”Where did you find this?”
The chilly and cold voice echoed in the underground cavern as Victor held Astron from his neck.
The aura surrounding Victor was overwhelming as it overlapped Astron’s body. His eyes were fierce as the mana around him surged.
“Kurghk-!”
Astron wasn’t able to reply, let alone react. In a matter of a second, Victor appeared right before him with an insane speed. Even if he had activated his skills, he wouldn’t be able to evade the attack.
Victor’s basic speed was just that overwhelming. Even Carl was seemingly taken aback by that, as he noticed that Victor wasn’t even going all out when they were clashing their auras. That was within his expectations, but what he didn’t expect was him suddenly attacking Astron like that.
“Where did you find this?” Victor’s voice, icy and sharp, reverberated through the cavern once again, heightening the tension.
His grip tightened around Astron’s neck, lifting him from the ground. The overwhelming aura emanating from Victor enshrouded Astron, rendering him unable to speak or react.
Astron’s usual calm demeanor faced the storm of Victor’s mana, his eyes empty yet unwavering, staring back into the depths of Victor’s fierce gaze.
“Answer me,” Victor demanded, his voice echoing as he peered deeply into Astron’s eyes, searching for a flicker of fear or hesitation.
But Astron remained impassive, his body not betraying any signs of distress or desperation, an unsettling calmness in the face of Victor’s escalating threats.
Victor, not receiving the reaction he anticipated, increased the intensity of his grip and created a force field around Astron’s right arm, bending it to the breaking point. The atmosphere thickened with Victor’s frustration and the growing danger enveloping Astron.
The thing that Astron held was something this much of an importance to him.
Suddenly, Victor’s senses were engulfed by an enormous surge of mana, far surpassing the normal limits, wrapping around him in a tight cocoon.
SWIRL!
Sensing an imminent threat, he released Astron, propelling him aside as he narrowly dodged a towering pillar of fire that erupted from the ground where he stood moments before.
As Victor regained his footing, his gaze shifted towards the source of the attack, meeting two amber eyes filled with unmistakable anger and intent. Irina stood there, her posture radiating a powerful aura, her voice cutting through the tension, “Get your hands off him.”
“Cough…..Cough…..”
And at the time that Irina had seized, Carl had already appeared before Astron, who was regaining his breath and crossing the path between him and Victor.
It was an attempt to protect him. After all, what Victor was doing right now was attacking an innocent person, and Carl upheld the principles of Noblesse as well as heroism.
He was not someone to ignore other people’s misfortune.
“What is the meaning of this?” Carl asked, probing at Victor.
“…..” Victor didn’t answer but only kept looking at the thing in Astron’s hand. “Where did you find it?”
Astron, regaining his composure amid the volatile atmosphere, lifted his head to lock eyes with Victor. His gaze was devoid of fear or emotion, betraying none of the turmoil that had just transpired.
With a deliberate motion, he raised his hand, revealing the object that had precipitated the confrontation—a small, pitch-black sphere. The sphere itself seemed to absorb the light around it, making it a focal point of darkness in the dimly lit cavern.
Atop the sphere, a peculiar symbol was etched, drawing immediate attention. It depicted a hand appearing to rise from the ground, its form partially obscured by white bandages that seemed to writhe around it. Above this hand, a purple light shimmered, casting an eerie glow that seemed almost alive. Within this glow, a small tree was visible, its branches stretching out as if reaching for something unseen.
Carl, observing Victor, followed his gaze, and there he felt a chill as he noticed the object in Astron’s hand. There was something deeply unsettling about it, something that made his instincts scream that this was far from ordinary. His gaze shifted between the sphere and Victor, trying to gauge the significance of the moment.
Astron, breaking the silence, addressed Victor directly, “I obtained this after dealing with the evil spirit.” His voice was steady, carrying a hint of inquiry, “Do you know something about this?”
The question hung in the air.
“It is none of your concern, neither something you are capable of dealing with.” Victor’s voice echoed coldly in the cavern.
“Is that so?” Astron mumbled. And then, he suddenly threw the seemingly dark sphere.
Victor’s eyes widened as he saw the sphere flying.
‘This Lunatic!’
THUD!
In an instant, he rushed and grabbed the sphere, flying. And then he looked at Astron, his eyes filled with intent once again.
“This is your payback for what you did.” He hinted at his neck, implying that he hadn’t forgotten what Victor had done.
Looking at the interaction between the two, Irina couldn’t help but somehow release a sigh. She knew she had reacted a bit harshly, as she attached Victor Blackthorn, but this guy was more reckless!
‘Well, this is just like him.’
Knowing that this was how he treated her at the start, she knew Astron wasn’t someone who feared people with high standing.
“You…” Victor noticed that Astron didn’t hold any fear towards him, seemingly thinking that they were equal. “Where does your confidence stem from?” He asked. He was genuinely curious about what ants like this guy thought.
In the future, it would be very beneficial for him to know how these ants thought about managing his subordinates and the family.
“Confidence?” Astron returned with another question.
“I can kill you right here, right now,” Victor said, releasing a bit of his aura. “What makes you think that you can leave after offending me.”
“….” At first, Astron didn’t answer, but then he shook his head. “If you want to kill me, you are welcome to try. Regardless of the reason, if you have the strength, you can do the act. I have no authority over your actions. If you kill me, it is not because I did something to offend you but because you decided to do so. I have no say in this matter.”
Victor narrowed his eyes. This guy’s way of thinking was sophisticated. It may be correct, but he didn’t believe so. Even if he didn’t have control over his actions, Astron could easily reduce the risk of such an outcome by emotionally influencing him.
‘Hmm?’
Then, coming to such a conclusion, Victor noticed something. While thinking about this, he had already neglected the idea of dealing with Astron. It was as if what he thought was also thought by Astron.
Trapped in this web of thoughts, Victor decided to let this matter go. He acknowledged that he had been acting rashly in recent times, as this was the result of the things he had been dealing with over the past months after his brother died and he became the next possible heir.
Astron, with a deliberate stride, approached the tunnel from which Victor and Irina had emerged. His eyes narrowed as he measured the distance, his focus unwavering. With a precise movement, he extended his hand and released a shot of mana, testing or signaling something known only to him.
Irina, observing Astron’s actions, couldn’t help but approach him. Her presence, usually so full of poise and confidence, seemed slightly softened in this moment. “Are you okay?” she asked, her gaze drifting to his arm, which hung at an awkward, perhaps painful, angle.
“It’s nothing,” Astron assured, his voice carrying a nonchalant tone. “I’ve already taken a potion.” His demeanor suggested a mix of annoyance and dismissiveness towards his own injury, a clear indication of his reluctance to show any signs of weakness.
Knowing that this was his usual way of doing it, Irina didn’t mind. Somehow, she compared this attitude towards Victor and his way of speaking, and Irina felt this was a lot better.
She, standing beside him, felt an unexpected wave of relief wash over her. After spending an extended period navigating the tunnels with Victor, Astron’s familiar presence brought her a sense of comfort she hadn’t realized she was missing.
However, her instincts told her not to take his word at face value. “Show me,” she demanded. She needed to see for herself that he was truly alright, unwilling to simply accept his assurance.
Astron, meeting her gaze, offered no such satisfaction. “No,” he replied flatly, a clear refusal to comply with her request. His expression remained unreadable, giving nothing away.
Irina clicked her tongue in frustration, not surprised by his response but disappointed nonetheless. She had expected as much, knowing Astron, in general, didn’t like to comply with any type of request concerning him.
“Then, what happened here?”
She asked, changing the question. Astron looked at his healing arm and then opened his mouth. Since Irina had saved him just now, he knew it was better for him to pay that favor back.
If Irina hadn’t attacked, things would get tricky. Of course, he showed himself knowing that, but then again, he disliked owing things.
“I dealt with the evil spirit.”
“I know this much. I am asking for the details.” Irina said with an annoyed face.
“It will take a bit long. Will you be able to listen?”
“Heh…..Do you think I can’t? I am really patient, you know.”
“…..You are patient? This joke is not funny.”
THUD!
Seeing Astron’s nonchalant demeanor and his dismissive remark about her patience, Irina couldn’t help but let out a small huff of annoyance. Her response was swift; she threw a light punch at Astron’s arm, a physical manifestation of her protest. “I can listen until the authorities arrive, thank you very much,” she retorted, her tone a mix of irritation and challenge.
Astron, feeling the impact, looked at her and then nodded, conceding to her point. “That would be okay. The authorities will take at least twenty minutes to get here,” he admitted, acknowledging her willingness to listen and also revealing a bit about his awareness of their situation.
“Did you measure how deep we are?” Irina asked, her curiosity piqued by his assessment of the time it would take for the authorities to arrive.
Astron simply nodded in response, confirming her suspicion.
“Impressive,” she conceded with a hint of admiration. Then, without further comment, she walked over to one of the large pillars that supported the cavernous space. She sat down in front of it, leaning her back against the cold stone, signaling her readiness to listen to his story.
Astron followed her steps and sat right beside her. On the way, he checked Victor’s reaction and saw that he was immersed in the orb.
‘Let’s see what Blackthorn’s can do with this….’
He thought inwardly.
‘After all, I had already recorded the structure in my head.’
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