"Why..." Luna asked, her voice low and flat as she stared straight at Es.
Her expression was empty... she wasn’t angry neither was she sad...
Her face was just blank.
Lucius had never seen her look like that before, and sohow that made it worse than any outburst could have.
"Did you kiss him?"
Everyone at the table froze with their forks half-raised and eyes darting between the two won.
"Kiss him?" Es tilted her head slightly, smiling like it was nothing. "I do this all the ti. We’re just friends."
There was not even a flicker of guilt in her eyes.
Lucius, however, almost choked on his saliva.
He turned to look at her, completely lost.
’We do this all the ti?’ he thought, his eyebrow twitching. ’This is the first ti you’ve ever done this to .’
He sighed inwardly.
You could never really understand what goes on in the mind of a woman... and for good reason. Understanding them was a death wish, and he had no intention of dying early.
"She does this regularly," Lucius said smoothly, forcing a smile. "It’s a friendly gesture."
Luna’s gaze lingered on Es for a mont longer before she looked away, her grip on the edge of the table relaxing slightly.
Es, in turn, leaned casually against Lucius’s side as if she hadn’t just detonated a bomb at the table.
Lucius cleared his throat, hoping to redirect the conversation before things got any worse. "So anyway... why were you guys gathering here, anyway?"
Erika, who’d been watching the chaos unfold with an amused grin, finally spoke. "Boss, we’ve been invited onto sothing big. They contacted Luna yesterday night."
Lucius leaned forward, his curiosity piqued. "What is it?"
"The Council has invited us to assist the GRIMMAW Guild, Saintess Guild, and another one in their A-rank raids next week," Erika said.
Lucius’s eyes widened.
"A-rank raids?" he repeated, disbelief in his tone.
That was serious business.
Those were the kinds of raids where even one mistake could kill dozens. "Why would the Council want that?" he asked under his breath.
"They said we’re just ant to observe how high-tier raids are handled," Luna added, regaining so of her composure. "Who knows? Maybe they’ll let us participate in one of the higher-tier ones if we perform well."
"I see..." Lucius nodded, though his mind was still trying to piece together the Council’s motive.
The others looked at him expectantly.
"Why are you all looking at ?" he asked, glancing around.
"The call’s all up to you, Boss," Erika said. "We’ll do whatever you want. You just have to tell us what the plan is."
Lucius exhaled slowly.
"It’s a no-brainer," he said finally. "We’ll be going. It can’t be that bad."
That was all it took.
Relief and excitent spread across the table as the team nodded eagerly.
"Then it’s settled," Luna said with a small smile, though her tone was still flat.
Erika clapped her hands together, her grin returning full force. "Alright then, let’s celebrate! Let’s have lunch, Boss... it’s on . You’re free to order as much as you want. Sa goes for everyone. Let’s have a feast!"
The group erupted in cheers.
Even Es relaxed a little, though Lucius suspected she was enjoying Luna’s discomfort far too much.
Plates started filling the table one after another... steak, pasta, grilled fish, salad, drinks of every kind.
"Boss, you’ve gotta try this," Grimm said, sliding a plate of food toward him.
Lucius took a bite and nodded approvingly. "Not bad."
Half an hour later, the plates were empty, and Erika was staring down at her bank account in horror.
Her eyes twitched as she opened her mobile banking app.
Her balance read: [0.16R].
’I hope we have a raid soon,’ she thought, resisting the overwhelming urge to cry. Until then, she was going to have to live like a peasant.
Across the table, Lucius wiped his mouth neatly with a napkin.
"Thank you for the al," he said, glancing around at his satisfied team. "I’ll be going now. I have sowhere to be."
"O-okay..." Erika said weakly, still mourning her savings. "See you next ti, Boss."
The others waved or called out their goodbyes.
Es stood as well, brushing her skirt.
"Thanks for the food," she said politely before following Lucius.
That, of course, prompted Luna to rise instantly and follow them out the door.
The three of them stepped into the afternoon sunlight, the city was still as busy as ever.
Es glanced sideways at Luna with a mischievous glint in her eyes before looping her hand around Lucius’s left arm, pressing herself against him like a lover.
Luna froze for a second and her jaw tightened.
Then, without a word, she gritted her teeth and grabbed Lucius’s other arm, pulling him to her side with equal force.
From the outside, it looked like he was being tugged between two won fighting for ownership.
"Calm down," Lucius muttered under his breath, trying not to sound pained. "You’re going to rip in half at this rate."
Both of them froze, realizing how tight their grips were, and reluctantly loosened their hold.
He exhaled in relief and turned to Es. "What are you still doing here, anyway?"
Es smiled awkwardly, though the teasing in her tone hadn’t faded. "Uhm... I wanted us to do one more thing before I go ho."
Lucius frowned slightly.
"Which is?" he asked. He didn’t like the way Luna was uncomfortable...
"It’s t—" Es started, but before she could finish, a familiar voice called out from nearby.
"Grandfather... look at him here."
Lucius turned sharply at the sound.
Across the street, two figures were standing near the edge of a small park... a younger man with sharp features and slicked-back hair, and beside him, an older man with a long white beard and piercing golden eyes.
It was Irael... and beside him stood a figure Lucius recognized imdiately.
It was one of the mbers of the council.
’What the fuck are they doing here?’
...
Es stiffened the instant she saw Irael and the old man standing ahead of them. Her breath hitched in her throat.
’What are they doing here?’ she thought sharply, her gaze darting between them and Lucius.
He was still walking toward them calmly. ’Why...? Why is he walking straight toward them?’
Her hands curled into fists at her sides.
After what Lucius had said, she had decided to do more research about it... All of it traced back to that man.
That old bastard.
He was the one who had spread the rumors about her... that she had killed people with her affinity, that she was unstable and dangerous.
But it wasn’t true but how would they believe her?
And now, here he was again, standing like so holy relic beside Irael.
Lucius stopped in front of them. Es stood just behind him with her shoulders completely stiff.
"Irael," Lucius said. "to what do I owe this unexpected eting?"
Irael’s lips curled and he cleared his throat.
"I told you to stay away from Esralda, did I not?" He pointed directly at Lucius as his voice rose. "Now you will learn."
Lucius blinked slowly.
’Did we suddenly turn into a Chinese drama?’ he thought dryly.
The way Irael stood there, finger pointed dramatically with the old man beside him, it was like one of those absurdly overacted scenes he’d seen online.
’Besides, wasn’t this like three weeks ago? Or two?’ he thought.
"Oh..." Lucius said out loud, nodding slowly as if it all made sense now. Then, to Es’s shock, he walked right past Irael and stopped in front of the old man.
He released the hands of the two won beside him and rested a casual hand on the old man’s shoulder.
"Old man Saul," he said with a polite smile, "how’re you doing, man?"
The old man blinked rapidly, visibly flustered by the unexpected familiarity. His stern deanor faltered in an instant.
"I—I’m doing well, Lucius," Saul replied quickly, stuttering slightly.
His tone was polite... too polite. It was as if he didn’t want to risk angering Lucius.
Irael froze in disbelief, his mouth parting slightly.
He had never once seen his grandfather act that way toward anyone, much less soone as young as Lucius.
Lucius turned his head slightly, flashing Irael the most devilish grin he could muster, showing every one of his teeth.
The expression was pure mockery.
Irael instinctively took a step back, his confidence shattering under that single look.
’Ah, so his grandfather was this unlucky old fart?’ Lucius thought with a quiet snicker. ’Tsk, tsk, tsk... What an unlucky guy.’
He rembered their short history all too well... the council banquet, where Saul had tried to reject one of his proposals in front of everyone.
The President himself had demoted Saul’s rank that sa night. Since then, Lucius had figured the old man was probably desperate to earn his standing back.
Now, seeing him squirm like this was... satisfying.
"Oof, that reminds ..." Lucius said, his tone light but laced with amusent. "Saul, where’s my mansion? The Council hasn’t kept up with their promises."
Saul swallowed hard, his expression turning stiff.
The sudden shift in tone made everyone... even Es blink in confusion.
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