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Curse the Mainframe! - Chapter 222

Published at 24th of December 2019 04:19:58 PM


Chapter 222

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Vincent studied the lady on the bed. She was one of the many members in the Neil Clan, but he was able to recognise her right away. Mainly because she was one of the few in their clan who kept a low-profile.

Unlike the rest of the clan who preferred to do things the legal way, Anthea Neil had taken a hobby in robbing the rich and donating to the poor. The poor being herself, of course.

Anthea Neil, currently twenty-two years old. She left the clan roughly five years ago but showed signs that she had doubts about the final test 'massacre'. Didn't show any signs of inserting herself back into clan life any time soon, but here she was, back within the clan compounds.

"Clan leader!" Thea greeted, scrambling off the bed in a rather undignified way. Her face burned, but she had no time to care about petty things like her dignity right now. Not when the clan was at stake.

"Anthea Neil," Vincent greeted calmly in response to her frantic greeting. He studied her for a moment, before making up his mind when he saw Alec's nod to him.

Her reactions were genuine enough to Alec, and Vincent trusted his nephew's judgement.

They'd already apprehended the man who was so inefficiently trying to get Anthea alone. They didn't know whether or not he had other intentions, so it was better safe than sorry.

Quite frankly, it was unimaginable that someone would be so useless when trying to corral someone to enter the medical centre.

"Let us relocate to my office," Vincent said.

Vincent disappeared out the window, quickly moving back towards the direction of the most secure building in the clan.

Thea stared blankly at the clan head's retreating back. "Ah?" she said unintentionally, baffled. "Ah!" she cried again, when she was physically picked up, shocking her so much that she let out a scream.

The world blurred around her, and in what felt like a short few moments, she was standing in the clan head's office.

She blanked out for a moment before snapping back to attention.

"Clan head, I bring grave news," she started seriously. While she had been able to find out some things, there were things that were still in the dark to her, as she had been chased out before she managed to obtain more information.

Accordingly, the clan head's face seemed to close off as he stared at her seriously. It was strange how not a single muscle on the clan leader's face changed, but the feeling was completely different.

Thea looked hesitantly at Alec. She didn't know whether or not he should be hearing this.

Vincent caught her look, and steepled his fingers together. "You may speak freely. Alec here has my complete faith."

Thea took a deep breath, her face dropping into an impressive mask. "I am unsure whether or not you are aware of my job scope, but I function as an artefact liberator," she said, struggling to put her words in a light that wouldn't have negative impact. If the clan head didn't trust her because of her little hobby, then her risking her life was for naught.


Ye Sha snorted in Alec's mind. Artefact liberator. Basically, she was a thief, but she was putting it in a classier way.

Though Alec didn't approve of thieves, he didn't disapprove of them either. He was neutral regarding them. You needed skills to be a successful thief.

That, and he would be a hypocrite if he looked down on them. He'd stolen his fair share of books, after all.

"Two weeks ago, I stole into the royal palace's halls as a maid."

Vincent's brows twitched, and even Alec was surprised.

Just how much confidence did Thea have in her skills if she was targeting the royal family of all places? On the other hand, she could also be foolhardy, but that didn't seem likely if she still hadn't been caught stealing.

Most thieves met gruesome ends once they were found, and she would be no different. Unless, of course, she had the skills to back it up.

"Continue."

"I am unsure how much about the royal family you know about, but I overheard one of the princes talking loudly about how they would, quote, 'hit those brown haired, blue-eyed bastards' unquote, where they would never expect, so instead of finding things to liberate from the family, I started discreetly looking into it."

Vincent's eyes could have cut through her, they were so sharp.

Thea, in spite of herself, was a little terrified of the clan leader at this moment.

The Neil Clan's brilliant sapphire eyes that resembled a jewel were like hard chips of ice right now.

Thea delicately unravelled the various things that she found and heard, spilling everything out that she'd kept close to her chest.

Rather than feeling burdened, now that she was able to say the words that she'd been keeping in her heart, she felt lighter.

A slow, burning ember was creeping up in Alec's chest, yet this time, it wasn't the bright flames of rage that he usually felt.

Instead, it was like a cold, chilling presence that frosted him from inside out, affecting the room's temperature.

Alec didn't realize what he was doing until Thea shivered a little, rubbing her arms. He felt annoyed. This was why he didn't like his emotions. They always played with his control. This wasn't good. He'd have to do some extra training to make sure that his emotions wouldn't wreak havoc on his control later on.

Alec retracted his magic, deeply hiding it within himself, and the frosty room returned to the normal temperature slowly.

"Did you manage to find out who's feeding them the information?" Vincent questioned, no trace of his formerly relaxed self.

Alec felt a bit regretful, even as he was burning at the audacity that the Rhys Royal Family dared lay their eyes on his clan.

It had not been long since his uncle had resolved his worries, yet another wave came before the previous one receded completely.

"Yes," Thea said seriously. "Elder Sarah."

Vincent slowly closed his eyes.

She was one of the elders that had given in.

During the surveillance in the past three years, she had shown that she was complying with his orders and changes, thus he eventually eased off the surveillance as he gave her the benefit of doubt.

Apparently, that was a mistake.

One that he wouldn't be making any longer.

"You were caught eavesdropping on the prince?" Vincent said coldly.

Thea breathed in shakily, her heart still tightening at the close shave she had. "No. I was, however, caught off guard. I am sure that they do not know I was eavesdropping. I played out a scene acting like I was trying to assassinate the first prince."

"Good."

He didn't know how much of Anthea's view could be trusted in that regard, as she hadn't been able to see the results of her actions, but there were currently more pressing concerns.

Vincent's eyes flashed coldly as he looked at his nephew. Alec's eyes were equally as cold as his was, reminding him once again that Alec wasn't as gentle as he appeared.

It was better this way. A truly naïve and nice person wouldn't have lived long in the outside world. Most of them met their death without even realizing it was approaching.

"Bring me Elder Sarah," Vincent said coldly, and the hidden guards in the shadows immediately made their move, blurring out.

Thea's face was set in surprise. She hadn't even realized they were there.

Within moments, a thoroughly bound Sarah was thrown before Vincent's desk as the hidden guards disappeared into thin sight again.

The elder, bound and dishevelled, looked confused and pathetic as she cowered in front of the three in the office. Her frail form should have brought about some sort of pity to the people in the room, but none of the three had the 'normal' reactions.

Especially now, when they knew that she was feeding information to the enemy.

Of course, Vincent took Thea's information with a grain of salt, but he was inclined to believe her words, if only because the Rhys Royal Family had already been eyeing the Neil Clan for a long time.

He already knew that there would be unrest in the few years after he disposed of the threats lurking within the clan, but he had no expected that someone would fall this far.

He should have known better. But no longer.

Unlike the other clans that submitted to the Emperor and the royal family, the Neil Clan instead lived free and unfettered, roaming around as they pleased without care or regard for royal authority.

Of course, they were not the only clan to do that, but they were the most high-profile ones.

Though most sects didn't submit to the Emperor, for their strength was enough for them to escape the royal family's wrath unscathed, it was not the same for the clans throughout the continent.

Most of the sects throughout the Kaoriht continent had accepted the Emperor's rule, but the Neil Clan had been able to hide away using their natural formation, allowing them to escape due to the clan's unity.  

Sarah, upon seeing that her act of confusion and senility did not bring about the effects that she desired, slowly pushed her body off the ground, her face giving off a sense of coldness and dignity.

Vincent inwardly sneered in his heart.

Dignity? What dignity did a woman who was willing to betray the clan that had fed and raised her have?

"Elder Sarah. No. Sarah Neil. Confess your sins and repent."

Sarah looked at Vincent's young face and laughed.

"Sins? No. This is all in the name of interest. Just kill me."




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