This time, it was Thora who went quiet. Her expression turned a little strange. After a second, she reached into her jacket pocket, pulled out the candy Shirley had given her, and tossed it to Tristan. He caught it effortlessly, a grin spreading across his face. "Thanks, boss!" Then he turned and walked out without another word. As she watched him leave, Thora felt vaguely puzzled. It wasn't weird for girls to like sweets, but what was with a grown man being so into candy? The next day, as planned, Thora left the base and headed for Skybound Group. Since the company was located in a busy part of the city, she ditched the military vehicle and jogged there instead, treating it as a bit of light training to keep a low profile. What she hadn't expected was to pass through an abandoned area on the outskirts of the city, and catch the distinct scent of gunpowder. Her expression sharpened. Moments later, gunfire rang out. She immediately cut through a side alley and vaulted over a wall, landing silently and precisely on the other side. Up ahead, in front of a high-end, familiar-looking car, two groups were engaged in a full-blown firefight. One group had their faces completely covered, only their eyes visible, clearly the attackers. "Protect the Alpha!" Carl barked, his voice low and commanding. His eyes never left the enemy as he fired round after round from his handgun. "Yes, sir!" Gunshots kept ripping through the air. The attackers were getting frustrated—the car's bulletproof armor was top-tier. No matter how hard they hit it, they couldn't break through.Meanwhile, the defenders had turned the car into a makeshift fortress, using it as cover to hold their position and push back. Inside the car, Darius glanced at his watch, irritation flashing in his eyes. He had a meeting scheduled with Thora today. Of course these people had to pick now to start trouble. In his mind, Lorcan lashed his tail in frustration. "Why won't you let me out? With our power, we could wipe them out in one strike. Total waste of time otherwise." Darius agreed in theory, but kept his cool. He replied through their mind-link, "Not unless we have no other choice. If we reveal our power now, we risk exposure. And if we kill them all, how are we supposed to find out who sent them?" At that moment, Thora finally arrived at the scene. Her brows furrowed as she took in the situation. Darius? Why the hell was he being ambushed out here?Just then, a red laser dot swept across the battlefield, finally locking onto Darius's head inside the car. The second he noticed it, Darius's eyes sharpened. He shifted his body to the side with lightning speed, just as a bullet shattered the window and slammed into his seat, which exploded in a blast of foam and fragments. His eyes instantly locked onto a window in a nearby abandoned building. There—a sniper, perched and steady, held a portable anti-materiel rifle. The tungsten-steel round glinted coldly as it lined up another shot. "Get down!" Two voices shouted at once, Carl and one of the bodyguards both instinctively diving out of the way. Darius shoved the door open and saw Thora sprinting toward him, fast as a bullet. His eyes lit up. "Thora?" But the second sniper shot was already on its way."Watch out!" Darius's eyes narrowed. He lunged toward her, tackling her hard to the side. Boom! The car exploded in a violent blast, tearing a crater into the pavement. Cracks splintered outward in a spiderweb pattern across the ground. Darius immediately looked down at Thora beneath him. "Are you okay?" She'd been headed toward the car to pull him out, only to crash into him right as he opened the door. Now, pinned underneath him, she couldn't even move. Not only had she failed to save him, he'd ended up tackling her like a linebacker. The whole thing was humiliating. Thora frowned in irritation. "Get off me." "I was just worried about you," Darius said, a flicker of amusement in his eyes, but he obediently rolled to the side and added with mock seriousness, "Off. See? Totally off."Thora didn't reply. Instead, without hesitation, she punched him square in the face and stood up. Carl and the others, seeing they were both alive, finally let out a breath and turned their attention back to the attackers. Thora flexed her fingers. A silver pistol was already in her hand. "Carl, draw their fire!" Carl nodded. "Yes, Luna!" He said the title so naturally. Thora went quiet again. Soon enough, all the attackers had shifted their fire toward Carl and his team. Thora moved around to the other side, stretched out her arm, and used a quick visual estimate to gauge the distance. "Eleven hundred feet. It's within range, but wind speed and angle will affect the shot," Darius said, suddenly appearing at her side. Thora shot him a glance, adjusted her aim, raised her pistol, and pulled the trigger.The bullet cut through the air in near silence. A beat passed before the sniper on the far side dropped to the ground. Only then did Thora lower her weapon. "Damn, Thora. That was beautiful." Darius grinned, eyebrows raised as he gave her a slow, silent clap—completely unbothered by the fact that someone had just tried to kill him. Thora felt her chest tighten. She really shouldn't have come to save this guy. The Alpha of Nightclaw Pack should've been more than capable of handling a few assassins on his own. And yet ... even knowing that, she still ran straight into the fight. She joined Carl and the others, every round from her silver pistol glowing faintly with bluish wolf power, each one hitting its mark. The attackers hesitated, suddenly wary. From the shadows, another sniper quietly adjusted their aim, this time targeting Thora.He hadn't missed the moment Darius had thrown himself in front of her earlier, and now he planned to use Thora as bait. Just as he expected, Darius noticed the danger. Without hesitation, he stepped in front of Thora again and said in a low voice, "Watch out!" At that exact moment, the sniper shifted targets and fired. Thora had barely opened her mouth to warn him when there was a sharp thud, and Darius dropped to the ground with a grunt. From his vantage point, the hidden sniper allowed himself a small, satisfied smile. "Darius!" Thora immediately dropped to her knees beside him, checking his wound.