Chapter 168: Wendy's Choice

After gaining a rough understanding of the Angel Guild's plan, Irving didn't have much more to say. After all, the Angel Guild was an official organization, and the final decisions on the actions they would take weren't up to Irving. At most, he could only offer some help and advice to the Angel Guild.

"Regardless, if you encounter anything you can't handle, feel free to let me know. I'll provide you with any assistance I can within my capabilities."

Both Aron and Anna expressed their gratitude for Irving's offer. After that, they chose to leave directly since the Angel Guild had a lot of matters to attend to. Although other official organizations were helping clear the ruins of the Angel Guild's headquarters, the Angel Guild still needed to assign people to ensure the safety around the ruins.

Afterwards, Irving had a conversation with James and Vicky. Both Vicky and James had their own perspectives, though their thoughts were somewhat different.

Vicky believed that while they should leverage the Ocean Group's status to gain some benefits during the reconstruction, they also needed to ensure that the overall situation in the City of Warding didn't deteriorate further.

"I think we should still provide some help to others. At the very least, we shouldn't let too many people become homeless. The disaster caused by Night Blades' actions this time is really too severe. If we don't offer any assistance, they might not be able to lead stable lives. This could further lead to more people turning to Night Blades."

Vicky openly expressed her views in front of Irving and James.

Irving naturally agreed with Vicky's viewpoint, but James scoffed at it. With a slight smile, James said, "As the CEO of the Ocean Group and soon-to-be chairman, you certainly have the authority to decide what the Ocean Group does. However, you have no right to dictate how we, the Green Ivy Group, should act. While I am the owner of the Green Ivy Group, behind me stands the entire White family.

I must ensure the White family's interests are safeguarded."

James had already made up his mind. He aimed to leverage the Green Ivy Group's resources to gain as much profit as possible during the reconstruction of the City of Warding. Although this would inevitably harm the interests of many ordinary people, James didn't see it as his concern.

Upon hearing James' words, Vicky's expression became slightly grim. "Without the help of others, neither the White family nor the Green Ivy Group will be able to escape unscathed from the next attack by the Night Blades."

Though Vicky didn't directly threaten James, she did give him a reminder. James raised an eyebrow at her words. "So, what you're saying is, if I don't follow your plan and I face another threat from the Night Blades, you won't offer any assistance?"

James' tone had grown cold by this point.

Although James and Vicky had collaborated before, they were not particularly close. Vicky quickly said, "That's not what I meant. I just want to remind you that cooperating with others is the best way to ensure your own safety."

Upon hearing this, James nodded. "I understand, and I appreciate your reminder. But I must tell you, I have my own judgment. I know what's best for me and the White family."

With that, James nodded to Irving and then turned to leave. It was evident that he hadn't taken Vicky's advice to heart.

Vicky's expression showed a hint of disappointment. "You didn't really need to remind him. James is the kind of person who only cooperates with us because he sees the benefit in it. If you try to prevent him from profiting during the reconstruction of the City of Warding, of course, he won't want to work with you anymore. You should focus on handling the situation with the Ocean Group for now."

Irving thought Vicky's earlier words were a bit naive. Expecting to persuade someone to give up easily attainable profits with just a few sentences was almost impossible. S~eaʀᴄh the Nôvel(F)ire.nёt website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

Vicky nodded. "You're right, maybe I was being a bit too naive." After saying this, Vicky returned to the Ocean Group.

After taking care of the urgent matters, Irving headed back to his place. Before entering the shelter game, he had one last thing to handle—making arrangements for Wendy.

Upon arriving home, Wendy hurried out of her room.

"From the look on your face, you must be very concerned about me," Irving said to Wendy with a faint smile.

Wendy shook her head. "It's not concern for you. I just think too many things have happened in the past couple of days. And you haven't been home. I'm very curious—where have you been?"

Irving responded directly to her question. "I went to deal with the threat from the Night Blades. All the crises in the City of Warding and Starling City were caused by them. I have eliminated the Night Blades' elder. For the time being, we don't need to worry about them posing a significant threat to us. We can focus on improving our own strength."

After saying this, Irving stared intently at Wendy. Wendy looked a bit puzzled. "Why are you staring at me? Do you find my current state very strange?"

Irving shook his head. "I'm just wondering what choice you'll make next."

Irving's words made Wendy even more curious. "What choices do I have now? Haven't I already become your personal bodyguard?"

Irving nodded. "You're right, but I think you're far from qualified as a personal bodyguard. Your current strength is still too weak. I hope you can improve yourself. If you're unwilling to do so, I can let you go. But I must remind you, if I let you go, you can't return to your previous assassination organization."

Wendy was shocked by Irving's words. "Are you really going to let me go? If you do that, you'll regret it later."

Irving chuckled.

"Why would I regret it?"

"Because letting me go means my previous assassin organization will have no more scruples. They will definitely send people to continue targeting you."

Irving sneered at her words. "You were one of the strongest assassins in your organization. Did you pose any significant threat to me during your previous missions? Moreover, I've already eliminated most of the members of your assassin organization. The remaining ones are no threat to me at all."

Wendy was left speechless by Irving's words. She remained hesitant. Normally, in a situation where Irving had decided to let her go, Wendy would have chosen to leave immediately. But now, she felt that leaving Irving might not be a good choice.

Irving noticed Wendy's hesitation. "I don't understand, what are you hesitating about? You haven't fallen in love with me, have you?" Irving asked with a slight smile.

Wendy hurriedly replied, "How could I possibly fall in love with you! You are my enemy!"

As she said this, a blush appeared on Wendy's cheeks. It was clear that she was lying. Though Irving had indeed killed many members of Wendy's assassin organization, she had no emotional attachment to those members. To Wendy, those people were merely colleagues, and her relationship with them had never been particularly good.

"Regardless, you need to make a decision quickly. Either leave my side or find a way to become stronger."

Irving didn't intend to waste any more time with her. After thinking for a moment, Wendy said, "I believe my strength is adequate. But if you think it's not enough and that I can't stay by your side, I'm willing to become stronger."

After Wendy made her choice, Irving nodded. "This is your decision, and I will respect it."

"Since you've made your choice, you must follow me into the Shelter Game. Only in the Shelter Game can you truly enhance your strength."

To Irving, the strong individuals in the real world were hardly worth mentioning. Only those who gained powerful, peculiar abilities and special weapons within the Shelter Game could be considered true powerhouses. Furthermore, only such powerhouses could aid Irving when the Dark Overlord descended.

Wendy nodded without hesitation. "I've already told you, I choose to improve my strength. If you believe that entering the Shelter Game is the only way to do that, then I won't refuse."

Wendy was willing to enter the Shelter Game to stay by Irving's side. Although she didn't know much about the game, she believed that with Irving's help, she could quickly enhance her abilities.

"Alright then, make some preparations. I plan to enter the Shelter Game this afternoon, and you must go with me. Compared to ordinary people, I believe you possess considerable strength. So, once we're in the Shelter Game, I won't be giving you too many hints. I trust that your intuition will guide you on how to quickly improve your abilities within the game."

After saying this, Irving headed back to his room. He wanted to rest well before entering the Shelter Game. Wendy also returned to her room, planning to take all her weapons with her.

"I'll prove to you that I can perfectly adapt to the Shelter Game."