The Alchemists

"What's the person like?" Marion asked curiously. Even if London had said that the person was not a bad guy, she still felt curious. Her daughter would stay in this hotel for a month until her gig was done. She did not want to take the risk.

Vega then repeated her description to London earlier. Marion listened carefully with a frown. She finally nodded and patted JM on the shoulder before she left.

"I will be out for a while. You three can just chat and hang out here. Order anything you'd like," she said before opening the suite door and going out.

After she disappeared behind the door, the three teenagers looked at each other. JM only shrugged when she saw the curious faces of her two friends.

"Mommy must be just curious, don't worry about it," said the girl.

They finally forgot the incident with the mysterious man in the elevator and talked about various things into the night. Altair and Vega were not worried at all tomorrow about waking up late because the tour would start at 10 am.

***

Meanwhile, Marion, who was still curious, decided to go to the security surveillance room. She broke in to see the results of CCTV monitoring from the elevator earlier to see the man Vega described. Marion quickly managed to find the figure she was looking for.

The man exited on the 30th floor and entered a suite on that floor. Marion then fast-forwarded the CCTV footage to make sure the man was still in his suite before she came to infiltrate. But apparently, Marion did not need to do that because soon the man left his room and walked back to the elevator.

Marion followed the man's footsteps through the CCTV and saw him go out on the 20th floor and headed for the restaurant. Apparently, he was still there.

"Hmm ... I feel like I've seen that person before. But where?" Marion muttered to herself. She tried to collect her memories, but she still could also not remember who the man was. It seemed they had never met in person.

Ah, since her daughter and the twins were having a great time chatting, Marion felt there was no point in her as a parent to interfere and disrupt their fun. Besides, she also needed to drink a little.

With that in mind, she then decided to go up to the restaurant on the 20th floor and spy on the man.

Shortly after, Marion arrived at the restaurant and a waiter respectfully came to greet her. He invited Marion in and gave a table that was strategic enough for her to observe her surroundings.

"Thank you," Marion said, sitting in her chair. She then opened the wine list and ordered a glass of red wine. Her gaze seemed indifferent, looking around, even though she was actually paying close attention. Her pair of cat's eyes were very sharp and trained.

Ah, gotcha!

She found the man she was looking for sitting at one of the tables in the corner. His handsome face was filled with anxiety. He sat with his legs crossed and a glass of red wine in his hand. His eyes swept room toward the door many times as if he were waiting for someone.

She saw him on TV and on the internet several times. But why was this man in Paris? Didn't he live in another country? And whom he was waiting for?

Marion smiled to herself. The man was indeed not a bad person, as London Schneider said. In a way, he was actually one of them. He was a family. 

Marion almost decided to greet the man and introduce herself, when suddenly the man rose from his seat, and his face turned bright.

Marion looked at the man's gaze and realized the person he had been waiting for had arrived. A gorgeous girl with short black hair in a bob style and a tall slim body like a supermodel had stepped into a restaurant.

She wore a white body-fitting dress, s.e.xy high heels, and her hand carried the most expensive brand name handbag today. Her beautiful face was filled with a sad expression, even though she seemed to try hard to hide it behind a cold attitude.

The man was about to hug the woman, but she refused gently and chose to sit opposite him. Both of them then sat face to face without saying anything with unpredictable expressions.

Are they lovers? It looks like their relationship is not good, Marion thought.

Actually, she did not want to interfere in other people's business, but unfortunately, Marion was an expert lip reader. From her sitting position, she could see the man's face, and when he opened his mouth to speak, Marion could tell what he was saying.

"I don't want to break up," the man said firmly.

"We've been together for almost eight years, Lisa. Why don't you want to consider our time together?" The man was still trying. He did not want to give up so easily.

The woman bit her lip frantically and shook her head many times. "I can't ... I've been thinking about it for the past month. I feel like I don't know you at all. Our eight years together now feels like a lie ..."

"Lisa ... That's not a lie. Everything is real. My feelings for you, everything I do for you is sincere. My past life was the past. I told you everything because I wanted you to know everything about me before we get married." The man's voice began to sound hopeless.

"There will be no marriage ... Sorry, I can't do this."

"Lisa ... Please, reconsider. Please take as much time as possible. I'll wait. I don't mind waiting for you, no matter how long. I only love you ..."

"Sorry ..." The girl rubbed her eyes and tried to look strong. She touched the man's hand, kissed his cheek, then rose from her seat, walked out of the restaurant, and never looked back.

The man could not see it, but from Marion's position, she could see tears in her beautiful pair of eyes as she passed Marion's table and walked to the door.

The man got up and walked after her, but as he passed Marion's table, suddenly his hand was pulled by her. With a surprised face, he stopped and stared at Marion in surprise.

"Who are you?" he asked with a cold voice.

"Please sit." Marion stood up and kindly pressed the man's shoulder to sit next to her. "Don't chase her now. Give her time to think."

The man was about to refuse, but soon, he was surprised to find that his shoulders were pressed very firmly. From the outside, Marion was seen patting his shoulder softly, as if to a friend, but he could feel her enormous strength.

"What do you want?" he asked again.

"Uff ... love is a jerk. It can make a ruthless professional assassin into a crybaby who is chasing after a woman," Marion commented with a smile.

The man raised his eyebrows in surprise. He tried to study Marion and guess who this woman was. Why she had such strength and knew his identity in the past. This woman was definitely not a random guest in this hotel.

After making sure that the woman in front of him had no ill intentions toward him, the man finally relaxed his shoulders and sat down. Subconsciously he sighed.

"I love her," he said quietly. "I've never loved a woman like her."

Marion nodded. "I can see it. You were in a relationship for quite a long time, and when you wanted to marry her and tell her everything about you, she became frightened and shocked. She felt cheated because you were not what she had always thought."

"You're eavesdropping," the man said in an annoyed voice. "It is not nice."

"Hey, it's not my fault, okay. I'm good at lip-reading. If you don't want others to eavesdrop, why not just talk in the room?" Marion replied curtly.

The man shook his head slowly. "She only wanted to meet me in public places."

"Ouch ... that bad. She thought you would kill her if you two were alone? Wow ... that's too much. You better find another woman who will accept you for who you are," Marion commented. She signaled to the waiter to bring a bottle of wine for them both. "I will accompany you for a drink to ease your sadness. I happen to be bored."

The man frowned. "You still haven't told me who you are."

Marion smiled faintly and then tilted her head with a hilarious expression. "Me? I'm Marion."

"Do you know who I am?" the man asked attentively. For a moment, his attention was diverted.

Marion nodded, "How can I possibly not know Mischa Rhionen, one of the four leaders of RMI, and the former most feared killer from Rhionen Assassin that was disbanded a dozen years ago?"