Meanwhile, in the villa of the Franco family…
“What?! The assassination failed?!” Lina’s face twisted in fury as she listened to the servant’s report. She had spent a fortune hiring a Silver-ranked assassin to kill that little brat, and now these idiots were telling her they failed?!
“Useless! Every single one of you is worthless!” She flew into a rage, smashing everything within reach, yet her anger was still far from being quelled.
Every time she thought of her sweet, innocent son’s tragic death, the fact that she couldn’t avenge him made her hatred for Luca grow deeper. In her mind, she fantasized about skinning Luca alive and tearing him apart.
Seeing her disheveled hair and crazed appearance, the surrounding servants were terrified, not daring to make a sound.
The servant who had spoken earlier steeled himself and said, “Madam, it seems the boy’s strength is far greater than we initially anticipated.
According to our sources, the Silver-ranked assassin only had a chance to strike once before being killed on the spot. It seems that regular assassins won’t be able to take him down.”
The servant was equally shocked when he first heard the news.
After all, a Silver-ranked assassin is no joke. Even many mid-tier professionals struggle to escape their deadly grasp, yet one was taken down by a mere boy.
It was hard to imagine that an 18-year-old could possess such terrifying power.
But Lina didn’t care about any of that. Her face contorted with rage as she snarled, “I don’t want your excuses! If once isn’t enough, try again! If twice isn’t enough, try a third time! If Silver-ranked assassins can’t kill him, then hire a Gold-ranked one! I refuse to believe we can’t take down some brat from Riverfall City!”
The servant opened his mouth to speak.
But before he could say anything, the villa’s front doors were suddenly kicked open!
A furious voice followed, “Lina, have you lost your mind?!”
An elderly man dressed in an extravagant robe stormed into the villa, his eyes blazing with anger as he glared at Lina. Behind him, several high-ranking members of the Franco family followed, their expressions filled with schadenfreude as they watched the scene unfold.
Lina froze for a moment, and when she realized who had arrived, she quickly dropped to her knees, her voice trembling as she said, “Father, why are you here?”
The man was none other than Vasily Franco, head of the Franco family and Lina’s father.
Without saying a word, the old man strode forward and slapped Lina hard across the face. The sharp sound of the slap echoed through the villa. Vasily didn’t hold back, and blood trickled from the corner of Lina’s mouth as a clear handprint marred her once-beautiful face.
Vasily’s expression was dark as he looked at Lina, who was kneeling on the ground with her face in her hands, staring blankly ahead. He spoke slowly, enunciating every word with a chilling tone, “I told you before, Luca is no ordinary person. I warned you not to act recklessly. Did you take my words as a joke?!”
Right now, the Franco family was in an extremely precarious position.
Their previous cooperation with The Nightmare Cult had already reached Marquis Bronte’s ears. If there weren’t a lack of concrete evidence, Marquis Bronte would have dealt with them long ago. And now, during such a sensitive period, his foolish daughter had gone and ordered an assassination attempt on the young man who had saved Riverfall City.
Wasn’t this practically handing Marquis Bronte the leverage he needed to destroy them?
Just thinking about it made Vasily tremble with rage.
The reason he had confined Lina to this villa was to give her some time to calm down and reflect.
But instead, she went and created an even bigger mess!
Lina, regaining her composure, shrieked hysterically, “He’s nothing but a lucky bastard! A lowly, insignificant rat! Why can’t I kill him? Why not?!”
Hearing this, Vasily couldn’t help but let out a bitter laugh.
Standing to the side, a middle-aged man with a stern face and cold eyes said icily, “An hour ago, we received word that the boy named Luca not only passed the 20th floor trial but also became a disciple of Orf. Even Marquis Bronte thinks highly of him and has gone so far as to gift him a villa.”
“If this person dies at your hands, the entire Franco family will be buried alongside him!”
“What?! He became Orf’s disciple?!” Lina looked as if she had been struck by lightning. She understood all too well what this meant. Anyone who dared to lay a hand on Luca would first have to consider whether they could withstand the wrath of a Superclass powerhouse!
But… did this mean she had to give up on avenging Matthew and let that Luca roam free, living happily right under her nose?
Lina’s face turned deathly pale, and her lips quivered.
It was a fate worse than death!
Her gaze turned vicious again, filled with boundless hatred. “No! I can’t just let it go like this! That little bastard killed Matthew. He has to die!”
“Father! Matthew was your grandson! You have to avenge him!” She turned her tear-filled eyes towards Vasily, pleading desperately.
“You idiot! Do you want our entire family to be buried with that boy?!” Vasily, enraged, raised his hand as if to strike her again.
But seeing Lina’s tear-streaked face, he hesitated and, in the end, didn’t land the blow.
Vasily took a deep breath, then turned to the people behind him and coldly ordered, “Wester, freeze all of Lina’s assets. She is not to take a single step outside this villa for the next month!”
After issuing his command, he didn’t spare a glance at his daughter lying on the floor. With a flick of his sleeve, he turned and left the room.
A middle-aged man standing nearby, who bore a striking resemblance to Lina, responded to Vasily’s command with a nod.
Once Vasily had left, the man turned to Lina and sighed, “Sister, we’re all deeply saddened by Matthew’s death, but you can’t drag the entire family into this with you. I’ll speak to Father on your behalf, but you’ll have to endure this for now.”
The others present, however, did not share Wester’s sympathy. Their eyes were filled with undisguised schadenfreude as they looked at Lina.
Vasily was already getting old, and now Lina had fallen out of favor. This meant one less competitor for them in the future. How could they not be pleased?
Lina glared at everyone in the room, biting her lips so hard that they bled. The resentment in her eyes didn’t lessen—instead, it grew even stronger.
Vasily’s words didn’t bring her to her senses at all. Instead, they only deepened her hatred for Luca. If it weren’t for him, how could she have ended up in such a miserable state?
No matter what, Luca had to die!
At any cost!!
…
Meanwhile, after leaving the church, Luca didn’t linger and took a carriage back to the Inner District.
Originally, he had planned to visit the Mages’ Association to inquire about the prices of high-tier materials and pick up a few tasks along the way.
However, midway through his journey, a white pigeon with crimson feathers suddenly landed on the carriage window.
“Luca, your courses have been arranged. You need to return to the academy to go over the follow-up procedures.” It tilted its head, its black-and-white eyes looking at Luca sideways as it spoke in a human voice.
The voice was Orf’s. This pigeon, known as a Crimson Plumed Dove, was a harmless monster often used to deliver messages. Luca, already accustomed to it, nodded and replied, “I’ll head back right away.”
Since he had become a mentor at Red Maple Academy, it was natural for him to fulfill his duties. However, his time was limited, and he couldn’t afford to spend too much of it teaching students. He needed Orf to make some adjustments to his schedule, and returning to the academy would be a good opportunity to discuss this matter.
Luca instructed the coachman to change course and head toward Red Maple Academy.
The academy wasn’t far, and he arrived shortly thereafter.
The freshman assessment had ended, and the once-crowded square outside the academy had mostly cleared out. Now, only a few people remained, busy carrying luggage and belongings.
Previously, there had been tens of thousands of people in the square. Apart from the few who had successfully joined Red Maple Academy as the cream of the crop, most had failed and would have to apply to other academies instead.
“Sir, are you a student at Red Maple Academy?” The young coachman asked with a look of admiration, his gaze lingering on the grand, ancient gates of the academy in the distance.
Red Maple Academy was the pride of Southwind City, a holy place beyond the reach of ordinary people’s dreams. To think that the young man he had casually given a ride to turned out to be a student at Red Maple Academy!
“No, I’m not.” Luca paid the fare, shook his head with a smile, and offered no further explanation as he made his way towards the entrance of Red Maple Academy.
Many students who saw him walking through the gates looked at him with expressions of surprise. -read-now
Luca’s feat of freezing the Trial Tower during the assessment had already spread throughout Red Maple Academy, and many people knew that a formidable figure had joined the academy.
What surprised them even more was that someone of Luca’s stature would arrive in such an ordinary carriage.
As he approached the academy gates, Luca showed his mentor’s badge to the gatekeeper and was just about to enter.
Then a girl’s voice suddenly called out from the side.
“Mentor Luca!”
Luca turned his head and saw a girl with long, fiery red hair waving at him. Her bright smile and sparkling eyes made her appear lively and adorable.
Behind her was a huge suitcase stacked high with various bags and packages, but she pulled it along as if it weighed nothing.
“Hello, student,” Luca replied with a smile. He had some impression of this girl—she was one of the students who had passed the assessment and whom he had seen at the stadium before. However, he didn’t know her name.
“Mentor, I’m Kassna Pasha! It’s a pleasure to meet you!” The red-haired girl abandoned her luggage and ran over, introducing herself with a look of excitement.
As she spoke, her large, doe-like eyes gazed at Luca, brimming with admiration.
Back when Kassna learned that someone in their group had cleared the 20th floor of the Trial Tower, she immediately switched her idol from Anna to Luca.
After all, passing the 20th floor was an incredible feat!
Even Anna, who was widely regarded as this year’s top prodigy of the Southern Territory, had only cleared the 18th floor!
Now, to see someone around her age not only pass the 20th floor but also become a mentor at Red Maple Academy—how could she not look up to him?
[Ding! Kassna Pasha’s affection for you has increased by 100 points!]
Luca was momentarily stunned and instinctively glanced at Kassna’s affection level.
He was startled by what he saw.
Her displayed affection points had somehow already exceeded 600!
And this was only their second meeting!
Luca felt a mix of amusement and bewilderment.
This girl’s affection for him was growing at a pace second only to Lucia’s, whom he had known for a much longer time.