Chapter 80: Chapter 80: Don’t Blame the Monkey for Being Ruthless

Ethan Hawthorne grew agitated, his voice rising. Coupled with an animal’s naturally sharp hearing, the macaque perched on the safety railing twisted its head to stare at them, its two tawny eyes filled with wariness.

As their eyes met the macaque’s, everyone felt their scalps prickle, their nerves stretched taut.

The macaque suddenly bared its teeth in a snarl and held up the small infant in its arms.

Seeing this, the new parents downstairs burst into desperate sobs.

"Didn’t you say the animal consultant was already up there? Why is it still holding my baby up like that! Is it going to throw my baby down?"

"Are you people going to save my child or not?"

"I understand how you feel..." Kyle Morgan, who didn’t know the specifics of the situation, was also sweating bullets as he steeled himself and tried to comfort them.

On the ninth-floor rooftop, cold wind howled past. The baby’s cries came in fits and starts.

The macaque seemed to sense the tense mood of Renee Jennings and the others. It pulled the baby back into its arms and started pacing back and forth on the safety railing.

Everyone’s hearts were in their throats. They breathed cautiously, not even daring to blink, terrified that the next time they opened their eyes, they would see the baby fall.

Seeing that Renee Jennings still hadn’t done anything, Ethan Hawthorne grew increasingly annoyed. He lowered his voice and reproached, "Captain Stark, is this so-called ’animal consultant’ you hired any good at all? Are we just supposed to stand here and wait for the monkey to throw the baby off?"

"Captain Harrow, give Consultant Jennings a little more time," Henry Stark said gravely. "You know how critical the situation is. Consultant Jennings can’t just speak rashly."

Renee Jennings was indeed contemplating how to communicate with the macaque.

Gusts of cold wind blew, yet a fine layer of sweat beaded on her smooth forehead.

Just then, System 009 suddenly spoke.

[System 009: Miss Jennings, Level 1 has unlocked the Animal Mall. You can select the function cards you need in the mall and pay with points.]

Renee Jennings didn’t know why it was bringing this up, but from what she knew of the system, it wasn’t one to spout nonsense at a critical moment.

She quickly entered the Animal Mall. After browsing through it, her attention was caught by the "one-minute Animal Heart Sound Prop Card."

She scanned the prop card’s instructions and felt it was perfect for the current situation, but when she saw that it cost 50 points, she felt the sting of the price.

’Exchanging for an hour of Combat Power only cost 20 points, but this one-minute prop card is a whopping 50 points. What a rip-off.’

[System 009: You can upgrade as soon as possible. By reaching Level 2, you can enjoy a 20% discount.]

Renee Jennings: "..."

She sighed inwardly and exchanged 50 points for the "one-minute Animal Heart Sound Prop Card."

A human life was definitely more important than points.

Never mind 50 points; she would have exchanged it even if it cost 500 points.

Renee Jennings used the prop card on the macaque and successfully heard its thoughts.

’I treated humans as friends, but humans stole my child!’

’Since humans are so heartless, then don’t blame me for being ruthless!’

’Its child was stolen by humans?’

Renee Jennings frowned. Looking at the macaque’s ferocious, teeth-baring expression, she pursed her lips and tentatively asked, "Are you looking for your child?"

Hearing this, the members of the fire squad found it utterly ridiculous.

’What kind of animal consultant is this?’

’She sees a monkey snatch a baby and thinks it’s looking for its own child?’

’Monkeys are naturally mischievous. It must be a simple prank, snatching a human baby for fun.’

Hearing Renee Jennings’s words, the macaque that was pacing back and forth on the railing suddenly froze.

Renee Jennings heard its thoughts again.

’How does this human know I’m looking for my child? Could it be that she’s the one who stole my baby?’

As the thought faded, Renee Jennings noticed the macaque’s expression grow even more ferocious, its mood turning extremely agitated.

"No, I didn’t steal your child," Renee Jennings explained hurriedly. "Can you tell me who stole your child? Maybe I can help you."

The faces of the fire squad members turned grim.

Ethan Hawthorne suppressed his anger and said through clenched teeth, "Consul— Miss Jennings, this is no time for your one-woman show! The monkey hasn’t said a word!"

He wasn’t even willing to call Renee Jennings "Consultant Jennings."

’The monkey hasn’t said a word. Even if she’s putting on an act, it should at least be logical. She’s treating us all like idiots!’

Renee Jennings glanced at Ethan Hawthorne, ignoring his hostile gaze, and tentatively took two steps closer to the macaque.

Seeing that it didn’t overreact, she quietly breathed a sigh of relief and held her breath to listen to the macaque’s thoughts.

’Can she really understand me? Will she really help me?’

"I can understand. I genuinely want to help you," Renee Jennings said in a gentle voice, pointing a finger at Henry Stark behind her. "This is a human police officer. He specializes in arresting criminals, protecting humans, and protecting macaques, too."

Hearing this, the macaque’s mouth finally moved, and it asked aloud, "Can you really find my child?"

Renee Jennings couldn’t actually make any guarantees, as she wasn’t sure if the macaque’s child was alive and safe.

She took a deep breath. "We’ll do our best, but we need your cooperation, too."

The macaque lowered its gaze, its expression filled with hesitation.

"Enough!" Ethan Hawthorne suddenly roared. "How long are you going to keep this act up? This isn’t the time for your little play, mmph—"

Henry Stark reached out and clamped a hand over his mouth, his expression cold. "My apologies, Captain Harrow."

Ethan Hawthorne: "Mmph! Mmph! Mmph!" ’Let me go!’

However, Henry Stark’s action of manually "muting" Ethan Hawthorne agitated the macaque.

Its mood became agitated again. It clutched the small baby and began jumping around on the safety railing, screeching frantically, "You’re all in it together! You’re with that other group of people! That day, they held me down just like that and stole my baby!"

The reporters on the opposite building and the onlookers downstairs broke out in a cold sweat when they saw this.

"Stop jumping, stop jumping! Save my baby!"

"Is the animal consultant actually useful or not?"

"How is it that the more she communicates, the worse the monkey’s mood gets? Is she here to save someone or to harm them?"

Hearing the macaque’s words, Renee Jennings quickly told Henry Stark to let go of Ethan Hawthorne. "When its baby was stolen, it was restrained just like this."

She looked at the macaque and explained softly, "I’m sorry. Please don’t be angry. We only covered his mouth so he wouldn’t speak because we were afraid he would frighten you."

"You’re all in it together!" The macaque didn’t believe her.

With every leap the macaque took while holding the baby, Renee Jennings’s heart lurched anxiously.

She looked up and wiped the cold sweat from her forehead, her mind racing with anxiety, unsure how to calm the macaque.

Renee Jennings let out a long breath and decided to just ask directly, "What will it take for you to believe me?"

The world of animals is not so full of twists and turns. The question left the macaque stumped.

It stopped jumping, frowned, and stared at Renee Jennings for a good while before speaking: "Make them all go away! Far away!"