Velvet Engine（Novel）

Rina was a woman who stood out.Her sharp black pixie-cut hair, sculpted features, and towering height of nearly 180 centimeters made her an unmistakable presence.Wherever she stood on any street corner, people's gazes were naturally drawn to her.But Rina paid no attention to such things.Her interest was fixed on only one thing — speed.

One evening, she met Alex.A small, unremarkable table in a modest restaurant.Alex wore a worn-out shirt and an old wristwatch. At first glance, he looked like an ordinary man.But his eyes were different.They focused straight on Rina, unwavering and sharp.

At first, their conversation was casual. Wine and food, travel stories, favorite movies.Yet Rina felt something was off.There was a distortion in the way Alex spoke, as if he were acting like a normal man.

At the same time, Alex was thinking too.Rina was not just a supercar enthusiast.The way she gripped a steering wheel, the precision in her fingers as she held her glass — there was no wasted movement.And above all, her eyes.Alert, sharp — the eyes of a professional warrior.

Then, a single offhand comment from Rina shifted the air between them.

"Have you ever seen that accident in Milan?"

For a brief second, Alex froze, his hand tightening around his knife.But he quickly laughed it off.

"No, only saw it on the news."

Rina smiled too.But in her eyes, there was no trace of the "woman" anymore.

She was known, in the world's underground circles, as Velvet Engine. A force who wielded speed as a weapon — stealing information, secrets, and sometimes even lives.Not merely a collector of supercars, but a "courier" powerful enough to shift the fates of nations, a shadow moving unseen.

And Alex —He was no ordinary citizen either.An agent of an international organization.His target: Rina Valenti.

But this wasn't part of the plan.He hadn't meant to be drawn to her.

The distance between them shrank by no more than a glass's width — neither taking a step closer, neither pulling away.The dinner continued.Behind their smiles, in some hidden corner of their hearts, they were thinking the same thing:

"Which one of us will fold first?"

In the depths of the night, in a quiet corner of the restaurant, sparks began to fly.