Overprotected By My Tsundere CEO

Chapter 310 - 201: An Encounter a Year Ago, Meeting Kieran Shawn in Person [Part 3]

"Where is he?"

Nora Scott was assertive, not giving Benjamin Durant a chance to deny it.

Nora Scott had her reasons for being certain that "something happened."

The one usually managing the Tofu Shop is Humphrey Jennings, a chef specially hired by Nora Scott, renowned for his tofu pudding. They also have some personal friendship.

If Nora Scott wasn’t in Anchel, it might be genuine that Humphrey Jennings would visit every now and then, but knowing Nora Scott is back in Anchel, Humphrey Jennings wouldn’t skip work unless he had pressing matters.

Benjamin Durant hesitated, then cleared his throat and slowly started, "It’s like this, you have a friend named Miguel Smith..."

"What’s with him?" Nora Scott frowned.

"Take it easy."

Benjamin Durant made a downward pressing gesture, signaling Nora Scott to stay calm.

Nora Scott sneered coldly at him, "Get to the point."

"He ran into some trouble in Sand Delta," Benjamin Durant no longer withheld the truth and spoke candidly, "Bad luck, got caught by a gang of robbers who hijacked the whole vehicle. He sustained some injuries, not severe, just needs to rest for ten days or so."

"He’s your friend, and we certainly can’t just ignore it. Humphrey went to Sand Delta this morning, first to find connections to investigate that gang, and second, to bring him back to Anchel. The healthcare here is somewhat better than in Sand Delta."

After explaining, Benjamin Durant carefully glanced at Nora Scott and added, "He’ll be back by tomorrow."

"...Hmm."

Nora Scott’s brow furrowed briefly, then relaxed.

Sand Delta is home to vast desert areas, where urban security is decent, but in the wilderness, it relies on luck to handle things; security is challenging to perfect.

Such a mishap, Miguel Smith truly didn’t have the best luck.

His carefree wandering days are probably over.

Nora Scott soon realized something was amiss, "Why is he still in Sand Delta?"

Just half a month into the Northwest, Miguel Smith was in Sand Delta, then toured around the Western Region, Tuboel. Last contact was in Cloud City... How did he end up back in Sand Delta?

"No idea."

Benjamin Durant shrugged, indicating it’s beyond his knowledge.

"Let’s eat."

Raising an eyebrow, Nora Scott didn’t press further, pulling back her chair and picking up chopsticks to eat.

Having not seen Nora Scott for a long time, Benjamin Durant was in high spirits, chatting about various topics with her. Eventually, he was cornered by Nora Scott’s question, "How’s the progress on what I asked you to investigate?"

"Tell me."

Taking a bite of vinegar-soaked shredded potatoes, Nora Scott signaled him to report.

"The portrait you gave, I’ve had everyone at Fenton City’s Virtue Retreat memorize it. If it appears there, they’ll definitely recognize it. But so far, there’s been no news."

"As for the Serendipity Pavilion, they recently acquired a batch of counterfeits. They’ve circulated quite a bit, but our eyes are limited; tracking the source is too difficult."

Benjamin Durant honestly reported the situation, resting his elbow on the table and leaning slightly forward.

Squinting, he conveyed some suspicion, "Master uncle, Matt Leung is just a singer, how did he get mixed up with antique dealings and Serendipity Pavilion?"

"How would I know?"

Putting down her chopsticks, Nora Scott picked up her tea and drank it like it was plain water.

Rolling his eyes, Benjamin Durant tapped his fingers lightly on the table, "Isn’t there a possibility—"

"Are you suspecting me?"

Nora Scott directed her gaze at him.

"Wouldn’t dare."

Benjamin Durant immediately clarified his stance.

"There won’t be a mistake," picking up the chopsticks again, Nora Scott toyed with a piece of fish, "Serendipity Pavilion and counterfeit antiques are indeed related. Moreover, it’s not to say people from the two industries can’t be connected."

A year ago, around this time, Nora Scott came to Anchel due to a gig she took.

At that time, Nora Scott had some free time and wanted to visit Matt Leung, but upon arriving at his place, knocking went unanswered, phone calls were ignored—she had agreed with Matt Leung beforehand.

Sensing something was off, she used the lock-picking skills she inherited from Antonio Easton to break into Matt Leung’s house.

The result was chaos everywhere, signs of a struggle, and traces of blood.

She called the police, then followed the clues all the way to the Weiel River nearby, where she discovered the kidnapped Matt Leung. Unfortunately, the adversaries outnumbered them, and during rescue, they were ambushed and attacked.

One person might have escaped, but with a barely alive Matt Leung in addition, Nora Scott couldn’t surpass them and ended up being tricked by them.

Ultimately, both she and Matt Leung were tied up and thrown into the Weiel River.

The icy cold Weiel River of late March jolted Nora Scott awake as she entered. Using a blade she carried, she managed to save herself but exhausted, searching for Matt Leung nearly cost her life. It was Benjamin Durant who arrived with reinforcements that saved her.