Devouring World Dragon

Chapter 199 Attack!

Boston, Wendy's home.

The living room was quiet. Roberts and his daughter Joan sat facing each other on two sofas, separated by a coffee table, and neither of them spoke.

Joan sat on the sofa, head down, unconsciously swinging her legs. Her smoky makeup had been wiped off, and she had changed from her hippie-style clothes into more conventional everyday attire. Opposite her, Roberts stared at his daughter with a gloomy expression.

In the kitchen not far away, Wendy was washing dishes, but her ears were already perked up, listening intently to what was happening in the living room.

Looking at Joan, who seemed somewhat fearful, Roberts understood that his daughter was afraid of him, which made him feel a little disappointed. No father wants to see his child fear him rather than love him, but some things still have to be faced.

Roberts took a deep breath to compose himself, then spoke in a low voice.

“I understand. You were born in America and have lived here all your life, so your personality might be similar to Americans in many ways… But no matter how Americans raise their children, you are my daughter, an Englishwoman, and your great-grandfather was a knighted by the Queen. Our family has been gentlemen for generations, and in an English family, such frivolity is absolutely unacceptable, especially…”

As he got angry, Roberts unconsciously became a little impatient, but he quickly realized this, tried to suppress it, and then said through gritted teeth.

"Why bother forming a gang?"

Roberts had witnessed too much gang warfare. Perhaps some young people admired these things, but Roberts was not interested at all. He also did not want his daughter to be involved in his life of life and death. He just wanted her to be an ordinary girl, go to school, grow up, get married, have children... and quietly live out her life.

That's why Roberts is extremely sensitive about his daughter forming a joke gang.

Her daughter looked obediently with her head down, which gave Roberts some comfort amidst her anger—at least it wasn't beyond repair. But the next moment, that comfort was torn to shreds by her rage.

"It's just hanging out with a few friends, what's the big deal... old-fashioned."

Just then, Roberts heard his daughter muttering and complaining.

"How dare you talk back!"

Roberts was furious. He stood up and his face showed his usual coldness, but he realized his mistake the next moment. His expression was good at intimidating enemies and gangsters, but he shouldn't do that to his daughter.

Unexpectedly, Joan, who had been quietly keeping her head down, suddenly raised her head, her azure eyes looking fearlessly at Roberts in front of her, and spoke loudly.

"You've hardly ever come back to see me since I was a child, only once a year. You've never cared about me, so what right do you have to tell me what to do now!"

"you……"

Roberts reached out his hand, but the words wouldn't come out.

...You've never cared about me before, so what right do you have to tell me what to do now!
These words were like a knife to Roberts' heart, causing his long-suppressed guilt and confusion to erupt instantly. Although neither Joan nor Wendy had ever said this before, he knew that he was not a good father.

But Joan didn't notice her father's complicated expression. In a fit of pique, she ran to the door and slammed it shut as she left.

Only after Joan left did Roberts plop down on the sofa and fall silent. At this moment, Wendy, who had been listening to everything in the kitchen, came out with a cup of tea in her hand.

"Would you like afternoon tea, sir?"

Wendy seemed surprisingly quiet and showed no surprise at Joan's departure.

"You should know about the things Joan did at school."

Roberts took the tea and said without looking up.

Wendy chose a suitable spot, then sat upright on the sofa, holding a cup of tea in one hand, taking a small sip, and then looking up at Roberts in front of her with a smile on her lips.

“Joan has always lived with me, so of course I know.”

Roberts didn't speak, knowing Wendy would have her own explanation, and sure enough, Wendy continued.

"Actually, I don't think it's anything serious. Joan just feels lonely and bored. She was very timid and shy when she was little. She would often hide behind me when she saw people. Even when you saw her a couple of years ago, she was still like that. Although I was there, she wasn't bullied much, but ultimately she didn't have any friends..."

Holding the tea leaves and gazing at the shimmering liquid, Wendy seemed to recall those bygone days and couldn't help but smile.

"She only started to improve after she entered high school. Because she was very physically fit, she won many championships and joined some baseball and other enthusiast groups. As a result, many of her peers started to admire her, and she gradually became more outgoing. As you just saw, some girls even called her the leader."

As she spoke, Wendy covered her mouth and laughed. She put down her teacup, looked up at Roberts, and said.

"In the end, it's just kids playing around, why do you take it so seriously?"

Roberts lowered his head, remained silent for a moment, and then murmured.

"I just don't want her to go down the same path as me."

Because he was involved, Roberts understood what kind of path this was, so he couldn't tolerate any sign of his daughter's involvement.

Upon hearing this, Wendy couldn't help but shake her head.

"You're being far too sensitive..."

After saying that, she lowered her head, gently swirled her teacup, and then spoke meaningfully.

"Besides... is it really possible to completely break free?"

Roberts understood Wendy's point: could people like them really keep their children completely isolated from their own world?
Roberts fell silent.

He stared at the rim of the teacup, and suddenly his eyes narrowed slightly, as if he had sensed something amiss. But he didn't show anything unusual on his face; he simply looked up at Wendy calmly and said...

"Wendy, could you go and see where Joan went? I'm a little worried about her."

Wendy looked up at him, first with some confusion, then, after observing his expression, she nodded and said, "Okay, I'll go now."

As Wendy was about to leave, Roberts suddenly called out to her.

"and many more!"

Then Wendy turned around in confusion, and before she could react, Roberts had already stepped forward and hugged her, then whispered in her ear.

"I'm so sorry to have troubled you to take care of Qiong for me all these years..."

Wendy seemed to be moved as well, her eyes welling up with tears, and she bit her lip and nodded.

Then Wendy left too, leaving Roberts all alone in the villa. He sat back down on the sofa, quietly sipping his tea, waiting for the two to return...

On the street, Wendy was carrying a woman's handbag. She passed an ice cream shop and, as if she had thought of something, went inside. All of this was seen by a pair of eyes in the shadows.

Looking at the surveillance camera somewhere, a man raised his walkie-talkie and spoke.

"Target B has entered XX ice cream shop. Requesting on-site personnel to investigate. Repeat, Target B has entered XX ice cream shop. Requesting on-site personnel to investigate..."

He received a response not long after.

"...The target was not found inside the XX ice cream shop. The target has been lost. To repeat, the target was not found inside the XX ice cream shop. The target has been lost..."

The man was stunned. How could he have lost her? The ice cream shop was so small, where could she have gone?
But misfortunes never come singly, and another response followed immediately.

"Target A went to the restroom after having tea, but there's been no movement for 15 minutes now, and we suspect we've been exposed..."

Silently listening to the messages, the man's face darkened, and he threw the walkie-talkie in his hand to the ground.

"FUCK! FUCKYOU!"

……

Meanwhile, on a street not far from the ice cream shop, a woman wearing sunglasses hurried past in the crowd. She could still feel the touch of the symbols that Roberts had faintly written on her back with his fingers when he was holding her.

Those were secret communication symbols that only they could understand.

"We are being monitored."

……

"Old-fashioned! Barbaric! Scoundrel! Bad guy..."

On the street, a pretty redhead was walking along, kicking an empty beverage can while muttering something indignantly. The poor can was being kicked around by her. Passersby frowned and tried to stop her, but she glared at them fiercely, making them shut their mouths and forcing them to slink away.

After her anger subsided, the girl leaned against a wall and silently watched the passersby.

Sometimes when she sees children being led by their parents, she will silently watch them, then flick her long hair and turn her head away, trying to stop herself from looking. After all, after watching for a while, it's just like that... isn't it?

Okay, she is indeed envious, so what?

Although Wendy is very good to her, if she has never seen her parents since she can remember, and the only "father" who is still alive is only seen once a year, she will feel timid no matter what.

When Joan was very young, she would have a recurring nightmare in which even Wendy didn't want her anymore, and no one wanted her anymore. She would cry and shout, but she couldn't call them back. Whenever she had this dream, she would wake up in fright and hide under the covers, sobbing and crying alone.

Even after she grew up and gradually stopped having those dreams, the fear of being abandoned stayed with her for a very long time...

A sense of loss inexplicably welled up inside me.

For some reason, she thought of the complex and indescribable expression on Roberts' face before she slammed the door and left. At the time, she was only focused on being angry and didn't observe carefully. Now, thinking back, it seemed that Roberts was also very sad.

She's not stupid. As a child, she might not have understood why "Dad didn't come back," but after living together for so many years, she could vaguely guess that the complicated relationship between Wendy and Roberts was definitely not just that of "good friends," and that they might even have some special identities...

Sometimes she would fantasize, wondering if her father was some kind of secret agent? Or an international thief? Or perhaps Batman, who transforms into a vigilante at night? And that's why, for various reasons, he couldn't go home?
However, she has stopped having such fantasies. How could that be possible? Do you think this is a movie?
When she recalled Roberts's complex and indescribable expression, a deep sense of vengeful pleasure welled up inside her, but at the same time, there was also some pity and reluctance. She understood that her father had his own difficulties, and she didn't really want to see Roberts show that sad expression...

No, no, no! He's a terrible villain! Worse than Hydra, he doesn't deserve any sympathy!

Realizing the pity in her heart, the girl quickly shook her head, slapped her face, and took a deep breath, trying to shake off the pity. She didn't want to pity that guy at all; he deserved it no matter what.

Just then, the sound of a motorcycle speeding past her suddenly rang out. The sound was so loud that it couldn't be drowned out by the noise of the crowd.

She turned her head in confusion, only to see a strong arm forcefully pull her onto the motorcycle beside her. At the same time, gunshots rang out.

"Da da da!"

"Ah ah ah ah ah ah ah……"

Behind her were screams and panicked fleeing. Before Joan could react and was instinctively trying to resist, the owner of the hand that was holding her, wearing a driving helmet, suddenly uttered a familiar voice.

"Quick! Hold on tight!"

That anxious voice...

Joan couldn't help but look up. Those sharp eyes and stubble-faced features—wasn't that her father? At the same time, the sound of police sirens blared behind her. Joan, whose mind was still in complete disarray, managed to vaguely sense something from the tangled mess of thoughts...

It seems like I'm being hunted along with my father, whom I only see once a year?!
(End of this chapter)