The Killer Queen (Noella Briony)

Palmer's voice was soft and tender in a way that words could hardly describe.

"Being Loadstar is tough, but being my pal, you can relax and be yourself."

"How did you know?" Noella pulled away from Palmer's embrace, looking up at him.

"I'm no fool."

Besides, once he got a hint of something, there wasn't a thing the Pollack Group couldn't uncover!

When Noella reported Caleb for academic misconduct on a research forum under the guise of Loadstar, Palmer suspected it was her.

How many leaders could Polaris Star have?

Palmer had delved into Loadstar's every move, uncovering more of her past traces than she could have imagined.

From the moment he learned of her pivotal role within Polaris Star, Palmer had sought to understand her in his own way!

Palmer extended his hand, palm open, towards Noella. "As a reward for your hard work, Noella, this is my gift to you."

"A gift?"

Noella's gaze landed on Palmer's palm as he slowly opened his hand. Inside, there was a USB drive!

"Where... where did you get this?"

Palmer chuckled lightly, "I figured you'd need it."

Noella indeed needed that USB, but she was more astonished by how Palmer knew she would need it!

"I traced back through Polaris Star's history, even visited the deserted lab, and stumbled upon some interesting facts." Nôvel/Dr(a)ma.Org - Content owner.

Shouldn't this USB be in Garrick's possession?

Noella was puzzled, looking at Palmer. "Where did you get it from?"

"Garrick auctioned off this a while back, and I happened to acquire it."

Palmer's explanation was casual, but Noella didn't believe it was just a simple coincidence.

Her fingers traced Palmer's shirt cuff, undoing his buttons, revealing arms wrapped in bandages, with a strong scent of antiseptic beneath the musky cologne.

"You're hurt?"

"In my line of work, isn't getting injured pretty standard?"

Being injured might be normal for an assassin, but for someone of Palmer's caliber to sustain such serious injuries was definitely not normal!

Noella knew Palmer's skills well; Vocalist, a renowned assassin, wouldn't make such basic mistakes. The wounds on his arm clearly resulted from a surprise attack!

"Tell me, what exactly happened?"

"Accept my gift, and I'll tell you."

Palmer didn't stop Noella from examining his injuries but still stubbornly insisted she accept his gift.

Noella took the USB from his hand, and it felt as if the warmth of Palmer's palm had transferred onto the USB, offering a comforting sensation.

"I've accepted it."

"You probably know that I went to the border and had a couple of drinks with Xavier."

Xavier loved his liquor and was confident in his ability to hold it. When Palmer showed up wanting to drink, Xavier accepted without hesitation, even boasting he'd drink Palmer under the table!

As it turned out, Xavier woke up the next day with Palmer long gone, unable to recall what he had blabbered about after getting drunk!

"Xavier's weakness is that he spills everything when drunk. But on the borders, aside from me, no one can get him that wasted. I asked about your grandma, and that's how I knew this USB was important to you."

Whether it was due to the sentimental value of the USB left by Noella's grandmother or the data hidden inside it, the USB held great significance for Noella!

"Garrick did auction off this, but it was at the Spring Haven auction house."

Spring Haven, located on the fringes of Harmonia Country, was a lawless zone bordering several small nations. Its narrow borders and straits hid untold crimes and bloodshed!

The auction house in Spring Haven was more chaotic than orderly; once the items were sold, it became a free-for-all, with chaos and disorder creating their own opportunities!

"You went to the Spring Haven auction house?"

"Yeah, when I arrived, the USB had just come up. The seller wasn't after money, which made it quite a bargain."

Those who went to Spring Haven's auction house to sell weren't short of money or connections; they were often eccentrics!

"What did he want?"

"Not much, just a trip to the Spring Haven underground fight club, a free-for-all brawl."

Noella looked up abruptly, her eyes filled with unmistakable surprise... and concern. No wonder Palmer had to mask his scent with cologne! He couldn't possibly think he could fool a doctor's nose, could he?

"Why go through all this? You knew it was dangerous."

Exiting the Spring Haven fight club wasn't too hard for Palmer, but the issue was his unhealed injuries! Heading into the underground fight club, especially a free-for-all brawl, with countless desperadoes aiming at him, it was no surprise he came out with wounds.

"I just knew you needed it. Maybe Garrick wanted to lure you there, so it didn't matter who went."

If he hadn't gone, she would have!

Knowing the dangers, Palmer couldn't bear to let Noella face them head-on.

Palmer reached out to stroke Noella's hair, his voice deep and tinged with a hint of amusement.

"As long as you need it, what I do is never in vain."

Noella tightened her grip on the USB, pulling Palmer's wrist, leading him out of the stairwell and straight to Ulrich's office.

Bursting in, she pushed Palmer onto a chair.

Noella commanded coolly, "Strip."

The door creaked open, and several heads peeked in, chorusing, "Noella, are you… okay?"

Inside the office, Noella was bent over, tugging at Palmer's collar, her gaze stern and authoritative as she ordered him to strip.

Jasper slammed the door shut and patted his chest in disbelief.

"Man, I had no idea Noella and Mr. Pollack... Turns out Noella's the one taking the lead!"

The scene was spicy enough to make Jasper’s eyelids twitch.

Beckett murmured, "Maybe we got it wrong."

Elara chimed in, "Beckett, don't kid yourself."

Ulrich was puzzled, "I still need to fetch something from inside. Should I just vanish for a bit?"

When Noella opened the office door, the Schnabel siblings were staring wide-eyed at her! Their expressions said it all. They had jumped to conclusions.

Noella, looking at Ulrich, said, "Ulrich, do you have another surgery? If not, come in. It’s kind of difficult to manage this alone."

Ulrich’s head buzzed with confusion!

Following Noella into the office, they saw Palmer, his upper body wrapped in bandages, some soaked with blood, and realized that Noella intended to change Palmer’s dressings.

"What happened to Mr. Pollack?"

As Ulrich moved to check on Palmer, Noella blocked him.

"Please, just hand me those supplies."

"Noella, let me do it. Mr. Pollack’s wounds look pretty deep."

Even though Palmer and Noella were practically engaged, they hadn’t made it official yet. The idea of letting his sister tend to a semi-nude man was something Ulrich couldn’t stand for.

Noella didn’t back down. Her eyelashes fluttered slightly, but her hands were steady and sure.

"Ulrich, he doesn’t like others touching him. I’ve got this.”