The moon hung low in the sky, its light dim and barely casting any glow upon the earth. The wind howled with a fierce intensity, its chill carrying an eerie undertone that made the entire atmosphere feel oppressive and foreboding.

This was the kind of night that always seemed ripe for secrets to be hidden and deeds to be concealed—perfect for those with something to hide.

Zoe, however, was no ordinary woman. With her extraordinary ability to perceive her surroundings over distances, she could effortlessly avoid the prying eyes of cameras and passersby. She moved like a ghost, a shadow in the modern world, unseen and unnoticed.

But there were times when even she felt that a deep, silent night provided a more fitting stage for her plans.

More importantly, there were things that needed to be done. She had no time to head over to Rameses Real Estate right now to demand the experimental materials she required. That could wait. When the time came, she would handle it. By then, it would be the dead of night, and everything would fall into place.

Zoe chose to forgo her usual routine of writing web novels, despite having an ample backlog of drafts ready to go. There was simply too much to do, and her priorities lay elsewhere.

...

At 12:30 a.m., fully disguised, she arrived at the Magna Paradise Nightclub.

Though no one was around to follow her in, Zoe didn’t feel the need to slip in unnoticed through a window. Her heightened senses had already confirmed that the man she was looking for, the cigar-smoking figure, wasn’t there.

So, her plan was simple.

With a swift motion, she knocked out the two guards at the entrance, and using their phones, she dialed the number she had called earlier.

“Who is this? It's late. You’d better have a good reason for calling now,” a familiar voice responded, tinged with annoyance.

Upon hearing this, Zoe raised an eyebrow.

She adopted the same, scandinavian accent she had used when she first arrived at the club and said, “I’m at Magna Paradise Nightclub. You have fifteen minutes.”

“Oh, and don’t run any red lights.”

Her voice remained steady, betraying no emotion. She knew the man on the other end of the line would remember her well, and that was all that mattered. Without another word, she hung up.

...

Meanwhile, on the other end of the line, Rohmund Miguerro was left stunned, the sound of the phone hanging up reverberating in his ears.

That voice... it couldn’t be!

Rohmund would never forget the voice of the top-tier assassin who had been instrumental in his rise to power. The instant he heard it, a wave of terror overtook his mind, the fear practically paralyzing him.

It wasn’t until the dial tone cut off that he snapped out of it.

Wait... fifteen minutes? Was she coming here?

Despite his overwhelming fear, Rohmund didn’t dare speak further. He shoved the woman clinging to him aside, hastily dressing while rushing out the door.

On the way down, he made a call to his younger brother, Romingo Miguerro, who was currently in charge of the nightclub, asking him to prepare for the arrival of the “woman” who had called.

Once downstairs, Rohmund didn’t even bother instructing his driver to follow him. Instead, he hopped into the car and sped off toward the Magna Paradise Nightclub.

He hit two red lights on the way, each one making his heart race in panic. Every second felt like an eternity, the passing moments of the red light feeling like they would seal his fate. Yet, because of Zoe's instruction not to run the lights, he forced himself to remain calm and not act impulsively.

Finally, the red lights passed, and he surged forward. It didn’t take long before he arrived at the nightclub.

Despite the delay from the two red lights, he had managed to arrive in just under fifteen minutes, right on time.

Rohmund breathed a sigh of relief, hurriedly exiting the car and heading toward the entrance.

The two guards outside had been replaced, a sign that his earlier instructions had been followed. The powerful woman had already been escorted upstairs, which eased Rohmund’s nerves.

Still, anxiety gnawed at him as he ascended the staircase, his mind racing.

When he reached the door to the VIP room where he had first encountered her, he took a deep breath before pushing it open.

Inside, he saw his younger brother, the one who had been knocked out cold by the woman’s punch just days ago, now standing obediently beside her.

Also present was the woman from before, quietly serving tea.

It was clear that Romingo had learned a valuable lesson. After watching the security footage with his brother and being thoroughly educated on the terror that was Zoe, he now showed extreme deference to her.

Rohmund sneered inwardly. How pathetic. Yet, he couldn’t help but feel an odd sense of admiration for his younger brother’s sudden transformation.

His thoughts were interrupted as Zoe’s voice cut through the air.

“Romingo Miguerro, right? I need you to do something for me.”

Her voice was calm but laced with authority, a commanding presence that left no room for refusal.

Rohmund, who had just learned her name from his brother, felt a rush of pride, though it was tempered with a heavy dose of fear.

Without hesitation, he stepped forward, falling to his knees in a gesture that startled both Romingo and the woman serving tea.

“Boss, just say the word. If I refuse, take my head,” Rohmund said earnestly, his voice brimming with loyalty.

He knew this was the opportunity of a lifetime.

He had always hoped that his usefulness to the powerful woman would mean his survival. He wasn’t trying to ingratiate himself or seek a higher status.

He simply didn’t want to die.

The decapitated body of the second-in-command had left an indelible psychological scar on him.

Now, the opportunity lay before him.

True to his nature, he would never let such chances slip away. Once again, he decisively knelt without hesitation.

Since ancient times, no action has ever been as effective in expressing one's humility and submission as kneeling. This left Romingo momentarily stunned, but soon, he pressed the head of the girl beside him to the ground and knelt as well.

In that instant, all three in the private room were kneeling.

Only Zoe remained seated.

Seeing this, Zoe fell silent, a thought crossing his mind.

Hmm... Why do I feel like the villain in a story, the one who will inevitably be killed by the protagonist?

She lapsed into a moment of quiet reflection.

Such silence unnerved Rohmund, who was kneeling, his body trembling with unease.

Sometimes, death is not the scariest thing.

It is the wait for death that truly terrifies.

Fortunately, not long after, the voice he had been waiting for rang out like music to his ears.

"Bring a few scum over. Preferably those who are better off dead."

Zoe said, reclining on the sofa.

She was only issuing orders; how others handled them was none of her concern.

If Rameses Real Estate couldn’t produce a few scoundrels, Zoe would have to assume that everyone at Rameses Real Estate was equally contemptible.

She closed her eyes, resting on the sofa.

Rohmund, however, immediately stood up, and with Romingo, hurriedly exited the room, leaving the girl behind to give Zoe a back rub.

This was the first command.

Rohmund, who had made his position abundantly clear, would not waste a moment in fulfilling it.

...

Not even half an hour later, six strong young men returned to the private room, dragging two men bound with thick ropes.

Rohmund and Romingo followed closely behind, and with a wave of his hand, signaled for the six strong men to leave.

These six were brought along to hold the two selected scoundrels in place, ensuring they wouldn’t resist.

Now that they were inside the room, their presence was unnecessary. Rohmund understood that no matter who entered this room, everyone had to lie low.

"We’ve brought them," Rohmund said, motioning to the two scoundrels.

"This is one of the second-in-command’s trusted subordinates. He’s been arrogant for far too long, having committed numerous vile acts."

Rohmund gestured to the two scoundrels and spoke to Zoe.

Upon hearing this, Zoe nodded and signaled for everyone to leave, except for herself and the two scoundrels.

Rohmund immediately complied, even personally standing guard just outside the door, preventing anyone from approaching.

He was clearly afraid that failing to follow any command might result in Zoe tearing him apart.

Once everyone had left, Zoe turned her attention to the two scoundrels, bound and lying before her. Her eyes narrowed slightly.

In the next moment, she released her mental energy, reaching out to touch the emotions of one of the scoundrels.

Just like in the earlier experiments, the scoundrel immediately froze, as though time had been paused for him.

Zoe paid little attention to this, instead marveling at the sheer size of the emotional energy compared to that of a lab mouse. It was far greater in scale.

Human emotions are so much more complex.

She continued to delve deeper with her mental energy, analyzing the more intricate structures of human emotions.

She discovered that, unlike the simple emotional responses of a lab mouse, humans harbored far more complex and varied feelings.

Even in something as simple as fear, Zoe detected many different variations—fear of pain, illness, aging, death, change, the unknown, loneliness, intimacy, failure, loss of control, and more.

And that was just one emotion.

It was clear now that the simplicity of a mouse’s emotions stemmed from its simpler mind.

Humans, on the other hand, were far more intricate, each person’s emotions a tangled web of complexity.

Zoe, thrilled by the discovery, eagerly experimented with stimulating various emotional responses.

After a series of observations, she realized that while the complexity of the emotions differed, the process for eliciting them was largely the same.

By channeling her mental energy, she could briefly trigger a corresponding emotion, after which the individual would become more sensitive to that emotion in the future.

With the two scoundrels, Zoe roughly tested every emotion she could invoke, gaining a deep understanding of the vast spectrum of human emotions.

Having gained a preliminary grasp of this new aspect of her mental energy, she now understood how to apply it even on humans.

However, this frequent stimulation of emotions had an unfortunate side effect.

The constant barrage of emotional triggers caused the two scoundrels to mentally collapse, their faces contorting as they drooled, eyes unfocused.

Seeing this, Zoe summoned Rohmund, who had been waiting outside.

"Handle it as you see fit," she said, gesturing toward the two collapsed scoundrels.

Rohmund, understanding immediately, nodded and began making phone calls, muttering words like "concrete," "sacks," and "sink them in the river."

Zoe, observing Rohmund's prompt obedience, felt a growing sense of satisfaction. This was a useful subordinate.

With someone like him at her disposal, things became much easier.

Now that her mental energy had this new feature, ensuring the loyalty of underlings, the idea of taking on a runner wasn’t so bad after all.

Having such a subordinate would solve her worldly problems, sparing her the headaches of dealing with money and other mundane concerns.

Lost in thought, Zoe’s mental energy brushed against Rohmund’s emotions, halting his actions for a moment. Then, Zoe began strengthening the fear and submission Rohmund felt toward her.

This was the subtle art of personality manipulation!

Ensuring that he would never betray her.