Between Jack and Cassandra, Cassandra had the easiest problem to solve.

And the reason was quite simple.

It was enough to show her that I was not only physically strong, but politically far superior to her. To show her that none of the ways she had decided to bring me down had any effect on me.

And there is a very easy way to do that.

With a smile on my face, I dialed a certain number on my watch. The ’beep’ of the call was the only sound that could be heard in my room.

But then it stopped abruptly, and the words of a girl with a very sharp and stern voice filled my ears.

“Cassandra Bealy, who are you?”

“No one very important, to be honest… just Aiden Tenebra.”

Suddenly, a deep silence enveloped the room. Then Cassandra sighed softly on the other end of the call.

“It’s not surprising that you got my number… but I didn’t expect you to call me.”

She waited a moment longer, then asked gently, almost as if the smile that had formed on her face was only visible in her voice.

“To what do I owe this call? Have you finally given up, maybe?”

I answered her with a short laugh, but without waiting for her reaction, I continued.

“No, no. You are one of the last people I would call to give up, Cassandra. Do you think I’d make the mistake of walking into the hands of someone as controlling as you?”

I leaned back in my chair as far as I could, relaxing my body, and Cassandra, alert, said nothing. She was silent.

“I just… wanted to let you know, to warn you about a few things you’re going to experience starting today.”

Cassandra kept waiting as if she wanted to maintain her silence. But just as I was about to continue, she interrupted me and murmured.

“Are you… threatening me?”

“Huh, threatening?”

I laughed again, more emphasized this time… as if what I was hearing was quite funny.

“No, no… no threats. I’m not giving you a choice.”

I narrowed my eyes, running my finger over it as I dragged the screen with the call up in front of me.

“I said it in the arena, didn’t I? That I would crush anyone who stood in my way.”

I concluded in a mumbled voice, just like she had just done.

“No turning back, no apologizing, no begging. The only thing you’ll see, the only thing you’ll experience… is realizing how easy it was for me to crush you.”

And I hung up the call.

Now… I could start dealing with the real issue.

And the first stage of that was quite simple to do as well. Again, one call…

But this time, the answer was quite different.

“Good morning, Aiden.”

“Same, Ronald.”

Ronald Potenbea…

“There’s something I need you to do, can you help me?”

Ronald, who normally has no problem fulfilling almost any request I make, gave me a slightly different answer than I expected this time.

“I’m a bit… busy these days. Things are complicated in the guild. But if it’s something I can do, sure.”

The smile on my face inevitably faded slightly, and I slowly sat up from my reclining chair.

“Is there a problem?”

Ronald was silent for a moment, then sighed deeply.

“The Guild… had fallen very far behind recently. I’ve been trying to get it back on track for the last few months, and I kicked out everyone last week who I thought was troublesome, who I thought was hurting us and my family.”

“Oh…”

In short, he weeded out the rot… but the reaction of the rest of the guild was not as neutral or positive as he thought.

“I understand… but I don’t think it should be that big a problem.”

Ronald remained silent as if waiting for me to continue.

And I did.

“You’re strong, Ronald. You are among the most powerful people in the kingdom. You are the leader of the Potenbea Family, a pillar family of the kingdom. If the people under you are unhappy with what you are doing, and if they are not close to you, or if they don’t really have the guild’s best interests at heart, or even your own… you just need to show them who’s boss.”

I narrowed my eyes, my voice deliberately cold.

“You don’t want to go back to your old self. You don’t want to worry your family, those close to you… You want people to see that you’ve changed, that people don’t think that way about you. But what happens if you don’t show your weight in politics and business… I think you know that better than I do.”

I sighed slightly, closed my eyes, and imagined him in front of me, I could picture his expression, even the way he was sitting.

And right now… I was sure he was squinting at the floor.

“Crush them. Those who oppose you, I mean. Show them all who you are, who holds the power. Don’t change your whole personality while trying to emphasize your kind side. Because that’s who you are… powerful, noble, boss, leader.”

Seeing this happen, seeing Ronald Potenbea, who is one of my favorite characters in the game… distancing himself from who he is in the game… from ’himself’… almost got on my nerves.

To see him like that… weak, hesitating… it made me angry.

“And on the other side, a man who cares for those he loves, who would do anything for their well-being. Right?”

He threw his head back, closed his eyes, and took a deep breath. His lips curled upward. Then, he let out a tiny laugh.

“You’re different. You’re really different, Aiden… I’m embarrassed to think I’m getting life lessons from someone who hasn’t even turned twenty yet, but when I realize it’s you… it makes all the difference.”

I imagined him opening his eyes again, being sure that he had done it.

And this time, the expression on his face was exactly as I remembered it. Even the sound of his voice… everything was as it should be. It belonged to the noble man I remembered.

I opened my eyes again. I couldn’t help curling the corners of my lips upward.

“What would you like, then?”

I paused for a moment, his words swirling in my mind.

“Ah…”

True, the reason I called him was different.

“It’s no big deal, really. The Bealy Family… more specifically your niece, Cassandra Bealy. I want to talk about her.”

“My relationship with my wife’s family is not the greatest, Aiden. You know that… don’t you?”

“Yes, I know, but you don’t have to be on good terms for what I’m going to ask of you.”

I widened my smile slightly, resting my chin on my hands.

“Cassandra… she’s trying to meddle in my business. And she’s trying in a bad way, for that matter. Like trying to get me kicked out of the academy, for example. And… I want to teach her a little lesson, nothing more.”

“What exactly do you want?”

“I’m going to bluff, a big one… so I want you to put me in touch with Cassandra’s parents, make me look like someone much more important than I am.”

Ronald’s words in response to me… this time he was a bit agitated.

“This is something that could be a problem not only for me, but also for you…”

He was going to say something else, but I didn’t let him.

“Either this is going to happen…”

I lowered my voice a little and continued solemnly with the last word.

“Or the Bealy family will have to come to an end. Along with Cassandra’s future, of course. If Cassandra keeps this up, that is. I gave her my warning once.”

Seconds passed in silence, without a sound from anyone. But this too had an end.

And it was Ronald who brought it to an end, not me.

“Okay… fine. I’ll arrange something.”

I smiled, my finger moving toward the hang-up button.

“Thank you. And don’t worry, I won’t do any harm to anyone. It’s just a bluff, like I said.”

But just as I was about to hang up the call…

“Aiden?”

My finger remained on the red button. I couldn’t help but make a confused expression on my face.

“Yes?”

“Before you hang up… can I ask you something?”

Huh…?

“Sure, as long as it’s something I can do.”

Ronald waited for a while, as if trying to choose his words. And I waited patiently. It must have been important for him to do that, after all…

“I wanted to talk about… Celine.”

And… it was important, apparently.

“Celine?”

As soon as I heard Ronald mention her, a bad feeling came over me and I involuntarily sat up slightly from my chair.

“Is something… wrong?”

“Sort of, I guess?”

Wait… what does that even mean?

“I guess? What do you mean, ’I guess’?”

Ronald… let out a deep, troubled sigh, the first I’d ever heard from him. So much so… it wasn’t like that even when we were talking about the issues we had just discussed.

“Don’t misunderstand, there’s nothing physically or psychologically wrong with her.”

He paused, unable to help coughing slightly after that last part.

“Maybe a little… but that’s not the point. It’s… a bit more complicated.”

What the hell is he going on about…? If you have something to say, just say it.

“Yes?”

“Celine… likes you, Aiden. I know you already know that. And I know more or less how you think. I talk to Celine all the time. But… can you at least give her a straight answer?”

Huh…?

That was… the problem?

“I- I didn’t quite understand…? How does that cause a problem?”

“Because it gets more complicated every time you don’t answer her properly. Girls… they’re weird about this stuff, Aiden. I don’t even know…”

“O- oh…”

As the counter of the call kept ticking, every second passed in silence. Almost a minute… no one spoke during this whole process.

“Okay… okay. I’ll… talk to her sometime.”

“Thanks…”

And the call ended.

And I… just stared blankly ahead.

True… I forgot, but there was such a thing.

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