Chapter 121: Do You Want to Match With Me?
The Matching Banquet was still underway. When Shane Thorne saw Sophie Wexler’s location pop up on his communicator, he immediately headed for the exit.
For some reason, he had a bad feeling, as if he’d lose his chance to match with her completely if he was even a moment too late.
The moment Shane Thorne moved, Evan Adler and the others who had been keeping an eye on him also set off, following him outside.
Suddenly, a whole tail of followers trailed behind one person. Their movements were so furtive and comical they looked like a pack of stray puppies.
The distance between Shane Thorne and their location was closing fast.
Meanwhile, Sophie Wexler still hadn’t recovered from the immense shock.
It felt like her brain had completely shut down.
Her eyes were glazed as she stared at Cillian Forrest. She blinked a couple of times, and it took a long moment for her to snap out of it.
’What did he just say?’
’Did I mishear him? A match?’
’Her and him?’
’Sophie Wexler and Cillian Forrest?’
But looking into his incredibly earnest eyes, she knew she hadn’t misheard.
"I..." Sophie opened her mouth to speak, but before she could get a word out...
...she was abruptly pulled by the arm and into the man’s embrace. A large hand quickly wrapped around her.
Before Sophie could even react, they were airborne.
The sudden feeling of weightlessness made Sophie instinctively open her mouth to scream.
"Don’t make a sound," the man’s voice rumbled from above her head. She didn’t know if it was because they were so close, but she could even feel his breath brush against her neck as he spoke.
Sophie swallowed the scream that was about to escape.
In the blink of an eye, Cillian had carried Sophie up to the terrace on the floor above.
Sophie’s brain couldn’t process it. ’Wait, how did we get up here?’
It wasn’t until she looked down that she saw a small personal flight device automatically folding up next to Cillian’s foot.
It was incredibly compact—when folded, it wasn’t even as big as her palm.
’So that’s how,’ she thought. ’No wonder we just lifted into the air.’
Once her confusion was cleared up, she realized she was still in Cillian’s arms. His broad palm rested on her waist, its presence intensely palpable.
The intimate posture instantly made the atmosphere feel awkward.
She carefully tried to pull away. The moment she moved, she felt a touch on her forehead.
Warm and soft.
Sophie froze completely. ’What is happening?!’
’I was just trying to get out of his arms! I didn’t expect my forehead to brush against Cillian’s lips!’ she screamed internally.
Cillian felt the girl in his arms stiffen. The fleeting sensation seemed to linger on his lips.
Seeing the tips of Sophie’s ears turn red, an imperceptible smile flickered in Cillian’s eyes. He decided not to tease her further and let her go.
Sophie immediately scrambled back two steps. She smoothed her clothes, then her hair. Feeling a bit hot, she even started fanning her cheeks with her hand.
It was a textbook example of someone using a hundred little fidgets to hide their embarrassment.
Cillian quietly watched all her little movements, a smile in his eyes.
As she fanned herself, Sophie tried to change the subject. "Why did you bring me up here?"
Cillian tilted his chin, gesturing for her to look down below.
Sophie looked in the direction Cillian indicated. The spot where they had been standing just moments ago was now occupied.
By more than one person, in fact.
She recognized the man at the front: Shane Thorne, whom she had met a few times recently. He appeared to be looking for something.
A few others trailed behind him, furtively peeking out from cover. They looked just like a pack of stray puppies.
Shane Thorne stood rooted to the spot, staring at the location on his communicator. For a moment, a dazed look crossed his face.
’What’s going on? Miss Wexler’s location signal is gone?’
He was certain the signal had pinpointed this exact spot just moments ago.
’But where is she?’
He scanned the area but saw no one.
He had no idea that Cillian had activated his Spirit Barrier, blocking Sophie Wexler’s location signal. It was impossible for him to find her now.
Behind him, Evan Adler and the others whispered amongst themselves. "Is he looking for Miss Wexler?"
"Looks that way."
"But there’s no one here."
Unlike the others in his entourage, Shane Thorne was certain Sophie had been here just moments ago. He just didn’t know why her signal had suddenly vanished.
Figuring she couldn’t have gone far, he started walking forward to continue his search.
The group behind him scrambled to keep up.
Having witnessed the entire scene from the terrace above, Sophie asked in confusion, "What are they...?"
"Looking for you," Cillian answered simply.
Sophie’s eyes widened in surprise as she looked at him. "For me?"
Cillian didn’t say anything more, but his gaze confirmed it.
Sophie looked down again. A thought suddenly occurred to her, and she asked, "Are they all candidates for the matching?"
For them to be looking for her at an event like this, there was only one possibility: they were all candidates.
Cillian grunted in affirmation. For some reason, his eyes turned cold.
To prevent candidates from clashing with each other while pursuing a Healer-class individual at the Matching Banquet,
The Empire had established a protective mechanism: without a Healer’s express permission, no candidate could obtain their location.
But Shane Thorne was clearly heading there with a specific purpose; he obviously knew Sophie Wexler’s location.
Otherwise, he wouldn’t have been so single-minded, even stopping to search the area when he found it empty.
’Someone must have given him Sophie’s exact location.’
’He knew their motives all too well, but they were about to be sorely disappointed.’
Seeing Sophie still looking dazed, Cillian Forrest called her name. "Sophie Wexler."
Sophie answered subconsciously, "Hm?"
"You still haven’t answered my question."
Sophie’s thoughts snapped back to the present.
’His question from before.’
Cillian’s lips parted slightly. He stared at her and repeated his question. "Do you want to match with me?"
Sophie froze, and her heart began to pound erratically again.
She had been so set on not matching with anyone; she’d never once considered matching with Cillian Forrest.
’He... why didn’t he ever tell me he was a candidate? Why, all of a sudden...’
Cillian gazed down at her. He watched as a series of expressions flickered across Sophie’s face. She was even biting her lip, perhaps out of distress.
Cillian’s eyes darkened, and his fingers, hanging at his side, clenched into a fist.
Cillian: "If you don’t..."
Sophie Wexler: "Is it because it’s too difficult for me not to match with anyone?"
They both spoke at the same time.
It was the only explanation Sophie could come up with.
He had sent her candidate profiles before, and his own wasn’t among them. That must have meant he didn’t want to match back then.
But now he was suddenly saying this.
Combining that with the sight of those men hunting for her down below, she could only draw one conclusion.
’Her desire not to match with anyone must be too difficult to arrange. Not even Cillian Forrest could make it happen. So, he’s suggesting he match with me as a way to solve the problem.’