Chapter 136

Chapter 136

Amelia shot Victor an annoyed look at his question, then straightened up with complete conviction.

"Why am I giving her a hard time? Victor, have you forgotten? This woman tried to poison you!"

"Someone who wanted you dead just magically becomes your right-hand person and moves right into our home."

"How am I supposed to smile and welcome her? The fact that I haven't thrown her out already shows plenty of restraint on my part!"

Amelia's voice kept rising as she spoke, her eyes going red around the edges.

It wasn't that she was being unreasonable or petty. This was about Victor's safety, and she simply couldn't stay calm about that.

Watching her standing there, equal parts furious and hurt, Victor felt his frustration melt away completely.

He was quiet for a moment, then it hit him.

He knew Ruby had genuinely come over to their side, and he understood she wasn't a bad person at her core. But Amelia didn't know that. To her, Ruby was someone who had threatened her fiancé's life. Her hostility and suspicion made perfect sense.

With that realization, his tone softened.

"Alright, I get it. That's on me for not thinking it through. But I still want to give her a chance."

He paused, meeting Amelia's eyes, and spoke carefully. "April reported that according to the prophecy, the Shura Sanctum needs one hundred and forty-four top fighters to guard it. Right now, even counting Hela and Makoto who just joined, we're only at a hundred and ten. Ruby might be one of the missing pieces."

"If you trust someone, use them. If you don't trust them, don't. I have to give her that trust."

That took most of the heat out of Amelia's anger. She knew Victor never did things on a whim.

"Fine." Amelia let out a breath. "If that's what you think, what else can I say? But I'm putting this on the table right now — I'm having someone watch her. If she pulls anything, I won't let it slide."

"Fair enough." Victor nodded.

Three hours later. New York.

A private jet touched down smoothly at JFK. As the steps were lowered, Ruby walked briskly out of the cabin. She didn't stop for a second, heading straight to a Rolls-Royce that was already waiting and riding directly to the Murphy family estate.

At that moment, the family's patriarch Milo was in his study with his second son Chris, going over business plans for the next quarter.

"Dad, about Starlight Corporation, should we maybe consider—"

Chris never finished the sentence. The study door came with a knock from the butler.

"Sir, there's a woman outside who says her name is Ruby. She says she's here on Lord Shura's orders."

"What?" Milo and Chris looked at each other, both seeing the shock written on the other's face.

"Bring her in — quickly!" Milo said.

They'd made the mistake of thinking Shura was Eric before, and it had caused no small amount of trouble. The misunderstanding had eventually been cleared up, but Milo had been uneasy about it ever since. Now that someone from the Shura Sanctum had come calling, there was no way he'd show even a hint of disrespect.

A moment later, Ruby walked in. She skipped all pleasantries, reached into her bag, and set the black token down on the table with a firm thud.

"Mr. Milo Murphy, Mr. Chris Murphy. I'm here on Lord Shura's orders, bringing you an extraordinary opportunity."

At the sight of the token — the symbol of the Shura Sanctum's supreme authority — Milo's breath caught in his throat. He asked carefully, "Ms. Wells, what are your instructions?"

"The Allen family has outlived their usefulness to Lord Shura."

"Lord Shura has decided it's time for that family to disappear from New York."

Milo felt a jolt run through him. He understood immediately — this was the final reckoning for the Allen family. This was an extraordinary opportunity. Absorbing the Allen family's assets would at least double the Murphy family's strength.

But he was a sharp man, and he didn't let the excitement cloud his thinking.

"Ms. Wells, taking down the Allen family is no small task. They've been entrenched in New York for years, with deep roots everywhere. The Murphy family alone may not be enough."

Ruby smiled slightly. "You're overthinking it. Lord Shura has given me full authority to mobilize every allied family in New York. In other words, all four of New York's major families will be moving together with the Murphy family."

"One more thing — this operation is centered entirely in New York. The Martinez family's base is in Atlanta, so there's no need to bring them in across state lines."

Milo caught the meaning immediately. If the Allen family faced total destruction, they'd fight back like cornered animals. Keeping the Martinez family out of it was clearly Victor protecting his fiancée.

With that thought, Milo stood up and gave Ruby a respectful bow. "Understood. Please rest assured, Ms. Wells. The Murphy family will give everything we have. We won't let Lord Shura down."

Ruby gave a satisfied nod. She then left the Murphy estate and checked into a room at the Waldorf Astoria.

The next day, the heads of all four major families came there to meet with Ruby. Milo and Chris sat across from them, representing the Murphy family.

"Ms. Wells, you say you represent Lord Shura — do you have any proof?" William of the Rockefeller family spoke first, asking politely.

Ruby said nothing. She simply placed the black token at the center of the table.

"This is your proof."

Then she looked around the room at everyone present.

"I'm sure Mr. Murphy has already filled you in. I came to New York for one reason. Within one month, I want the Allen family wiped off the face of the earth. Once it's done, their assets get divided equally among all of you."

The moment she finished, a wave of sharp inhales swept through the conference room. The scale of it was staggering. The Allen family had been having a rough stretch lately, but their vast holdings were enough to make every person in that room salivate.

"I'm in!" Andrew of the Carnegie family was the first to speak up, greed plain in his eyes.

"The Vanderbilt family has no objections."

"Agreed."

One by one, everyone fell in line. When the prize was this big, hesitating even for a second was an insult to the opportunity itself.

Ruby nodded, satisfied.

"Good. Here are your assignments. Mr. Rockefeller, your family will target every Allen family company on the stock market. I want their share prices hitting the floor within three days. John, use your influence in finance to cut off every funding channel and banking connection the Allen family has. Carnegie family — you control steel and transportation, so I want you to shut off the raw material supply to every factory under the Allen name. Vanderbilt family, your job is to dig up every piece of dirt the Allen family has buried over the years and get it out in the open. I want them completely destroyed publicly. Milo, you're going to poach every talented person you can from the Allen family and bring them into your companies."

One by one, those orders made it clear to all four families and the Murphys exactly why Victor had come to rely so heavily on Ruby.