Chapter 8 Unparalleled

• “What?” Finneas' expression turned icy in an instant, so much so that even the surrounding temperature seemed to plummet rapidly.
• Joaquin was already dead, yet there were still those who treated him that way, not even sparing his corpse.
• What on earth are these people planning? thought Finneas.
• Frederick didn't know what had happened, but seeing the chilling, almost murderous expression on Finneas' face, he knew something serious had occurred!
• “Prepare the car. We're heading to the funeral home!” Finneas spoke in a chilling tone, a sound so cold that it made Frederick shudder uncontrollably.
• Without daring to slack off or ask any further questions, Frederick immediately turned around and drove off.
• Speeding along swiftly, the two of them quickly arrived at the funeral home.
• Inside the funeral home, all the staff were as frantic as ants on a hot pan.
• As soon as Finneas and his companion entered the funeral home, they were greeted by an elderly man with graying hair and wearing reading glasses. He asked, “Are you Mr. Finneas?”
• “Tell me, what happened?” Finneas said in a cold voice.
• Connor was taken aback by Finneas' imposing aura, swallowing nervously in secret. He spoke with a hint of helplessness. “I'm not sure how it happened, but your elder brother's body mysteriously vanished from our funeral home. I've already sent people out to search everywhere, and we've reported it to the police...”
• Finneas didn't want to hear any more of his prattle. With a swift push, he dismissed Connor and made a beeline for the morgue.
• Inside the morgue, the crystal casket that once held my older brother's body was inexplicably empty, leaving behind nothing but a desolate crystal casket.
• Finneas' brows furrowed tightly as he paced around the coffin.
• Yet, despite his keen insight, he astonishingly didn't discover anything.
• There's no way the body simply vanished into thin air. Someone must have deliberately stolen Joaquin's body, intending to conceal something. Recalling what Xavier had said earlier about someone else plotting against Joaquin, Finneas' eyebrows furrowed deeply.
• After some thought, he turned to look at Frederick and said, “Check the surveillance.”
• Frederick nodded, and without uttering any unnecessary words, he turned and left.
• At that moment, Connor walked in, speaking apologetically. “Mr. Lockwood, on behalf of our funeral home, I offer you our deepest apologies. I'm truly sorry!”
• After he finished speaking, he gave Finneas a deep bow.
• After such an incident occurred, it was hard for him, as the director, to shirk responsibility.
• Finneas didn't respond, nor did he show any particular reaction, but the icy aura he emanated was enough to send shivers down one's spine.
• Connor was aware of Finneas' dissatisfaction. He gritted his teeth and said, “To express our apologies, we, the funeral home, will cover the funeral expenses for Mrs. Lockwood. We hope for your understanding, Mr. Lockwood.”
• In that era, the cost of everyone's funeral was frighteningly high, ranging from tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands.
• To completely cover someone's funeral expenses was indeed a significant compensation.
• Finneas continued to ignore Connor. To him, recovering Joaquin's body was of utmost importance.
• As for the compensation, he couldn't care less about it because he was Warlord of the North of Clusia's Four Supreme Warlords.
• Even if he were offered the entire funeral home as compensation, he wouldn't be the slightest bit interested.
• From beginning to end, he never once thought about seeking any form of compensation.
• Though he remained silent, someone else couldn't hold back.
• “Why are you being like this? Mr. Gomez has agreed to offer you such generous compensation. Don't be ungrateful.” The one speaking was a woman, heavily made up and flashy.
• Her demeanor was haughty, her face filled with contempt and anger.
• “What did you say?” Suddenly, Finneas' gaze swept over, his eyes coldly fixed on the woman.
• If his memory served him right, that woman was a mortician at the funeral home. Her name was Jessica.
• To put it simply, the mortician was just a server. It was unclear where her arrogance originated from.
• Upon feeling the piercing gaze of Finneas, Jessica was immediately startled, stepping back twice in quick succession. However, when she recalled Finneas' identity from the information she had, she instantly lost composure.
• Despite being from a branch family of the prominent Xanthos family from Hofcaster, she was surprisingly intimidated by a pauper.
• She immediately puffed out her chest, took a step forward, and, with a wicked look on her face, snapped, “Why are you so angry? It's just a dead person, isn't it? If they're gone, they're gone. What's the big deal?”
• Such incidents had occurred at the funeral home before. In the past, usually a bit of compensation money was enough to appease the family members.
• Thus, she had grown accustomed to that demeanor!
• Upon hearing those words, Connor felt his heart skipped a beat. This is bad. Trouble's brewing!
• Before he could even react, he felt the temperature in the morgue drop drastically, as if he had suddenly stepped into an arctic ice cave.
• Immediately after, he heard a swift sound, as a fleeting shadow darted past him.
• Instinctively, he looked in the direction of the fading figure. When his gaze refocused, he found that Finneas was already in front of Jessica, his hand gripping her throat, lifting her up.
• At that moment, Finneas resembled a demon that had charged out of hell, his entire being radiating an endless aura of malevolence.
• Even though Connor had spent his entire life working in the funeral home, witnessing countless instances of life and death, and was long past the point of fear, he was still visibly shaken by Finneas' appearance at that moment.
• Jessica's face turned beet red, feeling as if she was about to suffocate. Her hands tightly gripped Finneas' wrists, her legs kicking around wildly.
• Yet her strength before Finneas was like that of an ant, utterly futile.
• “Mr. Lockwood... Mr. Lockwood, let's talk things out calmly. Young people don't understand the implications of their words. If she said something inappropriate, allow me to apologize on her behalf.” Connor spoke with genuine fear and trepidation, terrified that Finneas might directly take Jessica's life, because he sensed an overwhelming murderous intent emanating from Finneas.
• Finneas shot Connor a frosty glance. Immediately, he felt a bone-chilling cold seep from the top of his head into his body, causing him to shudder uncontrollably. The words he was about to utter were swallowed back down.
• “Let... Let go of me!” Jessica helplessly patted Finneas' arm, feeling the approach of death inch by inch. She was terrified.
• Finneas gazed at her coldly. After a considerable pause, he waited until fear had completely taken over her heart before he finally uttered a chilling word. “Apologize!”
• Of course, Jessica didn't dare to hesitate even the slightest. She hurriedly, with great effort, said, “Yes, yes, I'm sorry!”
• It was only then that Finneas finally loosened his grip, which had been as firm as a vice.
• Jessica hit the ground with a thud. Intense pain surged through her, yet she dared not make a sound. She was panting heavily, gasping for air.
• Every so often, she cast a glance at Finneas, her eyes filled with a hue of fear.
• “If you don't want to die, then keep vigil for my brother and his wife for seven days and seven nights.” Once again, Finneas' voice, icy and authoritative, resonating with undeniable certainty, echoed in the air.
• “I...” Instinctively, Jessica wanted to retort, but the moment she caught sight of Finneas' gaze, all her reliance crumbled instantly within her heart.
• The man standing before her was indeed capable of murder!
• Consequently, she was forced to suppress her resentment and rage. Through gritted teeth, she managed to utter, “Fine.”
• Finneas could clearly perceive her inner thoughts, yet he nonchalantly said, “No matter what tricks you have up your sleeve, feel free to use them on me. As long as you can bear the consequences of angering me!”
• Upon hearing those words, Jessica secretly swallowed hard, finding herself unable to muster even a shred of anger.
• No sooner had Finneas finished speaking than Frederick walked in.
• “Lord Lockwood...” Just as Frederick was about to continue speaking, he abruptly realized something and hastily corrected himself. “Finneas, I just went to check the surveillance footage, but the person in charge of managing it told me that all the cameras, inside and outside the funeral home, even the ones on the nearby streets, are all broken. There's no footage from today at all. I've questioned the staff at the funeral home, essentially ruling out any suspicion.”
• Finneas gave a slight nod, his eyebrows furrowing tighter.
• He had actually suspected that situation a while ago. He just wanted to give Frederick a shot at trying his luck.
• It seemed that the culprit was quite skilled, with a mastermind at the helm.
• However, that only served to ignite Finneas' competitive spirit. If the opponent was too weak, then there would be no real thrill in it. “Send out the orders. Pull up all surveillance footage within a kilometer radius from the last three days. Thoroughly investigate any suspicious individuals!”
• “Understood!” replied Frederick.
• “I have to stay at Hofcaster for a while. Send a telegram to those old guys explaining the reason.”
• “Roger!”
• “Get in touch with the relevant personnel, reinforce the security at the funeral home. If such an incident happens again, heads will roll!”
• “Roger!”
• “Find me a new place to stay. Living in a hotel all the time is inconvenient.”
• “Roger!”
• In one breath, Finneas issued four commands to Frederick. Without another word, he turned and left the morgue.
• He was decisive and efficient, never one to beat around the bush.
• As Connor watched Finneas' departing figure, a storm of emotions couldn't help but surge within his heart.
• He had spent his entire life as the director of a funeral home, encountering countless officials of high rank, distinguished individuals, and extraordinary talents. Yet, none had ever left such a profound impression on him!
• At that moment, he realized just how incredible a truly unparalleled individual was.