NovelEnglishThe tension in the grand hall was palpable, with everyone's eyes fixed on BLACK.
Timothy gripped his firearm, his eyes alert and piercing, as if ready to pull the trigger the moment he got a clear view of BLACK's
face.
At this knife-edge moment, a voice at the door pierced the silence.
"Boss, the Elder has arrived."
No sooner had the words hung in the air than a figure stepped through the doorway.
The newcomer wore a mask, yet it was evident he was a young man.
Behind Quentin trailed a retinue of about a dozen bodyguards, all looking weary from travel.
Timothy immediately stood up.
"Elder, what brings you here today?"
Quentin's gaze shifted between Ralap and BLACK, his brow furrowed with concern, "What's going on here?"
Without hesitation, Timothy explained his suspicions.
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"Elder, that's the situation. Fortunately you're here. You know the gentleman, so you might verify his identity for us."
A clever ploy to shift the blame.
If BLACK hadn't been replaced by lan, then Timothy would have offended him. Now, by passing the buck to Quentin, Quentin would
be the one to offend BLACK.
But BLACK and Quentin were in cahoots; there would be no hard feelings.
Without further ado, Quentin approached lan.
Standing directly in front of lan, he swiftly lifted the black hood.
As half of lan's face was exposed, Quentin's fingers stiffened momentarily, then he readjusted the hood, almost reflexively as if he
hadn't registered the action.
From their vantage points, neither Timothy nor Ralap could see lan's partially revealed face; Quentin was the sole witness.
Now that Quentin had readjusted the hood, the face was once again concealed.
He found a seat and settled down. Timothy couldn't contain his curiosity.
"Elder, did you get a good look?"
Quentin took a sip of the tap water from a glass beside him and scoffed, "What, you think | could mistake his identity?"
Timothy's heart skipped a beat, and he chuckled nervously.
"Of course not, just making sure no one's being impersonated here."
He quickly bowed in lan's direction, "My apologies, sir."
lan remained silent, his eyes lingering on Quentin.
This was the enigmatic figure he had been searching for, the one who had been pulling the strings behind the four powerful
families with such ease.
His posture hinted at youthfulness.
Ralap quickly lowered his gun, "With both the sir and the Elder present, we've made a fool of ourselves today. The older we get, the
fuzzier our brains become, my sincerest apologies."
He poured lan a cup of tea with a smile, begging the gentleman not to take offense.
lan's fingertips traced the rim of the cup; the Elder's motives was unclear to him.
Despite having seen his face, the Elder had chosen to keep it hidden.
The atmosphere in the room grew more nuanced.
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The Elder rarely made daytappearances, yet here he was today, and even crossed paths with BLACK.
These two were never seen together before.
Just as Timothy was about to say something, Patric emerged from an adjoining room, with goggles still perched on his forehead and
a white lab coat draped over his frame.
Patric had doubted BLACK's identity the night before.
And his doubts persisted.
He glanced at Timothy, who shook his head to signal that the identity check was clear.
Had lan not infiltrated their midst?
Patric's brow furrowed with concern. Now that Maja was in his custody, lan should be desperate to find her.
Quentin's eyes narrowed as he caught sight of Patric.
Had the fool finally wised up?
Since he was present here, did it mean Maja was close by?
Quentin bowed his head in thought. If he wasn't mistaken, beneath that black cloak was the lover Maja had been tirelessly
searching for.
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