"Veil, there's something I need to apologize for," Lisa said, her cheeks flushed with red. "I did a lot of things in the past that hurt you. I didn't mean to, really. I never realized how much you were doing behind the scenes for your family. I thought… I thought all of it was just a facade. It's only now that I…"
She trailed off, picked up a glass of wine, and downed it in one gulp. "This one's for my apology. I owe you that much."
In the past, she'd gone out of her way to reject Veil—faking boyfriends, throwing cold stares, treating him like some annoying pest. But now that she thought about it, regret flooded her chest. She had been fooled like everyone else, blind to the truth behind Veil's so-called playboy act.
Too late or not, this apology needed to be said—and felt.
"And one more thing. About my mom… it's all thanks to your arrangements. When I called her last night, she said she's feeling much better. Her condition is finally under control." Lisa poured herself another glass and drank it down without hesitation. "This one's to thank you."
Veil raised a brow, amused. "You can really hold your liquor?"
Lisa shook her head, cheeks still burning. "Not really. But there are things on my mind I just have to get out. If I don't say them, they'll eat away at me—I won't be able to sleep tonight."
"Can't drink?" Veil smirked as he refilled her glass. "Then drink more. Or no—if your heart's not at ease, drink more. You'll sleep better after that."
A little dazed now, Lisa clutched her glass, swaying slightly, but still nodded like an obedient student. "Okay… I'll listen to you."
"Cheers."
They clinked glasses. And once again, both emptied their cups.
Lisa was visibly tipsy now. Her hands trembled as she tried to pick up food, and she kept dropping bits onto the table. Veil didn't mind. He calmly reached over to help her, refilling her drink and placing dishes into her bowl.
"Enough talk. Let's drink another," he said lightly.
"I can't... I'm already drunk. I really can't drink anymore…"
"…"
"Lisa, are you seriously disrespecting me like this? Your wine hasn't even gone down! What are you doing, feeding the fish?"
"Just give me a second! Ugh—fine, fine, I'll drink. Just stop pushing me…"
"…"
Thud!
After drinking more than a full bottle of red wine, Lisa finally collapsed, her head resting on the edge of the table, completely knocked out.
Veil had already moved his chair beside her, an arm slung around her shoulders, sipping his wine leisurely as his hand casually stroked her bare shoulder.
A picturesque moment—fine wine, a beautiful woman, the air light with indulgence.
But from the side, Daisy's voice cut through the air, cold and biting.
"Go on. Keep taking advantage of her. Keep going."
"Oh, and all that wine you were forcing down her throat—what, you think getting her drunk gives you free reign?" she snapped. "Do you know why I didn't stop you earlier?"
She reached into her purse and pulled out her phone, lifting it and clicking a few photos of Veil with Lisa leaning against him.
"Just wait. When Lisa sobers up, she'll see your true, disgusting nature. She'll realize what kind of scum you really are. And when that happens, she'll never want anything to do with you again!"
Before Veil could respond, a muffled voice spoke up from the other side of the table. Lisa, still pretending to be drunk, had opened one eye and was lazily mouthing something at Daisy.
Though no sound came out, Daisy read her lips clearly.
Idiot.
She froze, standing in stunned silence. Her finger kept hitting the camera shutter, click click click.
Lisa, worried Daisy might not get the message, intentionally leaned deeper into Veil's arms, mouthing silent insults at her best friend again and again.
But Veil gently pushed her back upright, shaking his head with a long sigh.
"Daisy, if your goal is to ruin my reputation, there's really no need," he said evenly. "In Luxhaven City—or even in Veyport—who doesn't know Veil Lancaster as a notorious troublemaker?"
"You want me to stay away from Lisa? Fine. I'll go. You win."
And with that, he stood up.
Lisa could no longer pretend. She quickly grabbed his arm, anxious. "Veil, it wasn't intentional! Daisy just has a playful personality, she didn't really mean to go against you!"
Daisy, pinned under Lisa's furious stare, felt her chest tighten. She lowered her head and muttered unwillingly, "Alright, fine. I was wrong, okay? I'll delete the photos…"
She hadn't intended to ruin Veil's name. She only wanted Lisa to see him for who he really was. But after what just happened—after reading Lisa's lips, after seeing her fall into Veil's embrace—how could she not understand?
Lisa had fallen. Hard.
Nothing she did could pull her back.
Lisa's eyes shimmered, a faint red tinge beneath them. Clinging to Veil's arm, she said softly, "Veil, please don't be angry. It really was our fault this time. I know that. I'm sorry. I promise this won't happen again. I won't oppose you anymore, and I won't let anyone around me do it either."
Veil rubbed his forehead, exhaling a slow breath to calm himself.
"Lisa," he said, voice steady, "I'm not angry. But I do have things to take care of. I won't be able to stay and finish the meal. Let's have dinner another time, alright?"
With that, he turned and walked away.
He also muted the system's prompt tracking Lisa's emotional reaction.
With Daisy around, he couldn't afford to let things escalate too fast. It would only lead to unnecessary trouble.
Too much hassle.
Better to wait.
As the door closed behind him, Daisy sat there in silence, her expression bleak.
"Lisa… I didn't mean to," she murmured.
Lisa, head lowered, wiped at her eyes. Even though Daisy had just seen her at such a low point, she didn't care. She lifted her gaze and stared seriously at her best friend.
"Daisy, if you still see me as your friend, then please—don't interfere with anything related to Veil anymore. If you can't promise that… then I guess our friendship ends here."
"I… I understand."
Daisy's heart sank like a stone in water.
Only now did she realize she might've really gone too far and upset Lisa for real. Panic crept into her chest, but she didn't dare speak again.
Kai had already parked the Bentley beneath the rain awning, standing beside the steps with a black umbrella in hand.
As soon as Veil appeared, Kai immediately stepped forward to greet him. Only after Veil had comfortably taken his seat did Kai gently close the car door and jog over to the driver's seat.
"Young Master, where to now? Back home? Or shall we go see Miss Murphy? Or perhaps Miss Saoirse?" Kai adjusted his tie as he smiled and looked back.
Since Veil had left the meal so quickly, it was obvious nothing too deep had transpired between him and President Lisa.
As a competent bodyguard, it was Kai's job to anticipate his master's every intention.
Veil massaged his forehead. "Not home yet. How's that recruitment task I gave you going?"
Kai responded truthfully, "A good number of people have shown up. None of them are officially hired yet, so I've gathered them all at one hotel. I was planning to go over there soon and give them a bit of... training."
"Training?" Veil raised his brows in surprise and glanced at him with a half-smile. "You? Giving training? We might've had eighty percent of them ready to sign on, but after your little class, we'll be lucky if half stay."
"Even those seasoned veterans of the battlefield would be labeled conniving old foxes by you. Is there anything you can't exaggerate?"
Kai frowned, clearly not agreeing. "Young Master, that's not fair. I've been studying like you told me to. I've been absorbing knowledge every day. Fooling a few old comrades? Not that hard."
Veil let out a dry laugh. "Alright then, I'll go with you. Let's see just how big of a 'lesson' you plan to give."
He had nothing urgent to tend to at the moment. Everything with Roy was already set in motion, and by now, it was probably fermenting nicely. All he had to do was sit back and wait.
"You got it!" Kai started the car, excitement bubbling in his chest.
He'd been preparing for this day for a while now. With Veil personally coming along, wasn't this the perfect chance to show off?
With high spirits, Kai drove the Bentley slowly toward the city center.
.....
At the same time, inside the grand Murphy estate—
Kosdy Murphy was a far cry from his usual composed self. Ever since returning from the crime scene, he'd been consumed with fury, smashing everything in sight. The once-elegant living room was now in total disarray—shattered porcelain, overturned furniture, devastation everywhere.
There wasn't a trace of his usual dignity left.
He was, by nature, a traditional and domineering patriarch. In his eyes, his son represented the continuation of the Murphy bloodline. No matter how disappointing the boy was, he had always meant far more than his two daughters—Jodie and Julia—combined.
And now, his most cherished son was dead.
Lying in a pool of blood, a dagger stabbed straight through his heart. Even in death, the terror in his eyes remained frozen on his face.
Every time Kosdy closed his eyes, that image would haunt him.
"Scorpion!" he roared, eyes bloodshot and voice seething. "I want your entire family buried alongside my son!
I'll make sure you can't live, and you can't die!!"
With another furious sweep of his arm, he knocked a full tea set off the table, sending shards flying across the floor.
"Master…"
The butler emerged from behind the sofa, hunched over, voice trembling as he cautiously reported, "The police have begun searching all major train stations and airports, but there's no sign of Scorpion."
Initially, it had looked like internal conflict among the kidnappers—disagreements that escalated into betrayal and death.
But as the investigation deepened, it became clear this wasn't the case.
The way some of the bodies had been killed—necks twisted, organs crushed with terrifying force—these weren't injuries fellow kidnappers could inflict on each other in a fight. Not unless one of them was something else entirely.
Once the police identified the deceased kidnappers, they quickly confirmed that one man was missing from the group—Scorpion.
All signs pointed to him being the killer. And now, the entire Veyport City police force was on high alert, hunting him down.
But time was short, and so far, they'd found nothing.
"Are those cops completely useless?!" Kosdy bellowed. "Can't even find one man! What good are they?!"
His voice shook the walls. Rage had consumed him so completely that there was no room for reason.
The butler kept his head bowed, not daring to utter a word.
It had only been half a day. Even with security footage and witness statements trickling in, everything was just getting started. But no one in the household dared to speak logic in front of Kosdy Murphy—not now.
"Bring in the Black Dragon Society. Keep the bounty open, and increase the reward!"
Damon Murphy had been Kosdy's pride and joy. He'd been preparing to hand over the entire Murphy Group to his son.
And now the boy was gone.
What was the point of wealth, if it couldn't bring him justice?
"I want every channel working on this. The cops. The Black Dragon Society. Informants, freelancers, mercs—I don't care who.
Scorpion is still in Veyport. I don't care what it takes, flip the city upside down if you have to—I want that bastard found by tomorrow! I want the man who killed my son dragged before me!!"
Kosdy's voice was like thunder, shaking even the air.
Then his expression darkened further as he remembered something.
"What's going on with Roy? He hasn't shown his face all day!" His tone was filled with disgust.
It was right after Roy had told him that Damon would be fine that he'd gotten the call from the police. Just remembering that made his anger flare anew.
In his current state, even the smallest irritation could trigger a violent reaction—and Roy, clearly, was now on his bad side.
The butler looked awkward. "Mr. Roy seems to be dealing with some personal issues. After leaving the Murphy estate, he returned to his residence and hasn't come out since. Other guards report he stayed in his room all night—he didn't leave."
Naturally, Roy wasn't the only bodyguard in the Murphy family. Despite his elite status and more luxurious accommodations, his area was still surrounded by other guards—similar to employee dormitories, just with better treatment.
Roy's privileges hadn't gone unnoticed. While some admired him, many harbored jealousy and resentment.
Rumors had already begun to circulate.
"He didn't go out last night?" Kosdy's voice turned ice-cold. "So that's Roy's idea of doing his job? I paid a fortune to hire him, and this is how he handles things?"
His fury reached another peak before slowly, reluctantly simmering down.
"Leave Roy for now," he finally muttered. "I've got more important things to deal with. Focus all efforts on the police, the Black Dragon Society, and every information channel we have."
Kosdy's voice was low but brimming with menace. "Scorpion hasn't left the city. That narrows it down. Even if we have to tear Veyport apart brick by brick, I want that murderer in my grasp by dawn tomorrow."