Chapter 228: Going To Retrieve The Tickets

Chapter 228

Alex sighed softly, kicking off his shoes near the entrance before walking over to the living room.

"Yeah, I’m back," he muttered, crossing the floor with heavy steps and plopping right onto the soft couch beside Celine. He leaned his head back against the comfy couch, and raised one hand to massage his throbbing temples with his thumb and forefinger.

Celine, meanwhile, finally turned her head away from the TV screen, and locked her eyes locking on his face that looked a bit drained. She tilted her head slightly, studying the way he slumped his shoulders and couldn’t help asking.

"What’s up with you?" Celine asked, her tone carrying a mix of mild curiosity and cool indifference. "You look like you just got hit on the head with a mountain."

Alex let out a low groan, keeping his eyes closed as he continued to rub his aching head.

"It’s nothing really. I just have a small headache, that’s all."

Celine raised an eyebrow, letting out a soft hum.

"Oh? Then it must really be one nasty piece of headache then, considering how you look like you’re about to pass out right where you’re sitting."

"Yeah... tell me about it," Alex mumbled weakly.

Deep down inside, Alex knew exactly why his head felt like it was being squeezed in a heavy iron vise. Activating the Eye of Chronos to slow down time, coupled with repeated usage of Void Step while carrying mundane humans out of the shopping center, had most certainly pushed his mental energy past their absolute limits.

Sitting there in discomfort, Alex briefly contemplated his options. He remembered that, didn’t he still possess the free, one-time purchase that he could use to acquire any item from the system shop, including Body Recovery Water? Just a single drop should be able to get rid of this damn headache.

’No... that’s a complete waste,’ Alex thought to himself, quickly dismissing the idea.

That free purchase token is an incredible safety net. It was best he saved it for a real life-or-death situation where it would be very important.

Using it now just to cure a mere headache would be foolish. It’s just a temporary strain, nothing too serious that requires him wasting such an important trump card.

He then paused, as a sudden stroke of inspiration flashing through his mind. Wait a second... didn’t he possess the Deathfrost Bloom ability?

Since it’s basically an ice type ability, what if he just manifested Deathfrost Bloom icy aura around his palm, without actually forming the Deathfrost Bloom shards itself? Yes! Then he could just place his icy hand against his forehead to soothe the pain...

However, the moment the thought crossed his mind, Alex instantly shot it down. He glanced sideways at Celine out of the corner of his eye. She was literally the original owner of Deathfrost Bloom and was also quite literally sitting close to him!

So if he suddenly manifested the freezing aura right in front of her face after claiming he had a simple headache, she would most definitely recognize the unique signature almost immediately.

And that would open up a whole new can of worms and endless questions that he had absolutely no energy whatsoever to answer right now.

’Forget it,’ Alex groaned internally. ’I’ll just do it the normal, human way.’

He pushed himself up from the couch, walked over to the kitchen, and grabbed a clean hand towel along with several ice cubes from the large double-door refrigerator. Wrapping the ice neatly inside the thick cloth, he walked back to the living room, sat down again, and gently pressed the ice pack directly against his forehead.

The instant it touched forehead, Alex could feel relief washing over him as the sharp, numbing cold immediately sank into his skin.

He let out a long, comfortable breath, leaning his head back once more.

"Feeling any better?" Celine asked casually, not taking her eyes off the television, where the news anchor was still droning on about the so-called miraculous event.

"A little bit," Alex replied, keeping the ice pack pressed firmly against his brow. "I can already feel my head easing up."

It didn’t take long at all before Celine shifted her position on the couch, turning her body slightly toward him. She glanced at the wall clock hanging in the grand living room, noting the passage of time.

"So," Celine began smoothly, resting her elbow on the armrest of the sofa, "I think we should probably be going to Marcus’s ex estate right about now to get those auction tickets before the day completely ends, don’t you think so?"

Alex opened one eye, looking at her with a thoroughly exhausted expression. He let out a dramatic sigh.

"Can’t it wait until later? I literally just got home not too long ago, and my brain is still frying."

Celine shrugged indifferently and said in a casual voice.

"Sure, we can definitely wait until much later tonight if that’s what you want... But oh, I think I must remind you about something important."

Alex narrowed his eye suspiciously. "Remind me of what?"

"Well," Celine said in an innocent tone, tapping her chin with her finger, "Marcus’s ex estate has been sitting empty ever since his death. However, there are still several housekeepers, caretakers, and security guards stationed around the property to maintain the grounds. Who’s to say that by the time we finally decide to drop by later, one of those housekeepers won’t accidentally stumble upon the hidden safe while cleaning? If they find it, they might try to break it open and steal whatever valuable items are inside, including those precious auction tickets. After all, you never really know what kind of greed lies hidden inside a person’s heart."

Alex froze, the ice pack hovering an inch off his forehead as he absorbed her words. He stared at her calm, beautiful face, knowing full well that she was intentionally using his desire for those tickets against him, yet he couldn’t deny the terrifying logic behind her warning. If someone else looted that safe before they arrived, his chances of getting into the auction to sell those Ascendant level cores would vanish into thin air.

He let out a deep, defeated groan, rubbing his face aggressively with his bare palm before dropping his hand.

"Alright, fine! Let’s be going right now," Alex grumbled, standing up from the couch and tossing the ice pack into the kitchen sink.

Celine gave him a small, victorious smirk, standing up gracefully from her seat and smoothing down her clothes.

"Glad to see that you still have a brain."

The two of them soon walked out of the luxury penthouse, and arrived at the garage where the sleek black Maybach was resting.

Alex reached into his pocket, unlocked the vehicle, and walked around toward the driver’s side door. However, just as he was about to pull the door handle open, he noticed that Celine was standing motionless a few feet away, with her arms crossed firmly over her chest, making absolutely no move to get into the passenger seat.

Alex paused, raising an eyebrow at her. "What are you doing? Get into the car."

Celine shook her head, looking at the luxury car with a mixture of disdain and impatience written all over her pretty face.

"What’s the point of using a car to get all the way over there when we can just get there in less than a minute, or maybe a minute tops on foot alone? while using a car will take us much longer!"

Alex stared at her, exasperated at her words. Was this honestly the time for her to be saying all this?

"Celine, would you please just get into the car?"

"No," Celine replied stubbornly, holding her ground without flinching. "Not unless you give me a proper answer to my question first. Why waste time driving when we can just get there quickly, after all people like us can move faster than the speed of sound?"

Alex pinched the bridge of his nose, taking a deep breath to settle his patience.

"Look. Even if we can technically get there faster, that doesn’t mean we should suddenly abandon using normal transportation like cars or subways whenever we step out into public!"

He took a step toward her, gesturing around the garage. "We are living in a normal human society filled with billions of regular people who don’t possess special powers. So it’s not always bad to live normally sometimes."

"Fine, fine. You have a point," Celine grumbled under her breath. She uncrossed her arms, walked over to the passenger side, opened the door, and slid inside.

Alex shook his head with a small chuckle, got straight into the driver’s seat and then started the engine. The Maybach purred to life with a low, deep rumble before moving out.

As they drove through the city, Celine sat quietly beside him, occasionally glancing out the window before pointing out specific turns and directions leading to the estate.

After roughly twenty-five minutes of smooth driving, the roads finally transitioned into a long, beautifully paved private driveway lined with tall, manicured oak trees.

At the end of the long driveway stood a grand, towering gate that completely enclosed a magnificent, European-style estate mansion surrounded by various lush gardens that Sofia would definitely love.

Maybe later in the future, he would bring Sofia over here, since he technically owned the place.

Alex slowed the Maybach down, and pulled the vehicle to a smooth stop right in front of the locked iron gates.

Almost immediately, the side door of a small guard booth built into the perimeter wall opened up, and a burly looking security guard wearing a sharp blue uniform stepped out. The guard had a stern, vigilant expression on his face as he approached the driver’s side window.

Alex rolled down his window, resting his arm casually against the frame as he looked at the man.

"Good afternoon, sir," the security guard said, his voice respectful yet firm as his eyes took in the pristine condition of the Maybach. "This is private property belonging to the Marcus family estate. The estate is currently restricted and closed to visitors. May I ask who you are and what business you have here today?"