Chapter 120: Clock is Ticking
Cassian left Sylvia’s office later that day, unaware of the visit she would receive shortly afterward.
Selyne Astaford walked through the door.
Sylvia’s eyes lit up with a mischievous gleam.
The ash-haired woman didn’t react to that look; she entered calmly, as if her visit were the most normal thing in the world.
The director watched with amusement as her old friend approached and sat down in front of her with slightly mechanical steps.
She raised an eyebrow when Selyne finally sat down and, before bursting into laughter, asked:
"Why do you look like someone robbed you and you’re scared of running into them?"
Selyne responded with a sharp look, but the words seemed to relax her, and she let out a sigh.
Sylvia observed her for a moment and replied in the same tone.
"What happened?" she asked, a frown forming on her forehead.
Selyne looked at her friend attentively.
In private, both women were quite similar: relaxed and careless.
But seeing Sylvia’s current state, it wasn’t hard to guess that something had happened before she arrived. Her slightly flushed face and the disheveled room gave her away completely.
"Was he here?" the duchess inquired, a hint of anger in her voice.
Sylvia seemed to understand that whatever discomfort her friend had brought was related to someone they both knew well.
A smile began to form on her lips as she tried her best to hide it.
"Mmm, he just left. If you had come a little earlier, you might have run into him."
The director suddenly stood up and walked over to Selyne. A long sigh escaped her.
"I really don’t understand you and Elena," she said, shaking her head.
The duchess didn’t seem to understand at first, but when she saw the way the redhead was looking at her with amusement—scanning her as if she knew exactly what she was hiding—a faint blush formed on her cheeks.
To compose herself quickly, she said:
"Don’t treat me like one of your disciples, Sylvia. That man..."
Sylvia looked at her with interest.
"Is... is he really that good?" These last words came out so quietly they were barely audible. The duchess shifted uncomfortably in her seat, and a clear understanding passed between the two women who had known each other since they were young.
...
Meanwhile, after leaving Sylvia, Cassian moved away from the office building.
In the distance, he immediately recognized Klaus’s imposing figure. He was leaning against a column, rhythmically flexing his arms to keep the blood flowing through his biceps.
When Klaus saw Cassian appear, his eyes widened.
He pushed off the structure with a jump and headed straight toward him with a huge grin.
"Well, look who decided to come back from the dead!" Klaus exclaimed in a booming voice.
Before Cassian could react, Klaus grabbed him by the shoulders, shaking him hard to test his resistance, then gave him a strong, friendly punch to the chest.
"You’re thinner, Cassian! What the hell have you been doing all this time that I haven’t seen you?" Klaus frowned, scanning him with complete seriousness, almost indignant.
Cassian let out a snort, catching his breath after his friend’s effusive greeting, and adjusted his jacket to hide the subtle disarray in his clothes that Sylvia had caused shortly before.
Just as he was about to answer, a sound similar to a sob was heard nearby.
Klaus and Cassian exchanged glances.
Cassian made a move to go check who it was, but Klaus stopped him, placing a firm hand on his shoulder with a serious look.
"It’s Lisbeth," Klaus said quietly.
A look of surprise and confusion crossed Cassian’s face for a moment.
"I see..." he replied.
He cast a flat, emotionless glance toward the corner where the crying was coming from, then continued talking to Klaus as if nothing had happened.
"You seem stronger," Cassian commented, his tone completely devoid of emotion.
"Hehe! You can tell, right?" Klaus smiled smugly, though he didn’t fully divert his attention from the alley. "I thought you’d come back stronger too, but it looks like you’ve just been slacking off as usual. You and Seraphine have been ignoring me on purpose, haven’t you? Don’t complain later about your grades."
"Mmm..."
The sound of the sobs suddenly grew louder, interrupting their conversation.
A deep sigh escaped Klaus’s lips.
Understanding the situation, Cassian gave a brief nod and left, giving privacy to whoever needed it.
...
Back in his room, Adela was there, looking at him seriously as if analyzing her master’s mood.
"Don’t look at me like that, Adela," he requested.
The maid paused for a second and lowered her gaze, dejected. However, she looked back at Cassian and asked:
"Master... Elizabeth told me you didn’t leave your visit with her very happy..."
He ignored her question.
"Arrange a visit with Cordelia Valois, Adela."
"Eh? The duchess? Why?"
"Because her husband seems to be hiding something," he replied, showing a smile that was difficult to read. "And, of course, because I want to visit my mother-in-law."
Cassian hesitated for a moment before continuing:
"Also... take care of the emperor."
Adela looked at him in complete surprise.
"Already?"
"Mmm. Although I think if we wait, we might not need to do anything."
"Because of the Vitalis?"
Cassian shook his head but paused for a moment as if weighing something in his mind. He closed his eyes and sat down slowly.
"Just do it. You’ll understand why later."
...
On the other hand, the crown prince was in a deplorable state.
"Mom!" he babbled. "Ah! No, not that!"
Other indecipherable words came out of him.
A state so far from lucidity would definitely not please Cassian, and Caelia understood this well. Leonardo curled up in pain while withdrawal and his own mind fought to see who would win. Though he didn’t really have a choice—nobody wanted him to remain in that demented state.
At that moment, an envoy from the Vitalis Duchy arrived.
The prince seemed to recognize who it was. He made an effort to sit properly in the armchair and looked at the visitor.
"What’s going on?" he asked in a hoarse, strained voice.
The man looked at him with open contempt.
"You’re losing your value, Leonardo. We could have supported any of the other princes, but we let you get rid of them one by one. And here we are... here you are, in this deplorable state. Even if you reach the throne, you’ll only be a decoration at best."
The prince’s eyes turned red with rage.
"It seems you’ve forgotten who you’re talking to."
The envoy shook his head, unfazed.
"Even your mother has turned against you."
"Huh? What are you talking about? My mother would never do that," the prince replied, frowning in complete disbelief.
"If that’s what you believe, then you’d better prove it. Because all we see right now is how all the support she gave you is shifting toward Elara. And Elara is with Cassandra now, Leonardo."
The envoy stood up abruptly. He glanced sideways at the man who seemed completely lost and shook his head, ready to leave. But not before dropping one last crucial piece of information the prince needed to know.
"Ten days, Leonardo. In ten days you need to be in perfect condition, because my lord has already arranged everything for you."
