The town chief had seen photos of Aria. Satisfied with her looks, he requested to meet Aria soon. Olivia and Grant wanted to take Aria to him as soon as they could, but they had to continue with the act lest Aria fight back. Many female students they'd brought here were initially reluctant, but they had no choice but to stay in Perry Town and care for the children after everything was set in stone. A woman would want to settle down after they'd given birth to children of her own—that was the rule.When they were almost in Perry Town, Olivia contacted the local matchmaker, and they agreed to set up a meeting tonight for fear of anything unexpected happening if they'd decided on a later date. There were few paved roads on the way to Perry Town. The roads to the town were all littered with craters, so the trip there became very bumpy.It was normal for the authorities to accidentally leave out some corners of the country during their construction efforts, and Perry Town was one
"I—" Liam Renner was still a young boy. Upon hearing Aria's statement about his health, his eyes started darting around nervously. Olivia said immediately, "He looks healthy, but he's still coughing a lot." She directed this next question to Liam. "Why did you come out, anyway?"Liam was having a cold—that much was true. He said nasally, "I missed my sister.""Okay, okay, let's go inside," Grant said with a smile, "It's time for Aria to taste our cooking."Olivia and Grant were both very astute. They entered the house together with Aria, holding a conversation all the while.Four generations of the same family lived together in the Renner home. Grant introduced them to Aria one by one, from her grandparents, uncle and aunt to Rainie Spencer, her sister-in-law.Everyone in that house looked relatively normal, save for Rainie. She looked about three years older than Aria and had a head of messy hair. She seemed to be spacing out as she held a baby in her arms.Aria had to call ou
"She knows that she shouldn't have done that now, Olivia. We can't let the baby go hungry, can we?" Geoff tossed a walnut into his mouth. "She's been beaten into submission at this point, so don't worry. We seized her from the town center, so now she knows that it's pointless even if she seeks help from the town authorities. She's given up. She told me that she wants to spend her life with me."Grant was annoyed. "I'm not trying to bring you down, Geoff, but why haven't you managed to subdue her? It's been three years since then.""She was a university student, you know. They're hard to deal with because they know more stuff." Geoff leered. "Speaking of this, the 'daughter' you've brought home this time looks pretty, Grant. She seems meek too. Maybe I can—"Olivia interrupted him, "No, you can't! You aren't allowed to lay your hands on her! The town chief—Mr. Barter—has set his sights on her, and they'll come over to take a look at her later, so you'd better keep your thoughts to yo
"Something else? I want to watch you do consultations!"Aria smiled. "We're not doing that today. Pay attention, everyone. I'm holding an anti-trafficking session today.""W-What?""Did I hear it wrong? Trafficking?""Damn! When did things get this exciting?""Hello? Hello? Why aren't you talking?"Aria didn't say anything more. She turned off her earpiece, leaving only the mic on. Olivia was still quite vigilant. Noticing that Aria hadn't come out, she called to her outside the door, "Are you done changing, Aria? We have guests. They've just arrived, and they want to meet you!""Wait. What?""Is this a drama?"Aria pushed the door open and left the room. Her camera was currently directly aimed at Olivia's face. However, Olivia seemed to have not realized that at all. She was satisfied with Aria's outfit. "Aria, your aunt heard that you're back, and she insisted on playing matchmaker. Let's see what the guy she matched you with looks like. It's fine if you don't agree on p
Rainie's eyes, which had lost their shine a long time ago, were rimmed with tears. She dared not cry out loud, so she could only push her emotions down. Aria had written "all of you" instead of just referring to Rainie alone, which meant that she'd caught on to what Rainie had hinted to her—she'd noticed the basement. Rainie stood beside the bed, her heart thumping fast. Liam entered, frowning. "Aria just told you to grab her bag for her. Why did you take so long in there? What are you looking at?"Rainie's scalp numbed. She suddenly grabbed his hand. "Take me out of here. Save me—""Bah! You're throwing another crazy fit." Liam didn't pay her any heed. He yanked the bag away from her and rummaged in it. Aside from a box of silver needles and a scrap of paper, there was nothing in the bag. Liam curled his lip. "She looks like someone quite well off, but she's actually quite poor."Upon hearing that, Rainie felt relieved. At the same time, she admired Aria for her attention to
Under the lights, Aria suddenly laughed. "I heard that you work for the town government.""That's right," Ollie replied, his eyes scanning Aria up and down. He wasn't really listening to Aria's question. Unexpectedly, Aria continued, "How would you handle it if I told you that I was kidnapped?""What are you going on about, you insolent girl?" Olivia exploded. She made to grab Aria, but Sue Barter, Ollie's aunt, stopped her. She was clearly unhappy with the unfolding events. "Did you not convince her to be Ollie's wife?""She wasn't like this before!" Olivia fumed, realizing Aria had been faking it their entire journey. What a good actor she was! Olivia feared the Barter family's anger, which would spell disaster for the Renner family. Luckily for her, Ollie was satisfied with Aria. His lecherous gaze never left Aria as he said, "It's fine if you aren't convinced now. We can marry first and develope our relationship later. Isn't this a trend in the city these days?"He steppe
Everyone reacted differently to Aria's words. Before Ollie could fly into a rage, Olivia's face turned red in anger—Aria was obviously doing this to ruin the Renner family's chances of getting wealthy!"Shut up!" Olivia barked, stepping forward to grab Aria by the hair. Sue didn't stop her this time. No one in Uludon would ever dare talk about the Barters in this manner—this young woman from the city needed a lesson. However, before Olivia could move, she felt dizzy, and her legs seemed to weaken. Thankfully, Liam was beside her. He caught her before she fell. "Mom, what's wrong?""She made me so angry that I'm feeling dizzy." Olivia shook her head. Ollie didn't throw a tantrum, but his gaze darkened. "She's hard to tame, but I like it—the more feisty she is, the better."He then turned to Olivia. "Olivia, perhaps I can consummate my marriage with Aria here tonight. We'll hold the wedding tomorrow."Ollie had never encountered a woman like Aria. She was cold and sharp, and he
Before everyone could register who Aria was talking to, the comments started flooding in. "111!""1! Don't worry! We'll complete our mission!"Aria was still smiling, but there was no hint of warmth in her gaze. "I'm going to commit an act of legitimate self-defense soon. This isn't something suitable for broadcast, so I'll end the stream here.""What?""Holy shit! Don't act so rashly! You'll be in danger!""@UludonTravels, why are you still keeping quiet? What are you doing?"Aria yanked off the button camera. Ollie didn't know what was happening. Confused, he said, "Is something wrong with your brain? Were you talking to yourself?"Olivia seemed to remember something. "You damn girl! She was livestreaming!""Yep." Aria bit on her candy. "Thanks to all of you, a lot of viewers flocked in."Ollie frowned. "What livestream?"Grant also didn't know much about it, so he turned to ask Olivia. A pale-faced Olivia was about to say something when she spat out a massive glob of blo
Aliya had never heard of the Special Missions Unit until today. But after seeing Pedro's panicked reaction, it didn't take long for her to realize that this was a group with more authority than even her father.Still, some people lived so long in privilege that they convinced themselves they were untouchable. Logic no longer applied to them.Aria was done entertaining Aliya's ignorance. With a flick of her wrist, she signaled someone to silence her. Then, she turned to Aliya with icy disdain."Don't worry," Aria said. "I'll take you with me when I pay your father a visit. Then we can ask him together what his name truly means in this state."Her voice was calm but sharp."You seem to have forgotten that his power—any power—comes from the people. And now, you're using that power to treat their lives like currency. To buy yourself a life of superiority."She stepped closer. "Organ trafficking is illegal here. That's the crime we've confirmed so far. But don't worry. We'll find the
When Pedro heard that it was the Special Missions Unit, his forehead was covered in sweat immediately. Even his mind had gone blank. At that moment, all he could think about was how doomed they were!Others might not have heard of the unit before. However, as a state official, there was no way Pedro wouldn't know them. In fact, the Special Missions Unit was something they had no control over.Technically, the Special Missions Unit had way more clearance than they did. After all, they were in charge of big cases. Sometimes, they would even work with the special troops.The Special Missions Unit belonged to the country, and they were extremely mysterious. Even people with high clearance wouldn't know who they were in real life.Pedro only managed to find his voice after a long time. As he wiped the sweat off his forehead, he chuckled awkwardly."Oh, this is all a misunderstanding. May I know who I am speaking to? I never expected the Special Missions Unit to be carrying out a missio
Aliya had never met Aria before, but this was the first time she'd seen a young woman more poised—and far more arrogant—than herself. That only fueled her rage. And the fact that Aria was stunningly beautiful didn't help either.Scoffing, she snapped, "Do you dare let us make our calls? Let's see if you still look so smug after that."The other wealthy attendees stiffened. None of them moved. With Aria in the room, they had the sinking feeling that calling in favors wouldn't end well.Aria merely tilted her head and smiled. "Of course," she said, then turned to her team. "Please hand this lady her phone. Let her make her call."The members of the Special Missions Unit didn't question her. They knew Aria well enough to understand what she was doing—she wanted the bigger fish. The call would be recorded, and with any luck, it would lead them straight to someone higher up the chain.Aliya was momentarily thrown off by Aria's easy agreement. But she quickly chalked it up to ignorance.
Aliya squinted at the unmasked man beside Aria. Now that his face was fully visible, something about him sparked a flicker of recognition. She lowered her gaze, trying to recall where she'd seen him before.Then a sharp gasp cut through the air."He's from the York family… Janovin's York family! Wait—was he Mr. Crow? Were they working together the whole time?"Even though they were all wealthy people, they weren't in the same ranks. No one dared to mess with the York family at all.If the circumstances were different, the arrogant, wealthy people from earlier would've tried to exchange contacts with Landon. That way, they could've partnered up in the future. However, with what had happened that day, those people were in a daze.Meanwhile, Aria knew those people still had no idea what was going on. So, she just removed her disguise and showed them who she really was.Aliya was stunned by what Aria had done. When she saw who the latter truly was, her gaze was filled with jealousy.
The wealthy clients that were left behind at the auction had connections to powerful people, and Dave didn't think Aria was capable enough to deal with every one of them. Although Farshya was well-developed, it had always been a country that focused on connections.Power meant everything, and Dave wanted to see how Aria and her team would deal with his guests. If he remembered correctly, Aliya was the daughter of a great leader in the state. She wanted a womb from a young lady because she wanted to have children.Before the clients got what they wanted, Aria had offended a lot of big shots. Dave thought about it for a second and hoped Aria would suffer as much as he did.Dave was right about one thing. Aliya wasn't anxious at all when someone infiltrated the auction and took control of the event. She was only stunned for a moment at first. Once everything had settled down, she calmed down and even looked a little proud."I suggest you talk to your leader first before deciding to cu
Dave had escaped, but just barely.He'd saved his life, nothing more. The documents he needed to destroy were still intact. Everything had gone completely off script.Every exit had been sealed. If he hadn't killed a villager and disguised himself with a spell, he would've died at the auction. He didn't receive any news about the ambush and was caught entirely off guard.He wasn't in Janovin, and security was that tight there. With his connections, he could've found out what was going to happen in advance. However, that wasn't the case at all.Slipping into a grimy back alley, Dave cursed his luck. Most of his men had been rounded up in the village. He could only hope a few had managed to slip through. But with sirens wailing in the distance, he knew hope was thin."Who the hell was that?" he muttered, wiping dirt off his face with a shaking hand. Normally a stickler for cleanliness, Dave was too rattled to care. "And where's the real Eden?"His mind snapped into action. The scho
Landon's sudden appearance wasn't just a coincidence. With Aria's intelligence, she would figure something out soon—he knew that. He hadn't planned on revealing himself like this. But something that belonged to him was here, and the demonic energy in this place… Aria couldn't face it alone.She studied him from head to toe, her hand still in his. His grip was firm, protective."There's a lot of mist ahead," he said quietly. "We'll need to tread carefully."Aria tilted her head. "You speak like you know this place well.""I do," Landon replied with a calm honesty. "I was deathly ill once. My soul wandered into a place just like this. Homer pulled me back."His voice made it sound like a distant memory, and Aria gave a soft laugh, tightening her hold on his hand. "You really are full of surprises. I guess it's true—handsome men are the most dangerous."But Aria's thoughts were racing. Why had he come after her like this, knowing it would reveal parts of himself he'd tried to keep h
Landon was still handling the stragglers behind Aria when he paused, his gaze flicking upward. Cameras were mounted in every corner—too many eyes. Vanishing without a trace wasn't an option.He glanced in Aria's direction, then lowered his head. His lips moved in a whisper, but the sounds were incomprehensible—something rhythmic, otherworldly. It was less like a speech and more like a chant—an exorcism.Meanwhile, Dave descended into the underground, calm and unrushed. That place reeked of foul energy, dense and suffocating. His master had cast a spell over it—one designed to kill anyone who dared to enter, no matter their strength. Dave wasn't afraid. He had more pressing priorities—destroying documents, erasing traces, minimizing damage.His bodyguard stayed close, watching for anyone who might try to stop them.Aria, moving swiftly, reached the lower floor—only to halt. Mist curled along the ground, thickening with every step. The air turned icy. And the corridor behind her…
"Why would there be people outside?" asked Dave. He had been disguising himself as a doctor for years, and that was the first time he looked so anxious. After all, if someone did approach their building, the villagers would have informed them about it. However, they received no news this time.Dave wondered what was going on."Dr. Dave, what should we do now? I think we're surrounded!"He was still in his coat as he slightly clenched his fists. "Let's move out. Bring the girls in the basement with us.""T-They're not in the basement."When Dave heard that, he looked furious. "What do you mean they're not in the basement?""Someone took them away, and I'm guessing it was her fault!" The bodyguard pointed at Aria, who was standing on the highest point, showing off her skills. With swift, lethal kicks and a taser turned weapon, no one dared get close.Whoever touched Aria would die, and no one dared to approach her at all.As for Landon, he still had his mask on as he stood behind