Chapter 141

In the video.

The restaurant's lighting draped like flowing gossamer, etching Jack's silhouette into something deep and captivating.

His sleeves were rolled up slightly, revealing the clean lines of his forearms.

The moment his long fingers touched the black and white keys, it was as if the entire world fell silent.

His posture was straight and elegant, his jawline cutting a sharp, sensual edge through the interplay of light and shadow.

As the melody flowed, he lowered his eyelids slightly, his long lashes casting a gentle shadow beneath his eyes.

Those hands dancing across the keys were like butterflies waltzing through the darkness—each rise and fall, each strike carried an effortless grace and exquisite tension.

No flashy showboating, only something pure that struck straight to the soul.

The piano's voice seemed to carry some strange magic, at times meandering like a spring in a deep valley, at others crisp and bright as dawn breaking.

Every note seemed to flow from the depths of his heart like a sigh, carrying an irresistible tenderness and passion that seeped through the screen, wrapping itself around Vivian's heartbeat thread by thread.

Vivian forgot to breathe.

She was frozen as if under a spell, slumped on the sofa in the same position, her usually lazy and defiant eyes now filled with nothing but the image of Jack playing piano on the screen—and an undeniable, overwhelming infatuation she couldn't hide.

When the piece ended, Jack in the video lifted his head slightly, the corner of his lips curving into a barely-there smile. Those eyes that seemed to see through everything pierced straight through the screen and into Vivian's gaze.

Not until the video ended.

Did Vivian snap back to reality.

This was the first time she'd ever seen Jack play piano.

She'd always thought Jack was cold, unfathomable.

But she never knew that when he played piano, he could look so... gentle.

Vivian replayed the video, wanting to find more information. Soon, she spotted the restaurant's logo in the footage.

She searched the restaurant's name in a map app.

And discovered.

It was actually a pretty well-known restaurant in Imperial City.

And the video's upload time was today.

Which meant.

Jack—he was right now in... Imperial City!

...............

After leaving Mira's place.

Jack had just arrived at Sherry's door.

Before Jack could ring the doorbell.

Sherry opened the door.

The door flew open so quickly, as if she'd been pressed against it the whole time, holding her breath and waiting for his arrival.

The dim yellow light from the hallway spilled out through the doorway, outlining Sherry's figure—slender and fragile. She wore a soft cream-colored knit sweater, her long hair cascading loosely over her shoulders. She looked like she'd shed all her usual sharpness and defenses, like a cat who'd finally waited for its owner to come home.

"You're back."

Her voice was soft, carrying a barely perceptible tremor.

Jack stood outside the door, his gaze settling calmly on her face. He didn't speak, only nodded slightly in acknowledgment.

Sherry didn't say anything more, just quietly stepped aside, opening the door wider to let him pass. Her movements were gentle and natural, as if they'd lived like this for a long time, as if every time he came home, she would quietly open the door for him just like this.

Jack stepped inside.

The light in the entryway was on, warm yellow light pooling on the floor. The air carried a faint scent that belonged to 'home.' It was a warmth he hadn't felt in a long time.

Sherry followed behind him, gently closing the door.

"Are you... okay?" Sherry asked Jack.

"I'm fine, just took care of some things," Jack said with a faint smile.

Sherry bit her lower lip slightly.

"After you left, someone came by."

Hearing this, Jack's movements as he changed his shoes paused slightly.

He straightened up, his gaze settling on Sherry's face.

Her expression remained calm, but deep in her eyes lurked a barely perceptible tension, as if afraid he'd be displeased, or as if she was weighing how to phrase it.

"Who?" Jack asked.

"A woman."

"A woman?"

Jack raised an eyebrow slightly, a trace of subtle interest flickering in his eyes. He removed his coat, casually draping it over the coat rack in the entryway, his movements composed and elegant.

"What did she look like? Was she attractive?" Jack asked.

Sherry's brow furrowed slightly, her expression instantly cooling. "Attractive."

She paused, her voice carrying a barely perceptible jealousy. "Even more attractive than me."

Hearing this, Jack let out a low chuckle. He walked up to Sherry, looking at her suddenly chilled face, and said, "I don't believe that. There aren't many women in this world more beautiful than you."

At his words.

The corner of Sherry's mouth curved imperceptibly upward.

She tilted her head back slightly, looking at Jack who was so close, her voice softening with a hint of coquettish reproach. "You're just trying to sweet-talk me."

With that.

Sherry walked to a drawer.

She pulled out a file and tossed it in front of Jack.

"This is what she gave you."

Jack looked at the file on the table, his brow furrowing slightly.

Then he picked it up. Opening it, he found complete information on Karina's tech company.

The person must be one of Victoria's people.

Jack hadn't expected Victoria to move so fast, gathering all this information so quickly.

Jack flipped through the materials rapidly.

The first sections were all about ordinary projects at Karina's tech company.

These projects were all flashy but insubstantial things that couldn't support such a massive valuation.

"This is..."

Jack stopped at the last page.

Jack's gaze locked onto that page, something dark churning in the depths of his pupils.

This was a project called 'Rebirth.'

The materials didn't include detailed information about this project, but from what was there.

Karina's tech company had invested over ninety percent of its capital into this project.

Jack silently repeated that figure in his mind, an extremely faint trace of menace flickering in his eyes.

A tech company worth hundreds of billions of dollars had poured almost all its cash flow into a project whose very name was shrouded in secrecy.

No matter how you looked at it, something was off.

He closed the file, casually tossing it on the table. The sound of paper scraping against the tabletop rang out particularly clearly in the quiet living room.

William's death, Karina Tech's Rebirth project, and the Pharos Tower.

These three threads rapidly converged in his mind, weaving into a net whose bottom couldn't be seen.

Jack stood up, walking to the window and pulling aside a corner of the curtain.

Outside, Imperial City's night remained bustling and glamorous, the glow of neon lights flowing across the glass like rivulets of blood.

"Sherry."

He spoke, his voice low and calm.

Sherry walked to his side, standing quietly.

"Can you look into someone for me?" Jack said flatly, gazing out the window.

"Who?"

"The chief researcher at Karina Tech, Steven Thomas."

This was the only information about the Rebirth project that Victoria's investigation had turned up that was out in the open.