The atmosphere inside the Lane family villa was suffocating.
Faye had locked herself in her room immediately upon returning from the theater. The sound of porcelain shattering echoed down the hallway, followed by muffled sobs of rage.
Vera sat on the living room sofa, staring blankly at a cup of cold tea. Her hands trembled, not from the temperature, but from shock.
Her mind kept replaying the scene at the VVIP exit: the sleek black Phaeton, the bowing General Manager, and the silhouette of the girl in the black coat.
"Impossible," Vera whispered, her voice shaking. "It's absolutely impossible. Ren is just a wild girl from the countryside. She doesn't know art. She doesn't know high society. How could she know Maestro Weiss?"
She stood up and paced the room, her heels clicking sharply on the marble floor. She needed a rational explanation.
"It must be a mistake," she muttered. "Or... it was the Mayor. Yes, that's it. Mrs. Fitz said the Mayor treats Ren like a charity case. Maybe he sent his car to pick her up to save face for the Lane family. The Manager was bowing to the car, not to her."
This explanation felt safer. It fit her worldview. Ren was a leech attaching herself to powerful men, while Faye was the true talent who had simply had a bad day.
The front door opened, and Mr. Lane walked in. He looked tired but hopeful.
"Vera? You're back early. How did the audition go? Did Faye get selected?"
Vera froze. She turned to face her husband, her face a mask of practiced composure. She couldn't tell him the truth. She couldn't tell him that Faye had been kicked off the stage and called a fraud.
"The... the competition was fierce," Vera lied, forcing a smile. "Maestro Weiss said Faye has immense potential, but her style needs polishing. He encouraged her to keep trying."
Mr. Lane nodded, disappointed but accepting. "I see. Well, Weiss is known for being difficult. Did you see the VVIP guest? I heard rumors that a big shot from the Capital was there."
Vera's heart skipped a beat.
"No," she said quickly. "We didn't see anyone."
She clenched her fists. She would take the secret of that black car to her grave. Ren could not be the VVIP. She refused to accept a reality where her stepdaughter outranked her biological daughter.
***
While the Lane family was drowning in denial, a very different atmosphere pervaded a private dining room in the heart of Moon City.
Hidden down a quiet alleyway, this private kitchen had no sign and accepted no reservations. Tonight, the air in the room was heavy with the savory scent of steamed hairy crabs.
Ren sat at the head of the table. Her attention was entirely focused on the plate in front of her.
Next to her sat Juan. He had rolled up his sleeves, revealing lean, muscular forearms. In his hand, he held a set of silver crab-eating tools.
He wasn't eating. He was working.
With the precision of a surgeon, Juan dismantled a large crab. He snipped the legs, extracted the meat, and carefully scooped the golden roe from the shell. He arranged it all in a small porcelain bowl, drizzled it with vinegar sauce, and slid it in front of Ren.
"Eat," Juan said softly, wiping his fingers.
Ren didn't stand on ceremony. She picked up a spoon and began to eat, her expression one of pure contentment.
Sitting across from them, Charles watched this display with a twitching eyelid.
Charles was a gold-medal lawyer, a man who charged thousands of dollars per hour. He was also the one who had arranged this dinner.
"Master Juan," Charles said, putting down his chopsticks. "I have to protest. I had these crabs flown in from the Capital this morning. They cost a fortune. I brought them here to share, and yet... I feel like I'm watching you use my crabs to flirt."
Juan glanced at him, his dark eyes cool. "Do you have an opinion?"
"I wouldn't dare," Charles raised his hands. "I'm just saying, watching the Third Master of the Cheng family act as a crab-peeler is... terrifying. If the people in the Capital saw this, they'd think the world was ending."
Luke, who was happily chewing on a crab leg, laughed. "Get used to it, Lawyer Charles. When it comes to Sister Ren, the Boss has no bottom line."
Ren ignored them. She swallowed a spoonful of crab roe, kicking Juan gently under the table.
"Water," she murmured.
Juan immediately poured a cup of warm ginger tea and placed it in her hand. "Drink this. Crab is 'cold' in nature. This balances it."
Charles shook his head. "I'm full. I'm full of dog food."
***
After the meal, the mood shifted to business. The waiters cleared the table, leaving only pots of tea.
Charles leaned forward, his expression turning serious. The playful lawyer vanished, replaced by the sharp, dangerous man who never lost a case.
"Juan," Charles said, lowering his voice. "I have a problem with that transnational economic case. The opposing party is dirty. They wiped the servers before we could serve the warrant."
Juan took a sip of tea. "So? Recover it."
"We can't," Charles sighed. "Their IT team is top-tier. They used a military-grade wipe. My technical team has been trying for forty-eight hours, and they've recovered nothing but garbage. If I can't get that data back by Monday, the case falls apart."
"And?" Juan asked.
"And," Charles said, his eyes gleaming with desperation, "my only option left is the **129 Detective Agency**."
Ren, who was playing a game on her phone, paused. Her thumb hovered over the screen.
"129?" Luke perked up. "The legends? I heard they operate on the dark web. They say their members are ghosts. Especially the top-ranked hacker... Lone Wolf?"
"Exactly," Charles nodded. "Lone Wolf. He—or she—is a god in the hacker world. If anyone can recover my data, it's Lone Wolf."
Charles pulled out his phone and opened a secure app. "I posted a bounty on the 129 forum three days ago. I offered a standard commission. No one took it. Yesterday, I raised the bounty."
"To how much?" Juan asked.
"Five million," Charles said, holding up five fingers. "Five million US dollars. Just to recover one hard drive."
Ren, who seemed focused on her game, blinked.
She slowly lifted her head.
"Five million?" she asked, her voice calm but curious.
Charles looked at her and sighed. "Yes, little student. Five million dollars. And you know what the worst part is? Lone Wolf still hasn't accepted it. It's been twenty-four hours. I'm starting to think he's retired."
Ren lowered her eyes back to her screen.
She pursed her lips slightly.
*Five million.*
She had been eyeing a set of original nuclear physics manuscripts from a collector in Germany. The asking price was exactly four point five million.
She had been hesitating to dip into her savings.
Charles was still ranting. "I don't know what to do. If 129 doesn't take the job, I'm going to lose this case."
***
Under the table, Ren's thumb swiped away from her game.
She opened a folder hidden deep within her phone's system. She tapped on an icon that looked like a simple red skull on a black background.
The app opened instantly. There were no loading screens. Just a scrolling list of high-value contracts.
At the very top of the list, pinned in red text, was Charles's request.
**[ Mission: Data Recovery // Level: S // Bounty: $5,000,000 USD // Client: Lawyer_C ]**
Ren glanced at Charles, who was currently complaining to Juan.
*Cheapskate,* she thought. *Only five million for a military-grade wipe?*
But she really wanted those books.
Her finger hovered over the "Accept" button.
*Tap.*
**[ Mission Accepted. Assignee: Lone Wolf. ]**
Across the table, Charles's phone suddenly screamed.
*BEEP-BEEP-BEEP!*
It was a piercing alert tone that made everyone jump. Charles nearly dropped his teacup.
"What the hell?" Luke asked.
Charles scrambled to grab his phone. His eyes widened. He stood up, knocking his chair back with a loud clatter.
"Holy..." Charles gasped. "Juan! Look! He took it! He took it!"
"Who?" Juan asked lazily.
"Lone Wolf!" Charles yelled, practically dancing. "The notification just came through! 'Your commission has been accepted by Lone Wolf.' Oh my god. My luck is turning!"
Luke leaned over to look. "For real? That's insane. Did he say anything?"
"Wait," Charles scrolled down. "He sent a message. He said... 'Send the image file.' That's it? Just 'Send the image file'? No negotiation?"
"That's how 129 works," Luke said, impressed. "Efficiency."
Charles was typing furiously. "I'm sending the encrypted mirror of the drive now. This is amazing. I need to buy a lottery ticket."
Juan sat back, watching his friend's hysterics with a faint smile.
Then, his gaze drifted to the girl sitting next to him.
Ren had put her phone down. She was holding her cup of ginger tea with both hands, blowing on the steam. Her face was the picture of innocence.
But Juan noticed something.
Right before Charles's phone went off, Ren had made a single, decisive tap on her screen.
And now, there was a tiny, satisfied smirk playing at the corners of her mouth—the kind of smirk a cat has after stealing the cream.
"Congratulations," Juan said, raising his cup toward Ren. His voice was low, laced with a double meaning that only she could catch. "It seems tonight is a lucky night."
Ren looked up at him, her eyes clear and guileless. "Indeed. The crab roe was delicious."
"I'm glad you liked it," Juan said. "Next time, I'll buy you ten million dollars' worth."
Ren choked on her tea. She coughed, looking at him with wide eyes.
Juan just smiled, reached out, and patted her back gently.
He knew.
He didn't know the details, but he knew that the little monster sitting next to him had just fleeced his best friend for five million dollars.
And honestly? He couldn't be prouder.
**[Chapter 57 End]**