Without a doubt.
He had been thoroughly blacklisted.
"Fuck!"
*Smash!*
The patrol officer, who had only intended to go through the motions, watched his phone draw a beautiful arc through the air before slamming violently against the wall, instantly fracturing into pieces. He couldn't help but open his mouth wide in sheer disbelief.
My phone...
The next second, looking at Jim Rhodes, who had so graciously borrowed his phone only to smash it to utter smithereens, the officer's eyes turned completely bloodshot.
Fuck, my girlfriend's nudes were still saved inside that phone!
"Shit!"
"Ah!"
Jim Rhodes only felt his vision blur. Raising his head, he caught sight of a dark silhouette rapidly closing in on him before a sharp pain flared across his nose, forcing a wretched shriek from his lips.
Hearing the ruckus from outside the interrogation room, Cop and Kaynor immediately rushed inside. Upon entering, they spotted Jim Rhodes lying on the floor, curled up while executing a highly professional head-protecting defensive stance.
And as for the other guy...
The officer had completely lapsed into a frenzied state, riding on top of Jim Rhodes while unleashing a wild torrent of blows.
It was an absolute circus.
After tremendous effort, Cop finally managed to drag the frenzied officer outside. Massaging his forehead, he looked at Jim Rhodes, who was currently in a wretched, disheveled state as he was pulled back onto the interrogation chair, and shook his head helplessly.
Right at that moment.
A patrol officer ran inside frantically, looking toward Cop within the interrogation room. "Sir, a Judgement Notice has been discovered at the entrance!"
Hearing this sentence, Detective Kaynor snapped her head around. "What?"
Cop's neck shifted slightly as well. Turning around with a sharp rustle, he stared at the reporting officer. "What Judgement Notice? Where is it?"
"Right at the main entrance."
"Let's go!"
Casting a swift glance back at Jim Rhodes, Cop headed straight toward the exit of the interrogation room.
"Find someone else to make Mr. Rhodes sign the paperwork, then send him straight to the District Attorney."
Upon reaching the entrance.
A crowd of officers had already gathered around, gesturing and whispering at the Judgement Notice embedded deep within the wall. Sensing Cop and Kaynor's arrival, they sequentially parted to clear a path.
Cop raised his eyes, fixing his gaze onto the Judgement Notice on the wall before looking around at his surroundings.
"Did anyone see when this thing arrived?"
"No."
"We checked the surveillance. Roughly five minutes ago, a dark silhouette came flying past."
"..."
Cop fetched a stool, stepping up to pull down the Judgement Notice that was buried deep into the wood. It had been embedded so deeply that Cop nearly lost his balance and toppled off the stool while retrieving it.
Fortunately, several officers stepped forward to steady him.
[Judgement Notice!]
[Target: "Dolan Church"]
[Crime: "False Assumptions of Judgement"]
[Verdict: Death Penalty!]
[Executor: Syndra!]
"..."
"Huh?"
"It's not the Peerless Assassin?"
"A fake?"
"Bullshit. Does anyone actually dare to impersonate the Peerless Assassin nowadays?"
"Then this is..."
"I remember. This Syndra person seems to have appeared once before—over in New York, targeting that corrupt District Attorney."
"Yes, yes, I remember now!"
"The one who appeared on television?"
"The one with the long legs and white stockings?"
"Yes, yes, her!"
The onlookers murmured dynamically among themselves as they observed the contents of the card held in Cop's hand.
Listening to the chatter of the patrol officers, Cop tucked away the Judgement Notice. After exchanging a brief look with Detective Kaynor, he turned and walked back toward the interior of the precinct.
Inside the office.
The Judgement Notice had already been handed over to the laboratory technicians by Cop for forensic analysis.
As for what reference material to compare it against...
Without a doubt.
He happened to know a professional who had been exclusively dedicated to hunting down the Peerless Assassin for two solid years.
New York Police Department's Captain, George Stacy.
"What?"
"What did you say?"
"A Judgement Notice?"
Currently having dinner back in New York, George instantly stood up from his dining chair upon hearing Cop's words over the phone, speaking excitedly.
"Are you absolutely certain? Are you certain it's that damn Peerless Assassin?"
Good grief.
I was wondering why you hadn't been making any moves lately. As it turns out, you shifted your theater of operations and ran off to New Orleans!
What's the matter?
Had a change of heart?
Or perhaps, faced with my encirclement tactics, you felt you were on the verge of losing, so you planned to abandon New York and seek better fortunes in New Orleans?
Don't even think about it.
You belong to me; I will definitely catch you.
Thoughts flashed rapidly through George's mind. "Cop, wait for me. I'm heading over immediately."
Over on the other end, Cop inwardly lamented his close friend's sheer obsession with the Peerless Assassin. Hearing those words, he felt it necessary to clarify.
"The Judgement Notice is definitely a Judgement Notice, but the executor listed isn't the Peerless Assassin."
George blanked slightly. "What?"
Cop explained, "It's Syndra. Word has it she is an accomplice of the Peerless Assassin. However, I'm worried someone might be pulling a hoax. You're the resident expert on the Peerless Assassin; your database must contain the largest volume of analysis regarding the Judgement Notices. I wanted to ask you to send the forensic data over so I can perform a cross-reference."
"No need."
"Ah?"
George spoke in a deep voice, "Syndra, the Dark Sovereign. That's right, she is the accomplice of the Peerless Assassin. No one dares to forge that."
Ever since the incident with Barry the Rat.
Leave alone forged cards—even the most daring corporate moguls didn't dare to manufacture toys resembling the Judgement Notice anymore. In fact, even so-called crime novelists didn't dare write stories in their books about how they captured the Peerless Assassin.
George thought for a moment before continuing, "However, I will still have the lab reports sent over to you. Furthermore, wait for me. I will rush over at the earliest possible moment."
Pausing briefly, George added, "You guys must reinforce security tonight. Especially during the latter half of the night, around four or five in the morning—you must be exceptionally vigilant and cautious!"
Once a Judgement Notice materialized, the execution of the verdict would commence within forty-eight hours at most.
However, more often than not, the Peerless Assassin would arrive on the very same day the notice appeared.
Which meant...
Either it would happen tonight; or if nothing occurred tonight, they would have to wait until this exact time the day after tomorrow. If they failed to spring the trap this time, then as for the next opportunity, there was no telling how many years it would take before another notice surfaced.
Peerless Assassin, just you wait.
This time, I'll capture Syndra first, and then you won't be able to run either.
George hurriedly wiped his lips, heading toward the study to prepare to book a flight for early tomorrow morning.
Sitting nearby and also enjoying her meal, Gwen blinked her eyes as she watched George's movements.
Wait a minute.
Dad is going to New Orleans?
This...
This was absolutely perfect!
Thinking as much in her heart, Gwen traded a look with Helen. Catching the expression flying over from her daughter, Helen instantly understood what Gwen was scheming.
However, she made no move to stop her, merely sighing inwardly at how a grown daughter couldn't be kept at home. Looking at George who was walking toward the staircase, she nodded.
"If your father agrees..."
Before she could even finish her sentence.
Gwen had already abandoned the dining table directly.
Inside the second-floor study.
Following closely behind him, Gwen looked at George, who had already powered on the computer and was preparing to place an order, and quickly called out, "Hold on!"
George was startled, turning to look at Gwen as she walked inside.
The next second.
George seemed to realize something, his face turning thoroughly dark. "I am traveling to New Orleans on official business."
Gwen walked over. "Dad, I also have official business."
George rolled his eyes. "No!"
Gwen blanked. "Why?"
"An accomplice of the Peerless Assassin has appeared in New Orleans."
"And?"
"What do you mean, *and*?"
Gwen shrugged. "The Peerless Assassin isn't some heartless, anti-social serial killer. I'm going to look for Locke, not to hunt down the Peerless Assassin. What does it matter?"
George opened his mouth, at a loss for words.
Approaching him, Gwen coaxed playfully, "Dad, just let me tag along with you. Otherwise, I'll just buy a ticket myself."
George: "..."
Right at that moment.
*Ring, ring, ring!*
Gwen drew out her phone. Seeing the video call invitation sent by Locke, she blinked her eyes and directly declined it.
Inside the New Orleans hotel.
Locke looked at the rejection prompt displayed on his phone, feeling somewhat curious.
Didn't they agree to a video call at seven o'clock?
Why didn't she pick up?
A brief moment later, a text message arrived from Gwen.
"At Grandma and Grandpa's place, let's video call tomorrow instead."
"Alright then."
Locke smiled slightly as he drafted a reply. Tucking his phone away, he stepped out of the bedroom.
Inside the suite's living room.
Carrie was sitting over by the sofa, earnestly focusing on the laptop screen as she studied.
Locke walked over, casting a glance at the internal architectural blueprint of the New Orleans Police Department displayed on the monitor, and let out a chuckle. "How is it?"
It was still that same saying.
The threshold for being a hitman was very low, but a low threshold didn't mean there was no standard at all. At the very least, if you were directionally challenged, you definitely couldn't be a hitman.
After all, the vast majority of a hitman's operations took place within unfamiliar environments. If you didn't conduct any preparatory groundwork and happened to be terrible with directions, you would likely end up getting completely lost upon arriving at that unfamiliar location.
Committing the internal layout structures from the computer screen deep into her memory, Carrie nodded. Raising her head to look at Locke's genuinely concerned face, she revealed a trace of a smile. "This isn't my first time."
This would be her second execution of a judgment utilizing the Sin Blacklist.
Although Locke had fundamentally guided her through the entire process during her first judgment, she had earnestly engraved his methods—how he delivered the blacklist notifications, how he executed the operations—deep into her heart, precisely for the sake of her next independent performance.
Seeing this, Locke smiled. "That's good then. What time do you plan to head over?"
Carrie replied, "The notice has already been delivered, so their side is bound to be highly tense. Consequently, security will be incredibly tight right now. Moving out during the dead of night, close to dawn around four o'clock, they will likely lower their guard."
Locke nodded. "An excellent choice of timing. However, you don't actually need to restrict yourself to that."
Carrie looked toward Locke, somewhat missing his meaning.
Locke explained with a smile, "You are a witch. The reason I occasionally choose four or five in the morning is because I either refrain from making a move, or anyone involved ends up dead or severely crippled. But you are different. No matter how many people there are, you possess the means to render irrelevant bystanders unconscious."
"Therefore..."
"You are free to select any other timing. However, if you also happen to enjoy the scenery right before the break of dawn, I certainly won't object."
"Really?"
Locke chuckled. "Of course. This is your debut performance after all, so I've arranged a member of the audience to head over. You don't mind, do you?"
Carrie: "..."
***
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