Noah’s tense posture relaxed, and he leaned back in his chair, “You are saying that the Shooter isn’t a member of the terrorists but hired help?”
Fynn nodded, “It would also explain why not getting caught was more important to him than ensuring the power rampages went as planned. In the last power rampage incident, after starting the power rampage, if he shot another bullet to incapacitate or kill you…”
Noah felt Levi’s hand in his hair stiffen unnaturally at the words “kill you”. He promptly shot Levi a comforting look and gently patted his thigh. For some reason, that action made Levi stiffen even more, and even Fynn choked on the water he was drinking, starting to cough violently.
Noah attempted to get up to pat his back, but Fynn’s teary eyes widened, and he started to wave his hands as if to say ‘No need! You! Remain sitting!! Don’t come over!!’
Seeing how insistent Fynn was over the matter, Noah, though worried and confused, could only sit back down.
Luckily, it was just water, and Fynn managed to regain his bearing soon enough. He rubbed his red eyes and grunted, “As I was saying, with you dead, and no one left to soothe your brother-in-law,” Fynn seemed to emphasize the words brother-in-law.
The implications were missed on Noah, but the said brother-in-law, who was currently struggling to keep it in his pants, abruptly realized that he was in the presence of an Intenter, which was enough to dunk his rising desires in cold water.
Fynn let out a weary sigh and continued, “With no timely soothing, the incident would have ended in a massacre. Which would have served the purposes of the terrorists fine, but not Swiftrain’s. You see, hitting you from that distance would be no easy task even in normal circumstances, let alone after the area became covered with invisible currents of force due to your brother-in-law’s power rampage. Hitting someone near the center of the field… tsk… it would certainly take time, however, for a pro like Swiftrain, it isn’t impossible.”
Fynn leaned back in his chair, “However, Swiftrain weighed the pros and cons and didn’t wish to risk capture to ensure the success of the mission. I had already called for backup; the more he overstayed his welcome, the higher his chances of getting caught.
“So he only did the bare minimum he was paid to do and bolted.”
“Right.”
“This is good news,” Noah smiled, his eyes flashing with various calculations, “It means that if we can catch Swiftrain, it would put a significant dent in their plans. They’d be hard-pressed to find a qualified replacement in the short-term. No–” Noah halted, “I have a better idea…”
Fynn and Levi turned towards the gently smiling kitten.
“You have a plan in mind?” Fynn rubbed the fine hairs that, for some reason, stood up on his arms.
“I do,” Noah nearly purred, “Just passively waiting for them to strike is getting us nowhere. We need to go on the offensive.”
Noah eyed the other two, “This is the third terrorist incident I have been involved in, and it’s the second one my brother has been involved in. The first time could have been an accident, the second time a coincidence, but the third time? At this point, saying that their aims have nothing to do with us would be too much of a stretch.”
Fynn motioned Noah to continue, so he did, “I don’t know why they are aiming for brother or me, but at this point, it has become blatantly clear that they want us gone. Then, let’s give them the opportunity they are looking for.”
“You want to lure them out by using yourself as bait?” judging by Fynn’s tone of voice, he wasn’t thrilled by the idea. Levi, next to Noah, also frowned.
With a smile tugging at the corner of his lips, Noah shook his head, “Tsk, the word bait makes it sound so unpleasant,” he chuckled musically. “I’d rather think of us as a spider luring the fly into its web.”
Before Levi could protest, Fynn spoke what was on his mind, “I don’t like this idea. You nearly died today! Any more danger is simply unacc–”
“Don’t refuse so fast, hear me out,” Noah chortled, not at all displeased by the quick refusal. “If we stay cooped up in the manor, they will have no chance to strike. The two of us would be safe, but would the terrorists just quietly stop their acts of terrorism just because we are laying low? If they can’t strike at us, won’t they just start hitting other people? After all, they have that production of one dart per day, don’t they? If they don’t spend it on us, that’s one more dart to spend on someone else.”
Noah’s eyes narrowed in displeasure, “We can’t have that. I”– he emphasized the word I –“can’t have that. Not in my city. My soothing is currently compromised. If they choose to strike someone else with the same dosage they did with brother, not a single person in this city would be able to prevent the ensuing casualties.”
In fact, what Noah didn’t mention was that if someone other than Levi was hit by that dosage, even Noah, with his full power, might not be able to save them. Levi was an exception because his mental power responded extraordinarily well to Noah’s, so Noah’s soothing had double the effects for half the effort.
Fynn fell silent. Levi didn’t speak either, but his lips had long turned white from how hard he had been pressing them together. Even the hand he had on Noah’s head had turned sluggish and rigid in its caresses.
Noah stroked his thigh again as if placating a puppy, “Don’t worry. We won’t give them an opportunity to harm us. We’ll just make us look like enticing targets.”
“What makes you think they will bite?” Fynn rubbed his aching temples, “All of their attacks so far were meticulously planned. Initiating another attack on short notice… it doesn’t seem like something they would do.”
“Oh, they will bite,” Noah wore a soft smile, yet his eyes glittered dangerously. “The targets they have been trying so hard to off are currently vulnerable, unable to use their full power. When should they strike if not now? Missing this hard-won opportunity, wouldn’t their little black hearts simply bleed? Just imagine how much resources they had wasted for these three failed attempts. If they can just manage to kill us off now, then those three attempts wouldn’t have been in vain.”
When put like that, the idea seemed plausible.
Levi and Fynn carefully listened to Noah lay his spider web out step by step, occasionally pitching in with their own ideas.
The trio spent hours refining the plan until they decided on even the most intricate of details. Their lives were on the line – they couldn’t leave a single thing to chance. This play should only look like a fair gamble on the surface, but beneath should lie a rigged game.
After Fynn left to execute his part in the plan, Noah and Levi remained sitting alone in the dining room. “Why are you looking at me like that?” Noah side-eyed Levi. Noah might be misinterpreting most of Levi’s reactions, but it didn’t mean he couldn’t see them clearly. Over the last couple of hours, the more he spoke, the fierier Levi’s gaze became. At first, Noah had ignored it, but later on, he couldn’t help but seek solace from his black-hearted system, “Blackie… is it just me or brother-in-law's gaze seems a bit… too fervent?” “What’s wrong with admiring your wit? Your plan is really well-thought-out! Even I, this AI system which has seen many things, can’t help but feel admiration and respect for the level of your scheming,” Blackie very cheerfully praised his host, which, considering that he was usually a total jerk, should have been suspicious in itself, but Noah, whose attention had been preoccupied with Levi, missed it. “Is-is that s
Due to the Cleanser’s thorough cleansing of both their bodies and clothes earlier today, the two men only washed their teeth and left the shower for the morning after. Noah had found an extra toothbrush in his cupboard, and graciously offered it to Levi. Levi eyed the two toothbrushes standing side by side within the same cup and couldn’t help but feel extremely pleased by the image. Afterward, Noah, as usual, wore an oversized t-shirt to bed, and Levi… Noah averted his eyes from his brother-in-law’s naked torso, “Brother… I have several t-shirts here that should fit you–” “No need,” Levi interrupted, “It’s fine; I usually sleep like this.” Noah swallowed down the rest of his words. There… there was nothing strange with men only sleeping in their boxers… In his previous life on Cradle, he totally knew a lot of guys who slept only in their boxers… It’s just… it’s just… how come when his brother-in-law did it, he got a strange feeling? Like it wasn’t quite prop
Noah couldn’t help but once again remember the memories Blackie shared with him, and his two amber eyes moistened.Before he could register what he was doing, he grabbed Levi’s chin and made the other face him. “I won’t die,” Noah proclaimed solemnly. ‘I really won’t die. I have Blackie.’Blackie: (눈_눈) ‘Oh? Now you remember how useful this system is? Then how come I remember you constantly doubting this lord’s abilities and even asking for a mute button?’Noah didn’t have the chance to continue his pledge because as soon as he made the first move, it was as if all hell broke loose.As if a tight string had snapped within Levi, his previously motionless form abruptly enveloped Noah within his arms. His left arm wrapped around Noah’s waist and lower back, his hand stealthily gliding over Noah’s round bottom to rest on his hip. Meanwhile, his right arm slid
“Surv-surviving three… three times…” As Noah attempted to recover his train of thought, his voice came out shaky and broke in several places. Only after clearing his throat several times did he finally manage to piece together a relatively fluent sentence. “Surviving three times might… might look like a coincidence, but–but if my instincts told me I would die… would… would I not change my actions until I found a way to live?”Noah shrunk his pink neck, lowered his head, and stared at his own feet as if they were the most interesting of species. “From an outsider's perspective, these–these might look like… like close brushes with death. But from mine, they… they are just a multiple-choice question to which I already know the wrong answers.”Levi’s eyes had not once left his alluring baby. Letting go of him had already taken every drop of Levi’s will power; how wo
When Cordia daddy received the report from the butler, he nearly choked on his spit.This son-in-law is treating his little son’s room as his own!! Has he no shame?? So many rooms in the manor, including his fiancée’s place, yet he chooses to settle in his son’s bedroom?!?For goodness sake! His son’s room didn’t even have a sofa! There is only that one bed!!It took Concordia city lord a long while to finally manage to swallow down his indignation.Very well! Every problem has its solution. (ꐦ ◠‿◠)And thus, he passed down his orders – tomorrow, when the two boys left the bedroom, move another bed inside.Not enough room for another bed? Make room! Even if you have to replace the large bed with a smaller one, you shall do it!Can’t get that huge bed out of the room? Don’t care how you do it! Even if the only solution is to split the huge bed into two with a bloody laser cutter, y
No, it wasn’t the matter of his baby’s suitors! He, the dignified and the magnanimous ruler of Astarea, and his darling’s one and only future husband didn’t need to worry about some peasants stealing the goddess–ahem, the god of his heart!(︶^︶)ノAlright, fine! The actual truth was that he hadn’t gotten his hands on that list just yet… (≖ ‸ ≖)Apparently, getting a list of his love rivals involved a lot of research; getting accurate information within such a short time frame was unrealistic. Or at least that’s what his people had claimed with tears in their eyes.Hmph, since he had more pressing matters to attend to right now, he would let them off the hook this once.As for the mentioned pressing matters, they were naturally related to getting married to his baby. Back when he had decided to switch the bride of the arranged marriage to his baby, Levi had lamented how much easier it would all be if h
By the time the eldest Cordia sibling, Noah’s sister, handled all of the work assigned to her, the day had already turned into night. Her healing powers had been squeezed dry, leaving her utterly exhausted self, stumbling on her way to the employee lounge.Her glassy eyes lit up when she saw the vacant sofa as if seeing a great benefactor. Without further ado, she slumped into the comfy goodness, intending to briefly rest her tired body before hauling herself home. However, as soon as her head touched the sofa, she ended up inadvertently dozing off. When she finally snapped out of it, the time on the wall showed several hours had already passed.She sat up in a fluster, her abrupt actions making the quilt covering her slide off. In a daze, she gazed towards the soft blanket which she did not remember covering herself with.Ah, Shaw must have seen her embarrassing state and considerately fetched a blanket. What a mature, thoughtful gentleman! Tsk, unlike he
Noah’s sister wasn't the only one who had trouble falling asleep that night. Somewhere in Concordia, there was a dimly lit room with all of its window sills shut tight in an attempt to keep the proceedings inside private. A futile effort since neither the tightly shut windows nor the thick door could keep the loud and agitated bits and pieces of the conversation from leaking out."How is he fine and well?!?""…don't know!""Didn't you say… estimated power… SS-rank Soother?!?""I told you… results… unpredictable!""Didn't… increase the doze?! How is… Astar Levi… fucking fine?!?""Differences in mental power? Differences in the level of… abilities? For all we know… soothing power …increasing…""So we are fucking training the enemy to counter our plans better?! Is that it?!?"A sharp sound of glass breaking could be heard from within.