Chapter 409: Rumors |
William had been waiting at the entrance to Loren's house, and the moment Loren returned, he immediately approached him.
“Master Mentor...”
“What's the matter?”
Seeing the cart full of gifts behind William, Loren decided to spare a few more words with him.
“I'm not sure if you've heard a rumor that the Head of the Chailros Family needs Ember Radiance...”
William spoke cautiously, terrified of accidentally provoking Loren.
“With something this big, of course I've heard about it. The Langton family used that very rumor to target my friend. You know I hate nothing more than threats and slander against me.
“I was just about to pay your family a visit to settle the score when you showed up.”
Hearing this, William broke out in a cold sweat and became even more careful with his words. He felt somewhat relieved that he'd come to Loren in advance—if he'd waited until Loren put everything on the scale, it would have been truly over.
“It's true that the Head doesn't have much time left, but he's never once considered seeking to extend his life. He's already started choosing his successor.
“And even if he did want to prolong his life, we would never risk provoking you by spreading such a message...”
William wasn't wrong. The rumor made no sense at all—anyone who thought about it for a moment could see it was fake.
But the problem was that a lot of people believed it, including that smart man Theodore. That part was deeply unreasonable.
Loren knew all this too, but he wasn't about to let it go so easily:
“Really? If it's just a rumor, then why are so many people utterly convinced of it?”
“Well... I suspect the Langton family wanted to drag us down with them before their execution. Maybe it's because we had business conflicts, or perhaps someone from the Chailros Family stole Theodore's sweetheart...”
William swallowed hard, knowing full well how weak his explanations sounded.
Just how deep would the hatred have to be for someone to abandon their entire family just to drag others down? If the hatred were that profound, the God of Hatred would have probably sought them out long ago.
It really didn't add up, but William couldn't produce any conclusive evidence. If Loren insisted on pressing this point, there wasn't much he could do.
Loren, however, didn't really have much intention of making things difficult for William. He was just going through the motions out of habit.
He was genuinely trying to figure out what was behind this rumor. His instincts told him it wasn't that simple.
And Loren's instincts had never been wrong.
“I suspect this isn't an ordinary rumor. It might have the effect of influencing people's minds.”
“The Chailros Family will fully investigate who's spreading this rumor! We will not allow anyone to affect you!”
Seeing that Loren had finally relented, William breathed a sigh of relief and made his position clear.
“By the way, when is the Langton family's execution?”
Loren had forgotten to ask about this earlier. Since William was here, he figured he might as well inquire.
“It's set for noon tomorrow. If you think that's too late, I can ask the Church to move it up.”
“Forget it, noon tomorrow is fine. Make sure to tell the Church that I'll be carrying out the execution myself tomorrow. What I hate most is people threatening me, especially when they target those close to me.”
“Yes, I understand...”
Loren had laid out his bottom line, and he had shown just how furious he was. William naturally grasped the seriousness of the situation.
William left, leaving all the gifts he'd brought behind. Loren couldn't be bothered to check them himself, so in the end, Anna curiously opened each one. They were all valuable items, but nothing that caught her interest.
“Anna, want to come kill people with me tomorrow?”
“Nah, killing people who won't fight back is boring.”
“Then are you going to the Academy tomorrow?”
“Not going either.”
Anna's answer didn't surprise Loren. He could already tell—she didn't like studying at all. The only reason she went to the Academy was to follow him and to investigate Paqina.
“Alright.”
Loren wouldn't be going to the Academy tomorrow. Though the Langton family wasn't a particularly large one, there were still plenty of people. It would take a while to execute them all, and Loren didn't want to show up at the Academy reeking of blood.
Fortunately, Loren had said “I'll teach you new magic next time” instead of “tomorrow.”
“I'll ask about Paqina's family situation next time. I need to figure out how to poach her...”
Loren realized that Paqina seemed to live at the Academy year-round. By convention, as a witch, she should be an orphan. Luna was the rare exception.
He could directly investigate this, but he wanted to respect Paqina's privacy.
Today, Loren had witnessed Paqina's talent once again, and his desire to poach her grew even stronger.
Before going to bed, Laila came to Loren's bedroom.
She had been holding back for a long time. Even though she knew Loren had things to do tomorrow, she still chose to come find him.
But when she entered, her expression was a bit awkward. She leaned close to Loren's ear and whispered:
“Cecelia is still under the bed. Is there any way to get her out? Otherwise, I'll feel too embarrassed...”
Hearing this, Loren lowered his head to look under the bed, and sure enough, he locked eyes with Cecelia.
Cecelia calmly waved at him, as if to say, “I won't bother you two.”
But there was no way she wouldn't actually bother them. Mirrorheart and Scarlett could handle it, but Loren figured Laila wouldn't be able to stand it.
“Forget it...”
Unable to find a way to get rid of Cecelia, Laila finally gave up.
“How did you know Cecelia was under my bed?”
“I placed a mark on her earlier too. As the head of the household, I have to protect everyone else.”
Laila had fully immersed herself in the role, looking at everyone else as if they were children.
“Is that so...”
Loren felt a bit touched too. Everyone in this house had a strong sense of responsibility...
But Laila's expression was off. She had been ready to go all in, only to have Cecelia abruptly interrupt her.
In the end, Laila had to settle for a quieter method. She grabbed Loren's hand...
...
Nothing else happened that night. In any case, Cecelia didn't bother them.
The next day, Loren and the refreshed Laila walked out of the bedroom together. Seeing this, Anna flashed a mischievous grin, making Laila a little embarrassed.
“I won't be going to the Academy today. I'm taking part in the execution of the Langton family.”
Loren informed Luna, who nodded. Unlike Anna, even if Loren didn't go, she still had to attend class. She actually liked studying quite a bit.
Loren checked the time. The noon execution time had already passed, but he knew the ceremony wouldn't start without him. William had already conveyed Loren's intentions to the Church, and Loren trusted William's ability to handle things.