Eliam did not answer Charlie’s question, but he looked at Charlie and said very seriously, “Charlie, do you know why your parents returned to Oskia back then?”Charlie said, “I heard that it was my father who wanted to come back to revitalize the Wade family. As for my mother, she probably accompanied my father back to Oskia because she was fulfilling her obligations as a wife after marrying him.”Eliam smiled and said, “Look, this is your father’s brilliance. If he doesn’t want others to see through his true purpose, no one in this world would be able to see through him.”Charlie frowned and asked, “Uncle Eliam, what do you mean? According to what you’ve said, you mean that my parents actually had a hidden agenda when they returned to Oskia back then?” Eliam smiled mysteriously and said to Charlie, “Curtis and Ashley are a pair of geniuses in the business field, and in everyone’s eyes, they are the perfect couple in the financial industry. In fact, from the time I met your father
“Well…” Charlie was already feeling very confused. He could not help but murmur, “As far as I can remember, my parents were always focused on business matters before they left Eastcliff. I’d never heard of them being interested in archaeology or tomb raiding. I can’t find any such memories at all from my childhood memories.”Eliam said, “Your parents are extremely smart people, and they have never let anyone know their true purpose aside from me, of course.” After saying that, Eliam added, “Back to the topic of your parents returning to Oskia, in fact, your parents’ decision to leave the United States and return to Oskia for development was not for the reason the public thinks; that is because your father wanted to return to Oskia to revitalize the Wade family and because your mother was accompanying your father because she’s married to him.”“They actually had no plans to return to Oskia at first, or they didn’t intend to come back in such a hurry, but your father suddenly came to
Eliam’s question was also something Charlie could not figure out.He could not understand why the Qing Eliminating Society would put so much effort into his grandmother’s family and even go as far as to plant a bomb that would be delayed for twenty years before exploding. If they were coveting the Acker family’s wealth, this reason would be hardly tenable because the Qing Eliminating Society should be far wealthier compared to the Acker family. The Qing Eliminating Society had control over so many dead soldiers, Armed Calvary Guards, special envoys, Section Ambassadors, and even Dark Realm experts from the Hubert Battalion, so it would simply be a piece of cake for them to make money. There was absolutely no need for them to target the Acker family at all.This meant that they had other plans for the Acker family. Charlie was confused because he did not know what the organization’s purpose was.Therefore, he could only say to Eliam, “I actually don’t understand the Qing Eliminat
Eliam nodded and said, “Your father knew about the existence of the Hubbert Battalion. He mentioned in the email that someone saw a male martial artist with the last name Colter and a female martial artist with the last name Maine. They are a couple and happen to have the same last names as my parents, so he speculated that these two people should be my parents.”After saying that, Eliam added, “It’s because of this that I decided to change my career to become a news presenter in the hopes that my parents would pay attention to me one day and get in touch with me.”Charlie hurriedly asked, “Have you succeeded?”“Yes, I was successful.” Eliam nodded and said, “I established contact with my parents about ten years ago.”Charlie said with a shocked expression, “The internal structure of the Qing Eliminating Society is extremely strict with extremely tight management. How did you get in touch with your parents?”Eliam smiled faintly and explained, “Speaking of that, I’d have to brag a
Charlie could not help but feel a little excited as he asked Eliam, “How did your parents bypass the Qing Eliminating Society’s surveillance to contact you?”Eliam explained, “According to my father, although his qualifications were the worst when he was in Hubert Battalion, he gained the trust of the trainers in Hubbert Battalion because of his ability to deal with people. In addition, during the ten years he was in Hubbert Battalion, he had another son and daughter with my mother, so their overall stability became a lot stronger in the eyes of the Qing Eliminating Society.”“Later, the Qing Eliminating Society sent them to Saudi Arabia in the Middle East. They were a couple who operated an Oskian restaurant on the surface, but in actuality, they are secret sentries placed by the Qing Eliminating Society in Saudi to monitor the Saudi royal family and other forces. As soon as an order is executed, they will have to carry out the orders given by the Qing Eliminating Society immediatel
After saying that, Eliam added, “Moreover, my father never thought about leaving the Qing Eliminating Society. He just saw my message and wanted to get in touch with me. Other than that, he hadn’t done anything to let the Qing Eliminating Society down, so he has always been very safe.”Charlie asked him, “Is the reason why your father doesn’t want to leave the Qing Eliminating Society because he is a die-hard loyalist of the Qing Eliminating Society, or is it because he’s being forced by the Qing Eliminating Society’s poison?”Eliam said, “It’s mainly because of the poison and my younger brother and sister. There’s no cure for the poison, so as long as anyone leaves the Qing Eliminating Society and does not get the supply of the antidote, one would definitely die within half a month. Moreover, according to the Qing Eliminating Society’s usual routine, my younger brother and sister will be executed by the Qing Eliminating Society if my parents betray the Qing Eliminating Society. Ther
Charlie subconsciously put his hand in his pants pocket at this moment. He still hadn’t figured out the purpose of the ring Vera had given him, but he had always kept it close to him out of fear that something might happen to it or that he would lose it. The reason why Charlie valued this ring so much was not because it was precious, but because he had invested too much Reiki into it. If the Reiki was converted into a labor force, it would be equivalent to working hard for this ring for three years and then being owed wages by it without being paid a single cent. Therefore, Charlie could not let this thing escape his control.Charlie was slightly relieved after confirming that the ring was still in his pocket, and he could not help but think of the girl named Vera. He could not figure out what was so special about this ring and the girl that the British Lord of the Qing Eliminating Society would place such importance on them. Charlie felt somewhat regretful. He regretted not a
Eliam smiled slightly and said, “Your father is just like a brother to me, so you don’t have to be so polite with me. Do not hesitate to contact me if you need my help with anything in the future.”With that said, he took out a business card and handed it to Charlie.Charlie put the business card away with both hands and said, “Thank you, Uncle Eliam!”Eliam smiled and waved his hand, then looked at the time and said, “Charlie, it’s getting late, and I have to rush back to Eastcliff. We’ll end the conversation here today, but I’ll be sure to let you know immediately if there is any further news in the future.”Charlie bowed slightly and spoke up, “Thank you, Uncle Eliam. I will also inform you immediately as soon as there is any news.”Eliam nodded and said seriously, “Do contact me if you come to Eastcliff when you’re free.”“Okay!”***After the conversation with Eliam, Charlie let the helicopter parked at the resort at the foot of the mountain fly back up to the courtyard of
However, to Jacob's shock, Elaine wasn't misled at all as she growled icily, "Why would I ask anyone else?! If there's someone I must question, it's Matilda! She's getting married, isn't she? Good! I will be there and ask her why she hooked up with my husband!"Jacob turned pale right then.Matilda's son and even some of their old classmates would be attending her wedding.If Elaine went, he would be exposed, and he wouldn't be able to stay in Aurous Hill out of shame!His nerves gnawing at him, Jacob could only plead, "Please, just trust me this once! Anything else aside, she's getting married, anyway—there's no way that I'd have anything to do with her! That alone should prove my innocence!"Elaine snorted. "If Matilda returned when I was arrested, it means she has been back for a while! And you're saying nothing happened since? Hell, even if she's married, it doesn't prove that she wasn't up to some hanky-panky with you! Maybe while I was arrested and refused a divorce when you
The driver was left dumbstruck—this wasn't how it was supposed to go.Still, he blurted, "C-Crashing into a Cullinan? I might end up dead instead…""Fine! Then let's change cars, and you crash into ours—how about that?!" Elaine promptly retorted before continuing, "Or we could just stand right in front of your car while you run into us! I just happen to have a death wish, but if you don't kill me now, I'll kill you! Don't think about getting away either—I know your car plate! I'll sell this car and use the money to put a bounty on your head! I don't care what happens to me now! I'll claw my nails into the devil's face even if he shows up!"The driver was actually quite experienced, but even he had yet to meet someone as ridiculous as Elaine.Barely able to keep his hands steady, he threw them up as he apologized, "I'm so sorry, ma'am—I just lost my cool. I'm merely a humble driver of a Honda Civic while you own a Rolls. Hell, I spent fifty bucks buying that red emblem from Amazon,
Elaine may have led a life as if she was above the rules, but beneath that tough exterior lay crippling insecurities and a horrific inferiority complex.She was always afraid of being belittled—but more than that, of being ostracized and betrayed.Over the years, the greatest source of her complexes could all be traced back to Matilda.After all, Matilda had been a star back in their school days. Because Elaine was a close friend of hers, many boys would get chummy with Elaine, but only because they were interested in Matilda.Being from a poor farmer's family, Elaine had been scorned plenty and therefore felt exceedingly inferior around Matilda.It was from that sense of inferiority that Elaine had inadvertently developed a one-sided rivalry against Matilda, and she believed her greatest triumph over Matilda in this life was the moment she had stolen Jacob from her.However, while Elaine presumed that she could hold that victory over Matilda's head, Lady Wilson had soured that v
Moreover, given Elaine's ridiculous temper, Jacob knew she would definitely go overboard and destroy him.He wouldn't even have a place to live at that point, and it would really be game over if she held a grudge and stormed the Calligraphy and Painting Association!Under such circumstances, he couldn't ask for a divorce—hell, he might even refuse a divorce if Elaine asked for one!However, that was when Elaine laughed coldly. "Oh, my… You're really not going to divorce me?""Come on—how long were we married?" Jacob quickly reasoned. "Getting divorced at our age? People would laugh at us."Elaine scoffed. "Now I'm curious… Matilda's quite old too, and she's a divorcee marrying again. Won't people laugh at her?""Technically, she's a widow—"Jacob blurted out, but soon turned pale, tensing up again not a second after he had just calmed down, asking gingerly, "W-Why would you suddenly mention her?'Elaine stopped pretending right then and snapped, "It's actually impressive that y
Horrified, Jacob promptly grasped the steering wheel and brought the Cullinan back under control while not hesitating to snap, "Are you crazy?! We're on the highway—that could have killed the both of us!"However, Elaine ignored him and seized the moment to open the armrest box, pulling out the large white envelope.As she opened it, she muttered, "So, it really was a wedding invitation… You really are a terrible friend, Jacob Wilson, hiding a wedding invitation like this! What's the point? Just look at that nervous face of yours—would I suspect you of having an affair with the bride-to-be?"She flipped open the card and was experienced enough to check the names first while disregarding the usual preamble. She wouldn't care about the venue or the time either, focusing solely on the professor who had somehow made Jacob very nervous.That was how Elaine found the names in less than a second: Yolden Hart and Matilda Hall.Matilda?!The name could well be knives stabbing Elaine in th
Jacob's brain blanked out, leaving only a dull hum as soon as Walker mentioned 'Professor Hall'.Already feeling nervous in the first place, he quickly said, "Okay, okay—I got it. Anyway, I'm hanging up if there's nothing else!"With that, he promptly pressed the button to hang up.Nonetheless, Elaine was soon asking in curiosity, "Who's Professor Hall?"If Jacob had any semblance of composure, he would have said 'a colleague at Senior University' as if it was perfectly natural, and the matter would have been forgotten.But the reality was that he didn't—in fact, he was the champion when it came to dropping the ball as a casual question from Elaine left him sweating all over his brow.Even as he slid nervous glances at her face, he stammered uncontrollably, "N-Nobody…"Elaine promptly noticed his strange reaction and frowned. "I'm talking about Professor Hall. What do you mean, nobody? Who are they? And what's this about an invitation? Inviting you for what?"Seeing that he was
Jacob had really had too much to drink and couldn't remember the later parts of what had happened last night—even how he had gotten home was a blur.Naturally, he also forgot that Walker had brought Matilda's wedding invitation, and therefore didn't hesitate to answer the in-car answer button.Over the phone, Walker was positively fawning as he asked, "Mr. Wilson? It's Walker. Why didn't you come in today? Had too much to drink last night?""Uh-huh," Jacob grunted, lethargic. "I did—my head still hurts now… Anyway, what's up? Trouble at the association?""No, of course not," Walker quickly said. "I was just worried you're still hungover, so I called to ask. If you need a driver or anything, you just need to ask!"Then, before Jacob could answer, he continued, "By the way, my wife is somewhat knowledgable in Oskian medicine, and she has recipes for brews that cure hangovers and nourish the liver. I'm sure you'll need the latter since you're always drinking at social events, so I as
Fortunately, Elaine and Jacob's bickering never escalated.Even though Elaine was winning, Jacob found it tolerable.After Jacob finished his lunch and cleaned up, he never looked up as he said, "Charlie sent a text, saying Claire's flight would touch down earlier at three. We will leave at two."Elaine grumbled. "Why leave so early? She's coming back from abroad, and there'd be checkpoints she has to clear—she'd be lucky if she could leave by half past three. I'm sleeping a few winks now, and we'll leave at half past two."As she left the dining room, she didn't even look back as she said, "Clean up for me too."Jacob had a million complaints but said nothing as he kept his head down, throwing Elaine's lunchbox in the trash can as well.With Elaine gone, he sat on the couch as her hangover slowly cleared while his mood soured with the lack of alcohol.In the end, the pleasure of being fawned over at the Diamond Room was but temporary—the pain of his beloved leaving with someone
Vera kept her plan to investigate the identity of the abbess deep in her mind and told Charlie nothing.Instead, she smiled as she said, "It seems that it's both yours and Ms. Ito's good fortune that she has attained enlightenment. You've never had anyone who could attain enlightenment and master Reiki at the same time, so Ms. Ito will definitely be a great help to you in the future."Charlie chuckled and said calmly, "I'm not hoping for her to help. I'm simply happy for her with her enlightenment and excited to have another comrade in my solo ventures into the dark forests."Vera nodded in understanding, and she murmured emotionally, "I've lived for so long, and it's only when I opened my heart to you that I felt that sensation you described."There was a flicker of wistfulness in her eyes.She really did not expect to attain enlightenment before meeting Charlie.Years ago, she thought that she would eventually avenge her father.Now, she no longer hoped to murder Fleur Griffi