“Reuben, please take Roy home."

"Understood, ma'am."

And just like that, the Jenkins family's matchmaking attempt came to an end.

Maria and Anthony shared a knowing glance and made their way back to Lemna Yard.

In Broome, at Association of Healthcare Professionals.

Mr. Barnes sat in his office, housed in the grand three-story Les Loges Du Park Hotel.

Mr. Barnes was deep in thought, mulling over recent happenings at the Jenkins family's residence. Maria and Anthony! And their knowledge about the acupuncture therapies of hiding one's true strength!

Under Mr. Barnes' guidance, the Barnes family had climbed the social ladder in the world of martial arts, moving from lower-middle-class to upper-middle-class.

However, Mr. Barnes's ambitions extended further. He wanted to take the Barnes family to the very top of the martial arts world.

But now, Maria and Anthony were complicating things for him.

He wondered how Maria, that little girl from two decades ago, had managed to survive with that weak heart, prompting him to carry out his failed schemes of performing medical experiments on her after rendering her helpless under the shackles of the forced marriage with Roy.

And what secrets was Anthony, having proved to be a genius in the martial arts world, hiding?

Anthony and Maria's relationship added to his worries.

If Maria and Anthony teamed up and uncovered the truth about the operation he had adopted on Maria, they might seek revenge against him.

Mr. Barnes felt a pressing need to sort out these issues quickly.

But involving his family directly would leave evidence, violating the pact among Highwyn's major families to avoid internal strife and weakening.

Luckily, Mr. Barnes had contacts beyond Highwyn. He had secretly been dealing with a foreign power for years, helping the family grow and securing funds.

This was against the martial arts world's traditions, but the foreign power had a solid reputation and had never double-crossed him. So, they still did private and secure deals from time to time.

After a long pause, Mr. Barnes finally picked up the phone and dialed.

“Hello, Mr. Octavian? I need your help with something, " he said, reaching out to Octavian, a familiar contact.

In recent days, Octavian was plagued by a deep sense of anxiety and uncertainty.

His decision to send Lilliana to the Pill Alchemist Association had backfired. Lilliana had mysteriously disappeared. He was left to grapple with two unsettling possibilities: either Lilliana had defected or she had been arrested due to exposed identity.

Meanwhile, his plan involving Joelle to poison Michael had achieved only a partial victory. Joelle had managed to poison Michael, but the outcome was far from what he had hoped.

The poison, designed to be lethal yet undetectable, proved to be weaker than expected. Michael survived, much to Octavian's dismay. He had banked on this plan to create discord within the Wilson family, anticipating a feud between Anthony and Raymond. However, the anticipated internal strife never materialized.