Chapter 4: Is this man a devil?

Wesley Lu snapped back to reality and began rummaging through the car.
When he opened a strawberry-patterned box in the backseat and slowly unveiled its contents, there were several strawberry-flavored lollipops inside.
"Found it..." Wesley's voice was filled with joy.
He emerged from the car, holding the box in his hand.
Hardys and his team's eyes lit up, but their excitement turned to confusion when Wesley opened the box to reveal just a bunch of lollipops, not the item they were seeking.
"When did you start eating these kinds of lollipops?" one of them asked, bemused.
Wesley ignored them, his gaze fixed on Ethel Su with an expectant look.
Ethel, puzzled but intimidated, responded, "When I was very young."
This old-fashioned strawberry-flavored lollipop was hard to find now; she had got them through a special request.
"Found it, found it..." Wesley repeated, ecstatic.
Hardys and the others exchanged bewildered looks.
"What are you up to? We're after..." Shadow began to speak in annoyance but was cut off abruptly as a knife pierced his throat. Sickle tried to react but found himself similarly silenced by a knife to the throat.
Hardys and Awn were shocked, holding up their guns in defense, but Wesley was quicker.
Four flashes of cold light tore through the darkness.
Hardys and Awn cried out in pain as their gun-holding hands were impaled by throwing knives, causing their weapons to drop helplessly to the ground.
Awn tried to say something but fell backward, a knife piercing his throat.
Hardys, bleeding heavily from a gash on his neck, backed away in panic. He had narrowly avoided a fatal blow by ducking.
"Dragon, are you betraying the organization?" Hardys gasped.
"Yes," Wesley replied with a cold smile.
"For her?"
Hardys wasn't stupid; Wesley had started his onslaught after questioning Ethel.
"Yes."
"What is your relationship with her?"
"She saved my life."
Hardys watched him warily, "You realize the organization won't let you off for killing us."
"That's my concern, not something a dying man should worry about," Wesley said, putting away his throwing knife. "You always said without my knife, I'm nothing, right?"
As he spoke, Wesley charged.
Hardys's eyes lit up, thinking he had a chance without Wesley's knife. He threw a powerful punch, but Wesley countered with equal force.
"Bang!" Their fists collided with a thunderous sound.
Hardys screamed as his hand shattered, bones protruding.
Wesley followed up with a punch to the chest.
"Bang!"
Hardys's chest caved in, and he flew backward, lifeless.
Wesley scoffed, "Forgot to tell you, I'm actually SSSS-class, but you were never worthy to know... In front of me, you're all lesser."
Ethel watched in horror as Wesley pulled his knives from the bodies and cleaned them on their clothes. She was both scared and confused, not understanding why he called her his lifesaver.
Wesley gathered his knives and turned to Ethel, who stumbled back against the car in fear.
"You, don't come any closer, I can give you money, lots of money."
Wesley looked at her amusingly, "How much can you give me?"
"As much as you want," Ethel grasped at hope.
Wesley sized her up, "You look wealthy, but why would I want money? If I marry you, isn't it better to have both you and your wealth?"
Ethel was stunned. Marry her?
"If I let you go, will you betray me?"
Ethel's eyes lit up, then she shook her head vehemently, "No, I swear..."
Wesley rolled his eyes, "Women's words are unreliable. I've just been deceived by a woman who looked like a harmless rabbit, who freeloaded off me for two months."
Wesley stroked his chin, "You've seen my face. If you betray me, I can't stay in Long Country, but I can't leave either. I have important things to do."
"How about this? I'll take some compromising photos of you. If you dare betray me, I'll leak them."
Ethel was petrified, realizing this man was a devil.
"Can we find another way?"
"If you leak the photos, both you and the Su Group are finished."
"Another way? Let me think." Wesley pondered, then brightened, "How about this? Announce I'm your boyfriend, and I'll stay with you as your bodyguard. If you betray me, I'll kill you and your family."
Ethel's face was a picture of shock. How could she keep such a murderer close?
"We've decided then."
Wesley approached, taking out his phone, "Come, smile for the camera."
Ethel watched blankly, not understanding.
"Kiss me. We're boyfriend and girlfriend now, right? We need some intimate photos. The bed photos can wait; let's start with some simple ones."
Seeing Ethel's inaction, Wesley took the lead, choosing angles that avoided the bodies, and took several intimate photos.
"Your phone? Let's exchange contacts. I'll send you the photos; make sure to save them, maybe even set them as your screensaver."
Ethel was dumbfounded, surrounded by corpses and a murderous demon.
Wesley found her phone himself and added his contact.
"What's your name?"
"Ethel Su," she replied in a daze.
"Height, job, family members?"
"I'm 168 cm tall..."
"You're 168 cm? Lying about your height, aren't you?"
Ethel was angered but didn't dare show it, "I really am 168 cm tall, CEO of the Su Group..."
"Wait, you're the CEO of the Su Group? A family business?"
"Yes, a family business."
"Go on."
After she finished, Wesley noted it all down, then said, "Now you should know about your boyfriend. I'm Wesley Lu, an orphan, currently a minor employee at Tianci Group. No, that's not fitting. I should be a CEO too."
Ethel glanced up, then quickly looked away.
"Actually, I'm 184 cm tall with shoes on," Wesley added.
"Enough about the details. Remember everything I said..."
Wesley repeated his fabricated identity, "Got it?"
Ethel nodded slightly.
"Don't look so aggrieved. The one who should be aggrieved is me... You're in danger. They'll send more people after you, but don't worry. Although it's my first time protecting someone, I'll ensure your safety."
Wesley began to clean up the scene.
Ethel watched him, occasionally glancing his way, finally asking, "Why didn't you kill me?"
Wesley, clearing the van, replied without looking up, "Maybe because I'm blinded by lust?"
"You're not a lecherous person."
"Oh?"
Wesley turned, surprised.
"If you were, you wouldn't have stopped them from assaulting me... And I'm defenseless now; you could've done anything, but you didn't."
Wesley's lips curled slightly, "Didn't I say? I want both you and your wealth."
Ethel changed the subject, "You said I saved your life. Have we met before?"
Wesley paused, "Yes, but we were both very young. You were about eight or nine, so you probably don't remember."
Eight or nine?
His earlier question about when she started eating those lollipops meant he saw her eating one when they met, and she saved him.
A long-buried memory resurfaced, and Ethel's eyes brightened, "I remember now! You were the injured boy, covered in blood, unconscious at the store's entrance?"