"Now, explain this assistant caraman nonsense."
"I didn't get an invitation, so I had so help from him," Adam said casually.
Lyanna narrowed her eyes and turned to Charlie. "Is that true?"
"Y–Yes!" Charlie stuttered an answer.
Lyanna studied Adam narrowing her eyes. "And how exactly do you know Adam, Charlie? I'm really starting to wonder how this guy has so many connections."
First, Adam had ties to the Elites of the World Order. And now, even Zelandia's top reporter knew him? This wasn't just a coincidence. There was sothing much bigger at play with this man.
Charlie froze. "That's…"
If he told the truth, he'd be as good as dead and if sothing happened to Adam, he was truly considering the possibility of Gevurah pausing their conquest of the Holy Continent to start the conquest of Zelandia.
Adam might not have openly declared himself as part of Gevurah, but there was no doubt in Charlie's mind—he had so kind of connection to them.
Before Charlie could dig himself deeper into trouble, Adam suddenly spoke up. "I found a demon."
Lyanna's head snapped toward him. "Huh?"
Adam nodded toward a nobleman engaged in idle chatter with a group of aristocrats. "That guy. He's possessed. Late-stage possession, most likely."
Since Adam was hosting a Devil, he had a sharp instinct for sensing other demons. Normally, he wouldn't bother exposing one in public, but right now, he needed to divert Lyanna's attention. She was quite forceful with her questioning, and he had no intention of explaining himself.
Lyanna raised an eyebrow. "Are you sure? Or are you just ssing with ?"
Adam frowned. "ssing with you?"
She grimaced. "Right, you don't joke."
That ant he was probably telling the truth. Still, she had no idea how he figured out the nobleman was possessed. It was possible he was wrong, but did she really want to take that risk?
After a mont's thought, she turned on her heel. "Excuse ."
The surrounding nobles imdiately straightened, bowing respectfully as she approached. Lyanna ignored their eager greetings and locked eyes on her target—a rather plump nobleman standing in the middle of the group.
"What's your na?"
The noble blinked, taken aback. "? Garp."
"Co with ," Lyanna ordered.
Garp hesitated but eventually nodded, his expression stiff.
As Adam followed behind, he noticed sothing interesting—beads of sweat beginning to form on Garp's forehead.
There was a chance Garp was connected to Krainel Salvador, but Adam couldn't be certain. At this point, demons had grown far too cunning, strong enough to seamlessly slip into human society. So of them didn't act suspicious at all, blending in so perfectly that they were almost indistinguishable from ordinary people.
But Ivan knew the truth—demons had infiltrated nearly every country. He had seen plenty of them just by walking the streets.
Of course, he wasn't so self-proclaid hero out to hunt them down. That wasn't his problem.
"Enter."
Lyanna led them into an empty room and gave the order.
Garp hesitated before stepping inside. His nervous eyes darted between Lyanna and Adam. "Um, Your Highness... may I ask if there's a problem?"
Lyanna didn't answer imdiately. Instead, she threw a glance at Adam, who silently shut the door behind them.
Then, without another word, she raised her hand. Mana surged from her fingertips, expanding outward in a rush of power. Within seconds, a shimring barrier enveloped the entire room. Discover more stories at My Virtual Library Empire
Adam's eyes swept over the space, quietly impressed.
'So this is the power of an SS-Rank…'
For soone her age to reach this level was unheard of.
She might even be stronger than Dimitri, Kamila, and perhaps even Ludmila—at least at this point in ti. Of course, they were still developing their Stigma, so their growth wasn't finished yet. But right now, if she beca an enemy… she would be dangerous to them.
Adam tried to recall how Lyanna had died in the novel, but the details were blurry. He was certain it wasn't Ivan or his Legion who killed her. If he rembered correctly, it was likely Eudoxia.
Garp fidgeted under the heavy atmosphere. "P-Princess, is there sothing wrong?"
Lyanna stepped forward. "I just have a few questions."
Garp swallowed hard. His hand slowly reached behind him, fingers tightening around sothing unseen.
Then, darkness began to seep from his grasp—corruption pooling like ink in the air.
Adam didn't hesitate.
In a swift motion, he stepped forward and jamd a syringe into Garp's neck.
"...!"
-BAM!
Garp reacted on instinct. The mont he felt the needle pierce his skin, his body twisted violently. His fist swung out in a blur—smashing straight into Adam's face and sending him flying into the wall.
But just as quickly as his attack landed, his movents faltered. His eyes lost focus, his balance wavered, and his body collapsed onto a nearby chair.
The effects of the injection were already kicking in.
Lyanna stood frozen for a mont, stunned by how fast everything had happened. But her instincts quickly took over, and she rushed to Adam, who was slumped against the wall.
"Are you alright?!"
Adam nodded slowly. "I'm fine."
Lyanna scowled. "You don't look fine at all!"
Blood trickled down Adam's forehead, the crimson streak glistening under the light. His skin was split open from the force of the impact, yet despite the clear injury, he barely reacted.
Lyanna clenched her fists.
Just what kind of person was he…?
Adam didn't even flinch. He didn't groan, wince, or show the slightest sign of pain. From his expression alone, he looked completely fine—as if he hadn't just been thrown against a wall.
Without a word, he reached into his satchel, pulled out a syringe, and injected himself in the arm.
Lyanna, still glaring, pulled out a small vial. "Just what were you thinking, attacking him like that?!"
She tore a strip from her cloak and moved to clean his wound, but before she could, Adam caught her wrist.
"It's not clean."
Lyanna grimaced. "I'm trying to help you here."
Adam looked at her for a second before he reached into his satchel again and pulled out a fresh, neatly folded square of cloth.
Just as he was about to tend to himself, Lyanna snatched it from his hands.
"You're injured. Let do it."
She pressed the cloth to his forehead, dabbing away the blood with a quite experienced hand.
"Attacking like that when you're this weak—do you have a death wish?" She scolded.
Adam t her gaze, unbothered. "I wasn't attacking him. I injected him with one of my preparations. He'll be more cooperative now."
Lyanna glanced at Garp slumped in his chair, his head bobbing slightly as he muttered incoherent words.
She shook her head before turning back to Adam. "Even so, you shouldn't be this reckless. I could have handled him perfectly fine on my own."
"I couldn't take any risks."
Lyanna scoffed. "Risks of what?"
"If he's truly connected to Krainel Salvador, he might have sothing capable of dealing with even an SS-Rank like you. Or other Knights. You could have been hurt," he said calmly.
Lyanna froze.
Her hands, which had been steadily tending to his wound, slowed.
She looked up, eting his gaze, amber eyes locked onto his.
Adam stared back at her as if asking what was wrong. He even started analyzing what he said just in case he said sothing that he should't have.
But Lyanna was nothing of suspicious. In the contrary…
'Right… now I get it.'
She finally understood why even the World Order was so protective of him. Why that woman, in particular, seed so concerned.
Adam wasn't just an anomaly. He had a presence—an almost gravitational pull.
And only those who spent ti with him, who spoke to him, could truly feel it.
There was sothing about him—an aura that made won instinctively want to protect him.
"Are you done?" Adam asked after a brief pause. "We need to question him."
Lyanna nodded, standing up and stretching out a hand. "Yeah, I'm done. Here."
Adam took her hand and pulled himself to his feet. As she dusted herself off, Lyanna motioned for him to keep so distance while she approached Garp.
"Are you a demon?" She asked.
"I—I…" Garp hesitated. At first, he shook his head, but then, as if sothing inside him shifted, his expression changed. He blinked, then slowly nodded.
Lyanna's eyes widened. She turned to glance at Adam.
'What the hell did he inject into this guy?'
Whatever it was, it worked frighteningly well. No demon would ever admit their identity so easily unless it was the truth.
"Do you know Krainel Salvador?" She asked next.
Another nod.
"Where is he?" Lyanna closed the distance.
Garp's expression twisted. His teeth clenched as if he were fighting against sothing inside his own mind. "I—I don't… know," he finally spat out through gritted teeth.
Lyanna narrowed her eyes. "Is he at the wedding? Do you know what he's planning?"
Garp struggled to form words. His whole body tensed before suddenly going limp. Without warning, he collapsed.
"Hey!" Lyanna crouched down and shook his shoulder, but there was no response.
Adam stepped forward, assessing his state. "He's not moving. We should restrain him for now." Reaching into his satchel, he pulled out a pair of sleek black cuffs.
Lyanna eyed them suspiciously. "What are those?"
"Sothing strong enough to hold him for a while," Adam replied, fastening them around Garp's wrists.
They were shackles made to restrain Demons. He had created them after doing experints with Demons he had killed and their corruption. They were still prototype though.
"It won't be enough," Lyanna muttered, already turning to call for reinforcents. Monts later, several guards entered and swiftly carried Garp away. He would be thoroughly interrogated soon enough.
Once the guards left, Lyanna sighed, crossing her arms. "So we're still in the dark about Krainel Salvador, huh?"
Adam, however, shook his head. "No, he's here."
Lyanna frowned. "And how exactly do you know that?"
"I have good instincts," Adam replied trying to escape but Lyanna wasn't going to let him obviously.
She reached out to grab his arm and pull him back in the room but she miscalculated or more like overestimated Adam's body.
Before she could react, his weight crashed into her, sending her a step back—right into the waiting embrace of a sofa. The force knocked them both off balance, and in the next second, Lyanna found herself flat on her back, with Adam landing directly on top of her.
His face pressed squarely against her chest.
Even through her armor, Adam could feel the softness.
"Adam."
As if it wasn't enough, soone was witnessing this.
At the entrance of the room stood Luna-Evelyn, watching them with unreadable eyes.
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