Chapter 4 This Must Be a Sham

• Instantly, the air in the private room stilled, and everyone turned to Daniel with incredulity.
• "Wait, did you just call him… his excellency? Y-You… Are you his subordinate?" Christopher exclaimed after coming to himself.
• "Yes." Phantom nodded with a smile.
• Suddenly, Christopher guffawed, glowing with pride before smacking Daniel's shoulder. "You've hidden a pretty big secret here, my boy."
• "I've already told you guys. You just don't believe me." Daniel smiled.
• Meanwhile, everyone looked at each other and found nothing but shock in their eyes.
• Likewise, Tia covered her mouth in shock.
• Could it be what Daniel said was true? Have I really been wrong about him? He can't really be Tigre Estrada's drill sergeant, can he?
• Right then, Tia's face was enveloped in multitudes of emotions that were hard to decipher.
• Gerald and Bridget had, even more so, lowered their heads in awkwardness, for they had truly and utterly humiliated themselves.
• Who'd have thought Daniel had actually enlisted himself in the army and had seemingly even made a name for himself?!
• Impossible! As hard as it was for Pearl to believe what was happening before her eyes, it was piercing into her heart like a sharp dagger, reminding her it was all real. This ungrateful b*stard really hadn't been serving his sentence but, in fact, joined the military!
• "We won't keep you since you have work. Don't forget to come home whenever you can," urged Christopher after a guffaw.
• "Will do. You take care of yourself. And… don't drink so much."
• Daniel knew just what exactly Phantom wanted to report, and he, too, was eager to learn of their findings. So he didn't stay any longer and left the room with Phantom.
• Meanwhile, the room fell into awkward silence.
• While only Christopher was all smiles, everyone else's faces were ashen. Aidan, especially, looked like he had just witnessed the tragedy of the century.
• How can this be? How is it possible for a sex offender to enlist in the army?! He couldn't accept the great disparity, so he gnashed his teeth. "This must be a sham! That woman can't be from the military. Daniel must've hired her to put on an act! You have to have military merit to get a notable position in the army. What war is there for him to gain merit when we're living in peaceful times?!"
• Aidan's words got Cristopher displeased, and just as he wanted to retort, Gerald instantly echoed, "That's right. It must be a sham. I've never heard of any precedent where a criminal can join the army. Besides, what soldier calls their superiors 'your excellency', especially when Daniel isn't royalty!"
• "Also, she doesn't have epaulets on her uniform. Shirts like that are everywhere in the market!"
• "It must be a sham!"
• Gerald and Aidan went on and on about it, magnifying the most minute problems, all to prove that Daniel was only lying.
• They refuted so much that even Christopher began wavering.
• On the other hand, Tia's just softened face was once again covered with frost, and she chuckled self-deprecatingly.
• I must be mad to actually believe a word Daniel said! I can't believe I actually believed he was really Tigre Estrada's drill sergeant. He's nothing but an outright liar!
• As the saying went, prejudice was the child of ignorance. As long as Daniel continued to shoulder the name of a sex offender, people would only see him as a liar no matter what he did or how he explained it.
• Even Daniel hadn't expected that Phantom's arrival didn’t eradicate some of the misunderstandings but even deepened them.
• "So? Have you guys found anything?" Daniel asked with eagerness after entering the car.
• "We have. But…" Phantom fell silent, her eyes laced with hesitation.
• Daniel's heart skipped a beat, and his tone turned cold. "What is it? Where's Evelyn?"
• To that, Phantom took a deep breath and said gravely, "Let me show you something."
• After quite some time, Phantom pulled over outside the suburban area of Goldshore.
• Graveyards were always exceptionally dreary in the dead of night, and the air was filled with a sense of eeriness.
• Daniel stared blankly at the words inscribed on the cold headstone in front of him—Evelyn Sutherland.
• "Evelyn, I'm back." Daniel's pallid face was filled with nothing but remorse, and his gaze was as dull as the backwater.
• He fought for ten years and returned as a hero, only to find Evelyn gone. To think an icy headstone was what greeted him tore his heart into pieces.
• Overwhelmed with the grave news, Daniel, who was still suffering from his severe injuries, grunted and coughed up blood.
• "Lord Hades!" Worry enveloped Phantom's eyes as she remained standing behind him.
• "I'm okay." Daniel heaved, his eyes a little bloodshot. "What was Evelyn's cause of death?"
• Suddenly, the whole place was shrouded in an absolutely horrifying intimidating aura.
• The wind howled, and the trees shook…
• Though Daniel's voice was soft, it sounded as ear-piercing as an explosion to Phantom, and she had a hard time breathing, feeling as though a massive boulder weighed down on her heart. Even someone like her could feel her heart racing. "Miss Sutherland died giving birth to a baby girl four years ago."
• Daniel jolted upon hearing so, and hints of glimmer returned to his dull eyes. "Baby? My daughter?"
• At that, the intimidating aura instantly dispersed.
• It was only then Phantom heaved a sigh of relief. "Yes, she's your daughter," she answered gravely.
• While speaking, she handed him a picture of an intellectual, gentle beauty with an adorable little girl in her arms, smiling at the camera.
• Daniel fell into a trance as he looked at the picture, and he subconsciously grazed his fingertips across the little girl. So this is my daughter.
• Meanwhile, Phantom reported, "She's Janice Tillman, 25 years old, the daughter of Atlasdam's Tillman Family. She's Miss Sutherland's only friend. After Miss Sutherland's passing, she came to adopt your daughter, Denise. As of now, she's running a cosmetics company in Westhill with about a dozen employees. According to our investigation, Miss Tillman loathes Denise's father, which is you, believing your abandonment was the main reason Miss Sutherland suffered from obstructed labor."
• Immense guilt enveloped Daniel's face. Had he not already realized just how severe his mistake was?
• At that, he took a deep breath and asked solemnly, "Where is she? I want to take her back."
• No way would he allow his child to be out there!
• After some silence, Phantom advised, "My lord, I suggest that you don't come forward because Denise doesn't know Miss Tillman isn't her birth mother. Doing so rashly might lead to an overreaction."
• Daniel frowned upon hearing so.
• He got what Phantom was trying to say, but he couldn't just sit back and watch his daughter live with someone else, could he?
• "But the good news is that Miss Tillman is currently carrying out a fake blind date because your daughter's desire for a father figure grows stronger as she grows older. Plus, Miss Tillman has her own issues and stress, so she hopes to find a strawman."
• Daniel understood at once. "Send a copy of my resume over. I want to go for the interview."
• "Understood, sir." Phantom had been serving Daniel for a decade, so she naturally knew what he was thinking.
• With that, Daniel turned to look at the headstone with nothing but affection in his eyes as he squatted down. Evelyn, I've found our baby girl. I promise you I'll do everything in my power to keep her safe, he vowed as he stroked the surface of the cold headstone.
• The following afternoon, the receptionist of Davenport Trade Center escorted him to Janice's company soon after he entered the building.
• After arriving at her office, he knocked on the door.
• "Come in." A crisp voice came from inside.
• With that, Daniel took a deep breath and pushed the door open.
• Right as he entered, he found a stunning figure working away.
• Janice was dressed in business attire, exuding a sense of sophistication, and she had a sense of intellectuality and gentleness in her that made her comfortable to be around.
• If anything, she was even more stunning in person.
• "Mr. Daniel Hardon, am I right? Please have a seat." Janice came out from behind her desk with a smile, gesturing toward the couch.
• It was only then that Daniel came to himself, and he hurriedly took a seat.
• He was surprised that his emotions roused when he saw her delicate side profile from the corner of his eyes.
• So this is the woman who had raised my daughter for five years—Evelyn's best friend.
• Though he didn't know exactly how to feel, one thing was for sure, he was grateful.
• He had taken a look at the investigation report and learned that she treated Denise like she was her own. There was nothing he could find fault in.
• This was also why he would rather come for this fake blind date than reveal his identity and take Denise away.
• The gratitude of raising a child was just as commendable as giving birth to one.
• Besides, he currently wasn't a qualified father either.
• Janice got straight to the point after taking her seat. "I've already taken a look at your resume, Mr. Hardon, and I won't beat around the bush with you. Are you clear as to the purpose of this blind date?"
• "I do." Daniel nodded.
• Though it was called a blind date, it was, in fact, recruitment.
• It was a two-year contract with a wage of 5,000 a month, and one was expected to be on call at all times.
• But there was only one job to do—act as Denise's father.
• Also, Janice had the sole right to unconditionally extend the time along with many other additional clauses.
• But to put it simply, it was an indenture.
• "Judging from your resume, you meet all of the requirements. But I have one question. I'd like to know why you'd want to apply for this job." With that, she fixed her gaze on Daniel.
• She knew well that this job could be considered an indenture, and one would have to waste at least two years of his time here. Plus, he'd have to stay single throughout the term of the contract. So she was curious why Daniel would still apply for this job when he knew all these requirements.
• "Because I got injured on the battlefield," Daniel answered composedly, "and it led to my inability to produce a child of my own. But I love kids, so here I am." Daniel paused as a goddess-like figure dancing under the moonlight popped into his head, and his gaze suddenly dimmed. "Also… my beloved has passed, and my heart will always belong to her and her alone."
• Janice's brows lifted, somewhat shocked.
• A man could lie, but their gazes couldn't.
• She could tell this man was telling the truth.
• What was more, Daniel's physique wasn't as burly as she had imagined. In fact, he looked scrawny, and his pale face made him look sickly.
• "Sorry." A hint of an apology laced Janice's face, and Daniel shook his head, assuring her he wasn't bothered.
• "Well, you do meet all of the requirements, but have we met before, Mr. Hardon? You look a little familiar." Janice scrutinized Daniel's face, feeling like she had seen him before but couldn't remember where.
• Daniel's heart skipped a beat. "I don't think so. It hasn't even been two days since I came back."
• In actuality, the two had never met, and the sense of familiarity actually came from his resemblance to Denise's face.
• "Is that so?" Janice's frown deepened, however, and her gaze turned graver by the second.
• Guilt-ridden, Daniel lowered his head, worried that she would notice something.
• Just then, the secretary's voice came from outside. "Mr. Doyle, Miss Tillman has given the order that no one is allowed to go inside at this time. Mr. Doyle!"