American variety show: Sniper Elite

Chapter 164 A Small Collaboration and a Big Unexpected Turn of Events

Beta's gaze fell on the envelope, looking at the conspicuous emblem, and he raised an eyebrow: "Spectre? The legendary shadow government? A secret organization secretly controlled by the British Royal Family, aiming to manipulate British politics outside the constitutional framework?"

Manager Charles bowed slightly, an admiring look on his face: "Your insight is admirable; you seem to know our situation very well."

Beta smiled. "That's not surprising. After all, Your Majesty the Queen sits in the elders' seats of the High Table. As insiders, it's necessary to know this."

Charles bowed slightly again.

Beta turned his gaze to the female team leader named Meva Lake: "Have we met somewhere before?"

Medvedeva looked at Beta.

The dashing, piercing young man before her was her long-time target, the professional assassin codenamed β. Behind the Downing Street shooting, the Elliott murder, the assassinations of American politicians, and many other shocking cases worldwide, lay this seemingly handsome young man.

Her fingers gripped the document tightly.

Beta slowly lifted his gaze from the document and placed it on Charles.

Charles immediately understood, and with a slightly apologetic gesture, he took Medvedeva's wrist and gave it a gentle squeeze. Medvedeva turned to look at Charles, and at his prompting glance, took a deep breath, composed herself, and stepped forward to gently place the documents on the desk.

“Mr. Salon Wick,” Medvedeva’s voice regained its composure, “we are here on the orders of the party leader to present you with this gift.”

Beta didn't respond immediately, but glanced at Weston. Weston understood, stepped forward, opened the document, carefully examined it, and presented it to Beta.

This is a top-secret MI6 file—regarding the withdrawal of the global arrest warrant for the assassin codenamed "β," and the investigation report on the assassination attempt on an American politician outside a hospital.

More importantly, the document details the entire operation: how to replace β's identity with "Jackal" to completely whitewash Beta's past.

It turns out that his change of identity was not a coincidence, but the result of a careful plan by the Spectre Party.

"Ha." Beta chuckled. "How did you know in advance that I would return to the family? When this whitewashing plan was being executed, I hadn't even decided to come back yet."

His tone was playful: "Are you offering me a gift through 'coincidence'?"

Charles smiled slightly, his posture respectful yet composed: "People within the party are always good at observing the situation, so they paved the way for you in advance. This is not only to clear your identity, but also to express our goodwill to Lady Gianna."

Beta slowly closed the file, tapping his fingers lightly on the cover twice. "I accept this gift. So, what does Spectre need me to do?"

Charles bowed slightly, a polite smile on his face: "Rather than asking you to do anything, we hope to achieve a deeper cooperation with you."

Charles leaned forward slightly, his tone cautiously probing: "We need to move Scotland Yard's Chief Superintendent Doyle to make room for my fiancée's promotion. I wonder if your team could orchestrate a public safety incident to embroil the Chief Superintendent in a political scandal?"

Beta tapped the handrail lightly with his fingertips, a hint of amusement flashing in his eyes: "For this level of operation, wouldn't it be simpler to contact the IRA? Just plant a bomb in any subway station, and the problem would be solved."

Charles smiled and said, “Mr. Wick, establishing a cooperative relationship requires a gradual approach. If you make a major request right away, given your cautious nature, you certainly won’t agree to it easily.”

He paused briefly: "What we value more is gradually cultivating mutual understanding and trust through these kinds of 'small things.' After all, even the strongest alliances start with small collaborations like this, don't they?"

Beta nodded slightly: "I agree with that. The more 'bad things' both parties do together, the stronger the relationship becomes. After all, if you hold each other's little secrets, neither of you will dare to betray the other easily. I like your philosophy."

Charles smiled upon hearing this, while Medvedeva beside him kept a tense expression and her eyes darted around.

Beta turned his gaze to her: "I heard that MI6 has been investigating the identity of that assassin I am. That person is you, isn't it?"

Charles looked at Meva. She took a deep breath and looked directly into Beta's eyes: "Yes, Mr. Wick."

“I see.” Beta nodded thoughtfully. “I have a small suggestion.” “Please speak, Mr. Wick.” Meva’s voice was slightly stiff.

Beta said, "Since you've decided to participate in this game, put aside those pointless notions of right and wrong. Here, right and wrong are never absolute; it only depends on who is standing and who is lying on the ground."

Medvedeva nodded in response: "Thank you for your suggestion, Mr. Wick."

Beta made an apologetic gesture: "Look at me, I've talked too much."

Charles aptly smoothed things over, saying, "These are things Medvedeva needs to learn. She hasn't been with us long and is still adapting to the rules of the game in this circle."

Beta stood up and nodded slightly to Charles: "It's a pleasure working with you."

Charles immediately extended his hand: "It's a pleasure doing business with you, Mr. Wick."

When their hands clasped together, Beta's gaze turned to Medvedeva.

Surprisingly, the female agent took the initiative to extend her hand.

Beta gently grasped her fingertips, a faint smile playing on his lips: "Welcome to the second layer of this world. Here, the shadow government controls the political situation, mafia families are deeply entrenched, assassin organizations are spread across the globe, politicians are shrewd and calculating, and businessmen are driven by profit. But there are no good people here, so please don't be a good person, okay?"

Medvedeva's eyelashes fluttered slightly: "Thank you for your suggestion, Mr. Wick."

Just as she was about to pull her hand away, Beta suddenly tightened his grip: "You applied a special coating to your hand to shake mine, were you trying to extract my fingerprints?"

Upon hearing this, Charles's expression changed drastically, and he grabbed Medvedeva's hand.

Sure enough, a thin, almost transparent film could be seen on her fingertips. This was a fingerprint extraction coating specially made by MI6, so thin that it almost blended into the skin and was undetectable to ordinary people.

"Are you crazy?" Charles spat out the words through gritted teeth, his face horribly grim.

Medvedeva lowered her head in silence, her knuckles turning white from the pressure.

“No need to be nervous.” Beta chuckled and adjusted her cuffs. “Her sense of justice is still at play, and she can’t ignore the professional assassin who once humiliated the British government.”

"What does she want to do?" Beta's tone remained calm: "Leave my fingerprints, make a file on me? And then hope to one day arrest me?"

Charles immediately turned to Beta: "Mr. Wick, I assure you..."

“No need to explain.” Beta raised her hand to interrupt, “This is your family matter. However…”

He looked Medvedeva up and down with great interest: "Do you know how you were exposed?"

Medvedeva looked at Beta.

Beta said, "How could someone who still holds onto justice in their heart possibly shake hands with someone as 'notorious' as me?"

Beta's gaze returned to Charles: "Our cooperation remains valid. When would you like this 'public safety incident' to take place?"

Charles took a deep breath, forcing himself to recover from his earlier lapse in composure: "We hope to finish this by the end of the month."

"A very reasonable timing. Let an empty double-decker bus explode on London Bridge, preferably in a location with a direct view of MI6 headquarters. What do you think of this plan?"

Charles quickly nodded in approval: "This location is perfect; it's eye-catching enough without causing any actual casualties. It perfectly meets our needs."

(End of this chapter)