Chapter 56

Nothing about the situation had gone as Damon had expected. He had rushed over, heart pounding, fearing that something terrible had happened to Noelle. But to his surprise, it was Erick and Jamari, those two team mishits, who had ended up on the receiving end of disaster.

"You're telling me you did this to them?" Damon stared at the two crumpled figures on the floor, bruised and bloodied, before shifting his gaze to Noelle, small, delicate, and seemingly incapable of harming a fly.

"It was me," Noelle admitted, looking both sheepish and proud. "Who else would it be?"

"Your fighting skills are impressive," Damon said, his eyelid twitching. He'd heard the stories about Noelle defeating her instructors during military training, but since he hadn't seen it for himself, he'd assumed there had to be some kind of exaggeration or fluke. But now, seeing Erick and Jamari's wrecked faces with his own eyes, Damon couldn't deny it anymore: Noelle could actually fight.

Hearing Damon's compliment, Noelle's confidence swelled. She lifted her chin proudly. "Of course! I'm undefeated in one-on-one fights."

Damon found himself momentarily amused by Noelle's smugness. She was kind of cute. But as soon as the thought entered his mind, he felt horrified. Was I out of my mind? How could I think Noelle was cute? Damon thought Leia was the cutest person in the world. Compared to Leia, Noelle was barely one ten-thousandth as endearing.

Shaking his head to dispel the errant thought, Damon put on a stern expression and rained on her parade. "You had your fun beating them up, but now what? Everyone was having a good time at the party, and you just had to ruin it by putting two team members in the hospital. If this gets out, it could reflect badly on me too."

"Huh?" Noelle's triumphant mood deflated instantly. "Is it really that serious?"

Daimon's tone was exasperated. "You knocked their teeth out. What do you think?"

"Oh..." Noelle looked down, lips pressed together, seemingly reflecting on her actions. Although Damon didn't particularly like Noelle, he knew Erick and Jamari were the real culprits here. He also had to admit that he shared some of the blame for not keeping a closer eye on her. He sighed and started to soften his tone.

"You—" Damon began, but before he could finish, Noelle cut him off.

"Damon, you should leave," she said, her expression suddenly serious.

Damon was taken aback. "Leave? What are you planning to do?"

Noelle's eyes darkened, and she whispered conspiratorially, "Don't worry, Damon. I'll handle this. I promise it won't come back to haunt us."

Her confidence made Damon feel uneasy. He raised an eyebrow and asked cautiously, "What exactly are you planning?"

Noelle made a slicing motion across her neck and said in a grave tone, "Dispose of the bodies and erase all evidence." Damon was speechless.

Noelle, oblivious to his reaction, continued to explain her plan in detail. "Don't worry, Damon. Those two didn't use my ID to book the room, so there's no paper trail. I'll hack into the surveillance system and delete the footage. Then, I'll disguise myself as a cleaning staff member, move their bodies out as if I'm taking out the trash, and incinerate them in a cremation furnace..."

"Enough!" Damon cut her off, looking utterly defeated. He rubbed his temples and asked in disbelief, "What were you even doing before this? Why do you have ideas like this? Forget it. I'll handle this."

"But you said it might cause problems for you," Noelle protested.

"Don't worry, Damon. I'm a professional. The police won't find anything—"

"If you say one more word, I'm calling the cops right now," Damon threatened, his face dark with frustration.

Noelle immediately clammed up. Shrinking back, she looked up at Damon with wide, innocent eyes. "But, Damon, I was just trying to help. Why are you calling the police on me!"

"Who needs that kind of help?" Damon snapped. "Murder? Disposing of bodies? What kind of law-abiding citizen even thinks like that?"

Damon was now seriously wondering if Noelle had a history in organized crime. Elis's warnings about keeping an eye on Noelle suddenly made perfect sense. The more Damon thought about it, the more his head throbbed. Why did he have to deal with such chaos at a simple victory party?

Despite his irritation, Damon eventually called an ambulance for Erick and Jamari. Once they were sent to the hospital, Damon contacted the team manager to explain the situation. He framed it as Erick and Jamari trying to harass Noelle, leading to a necessary scuffle.

"Thanks for your understanding," Damon said to the manager.

"It's nothing. Honestly, this is on us for not managing them better. Is your sister okay? Should I come check on her?"

"No need," Damon replied quickly, glancing over his shoulder. Noelle was sitting nearby, happily munching on a chicken drumstick. She caught Damon's eye and flashed him a sweet smile, looking anything but traumatized. Damon's eye twitched, but he maintained his composure. "She's shaken up and doesn't want to see anyone right now. I'll take her home myself. Thanks again for your help."

After hanging up, Damon walked over to Noelle. She had just finished her chicken and was now holding a handful of lamb skewers. She ran up to him, her face lit with curiosity. "Damon, is everything sorted?"

"Yeah," Damon replied, still trying to process everything.

"Great!" Noelle beamed, relieved that Damon wouldn't face any consequences. Feeling at ease, she cheerfully polished off the lamb skewers.

Damon watched in disbelief as Noelle devoured the skewers. "How are you not full? You ate so much at the party," he asked, baffled.

"I'm not full," Noelle replied matter-of-factly. "Fighting takes a lot of energy, and you scared me with how serious you made this sound. Stress burns calories, you know!" Stuffing her face, Noelle's nose twitched. Her eyes sparkled as she tugged on Damon's sleeve. "Damon, I smell pancakes! I think they're being grilled. Let's go get some!"

Damon stared at her in disbelief. Still hungry? He had never met anyone with a bigger appetite or a thicker skin. She kept calling him Damon even though he told her not to, always bouncing back from his scolding like it hadn't happened. Now she wanted pancakes after all that lamb? What is wrong with this girl?