Harry pondered over what he had felt the previous day—how even from a distance, despite not knowing Pete personally or being targeted directly, his Nemesis prompt had been triggered. That meant Pete's ability must be extremely potent.
Based on the information Harry had gathered from Victor, as well as the events surrounding Pete, Harry could piece together a rough theory.
It seemed that even Pete himself didn't know he had a hidden ability. Given the honest man tag, Harry suspected that the more Pete was pushed to his limits, the stronger this ability would activate.
Harry might not have the life experience of someone older and more seasoned, who could judge people accurately at a glance, but he had an edge—his ability. He could confidently say that Pete was truly an honest man.
While Harry was lost in thought, Victor clicked his tongue as he looked over the data on his laptop.
"This guy's behavior was beyond shameless. I actually thought that Serene City Chemical Plant hadn't paid him, and he was genuinely struggling financially. But look at this—last night alone, he spent over 30,000 yuan. And his personal account? Over three million yuan in cash."
Victor shook his head in disbelief. "And yet, he couldn't bring himself to pay his workers a few thousand yuan in wages. What a scumbag."
"Besides Pete, there are several other workers who filed complaints. From what I can tell, over a hundred workers are still owed wages. How did this guy have the nerve?"
Victor continued scanning the documents, his expression suddenly shifting. "Wait a minute... I think I just stumbled upon a lead in the chemical plant case."
He abruptly closed his laptop and stood up.
"Huh?" Harry blinked, a bit confused. "It's connected to the chemical plant case?"
"Yep," Victor nodded. "One of the complaints I found was from a worker who was involved in a small construction project at the chemical plant a few months ago. After filing his complaint, he received his pay and then quit."
"But I did some digging, and it turns out that after he bought a train ticket, he never boarded, and no one has seen him since. No one even reported him missing."
Victor grabbed his jacket and started heading out.
"Wait, what?"
Victor glanced back. "Don't worry about the wages. His estate has more than enough to cover the unpaid salaries. It'll get sorted soon enough."
Before Harry could respond, Victor had already left the room, his attention on the new lead.
Harry considered briefly bringing up the possibility that Pete might have had something to do with the boss's death—that maybe Pete had snapped and traveled all the way from Serene City to Doner Residence to settle things in person. But Victor clearly hadn't entertained that thought.
And after hearing everything Victor said, Harry wasn't so sure anymore either.
The more plausible explanation seemed to be that the boss had gotten tangled up in something dangerous. Maybe he'd said the wrong thing, and his death had been a warning to keep others quiet.
Harry sighed and pulled out his phone, dialing Pete's number.
"Hey, brother."
"Ah, Harry, is that you?"
"Yeah, I've got some news. Your boss... he's dead."
"Wh—What? Dead? How... how did that happen?"
"Apparently, he got really drunk, drove, and ended up... well, dying."
On the other end of the line, Pete fell silent, the shock hitting him hard.
He had a mix of emotions—part sadness for his boss, but also a sinking feeling that his unpaid wages might never come through.
For Pete, a dead boss meant the debt died with him. Even though he felt bad, he was resigned to the idea that he might never get what he was owed.
Sensing Pete's silence, Harry spoke up to reassure him. "Don't worry, I asked around. Turns out he left behind quite a bit of inheritance. And you weren't the only one he owed wages to. His estate will settle everything—your pay will be included."
Pete hesitated. "But... didn't he say he was broke? What about his wife and kids? Maybe I should just—"
He paused, looking at his sick mother in the hospital bed. While part of him wanted to just let the debt go, the thought of needing that money for his family's medical bills gnawed at him.
"You're at the hospital, right?" Harry asked.
"Yeah... yeah, I came back yesterday."
"And how's your family doing?"
"The doctors said they're recovering well."
"Good. You focus on taking care of them. Leave the rest to me."
"All right, Harry... thanks."
Pete hung up, looking troubled. His wife noticed his expression and asked, "What's wrong?"
"The boss... he's gone. Died in a car accident, drunk driving."
"Dead? How does someone just... die like that? What about your wages?"
"He's got an estate, so they'll pay me. That guy I met, Harry, said it'll all be sorted out. Still, I can't believe he's gone. We just saw him yesterday."
Though Pete had always thought his boss was a bit stingy, he had truly believed the man didn't have the money to pay everyone. After all, it wasn't just him—there were other workers who hadn't been paid either. The total amount was significant.
But now, knowing the boss had plenty of money, Pete was left with mixed feelings.
Workers would joke that the boss would get hit by a car for not paying them, but deep down, no one actually wished for that. After all, if the boss died, who would pay them?
He made a few calls to some of his fellow workers, spreading the news about the boss's death and double-checking to make sure the information was accurate.
———
Harry didn't stick around for the autopsy. The team from the Blazing Sun Division spent half the day going over the body, but their preliminary conclusion was simple—he died of suffocation while intoxicated, purely accidental.
The boss's young and pretty widow showed up, shed a few tears, and then watched the footage from the Blazing Sun Division, which showed her husband stumbling out of his car, drunk, tripping over a curb, and snapping his neck in the process.
As soon as that was done, she received a call from the Labor Supervision Team. They had been swamped with complaints from workers demanding their wages.
Realizing that if she wanted to inherit her husband's assets, she'd have to settle his debts, she quickly signed the necessary paperwork.
By noon, she had agreed to have the body cremated and even booked a deluxe cremation package, demanding the cremation happen that very day.
Without waiting around, she left in a hurry.
Harry followed the process from beginning to end, watching as the man's body was wheeled into the cremation chamber.
It was almost absurd—just a couple of mortuary workers, pushing a small cart with a speaker blaring fake firecracker noises as they circled the courtyard once before declaring the ritual complete.
In less than ten minutes, the body was fed into the deluxe cremation chamber. Old Jack from the crematorium lit the fire and waited, while two Blazing Sun Division agents stood by, supervising.
Within moments, the sound of crackling and banging came from inside the chamber, followed by faint wails that sent a shiver down Harry's spine.
He instinctively took a step back, his face pale.
Old Jack chuckled and waved his hand dismissively. "Don't worry about it. You ever heard of thermal expansion? The air inside the lungs heats up, expands, and forces its way out, causing the vocal cords to vibrate. It's just a natural reaction."
Just as Old Jack was explaining this, the sounds inside the chamber grew louder, with low growls now mixing with the crackling. This time, even the two agents from the Blazing Sun Division stepped back, joining Harry in silent retreat.