"You can't be serious!" The man shot up from his chair, covering his face with one hand. If her words were true, it felt as though the Crimwell family was doomed.

What bewildered him even more than the knowledge of the Raphael family's intentions was why they would target the Crimwell family.

After all, his daughter still maintained a strong relationship with Damien, who, despite being abandoned by his own family, shared blood ties with them.

He had always been aware of how Amelia held a rather unfavorable opinion of Damien, yet he constantly pushed her to foster a closer relationship with him.

Although Damien seemed useless, he was a means to an end—a stepping stone to elevate their status within the Raphael family.

The real issue lay with Amelia, who, true to her biological mother's legacy, was determined to achieve something on her own to prove to society that women could succeed independently.

Amelia had repeatedly rejected Damien's proposals, which concerned him as the patriarch of the Crimwell family.

He had tried to persuade her against such foolish decisions, even sending her into a marriage yesterday, hoping that Damien, upon seeing Amelia again, would reconsider and break off his own marriage.

He envisioned Damien coming to him, once more, to request a conversation with Amelia.

For years, he had acted as a puppeteer, manipulating the situation to exploit Damien's potential to his advantage, despite the many obstacles he faced.

Nevertheless, he had managed to secure several projects involving the Crimwell family due to Damien's actions.

In his eyes, Damien was a golden goose, but nothing more than that.

Now, he was left pondering why the Raphael family, having abandoned that useless heir, would choose to target the Crimwell family.

Was it because of all the favors and rejections he had garnered by manipulating Damien all these years?

Did the Raphael family finally decide to take action against them now that he had been cast aside?

All of this was confusing, especially considering how powerful the Raphael family was in the main city—strong enough to make even the Harrisons think twice before acting.

:: You don't know? Can't you see how the media is practically promoting your story in light of the abandonment of the Raphael heir? ::

Vandiana, speaking through the call, felt a sense of bewilderment. How could someone in his position—a patriarch of one of the top five richest families in Camphrian City—not recognize that this was merely a public relations strategy by the Raphael family, using the situation to manipulate public opinion?

"What!? Do you mean to say they are attempting to shift public opinion?" The man, understanding Vandiana's words, realized that the Raphael family, looking down on them, did not feel threatened enough to leverage their own name for their clean-up.

The thought prompted him to slam his hand down on the desk in frustration. The sheer force cracked the desk, splintering the wood as it struggled to withstand the might of a body-refinement stage cultivator.

:: Something similar ::

Vandiana felt her interest in the conversation waning as the man on the other end became increasingly erratic.

It was troubling to see someone so reckless, especially given that they were being targeted by stronger enemies. Such behavior could undoubtedly lead to disastrous consequences.

"Damn it," he muttered through gritted teeth. Frustration surged within him; while he had some relief in not being targeted by the entire Raphael family, he was acutely aware that they likely intended to use him as a pawn to sway public opinion, even at the cost of tarnishing the Crimwell family's reputation.

:: Say something useful or I'll cut the call. ::

Vandiana was thoroughly disenchanted with any further discourse with this man, who seemed utterly bewildered and childlike, despite being the head of a prominent family known in Camphrian City.

"Wait, I have another request," he blurted out, suddenly pulled from his thoughts as Vandiana threatened to end the call.

It dawned on him that this was not a moment to celebrate the negligible relief of not being targeted; instead, he should be furious that the Raphael family thought so little of the Crimwell family that they'd be willing to use them as cannon fodder.

Setting aside his anger for the moment, he swiftly moved to address the immediate priority, adding, "I want to reach the police chief of Camphrian City."

Rather than wasting time hunting down Edward, who had escaped from prison and caused this mess, he needed to connect with the police chief to provide a more favorable explanation to the media about Edward's escape and how it had no ties to the Crimwell family.

:: You'll have him in two hours. ::

With a disinterested, almost apathetic tone, Vandiana ended the call.

The man, frustrated, relaxed his grip on the phone just moments before the device shattered into pieces as he slammed it down in anger.

'Uwaaaah!? My phone!' his secretary, who had remained poised and professional throughout, observed the destruction with a blank expression.

She felt a deep sense of loss as a single tear slipped from her eye at the sight of her broken phone.

"Call a press conference," he commanded as he stood up from his seat, striding toward the door of the office. He adjusted his suit and tie, preparing to face the media storm ahead.

"Call?" His secretary looked back at him, confusion evident on her face as she glanced at the remnants of the shattered phone.

Sighing, she moved to gather the broken pieces before setting out to arrange a press conference using the landline available in the company.

------

"Tch, should I have brought better headphones?" Damien muttered under his breath as he sat far from the bustling heart of Camphrian City, nestled inside a countryside hospital.

He held a laptop in his lap, an earpiece tucked into one ear, and grimaced as the call he was listening to suddenly surged, sharply piercing his eardrums.

"Hm, let's see, where is she right now?" Damien began to dance his fingers across the laptop keyboard, his eyes locked onto the screen.

An amused smile spread across his face, contentment washing over him as he realized that everything was progressing exactly as he had hoped.