Chapter 7 Who's Responsible?

• Was it sheer coincidence that Vance wrapped the chair with Helen's coat, or could he actually predict the future?
• The probability of the former was almost zero.
• Hunter and Helen realized that there was more to the young man in front of them. He might not be "merely" a miracle doctor.
• They totally believed Vance's claims now, and they looked at him with eagerness in their eyes.
• Connor got to his feet and rubbed his forehead. "Pardon me. I've made a fool of myself."
• After sitting down, he said, "Helen, so where's the miracle doctor you were talking about?"
• Helen pointed at Vance. "There he is!"
• Connor sized up Vance, and his face sank. "Helen, I know that you're worried about your father's condition, but you shouldn't trust any random quack who claims they can treat him."
• "Don't say that, Connor!" Hunter yelped anxiously. "You shouldn't say that about your savior!"
• After that, Hunter stood up and personally refilled Vance's teacup. "I'm so sorry, young man. I shouldn't have suspected your abilities. Right. I happen to have a pound of this tea at home. I'll ask Helen to send it over to you later."
• Connor was confused. Helen might have been deceived because she was still young and relatively inexperienced, but why was Hunter so courteous toward that con artist?
• He took a deep breath and asked, "Hunter, why did you say this young man is my savior?"
• Hunter told Connor what happened earlier.
• Connor was dumbfounded after listening to the story. He would not have believed it, if not that Hunter was a close relative.
• Could that young man be an extraordinary expert?
• Helen was almost begging. "Vance, you must cure my father and my uncle's illnesses. They're my only relatives now."
• Vance glanced at the two men's faces. "They're not ill," he said.
• "What is it then?"
• Vance dipped his finger in his teacup and wrote three letters on the tablecloth.
• H-E-X.
• "A hex!" The three people cried out in surprise.
• "Shh. The walls have ears," Vance said anxiously.
• The three people's faces were pale with fear.
• If Vance had not showcased his ability to predict the future earlier, they would not have believed that hexes truly existed.
• Hexes were rumored to be the worst type of witchcraft. They were the stuff of horror stories, and anyone afflicted by a hex would die a horrible and painful death.
• "Take off your shirt. I want to see your backs," Vance said.
• "Yes, yes!" The two men quickly did as they were told.
• Their backs were filled with small red spots. The spots were itchy and painful, and it was worse whenever it rained.
• They had consulted the best doctors in the country, but no one could do anything about it.
• "Helen, do you see the pattern with the red spots?" Vance asked.
• Helen shook her head. "No. What pattern?"
• Vance drew an imaginary line around the spots. When Helen saw it, she covered her mouth to stop herself from shrieking.
• On Hunter's back, the red spots were arranged in the shape of a skull. As for Connor, his spots looked like the bars of a jail cell.
• Just thinking about it made Helen's hair stand on end.
• "Vance, you must help them!" Helen begged. She no longer carried the demeanor of a company director.
• Vance sighed. He took a pill from his pocket, split it in two, and said, "Eat this."
• Hunter and Connor each took half of the pill without hesitation and swallowed it.
• Something miraculous happened. As soon as the pill slipped down their throats, they felt a cooling sensation travel all around their bodies. The pain and itchiness on their backs instantly disappeared.
• "Ahh, I've never felt so comfortable!" The two men were almost crying tears of gratitude.
• "You're a miracle doctor, Mr. Krauss! Thank you so much for helping us!"
• Vance was not in the mood to bask in their praises. He had spent the entire night crafting that pill!
• "That pill can only allay your symptoms temporarily. To find out the root cause, I'll need to go to your respective houses to investigate. Someone must have done something to the leylines that course through your house, which would have caused the hex."
• "Yes, of course. Thank you, miracle doctor!"
• "Right, Mr. Krauss," Hunter said, "I've heard from Helen you need my help to find something. What is it?"
• "I lost a canvas backpack on my flight to Chevron. The contents are very important to me. Help me find it."
• "No problem! Just leave it to me!" Hunter replied heartily.
• Vance stretched and yawned. "I need to sleep. Bye."
• He stood up from his seat, which prompted Hunter, Connor, and Helen to stand up to see him off.
• At the door, Vance turned around and said, "Right, there's one more thing. Connor, the people in VIP Room 2 need your help. You can drop by if you're free."
• Connor nodded hastily. "No problem. I'll go over there now. By the way, do you know the people there?"
• Vance chuckled wryly. "I'm married to one of them, I guess."
• "Understood!"
• The Sullivan family members were still waiting for Ferdinand and Connor in VIP Room 2. They were running out of patience.
• Daryl was about to call Ferdinand when he heard a knock on the door.
• "Come in."
• The door opened, and Connor walked in. "Good afternoon. I'm Connor Duchenne from the Urban Planning Department."
• Mr. Duchenne is here!
• The Sullivan family members stood up all at once. "Welcome, Mr. Duchenne! It is truly an honor! Please have a seat, Mr. Duchenne. Hazel, tell the waiter to bring us some more food."
• Connor went directly to the point. "I heard from Mr. Krauss, you need some help with your business."
• "Yes, Mr. Duchenne," Arnold answered while nodding, "I would like to ask for your assistance about certain matters. Oh, right, where's Mr. Krauss? I thought you'd be here with him."
• Connor thought the "Mr. Krauss" Arnold was talking about referred to Vance.
• "I had lunch with Mr. Krauss at VIP Room 1 earlier. He told me he has some other business to attend to," he answered.
• What? Everyone from the Sullivan family was shocked.
• Mr. Duchenne was having lunch at VIP Room 1 earlier as Vance had said, and not caught up with work! Could it be that… Helen Lewis of Troy Global really invited Mr. Duchenne and Vance for lunch?
• "Mr. Duchenne, I don't mean to probe, but I wonder if you were having lunch with Ms. Helen Lewis of Troy Global?" Hazel asked.