“You’re happy without a care in the world, but I’m worried about you.”

 

A faint ripple stirred in Liliana’s blue eyes. 

 

Theodoro gave a faint smirk, then placed one knee on the edge of the chair she was sitting on and leaned his body forward.

 

With both armrests gripped firmly, there was nowhere for her to escape. When their legs pressed together with no gap left between them, Liliana’s shoulders trembled with a start. 

 

Theodoro paid it no mind, bending his waist lower and whispering a chilling voice into her ear.

 

“Alan Goldberg. He’s the man who stepped up to lead the assassination of this country’s president. Don’t you get it? Do you not understand whose attention you’re drawing?”

 

“B-but…”

 

“If you’re going to say ‘but it’ll still help us anyway,’ then shut your mouth.”

 

He looked down at Liliana’s pale face and spat out each word through clenched teeth.

 

“I don’t understand… and I can’t accept why you keep forcing yourself to endure painful and uncomfortable things like this.”

 

“…”

 

“That’s why.”

 

The eyes that held Theodoro in them began to shake, and eventually her round pupils welled up and crumbled.

 

“It’s all for your benefit anyway. You… you can just be happy. You said things are flowing the way you want them to—”

 

“I said I hate it.”

 

“…”

 

“Want me to say it again? I hate it.”

 

Whether holding back anger or tears, Liliana bit her lip with an unreadable expression, then suddenly grabbed Theodoro’s collar.

 

Her voice, suppressed and suppressed again, still came out unstable.

 

“People talk about you like that. They say you’re a man with no blood or tears left in you. And it’s not entirely wrong.”

 

“What?”

 

“So… you can just stay that cold, ruthless person to me, too. Why… why are you suddenly worrying about me, paying attention to me when it doesn’t even suit you? Just do what you’ve always done. Go back to how you used to be.”

 

“…Liliana.”

 

For a moment, Theodoro’s eyes flashed sharply, and his hand seized her slender neck.

 

“Ugh…!”

 

“I don’t know what reason you had, but it seems you desperately wanted to hate me… Too bad. Looks like I can’t be as ruthless as you want me to be. What are you going to do about it?”

 

Contrary to the force that seemed ready to crush her windpipe, his hand slid slowly and stickily along her neckline up to her chin. 

 

The low voice that asked the question was terrifyingly sweet.

 

“Answer me. It seems I can’t be the villain you want me to be toward you, Liliana. So what will you do?”

 

Crystal-like teardrops formed at the corners of Liliana’s eyes. As soon as the transparent droplets slid down her cheeks, Theodoro’s eyes narrowed with a twisted glint.

 

His gloomy gaze, which had been avoiding her, soon landed on her faintly trembling lips. 

 

Theodoro slowly slid his thumb across them, pressing down on the reddish lower lip. With a faint strength in his fingertips, her lips parted slightly.

 

“Can you push me away like you wanted so badly?”

 

After whispering those mocking words, Liliana’s breath was slowly swallowed by Theodoro’s lips.

 

The tongue that invaded the narrow gap began to rub against her soft mucous membrane, spreading intense heat. 

 

As if imprinting on her that no matter how hard she struggled, she would ultimately be consumed by his existence.

 

The fingers that had been clutching his collar loosened powerlessly.

 

In the end, Liliana could not reject the tongue that gently wrapped around hers.

 

Beneath her closed eyelids, tears flowed helplessly… but Theodoro stroked her wet cheeks, savoring the salty lips again and again.

 

💫

 

“I heard Miss Moretti wasn’t feeling well, and it would be difficult for her to come along. Yet here you are. I’m honored.”

 

“Being invited is the greater honor. Maybe because I thought I had to get better quickly, my body recovered faster than expected.”

 

Liliana maintained a gentle smile while secretly glancing at Theodoro, who sat beside her. His crooked lips—neither smiling nor frowning—clearly revealed his inner feelings.

 

Recovered? She had never been sick in the first place. 

 

It was obviously Theodoro’s desperate lie to keep her from getting involved, yet in the end, he had brought her here anyway.

 

He had said he couldn’t be ruthless… and those words had been true.

 

Theodoro had meant that no matter what she said, he wouldn’t stop worrying. But in another sense, he truly couldn’t become a ruthless person.

 

When Liliana asked to meet Alan even if it was as a birthday present, he had eventually raised both hands and feet in surrender.

 

“I wanted to express my gratitude to both of you. The assassination operation, the Gasparo company issue… thanks to you, several troublesome matters have been resolved. I can breathe a little easier now.”

 

As Alan spoke with a visibly relieved face, Theodoro gave a bitter smile and shook his head.

 

“You don’t need to go that far. These were all things that happened because Benjamin Wolf died. If Wolf hadn’t joined hands with Gasparo, he would still be alive. If we’re assigning blame, it’s my responsibility.”

 

“Well, the responsibility lies with Luciano and Gasparo. There’s no need to pin it on yourself. By the way… are you planning to keep things as they are with Don Benedetti?”

 

“It seems my brother intends to do so. What choice do I have?”

 

Alan lit a cigarette and let out a sigh mixed with a groan.

 

“I’d like you two to reach some kind of agreement at this point. After all, you’re brothers who share the same blood. Try to understand how painful it is for those watching from the sidelines, too.”

 

Liliana, who had been quietly listening to their conversation, suddenly doubted her own ears.

 

The casual suggestion to patch up their relationship amicably was already surprising, but… ‘those watching from the sidelines’? 

 

It sounded as if he had no intention of intervening in the matter at all.

 

Alan had personally arranged this meeting and even expressed his thanks. She had thought he was positively considering giving support to Theodoro’s side, but was he saying gratitude was one thing and this was another?

 

‘I knew he wouldn’t be easy to deal with…’

 

Hiding her disappointment, Liliana carefully spoke up.

 

“If the broken relationship cannot be fixed… what will you do then?”

 

“Well.”

 

Alan only gave a subtle smile whose true meaning was impossible to read.

 

“At that time, I’ll have to think about it too. Who would be the more suitable leader for the coming era?”

 

💫

 

The casual conversation continued for quite some time after that. 

 

After several tens of minutes had passed, Liliana left the office with her back to Theodoro and Alan.

 

It was because of Alan’s firm order to leave, saying he had something private to discuss with Theodoro alone.

 

“Haa…”

 

Liliana sat down on the long leather sofa placed outside the door and closed her eyes for a moment.

 

A person suited for the coming era… Who had Alan been thinking of when he said those words?

 

Judging solely by the current situation of the Benedetti family, Liliana naturally believed Theodoro should be the one to take responsibility for the organization’s future.

 

But Alan’s position might be different. He was the type of person who believed that the strongest power in the underworld came not from ‘the hand holding the gun’ but from ‘the head.’

 

Just looking at this assassination operation made his intentions clear. 

 

Alan had stayed hidden in the shadows, planning and directing everything, while using the vice president and the CIA director as backing.

 

And he himself had not lifted a single finger, using someone else’s force to assassinate Findel.

 

‘Wayne had said something like that, too. Alan Goldberg always took on the brainwork while staying one step away from all violent incidents.’

 

But when she thought about Theodoro’s past actions, he was the person furthest from being a “brain.” He had only ever taken on the role of the fist within the organization.

 

Just as Liliana was sighing deeply in worry…

 

Suddenly, the sound of a lighter flicking came from right beside her, and her gaze naturally turned that way. She hadn’t even noticed anyone was there. 

 

A man was sitting there, smoking while flipping through a stack of documents.

 

For some reason, the face looked familiar. Yet no matter how hard she thought, she had no connection to him.

 

As she glanced at him, a spark of interest flashed in her narrowed eyes.

 

‘Ah. I thought he looked familiar… This man…’

 

It was him. The Gilligan State district attorney who had become hugely famous in the media in her previous life.

 

He had poured all his passion into investigating organized crime and had indicted countless gang members from Demercy… and thanks to that fame, he had even run for governor a few years later.

 

‘So when Alan said he had another appointment, it was with this person.’

 

Liliana suppressed the smile that was about to creep up and placed the ashtray from the small table beside the sofa next to the man. 

 

Only then did his cold eyes, which had been fixed on the documents, turn toward her.

 

“…Thank you.”

 

That was all he said.

 

Normally, she wouldn’t have gone out of her way to strike up an awkward conversation. She had never been a particularly sociable person.

 

But today, even setting aside her nature, she had no choice but to open her mouth.

 

“You’re Mr. Harvey Green, right? I’ve seen you a lot on TV… I never thought I’d meet you in person like this.”

 

She decided to put the inscrutable Alan aside for now.

 

After experiencing the matters with Judith Whitmore and John Bruno, she had learned just how important connections were in this world. 

 

She couldn’t just let this golden opportunity sitting right in front of her slip away.

 

💫

 

Meanwhile, inside Alan’s office…

 

‘It wasn’t even anything important. Why did he kick me out?’

 

Having finished the private meeting, Theodoro stood up with a displeased expression. He had expected some highly secretive discussion, but that hadn’t been the case.

 

As he approached the entrance, he could hear the murmur of conversation outside. His already poor complexion froze over coldly.

 

‘Who the hell is that already…’

 

Just as he was about to fling the door open…

 

“Are they talking outside?”

 

“…Yes?”

 

“I mean the two people out there. If they’re still talking, why don’t you wait a little longer?”

 

Theodoro narrowed his brows deeply and lifted the blinds. Outside the window, the annoying prosecutor he knew all too well was handing Liliana his business card.

 

Was it an illusion that he had been kept here on purpose to give them a chance to talk?

 

“…Did you send me out on purpose?”

 

“I set the stage. What happens next depends on that young lady’s will.”

 

Alan, who had walked up beside him at some point, looked outside and patted Theodoro’s shoulder a couple of times.

 

“You, my friend… had better be very good at supporting your woman.”