In the driver's seat, driver Hayata's body trembled like a sieve.

His hands gripped the steering wheel tightly, his voice carrying a sob.

"Sir, please, spare me!"

"I... I'm really not a member of the Kujo Family!"

"I'm just a driver specially arranged by Madam Kaori for Mr. Matsutake, and I have nothing to do with him!"

In the backseat, the man wearing Matsutake's face ignored his pleas.

He simply repeated the command calmly, with no emotion discernible in his voice.

"Turn around, go back to the villa."

Hayata's body shuddered violently, as if struck by an invisible whip.

Not daring to hesitate for another half-second, he nodded hastily.

"Yes! Yes! I'll turn around right now!"

He clumsily operated the steering wheel, and the car cut a harsh arc on the narrow mountain road. The tires scraped the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust.

The front of the car turned around, driving back toward the heavily guarded manor.

Zhou Huai crossed his legs and looked through the rearview mirror at the driver's pale face.

"Very good, thank you for your cooperation."

He leaned forward slightly, resting his elbows on the back of the front seat.

"Next, tell me about the relevant information regarding this Matsutake."

"Be sure to be detailed."

"If I find out you're lying..."

Zhou Huai didn't finish his sentence, but that chilling killing intent had already permeated the air, tightly shrouding Hayata.

"You know the consequences."

On Hayata's forehead, cold sweat trickled down like streams, instantly soaking his collar.

While staring fixedly at the road conditions ahead, he began to recount everything unceasingly.

"Mr. Matsutake... He... His real name is Matsutake Gen, and he is the Vice Guild Leader of the Imperial Capital Flower Arrangement Association."

"Because of his exceptional flower arrangement skills and deep appreciation from Madam Kaori, he was invited to the Kujo Family to be specifically responsible for tending to the precious flowers and plants in Madam's courtyard."

"He also..."

Not daring to conceal anything, Hayata spilled everything he knew about Matsutake in detail, like pouring beans out of a bamboo tube.

From Matsutake's daily routine to his words and actions, and even some unknown little habits.

Zhou Huai listened quietly, comparing and reconstructing this information one by one with the memory fragments stolen by the token of the faceless.

A more vivid and three-dimensional image of "Matsutake" gradually took shape in his mind.

Soon, the black forged iron gate coiled with ghostly face reliefs appeared in his field of vision once again.

The guards at the entrance saw the black sedan that had left less than ten minutes ago return, and expressions of doubt appeared on their faces.

The leading Patrol Team captain frowned slightly, stepped forward, and extended his hand to make a stopping gesture.

The sedan slowly came to a halt.

On Zhou Huai's face, he had already put on Matsutake's characteristic arrogant and rigid expression.

He pressed down the car window, swept his icy gaze toward the captain, and let out a light snort from his nose.

The captain lowered his posture greatly and slightly bowed.

"Mr. Matsutake? Why are you back so soon?"

Although his tone was respectful, his eyes carried a trace of imperceptible scrutiny.

Zhou Huai was playing the role of Matsutake at this moment. He slowly rolled down the car window and looked at the captain with those icy eyes.

The captain's smile froze on his face.

He felt that the Mr. Matsutake at this moment was somewhat different from the Mr. Matsutake just now.

That gaze was no longer the usual arrogant swagger borrowed from a powerful tiger, but a kind of... a kind of apathy originating from the bones.

"Does my itinerary need to be reported to you?"

The captain was frightened by this look, instinctively taking half a step back.

He forced up his aura and dryly laughed, "I wouldn't dare, I wouldn't dare, it's just a routine inquiry."

"After all, Takamagahara has not been peaceful recently, and strengthening alert is also for Madam's safety."

Zhou Huai snorted coldly.

He didn't waste any more words with the other party, instead turning his gaze directly to the driver in the driver's seat.

"Hayata."

The driver shuddered all over and quickly responded, "Here! Mr. Matsutake!"

"Tell him why we came back."

The driver swallowed a mouthful of saliva, mustered up his courage, and said to the captain outside the window, "Captain, it's... it's Madam Kaori who temporarily changed her mind."

"Madam said she doesn't like the 'Heart of the Ocean' anymore, and wants to change it to the 'Kiss of Scarlet Flame'."

"Mr. Matsutake is rushing back to confirm the specific style with Madam."

The captain was stunned upon hearing this.

Madam Kaori's fickleness was well-known, and this reason was barely passable.

Yet he always felt something was not quite right.

Just as he wanted to ask a few more questions, Zhou Huai's icy gaze fell upon him once again.

"What?"

"Do you want to interrogate Madam's decision as well?"

"Or do you think your authority is big enough to interfere in Madam's private affairs?"

A layer of cold sweat instantly popped out on the captain's forehead.

He couldn't afford to bear such a heavy accusation dropped on him.

He quickly bent down, his posture humble to the extreme.

"I wouldn't dare! This subordinate would never dare!"

"It was my loose tongue! Please forgive me, Mr. Matsutake!"

Zhou Huai stopped looking at him and simply spat out two words indifferently.

"Open the gate."

"Hai!"

As if granted an amnesty, the captain scampered back to the guard booth and personally pressed the gate-opening button.

The black forged iron gate slowly slid open to both sides.

The vehicle steadily drove into the villa area.

In the driver's seat, driver Hayata's tense body suddenly relaxed.

He felt that the shirt on his back was thoroughly soaked with cold sweat.

At this moment, his hands were still trembling slightly and uncontrollably.

Those short dozens of seconds of interrogation just now felt as long as a century to him.

Fortunately, the other party's attention had always been on Mr. Matsutake in the back.

Otherwise, he would definitely have given himself away.

Fortunately, he managed to muddle through after all.

The sedan drove on the wide internal road, flanked on both sides by meticulously trimmed landscaping.

From time to time, patrol squads in black suits would pass by.

The inside of the car fell into silence.

Hayata didn't dare to speak, and could only carefully observe the expression of that "Mr. Matsutake" in the backseat through the rearview mirror.

Yet the other party merely leaned against the back of the seat, eyes slightly closed as if already asleep.

Just when Hayata thought it would remain silent like this, the person in the backseat suddenly spoke.

"At the intersection ahead, turn left."

Hayata responded instinctively.

But when the car approached the intersection and saw the direction leading to the left fork, his movements suddenly stiffened, and obvious confusion and hesitation appeared on his face.

"Mr. Matsutake, that side is... is Young Master Kazuya's residence."

"What are we going there for?"

As soon as the words left his mouth, Hayata regretted them.

He saw in the rearview mirror that an extremely faint smile slowly curled up on the face belonging to Matsutake.

Zhou Huai's voice was very soft, but it was like an ice-quenched knife pressed against Hayata's throat.

"Do you feel like you aren't dying fast enough?"

"And now you're turning around to probe my intelligence?"

"N... No! Mr. Matsutake! I definitely didn't mean that!"

Hayata was frightened, his soul scattered and spirit dissipated, and he almost failed to hold the steering wheel steady, hastily shaking his head like a rattle-drum.

"I... I was just... just a bit worried."

"As far as I know, you and Young Master Kazuya usually... don't have much interaction."

"If we just go over so rashly, what if... what if it arouses other people's suspicion..."

He didn't dare to continue speaking.

Zhou Huai sneered inwardly.

This driver could be considered rather clever.

"Worry less about things that shouldn't concern you."

"Shut your mouth and drive your car."

"Hai!"

As if granted an amnesty, Hayata didn't dare utter another word of nonsense.

He slammed hard on the accelerator, instantly accelerating the car, and unhesitatingly turned into the left fork.

Meanwhile.

Inside Kujo Kazuya's villa.

Polina let out a suppressed soft cry.

Her brows were tightly locked, biting her lower lip hard as a trace of blood oozed from her pale lips.

Kujo Kazuya, who was applying medicine for her, paused his movements.

Before he had time to speak, a strong wind laden with fury struck from his side.

Kalen grabbed him by the collar, lifting his entire body up from the ground.

"How many times have I told you! Be gentle! Be gentle!"

"Didn't you see that Young Miss Polina is in great pain?!"

"If I'd known you only had this level of skill, I might as well have done it myself!"

Kujo Kazuya let Kalen lift him like that without a shred of anger, his face even carrying a trace of guilt and heartache.

He looked toward Polina on the sofa, his gaze focused and affectionate.

"Your Excellency Kalen, please calm down."

"What I am applying for Young Miss Polina is the 'Curse-Breaking Spirit Ointment' secretly crafted by the Clan."

"This ointment will directly impact the power of the curse on her wound, so pain is inevitable."

His tone shifted abruptly, becoming incomparably pious as if reciting a sacred vow.

"I am so deeply in love with Young Miss Polina, how could I bear to watch her suffer even a fraction of harm?"

"I'd rather the person enduring this ten thousand kinds of pain right now be me."

Hearing this confession, Kalen's fury did not decrease but instead increased.

He fiercely slammed Kujo Kazuya onto the ground, producing a muffled "bang" sound.

"Stop talking all that useless nonsense!"

"If it weren't for the fake intelligence you provided, how could Polina have been injured to this state?!"

Kujo Kazuya clambered up from the ground in a sorry state, tidying up his disheveled clothes.

Hearing Kalen's accusation, a wave of profound sorrow instantly welled up on his handsome face.

Two lines of clear tears slid silently down his cheeks.

"You're right... This matter is all my fault."

"I really didn't expect that Uncle... he actually doesn't even trust me."

"It was I who harmed Young Miss Polina..."

Choking with sobs, he beat his chest and stamped his feet, looking thoroughly full of remorse.

Watching him look like this, Kalen was about to flare up again.

On the sofa, Polina, who had remained silent all along, spoke up impatiently.

"Both of you, say a little less."

The quarreling stopped abruptly.

The fury on Kalen's face instantly receded, replaced by a bootlicking expression.

"Polina, how do you feel?"

Polina ignored him, simply staring coldly at Kujo Kazuya with her eyes.

"The injury just won't heal."

"If I continue staying here, it will only be a dead end."

Struggling to sit up, she aggravated her wound, sucking in a sharp breath of cold air from the pain.

"Think of a way to send us out of the city."

The sadness on Kujo Kazuya's face faded, replaced by a troubled expression.

He took a few quick steps to the front of the sofa, his voice full of helplessness.

"Young Miss Polina, you don't know this."

"Today's Tokyo City has activated the highest level of alert, blockaded layer upon layer."

"Even for me, wanting to leave the city requires a passage order personally signed by the Patriarch, as well as an absolutely reasonable reason."

Seeing Polina's increasingly icy gaze, he quickly added.

"But rest assured, for your sake, I will definitely find a way!"

"I'll go beg Father right now, even if I have to kneel and beg him, I will definitely..."

Before he finished speaking.

"Thud! Thud! Thud!"

A rapid and heavy knocking sound came from outside.

Kujo Kazuya frowned, irritation at being disturbed appearing on his face.

He turned around and roared in a low voice toward the direction of the door.

"Didn't I say, don't come and disturb me unless there's something important?!"

A guard's respectful yet nervous response came from outside the door.

"Young Master Kazuya, I am extremely sorry!"

"It's... it's Madam Kaori who sent Mr. Matsutake over."

"Saying there is an urgent matter she wants to discuss with you."