Chapter 109: Beneath the kindness.

Logan settled for patting her back, instead of killing her. She was his golden goose, laying the golden eggs. For the rest of his life, as long as he gave her some sugar, he would control her. When her father died and she inherited a big portion of his assets, he would get rid of her, retire, fake an accident, change his face and live a wonderful life with Zyra Scorpion and their Soul maiden babies.

A warm smile spread across his face as he imagined it. On the inside, he was mildly amused. The old man Craw actually offered a safe house? Celeste must have cried her eyes out for him to do that, he thought. Claw automobiles has a new fast car. I wonder how much crying she would need to do to get me one for free. This bitch sure puts her focus on all the wrong things.

"You have such a tender heart, Celeste," Logan murmured, brushing a stray hair from her face. "You worry not just for me, but for my sister as well. I am truly blessed to have a wife like you." He kissed the tip of his nose. "In my next life and the next one and the pone after, I wish to be your husband."

Celeste’s cheeks flushed a blotchy pink. She punched his chest lightly, in a way a shy woman in the throes of a tender love would do."You...you only know how to say sweet things to me." She chuckled. "Now is not the time, we have to handle your family’s problems first."

"There is no need," Logan said softly, his smile remaining perfectly intact while his eyes went entirely watery with a fake sadness. "Ritah has already gone beyond the veil to find Ava. The Divine maiden sent Ava with a team to find resonance stones."

Celeste froze. The breath caught in her throat, and for a terrifying five seconds, she looked exactly like a pillar of salt. Her lips trembled, parting but producing no sound.

Beyond the veil? The forbidden zone. The graveyard of Soul maidens? That is a death sentence. She thought sadly.

"I... I see," she finally choked out, her voice barely a squeak. "Then we cannot help her anymore."

"I need to check on our guests. Rest early, my dear wife, we travel early tomorrow. Don’t think of it anymore." He said, patted her shoulder, and smoothly excused himself.

As his tall figure walked down the corridor, Celeste’s pitiful gaze followed him. She felt a heavy pang of sorrow for her husband. First his niece Ava was sent beyond the veil, and now his sister Ritah had gone there too! In the recent years, not a single Soul maiden, not even the hunting guild experts had stepped into that place and walked out alive. In her mind, Logan was practically without family now, except her and the kids. He was probably going upstairs to cry alone.

Logan, however, wasn’t crying. The moment he turned the corner out of his wife’s sight, he violently jerked off his silk tie, ripping it free from his collar with a low hiss. "Women. Always so dramatic."

He made his way toward the east wing, stopping just outside Ian’s bedroom. The door opened, and Mrs. Munch stepped out carrying an empty tray.

"Ah, Mayor Logan," she whispered, bowing her head. "I just took some warm milk and lotus-paste cookies to young Master Ian. The poor lad is reading so hard for the Academy entry exam. His eyes are practically falling out of his head."

"Is he now?" Logan nodded approvingly, though his mind was calculating something entirely different. "Good. Thank you, Mrs. Munch for taking good care of him. Go get some rest."

Mrs. Munch moved and then paused. "Your honor? Any word on Mistress Zyra?"

Logan shook his head and smiled sadly.

Mrs. Munch let out a soft sigh. "The Scorpion’s would be glad that you took Master Ian in."

"Well, it’s nothing really." Logan said politely. He watched the older woman go, then sneered.

The only reason Ian was sleeping under this roof instead of the school dormitory was purely tactical. Logan had personally ordered the installation of six hidden cameras in the corners of the room. The boy’s phone was bugged, too. Logan was just waiting. If Zyra were alive, Ian was the only bait she would bite. Maybe she will come to him seeking shelter too.

Logan didn’t knock. He simply turned the handle and walked in.

Ian snapped upright from his desk so fast his chair screeched against the floor. His face immediately contorted into an expression of deep, soul-crushing discomfort. Oh great, Ian thought, his stomach dropping. The mayor is here. He’s going to ask me about Zyra again.

"Sit," Logan commanded, waving a hand casually as he closed the door behind him.

Ian slowly lowered himself back into his chair, keeping his hands flat on his thighs. He tried to look cooperative, but inside, he was sweating bullets. For the past weeks, he had been playing a dangerous game of pretend. He kept stringing the Mayor along, lying through his teeth about how "close" he and Zyra were, hinting that she might rely on him. 𝘧𝓇ℯℴ𝓂

But deep down in his heart, Ian knew the bitter truth: after the way he had betrayed her to save his own skin, Zyra wouldn’t look at him with an atom of love. If she saw him right now, she’d probably use a sword to chop off his head.

"I thought you preferred the school dorms, Ian." Logan opened, his tone conversational but his eyes drilling holes into the boy’s skull.

"I did, Uncle Logan," Ian lied smoothly, adopting a humble, submissive posture. "But your residence has much better ambiance for studying. I can also help out around the house if I am here. It is the least I can do to thank you for your support. I didn’t want to be ungrateful."

If you had left, you would be in a dungeon right now. Logan thought, amused by the boy’s survival instincts. Aloud, he said, "Good. Because tomorrow, your schedule changes. You are going to join hunting guild that is searching for Zyra."

Ian’s eyebrows shot straight up into his hairline. "What? But... I thought the search was officially over? The commander recalled the soldiers and posters taken down!"

Logan rubbed his forehead, a rare flash of genuine exhaustion breaking through his mask. "The public search is over. The Duggar’s private search is not. That wretched family hasn’t stopped sending their shadow assassins to find her. If they find Zyra before my men do, they will kill her for what she did to Hans. They do not care that the Divine soul maiden settled the matter."

Ian’s shoulders completely slumped. "I... I understand. I will go." He paused, looking down at his expensive textbooks. "But what about my Academy exams? What about school?"

"Take a dead year," Logan said, his voice dropping any pretense of warmth. "Or study online while you’re looking for her. Your choice."

Ian’s jaw clenched. A dead year? He had spent days waking up at dawn, chewing on bitter herbs to cleanse his meridians, and reading dull historical texts just to pass this exam. Zyra’s future was already completely doomed_ she was a fugitive running from assassins! Why did his future have to be put on hold just because hers was botched? It wasn’t fair.