Sky's messages were surprisingly normal, which was a stark contrast with his club persona. If he hadn't been working at a club, he might have seemed like husband material.There were a few texts proving that point. "Sorry, I just got off work. I'm ordering takeout. You're probably asleep by now. Rest well, and good night.""Oh, were you at Nocturne? I wasn't in today. I was at the hospital with my grandma. Why didn't you tell me earlier? Let me know next time. I'll arrange my schedule."He maintained this gentle, measured tone with everyone. He even refused private money transfers.His response was always the same. "I actually don't like seeing you at the club, but it's my job. Stop sending me money. Keep it for yourself. Aren't you graduating soon? Take care of yourself, dummy.""Pfft, what a calculated move." Having built the dark web forum herself, Aria had seen plenty of these chat patterns. Juggling multiple conversations, they would pretend to just see messages when they wer
Aria continued, "Sky might really have a sick grandmother, but the way he put it is suspicious. When a man deliberately tries to make you feel sorry for him, that's a red flag. He's just trying to deceive you! "If it's not for love, it's for money. Sky's clearly after the latter. Stringing these clients along keeps them coming back to buy drinks. "Some ladies even got into fights over him at the club. I would say he's quite skilled at using such manipulation tactics." Manipulation? Claire's expression shifted, suddenly turning serious. Aria's smile widened. "To have a top escort with such sophisticated techniques, we definitely have to take a closer look at this place." She watched the nervous Sky inside, her tone light. "He's clever, and he's not just a pretty face." At her words, Landon raised an eyebrow. His fingers paused mid-air as he followed her gaze. He spoke in a low voice, "Since when did his type catch your interest?" He thought, "At least you used to have standa
Someone disagreed, "It's normal for club staff to wear earpieces." Aria gave a soft laugh. "I'm not saying it isn't normal. But this might be our breakthrough." "What do you mean?" Aria gestured at the footage. "This club has countless cameras recording everyone's movements. That's what's visible on the surface. So naturally, we checked the surveillance first—nothing wrong with that. "The issue is how quickly the club provided the footage. It's almost as if they had everything prepared in advance." Aria pointed to the enhanced image. "This isn't a standard earpiece; it's highly interference-resistant. Their tech system would have backup archives. "Since they keep such detailed surveillance records, they must have recordings of everything Sky said that night. We need to get those records." Some were puzzled. How did a temporarily assigned expert like Aria know so much about communication equipment? Of course she did—it was Aria's expertise after all. She had helped build
"Good question." Aria looked up. "If there is a secret passage, we need to consider what the club gains from it. For that answer, those female students who reported the incident might have our clues." "Them?" Someone asked. They were confused and struggling to follow her logic. What connection could there be between secret passages and those college students? Aria did not rush to explain, as her theory still needed evidence. "How's the investigation into those young women's relationships and financial situations going?" Aria turned to the crucial point. Claire responded diligently, "We have results. They're all in significant debt." After reporting this, Claire wondered aloud, "How did you know to check their finances?" Did the Special Missions Unit have some kind of foresight? "Remember how I saw one of their phones?" Aria smiled lightly. Claire frowned. "But that wouldn't show their finances." "Cosmetic procedures aren't cheap, and they've all had work done. Yes, it
Aria glanced back. "There's no need to trouble the tech team then. Let them handle the backups. I'll take care of the chat records." Everyone present was speechless. Were new expert investigators all this versatile now? Claire stood silently nearby, picking up the files Aria had left on the table. She noticed some notes written on the paper just from those brief minutes earlier. When Claire saw what was written, her eyes widened. She knew Special Missions Unit members were extraordinary, but seeing it firsthand was different. Aria had seemed to browse this huge pile of files so casually, yet she had memorized everything and found clear leads. She had heard of geniuses who could find patterns between individuals in an extremely short time. The Special Missions Unit clearly was not for ordinary people. Claire's eyes returned to the files, where "accomplice" stood out starkly, with "business?" noted beside it. "Claire, are we really letting her recover chat records? I've never
However, there was a noticeable pattern. She only followed women who looked innocent and below 23 years old. As for the rest, she would reject them and wouldn't even bother recommending them. Aria was familiar with the internet, so she understood each application's promotional strategies. They would capture the user's interest and leverage data for targeted notifications. In particular, many people trusted Instagram, which was a helpful application for promoting products.However, many posts were crafted to attract people's attention. For example, there were captions like, "I'm earning six figures in my 20s after writing novels for nine years! Offering mentorship for 599 dollars." The caption would be followed by a bunch of royalty screenshots.Many people would be envious and shocked, including some housewives and college students who would be tempted to try. However, they would only realize they could only make a few dollars a month after paying for the useless mentorship and
A continued texting, "You're right. They won't suspect us, anyway. It has nothing to do with us. Even if she reported it to the police, someone would take care of it. Cases like this are difficult to solve. "How can she prove she was forced? She even dreamed about marrying a rich guy. Anyway, we should quickly delete this conversation. Now that Luna has been chosen, we should choose another target."The conversation was also synced on the display screen, causing the police officers to feel a chill down their backs. The young women sitting behind the glass were still college students. Yet, they had been targeting people online and bringing them to bars.The police officers clenched their hands when faced with the four young faces. They weren't people who helped out their juniors but demons!Aria didn't feel surprised at the revelation. What she was doing now was proving some of her suspicions. She already felt something off when she saw them downstairs.However, she needed evide
Haisley, who had just gotten exposed, became pale. She wanted to stand up from the interrogation chair. "What right do you have to investigate my privacy?"Aria said slowly, "Haisley, why don't you look around to see where you are before slamming on the table? You're a suspect. Who else are we going to investigate?"Haisley sneered. "I'm a suspect? When did I become a suspect? You guys are just useless. Otherwise, go ahead and capture those behind the scenes! Why are you arresting me for? You're just trying to shift the blame on me. "Luna likes to jump off buildings. What does it have to do with me? I'm telling you not to accuse me without evidence!""Do I need to remind you of your image of a gentle and considerate senior in college?" Aria said flatly. The police officers watching outside thought Haisley was beyond help. Haisley took a deep breath. "I'm just working as a facilitator. I doubt it's illegal. How can you slander me without evidence? Is that how you guys do your w
Aria had once told Sam to avoid chaos if he could—but she'd also said that when desperation knocked, rules could bend.Now was one of those moments.Sam hesitated only briefly before diving in.He had to know who was behind this. Who kept targeting Aria? Who was pulling the strings in the dark? And once Sam decided on something, there was no turning back.Without Aria by his side, he breached the system, knowing full well the other side had already alerted the police.The firewall he faced wasn't just tough—it was nearly impenetrable. It filtered everything, controlling access with surgical precision. But Sam wasn't interested in the broader network. He narrowed his focus and cut straight to the source, filtering out all the noise to lock onto the actual IP.The auction raged on aboveground. The man behind the screen, confident in his usual routine, remained calm and unaware that the mask he'd worn for years was finally slipping. He'd always stayed out of sight, appearing only
While Aria discreetly signaled to move, the auction hall was buzzing with excitement. Laughter echoed, wine glasses clinked, and the room pulsed with greed.Sasha's voice came through the mic, smooth and cheerful. "While everyone's enjoying themselves, let's welcome our latest arrival of the evening."She glanced at the man beside her—her bodyguard—who immediately stiffened under her gaze.To the crowd, it looked like he was escorting Aria to the stage under control. In truth, Aria's hand was already pressed lightly against his chest, right over a poisoned pressure point. He knew better than to resist—he'd seen what she was capable of.And she'd made her warning crystal clear—if she was exposed or captured, he wouldn't live to see morning.The guests didn't notice a thing. All eyes were on Aria, their expressions hungry. They saw value in her—fresh, young, healthy. To them, she wasn't a person. She was premium merchandise.She was brought to stand beside a young woman who had alr
Eamon and Waymond had just been thrown out of the Chamber of Commerce. Waymond's face was flushed with fury, his eyes red. "Eamon, why didn't you let me speak earlier? Mr. Lincoln was being unreasonable!"Eamon, ever perceptive, shook his head. "Mr. Lincoln's been bribed. He was never going to take our side."Wise and strategic, Eamon had always been top of his class—but now, he was even sharper when it came to reading a room."I'm guessing Aria found something during her investigation that made them nervous," he continued. "Durand couldn't have controlled Lincoln on his own. There's more to it."Waymond frowned, still struggling to piece things together. "But who could bribe Mr. Lincoln? Not even the mayor has that kind of sway. He's—""What if it's someone from the state?" Eamon cut in, eyes flicking back toward the building. "We need to tell Dad. There's no point in staying here, but there is someone we can talk to.""Who?" Waymond asked quickly. "Lucas Murray—the new secr
Durand's expression darkened; Eamon was right. Amos and the official from the state had originally wanted to work with the Grishams, especially Eamon. That was why they used the Fitzroys as a bridge to approach him. Unfortunately, Magdalene had failed to establish any rapport with the Grishams.Instead, she kept criticizing Eamon, claiming he followed Laura's every word, and insisted they had plenty of ways to manipulate the Grishams. In the end, the divorce erupted into a scandal, and the entire Fitzroy family was imprisoned.Ironically, Eamon's actions only impressed the state official more. Durand had even heard Amos say that their leader hoped Eamon would continue working with them as his involvement would ensure their plans progressed smoothly.That knowledge burned Durand with frustration. No matter what he did, he could never measure up to Eamon."It looks like you still haven't grasped the situation, Mr. Grishman. Mr. Grisham Senior has begged everyone, but where did it le
"I'm happy to take over the Grishams' responsibilities," Durand said.Waymond scoffed coldly. "You're not worthy of it.""Mr. Lincoln, it seems someone's not too happy with you."Durand, dressed like a gentleman as always, adjusted his glasses and replied calmly, "Waymond, you've been in this business long enough to know how things work. The Grishams have gained a lot over the years. It's not up to you to decide whether to hold on to it."Leonardo stood, trying to ease the tension. "There's no point in arguing. Let's settle this the traditional way—with an anonymous vote. Everyone, write down whether you think the Grishams should step down. Let the vote speak for itself. That way, it'll be fair."He instructed someone to bring in a box, paper, and pens. Each member was handed a set. It was more for show than anything else; everyone already knew how the vote would go.Eamon saw right through their performance, his gaze turning cold as he sat silently. The votes were quickly cast an
"Mr. Grisham, how long your niece stays locked up isn't up to us—it depends on the severity of her crime," Durand said. "As a member of the Chamber of Commerce, you should understand how serious the situation she's stirred up really is. Haven't you read any of the online news?"People are now hoping the Grisham family goes bankrupt. They're even demanding that we, the Chamber, investigate this matter ourselves!"His words made those who had previously wanted to side with the Grishams start to hesitate. With the Draycotts and Fitzroys already doomed, the Grishams had seemed like the next best option. But no one had expected Aria to make such a critical mistake.Public sentiment had turned sharply. The Chamber of Commerce was now being blamed for enabling an economic disaster. What angered the public most was Aria's carefully crafted image. If she'd shown her true colors from the start, they might have ignored her. But pretending to be righteous, only to betray the common people—that w
Dave smiled, clearly enjoying the desperation on Lewis' face. "Also, you won't be getting any more orders. Your supervisor is going to help us delete every report you've ever submitted. What a shame, Lewis. You risked your life on the front lines, only for someone else to reap the rewards behind your back. If I were you, I'd stop being so loyal. Wouldn't it be better to join us?"He was trying to manipulate Lewis, planting doubt and betrayal like poison. As Aria listened, her fists clenched slowly. Nothing crushed a person's spirit more than destroying their belief in what they stood for. They had exposed Lewis on purpose—to break his faith in the uniform he wore.The masked clients settled back into their seats, returning to their arrogant ease. They were reminded that they were above the law within these walls. No one from the outside could enter the premises, and if someone did, they wouldn't leave intact.These people had powerful connections. To them, the undercover cop was a
Aside from Aria, who had initially refused the food, everything had seemed normal to Stephanie. After all, Aria eventually accepted a drink, and nothing else appeared out of the ordinary.But the more Stephanie thought about it, the deeper her frown became. A sense of unease crept in, and she instinctively lowered her microphone, ready to rush to the basement to check things for herself. Seeing her reaction, the wealthy clients began to panic.The woman in the fox mask stood up, clutching her bag tightly, and made for the exit. She feared she would actually be arrested if she stayed any longer. She had no intention of ending up in jail just for attending an auction, especially one like this. Most importantly, she couldn't afford to have her reputation tarnished.Like her, the rest of the crowd shared the same instinct—flee.Meanwhile, Aria narrowed her eyes as she subdued a bodyguard with one hand. She maintained firm but measured pressure with her left hand, ready to act the moment
When Sasha heard the man mention the rare gem, her eyes narrowed slightly. Very few people knew about it. Only Dave and a handful of higher-ups were aware. She immediately wondered who had leaked the news.But the man's words had already ignited excitement across the auction floor."What? A rare gem?""It's been ages since we've seen one! I can't believe there's actually one today!"To these people, a rare gem referred to someone whose body was considered exceptionally valuable, blessed with natural fortune, vitality, and unmatched physical condition. It was believed that such a person couldn't fully harness the luck they were born with. But if someone else could acquire it...Not only could they preserve their youth and beauty, but their careers and fortunes could be transformed. The idea sent a thrill through the room, and their greed quickly became impossible to hide.Sasha realized the situation was slipping out of her control. She reached for her communicator to contact Dave,