Gently picking up her sleeping daughter, Marie stood up and set the girl into the couch, careful not to disturb her sleep.

Then, she turned to face Cassie with a smile that wasn’t really a smile.

"I’m stopping you because you need to reflect on a few things. Now, Cassie. Go back into your room. You are not allowed to leave."

Cassie’s jaw clenched hard, her fingers twitching as she stared at Marie.

"You... why are you ordering me? Only the boss can."

Folding her arms, Marie raised a brow and smirked, "You think so? Boss put me in charge of the team, and I’m not going to watch one of you walk into danger alone."

Sighing, Miguel spoke, "Cassie. You don’t have to be worried. Boss is strong, and Richard is with him too. Do you think anything can take them down?"

At his words, Cassie’s frosty expression softened slightly, and she considered it logically.

Leon was strong, far stronger than any one of them. After all, he had been one of the first people to become evolvers in the group. This was exactly why Cassie cherished him, since he was her only hope at getting back her family.

"Ugh. Fine, I’ll stay."

Saying that, she turned her heels and prepared to head back upstairs.

Miguel looked pleased, then he added, "You were rude to Marie. Levels aside, she’s older than you."

Cassie froze once again, then glanced at Marie.

The young woman was staring at her with a disappointed expression.

Although unwilling, Cassie forced herself to compromise and squeezed out the words stuck in her throat.

"I’m... sorry."

Marie nodded casually, not bothering to respond with words.

The black-haired girl took another step forward, paused, then added, "I’ll stay indoors for now. But if the boss doesn’t return in three hours, I’m going to find him regardless of what you say."

Hearing this, Marie smiled, "Don’t worry. You won’t be the only one going."

After all, Leon was just as important to her as he was to Cassie.

Cassie gave her a long stare, then headed upstairs.

Meanwhile, Miguel slumped into the couch, relief visible in his expression.

"Phew... I avoided a disaster."

"Disaster?" Marie chuckled. "Do you think I can’t restrain her if I want to?"

Miguel shook his head. "It’s not that. That girl... she makes me feel uneasy. Like a knife pressed to my throat."

"You’re right. She’s lethal," Marie agreed, then winked. "But regardless of her lethality, this mommy will give her a good spanking."

In her heart though, her thoughts were solemn.

’Leon said he wouldn’t forgive me if anything happens to any of you guys. That’s why, I have to be strong enough to protect you all.’

Still smiling outwardly, she returned to the couch and sat beside her daughter.

An hour later, Selene and Gwen came downstairs to ask if Leon was back. However, when they received a negative answer, they turned back upstairs.

It was at that moment that the four heard the sound of the main gate opening.

"Could it be them?" Miguel asked himself as he stood up. They all went outside, only to realize there was one more person than expected.

’When did she join us?’ Gwen thought, staring at Cassie in surprise.

Then, she shifted her gaze back to the gate.

Leon and Richard were calmly walking towards them, with two mutated beasts walking behind them.

Selene’s eyes narrowed, ’Tier One mutated beasts? Are they Richard’s tamed beasts?’

Seeing the confident smile on the bespectacled guy’s face, she came to that conclusion.

They were both covered in blood, signs that they had fought a lot of beasts and zombies.

"Oh? I wasn’t expecting such a lineup," Leon chuckled, then became serious. "Is something the matter?"

Marie shook her head with a smile, "Not at all, Boss. It’s just that we were expecting you to arrive earlier."

Blinking, he said, "Ah, my bad. We were just trying to push these two into Tier One quickly."

At his words, everyone refocused their attention on the two beasts that stood on either side of Richard.

Miguel’s brows furrowed. "I understand that you had that big black cat before. Where’d you get this one?"

He asked, pointing at the red-furred mutated fox. Earlier, its fur was orange-red. Now, however, it had taken on a deeper shade of red, almost completely erasing every sign of orange on its fur.

"This?" Richard patted its head gently. "This is Little East, and I just got it today on our journey. It’s very—"

"Wait, what did you say?" Miguel asked, disbelief coloring his voice.

On the sidelines, Leon nodded and looked at Miguel like a kindred spirit. Finally, someone had noticed Richard’s poor naming sense.

"Uh... that I got it today?" Richard asked, confused.

He couldn’t understand what exactly was surprising to his friend.

Taking a breath, Miguel closed his eyes, then opened them.

"Why would you name such a beautiful beast Little East?"

At his question, Richard froze, then quickly scrambled for an answer.

"That... it’s because it’s my second beast. So, Little West and Little East. Fitting, right?"

Miguel frowned, then nodded hesitantly. "Although I feel that it is wrong, I guess it’s fitting."

Leon was disappointed in Miguel for actually falling for that, but before he could speak up, Selene opened her pale lips and spoke to him.

"Did you find anything regarding the shooting stars?"

"Oh, right." He facepalmed with an exhausted sigh. "Let’s go inside. It’s actually a very important matter to discuss."

When everyone returned inside, Leon asked for Marie to call the others so he wouldn’t have to explain himself twice.

With everyone gathered, the living room was unusually filled.

’Somehow, I feel like the patriarch of a dying clan.’

Keeping his thoughts to himself while wearing a mask of seriousness, Leon began to explain the existence of the Star Wheels, along with the benefits and the disadvantages.

To further reinforce his point about the gambling disadvantage, he took out the Tier One Supreme Shovel from his storage ring and showed it to them.

Gwen took it from him and read the description which he hadn’t even bothered to check.

Her eyes widened. "T-This..."

Leon nodded, a bitter smile on his face. "I can understand. I was pretty disappointed by my first draw too."

Gwen’s gaze snapped to him, her brown eyes burning with fervor.

"Disappointed? Leon, this is a TREASURE!"