Paige Summers sat in the car. Marcus Monroe, who was driving, glanced at her from time to time. Finally, he couldn’t help but ask with an amused smile, "Looks like you’re very pleased with how that went. You haven’t stopped smiling."

Paige Summers grinned, her eyes crinkling like a little fox that had just stolen a chicken. She wagged a finger. "Actually, that’s not what I’m happiest about. It’s that I got to chew out that guy, Reid. It felt so good! You should have seen his face—the indignation, the fury. He looked like he wanted to lunge over and kill me right then and there, but he couldn’t do a thing. He just had to grit his teeth and bear it. Luckily for me, he’s not a complete idiot. He knew I wasn’t just spouting baseless accusations, or he never would have let me walk out of there so easily."

Marcus Monroe shook his head slightly. "You shouldn’t have provoked him like that..." ’If he had lost his cool and tried to kill you, consequences be damned, you would have been in extreme danger on his turf!’

Paige Summers chuckled. "Don’t worry, I don’t have a death wish. I only dared to do it because I know how much he loves to act all calm and high-and-mighty. If I didn’t push him like that, how could he feel like he was being put on the spot? He’s probably thinking right now that I’ve already told the Mercer and Lowell Families. Maybe by tomorrow, all the Noble Houses will have heard the news, and he’s trying to figure out how to handle this and save face!"

Her words might have been a bit of an exaggeration, but she was about seventy or eighty percent right.

Sheldon Reid had always been conscious of his status and refused to stoop to dirty, underhanded tricks. Even if he occasionally engaged in some minor scheming, he considered it harmless.

For example, when he brought Nora Lowell before Wendy Lowell, he thought it would, at most, strike a nerve with Paige Summers. He hoped it would make her feel a sense of crisis, leading her to acknowledge Wendy Lowell and align with the Reid Family. He never intended to have her killed for refusing.

In some ways, he had his own strict code of conduct.

So, being misunderstood this time put him in an extremely foul mood.

He secretly decided to get to the bottom of it. If it really was one of his subordinates, he wanted to see who had such nerve!

And if he wanted to investigate the whole affair, how could it possibly be difficult?

Certain assassination organizations might claim to protect their clients’ privacy, but when faced with the unyielding Military Command, would they really keep secrets for some irrelevant person?

Of course not.

Following the trail, the people Sheldon Reid dispatched quickly got to the bottom of things. The very next day, a complete file was sitting on his desk.

The file confirmed that the person who hired an assassin to kill Paige Summers was Woody Warren. It also mentioned Woody’s relationship with Nora Lowell, noting that the two were in frequent contact. In the days just before the incident, Nora had even visited Woody’s shop several times. To say Nora was unaware of the plot was absolutely impossible!

Sheldon Reid’s lips tightened. He knew Nora was not just aware of it; she was likely the one who orchestrated the assassination. He was well aware of the intense conflict between her and Paige Summers; otherwise, he wouldn’t have thought to use Nora to provoke Paige in the first place.

He just hadn’t expected Nora to have such audacity.

It wasn’t just the assassination; the subsequent efforts to ruin Summers Armaments’ reputation were her doing as well. Even now, people under her direction were still spreading rumors about the "vile practices" of Summers Armaments...

Sheldon Reid was not pleased. Not pleased at all.

Nora Lowell was supposed to be an obedient pawn.

To be under his protection yet act against his intentions was absolutely unforgivable!

’It’s time to teach her a lesson... That way, she’ll learn to do exactly as I say in the future.’

That afternoon, after finishing his official business, he had his men bring Nora Lowell to his office.

At this point, Nora Lowell was still unaware that her actions had been exposed.

Paige Summers was seriously injured, and Summers Armaments was being lambasted by the public, facing an unprecedented crisis. Nora, on the other hand, was in high spirits.

When she heard that Sheldon Reid wanted to see her, she assumed it was about Norgate and felt even more triumphant. Her already radiant face seemed to glow, and as she sat across from Sheldon, she deliberately exuded a powerful feminine charm.

This was an attitude she would never have taken in front of Shawn Monroe.

But Sheldon Reid was different.

In her eyes, Sheldon Reid undoubtedly stood at the pinnacle of all Superpower Users. He was the most exceptional man she had ever met!

She believed that women were, by nature, fickle.

Before a man who was her inferior, she could be as cold as ice. But when faced with such an overwhelmingly powerful man, it was only natural to show her tender side.

Deep down, she longed to be conquered. She yearned for a powerful man to dote on her, protect her, and treasure her.

She had once thought Shawn Monroe would be that man, but reality had proven otherwise.

The man before her, Sheldon Reid, matched her inner fantasy in every way, but would he treat her like a precious jewel?

...At least for now, it seemed unlikely.

Thus, it remained merely her own delusion.

However, the existence of this delusion was, in itself, extremely dangerous.

Because it destined her to be the weaker party in their relationship.

When Sheldon Reid slammed the stack of investigative files down in front of her, she had to use all her strength just to keep herself from trembling as she met his emotionless eyes.

Unfortunately, her voice still trembled slightly as she tried to defend herself. "That woman, Paige Summers, is dangerous. I admit I had my own selfish reasons for dealing with her, but... but doesn’t this also solve a problem for you, sir? As long as she’s dead, no one will covet the Reid Family’s position anymore, I..."

Sheldon Reid’s expression grew even colder. She felt her muscles twitching faintly and found herself unable to continue.

Just then, Sheldon Reid spoke slowly. "As my subordinate, the first thing you should learn is to obey orders. I’m sure your direct superior told you that."

Nora Lowell answered weakly, "Yes."

"Good. You have violated the most important rule. Do you believe you are still qualified to remain in the Operations Division?"

Nora Lowell’s eyes shot wide open.

’No, no, is he going to kick me out?’

’Because I’m no longer useful to him?’

’Absolutely not!’

’Even though Shawn Monroe hasn’t shown up recently, she knew he wouldn’t let her off the hook if he got the chance! For all she knew, he was lying in wait for her somewhere out there right now! And there were still those people around Paige Summers; she hadn’t had the chance to crush them all yet. If they found out what she’d done, they wouldn’t spare her either!’

’For her, staying here was the only safe option!’

The more she thought about it, the more certain she became. She could already picture the tragic fate that awaited her if she left Military Command!

How could she possibly bear it?!

Under Sheldon Reid’s immense mental pressure, she could no longer care about her pride. She abruptly stood up, threw herself at the man’s feet, and clung tightly to his knees.

"You... you can’t do this! You promised to let me stay in the Operations Division! You promised to let me lead a team to Norgate! We had an agreement! You can’t just erase all your promises with a single sentence!"

She was both terrified and agitated. Her face was flushed, and her eyes even began to well with tears. Her usually bright, confident face was filled with an unprecedented timidity!

A strange glint flashed in Sheldon Reid’s eyes, but on second thought, he continued to watch her coldly. He didn’t brush her hands away, nor did he help her up, simply allowing her to remain in her debased posture.

"An agreement...? That sort of thing... I can acknowledge it, and naturally, I can deny it at any time. Did you really think that just because we had one, things couldn’t change?"

Vaguely sensing a hidden meaning in his words, Nora Lowell calmed down slightly.

She subconsciously gazed up at him with her tear-glistened eyes, but her hands felt his leg stiffen ever so slightly at her touch...

A sudden idea sprang into her mind.

She tentatively moved her pale fingers upward, bit by bit, until they reached the space between the man’s legs.

Her delicate palm caressed him gently. A moment later, she felt a response there.

Sheldon Reid just sat there, watching her movements.

His face was completely expressionless.

But Nora Lowell could vaguely sense a trace of desire hidden deep in his eyes.

Her hand finally closed around the man’s belt buckle...