"...What do you want from me?"

Shin didn't respond immediately. He stared at Peter silently for a few more seconds, the silence making Peter even more uneasy.

"I asked you what you want from me! Do you even know who I am? I'm one of the most important members of 'Bloodline.' I'm part of California's biggest and most dangerous crew!"

"Are there others?"

"What?"

"In your crew, are there other children like Kaji with special abilities?"

Peter paused for a moment. A few seconds later, he smirked and answered.

"Of course there are. And they're even stronger than Kaji. Compared to them, Kaji is just a child. If you let me go, I promise I won’t tell the boss about this. Look, the others are dangerous; you don't want to mess with them. Besides—"

Before Peter could finish his sentence, shadows around him began tightening around his body.

"How many are there? How many children have you dragged into this filthy business?"

Shin’s voice was now filled with anger. It was a stark contrast to his usual calm demeanor. Realizing Shin was not joking, Peter quickly replied in a panicked tone.

"...No...not too many...just three. And the youngest among them is Kaji...the others are fully grown adults..."

"And those adults, how long have they been involved in this? Since what age?"

Shin spoke in a calm but menacing tone, his gaze as sharp as a blade.

"They... they've been with us for years. They're the boss’s most valuable operatives. I'm telling you, they're dangerous, very dangerous people. Believe me, you don't want to deal with them."

"Where are they?"

"I-I don't know...they're the boss's most trusted workers. That's why I don’t know their location."

"But you must know at least a few places. After all, you claimed to be an important member of the crew."

"I’ll never tell you, you hear me?! Don’t underestimate me, kid! I’m twice your age. This isn’t the first time I’ve been in a situation like this. You won’t get any information from me!"

"We'll see about that."

The surrounding shadows suddenly rose higher, and Shin, keeping his eyes locked on Peter, calmly started walking toward him.

---

With the morning sun rising, Serena, as usual, woke up early to prepare breakfast for the children. When she entered the living room, she saw Marcus sitting on the couch, looking lost in thought.

"You’re up early. What’s wrong?"

"What’s wrong? Do you really think all our problems are gone just because Shin is here?"

"Calm down a bit."

"Calm down? Are you serious?"

At that moment, the door opened, and Shin walked into the living room. As soon as he entered, Marcus and Serena both turned to look at him.

"...What?"

Marcus was about to say something when the children started coming out of their rooms. Serena quickly began setting their plates on the table. Everyone sat down as usual, eating their breakfast eagerly. Marcus, on the other hand, watched them with a bewildered expression, surprised at how they were acting as if nothing had happened.

"Lucian still hasn’t woken up..."

Serena spoke in a concerned tone.

"Let him sleep," Shin replied with his usual expression.

Neither Marcus nor Serena said anything. They both knew Lucian was emotionally fragile and had likely been deeply affected by recent events.

After a short silence, Nora timidly asked Shin,

"Shin-nii, do you have any plans for today?"

"No, I’m free all day."

"All day? Now that’s unusual," Marcus said, half surprised, half sarcastic.

Serena shot Marcus a sharp look, but Shin ignored him and turned his attention to the twins, who were still hesitating to voice their request. Shin had already guessed what they wanted.

"Do you want me to take you to school today?"

The twins’ faces lit up, and they eagerly answered in unison.

"Yes, please! That would be amazing! Right, Evelyn?"

"Y-yeah, it would," Evelyn replied shyly.

While the children excitedly prepared their bags, Serena approached Shin before he left, speaking in a worried tone.

"What should I do about Lucian? I don’t know what to say to him."

"For now, just take his breakfast to his room. If he doesn’t want to talk, don’t force him."

"...Alright..."

Shin left the house with the children and first dropped Evelyn off at her school.

"I’ll come pick you up after school, so don’t leave until I get here, okay?"

"Oh, you don’t have to. I can get home on my own."

"No, Evelyn. For safety reasons, this is important."

"...Okay, fine."

When they arrived at the twins’ school, Shin turned to them.

"Is everything okay at school?"

"Yes, everything’s fine. We get along really well with the teacher and the other kids," Noah said.

"That’s good to hear. So, what is it you wanted to talk to me about?"

The twins looked surprised.

"How did you know?"

"It’s written all over your faces. Now, what’s the matter?"

The twins hesitated for a moment before Noah finally spoke.

"It’s about Lucian..."

"We’ve read his mind a few times, and we saw that he’s being bullied at school," Nora added.

"...What did I tell you two about reading someone’s mind without permission?"

"We know, but...he always looks so sad and doesn’t want to talk...so we were just curious."

Shin sighed softly and knelt down to their eye level.

"I know you’re worried, but you both understand that Lucian went through terrible things before joining this family. Socializing is much harder for him than it is for you."

"We understand, but what are we going to do?"

"Don’t worry about it. I’ll handle it. Now, cheer up and head to your class."

The twins nodded in unison and headed toward their school. Shin watched them for a moment before heading back home.

When he returned, he took off his coat and sat on the couch. A few moments later, Serena entered the living room with a smile.

"Oh, you’re back?"

"Yeah. How are your online classes going?"

"They’re going well."

"Did Marcus go to work?"

"Yes, he’ll be back in the evening. By the way, I’m sorry about his behavior earlier. I don’t know why he acted that way. Normally, he’s the one who wants you to be around more."

"It’s fine. It’s normal for him to be suspicious. After all, you all faced a dangerous situation. I should have come earlier."

"Oh, I almost forgot to ask. How did you know we were in danger and where to find us?"

"Thanks to the twins. They couldn’t communicate with me telepathically, but I could sense the spiritual energy they were emitting. With the help of the shadows, I located you."

"Oh, I see. So, what are you going to do now?"

"I’ll take care of everything, Serena. You don’t need to worry. How’s Lucian?"

"He’s still sleeping. At least he ate his breakfast. He’s still very exhausted."

"That’s understandable. Let’s give him some time. Then I’ll talk to him."

Serena thought for a few seconds, concern etched on her face, before nodding and returning to her room for her online classes.