Glancing at Owen Ford, Aria Sterling said faintly, "You've had a string of bad luck lately. Stay away from rivers, lakes, and ponds. The farther from water, the better. To be safe, you should find a powerful Onmyoji, so you don't get latched onto by something unclean again."
Owen Ford, "..."
'Such a pretty girl. Why does she have to talk like some kind of fortune-teller?'
Iris Jennings only heard the part about "something unclean latching onto you" and assumed Aria Sterling was talking about her. She was instantly displeased. "What do you mean by that? You're the unclean thing! How dare you humiliate me? You have to apologize!"
She was furious, demanding an explanation from Aria Sterling.
Then Aria Sterling spoke. "I've seen foot binding, but this is the first time I've seen brain binding."
Too lazy to deal with Iris Jennings, Aria Sterling turned back to Owen Ford. "Remember what I just told you. Otherwise, you'll be dead within half a month."
"This…" Owen Ford was at a loss for words.
'I was going to thank her properly, and she curses me to die within two weeks?'
'That's going too far!'
The crowd was stunned:
"Damn, this girl's a total quack."
"So we were wrong about that Miss Jennings. This quack was really just trying to steal the credit."
"Such a pretty girl. She could do anything, so why be a quack…"
Now, Iris Jennings was satisfied. Everyone believed she was the one who had saved Owen Ford.
Aria Sterling left amid the murmurs. Owen Ford only watched her go for a moment without a word, then turned to Iris Jennings. "Miss Jennings, please allow me to treat you to a meal. If there's anything you need, feel free to ask."
Landon Hawthorne blocked Aria Sterling's path.
She had already noticed him. A chilling, harsh aura seemed to emanate from him, making him impossible to ignore.
"Can I help you?" Aria Sterling asked, taking the initiative. She gave a playful blink, a spark of liveliness in her eyes that hadn't been there when she was facing Iris Jennings.
"Come with me. I have something to discuss," Landon Hawthorne said, then turned and walked off.
As if afraid Aria Sterling wouldn't follow, Shane Porter prompted, "Miss Sterling, this way, please."
Inside the private room, Landon Hawthorne lit a cigarette the moment he sat down.
Aria Sterling frowned. "Your body is already in a fragile state. The chemicals in cigarettes will damage your organs and accelerate its deterioration."
'She thought she'd made her point perfectly clear.'
But Landon Hawthorne just pulled out the cigarette pack and pointed to the warning label. "Smoking is hazardous to your health. Every smoker knows that. I'm not illiterate."
'He really had misunderstood her meaning.'
Landon Hawthorne placed a check on the table and tapped it with his finger. "Write in any number you want. Then go raise hell with the old man. Tell him you can't stand living at Azurewave Manor and that you want a divorce. If you make a big enough scene, he won't say no. He'll even give you a separate settlement. Then you can take all that money and get as far away from me as humanly possible."
She glanced at the check. Everything was filled out except for the amount.
"I don't need money," Aria Sterling said, shaking her head. "And I'm not getting a divorce."
"Tch," Landon Hawthorne sneered. "You don't need money? Then why did you marry me for eight hundred million?"
"The Jennings family needed the money. It has nothing to do with me."
"Spoken as if you're not one of the Jennings," Landon Hawthorne said with a cold laugh. "Your father sold his daughter for cash, and you're courting death by my side for money. People who will do anything for a payday… you're all disgusting."
"I told you, I don't need money."
"If not for money, then what are you after?" Landon Hawthorne refused to believe her.
Then he saw Aria Sterling's finger extend toward him. "You."
"Hahaha…" Landon Hawthorne felt like he'd just heard the funniest joke in the world.
'Every woman who knew anything about him gave him a wide berth, yet Aria Sterling said she was after *him*?'
'Hilarious.'
"Is that right? Let me guess. Did I accidentally save your life once, and now you're here to repay my kindness? Or are you some reincarnator who knows we're destined to be together, so you're getting in early? Or maybe you saw me somewhere and fell in love at first sight…"
Landon Hawthorne had just about listed every cliché for a woman getting close to a man; surely Aria Sterling had to fall into one of those categories.
But Aria Sterling shook her head. "None of the above. I just want to understand the thing that's inside your body."
"What?" Landon Hawthorne's eyebrows shot up. "You want to understand what's… *inside* my what now?"
'What kind of outrageous things is this woman saying?'
Done wasting his breath, Landon Hawthorne slammed a hand on the table and shoved the check toward her. "Just take the money and get out. Stop being an eyesore. My manor has no room for you."
"If you don't leave on your own, I'll have to 'escort' you out my way."
"I'm not leaving." Aria Sterling's resolve was firm.
'Is this woman nuts?'
Landon Hawthorne said, "I'm a curse to women. Anyone who gets close to me meets a terrible end. They die horribly!"
"Your fate is indeed toxic to women, but it has no effect on me."
"I go berserk at night! I have to drink human blood!"
Aria Sterling replied in all seriousness, "That's what I'm here to figure out—the exact reason you go berserk and drink human blood."
"Are you insane?" Landon Hawthorne snapped, his temper flaring.
"You're the one who's sick. But rest assured, I will cure you," Aria Sterling said with calm composure. "You have to trust me."
Landon Hawthorne was seething. He felt like talking to Aria Sterling was like talking to a brick wall.
'And I'm supposed to trust her?'
"Trust you? Like hell! You're just a little girl. Just tell me what it'll take for you to get lost!" Landon Hawthorne's patience had completely evaporated.
The mere thought of what happened last night made Landon Hawthorne furious enough to hit someone.
He had never met such a shameless woman.
"I'm not leaving." Aria Sterling stood and walked to Landon Hawthorne's side. "Landon Hawthorne, don't you want to know why you have such terrible luck with women? Don't you want to know why you fly into a rage every night? Don't you want to know why, before I arrived, someone was dying in your manor every single night?"
"Trust me, and I'll give you the answers. But I still need more time."
"Also, there is a Fiend living inside your body. It is currently dormant, but once it fully awakens, you will be consumed. Or, it will possess your body forever, forcing out your soul and using your identity to steal everything that is rightfully yours."
"At that point, your soul, having been in contact with a Fiend for so long, will be cast out. Unable to reincarnate, you will be forced to wander the earth. You'll either become a vengeful ghost or be devoured by one. You will simply cease to exist…"
SLAP! Landon Hawthorne slammed his hand on the table, cutting her off.
"Shut your mouth!" Landon Hawthorne glared at her, his eyes full of menace. "You get exposed as a quack out there and you still won't give up? Now you're here trying to pull the same scam on me? Do you think I'm some three-year-old you can trick?"
"It's the middle of the day in the modern world! You're talking to me about ghosts and goblins? We're talking about real-world money, and you're trying to sell me some fantasy nonsense. If you want to play the part of a master mystic, you at least need a walking stick and a banner! A quack like you couldn't even fool a kindergartener!"
"I'm done listening to this nonsense. Fill out the check and get the hell out of my sight. Otherwise, don't blame me for what happens next." Landon Hawthorne's eyes dripped with contempt, his words now completely stripped of courtesy.