Chapter 649 - 59: Heartless and Ungrateful

Chapter 649: Chapter 59: Heartless and Ungrateful

"So you’re Lady Douglas’s student? The creature from the Otherworld?"

Leonard’s voice wasn’t loud, yet it dripped with condescension.

Murphy’s gaze rested on Leonard’s face for a moment.

He had been in Cheris’s room for nine days.

In those nine days, no one had disturbed him.

He had been completely immersed in the simulations of his Mind Furnace, oblivious to the outside world.

He hadn’t expected to run low on Dimensional Energy.

What he expected even less was for someone to come knocking at this critical juncture.

And the moment he opened the door, this was the tone that greeted him.

Murphy’s gaze swept over the three people outside the door.

At the forefront was a middle-aged man in a gray uniform, his face etched with unconcealed arrogance.

Behind him was a young man in a deep purple Magic Robe. He carried himself with a noble air and was sizing Murphy up with a look of playful curiosity.

Farther back was a man in a dark formal suit, his head bowed, his expression hidden.

The atmosphere was off.

Murphy retracted his gaze, his voice calm.

"I am a student of Douglas."

Leonard let out a soft laugh, a smile tinged with contempt.

"I know you’re Lady Douglas’s student."

He paused, looking Murphy up and down as if appraising a piece of merchandise for sale.

"But you’re also a creature from the Otherworld, correct?"

His tone was firm, as if stating an irrefutable fact.

Murphy neither confirmed nor denied it, simply watching him in silence.

Seeing this, Leonard’s smile deepened, a sense of condescending superiority spreading across his face.

"A creature from the Otherworld is a creature from the Otherworld. You don’t even have basic manners. We’ve come all this way, and you’re just going to have us stand at the door to talk?"

He lifted his chin slightly, glancing at Murphy out of the corner of his eye.

"Don’t you know enough to invite us in to sit down?"

Murphy’s gaze remained calm.

’Of course he could invite them in.’

’But he also knew that with the current atmosphere, this wasn’t a matter that could be resolved by simply inviting them in for a seat.’

’These people had come with ill intent.’

"You cannot come in."

Leonard was stunned for a moment, clearly not expecting this creature from the Otherworld to refuse so bluntly.

His expression flickered, and his condescending facade faltered, caught off guard by those four simple words. "You—"

"Leonard," a calm, unhurried voice from behind cut short his outburst.

Leonardo stepped forward from behind them, his deep purple Magic Robe shimmering with a dark luster in the corridor’s light.

His emerald-green eyes, which bore a slight resemblance to Cheris’s, sized up the young man in the doorway. His gaze was scrutinizing and, naturally, filled with a condescending arrogance.

Leonard immediately stepped aside and bowed, his arrogance instantly replaced with a fawning expression. "Young Master, you see, this is the one I was telling you about..."

Leonardo ignored him, his gaze fixed on Murphy as the corners of his mouth lifted slightly. "So you’re Cheris’s new student?"

Murphy looked at him, not answering immediately.

’This man before him was impeccably dressed, possessed the same emerald-green eyes as Cheris, and was clearly of extraordinary status.’

"A student of Lady Douglas," Murphy replied.

Leonardo nodded, his smile deepening, though his emerald-green eyes held no warmth. "I am Leonardo Douglas, Cheris’s clan cousin, from the main branch of the Douglas Clan."

Having said his piece, he simply stood there watching Murphy, as if expecting something.

Seeing his chance, Leonard sidled closer, his voice sharp with gloating. "What are you standing there stunned for? Young Master Douglas has come in person, and he’s a Third-Level Wizard! Hurry up and invite us in! Is this how you creatures from the Otherworld show hospitality?"

His voice echoed in the corridor, ringing with the triumphant arrogance of a petty man who’d gotten his way.

Sebastian, standing at the very back, kept his head lowered, his expression hidden, but the fingers of the hand at his side tightened slightly.

Murphy’s gaze swept past Leonard, flickered over the silent Sebastian, and finally settled back on Leonardo.

’He knew that today, he had no choice but to open the door.’

’If he didn’t, they had more than enough ways to force their way in.’

He fell silent for a moment before stepping aside to clear the doorway. "Please, come in."

A triumphant smile instantly bloomed on Leonard’s face as he stepped inside.

Leonardo followed, stepping over the threshold and into the room, his gaze slowly sweeping across the space.

"I hear you’ve consumed a great deal of Dimensional Energy these past few days?"

Murphy didn’t answer, simply watched him.

Leonardo smiled, a gentle and polite smile. "It’s nothing, just a casual question."

"Cheris must feel quite secure, leaving you here all alone."

Leonard stood at Leonardo’s side, his eyes darting around the room as if searching for clues.

Sebastian, meanwhile, remained in the doorway, standing there with a conflicted expression.

Leonardo walked to the window and stood with his back to the others. His voice was light. "Cheris is fighting a difficult battle on the Kronos plane. Everyone in the family is worried for her."

He turned to look at Murphy. "As her student, you must be worried as well, correct?"

Before Murphy could answer, Leonard seized the opportunity to scoff. "Worried? A creature from the Otherworld, not even one of the Imperial People... How could it possibly worry about her Ladyship?"

He sneered at Murphy, his tone dripping with contempt. "Are any of you creatures from the Otherworld not fickle and faithless? Abandoning your own homes to come to the Empire... aren’t you just here for the perks? Resources, status, position—you take as much as you can grab. When push comes to shove, you’ll be the first to run."