As the conversation reached this point, Elias Hawthorne looked down at the amulet he had been tightly holding in his hand. His fingers loosened, and the bell hanging from it chimed softly in the air. He couldn’t help but let out a silent laugh, "This bell was made by my mother. She always said ’bell, bell, happiness and peace,’ hoping this bell and amulet could protect me for a lifetime." He always kept the amulet close, and since the bell’s sound was pleasant but not noisy, he would often take it out to play with when he felt troubled. He never thought that this bell would become the key to him showing a flaw. Ann Vaughn looked at the softened look in his eyes when he mentioned his mother, finding it difficult to associate him with the kidnapper who had injected her with a virus. But what’s done is done. No matter what the reasons were, they couldn’t justify his actions of harming others. She gently shook her head, said no more, and turned to leave. Just as the door was about to close completely, a dull thud suddenly came from inside the room. Ann Vaughn glanced back inadvertently and saw Elias Hawthorne, who had been standing there moments ago, now on the ground, clutching his head, his whole body twitching violently... Then he fell completely silent. The hidden guard stationed outside also noticed Elias’s abnormal state and blocked Ann Vaughn as she prepared to enter, stepping forward first to check on him. Before long, the guard lifted his head with a grave expression and said to the stunned Ann Vaughn, "Miss Vaughn, he’s not breathing." Ann Vaughn’s pupils contracted, how could it be?! Check latest chapters at novel-fire.ɴet She immediately stepped forward, held Elias’s wrist, and checked his pulse. After a moment, Ann Vaughn’s expression changed abruptly. She pulled out a golden needle from her sleeve and quickly pierced behind Elias’s ear, applying pressure— As blood spurted from behind his ear, it carried out a cluster of slightly writhing golden thread worms. The hidden guards standing by, despite their strong mental fortitude, couldn’t help but feel disgusted by this thing. "Miss Vaughn, what is this?" "Golden Thread Twin Worms." Ann Vaughn flipped her wrist, and the golden needle flew out, piercing the worm in the middle, pinning it to the floor, "Once the master worm dies, the person implanted with the slave worm will also be affected, dying immediately." On the contrary, if the slave worm dies, the master worm won’t be affected at all. This type of worm rarely activates. Once activated, either the person dies, or the worm perishes... If discovered earlier, Elias might have been saved. But now, it’s too late. Elias Hawthorne died on this dreary, rainy spring day when everything was revived. Throughout the entire Hawthorne Family, aside from Cyrus Hawthorne and Ann Vaughn, not even his biological father, Harold Hawthorne, knew of his existence. Ann Vaughn had attempted to contact Harold Hawthorne, to inform him of the matter, only to receive a response completely contrary to what she had expected— "What does that bastard child from that slut and her lover have to do with me? You’d be better off taking pity on me and sending me some money to get by, life’s been tough lately..." Harold Hawthorne’s cruel and unabashed words had barely entered her ears before Ann Vaughn couldn’t listen anymore and hung up the phone. If Elias were not of the Hawthorne bloodline, Cyrus Hawthorne would never have acknowledged his identity or arranged for him to work in the Hawthorne Corp.’s subsidiary. His attitude already explained everything. But regardless, it’s certain Harold Hawthorne had no intention to acknowledge this son. After multiple attempts, Ann Vaughn finally got in touch with Elias’s maternal family, but the moment they heard Elias and his mother’s names, they started swearing. "She chose her husband herself, the path too was hers. She squandered a good hand and dragged the whole family down with her. Whose fault is that? Harold, that bastard?!" "Whether it’s her or her son, whether they live or die has nothing to do with us!" With that said, the other party hung up with a "slam." Ann Vaughn was momentarily stunned by their yelling, taking quite a while to come back to her senses. So, Elias wasn’t raised by his maternal family... That should be expected. With the level of animosity they held against his mother and him, not stepping on them would already be good enough, let alone rearing Elias? Ann Vaughn had heard a bit about it. It’s said that Harold Hawthorne smashed his wife’s family’s business, leading Elias’s mother to refuse to assist him further. Unwilling to accept it, and unable to stand Elias’s mother, a woman, being superior, Harold plotted to force her to leave empty-handed with accusations of infidelity... Amid Ann Vaughn’s dilemma, unsure of how to handle Elias’s funeral arrangements, representatives from Elias’s maternal family arrived. It was Elias’s aunt who came, her attitude cold, as if she were picking up a mere object, expressing a desire to take Elias back to their homeland. "Make it quick if you can. I have an important party to return to tomorrow." Even understanding the tenuous relationship between them and Elias’s mother and Elias, it was already a stretch for them to even show up. Still, upon hearing this, Ann Vaughn felt a chill for Elias. No one among his living relatives loved him. No wonder Elias hadn’t sought her help despite countless opportunities. Even his final words were a confession to her... Ann Vaughn recalled those pale blue eyes that seemed to speak. The initial hatred she had felt upon discovering the truth had unconsciously faded away. After sending off Elias’s aunt and his remains, Ann Vaughn returned to the research institute and shared everything with Cyrus Hawthorne. He was still unconscious, his handsome face pale, lips lightly colored, yet it did nothing to diminish the charisma emanating from his very being. Ann Vaughn reached out and poked his face, and as she spoke, her voice began to choke up: "Before entering that room, I had a creeping feeling that if I went in something bad was going to happen, but I still went in." "If I hadn’t gone to see him, hadn’t spoken with him, would he not have died?" "When Elias was alive, I hated him for aiding the evildoer, almost costing you your life, wanting him to face consequences... But now that he’s dead, I can’t bring myself to hate him at all." Anyone would feel awful seeing a living person die right before their eyes. Moreover, although Ann Vaughn had resented Elias, she had never wished for his death. Ann Vaughn sniffled, pressed Cyrus Hawthorne’s cool palm to her cheek, and softly said: "Hurry and wake up, I miss you so much." Even though she could see him every day, feel his warmth, aware of his continued existence, for Ann Vaughn, it wasn’t nearly enough. She was scared, scared he would never wake up. Even more fearful of never seeing the archfiend’s raised brow and subtle smile, his dark wit, and sharp tongue.