The Heiress’ Return: Six Brothers at Her Beck and Call (Wynter Quinnell) novel Chapter 1954

Brodie couldn't hold back any longer. He spat out a mouthful of blood and collapsed onto the ground. "I've overstepped! It's my fault!"

Wynter lightly waved her hand. "Wolf, that's enough."

At her command, Wolf instantly withdrew his energy. The moment he did, he looked no different from an obedient, harmless boy.

Feeling the oppressive force vanish, Brodie turned toward Wolf with a look of horror. "Why do you have that kind of—"

"Shut up," Wynter snapped as she turned toward him. "Do you want to feel that pressure again?"

Brodie quickly shook his head. "I couldn't even if I wanted to. That force completely shattered my Arcane Way."

"Now, I'm going to ask questions, and you'll answer them." Wynter's voice was calm and steady. "Tell me everything you know about the overseas organization."

Brodie hesitated for a moment before answering, "They reached out to me and asked me to help them find a sacred item. I sent people out to look for it, but there were no leads even after a long time."

"Is that it?" Wynter blinked slowly before continuing, "You won't leave this place alive if I end up pointing out even a single thing you're leaving out."

A chill ran up Brodie's spine. "I didn't agree to it initially. But later on, a cultivator with a very high level of Arcane Way mastery came to see me.

"He promised that if I succeeded in finding the sacred item, he'd help me ascend to the highest-ranked cultivator below the grand master. The condition was that I had to find the item.

"He said he'd kill me if I refused because I had already learned too much about their secrets. I had no choice but to comply."

Wynter thought about the kind of cultivator that had that level of mastery before quickly following up, "Do you know what he looks like?"

"No, I don't." Brodie shook his head. "I couldn't see him even when he stood right in front of me. My vision couldn't make out his features. But there was this strong, rotting stench on him. It was revolting."

At those words, Wynter began to form a clearer picture. She now strongly suspected the man was the same old cultivator from Colifernia.

Since it was inconvenient for him to move freely in Havenia, he had turned to Mt. Darkwood to act in his stead and look for the sacred item. There was also a very high likelihood that he had ties to the foreign forces.

She muttered under her breath, "No wonder all this chaos is unfolding in Havenia. He must be involved somehow."

Then, she turned back to Brodie abruptly. "One more thing. Earlier, I asked about the bound souls of the wronged. Do you have your answer ready now?"

Brodie exhaled slowly. "That was also something the cultivator ordered us to do. We were just following instructions."

"I encountered them in the Wailing Procession of 100 Spirits, but all of them were spirits," Wynter said, voice sharp with focus. "Where are those people's bodies?"

"I truly don't know," Brodie said, shaking his head. "I just followed what he told me to do. It's not like I could defeat him—not before, and not now, either."

Wynter grabbed him by his collar. "When did you last see him?"

"The last time… it should be last month." Brodie struggled to breathe, panting between his words. "He's always the one who contacts me."

Wynter's gaze narrowed. "What was different about him between the first meeting and last month's? Be honest."

Brodie's voice dropped. "His energy was stronger, and that rotting smell on him was much fainter."

Wynter clenched her fists tightly. Her earlier assumption seemed more and more accurate. That man had used others' blood and essence to nourish himself, suppressing the decay overtaking his body.

Just then, Dalton straightened up, a scornful look in his eyes as he looked down on Brodie. "You've served your purpose. Wolf."

Hearing this, Wolf started walking toward Dalton. However, Wynter's voice cut through the air. "No, leave him be. He's just a regular person now, and we don't fight ordinary people."

"Then, how are we supposed to deal with him?" Wolf tilted his head to the side, looking at Wynter for an answer.

Wynter glanced up. "This is the perfect place for permanent imprisonment. Seal it off and have them stay here forever. Whether they live or die doesn't matter."

Wolf turned to Dalton with an exaggerated glare. "Hey, Mr. Leprechaun! What were you doing to my boss just now?"

...

Meanwhile, inside a nondescript room, a video conference was underway.

"Fuck! Charis, you'd better give us a damn good explanation," said a grey-haired man, his Emstian sharp and fluent.

Several others chimed in angrily.

"Exactly! Why did the operation in Havenia completely fall apart?"

"Weren't you swearing just months ago that it would succeed? You said the whole city would descend into chaos!"

"Failure would be an understatement! We poured in time, manpower, and resources! Charis, what the hell have you done?"

The group of men shouted furiously at Charis, who wore a mask in the video call. Yet, he remained unfazed, calmly raising a glass of red wine and taking a sip.

"Gentlemen, are you done speaking?" Charis' mask covered half of his face, and his mouth on the visible part of his face curved into a faint smile. "You'll get your explanation after this is over. But for now, I'm still the one in charge, am I not?"

The grey-haired man's tone turned cold. "You're in charge, yes, but we are far from satisfied with how things have gone. We handed all our resources over to you, but you turned the situation into a total disaster. You owe us an explanation!"

"All that matters is that I'm in charge," Charis replied as he lifted his gaze. "The entire operation was derailed by certain individuals. But I'll make one thing very clear—none of what we lost matters. What's important is what comes next."

"And what's that?"

"What plan could possibly still throw Havenia into chaos?"

Charis' lips curled into a smirk. "The stock market."