Although the young driver was somewhat intimidated, she still dragged the down-and-out man into the meeting room.
"This is the assassin responsible for killing the author of that article, and that one is the author who was hired. We believe we can use this to our advantage."
"Oh? Go into detail."
A sharp glint flashed through Mr. Venice's eyes as he glanced over the subdued assassin and the down-and-out man standing there timidly under everyone's gaze.
Su Rui's voice rang out again. He seemed somewhat dissatisfied with Old Venice's request.
"This old bastard must have already guessed your plan, right? Why ask? What a waste of breath. Is talking in riddles fun?"
Su Rui, Mr. Venice is my adoptive father, after all... At least show him a little respect.
"Fine. I'll still call him Old Venice."
Vulpisfoglia did not continue arguing with Su Rui over how to address him. This was probably the greatest concession Su Rui could make, and she could barely accept it.
Because of her interactions with Su Rui, Vulpisfoglia had actually become a little curious about how Mr. Venice would react if someone truly addressed him that way.
However, this was a serious occasion. Vulpisfoglia merely thought about it before continuing to explain her plan.
"We can have this author write another article, proving that he was coerced by a certain family into framing the Venice Family, and state that he was threatened by them because of it."
"So you've already investigated which family was behind this?"
A faint gleam flashed through Little Venice's eyes, as though he were contemplating something unpleasant.
Vulpisfoglia did not take this clown-like figure seriously, but to keep Su Rui from speaking up again about wanting to see blood flow like a river, she continued.
"I'll interrogate this assassin and find out which family he belongs to and what their plans are. Then I'll hand him over to Syracuse's court. That way, we can take revenge and gain even more prestige."
"It's a very good plan, Ingrid. In that case, I'll leave the interrogation to you."
Old Venice nodded. His gaze toward Vulpisfoglia was full of approval. Then he swept his eyes across everyone in the meeting room.
"We convened this meeting to deal with this matter, yet Ingrid has already nearly solved the problem."
As Old Venice's gaze swept across the room, almost no one dared meet his eyes. They merely lowered their heads in shame. Even Little Venice was the same.
"With that look and that presence, should I say these people are good at playing along?"
Su Rui did not feel any pressure from Old Venice, but nearly everyone who met his gaze looked away, except for Vulpisfoglia, the one who had resolved this matter.
"Then I'll go interrogate the assassin. We can speak again afterward, Mr. Venice."
Vulpisfoglia nodded to Old Venice, then left the meeting room with the two people she had brought back.
"I've already prepared the interrogation methods. If he refuses to talk, we'll just take his fingers and teeth and..."
Su Rui, didn't you say you'd already investigated his family?
"Did I? I don't think I said that."
Su Rui asked strangely, even beginning to wonder whether he had actually said such a thing.
Vulpisfoglia chuckled and pressed her advantage. You already found the information. You just want to watch me interrogate this assassin, so you said that, right?
"No. I haven't found anything yet, but I've prepared plenty of interrogation methods. He'll definitely talk. Otherwise, he can enjoy the pain of bamboo skewers being driven beneath his fingernails."
He was still being stubborn. Vulpisfoglia pursed her lips. While marveling at Su Rui's expertise in torture, she thought of another way to work around him.
How about this? You try investigating the information online, and I'll interrogate him using the methods you give me.
Su Rui would probably provide many torture and interrogation methods at once, as usual. She only needed to pick the less severe ones. Once Su Rui found the information, they could stop.
"You actually just want to stall for time, don't you?"
Su Rui's question left Vulpisfoglia speechless. Only then did she realize that they had become so familiar with each other that they barely needed to communicate to know what the other was thinking.
However, just as Vulpisfoglia smiled awkwardly, Su Rui took a step back instead.
"Fine. I really have found the information, and I can give it to you directly. But you still haven't given me the reward you promised."
You mean... letting you direct me while I play games? Can we do that when I'm free later? This is urgent right now.
Vulpisfoglia would not, and did not intend to, break her word. However, this concerned the family's reputation, so she truly needed to act quickly.
"No. I'm already compiling the information and printing it out. Have that writer start drafting his article now, then play games for me to watch."
As Su Rui spoke, several words appeared marked in Vulpisfoglia's field of vision.
Fine.
Unable to refuse Su Rui, Vulpisfoglia nodded. Since Su Rui had already prepared everything, it probably would not matter if she appeared a little unprofessional.
Thus, after glancing at the assassin sprawled limply on the sofa like a dead fish, Vulpisfoglia walked over to the down-and-out man on the other side, who sat obediently and fearfully on the sofa beside a suitcase full of money.
"You should already know my plan, right?"
Vulpisfoglia looked into the down-and-out man's eyes. "I've investigated that family. You're going to write another article and restore justice to the Venice Family."
Volume One: 20 Ways to Kill Time
While making threats, Vulpisfoglia also understood the importance of offering benefits.
Seeing the down-and-out man nod frantically, Vulpisfoglia continued.
"As long as you write this article well, the payment those assassins never intended to give you will all be yours. The Venice Family will also guarantee your safety."
As she spoke, Vulpisfoglia picked up the suitcase beside the down-and-out man, opened it, and placed it before him.
The neatly stacked high-denomination bills inside immediately drew his gaze. He could not help staring at them intently.
Then Vulpisfoglia closed the suitcase again, and the down-and-out man's gaze returned to her.
"Those assassins never intended to pay you, but as long as you perform well, all of this will be yours. The Venice Family lacks no wealth, so we will not be stingy with your reward. Understand?"
"I understand, I understand. Don't worry, I'll definitely write a good article to clear the Venice Family's name."
The down-and-out man nodded frantically, like a chick pecking at grain.
Satisfied with his reaction, Vulpisfoglia turned to the young driver.
"Go get him paper and a pen. Have him write it here."
"Alright, I'll be right back, Miss Vulpisfoglia."
The young driver nodded, then found paper and a pen in the office and placed them before the down-and-out man, watching as he began to write.
Vulpisfoglia sat in the comfortable chair behind her desk, while the young driver stood at her side, awaiting her instructions.
Su Rui sounded somewhat regretful. "I thought you'd at least keep some of it. That's a lot of money."
Are you that short on money? You don't even have a physical form.
Vulpisfoglia could not help smiling. As she chatted with Su Rui, she turned on her computer and began installing the game according to his instructions.
"I don't need money right now, but that doesn't stop me from liking wealth. I want every treasure."
You really are greedy. Vulpisfoglia had no particular opinion about Su Rui's willful words. She merely found him childish and adorable, like a little boy.
"Alright, you're downloading it too slowly. Watch me."
Vulpisfoglia's computer connection was not slow, but no game with rich content could possibly finish downloading in half an hour.
So Su Rui directly deleted the download process from Vulpisfoglia's computer and displayed the game's icon on the desktop.
"I put everything on the D drive, so it won't affect the system. Alright, let's begin. We'll play that adventure game first."
I heard this game is difficult. There are traps everywhere?
Even though Vulpisfoglia did not play games often, she still knew about certain especially famous games.
"Yeah. You're an assassin, so don't get taken out by the traps in a game."
I won't let you laugh at me.
Vulpisfoglia smiled, opened the game, and entered the class selection screen.
"The classes in this game don't differ much. In the end, everyone just uses weapons to chop people up. But if you like magic, you can pick the mage."
Su Rui reminded Vulpisfoglia in her mind. She smiled and chose the rogue.
I'll choose the class that suits me better.
"Assassins and rogues are somewhat alike... but the characters in this game aren't as agile as you, and they don't have knees."
Su Rui's remark made Vulpisfoglia pause. However, she quickly smiled and put the matter aside.
It's fine. This is only a game. Even if I can't perfectly replicate my own movements, I won't fail that easily.
Vulpisfoglia was indeed right. Even with only a small knife in hand, her control over distance was perfect.
Attacks that Su Rui thought would definitely hit Vulpisfoglia all missed, while many attacks from Vulpisfoglia's knife-wielding character that Su Rui expected to miss landed cleanly.
"Who knew being an assassin could improve your gaming skills?"
I wouldn't recommend using that method to improve your gaming skills. If you like games, just play more.
Vulpisfoglia could not help being amused by Su Rui's simple, straightforward logic. Being an assassin was entirely different from killing people in a game.
"You're right, but Arknights is a game developed by Hypergryph..."
Su Rui was saying incomprehensible nonsense again. Vulpisfoglia did not pay attention and continued progressing through the game.
The characters in the game moved sluggishly. Compared to the highly trained Vulpisfoglia, they were practically disabled.
Still, considering that it was only a game and had to account for gameplay and difficulty, it was a fairly reasonable setup.
Without complaining about the characters' performance, Vulpisfoglia continued playing and avoided many traps through her own experience.
Assassin training really was useful for this type of game. At the very least, Vulpisfoglia could use her judgment to identify and avoid places likely to contain ambushes and traps. Adjusting the camera angle was just somewhat troublesome.
Meanwhile, the young driver simply watched her superior operating a computer in such a serious situation.
If she could not see the screen, she would probably think that the stern-faced Miss Vulpisfoglia was diligently handling work.
But the young driver could see Vulpisfoglia's computer screen and knew that, at such a critical moment for the family, Miss Vulpisfoglia was actually playing a game.
Although she knew that Miss Vulpisfoglia did not need to intervene now, since they had obtained information on the hostile family without even interrogating anyone.
Still, was playing games in this situation really appropriate?
The young driver really wanted to remind her superior, but after thinking it over, she ultimately gave up.
Since the matter was nearly resolved, all they could do now was wait. As for Miss Vulpisfoglia playing games... as long as no one found out, it should be fine, right?
With that thought, the young driver stood at Vulpisfoglia's side. Part of her attention was drawn to the game on Vulpisfoglia's computer screen, while the rest remained fixed on the door, afraid someone would burst in and discover Vulpisfoglia's idleness.
If someone comes, I'll block them and give Miss Vulpisfoglia time to react.
The young driver silently encouraged herself.
However, the anticipated unwelcome guest never arrived. Instead, the writer sitting on the sofa suddenly cried out in delight.
"I'm done! I'm done! This article will definitely receive great praise!"
Then the down-and-out man noticed just how abrupt his behavior had been. Under Vulpisfoglia and the young driver's gazes, he smiled awkwardly and sat back down. "Um, my article is finished."
"Mm. Let me see it."
Vulpisfoglia glanced at the character who had been instantly killed by the boss because of the mistake caused by the down-and-out man's sudden outburst, then nodded expressionlessly.
Volume One: Vulpisfoglia's Plan
The young driver glanced at expressionless Vulpisfoglia and could not help shivering.
While silently blaming the down-and-out man for making such a fuss, the young driver hurried forward, walking as lightly as possible. She took the manuscript from him and placed it before Vulpisfoglia.
"..."
Vulpisfoglia lowered her head to read the manuscript. After giving it a rough scan, she felt that there were no problems and asked Su Rui for his opinion in her mind.
What do you think of this article?
"Average, but it's more than enough as a retaliatory report."
Average? I thought you'd give it a better evaluation.
Vulpisfoglia could not help looking over the manuscript in her hand again. While it was not particularly stunning, the prose, word choice, and portrayal of detailed emotions were all quite good.
"Because I'm not an author. How would I know?"
Su Rui was probably rolling his eyes in her mind again, wasn't he?
Before you continue