Moreover, Night Wolf's team coordination has always been poor. Aside from his own crew, he disdains working with anyone else, always acting alone and difficult to control. For someone like him to serve as the vanguard scout, it seems more than fitting.

But Benjamin Franklin also felt a trace of hesitation in his heart—that was Mr. Smith's schadenfreude-like gaze. Although it lasted only a moment, Benjamin Franklin clearly saw that when William White volunteered, Mr. Smith unmistakably showed a look of gloating.

“Wang, if you have anything to say, just say it.”

Mr. Smith shook his head vigorously. “No, no, no, Samuel White has already made up his mind. I have nothing more to say, I can only wish Samuel White good luck in battle, that's all.”

Night Wolf shot him a cold sneer. He had nothing to say to this lowly scum either.

Who would bother talking to a dead man? After this vanguard scout mission, he would find a chance to kill him.

Night Wolf was never known for his magnanimity.

Yet just as William White was about to get up and leave, he noticed that young man had somehow produced a pair of scissors and a stack of white paper, and, under everyone's gaze, began to cut the paper with full concentration.

And the shapes he was cutting seemed to be... joss paper!?

The next moment, William White felt his vision flooded with blood-red, his killing intent boiling like never before. This little worm of a scoundrel had now been seriously added to his must-kill list.

If not for Benjamin Franklin, if not for that unfathomable Black man, he would have already torn him to pieces. Yet the taste of that punch in the café still lingered on his lips.

It was his favorite, and also most hated, taste of rust. This was the only reason William White forced himself to endure.

……

Three days later, it was still the secret meeting room beneath the bar, still the projector and the long table, but now the atmosphere was suffocatingly heavy.

Compared to three days ago, there was one less person in the meeting room.

William White was gone.

Just yesterday, William White received word that Wendy Green would be going to the Special Administration Bureau for a day-long political study, so he tried to seize the opportunity to act boldly. The entire team of over thirty people moved together, setting up a flawless assassination trap for the young lady of the Wen family. As for William White's plan, Kingston, Blake White and the others each had their own calculations: it was a terrifying assassination that could threaten even the head of a state.

Although Night Wolf had a notorious reputation, even the others had to admit he did have some real skills!

William White went as the vanguard, with team members in position for support. But just as William White set out from the base, full of confidence, he heard a strange knocking at the door.

Outside stood the beaming super-soldier Wendy Green.

The super-soldier who was supposed to be in the suburbs for political study was now standing right in front of him!

Overnight, the S-class mercenary William White and his team, who had roamed across multiple planets, were wiped out. William White himself was killed on the spot by Wendy Green, his death too gruesome to look at. Through the surveillance cameras present, the image of Wendy Green smiling as he wiped his wrist with a clean handkerchief amidst the body parts was burned into the minds of the others like a nightmare.

Chapter Five: Because of Love

After a long, deathly silence, Benjamin Franklin broke it: “Everyone, any thoughts?”

“Unexpected.” Blake White kept his eyes tightly shut, as if unwilling to meet Wendy Green's imposing gaze in the projection. “Although we anticipated William White's failure during our earlier assessment, I never imagined it would happen this way... The other side actually turned the tables and struck first.”

Ray clasped his hands and said in a low voice, “The biggest question is, how did he manage to strike first? William White was found at his own base, so the information must have leaked in advance. But from the very start, his operation was kept secret, with team members monitoring each other—there were no blind spots. And this time, the entire team was wiped out. How could the information have leaked?”

Kingston hesitated, “I've always heard that Tianjing City is under strict surveillance...”

Ray said, “If it's really as strict as the rumors say, Wendy Green should be coming for us right now. William White and we are one and the same—if he's exposed, none of us can escape. Besides, William White has operated in Tianjing City many times before and was never caught by this so-called surveillance system... He may be despicable, but as an S-class expert, he's not an easy target.”

Blake White said, “You suspect there's a mole? But we've all been together these past few days. Who do you think had the chance to leak information?”

Ray said, “What do you think?”

With that, all eyes in the room turned to one person.

Mr. Smith put down his handheld console in surprise.

“Eh, you suspect me? But I've been gaming these past few days... Oh, no, I mean patiently waiting for good news from Samuel White. Every move I made was closely watched—even when I went to the bathroom, there were Galaxy Society staff monitoring the size. So how could I possibly leak any information?”

Benjamin Franklin added, “I can confirm he really had no chance to leak information these past few days.”

Blake White took a deep breath. “If there isn't a mole, then the problem is even worse. It means we don't even know where we lost.”

Kingston said, “If it comes to a direct confrontation...”