Free Web NovelChapter 7: The King of Acting Meets the Queen of Disguise
At that exact moment, the three of them materialized once again in a location not too far from the Tax Bureau. They stepped out from the shadows of a secluded alleyway behind the rows of buildings, accompanied by Matthew. A heavy, absolute silence hung over them. freewёbnoνel.com
Once Cain confirmed that no one was pursuing them, he let out a sharp, ragged exhale...a sigh so deep it felt as though he had been holding it in since the very day he was born. He leaned his back heavily against the cold stone wall, pulling out a handkerchief to wipe away the beads of cold sweat that covered his face.
"What on earth possesses you?!" Cain snapped, his voice tight with lingering frustration. "How can you just run off like that without my permission?!"
Cain was genuinely upset. His daughter clearly didn’t comprehend that her reckless stunt had just put the lives of countless civilians on the line...not to mention his own.
Amelia, however, couldn’t care less. She promptly turned her back on him, crossing her tiny arms over her chest with a huff.
"No one has the right to question this young lady’s actions. You made me, a mere child, carry your tax paperwork for you. And you call yourself a man?"
Cain’s face contorted with pure exasperation.
"Tax paperwork?! Girl, I could lift this entire continent on a single finger if I wanted to! Tax paperwork... you literally understand absolutely nothing. All you’re capable of is talking back with that rude mouth of yours."
Amelia let out a soft, mocking scoff.
"Lift the entire continent? Seriously? Is that honestly the best excuse you could come up with?"
Cain sighed heavily, utterly at a loss as to how to handle this child. Now that Lucy had openly revealed herself, he needed to maintain an even lower profile. Yet, it felt as though the entire universe was conspiring to make this day as catastrophic as possible.
He began reprimanding himself for failing to calculate a critical variable: with his daughter’s legendary trait, The Eye of a Thousand Souls, she was bound to detect her own mother even in the thickest of crowds. Naturally, because she was deeply attached to her mother, she would march straight toward her.
Wait a minute...
Suddenly, a lightbulb went off in his mind.
Was this whole thing an elaborate setup by Lucy to force me to expose myself? He began to overthink. She definitely knew Amelia would notice her and run over. And the moment I displayed even a shred of paternal instinct or weakness, her bloody massacre would begin!
Yes, it had to be her! Because this is precisely the kind of twisted, convoluted scheme that only a yandere villainess would concoct. The type of woman who lures you in with her enchanting charms for a single second, only to trap you in a deadly snare.
Cain convinced himself that if it weren’t for his hyper-vigilance and extreme caution, he might have foolishly fallen for the spell of those violet eyes again. But he had successfully deduced her plot, and that was a massive win.
While Cain was drowning in his pool of paranoia, Matthew stepped forward, trying his best to counsel the young girl.
"Amelia... I know you’re upset," Matthew spoke with deadpan seriousness. "But you must understand that the world is full of wicked people who could kidnap you and throw you deep into the dark forests... where the sharks will eat you."
Amelia stared at him like he had grown a second head.
"Sharks? In the forest? Seriously... are you even stupider than he is?"
Matthew, who had genuinely thought he was just tricking an ordinary toddler, froze in absolute embarrassment. He slowly turned his head to look at Cain, his eyes welling up as if he were on the verge of tears from being utterly roasted by a five-year-old.
Seeing his top shadow guard completely broken, Cain could only let out another exhausted sigh.
Instead of arguing, Cain simply nodded.
In the depths of his mind, a tactical counter-strategy began to take shape.
Since Lucy had explicitly decided to show her face, backing down or acting defensively would only make him look vulnerable. In this scenario, offense was the absolute best defense; he was going to take the initiative and strike first this time.
"Amelia, do you have a moment?"
He had made his decision. He was going to layout the situation to Amelia....though, naturally, he would omit a few key details. This girl was terrifyingly sharp, and having her as an ally was infinitely better than leaving her as an unpredictable adversary.
"What do you want from this young lady now?" she asked, her tone still laced with skepticism.
Cain knelt down, dropping to her eye level.
"I know that the woman earlier was your mother. It was Lucy."
Amelia’s eyes widened in genuine shock. How on earth had this man managed to see right through her mother’s flawless, unparalleled illusion technique? But Cain didn’t give her enough time to overthink it.
"She firmly believes that I am your biological father and deeply suspects my identity. But in reality, I am not," Cain lied smoothly. "I simply want to preserve my own life and avoid any unnecessary conflict. Your mother’s power is devastatingly immense; a full-blown war against her would result in catastrophic casualties for everyone involved."
Amelia froze, staring intently into Cain’s face as she swallowed hard. Is he truly not my father? But why would he deny it? He looked so much like her, yet... in her past imaginations, she had always pictured her missing father as a hideous, wretched scoundrel who had taken advantage of her mother in a moment of vulnerability.
But this uncle before her was incredibly handsome... completely defying all her preconceived notions.
Deep down, Cain felt a pang of guilt for blatantly deceiving the child into believing he wasn’t her father when he absolutely was. But given the circumstances, he had no other choice.
"Your mother will never stop investigating me," Cain continued, fueling his narrative. "And in her current emotional state and volatile anger, she might do something incredibly reckless."
Amelia nodded quietly, feeling for the very first time a genuine desire to listen to what he had to say completely.
"You want to be with your mother, right?" Cain proposed, a sly glint in his eyes. "So, how about we go straight to her and hire her as your personal bodyguard and escort? You will tell her that you informed me she is a trusted guardian appointed by her to protect you whenever I am busy."
Since Lucy wanted to play a game of charades and disguises, Cain was more than ready to crown himself the King of Acting. He was going to play along with her exact game, pretending as though absolutely nothing was amiss. free𝑤ebnovel.com
"That way, you will be right by your mother’s side, while I will do my best to prove my innocence. In exchange for your cooperation, I will reward you with rare magical artifacts. It’s a mutually beneficial business deal. What do you say?"
Amelia didn’t respond immediately, but her mind was already made up. Remaining by her mother’s side was her absolute priority, and she finally grasped the underlying dynamics of the situation. She was no fool.
Moreover, she appreciated that this uncle respected her intellect enough to negotiate a proper deal with her.
Shake.
A tiny hand met a larger one, sealing the official pact between the father and his daughter.
"Then... it’s a deal."
"Most definitely."
At this point, Amelia didn’t particularly care whether this man was truly her biological father or not; her mother’s feelings and well-being came first, above all else.
The three of them finally emerged from the secluded alleyway. They were still not too far from the Tax Administration Bureau, where the crowd of journalists had grown even larger and more chaotic. Deciding it was best to remain undetected, they slipped into Matthew’s shadow domain once more, silently monitoring the surrounding area.
Cain prayed to the heavens that Lucy hadn’t already departed.
Fortunately, after navigating through the nearby shadows, they spotted her. Lucy was still wearing her ordinary disguise. She was sitting entirely alone on a bench in a public park just a short distance from the tax bureau.
The three of them instantly recognized this as Amelia’s cue to intervene. Having thoroughly memorized the exact lines Cain had coached her to say, the young girl stepped out of the shadows in a secluded spot. Cain and Matthew retreated to a safe distance, keeping a vigilant watch in absolute silence, waiting for their precise moment to make an entrance.
Standing amidst the park trees, Amelia took a deep breath before marching forward on her short legs.
As Lucy sat there, staring blankly into space, a soft voice suddenly pierced the quiet air.
"Mother..."
Lucy snapped her head around, her eyes landing on Amelia, who was deliberately panting and wheezing as if she had just run a grueling marathon.
She quickly scanned the perimeter around her daughter, finding no sign of either Cain or Matthew. In an instant, her magical illusion dissolved, revealing her true, breathtakingly beautiful form.
Amelia threw herself straight into her mother’s waiting arms.
"Mother, why did you leave this morning? I ran away from that man just to find you...!"
Lucy embraced her daughter tightly, her heart aching with profound anxiety.
"I am so sorry, my sweet child. I am sorry for lying to you... but I cannot hide the truth from you any longer. That man... he is indeed your biological father. Your mother was simply terrified that he would reject both you and me, which is why I acted the way I did. But do not worry..."
"You don’t need to explain, Mother. I don’t care about any of that," Amelia interrupted smoothly. "I already told him that you are a personal guardian appointed by my mother to protect me whenever he is too busy. Don’t worry, I have already set everything up for you."
Right at that exact moment.
"Amelia! Where are you?!"
Cain’s voice echoed through the park. Reacting with lightning reflexes, Lucy instantly snapped her mundane tax-office disguise back into place.
The moment Cain and Matthew arrived and spotted Amelia standing safely next to the disguised Lucy, an immense, visible wave of relief washed over their expressions... as if a crushing weight had just been lifted from their chests.
"Thank the heavens you are here! I was worried sick about you... Come, let us head back"
Cain then turned his gaze toward Lucy, putting on an award-winning performance as if he had only just noticed her existence.
"Oh! You’re that woman from the Tax Bureau. Hello there."
"I..."
Before Lucy... who had reflexively altered her vocal cords to mask her voice... could even speak, Cain smoothly cut her off.
"I know, I know. Amelia already explained everything to me. She told me that you were personally sent by Lucy to act as her guardian and protect her. If you had just told me that from the very beginning, we would have welcomed you with open arms! We are actually on our way to a bakery right now; would you care to join us?"
Behind his calm, welcoming facade, Cain was smirking triumphably in his mind. He could feel it—everything was finally playing out perfectly according to his script.
