Seeing this, Claire Chapman teased that she had struck it rich.

Marcus Monroe, however, considered the situation before speaking. "From what I know, ever since Nora Lowell met Ms. Lowell and visited the Lowell Family, she’s been putting in a lot of effort. You don’t need me to tell you her goal—it’s obviously to find a powerful backer. But I’ve also heard that while the Lowell Family has acknowledged her as a distant relative, Frederick Lowell isn’t close to her. He seems to be keeping her at arm’s length. Even Ms. Lowell, who was fairly kind to her before, has barely seen her lately. The reason is most likely the conflict you had with her. This shows they still value you a great deal."

"I know you don’t want to accept them as your family, but that doesn’t mean you should burn bridges. Under the circumstances, you should just treat these gifts as presents from elders you happen to know. All you have to do is send a suitable gift in return. That would be polite and proper, and you wouldn’t owe them anything."

"In other words, there’s no need to push them toward Nora Lowell. What do you think?"

He spoke with sincerity, and Paige Summers listened intently.

She knew she tended to be impulsive in her dealings, not nearly as thorough as Marcus Monroe. While she had no desire to become a slick operator, she understood that some things required careful consideration.

For instance, while she was unwilling to accept Wendy Lowell as her mother, she had to admit the woman was genuinely trying her best to win her back.

As for what happened back then, it was hard to say who was right and who was wrong.

’Was Wendy Lowell really right to follow Dylan Summers? Was staying behind wrong?’

It all depended on your perspective.

Even the Lowell Family’s decision to remain in Kingsgate back then... objectively speaking, that move could be considered quite farsighted.

But her surname was Summers. It had been Summers in two lifetimes, and with the original owner’s memories, she’d been prejudiced from the very start.

With this realization, she felt a sudden clarity.

"You’re right. But I’m only good at Artifact Making, so I’ll send weapons as a return gift."

Marcus Monroe was pleased to see how quickly she understood. "That’s perfect. Something you made yourself is more sincere. Besides, the weapons you make are worth even more."

Since she didn’t have time to craft anything new, Paige simply picked two weapons she had made previously.

One was a Claymore, over three feet long. Forged from a special type of iron, it weighed more than fifty pounds. Its entire body was jet-black, simple and unadorned, perfectly embodying the saying that a heavy sword needs no edge, and the greatest skill appears artless. In a fight, it could undoubtedly kill an opponent without drawing a single drop of blood.

The other was a gift for Wendy Lowell: a self-defense dagger. It was small, thin, and easy to carry, yet its appearance was so ornate it could pass for a mere accessory. The blade itself, however, was exceptionally sharp, making it treacherously difficult to defend against.

Paige packed them into the wooden boxes she always used and had a member of Bloodfall deliver the two weapons, one to the Lowell Family and the other to the Reid Family.

To her, this was nothing more than a return gift.

Frederick Lowell’s reaction was more measured. While he admired the fine sword, he felt that she was truly a child of the Lowell Family. The blood tie was there, after all, and he found himself liking her more and more.

Wendy Lowell, on the other hand, just hugged the box and burst into tears again. This time, however, they were tears of joy. At the very least, it proved that her daughter still cared for her, even if just a little.

They were happy, but someone else was not.

Nora Lowell had gone to connect with her cousin from the Lowell Family who served in The Power Corps. She didn’t expect to run into another one of the Lowell "brothers" there, and the two of them were discussing this very matter.

They had both seen the Claymore and were full of admiration for it. Naturally, their words were laced with praise for its maker, Paige Summers. 𝗳𝗿𝐞𝕖𝘄𝗲𝕓𝗻𝚘𝚟𝕖𝐥.𝚌𝕠𝕞

Nora Lowell, who had overheard by chance, was furious. Seeing that the two hadn’t noticed her, she didn’t even bother to say hello and simply turned and left.

She had already vaguely sensed the Lowell Family, and especially Wendy Lowell, giving her the cold shoulder in recent days.

’She had thought that if Paige Summers kept rejecting Wendy as she had before, sooner or later, the woman would get her heart broken and give up.’

’But she never expected Paige Summers to change her attitude in such a short time.’

’A biological daughter versus the daughter of a distant relative. There was no comparison. She stood no chance!’

’After all that time trying to win them over, only to end up with this? She was absolutely fuming!’

But then a thought struck her, and she smiled. She remembered the departure lists for the expedition to the north, the ones she had spied on at Sheldon Reid’s place.

’Paige Summers wasn’t smart, but the people around her were even dumber.’

’All it took was bribing a government official to pose as a friend to that Claire Chapman fellow and feed him a line, and he immediately submitted an application to The Government!’

’So hopelessly naive!’

’It was true The Government’s expedition was a prelude to forming its own armed force, but did they really think Military Command would be such a pushover?’

’How ridiculous!’

’They’d find out soon enough, once they were standing in direct opposition to the military. She didn’t know about the others, but that man, Sheldon Reid, was the type who would never tolerate such an act.’

’Especially since the target was his own stepsister—someone who, however distantly, was connected to the Reid Family.’

’In his eyes, this would be nothing short of betrayal...’

’She knew his methods well. He would never let a traitor get off easy!’

A smile filled with anticipation for the future playing on her lips, Nora Lowell returned to the Operations Department.

She was now even more confident about her revenge, because her relationship with Sheldon Reid had yielded an unexpected benefit.

He had sought her out twice more after that night. With each increasingly intense physical encounter, she discovered that during moments of extreme emotional arousal, she had awakened a new superpower!

It was a bit embarrassing, but incredibly useful.

She named it "Charm"!

Simply put, whenever she activated this superpower, her body would secrete an excess of female hormones, even releasing a fragrant scent through her skin. This scent could stimulate men, filling them with an overwhelming desire for sex. During intercourse, it made both partners more engrossed, enhancing their pleasure and climax... With this as a foundation, getting men to fall for her and do her bidding wasn’t too difficult.

She had already tested this out in secret.

That government official, for instance...

However, the superpower had its drawbacks. It had very little effect on those with high Superpower Ranks and could be easily suppressed—a fact she had learned from her superior at the Operations Department.

But for her, right now, this superpower was undoubtedly a huge asset. As long as she stayed off Sheldon Reid’s radar, she could always find someone to exploit!

’Oh, Paige Summers, Paige Summers... Just you wait. When you leave the city this time, be ready to receive the little gift I’ve prepared for you!’