"Are you alright?" Cyrus asked Gabi as she gave her a glass of water. "Calm down, no one will know that someone died inside your room tonight."
"…" That wasn't what she was worried about. Because of what happened, she wouldn't probably stay in this house anymore. However, she still nodded and smiled. "Thank you. And I am perfectly fine."
"Hmmm… I thought you would faint again."
Instead of answering her, Gabi looked at Aden, who was talking to someone on his phone. He placed his hand on his hip as he look outside of the window, a serious expression can be seen on his face.
The man who tried to kill her earlier was no longer inside her room. The two took care of it, and wouldn't tell her where they put it.
"So… those people belonged to an assassin group. They are called Flower of Death." Cyrus said. She too was looking at Aden. "Sir Aden might be talking to people connected to that group."
"Isn't that…"
"Their boss was a woman.'
"Oh…" Gabi nodded. Flower of death sounded a little ridiculous for an assassin group. She tried to recall the assassin groups that she knew in her previous life. "Are they in… Du Empire?" she asked Cyrus.
"Yes, they are. However, they are not based here. I believe they are an international group specialized in poison needles."
"Poison needles?" Meaning that man could have killed her in seconds. She shivered. "So… are they physically weak?"
"Nope. They are specialized in close combat too."
"Then…"
"Ah… Sir Aden is an expert."
But isn't he too fast? Is that really something that an expert could do? Moreover, Aden lifted that man as if he was nothing. Is that something that he achieved through practice? Was it possible that Aden was also an assassin?
"Ah… so someone actually put a bounty in your head," Aden said. He walked to Gabi and sat on the bed.
"A what?" Gabi gasped.
"A bounty. It was Miss Quigly. Tsk. She was too rash this time. I believe her grandfather warned her not to do this but… what you did with that head thing must have angered her too much."
"You mean… Lyle Quigly?" Did Lyle really want her to die so much that she even put a bounty on her head? "And how did you know this?"
"The assassin was too careless. It was completely unplanned. I tried to check it out and found out that he was not working with the flowers anymore. He was an independent killer trying to make a living. Obviously, a million is enough for him to try and kill you. Especially that he didn't know about your background."
"What is that supposed to mean?"
"Well… big organizations wouldn't want to kill you. First one million is too small. It's just not worth offending the whole Ren Family. Second, big organizations wouldn't just kill someone with no plan or the right preparations. The bounty was just issued this afternoon. And third, they wouldn't be that stupid to meddle in childish fights like this."
Gabi frowned. She didn't miss a lot of things, in Aden's words. This man repeatedly emphasized the Ren Family's connection. Does this mean that her grandfather is influential in the black market too?
Gabi bit her lower lip as she started thinking.
Aden was right. Lyle was indeed careless this time. "Do you have evidence that it was Lyle who wanted me dead?"
"Of course… she is stupid enough to use the Quigly family's IP. My people easily hacked her computer. I have screenshots of her conversation with her friend who recommended her into the web to hire some people to kill you."
"Then… let's go."
"Huh?"
"To the Quigly mansion."
Aden stared at her for a few seconds. "Really? You want to intimidate the old man?"
Gabi nodded. However, this wasn't just her only goal. Of course, she isn't going to miss this opportunity to drag Alfons with her.
...
Quigly Family Mansion.
Nine in the Evening.
Lyle took a sip of her calming tea. She had been shaking since she issued the killing order earlier.
"Lyle, you look pale, are you alright?"
"Ah?" she lifted her head and look at her grandfather. "Of course, grandfather."
"Is this still about your lover?"
"Grandfather, what are you talking about?"
"You foolish child. How could you do that much for a man? You are the phoenix daughter of the Quigly Family, no need to do underhanded things just to get a man. I am sure that many men out there would love to become your husband."
Lyle pouted. "I don't understand what you are talking about, grandfather."
"Hmph… your father told me everything. Alfons Sutton and your obsession. It seems that despite his warnings, you still wanted to marry a nobody?"
"Grandfather! Brother Alfons isn't a nobody. True, he didn't have a backing but… he is really smart and charismatic. I am sure that he would become big one day."
"Lyle, stop being stubborn. I just asked my friends to remove your name from that gang incident. I don't want you to get in trouble again because of a man." A sigh left her grandfather's lips. "You should leave Du Empire for a while."
"No. I won't do that." Of course, Lyle was already expecting this. "Why are you blaming my feelings for brother Alfons? Why not blame his sister instead? That woman was just jealous. She couldn't let go of her own cousin. She was in love with him."
"I am not blaming your feelings. However, you are still young. You needed to explore the world. No need to confine yourself in this small space. For now, you should leave for a while. After a few years, if you still like that man, then… I won't stop you anymore. You can marry him."
"Really?" Seeing his granddaughter's naive smile, Old Man Quigly nodded. Obviously, he still wouldn't let her marry someone below her status. However, he was willing to give Alfons a chance. If after a few years, Alfons would prove himself worthy of his granddaughter then, he wouldn't object anymore.