Chapter 56: Reacting to The News!

In a large mansion on a dark night, a man in a black suit and sunglasses hurried down a hallway.

The mansion felt spooky, with shadows flickering on the walls and silence all around.

The mansion itself was huge, with fancy decorations and tall columns. Inside, it was quiet except for the man's quick footsteps on the shiny floors.

With sweat on his forehead, the man reached a big door at the end of the hallway. He knocked on it nervously, holding a piece of paper.

"Come in," said a deep voice from inside.

The man opened the door and went in, bowing politely.

"Pardon me for intruding on your rest," he stammered, bowing deeply as he entered the dimly illuminated chamber.

"..."

In a dimly lit room, a man in his early fifties wearing a smooth pajama and with a shaved head gestured impatiently for his subordinate to speak up.

"We've got a picture of the man behind the Celestia Consortium!"

The subordinate reported that before handing over a piece of paper with a picture of Raymond on it.

"...Are you sure it's him?"

The boss's eyes widened in surprise as he scrutinized the image closely.

He couldn't believe what he was seeing—a young face staring back at him.

The subordinate confirmed with a solemn expression, "Yes, we're certain it's him..."

Frowning, the boss set the picture down on his side table.

Turning to his subordinate, he issued a command, "Bring the person who spotted this man to me tomorrow!"

"About that..." The subordinate's expression shifted at the question.

Sensing the gravity of the situation the boss's frown deepened, "What's the situation?"

"...We've lost contact with Agent 84."

BAM!

The subordinate replied cautiously as the boss slammed his hand down on the side table with a resounding thud.

The sudden noise stirred a young woman from her sleep on the bed beside him, her tousled hair framing her face as she blinked awake, clearly disoriented.

"What's going on, honey?" She mumbled sleepily.

"Get the fuck out!"

The boss snapped, his tone sharp and commanding.

"...Excuse me?"

The woman's disbelief was palpable, but the boss's expression remained cold and unyielding.

"You heard me," he replied coldly.

"But my purse that you promi—"

She began to protest, her voice tinged with desperation, but she trailed off when she saw the cold glint in his eyes.

"...!"

The chill in his gaze sent a shiver down her spine, and she quickly changed her mind.

Without saying anything else, she quickly left the room without bothering to put on her clothes, grabbing the bedsheet to cover herself as she dashed out.

The subordinate, unaffected by her abrupt exit, stayed calm as if such situations were nothing out of the ordinary.

Meanwhile, the boss turned his attention back to him, causing him to feel a bit nervous.

"Give me the full story," the boss demanded, his tone serious.

The subordinate quickly explained what happened with Agent 84. He described how they lost contact with him after he shared info about the Celestia Consortium.

"Realizing Agent 84 had been silenced, we immediately ended the call and attempted to reach out to the other agents," the subordinate's voice trembled as he swallowed nervously.

After gathering his composure, he continued, "But then, we soon discovered that none of them were responding..."

"Are you saying they're all...?"

"Yes, it appears that the Celestia Consortium has silenced every one of our agents in the Republic of Padokea."

The boss's expression grew grim as he absorbed the troubling news.

He turned to look at Raymond's picture and those crimson eyes felt exceptionally chilling at the moment as he gripped his fist in anger.

"We're in the dark about what's going on in the country now..."

The subordinate added, looking worried.

The room felt heavy all of a sudden as the subordinate tried to wipe beads of sweat that formed on his forehead.

They had deployed thousands of agents to maintain their information network and control. However, it appeared that none had made it through the night alive.

"What about our agents in other countries?"

The boss inquired, his tone urgent.

"They appear to be unaffected," the subordinate replied.

"I see," the boss murmured while his hand reached up to massage his throbbing temples.

"Get me in touch with the other Dons right away. We need to address this situation immediately."

"Understood!"

The boss, one of the Ten Dons, rose from his seat with determination. His subordinate opened the door, and they strode out into the corridor together.

"Boss, should we still send out invitations to them?"

The subordinate asked, concern evident in his voice.

"..."

The Don stopped walking, his brow furrowing as he thought about the invitation.

His subordinate was asking about the annual auction invite that was meant for the Celestia Consortium.

It was a way to lure out their leader since they were itching to know the face behind the Consortium so badly.

But with Raymond showing up unexpectedly, things had changed.

The Don pondered as he was feeling torn.

On one hand, Raymond's sudden appearance meant they might not need the invite any more.

But the gruesome fate of their agents made him thoroughly angered.

His expression turned icy as he gave his orders, "Send the invitation. Let's see if he's bold enough to set foot on our turf."

"And deal with that woman. She knows too much..."

The Don's tone grew even colder as he added.

The subordinate's expression remained unchanged as he acknowledged the orders, "Understood."

Together, they strode down the corridor, the tension thick in the air.

The night outside seemed calm, but within the mansion, a storm of fury and vengeance brewed.

Meanwhile...

Across the globe, within a sprawling traditional Japanese residence, a blond middle aged man was holding a baby girl in with his eyes twinkling with fatherly love.

Bathed in the gentle glow of warm light, he lifted the baby in his arms, pulling silly faces and making playful sounds, "Gugaguga..."

"..."

However, the baby didn't seem to be impressed.

Her expression didn't even change as she regarded the middle-aged man with what seemed like mild disdain.

"...Looks like Ava's not buying it, dear," Tatiana remarked with a sigh, observing her husband's silly act to entertain their daughter.

"No, no, darling. I just need to up my game!"

Luke stubbornly persisted, attempting another silly gesture, only for Ava to squirm out of his grasp.

Perplexed, he tilted his head, "Oh, you want to explore?"

With a silly grin, Luke lowered Ava to the carpeted floor, where she immediately began crawling towards the door with fervor, calling out, "Ray Ray!"

"Send a letter to the Zoldyck..."

As if summoned by her plea, the door swung open, revealing Raymond with Sakujiro trailing behind.

"No, scratch that. I'll take care of that Zoldyck letter myself..."

"Understood!"

"Ray Ray!"

"Oh, Ava!"

Raymond's face brightened as he knelt down and scooped Ava into his arms, eliciting delighted squeals from the baby.

Meanwhile, Luke's expression darkened, frustration seeping into his being.

"...Raymond, you bastard! This is all your fault!"

He muttered under his breath, his mood sinking.

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