Although the matter was resolved, Alven was not in a good mood. Too many people died, and while these guys deserved to die, it was hard to guarantee that no chefs or nannies were killed along with them.
Alven, of course, wouldn't go looking for trouble with Kingpin because this was a gang feud. As mentioned before, anyone who went against Kingpin and even called themselves "Bloody Jensen" wouldn't live long.
However, judging by JJ's expression, Alven might have to take the blame for this! That wouldn't do, Alven thought. If he took the blame, would Kingpin, as a school board member, increase his annual donation by 5 million? After all, he was the only drug lord left in the Big Apple, wasn't he?
"JJ, call Kingpin and tell him what I told Black Bear today. Tell him to double the school's donation every year, and he'll know why!" Alven instructed, a little annoyed.
Pushing open the restaurant door, Alven felt a bit tired from the day's events. He sat at the bar and had a drink with people he knew and didn't know.
Just as he was about to announce the second good news of the day—that Nick had found his father—the small door behind the bar burst open with a "bang!" Nick hopped in on one leg, shouting, "Alven, quick, go see Frank! He fainted doing math problems!"
Alven spat a mouthful of wine all over JJ. Looking at the innocent-faced JJ, Alven thought, *I did it on purpose, so what?*
Waving his hand, he declared that the happy hour was over! He told JJ to arrange for them to go home, and to send off those who lived too far away. Alven followed Nick up to the restaurant's attic.
The attic was quite large, nearly 60 square meters. Nick's bed was placed near the window. Frank lay on the bed, his face pale and purple, breathing rapidly.
When Alven came in, Frank was already awake. Seeing Alven, Frank awkwardly turned his head to face the wall.
Alven breathed a sigh of relief. Being able to move meant he was fine; otherwise, a joyous occasion turning into a funeral would be too much to bear. Frank was severely injured and very weak, and he had drunk a lot of alcohol earlier, so he truly had no strength at the moment.
Otherwise, with his tough-guy style, he would never act like a wronged little girl, turning his head away from people. Instead, he would jump out the window, learn math properly, and then come back to recognize his son.
Alven ruffled Nick's hair and said, "Go play with your sister Jessica for a while. Ginny is there too. Bring me the culprit that made Frank faint. Frank graduated from LA University! He probably fainted because of his injuries. You go, I'll cure him."
Frank, lying on the bed, coughed a few times awkwardly. Alven, ever compliant, shooed Nick out. He looked at Frank with a half-smile.
*You little rascal, this is nothing! I couldn't do my son's homework back then and was even singled out for criticism at parent-teacher conferences, but I still got through it. You, a killing machine and tough guy, are stumped by second-grade math problems and have the nerve to faint?*
Frank tried to sit up, looking at Alven awkwardly, his hesitant expression annoying Alven.
Alven waved his hand, signaling him to stop talking, and comforted him, "Our school is a bit different from other schools; the children receive a different education, so parents don't need to worry if they struggle with their children's homework. You only graduated from LA University. I've seen teachers in our school who graduated from Harvard who can't do these problems. You don't need to feel inferior."
Frank became anxious, stating that he wasn't feeling inferior, and so on and so forth~~~
Alven ignored him, directing the venomous vine that reached in through the window to spray a green gas on Frank's face, knocking him out. Then, a red vine, splitting into dozens of thin tendrils, pierced into Frank's body.
A stream of red energy flowed into Frank's body, mending his injuries.
He didn't dare to infuse too much energy, stopping once Frank's complexion improved.
Waving away the Ghoul Vine, Alven grabbed Frank's foot, pulled off his boots, and tossed them on the floor. He didn't even pay attention to his own son's bed—he was clearly a slob.
Leaving Frank to rest, Alven returned to his own room. Carefree Nick was roughhousing with Ginny, their laughter filling the entire room.
Jessica clutched her head, clearly driven to distraction by the little ones, looking utterly resigned.
Nick shouted, "Watch my Crippled Sky Kick!" He jumped up, kicked his single leg in the air, and then tumbled into Alven's bed. Ginny, a tiny body on the bed, was bounced high, letting out bell-like laughter.
When Ginny saw Alven enter, she excitedly ran a few steps on the bed, took a leap, and jumped into Alven's arms, giggling, "Nick, amazing! Crippled Sky Kick, so amazing! Giggles~"
Alven held Ginny with one arm and glared at Nick. *Naughty children are a highly contagious disease. Look at my little Ginny; she got infected in such a short time, daring to jump at me from a meter away. It's all Nick's fault, that mischievous boy, for corrupting my precious daughter. What if she falls?*
Holding the giggling Ginny, Alven smiled and pressed his forehead against Ginny's little head, "My darling is a lady and shouldn't learn from these troublemakers. That was too dangerous just now."
Ginny cupped Alven's cheeks with both hands, gave him a kiss on the face with an "mm-ah," and said, "Daddy, amazing! Ginny, likes, Daddy!"
That settled it. With a daughter so sensible, a little mischief was perfectly acceptable! Alven happily held Ginny, jumped high, and landed on his back on the bed. The soft mattress bounced Nick, who was on the bed, flying, and he landed on the floor with a thud.
Nick, that naughty child, was just resilient. He bounced and jumped, shouting, and rushed onto the bed, wanting revenge. Alven, holding the giggling Ginny, dodged left and right, playing around with the two children.
After a while, Nick seemed a bit tired, and the three of them just sat on the bed. Jessica had already slipped away when Alven came in.
Nick, uncharacteristically quiet, lay on the bed with his hands behind his head and said, "Alven, my dad found me, does that mean I have to leave?" His voice was filled with "hesitation," "worry," and "reluctance."
Ginny, hearing this, lay on Alven's chest and said with a hint of sadness, "Nick, don't go, Ginny, likes, don't go."
Alven kissed Ginny on the head, comforting her.
Nick didn't get such good treatment. Alven's large hand rummaged through his hair, making his eyes and mouth contort, and he said dismissively, "Go? Go where? Your dad's a poor working stiff, where can he take you? Tomorrow, rent the house next door for Frank to live in, and kick JJ out too. That scoundrel has made my storeroom impassable."
Nick was happy to hear that he didn't have to leave and that his dad could stay. He turned and looked at Alven with bright eyes, saying, "Thank you! Alven, thank you!"
Alven always had a gruff demeanor with the unruly child. He vigorously rubbed Nick's head and said, "Don't look at me with such a disgusting expression. Go quickly and take care of your dad. He's injured, and I've pretty much healed him. But it's best to have someone watch over him."
Nick immediately jumped up. As he was leaving, he turned back and made a face at Alven, laughing, "Alven, my dad is much stronger than you, you need to work harder!"
Alven made a move to get up and hit him, but Nick laughed and hopped towards the attic.
Alven looked at Ginny in his arms and said softly, "Ginny, shall I take you back to your room to sleep?"
Ginny shook her head, her eyes wide as she looked at Nick, and said, "Ginny, see, Daddy, Ginny, no sleep, sleep makes bad dreams, Daddy, no sleep."
Alven felt his heart inexplicably immersed in a pang of sadness. He tightened his embrace around Ginny and kissed her fiercely, saying, "Ginny, sleep. Daddy, strong. Nightmares, chase away."
Ginny happily hugged Alven, enveloped by a strong sense of security. Accompanied by Alven humming an unknown tune, she slowly fell asleep.
The dark sky hangs low,
Warm stars gaze back.
Firefly, firefly, who do you miss?
........