Chapter 235: Terrorist Attack
Elder Shaw’s eyes welled with tears as he watched. ’As long as my grandson is doing well, that’s all that matters.’
The two of them, grandfather and grandson, sat on the bed and chatted softly.
Everyone else had gone home. Only Frost Shaw lingered behind. He said with a hint of worry, "The Mysterious Clan is known for being incredibly vengeful..."
"Don’t worry, I’m not an idiot," Lily Hart said nonchalantly, trying to put his mind at ease. "Worse comes to worst, I’ll just stay cooped up in the RV. They won’t be able to touch me then."
Frost Shaw clearly knew this, but he still insisted, "Then you have to call me if you go out."
"Okay, okay," Lily Hart said dismissively. Controlling the RV, making it float in the air and ram into people, had completely drained her. She was exhausted now.
After Frost Shaw left, Lily Hart went upstairs to sleep.
Unbeknownst to her, far away amidst lush, cloud-piercing mountain peaks, Rose Rhodes was sprinting with Cheryl Rivers on her back. She was so fast she covered several meters in the blink of an eye.
Soon, she reached the mountainside, where a group was waiting for her. They were dressed in black from head to toe, their faces covered with black masks. An ancient-style character for "Rivers" was embroidered on their chests.
"What happened to the Miss?" they asked, their faces paling in shock.
The group hastened their pace to the summit, and someone quickly arrived to treat Cheryl Rivers.
Rose Rhodes kept vigil outside Cheryl Rivers’s room, awaiting her death sentence. As expected, the Rivers Family Head summoned her. The instant she stepped inside, a heavy slap landed across her face.
She didn’t dare to resist. The force of the blow sent her to the floor, where she quickly forced herself into a kneeling position. Another kick flew out, striking her squarely in the chest.
"Ngh!" Rose Rhodes clamped a hand tightly over her mouth, refusing to let the blood spill out. She forced herself to swallow it down.
Having vented some of their anger, the Rivers Family Head looked down on her and demanded, "Speak. What happened today?"
Rose Rhodes recounted the events of the afternoon. It had all happened so fast; no one had time to react. By the time they realized what was happening...
...Cheryl Rivers was already like this.
After she finished speaking, Rose Rhodes was viciously kicked again. She lay on the floor, struggling to recover for a long moment.
"Your job was to protect the Miss, and you were just standing there in a daze? What use are you?" The Family Head’s voice was flat, as if devoid of emotion, yet an overwhelming pressure billowed around Rose Rhodes.
She withstood the immense pressure for every second she could, but blood surged up her throat. "BLECH—" She spit out a mouthful of blood, staining the ground crimson.
"Get out and receive your punishment," the Family Head said coldly. They turned and left, their gray robes flashing past Rose Rhodes’s lowered gaze.
Without a word of complaint, Rose Rhodes got up and silently backed out of the room. Not far away, Oak and Leafy were waiting. They saw her and immediately rushed forward.
Seeing the bloodstain on her chest, they grew anxious. They wanted to say something but held their tongues, simply following silently behind her.
They followed her into a bamboo forest. By now, both of their faces were deathly pale, their lips trembling. Leafy asked in a hushed voice, "Rose..."
Rose Rhodes gently raised a hand to stop them, then waved them away. "Go and wait outside. Come back at nine o’clock tonight."
Oak and Leafy had no choice but to obey. They left the bamboo forest, looking back with every other step. Outside, they found a place to sit on the ground and wait for her to emerge.
「Outside Central Command, inside the lottery shop.」
Lily Hart awoke from a good, long sleep. She glanced at the time instinctively—7:30. ’Time for dinner.’
Rubbing her eyes, she went downstairs. The shop shutters were down and the main door was closed. The lights in the living area were off, but the kitchen light was on.
She knew it wasn’t a stranger, so she walked over without a worry and saw it was Roman Rowe.
He was quietly peeling carrots. Beside him were a few cobs of sweet corn and a whole rack of ribs. ’Is he making soup?’
Lily Hart cleared her throat. Roman Rowe jumped, spinning around and instinctively hiding the knife and carrot behind his back.
"B-Boss Hart, you’re awake." Roman Rowe grinned goofily. Seeing the healthy color in her cheeks, he breathed a sigh of relief.
He brought the knife and carrot out from behind him and waved them in front of her. "Making soup."
"Great, I’m starving." Lily Hart smiled at him and walked into the kitchen. "What else is on the menu?"
Roman Rowe was still struggling with the carrots. Without looking up, he answered, "Ribs, chicken wings, and beef brisket. All your favorites."
"Hehe..." The mere thought of it made Lily Hart happy. She strolled out of the kitchen, hands clasped behind her back.
She plopped down on the sofa and started fiddling with her Light Brain, only to discover an explosive story on the Human Social Sphere.
CENTRAL COMMAND’S TALLEST BUILDING HIT BY TERRORIST ATTACK TODAY!
It was accompanied by a photo, taken from a low angle diagonally in front of the building.
A huge hole had been smashed through the floor-to-ceiling window, the edges jagged and irregular, as if shattered by a giant fist.
Shards of glass littered the floor, and combined with the swirling dust and the terrified looks on the faces of the people near the window...
...it really looked just like the headline described.
Lily Hart had to laugh as she scrolled through the comments. The theories were all over the place.
[Terrorist attack? I think it was zombies!]
[What terrorist attack? Aren’t our only enemies zombies and mutated plants and animals? Could it be them?]
[I was there. I saw an RV flying in the sky.]
[An RV flying in the sky? You’ve got to be kidding me!]
[Yeah, right, how could an RV fly! If it can fly, I’ll eat shit upside down!]
[Living the high life, are we? Betting with something so luxurious?]
’What a bunch of characters.’
Lily Hart laughed so hard she slapped her thigh, which drew Roman Rowe’s attention.
Holding a bowl in one hand and his knife in the other, he asked curiously, "What’s so funny? Let me in on the joke."
"Go back to your cooking," Lily Hart waved him off without looking up, though she couldn’t stop grinning.
Roman Rowe pouted. He was incredibly curious, but he obediently returned to the kitchen and got to work on the stir-fry.
Frost Shaw was late to arrive. He hadn’t expected Roman Rowe to sneak over and cook for Lily Hart while he was asleep.
’We were supposed to come together! That liar!’
With two people working, things moved quickly. The stir-fry was ready before the soup had even finished simmering.
The others hadn’t arrived yet, and there was no telling what they were up to. The three of them decided not to wait and started eating.
They all shared an unspoken rule: mealtimes were for eating, not for discussing serious business.
After dinner, Lily Hart yawned, looking slightly annoyed. "So, I guess we’re officially enemies with the Rivers Family now, huh?"
Frost Shaw nodded. After injuring one of their direct descendants that badly, it would be truly astounding if they *didn’t* hold a grudge.
She sighed. It wasn’t that she was afraid, she just hated the hassle.
Before long, Elder Shaw arrived to say his goodbyes. He had to return to Central Command.
Before leaving, he said, "Don’t be afraid. The Mysterious Clan isn’t as formidable as you think. Just do what you need to do."
Lily Hart felt he had a point. Watching Elder Shaw’s still-vigorous back as he departed, she recalled the compassionate look in his eyes from that afternoon.
’I have a feeling... something bad is going to happen to Elder Shaw.’
She didn’t let herself dwell on the thought. There was nothing she could do to help, nor could she offer any advice. Elder Shaw certainly had his own plans.
’As long as Frederick Shaw is safe here with me, that’s the best comfort I can offer Elder Shaw.’
...