“If I’m not wrong, I believe you’ve called me here because of the goods and valuables we found…” Elysian muttered, stopping his words in time. Giving the woman a knowing smile before he continued. “That night.”

“You’re correct, young master.” Amara nodded. She then grew serious, carefully studying his expression before she continued, “I know I should’ve asked permission first, but after that incident, you became unconscious. I didn’t know when you would wake up, and I was afraid to hide the goods as they were. They would have been easily discovered. So, I hastily made the decision to divide them into different parts and sell them off to the people I trusted and to my other connections using different identities.”

Elysian remained silent, neither showing any reaction nor emotion to her revelation as he slowly took another bite of the food. This immediately made the atmosphere in the room heavier, so that even the two boys momentarily stopped their eating rampage and looked at them.

“I’m sorry if I made an improper decision, young master,” Amara said, breaking the silence as sweat started to form on her forehead, not knowing how to interpret the noble’s quiet response. “At that time, I only made the decision I thought was right. If I had moved any slower, I was afraid they might have traced the goods back to us, implicating you. Also, to further avoid anything that might lead to you, I asked some people I know to spread some gossip that your Uncle had given the order for that incident. Hmm… Since I know you despise him.” When the noble still remained quiet, just observing her, she gestured for Nina, who brought a small chest to the table. “By the way, young master, this is the whole proceeds from the sale of the goods. I haven’t taken even a bronze from it. Since I had to sell the goods in the black market as fast as possible, the prices might not be the most optimal compared to if we had been given enough time for their sale.”

Nina opened the small chest, showing it was full of gold coins. Brand and Osric’s eyes widened in shock, seeing so much money for the first time in their lives. However, Elysian was indifferent, not even glancing at it. He only looked at the woman, carefully studying her.

“Young master, if you disapprove of my actions, I would like to apologize.” Amara bowed, not knowing what to do.

Elysian chuckled, finally responding. “Relax, I’m not unhappy. Actually, it’s the opposite. I like what you did, and I like people that are resourceful and enterprising, especially if they are independent, capable of thinking and acting by themselves. So, I approve of all your actions. I couldn’t have done better.”

Amara breathed a sigh of relief, and bowed again. “I’m happy that you’re satisfied with my actions, young master.”

“That’s not the end of it, right?” Elysian asked, taking another bite from his pie. “You’ve dragged me here to your territory, where you could have easily sent the money secretly. Or we could have met closer to my estate; no need to invite me here, close to everything you hold dear. So, I presume this isn’t it, right? Or I will really be disappointed,” he stated, looking around the room. “Hmm…maybe there’s some hidden ambush somewhere?”

Bran and Osric immediately felt nervous, looking around the room and preparing their swords.

“Young master?!” Amara asked, surprised and tense at the question. “I would never dare. I consider you to be my benefactor.”

“Then, who’s that hidden on the left wall, listening to us?” Elysian asked, his voice tinged with humor, showing neither anger nor unease as he raised his brow in challenge.

Sighing as if caught red-handed, Amara’s eyes turned serious. “Thomas, show yourself.”

Bran and Osric quickly stood up, unsheathing their swords.

“Both of you, sit down and continue to eat,” Elysian muttered as he continued to nonchalantly take another bite from his pie, watching the worried look on Amara.

“But master…”

“I said, sit down,” Elysian commanded, leaving no room for discussion. They reluctantly followed, sitting back in their seats but refusing to eat, growling instead at the woman. “What are you worried about? We are among friends after all.”

“Young master, I would like to explain…”

Instead of listening to Amara, Elysian glanced at a young man, carefully studying him. From his appearance, he was in his mid-twenties. He was tall, tanned and muscular. From his intense glare at the boy, it was easy to deduce his opinion on the noble.

Behind the man, a boy, around his age, was observing him. This was the same boy that he noticed earlier.

“Hello, you’re one of the kids that night, right?” Elysian asked, smiling at him. “Like Nina?”

“I’m happy that you can still recognize him, young master,” Amara responded, trying to ease the tension in the room. “His name is Timmy Tanner.”

Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

“Let me guess, he’s Thomas Tanner,” Elysian muttered, pointing at the man. “That little boy there is his brother.”

“I’m not little, and you’re smaller than me,” Timmy retorted, frowning at him.

‘This brat!’

Elysian could hear Bran and Osric chuckling behind him. “I believe you still remember what I did to those men?” he asked, raising his brow as Timmy quickly hid behind Thomas.

“They are not related, young master,” Amara corrected. “Timmy is one of the orphaned kids, living in the streets. After you saved him, I decided to employ him for some little task needed around my business.”

“Ah, it seems I’ve made a mistake,” Elysian muttered, shifting his attention to the man again. “Oh, well. So, what now? When will you try to kill us?”

“I would never dare, young master,” Amara quickly responded, anxious at the sudden words of the noble. “This is Thomas Ironwood, leader of the Iron Claw, the local gang that controls this area. He is a childhood friend of mine and has helped provide protection for me and my people.”

“Ah, just like Crimson Talon,” Elysian quipped, chuckling.

“We’re not like those criminals…”

“Quiet!” Amara exclaimed with piercing eyes. Her uneasiness was washed away, replaced by a wary observer, carefully reading the situation.

‘It seems she will be a worthy opponent in these negotiations.’

After the leader of the Iron Claw backed down, Amara continued, “As I was saying, young master, he is a friend who I employed to provide some protection to us…”

“He seemed to do a poor job at it,” Elysian quipped snidely.

“You brat!”

“I said quietly! If you can't control your temper, I will ask you to leave,” Amara chastised him while her eyes never left the noble. Gritting his teeth, Thomas could only move to the corner, sitting there.

“As I was saying, young master, he is a friend who I employed to provide some protection to the Velvet Chamber. Unfortunately, at that time, Thomas and his men were doing some work for me outside the city, so I couldn’t ask for his help,” Amara explained, sighing in frustration. “I’m sorry for his presence today, young master. I hope you won’t misconstrue it by thinking that he’s here to cause you any harm. He is just here to provide protection for both of us.”

“From his stare, it seems he is providing protection to you from me,” Elysian responded, chuckling as he shook his head. “Tsk, I thought we were friends, my lady. It pains my heart to know you are this wary of me. I’m just a small and harmless child after all.”

“Harmless,” Thomas muttered, snorting at the word.

“I’m sorry, if you think that way, young master. I assure you that isn’t the case.”

“Well, I beg to differ. We will just have to agree on different opinions about the matter then,” Elysian said, looking her straight in the eyes. “Where was I? Ah, let’s discuss why you really called me here.”

Amara exhaled heavily and her smile returned as if nothing had happened. “I can see that you’ve seen right through me, young maser. If that’s the case, I will get to the point then. I would like to form a partnership with you. I will give you five percent ownership of the Velvet Chamber. Just think of it as a gift for our budding friendship.”

After that, the noble and the woman stared at each other; the former not giving any response while the latter not adding anything to what she said. The tension in the room was quite palpable as even Osric held his breath, watching the staring contest between the two.

Elysian finally broke the silence, his laughter reverberated into the small room, carrying no hint of amusement. “I did not expect my friendship to be treated as nothing but some coin that can be valued,” he muttered, shaking his head. “You’ve just hurt my feelings, my lady. You’re too cruel.”

“I did not mean any disrespect, young master,” Amara responded, not letting herself be swayed by the noble’s words. She could clearly see the calculating eyes observing and reading her. “As I said, this is just a small gesture—a gift that will signal the start of a deep friendship between us.”

“No matter what you call it, my lady—a gift, a favor, a payment, a fetter, a shackle…” Elysian muttered slowly, smiling as he took another bite of a pie while his eyes never leaving the woman. His smile turned into a smirk when he saw her eyes narrowed and unhappy. “Well, if you really want to put some value to it, what can I do? I’m a noble and a lady is asking for it, so it seems I will just have to acquiesce. Be that as it may, isn’t five percent just too ‘cheap’ for my friendship? If I didn’t know you, my lady, I might have thought this was an insult.”

Amara laughed in turn, through her eyes didn't show any sign of mirth. And well, who could blame her? Knowing full well what the noble wanted, anyone would be irritated. “Okay, young master, how about six percent?”

Elysian ignored her, taking a few pastries and started eating them.

“Seven percent.”

Instead of responding, the noble showed an exaggerated face, showing how he enjoyed the taste of the sweets. All eyes were on him, even Bran and Osric forgot their food, staring at Elysian. However, he did not care. He just continued what he was doing.

“You mentioned earlier that I’ve disrespected you, young master,” Amara muttered, gritting her teeth. She was clearly irritated at how the boy was acting towards her. “The way you’re acting now, you are blatantly offending me.”

“Is that really the case, my lady?” Elysian asked, finally addressing her. His expression did not look too happy at the accusation thrown at him. “You’re telling me that I’m only worth this much. Who do you think is blatantly offending who?”

“Ten percent!” Amara was frustrated that she was being pushed like this by a boy who hadn’t even grown past the age of ten. “That’s the limit. I won’t go any higher.”

Elysian sighed in exasperation, arching his brow. “Really? If you think that I believe you’re just giving me this share for the so-called friendship excuse earlier, then you’re mistaken. We all know why you’re giving me this. Am I right, my lady? Because if you continue with that lie, we’d better end this and consider each other as strangers. I hate people who lie in my face.”

Amara remained silent, not looking him in the eye as if yielding to his point.

“Good, our friendship hasn't been broken yet, it seems,” Elysian said, nodding. “Hopefully this time, you can be totally honest with me.”