revealed, everyone seemed to be afraid of her, almost as if even breathing next to her was a frightening thing.

"D-Don't you dare go too far, Vanessa Ariston!" Olivia Harrett finally spoke up and shouted. "This is still within the vicinity of Gearits City, and not your Chronosworth City." "Pfft," Vanessa made a chuckle when she heard how pathetic her retaliation was. She didn't mean to laugh at her, but the nonsense that Olivia Harrett uttered was truly nonsensical– to the point that even the other onlookers were laughing in amusement.

Vicinity?

This Olivia Harrett must have lost her brain somewhere. They were in the wilderness, and everyone knows, there are no actual laws within the wilderness. Sure, some people might still be afraid of certain people with status such as Vanessa, but aside from that, it could be said that the wilderness was a lawless place. With that in mind, it made perfect sense that everyone thought Olivia Harrett was a fool after all. The eloquent speech or talk that she had made earlier seemed suspicious now.

Taking a step forward, Vanessa started poking at Olivia Harrett. "Vicinity? If I am harmed even by a single hair, then let's see if you still have the confidence to say you have any vicinity." Vanessa sneered, essentially threatening her.

"Y-You just wait! I'll make sure you will pay for this." Olivia Harrett stepped backward and pointed at her anxiously, before swiftly leaving the scene.

She was spoiled but not dumb. Without anyone backing her up at the moment, it would be foolish of her to go head-to-head with Vanessa, whose identity and status were leagues above hers. Seeing Olivia Harrett hastily leaving the scenes, Vanessa then turned her attention to the onlookers, who were no different than those gossip women. "The show's over already. Do you have that much free time in your hand when the monster wave seems to have a new movement now?" She scoffed coldly, prompting the rest of the onlookers to leave the scene as if they were rats. Clasping her hands right after, Vanessa was relieved to finally show her might once in a while. These people will never learn until they meet someone stronger than them in their own game.