Third person's POV
On a distant rooftop, a man stood quietly, witnessing the chaos unfold from afar.
When Manager Dalton, filled with fear and trepidation, called to inform him about the helicopters, he was initially delighted, thinking he had finally caught Derek off guard.
"Let them cause a ruckus. The more, the better," he instructed.
Dalton couldn't help but wonder if his boss had lost his mind, questioning the logic behind such an order.
In his view, if a single ship could bring down Derek, it would be a bargain.
However, when he realized the arriving forces were private mercenaries, the man's face turned pale instantly.
Derek hadn't used his men.
This realization meant he couldn't link the events on the ship to Derek.
"Stop them, quickly!" the man shouted in a panic.
"It's too late, boss, they... ah!!" The call was cut off abruptly.
Furious, the man hastily switched on the surveillance system, only to find every single camera showing scenes of wanton destruction, from the first to the last.
Each surveillance location was precisely identified, not by chance, but clearly part of a premeditated plan set up by Derek during his time on the ship.
The man now realized that while he had been scheming against Derek, he had unknowingly become the one caught in Derek's trap.
He had lost this round decisively.
The last camera was destroyed by Rolf, who, before kicking the camera, deliberately flipped off at the surveillance, blatantly mocking the man.
Then, with a kick, "crack," the camera shattered, and the screen plunged into darkness.
At this moment, the ship had turned into a chaotic scene akin to a demonic revelry, and the man could only watch helplessly, without any countermeasures.
He knew he had fallen into a trap.
Derek had dared to toy with him so.
Enraged, the man swept his arm across the sand table, sending the meticulously constructed Seven-Star Tower crashing to the ground.
The thousands of pieces that made up the tower fell apart, scattering everywhere.
The red liquid from within the tower flowed out, mocking his defeat.
He and Derek had been probing and clashing for years, but this was undoubtedly the most painful defeat he had suffered.
Derek had boarded the ship before and failed to uncover any information, yet tonight, using Tabitha as a catalyst, the man was exposed.
Derek had cleverly turned the tide, causing chaos on the ship, and even if he swallowed this silent loss, he could do nothing about it.
After all, he had never shown his face, so how could anyone attribute these actions to him?
And if he stepped forward rashly, wouldn't it be tantamount to admitting to being the mastermind behind the scenes?
"Very well, very well indeed!" the man gritted his teeth.
He had received three hundred and forty million dollars from Derek but had lost billions as a result.
The more the man thought about it, the angrier he became, and then he suddenly laughed. In the end, he drained the remaining wine from the bottle.
"Well, I haven't lost everything," the man consoled himself.
Derek used to have no weaknesses, and he had no way to deal with him.
Now, with his gaze fixed on Tabitha's photo, the man thought to himself that now that he could confirm this was Derek's weakness, a man with vulnerability was no longer invincible.
Tonight's grudge, he would certainly repay with interest.
Tabitha was completely unaware of the storm outside, nor was she aware of the thrilling events that had been triggered simply because of her.
She had heard some noise along the way and intended to get up and see what was happening outside.
But the man entwined with her held her waist tightly, pulling her back into the endless passion.
At this moment, her mind was filled with pleasure, making her forget all external disturbances.
With her eyes covered, she couldn't see who the man in front of her was and could only helplessly cling to him, reaching the intoxicating peak again and again.
Later, she had lost her last shred of reason, her body seemingly melting into a pool of spring water, too weak even to moan.
Derek treated her with the utmost gentleness, a tenderness that made Tabitha repeatedly hallucinate that the man on top of her was Derek.
"Derek..." she unconsciously clutched his hand, whispering.
At this moment, she forgot her hatred and let go of the past, as if only the two of them existed in the entire world.