“Don’t move.” Silla pressed hard against the wound with one hand, her fingers soaked in blood. For once, her voice shook. “Hold on. We’ll get you to a hospital right away.”“Sis… I’m scared… Am I gonna die…” Stacy’s breath came in ragged gasps. She tried to lift herself up, but her body would no longer obey her.A violent fit of coughing seized her, and a mouthful of hot blood splashed straight across Silla’s face.Stacy’s body went rigid all at once. Her limbs twitched briefly, then she fell completely still. Her eyes stayed wide open, her pupils fully dilated and empty.In just a few seconds, a living person was gone forever.The winding bloodstain across the tile froze this sudden massacre in place.Silla closed her eyes and held her breath for three seconds, suppressing the surging grief and bloodlust. She sprang to her feet. All tenderness vanished from her eyes, leaving only bone‑chilling ferocity. She grabbed her gun, bare feet stepping through the pools of blood, and hurried a

Hanging up the call, Kane turned to Silla with a grave tone. “I’ll take full charge of Stacy’s funeral arrangements. But you all need to evacuate the hospital right now.”Silla stayed silent, waiting for him to go on.Kane quickly broke down the risks. “We don’t know who they work for, but they operate professionally. This is clearly a targeted hit.” “Local police will arrive soon. Your identities won’t hold up under scrutiny. Staying here will only put you in a worse spot, and everything will spiral out of control.”Silla lifted her eyes. Suppressed fury churned in her gaze, her voice sharp and rigid. “Even a cornered rabbit will fight back. My family has deep roots in the grey markets and security circles. We are not people to be pushed around. Dig all the way to the bottom. I have to find out who’s pulling the strings.”......Dask sat in front of his computer. He uploaded the photos and ran facial recognition on the internal police network. After three rounds of thorough screening

Fecundo frowned. “Two days of chaos and nothing to show for it. How am I supposed to report to Mr. Axel? Speed things up.”“Then we’ll have to go in hard.” The young man thought for a moment and lowered his voice. “We won’t pull out after it’s done. They’ll turn themselves in right away.”Fecundo asked, “Are the men you found reliable?”“Solid. Two seasoned gamblers who live in casinos, drowning in debt. I promised to wipe all their loans clean plus a payout once the job is finished. They’ll take the hit even if it means a hundred years behind bars.”Fecundo spoke calmly. “Tell them I guarantee no death penalty if they get the job done. The crime takes place in Vierra, and we still hold some sway here.”“Understood, Brother Fecundo.”Fecundo set down his teacup and stood. “That’s the plan. Get moving immediately. I’m heading back to the company to keep pushing the Bradford deal.”“The company wants to poach him?”Fecundo folded his hands behind his back. “That’s right. His team holds

“I moved too hastily against Kane this time.” Axel was not too proud to reflect calmly. “There are people right here in Novara who want him dead. That means he’s stepped on multiple interests over there. I don’t need to strike first.”“Exactly.” The middle-aged man across from him nodded in agreement. “We can’t take him out out in the open. These folks live on the edge of a blade; they command a crew of desperate men who’ll risk their lives for money. If we corner them completely, the losses the group suffers won’t be worth it.”Axel nodded. “Fecundo just told me.” “The best way to deal with Kane is to quietly leverage official power.”“Donate five million to the Novara Police Department.”The middle-aged man’s eyes lit up. “That’ll give Kane a world of trouble.”Axel pondered for a moment and rose slowly. “Tonight’s incident really shook me. We’ll put Kane on hold for now. I need to find out who in Novara wants him dead.”The middle-aged man let out a soft laugh. “You’re right. Someo

He had always assumed the two warning texts came from the same person, someone sending repeated alerts fearing he would rush into battle and become a pawn. But the newly uncovered clues shattered that theory completely. The two sets of numbers were purchased at different times and locations, from two fully separate channels.It was not one person secretly warning him that night — it was two.Two separate factions had both chosen to quietly side with him and subtly sabotage the scheme.Kane stayed silent for a long moment, then issued a firm order. "Head straight to that outlet in South Curtain District. Pull the surveillance footage from that day, identify the person who bought the cards and track their movements.""Understood."Kane narrowed his eyes and murmured as he pieced things together. "Someone doesn’t want me to be used as a weapon. That means they’re close to the mastermind, yet not on the same side. There’s dissent within their ranks, and someone is secretly helping me brea