Oh?" Calin's lips curled into a cold smile. "You brought your daughter here to seduce my father. Hoping she'd get pregnant… maybe even replace my mother."
She took a step closer, her voice dropping, each word edged with venom.
"If you weren't aiming for my inheritance… if you weren't trying to compete with me… then tell me, what exactly was your plan?"
The maid looked at Calin as though she were staring straight into something inhuman.
There was no hesitation in her, no flicker of guilt, not even the shadow of doubt. Just cruelty, sharp and unblinking.
--
By the time Sergei arrived, summoned by his father's frantic call about Calin "losing her mind" and the staff defying him, the damage had already been done.
The maid lay barely conscious, her body limp from the beating, and her daughter looked like a broken doll discarded on the floor, eyes hollow, spirit shattered.
A dull ache pulsed at Sergei's temples.
In two strides, he reached Calin and seized her by the throat, his grip tightening just enough to make a point.
"Can you go a single day without causing trouble?" he asked coldly.
Calin only grinned, utterly unbothered, as if his hand around her neck was nothing more than an accessory.
"I just got rid of a parasite," she replied lightly. "What's wrong with that?"
If looks could kill, she would have been dead a hundred times over.
And yet, what unsettled Sergei wasn't her ruthlessness. It was the familiarity of it.
This was the Calin he had always known. The version she had deeply buried over the years.
The one softened, restrained, reshaped after falling for Shin Keir. She had dulled her edges, carefully curating an image fit for the public eye, afraid that her true nature would repulse him. Afraid that cruelty would cost her everything she wanted.
But now…
With Bryce Gate's influence, with her dream of becoming Shin Keir's wife slipping through her fingers, whatever fragile restraint she had built had snapped clean in two.
And what resurfaced was the vicious, unapologetic her.
Sergei loosened his grip slightly, his gaze still locked onto hers. He didn't believe this was about their mother.
No, something had set her off. Something had ignited that dormant fire. And the maid and her daughter had simply been unlucky enough to stand in its path.
"Brother," Calin said smoothly, brushing his hand away as if nothing had happened, "you know Father will never change. Those two were eyeing what rightfully belongs to us, so I taught them a lesson."
Her gaze drifted lazily toward the trembling servants nearby.
"Consider it a warning. Anyone here entertaining the same delusions about climbing into the elite through him… should think twice."
Sergei's expression shifted almost imperceptibly at the mention of inheritance.
That, at least, was a language they both understood.
"Next time," he said through clenched teeth, "inform me before you decide to do something outrageous. I'm always the one cleaning up after you."
Calin's smile sharpened, a glint of something darker flickering beneath it.
"Oh, and about Father," she added casually, as though discussing the weather, "you might want to handle that situation soon. I heard the second branch is already eyeing the company after his stroke. If he suddenly decides to divorce Mom, things could get… inconvenient."
A pause.
"Wouldn't it be simpler if he just… stayed asleep?"
For a brief moment, silence stretched thin.
Sergei stared at her, searching her face as if expecting a crack, a slip, anything that might suggest she didn't mean it.
There was nothing. No hesitation or remorse. She might as well have been speaking about a stranger.
And yet, Sergei himself was no saint.
Ever since learning of their father's indulgences, he had quietly replaced his medication. Enough to ensure there would be no future heirs from him.
Although he didn't have to worry about illegitimate children, there was still no absolute assurance. After all, there could be someone out there born before their father developed azoospermia.
In the end, Sergei ordered his men to quietly handle the situation, disposing of both the mother and daughter without leaving a trace.
"If you still wish to remain in this family," Sergei said as he gathered the household staff, his voice cold and measured, "watch your words and your actions."
Fear spread like frost across the room. Most lowered their heads, shoulders trembling.
The newer servants, unfamiliar with Calin's nature, looked especially shaken, as if they had just glimpsed the fangs behind a velvet smile.
--
In the study, Calin uncorked a bottle of wine, the soft pop echoing like a small celebration.
She poured herself a glass, her lips curling in satisfaction, as though she had just shaken off invisible chains.
"What's gotten into you?" Sergei asked, leaning against the doorway. "Finally tired of that pretentious persona of yours?"
Calin let out a low chuckle and began recounting what had happened to her recently, her tone light but laced with something sharp underneath.
"So, you suspect Yeri Zhi?" Sergei asked.
"Yeri or Vanessa," Calin replied, swirling the wine in her glass. "They're the only ones with enough reason to hate me… and enough backbone to retaliate, especially Yeri. Now that I think about it, why was I even afraid? It was nothing more than childish, pathetic revenge. Let's see how long they last once I get my turn."
Sergei exhaled slowly. "Vanessa is already struggling because of Madam Neri. With no one to rely on, she's forced to stay with Xavier Song. Whether you act or not, her life isn't exactly enviable right now."
He paused. "As for Yeri…"
Calin's expression darkened instantly. She understood what he left unsaid. With Shin Keir standing behind Yeri, reaching her would not be simple.
However…
"She has to die…" Calin muttered, her voice dripping with venom. "Ever since she appeared, nothing has gone my way. I've had enough."
"You're not even certain she's behind it," Sergei replied firmly. "Don't act recklessly. I'll have it investigated first."
Calin sneered. The mere thought of Shin Keir protecting Yeri twisted something bitter inside her chest.
"It doesn't matter. I hate her. Once she's gone, everything will go back to the way it was."
Sergei frowned, stepping forward to grab her arm, his grip unyielding. "Don't do anything without my permission," he warned. "Yeri was never the problem, Shin Keir is. Do you understand?"
Calin nodded reluctantly but her eyes were cold and calculating.
That very night, news spread like wildfire: Master Ricci had fallen down the stairs after slipping from his wheelchair. He was now in a coma.
---
Meanwhile, it was already late when Bryce Gate stepped out of the mafia association headquarters, the night air thick and restless.
He had been summoned to answer for what he had done to Yeri.
She had reported him for threats and intimidation. Use of an unlicensed experimental device that caused emotional and psychological distress.
"What a brat," Bryce muttered as he slid into his car, flanked by three bodyguards.
Still, the situation was a double-edged blade.
The fake bomb had caught the association's attention. If he played his cards right, it could turn into an opportunity. Investment, influence and supply deals. Not a total loss.
As the car merged onto the highway, the city lights stretched into streaks of gold and white.
Then, like shadows slipping into formation, several black cars appeared.
A perfect, suffocating formation.
Bryce's lips curled upward, not in fear, but in anticipation. He had expected Shin Keir to retaliate, just not this quickly.
"Right," he murmured, almost amused. "This is Hexion's city."
Then commanded sharply: "Speed up. And get ready."
The driver slammed the accelerator.
A heartbeat later, gunfire erupted. A storm of bullets tore through the night, hammering against the armored vehicle.
The car held, but the impact sent violent shudders through its frame, tires screeching against asphalt as control wavered.
Inside, tension coiled tight as a loaded trigger.
Outside, the highway had become a battlefield.
From a distance, weaponized drones descended like mechanical vultures, their rotors slicing through the night as they opened fire on Hexion's convoy.
Bryce's expression lit up with anticipation, a sharp, satisfied gleam settling in his eyes.
Of course he was prepared. After Shin's sudden appearance at his villa last time, he would've been a fool not to be.
"Take the left. Head for the tunnel," Bryce ordered coolly. "I've already called the others. They should be there by now."
The driver obeyed without hesitation, the car veering sharply as the engine roared in protest.
"Boss, all drones are down!" one of the men reported.
Bryce didn't even flinch. They were close enough.
But the moment they swerved toward the tunnel, headlights exploded to life from within the darkness.
Several cars blocked the exit like a steel barricade.
And at the center of it all stood a single figure.
Shin Keir didn't look like a man waiting. He looked like a verdict already passed.
In his hand, something small glinted under the harsh light.
Without haste, without even a shift in expression, Shin flicked his wrist and tossed it toward the approaching vehicle.
"Avoid it!" Bryce shouted.
The driver reacted on instinct. With no room to brake and nowhere to go, he jerked the wheel, attempting a desperate U-turn.
The explosion ripped through the air.
Fire and force twisted the car violently, flipping it twice before it slammed back onto the asphalt in a mangled wreck of metal and smoke.
Shin clicked his tongue, a faint note of annoyance slipping through as he crushed the cigarette beneath his shoe.
Missed.
From the wreckage, Bryce dragged himself out, blood streaming from his head and staining his lips.
He didn't even glance back at the others inside. Whether they lived or died was irrelevant.
Rather, he laughed. A raw, unhinged sound that cut through the chaos.
"Hahaha! You really know how to put on a show," Bryce said, his voice hoarse but brimming with excitement. "I love it."
Shin said nothing, his eyes locked onto Bryce, cold enough to strip the warmth from the night itself, as he raised his gun and aimed it directly at him.
Bryce, sprawled against the asphalt, only grinned wider despite the blood running down his face.
"What, this angry just because I touched your precious fiancée?" he taunted. "Would you believe me if I said I was only testing her? You're so easy when it comes to women. I was just curious to know the extent of her love."
The air tightened.
Even the distant crackle of burning metal seemed to hesitate.