Chapter 46: The Principal Said This Mission Is Very Safe

Italy, Rome, a sun-drenched morning.

In an ancient castle in the suburbs, Frost, the acting head of the Gattuso family, was enjoying his breakfast while reviewing financial reports. It was undoubtedly a pleasant day; the company took in massive sums every day, and money had long since become nothing more than a number.

Frost did not lack money, but watching the family and the company flourish under his rule was undeniably a deeply fulfilling experience. Paired with the warm sunshine and breakfast, it was quite simply the finest morning pick-me-up.

Suddenly, a secretary dressed in a black suit and white shirt pushed open the door, his expression somewhat strained. "Sir, there is important news..."

Frost frowned. "Didn't Percy teach you? There is no such thing as important news while I am eating breakfast. The most important thing on the dining table is the cheese."

Frost was furious about the loss of Percy. It was not merely because daring to kill a member of the Gattuso family was the ultimate provocation against them, but also because Percy was genuinely an impeccable individual, whether serving as a butler or a secretary.

At the very least, Percy knew that when Frost was eating breakfast, he detested being interrupted.

After all, he was the dignified acting head of the Gattuso family; did he really need to handle affairs while eating breakfast? The world revolved around elites like them, and even if the world were ending, it ought to pause while Frost finished his breakfast.

Yet the reprimanded secretary did not back down. He leaned over and whispered a few words into Frost's ear.

"That goddamned lunatic, Anjou!" Frost slammed his hand down on the table, completely indifferent to the cheese plates overturning onto the floor. Gone was his usual refined and cultured demeanor, and the volume of his roar rivaled that of a jet engine.

"How could he send Caesar on that kind of dangerous mission? And traveling companion is Chu Zihang?! How dare he put Caesar and Chu Zihang in the same group?!"

"Headmaster Anjou does not believe there is anything wrong with Chu Zihang's lineage, and turns a blind eye to all accusations from the family. Furthermore, both Chu Zihang and Caesar are students of the academy. According to the regulations, Anjou has the authority to send them on missions, and we have no right to question it."

"How could there possibly be nothing wrong with Chu Zihang's lineage? If his lineage is fine, how did he kill Percy? How can Caesar stay with such a dangerous fellow? Call off the mission immediately! As his guardian!"

"Although saying this might displease you... but, you are only attending the parent-teacher meeting on behalf of the family head, Pompeii. You have the right to attend, but no authority to call off the mission..."

Frost felt as though he had been struck by a bolt of lightning from the heavens. "Then call the Japan Branch! Have them abort the mission! If they help us this time, the Gattuso family will certainly give them a satisfactory reward!"

"The Japan Branch probably won't listen. They might not even obey Anjou's commands," the secretary said. "According to my investigation, the Japan Branch is a semi-autonomous institution, and it resembles a Yakuza organization much more than an overseas branch of the academy."

"A Yakuza organization? How could there be a Yakuza organization under the academy's banner?" Frost was utterly shocked. "Why have I never known about something like this?"

"Perhaps Family Head Pompeii forgot to mention it to you. Family Head Pompeii was aware of it..." Beads of cold sweat covered the secretary's forehead. He dared not look at Frost's exceptionally unsightly expression and continued with trembling trepidation:

"The Japan Branch operates independently of Cassel College. One could say they operate outside the jurisdiction of the college. However, judging by the annual reports they submit to the college every year, everything within Japan is peaceful."

"Who would believe an annual report? That thing is nothing more than a piece of scrap paper!" Frost was on the verge of exploding. One shocking piece of bad news after another left his mind spinning in utter bewilderment.

"However, Headmaster Anjou is probably aware of your concerns, and he asked me to relay to you that this mission is very simple—merely an investigation. It won't involve too many complications, and it is very safe, not dangerous at all."

"Not dangerous? Chu Zihang is the greatest danger of all! Right, who is the other person traveling with them? Never mind, it doesn't matter. In any case, no one could be more dangerous than Chu Zihang."

Frost steadied himself and made a prompt, decisive decision. "Connect me to the family head. He is Caesar's biological father. Use his name to demand that Anjou suspend this mission! Make it quick!"

"Yes!"

"Also, send people to Japan immediately." Frost sneered, a dangerous glint flashing in his eyes. "Since Chu Zihang actually dared to leave Cassel College, without Anjou, there won't be anyone left to protect him."

"Anyone who dares to kill a member of my Gattuso family should be prepared to pay with their life!"

...

Deafening roars erupted, the street trembling beneath countless stomping feet. Hundreds of people violently clashed into one another, accompanied by the piercing sound of police sirens wailing in the distance.

This was a turf war between two massive gangs. Violence could never be eradicated from the underworld, even though most of those using violence to settle their problems here bore youthful faces.

Many of them even looked like they were only in their teens or early twenties, yet they already wielded knives or baseball bats, ferociously bludgeoning one another in a bloody and violent spectacle.

Not far from the street where the conflict had broken out, Chu Zihang and Caesar hid in the shadows, quietly watching the scene unfold.

"The Japan Branch is also known as the Snake岐 Eight Families. According to the data Norma gave me, the entire Japanese underworld answers to them, but right now the underworld in the Shinjuku district is in complete riot. The Snake岐 Eight Families must be facing a massive crisis."

Caesar said with a serious expression, "I just don't know what happened. Perhaps we can find a gang member and ask. It doesn't matter if we don't understand Japanese; we can use a translator."

Chu Zihang nodded, but before he could speak, a crisp girl's voice joined their discussion.

"Actually, it's nothing much. It's just that the head family leader of the Snake岐 Eight Families was assassinated. He died very suddenly, and then with the dragons leaderless, the people at the top fell into chaos, and the people at the bottom followed suit."

At these words, both men instantly whipped their heads around, gazing sharply toward the source of the voice. Not far away at the end of the street, a somewhat disheveled girl stood quietly.

The girl had dark red hair and eyes of the same hue. At that moment, those pretty eyes were looking straight at them, completely clear and limpid.

Most crucially, she was speaking in Mandarin, which both of them could understand.

"Little sister, do you know what happened?" Caesar and Chu Zihang exchanged a glance before probing cautiously.

"Of course." The girl nodded. "I know a lot of things. Whatever you want to know, I probably know it."

"Oh?" Caesar raised an eyebrow and asked in a low voice, "Let's hear it then."

Yet the girl merely shook her head. "This is a secret of our sect. I can't just tell it to outsiders. However..."

"However what?"

"If you join our faith, I can tell you." The girl's face was full of innocent purity. "I can even take you back to our sect. Everyone can tell you whatever you want to know."

Caesar immediately grew interested. He did not believe in cults or sects, but at this moment, he figured he could pretend to believe. After all, it only required a verbal commitment, and there was nothing to lose by pretending.

However, before he could speak, another voice chimed in: "What sect? Can I believe in it?"

A girl as pale and pristine as snow appeared at the end of the road. Her deep blue eyes resembled the deepest hue of the ocean, bottomless at a single glance, and she was currently staring at them expressionlessly.