Chapter 112

Chapter 112

Upon hearing this, the bodyguards instinctively shielded the youngling behind them to protect him from harm and undue attention, before turning to look in the direction of the voice.

A shooting range is the kind of place where all sorts of people gather—basically, people of all ages and backgrounds.

Some are members affiliated with underground factions who occasionally come here to practice shooting. Many parents in Efflisa City also bring their children here for training after they’ve just come of age. Of course, there are also idle lowlifes who come to take out their frustrations…

Those individuals clearly belonged to the latter category. Seeing the manager escort visitors in with such obsequiousness had already irritated them, and upon noticing it was such a young Omega youngling, one couldn’t help but mutter a derogatory comment.

But the moment they noticed the accompanying bodyguards, they immediately shut their mouths.

To survive in Efflisa City, one might not need to recognize the mayor, but they absolutely must recognize XT.

The XT insignia was clearly visible on the bodyguards’ uniforms, and to command so many XT Group bodyguards, this little Omega must be the descendant of one of the group’s senior executives.

Sang Xi gave the manager a few instructions, and the manager nodded before immediately calling security to have those troublemakers thrown out.

Truth be told, the manager had had enough of these hooligans. They always formed gangs to bully innocent customers and vented their anger indiscriminately in the shop. This time, with XT backing them, the bodyguards stood stoic, and the thugs’ bluster immediately vanished.

Likely not daring to offend XT, those troublemakers—who usually caused endless problems—completely abandoned their usual arrogance, not even daring to show a hint of anger as they scurried away from the shooting range.

To avoid letting those scoundrels offend the little master's sight, Sang Xi kept Luo Ci shielded behind him until the troublemakers were completely cleared out before stepping aside.

By the time Luo Ci popped his head out from behind Sang Xi’s leg, those people had already been driven away.

The manager apologized to them and had the staff bring over the prepared guns and ammunition.

Luo Ci had never tried shooting before and was very intrigued. Sang Xi only had to teach him how to load the bullets once before he mastered it.

Just as he was brimming with confidence, convinced he was a natural at shooting, he raised the small pistol and fired five or six times—only to find no trace of his shots on the target. When he asked the manager, he learned he had completely missed the target.

Luo Ci hung his head in disappointment. He was sure he had followed Sang Xi’s instructions exactly.

Line up the sights and bullseye—how could this happen?

Sitting on the sofa, he dejectedly sipped the sparkling water a bodyguard had just bought for him when footsteps approached. Turning his head, he saw a pale-complexioned youth.

The young man’s appearance was rather ordinary, but anyone with even a basic understanding of luxury could tell he came from a privileged upbringing. From head to toe, he was dressed in bespoke luxury wear, clearly carefully styled.

"May I sit here?"

Luo Ci nodded. The sofa wasn’t reserved for him, so of course anyone could sit there. "Sure!"

The bodyguards standing behind the sofa glanced at the young man, confirming he wasn’t concealing any firearms or dangerous items, and thus didn’t intervene.

"Are you wondering why you couldn’t hit the target?"

Luo Ci felt a little embarrassed. Hearing this, he realized the young man had witnessed all his misses.

His cheeks flushed pink as he pursed his lips. "Was it that obvious?"

The young man quickly reassured him, "It’s fine, it’s perfectly normal. Most people miss their first time shooting."

"Oh, really?" Luo Ci held his sparkling water with his small hands, blinking his bright, beautiful eyes—clearly convinced.

The young man stared at the youngling’s eyes, more luminous than cat’s-eye gemstones, momentarily transfixed.

He had long heard that Samuel had brought back an Omega youngling, treating him like a treasure. He had assumed the little one would be haughty and difficult to approach, but instead, the little one had such a gentle disposition—like a pampered housecat, effortlessly evoking the softest emotions.

He really wanted to reach out and pat that fluffy, soft-looking little head.

But he didn’t dare and held himself back.

"Well, you see," the young man swallowed before continuing, "it’s because you’re still small and an Omega. Your wrists lack the strength, and guns are designed for Alphas. So when you pull the trigger, the kick throws off your aim—the angle between your eye alignment and sight picture, as well as the barrel and the target, shifts..."

Luo Ci let out an impressed "Wow," praising softly, "You know so much!"

The young man didn’t expect such straightforward praise from the little Omega, his face instantly turning bright red as he forgot what he had planned to say next.

When he snapped out of it, he saw the little one fiddling with the pistol again. His hands are so small... the young man couldn’t help but muse.

The youngling’s small chubby hands couldn’t fully grip the handle with one hand—he had to use both just to barely hold it.

This was actually normal, just as he had said earlier. Firearms were designed for Alphas and Betas. Omegas were naturally frail and slight, unsuited for handling such things.

"Actually, Omegas don’t need to learn this. You have bodyguards to protect you—handling these things might just hurt you instead."

Luo Ci pouted and shook his head. "No, I have to learn. I want to teach Samuel later!"

"..."

Hearing that forbidden name so abruptly left the young man momentarily stunned. Among the families operating in Efflisa City, no one dared to address the man directly by name—they usually referred to him as "that lord."

Once he processed the little one’s words, his mind went blank again. What did he mean by "teach Samuel"? As the largest weapons magnate, surely Samuel knew how to pull a trigger...

Luo Ci tilted his head in confusion, unsure why the young man kept freezing up mid-conversation.

Fortunately, the young man recovered quickly this time, tapping the holographic interface on his wrist. "This is my contact info. Maybe we could—"

Just then, Sang Xi approached and interrupted him. "Little master, Samuel says he has to make an unexpected trip out of town. Would you like to speak with him? The manager mentioned it’s getting late—do you wish to continue?"

Luo Ci immediately jumped up from the sofa. "Yes, yes!"

The bodyguards followed closely behind.

Once the youngling was on the call, Sang Xi turned back. "The Conklin family's fifth son. My duty is to protect the little master’s safety. You mean no harm, so I allowed you to speak with him. But if you wish to go further, I advise you to stop here."

The young man paled, surprised they had uncovered his identity so quickly. "I—I didn’t approach him deliberately. Today was just a coincidence..."

"Efflisa’s Black Harbor has documentation of your covert entry with your mother yesterday. You usually wear Derry No. 54 cologne, but today you switched to No. 153, which is more popular among Omegas."

Sang Xi’s tone was as flat as if he were discussing the weather. "Your grandfather has been fishing for intel everywhere lately—especially about XT Group’s Century Casino nearing completion on the Green Isle and how its future management will be appointed. The Conklin family runs wineries and believes they have the expertise to manage the casino."

Exposed, the young man opened his mouth but couldn’t muster a defense.

Samuel was too difficult to approach—even attempts to curry favor had always led nowhere. But just then, news spread through Efflisa’s upper echelons and underground circles that he had brought back and doted on a little child, triggering a storm of speculation.

Every family began making moves.

If they couldn’t win Samuel’s favor, going through the young master seemed like the next best option.

As long as they built a stable relationship with the little one, wouldn’t critical information follow? Gaining his trust would surely earn them a position under His Lordship eventually. At the very least, it’d give them more visibility with him.

To avoid exposing their intentions too soon, the Conklins had even recalled this junior relative from out of town.

But their plan had been far too simplistic.

Listening to Sang Xi’s words, the young man felt as if a spectral, choking grip had closed around his throat.

It turned out that their thought-to-be-hidden intentions were plainly visible to them.

Especially with the tall and burly Sang Xi standing before him, he even felt an unspoken threat.

He had anticipated that things wouldn’t go so smoothly, but after spending the afternoon with the young one, he genuinely grew fond of the adorable little Omega. If he hadn’t approached with ulterior motives from the start, might they have become genuine friends?

But 'what ifs' didn't matter now.

Not daring to linger any longer, he slipped out through a side entrance.

Sang Xi silently withdrew his gaze.

Getting rid of one wouldn’t prevent others—this was only the beginning.

After hanging up the communicator, Luo Ci walked back, only to find the young man gone, assuming he had left for some reason.

Sitting in the car on the way back to the villa, the little one, exhausted from a day of fun outside, was fighting to keep his eyes open.

He had thought Samuel would return that night, but unexpectedly, he had to leave on a sudden business trip. When he asked his brother how long he’d be gone, Samuel said it could be as short as three days or as long as a week.

Three days at the very least…

That was so long…

The little one, who had excitedly bought a pile of gifts earlier, immediately deflated.

Sang Xi: "Young master, should I arrange for someone to deliver the gifts to the master?"

"Can we?" Luo Ci rubbed his sleepy, glistening eyes.

Sang Xi nodded.

Luo Ci covered a yawn with his hand. He did want to get the gifts to Samuel as soon as possible to get his reaction, so he nodded. "Alright, then. Thank you, Sang Xi."

……

Within thirty minutes.

The gifts were placed on Samuel’s desk.

Samuel hadn’t actually needed to leave for a business trip—he had sensed his Alpha rut was coming on and feared his pheromones might affect the little one if he returned to the villa, so he fabricated a business trip excuse.

At that moment, sitting across from him was the chairman of a major conglomerate, who had come in person to persuade Samuel to collaborate with him.

But before they could properly begin the formal discussion, William knocked and entered, placing a gift box on the desk.

He watched as Samuel unwrapped it, revealing a plump stuffed animal and an Rt-7896.

Who sent this gift? They couldn’t even appeal to his preferences.

The Rt-7896 was a single-shot pistol for beginners, reportedly nearing discontinuation—an antique that even weapons manufacturers wouldn’t give a second look.

Just as the chairman was thinking aloud, he saw Samuel stand up from his seat, an undeniably delighted grin on his face.

Samuel displayed obvious affection for this outdated firearm.

At first, he placed the Rt-7896 in the display cabinet, but finding it inadequate, he moved it to the most prominent spot on his desk.

Wearing a self-satisfied smile, he said, "Here, the most visible spot in the office. Perfect, isn’t it?"

The chairman looked perplexed. "Y-yes…"

Since when did Samuel develop a taste for such relics?

Or perhaps he was mistaken—maybe this wasn’t just an antique in appearance but actually the most advanced weapon?