Under the Heiress' Facade

"What do you mean 'seems'?" Samson asked.

"The firewall was just breached. The intrusion method and location match Raven's, but it was quickly intercepted this time. Raven was much smarter, so I'm not sure," Scorpio explained.

All 12 of Astral Nova's zodiac signs couldn't stop Raven the last time, and their computers even turned into blue screens. It was only when the grandmaster personally intervened that they managed to intercept it.

Scorpio continued, "But there's something strange. This time, they only breached the surveillance system. They shut down the administrative block and perimeter surveillance. I suspect there might be two groups-one distracting us with surface attacks while the other sneaks inside."

Bernard, behind the screen, frowned lightly. Since escaping the last time, there had been no sign of Raven for a while.

Two months later, he reappeared on auction day, where crowds mingled. It would be quite possible for them to infiltrate.

Coincidentally, Samson had also received feedback from the Guest Services Department's manager, saying Camille had advised verifying guests' information. Her hint suggested that someone might be up to no good.

The study's alarm abruptly sounded, indicating a system breach.

Alerts from Astral Nova's financial system firewall were directly transmitted to the grandmaster's computer. The sudden alarm confirmed Scorpio's suspicions.

"Tell them to investigate suspicious individuals now!" Samson ordered promptly.

"Roger that," Scorpio replied.

Bernard immediately emerged from behind the screen as the door closed. He entered the study.

Meanwhile, Hera swiftly scanned through the newly extracted billing data. Leon's voice sounded from her phone on the desk.

"Boss, I've been intercepted. They've pinpointed my location. If I continue, my information will be exposed. I'm pulling out. Be careful."

"Okay. Stay safe," Hera whispered.

The call ended abruptly.

Hera finally pulled up the financial records from the Eclipse Stone auction based on the dates. She quickly scanned through them three times but couldn't find any traces of Queenie's payment record. She found it strange.

If the payment hadn't been received at that time, she wouldn't have been able to walk away with the Eclipse Stone.

Hera pulled up another batch of code. Suddenly, she paused and stared at the screen in disbelief.

That transaction record had been deleted!

She wondered who could have done that.

Just then, a red dialogue box popped up on the screen, snapping Hera back to reality.

Alas, she'd been discovered.

She immediately unplugged the USB stick and shut down the computer. She was about to get up when she heard footsteps outside.

Several flashlight beams swept through the window, prompting Hera to crouch under the computer desk.

"Search each room thoroughly. Don't let any suspicious person slip through!"

A man's commanding voice came from outside.

"Yes, sir."

Immediately after, the electronic lock of the office sounded when someone entered the password.

The door opened with a click, and the office lights flickered on as someone entered the room.

Under the desk, Hera's heart raced as she listened to the approaching footsteps.

The footsteps suddenly stopped near the desk. As Hera cautiously watched the shadow on the floor, she moved her finger and revealed a silver needle.

At that moment, the shadow receded with the fading sound of footsteps. The lights clicked off as well.

Just as Hera was about to breathe a sigh of relief, her phone buzzed with a sudden vibration.

It was Bernard calling.

Hera immediately rejected the call.

The footsteps outside, which were about to leave, suddenly halted. A strong beam of flashlight shone through the doorway.

"Who's there?"