“I think… there was only one?”“It’s been so long, I honestly don’t remember.”“But I’m certain my mom told me they came as a pair!”Lillian Morvek said, her tone uncertain.Heidi fell into deep thought.Which meant that when Lillian was seven and she herself was eight, the other bell had already been lost—and that lost bell had somehow ended up in Joseph’s hands.In other words, she must have met Joseph before she turned eight.More than a decade had passed since then.She had only been a child—whatever she did back then would have been pure instinct.No wonder she couldn’t remember.No wonder the first time Joseph came to her house, she had felt an inexplicable warmth toward him, a strange and undeniable familiarity.Of course.Of course.As the realization settled in, everything became clear.The little girl Joseph had been searching for all these years—was her.It had been her all along.“What’s wrong with you? Why are you staring into space like that?”Lillian asked, puzzled.“T

“Then they would marry, of course.”Old Mr. Cooper answered as though it were the most natural conclusion in the world.“And what about the Morgan family? Even if their eldest daughter agreed, would the family itself consent?”Heidi pressed.“It wouldn’t be their place to object. If the Morgan family refused, the Cooper family would step forward.”“Even back then, I accepted the Morgan family’s proposal and allowed their daughter to form an alliance with Joseph.”“You must understand—someone like Joseph does not enter into marriage as a mere union between himself and a woman. His marriage represents the convergence of two powers, the merging of mutual interests.”“Do you see what I’m saying?”Old Mr. Cooper spoke plainly.“So by that logic, my sister married him for the sake of interests. And when you encouraged me and my brother-in-law… that too was for the same reason?”Heidi’s thoughts felt tangled.“You could interpret it that way.”“But your situation is different. You and Joseph

“Of course we kill them.”“These assassins are vicious. The last time they slipped into Nova City, quite a few civilians lost their lives.”“The bastards are madmen—madmen with terrifying strength.”“The surest way to keep Nova City stable and prevent any leaks is to send every last one of those sons of bitches straight to hell.”Old Ortiz spoke with righteous fury.“Old Ortiz is right.”“Our strength alone is nowhere near enough.”“It wasn’t enough last time, and it certainly won’t be enough now.”“This time, our mission remains the same—to coordinate with the Nova City police.”“But there’s a difference. We’ll also need to work alongside another group.”“Only with all three parties acting in concert can Nova City survive this crisis.”“As for who this other group is—I don’t need to spell it out. You already know.”Clarence Bennett spoke pointedly.“Working with another group isn’t the issue.”“The issue is, old Bennett, how can you be sure they’ll act?”“We can’t base our battle pla

After leaving the house, Joseph drove straight to the Night Rose Nightclub.At present, the Night Rose Nightclub served as the de facto headquarters of Dragon Abyss.For the command center of the world’s largest assassin organization, it appeared almost modest—unremarkable, even shabby.Yet it was also the most discreet.After all, true concealment does not lie in isolation but in plain sight. Who would ever suspect that amid the neon lights, the music, and the endless tide of revelers, the nerve center of the world’s most formidable assassin network lay hidden?Around five in the afternoon, Joseph arrived. After parking in the underground garage, he entered the base through a concealed passage.By then, Neil Foster and Brian Adams had been occupied in the conference room for hours.As Joseph stepped inside, the meeting had just concluded, and the management personnel were filing out. Each paused to greet him respectfully.“Old Neil, it’s settled. I’ll take Mosang. The young master ca

At that very moment, Joseph gave the roof of the car a light tap and launched himself into the air.His gaze sharpened, locking onto the direction from which the disturbance had come.With a subtle shift of his footing, his figure blurred forward, racing toward the source of the sound.Using the surrounding trees for leverage and the height of his leaps, he moved swiftly through the forest canopy.As he pursued, he sensed something fleeing ahead of him—the rustling growing louder, more urgent.Soon, he caught sight of a dark silhouette darting through the trees.Joseph accelerated. He was faster—noticeably faster.The distance between them steadily narrowed.At last, the shadow halted in a clearing. Joseph descended lightly onto the open ground, standing opposite the figure.“Mosang. I knew I wouldn’t need to look for you—you would come to me.”A cold smile curved Joseph’s lips.“Autumnless. You vanished for years, and yet I still could not take your place. What a pity.”“It is the gr