Thea thought carefully. In any case, she had nothing to lose. It was always good to learn a little more. Besides, a good teacher was always an advantage. The children in the arena were no pushovers—they had strong fighting skills and plenty of experience. Her father had been too embarrassed to train with her, but now, he simply nodded arrogantly and said:
"Yes, ma'am, I would like to learn from you."
"Okay, meet me tomorrow morning at this address. Here's a bottle of medicine for you… it will help reduce the swelling quickly."
Mrs. Shiva's expression was a little strange as she handed Thea a note and a small bottle of medicine. Then, in an instant, she was gone.
At that moment, the only thing echoing in Thea's mind were the words "reduce the swelling quickly…." Was her face swollen? She touched it—ouch! Damn it! Running her hand over her face confirmed it. The swelling was real. Her image was completely ruined! And now, her arrogant tone perfectly matched her ridiculous appearance.
If she went home like this, Moira would lose her mind. Better to find a secluded place, apply the ointment, and hope for a miracle.
Ten minutes later, Thea realized she had been too optimistic. Maybe miracle medicines existed, but whatever was in this bottle definitely wasn't one of them. Her face was still hot and sore.
The only option was to crash at Felicity's place for the night. She just hoped Felicity wouldn't be too curious… but who was she kidding?
"Wow… Thea, what happened to you? Did you run into a bad guy? Do you need medicine? If you do, I have some…"
As always, Felicity was as warm and dramatic as ever. The moment she saw Thea, battered and in torn clothes, her mind spun into overdrive, concocting a thousand different scenarios. Tears welled up in her eyes from sheer worry.
At first, Thea was touched by her friend's concern, but the more she listened, the more something felt off. Medicine? What exactly was Felicity implying?
Realizing where the conversation was heading, Thea scowled and lightly smacked Felicity's forehead.
"What the hell are you thinking? I just fell!"
She explained that she got injured during martial arts training. After all, they were on the same team, and Felicity knew she was learning to fight—it was a plausible excuse.
But Felicity wasn't buying it. She pulled out her tablet, scrolled through some images, and pointed at them.
"This, this, and this—these are falls. But your injury? That was clearly a punch."
Knowing she wouldn't be able to fool Felicity, Thea sighed and admitted, "It was dueling practice. I was temporarily disarmed and took a light hit. My teacher also confiscated a knife from me."
"That's dangerous…" Felicity muttered.
Thea rolled her eyes. Dangerous? Felicity had no idea what real training was. If she had seen Yao Fei training Oliver, she'd understand. Uncle Yao didn't hold back—he shot real arrows without hesitation. Later, Oliver would train Roy and Barry the same way. Compared to that, Malcolm's training was practically gentle.
The two then discussed self-defense techniques. For an heiress to a massive corporate empire like Thea, personal strength mattered more than carrying high-tech weapons. The world was dangerous, and in the DC Universe, it was even worse—villains, thieves, and lunatics lurked everywhere.
If Thea was going to be in the public eye, she needed to be a weapon herself. That stereotypical anime image of a woman in a ball gown with a pistol strapped to her thigh? Completely impractical. Short skirts wouldn't cover a gun, and long skirts made it impossible to draw one quickly.
After all, imagine a beautiful woman reaching deep into her long skirt to grab a gun—what a ridiculous sight.
As Felicity carefully applied ointment to her swollen face with surprising precision, Thea sighed in relief. Her friend was way better at this than she was.
"Be honest… are you sure you haven't gotten yourself into something shady?" Felicity narrowed her eyes suspiciously.
But the way she said it made Thea feel like her sweet friend had vanished, replaced by an overzealous detective.
"You're so paranoid! That woman was incredible! I'd take a hundred more beatings from her if it meant learning from her!"
"I don't believe you. Let me check."
"Hey! Don't touch that—!"
Meanwhile, Malcolm staggered home, clutching his injured side. He applied a rare salve from the ancient ninja masters—warriors who had lived for centuries, mastering not just martial arts but every discipline imaginable. If doctorates were awarded based on experience, a ninja master would have at least fifty.
In the original story, Yao Fei's herbal medicine could cure poisons and severe illnesses—knowledge he had inherited from these masters. Malcolm had taken those same principles and adapted them for his own use, mixing medicines according to ancient prescriptions.
After treating his wounds and re-bandaging himself, he reflected on the night's events. He never expected to end up bleeding, but deep down, he was proud of Thea. What he didn't know was that her swollen face was only going to make her more dangerous in the future.
Then, something on his desk caught his eye—a note that hadn't been there before.
"I accept your proposal. Remember to pay as agreed."
No signature.
Malcolm scoffed, crumpling the note and tearing it apart. This woman—no matter how powerful—was still just another person who bowed to money.
Still, it was impressive. She had managed to get close to him undetected. That level of skill was extraordinary. But at least Thea was learning from someone truly worthy.
With that realization, Malcolm felt more at ease about his daughter. With her current abilities, there weren't many people who could intimidate her. But… what about his son?
Tommy still didn't know the truth. What if he found out everything one day? If he ever learned that Malcolm had cheated on his mother, it would destroy whatever was left of their relationship.
Sighing, Malcolm shut off the monitor. Strangely, ever since Thea had stabbed him, his luck seemed to have improved.
Just then, Tommy stumbled through the door. Malcolm immediately called for the butler.
"Old man, what now? Are you finally giving me my bank card back?" Tommy asked warily. He felt like he had been behaving himself lately—so why did he suddenly have a bad feeling?
"As my only heir, don't you think it's dangerous to spend so much time in the slums with Laurel?" Malcolm asked, trying to sound rational.
Tommy rolled his eyes.
"Dangerous? I'm broke. I ride the bus every day. Who in their right mind would try to kidnap me?"
Good point. Malcolm had no comeback.
With no other option, he changed tactics.
"I'll restore your expenses tomorrow. But for now, just listen to me carefully."