A few weeks later, at Kai's apartnt.
A group of people gathered in the drawing room of an apartnt.
They were standing around a man with shoulder-length blueish black hair who sat on a sofa, facing them all.
The man had his legs crossed, and his teal eyes keenly scanned the entire room with an emotionless glint, carefully observing everyone.
Standing beside him was a tall young man with a massive fra and dark skin.
Despite being so massive and scary, he possessed a face which could only be described as handso.
It was Alberto. He stood with his arms crossed, exuding a bouncer-like aura, ready to strike down anyone who posed a threat.
On the man's left stood another dark-skinned individual with sleek, combed-back raven black hair.
It was Quinn. His deep, hollow eyes were closed, giving the impression that he was asleep while standing.
Amidst this assembly, all eyes focused on a young man who stood before Kai. His na was Zach.
He was a big social dia influencer and he had been assigned the task of spreading rumors about Nero. With a wide smile, he inford Kai of his success.
"And at this point, rumors about him are already circulating," Zach exclaid. "You don't have to worry about anything, young master Kai. My followers trust every word I say. So these rumors will undoubtedly spread even further."
"Good," Kai responded, though his eyes still had a hint of disinterest. "Our next task is to force Nero into using his Gift during the King's Tournant. Since nurous news channels will be present to telecast it as a live event, the rumor will transform into an undeniable fact."
"Understood," Zach nodded and took a step back, joining the rest of the crowd.
Almost imdiately, another young man stepped forward. He had blonde hair and stood slightly taller than the others.
He pressed his hands together and displayed a smile so pleasing that it could even put the greatest politicians to sha.
"And you are?" Kai inquired, raising an eyebrow.
For a mont, the smile vanished from the young man's face, replaced by a frown, before quickly returning.
"I-I am Chris Wright, young master Kai," he replied. "You assigned to keep an eye on Lucas."
"Ah, yes. That guy," Kai nodded. "So, do you have anything to report?"
This ti, Chris' smile disappeared for a few long seconds when Kai referred to him as 'that guy.'
After all, Chris was the youngest son of the prestigious Wright family.
They are called the Lions who protect the North from Vampires.
Although his family mostly never gave him any respect, others never dared to treat him in such a manner.
However, Chris suppressed his frustration and plastered his amiable smile once more.
"Yes, indeed," he nodded. "It appears that the rumors about him are true. Lucas has truly beco Leo Kurogami's disciple. He practically confird it himself when he arrived late for the first exam."
"I see," Kai mused, twirling the ends of his shoulder-long hair.
He then glanced at Grace, who stood among the crowd with her eyes focused at her feet.
'So she was right about him,' he pondered in his mind. 'But then, did I truly misjudge him?'
Kai could hardly believe that soone had managed to deceive him. He really did make a blunder, huh?
But he couldn't afford to dwell on his mistake right now, since the King's Tournant was about to start in two days.
He needed to focus on coming up with a plan that could help him control the situation from this point onward.
Nodding resolutely, he voiced his thoughts, "Alright, thank you for telling this. I will personally handle Lucas. If you ever require a favor from , don't hesitate to ask."
"Thank you," Chris replied, slightly bowing his head. "I will keep that in mind."
With a decisive nod, Kai declared, "Alright, thank you all for your efforts. You're free to leave now."
Upon hearing this, everyone gave him a look of acknowledgnt and exited his apartnt.
Only a select few individuals stayed behind—Grace, Alberto, and Quinn.
"Do you see now?" Grace spoke up in a feeble tone as soon as everyone left. "I told you to go after Lucas. I told you he was the mastermind from the start."
"Yeah, I still don't believe he's so sort of mastermind," Kai scoffed. "At most, I think he's suspicious. He's hiding more than he's revealing."
"Again!" Grace pinched the bridge of her nose and let out a frustrated cry. "You're being foolish again! I'm telling you! He's deceiving you! He has already done it before, and as long as you continue like this, he'll always stay one step ahead of you!"
"Grace!" Kai raised his voice. "His story checked out! He was at his headquarters, giving strategic commands to his troops when soone was fighting Quinn! Besides, he had a broken hand! How could that be Lucas?! Tell , how?! Are you suggesting that a weakling like him defeated Quinn with a broken arm while managing his troops?"
"I..." Grace bit her lower lip in frustration. "I don't know. All I know is that it was definitely Lucas. H-He told about it. He said you wouldn't believe , and you aren't. Everything is happening just as he predicted! Why can't you believe , just this once?"
Kai furrowed his brow in confusion. He was about to respond when Quinn interjected.
"It wasn't Lucas," he stated. "That guy is no match for . Do you really think I was beaten by soone like him?"
"I don't know! Maybe you were, I don't know!" Grace snapped. "That guy is beyond my understanding! He has done things I can't explain! It's as if he knows the future! He's aware of things that nobody should know!"
The frown on Kai's face deepened. "What do you an by that?"
"...I—" Grace hesitated, swallowing a mouthful of saliva before continuing. "He told Ella that I was using her sister as leverage to persuade her to join your group."
"Ella's sister?" Kai leaned forward. "You an Ava Bright? Isn't she in a coma?"
Upon hearing those words, surprise and shock washed over Grace's face.
"H-How do you know about that?!" she asked, bewildered.
"It doesn't matter," Kai replied, averting his gaze and resting his chin on his hands.
Kai was aware of Ava's condition through the Book of Prophecy. He had planned to cure her coma to gain favor from Ella.
However, with Lucas making up a lie like that, Kai knew he couldn't pursue that plan anymore. It was no longer an option.
But a new question arose: How did Lucas co to possess knowledge about Ava?
It's not sothing that should be public knowledge right now.
'Does he have sothing like my Book of Prophecy?' Kai thought. 'Sothing that lets him know about the future?'
And if that was the case, perhaps Lucas truly was the mastermind who had almost helped Nero from revealing his Gift during the Mock War.
"Regardless," Kai let out a heavy sigh. "I will deal with him and make him answer all my questions."
Upon hearing this, a faint smile flickered on Grace's face which did not go unnoticed by Kai. Observing her reaction, he simply shook his head.
'I don't know what her issue is with Lucas, but she has been more of a nuisance than a help to ,' Kai remarked in his mind with another sigh. 'It's fine. All I need to do is win the King's Tournant, and then I can throw her away.'
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