"Done."
Tiamat exhaled softly, the sound a quiet counterpoint to the hum of power radiating from Advika and Christopher. She settled onto the ground, placing the two phones beside her. Her eyes, usually so sharp and distant, held a flicker of sothing akin to curiosity as she watched Advika.
"This girl’s life force is increasing," Tiamat mused, a hint of professional interest in her tone.
"Anyway." She shifted her attention to the circle of beasts, their forms silent and watchful. "These coming days will be boring." A hint of resignation, perhaps even boredom, laced her voice.
____
[Valhalla Family Estate.]
The Valhalla family sat around their opulent dining table, but the atmosphere was anything but celebratory. Katherine, Adonis, Leyla, and Ethan exchanged confused glances, their eyes drawn to the conspicuously empty seat. Their collective gaze then settled on Amara, who had remained unsettlingly silent throughout their pre-al gathering. A subtle tension, a barely perceptible unease, had settled over them, stemming from Amara’s uncharacteristic quietness.
"Mum, where’s big brother?" Katherine finally ventured, her voice a little hesitant.
Amara looked up, a forced, brittle smile gracing her lips. Her eyes, however, seed to betray a deeper worry, a shadow that she quickly tried to suppress.
"He’s training. He’ll be back in two days," she added, her head quickly returning to her food.
The siblings exchanged another look, a silent agreent passing between them. They’d all noticed Amara’s strange behavior, the way her usual vivacity was replaced by a quiet preoccupation. Yet, out of respect, or perhaps a shared sense of foreboding, they chose not to press. No one could truly discern the turbulent thoughts swirling beneath Amara’s composed exterior.
_____
[Advika’s Ho - Sitting Room.]
Anna descended the stairs, a visible line of concern etched between her brows. She walked towards her youngest daughter, who was engrossed in a movie.
"Sylvia, it’s already late. Where’s your sister?" Anna’s voice carried an undercurrent of anxiety.
Sylvia paused the movie, her expression unperturbed, almost too casual.
"It’s okay, Mum. Sister will be gone for two days. They have an important business to deal with."
"They?" Anna’s eyebrow rose, a flicker of suspicion joining her concern.
"Yes. Her boss. She’s now his secretary, so she has to be with him always. There will be more business trips like this that might even take weeks or months. For now, it’s only two days," Sylvia explained with an almost practiced ease.
Anna stared at her with a slight frown, a mixture of doubt and resignation playing on her face. She sighed, the sound heavy with unspoken worries.
"She should look after herself, and no improper behavior!"
"Yep! I’ll let her know that!" Sylvia nodded, a bright, innocent smile on her face. Whether she fully grasped the weight of her mother’s words remained to be seen.
Anna watched her daughter for a few seconds longer, a silent debate playing out in her mind, before finally turning and walking back upstairs:
"Go to bed when you’re done," she called out, to which Sylvia simply nodded, already turning back to her paused movie.
____
[Cordelia’s Tar Enterprise Command Center.]
Commander Zenith sat rigidly at her console, her gaze fixed on the ominous red ’X’ emblazoned across the colossal screen that dominated the room. A deep, almost permanent frown creased her brow, reflecting the imnse pressure she constantly felt. The room itself was shrouded in a deathly, oppressive silence, every individual seated or standing, their eyes glued to the alert, a shared sense of dread hanging heavy in the air.
"How long do we have?" Zenith finally broke the stillness, her voice a low, gravelly rumble, betraying the urgency she felt.
"Commander Zenith, with the calculations, we have a month," a man replied, his voice equally grave.
"A month, and a life force tide will descend on the world." She clenched her fists, her knuckles white, the frustration palpable.
"The first life force tide caused a lot of changes, turning countless animals into beasts and giving them life force!" Her face hardened, a grim determination settling upon her features:
"What changes will this one bring?" she muttered, the question hanging unanswered in the silent command center.
"But Commander Zenith," the man pointed out, his tone cautious, "A Life force tide is also beneficial to Humans."
"Humans?" Zenith scoffed, a cynical twist to her lips. "It is beneficial to tars and awakeners. Life force tide is strong enough to turn an Ordinary human into a tar or even an Awakener, but when that human can’t contain the energy, they will die. We just have to hope this life force tide won’t be that savage."
Her words were a stark reminder of the inherent dangers, the fine line between opportunity and destruction.
The group in the room nodded in understanding, a collective grim acceptance of the harsh realities they faced. Zenith rose from her seat, her movents sharp and decisive.
"We must get ready for this tide. A beast will reach Cordelia in a month, now this, also in a month. Why does it look like everything is targeting Cordelia?" she mused aloud, her gaze sweeping over the silent, tense faces of her team.
_____
[Murphy’s Estate - 8:34 PM.]
Murphy, Michael, and Chaya sat in the plush living room, the air thick with palpable confusion that verged on awkwardness. Murphy had called the two, but more than five minutes had passed without a single word from her. Her gaze lingering on each of them as if weighing her words carefully.
Unable to endure the prolonged quiet any longer, Michael finally broke the silence, a hint of exasperation in his tone.
"What happened, big sister? Why did you call us?" he asked, his brow furrowed with curiosity.
Murphy observed them for another mont, a slight smile playing on her lips, as if savoring the anticipation.
"I got important news to share with you."
"Important news?" Michael repeated, dumbfounded, his mind already racing through possibilities.
"Yes," Murphy stated, her smile widening ever so slightly. "About your boss."
Upon hearing that the news concerned her father’s boss, Chaya instantly beca focused, her usual playful deanor replaced by an intense concentration. Her gaze fixed on Murphy, urging her to continue. The topic of her father’s enigmatic employer had always intrigued her.
"My Boss? When are we eting?" Michael asked, a genuine smile spreading across his face.
"The eting will have to be rescheduled," Murphy revealed, a touch of amusent in her voice as she watched his expression fall.
"....!"
"...Huh?"
Father and daughter were stunned into silence, their faces mirroring each other’s bewildernt.
"Yes." Murphy continued, leaning forward slightly, her voice dropping to a more confidential tone.
"And your boss told to reveal his identity to you two, so you won’t cause unnecessary problems in the future."
"His identity?" Michael grew even more confused, his mind reeling.
Chaya, anwhile, was moving her gaze between the two, her keen mind already trying to piece together the puzzle.
"Your Boss is Master Christopher, eldest son of the Valhalla family," Murphy said, her smile now openly triumphant.
"....?!!"
"....!!"
The two were utterly stunned, the revelation hitting them like a physical blow. They sat in stunned silence for a few seconds, the words hanging in the air, before Michael finally managed to articulate his disbelief.
"Hahaha... Big sister, if you’re playing with us, please stop... How can Christopher be my Boss? The Boss I know is a 35-year-old man; how can he simply move to soone in his twenties... No, you are kidding."
Michael’s laughter was forced, an attempt to dismiss what he considered a ludicrous joke.
"Do I look like I’m kidding?!" Murphy countered, her voice firm, leaving no room for doubt. Then, with a tone of utter conviction, she added:
"Master Christopher is the Boss of all C companies, including yours."
"No way! I say the Boss is soone in his thirties! How could he suddenly be a kid?! I have even seen the Boss with my own eyes, and you are also his childhood friend! How the hell can soone who is still an infant be friends with you at such a young age?!" Michael exclaid, his argunts tumbling out in a rush, desperate to disprove this unbelievable truth.
Murphy, however, remained relaxed, leaning back in her seat, enjoying their disbelief.
"I already told you. But let ask you: Whenever you see him, did you see his face?"
"No, he was always wearing a mask," Michael answered, the realization slowly dawning on him.
"Okay. During my childhood, did you see any guy friend around ?"
"No..." Michael shook his head again, the pieces of the puzzle beginning to click into place, albeit reluctantly.
"Now, did you get your answer? Christopher simply doesn’t want anyone to know who he is. That’s why he was secretive, even making himself look older." She then pushed a small, intricately carved box across the table towards Michael. "Your Boss gave you the other half. You are the only one who owns this, because you are my brother."
Michael stared at the box with a frown, a sense of awe mixing with his initial confusion. He still took it, his hands trembling slightly as he slowly opened it.
"...??"
He removed the half pendant inside, his face etched with shock and a profound sense of recognition.
Chaya watched, srized, as her father quickly produced his own other half-pendant, the one he had always guarded so closely, and with a reverence that bordered on reverence, joined the two pieces together.
"It matched..." Michael looked from the now complete pendant to his daughter, then to Murphy, his face filled with a mixture of surprise and a burgeoning respect.
"C has stood for more than two decades, how did he do it? Even if he started the companies when he was in his mother’s womb, it wouldn’t get this effect, which isn’t possible," Chaya asked, her voice filled with a genuine thirst for understanding, turning to Murphy.
"Aunty, who really is Christopher?"
"Christopher is the young man who got the opportunity to acquire all the companies when he was just ten years old, and has run it up to now..." Murphy explained, a proud glint in her eyes.
"Wow! So at the auction... I was bidding against---" Chaya began, a gasp escaping her lips as the implications fully registered.
"—Yeah, against your father’s boss," Murphy finished her sentence, a knowing smile on her face.
"That’s why he has that much money! He is the Boss of C empire!" Chaya exclaid, her eyes wide with newfound admiration.
"What bidding?" Michael asked, a frown creasing his brow.
"Oh... It’s nothing, Dad!" Chaya quickly stamred, her cheeks flushing slightly, swiftly changing the subject. "So when are we eting him?" she asked, her excitent palpable.
"On the academy competition," Murphy said, then turned to her brother, her expression turning serious. "You brought the docunt he asked?"
"Yes, the business contract is with ," Michael nodded, suddenly all business.
"That is good. He plans to lift his family, and make them Cordelia’s number one family," Murphy said with a satisfied smile, while Michael and Chaya nodded, their minds already envisioning the future.
’Wow... I thought he was an old man... But doesn’t know he’s such a handso young man. If I pursue him and make him mine—’ Chaya’s thoughts drifted, a mischievous glint in her eyes, already plotting.
"Hey! Chaya!"
Murphy’s sharp voice snapped her from her reverie, causing Chaya to stamr, a blush deepening on her face.
"Yes... Yes, aunty?" she asked, feigning innocence.
"Stop fantasizing about your future with him. Christopher isn’t soone you can easily capture with your looks... Don’t forget he knows who you are." Murphy stood up, her tone a mix of amusent and genuine advice.
"To tell you the truth, he takes you as his little sister... So you will have a hard ti with your feelings."
With that said, she walked away, heading towards the stairs, leaving a stunned Chaya behind.
’How... How did she even know I like him?’ Chaya thought in wonder, a mix of embarrassnt and admiration swirling within her.
"Chaya? Do you like Christopher?" Michael asked, a eyebrow raised, a hint of hope in his voice.
"What?! No! No! I don’t like him!" she quickly stamred, her denial a little too vehent.
"Okay then," Michael nodded, a small, knowing smile playing on his lips as he walked away. ’If only she likes him,’ he thought, a flicker of wishful thinking.
’How can I get Christopher?’ Chaya pondered, her mind already devising new strategies.
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