Chapter 202 - 201: Good-for-nothings Are So Easy to Kill

"My employer back then was waiting with me outside the delivery room. Everything seemed perfectly normal. When the nurse came out, she just showed me the ’stillborn’ directly.

"And she had a C-section, so she didn’t even know the baby was gone until she woke up from the anesthesia."

Uncle Stark heaved a deep sigh. "So, before Yvonne contacted us, we never suspected a thing. We were still so grateful to him, which is why Wayne ended up abandoned and alone for so long."

Coincidentally, Uncle Stark’s original surname is also Lynch, and the name he had originally chosen for William Lynch was Kyle Lynch.

But everyone was already used to calling him William Lynch, so after a family discussion, the three of them decided to stick with it.

And so, "Kai" naturally transformed into "Wayne."

Auntie Dahlia snorted coldly and slammed her hand on the table, standing up. "And to think I spent all those years feeling grateful to him, even protecting him behind the scenes. That son of a bitch had a bounty on his head once, and I was the one who called in favors with my old contacts in the underworld to block most of the top assassins for him."

’Mmm, the same old recipe, the same old flavor... *this* was the Auntie Dahlia I know.’

Yvonne Lowell’s eyes narrowed. "So he’s still alive?"

"He’s long dead. Some wet-behind-the-ears rookie took that bounty," Auntie Dahlia said, a sneer playing on her lips.

"Damn it. If I’d known that useless piece of trash was so easy to kill, I would’ve taken the contract myself. Five hundred million M Gold was no small sum seven or eight years ago."

At this moment, Auntie Dahlia could have replayed every happy memory of her life and still not been able to crack a smile.

It wasn’t because she hadn’t personally finished off that rich man, but because five hundred million M Gold had once been placed right in front of her, and she hadn’t cherished the opportunity. Now that it was gone, she was filled with endless regret.

It was true that everyone in Apeiron was rich, but it was even truer that every single one of them was a stingy cheapskate who loved money more than life itself!!

Only after confirming that Auntie Dahlia’s fury wouldn’t create any collateral damage did Nolan Crawford venture to voice his doubts.

"But if the rich man just wanted to use this to keep Uncle Stark around, there was no need to go through all the trouble of swapping in a stillborn baby.

"And Auntie Dahlia was under general anesthesia for a C-section; she was completely unconscious in the delivery room. Wouldn’t it have been easier to just have the doctor do something to the newborn Fletcher?

"Also, you two used to live on Continent Q, but William Lynch ended up in an orphanage on Continent R. The reason behind that certainly gives one pause."

William Lynch: ...So? Is my being alive a problem for you?

Yvonne Lowell couldn’t help but click her tongue, saying playfully,

"Don’t tell me he had a thing for Uncle Stark, did he? He loved him, so he wanted to keep him close. He loved him, so he couldn’t bring himself to kill his child? But he also didn’t want to see William Lynch, so he sent him far, far away? Out of sight, out of mind?"

William Lynch and Auntie Dahlia’s lips twitched in unison. ’She certainly has a wild imagination. It’s a waste she’s not running a clickbait blog.’

"You little brat, you’re itching for a spanking, aren’t you? How dare you make up stories about me?" Uncle Stark grabbed the tissue box from the table and tossed it at her.

Leo Grant’s hand reflexively moved to catch it, but the tissue box landed at Yvonne Lowell’s feet. He raised an eyebrow. "You saw that coming?"

Yvonne Lowell sat perfectly still, not even flinching. She said with calm certainty, "Mm-hm. I’m used to it. He can’t bear to actually hit me."

Leo Grant chuckled, shaking his head. He had worried for nothing.

"Something is definitely not right, but the truth of what happened 22 years ago will be hard to find."

Auntie Dahlia sighed and patted William Lynch’s shoulder. "But don’t worry, Mom will get to the bottom of it. When the time comes, we’ll repay kindness with kindness, and enmity with enmity."

"Mom, let me investigate," William Lynch said, pressing his lips together.

"No need. Your mother still has some connections, and this job requires a few skilled hackers," Auntie Dahlia said, waving her hand dismissively.

"But I am a hacker. And I’m one of the people involved. Let me do it. Please, trust me."

He was already more than satisfied just to have found his parents and to know he wasn’t abandoned on purpose.

But he was also a grown man, and he couldn’t stand the thought of his parents having to toil over this after so many years, even if they were no ordinary people.

Auntie Dahlia was about to say something else when Yvonne Lowell spoke up first.

"Just let him investigate it himself, Auntie Dahlia. W, the number two on the hacker rankings, certainly has the skills and connections."

William Lynch’s pupils contracted. He snapped his head up to look at Yvonne Lowell. "Miss... Miss Lowell, how did you know?"

At first, William Lynch thought Leo Grant had told her, but when he saw that his boss looked just as clueless, he dismissed the idea.

Yvonne Lowell raised an eyebrow. "I guessed. You were the one who contacted me on the dark web before, weren’t you?"

Yvonne Lowell was referring to the time she helped clean up Ruby’s mess. She knew back then that W was the one working for G Group.

Connecting that to William Lynch now saying he was a hacker... His name is pronounced Wei... W. It wasn’t a hard guess, was it?

"You’re very clever, Miss Lowell. I am indeed W."

William Lynch looked at his parents with some embarrassment and scratched his head. ’Why do I suddenly feel like a kid who got caught doing something bad and is being tattled on to his parents?’

’The primal authority of blood ties... it may be delayed, but it always arrives...’

"Our Wayne is so amazing! Fine, if you want to investigate, go ahead. Mom will just call in a few people to help you."

Then, Auntie Dahlia looked at Yvonne Lowell, a sly grin spreading across her face. "Yvonne~"

Yvonne Lowell shivered for no apparent reason. "Go ask Jackie and Felix. I’m not a hacker, I can’t investigate."

’Trying to put me to work again? And for free? Impossible. Don’t even think about it!’

"Stop playing dumb. You’re Old Man Quinn’s chief disciple. If you had entered that damn hacker competition, what chance would Jackie have had of taking first place?"

Auntie Dahlia rolled her eyes in annoyance. She’d never seen anyone hide their skills to such an extent. To put it bluntly, the girl was just lazy.

Other people couldn’t wait to slap more titles on themselves to show off, but she was the opposite, desperate to get rid of all that extra baggage.

A flicker of surprise crossed Leo Grant’s eyes. ’Auntie Dahlia means... the number one hacker on the rankings, Joker, is Zachary Jacobs?’

’And my girlfriend is also a master hacker, one whose skills are even above Joker’s?’

Yvonne Lowell pouted. "Oh, come on, I’m busy. Jackie and Felix are more than enough. Can’t I just get people to investigate from other angles?"

’Typing on a keyboard is so tiring. I’d rather pass. I’d rather be manipulated by Auntie Dahlia in some other way.’

"Deal! Then I’ll leave it to you. After all, I’m getting old, my network isn’t as wide as yours, and besides, you’re my best connection."

A sharp glint flashed in Auntie Dahlia’s eyes. She had agreed without a second thought because, after all, this was her ultimate goal.

Yvonne Lowell couldn’t stop her lips from twitching. ’Heh, I knew it.’

’I knew it!!!’

’The once-infamous female assassin, Rakshasa, claiming she had no connections...’

’Are you kidding me? Who would believe that!?’

Auntie Dahlia: Tee-hee.

Yvonne Lowell: Not tee-hee.