The Extra Wants Control

"Kaiser… He's too important," Theodore began, his voice low and heavy with authority. "The people revere and adore him. You don't know how useful he is ... He doesn't know that he only gets to stay in the light because of the things I do in the dark... He should be grateful... "

The man completely unfazed by Theodore's dark mood just giggled. "So the plan to kill his brother was just a little… nudge? To get him nice and angry at the nobles, make him a better attack dog? How cold~"

Theodore grit his teeth. "Think whatever you like, I need him focussed so that he does what I want..." he growled. "But the Black Mask… I want him dead. Did you do it?"

A look of excitement flickered in the empty eyes of the man. "Yes~," he purred, drawing out the word and saying it with sweetness.

"I even put a tracker on Blackie's shadow, just like you asked. How will you reward me~"

Theodore narrowed his eyes. "Reward You?" he asked with disdain.

" Yes~"

" I 'reward' you by not killing you. Now that's a reward you should be grateful for you perverted bastard." Theodore said in disgust.

"That's hardly a reward," the man pouted.

" Just give me the location. It seems Kaiser couldn't manage to kill that man , and frankly, I doubt any of you could."

The skull-masked pouted. " But… Kai doesn't have a Law and he's only lower 8 star. I could do it, hmph!" he said.

"Neither did the Black Mask use his law," Theodore countered.

"Just tell me where he is. This… I handle personally. I want to see the fear in his eyes when I take his life."

The man then gave Theodore the tracker. "Okay, daddy bye~" the man said, waving a goodbye as Theodore vanished into the night once more.

And a rock's shadow that was close to them suddenly materialized a shadow soldier the moment the pervert left.

***********

" What in the actual fuck!" Said Neveah.

" There's a pervert like him alive?" He thought.

Neveah's eye narrowed as he watched the live feed play out on the thin, ice-edged screen. The conversation between Theodore and his perverted follower who sent a wave of anger through him. Seems like the "deserters" were led by this very same Theodore.

A scoff escaped Neveah lips. "Playing the hero, manipulating someone as naive as Kai, making a defected group as one of the enemies to rile up more people behind Kai for his cause... Damn! Should I take notes?" Thought Neveah.

" And it seems like this bastard is coming to kill me," he thought in his hand was the tracker he felt was put on him when he was talking to Theodore...

Sharon's voice was heard in his mind again. "Young Master, are you confident in defeating a nine-star?" She said.

Neveah tilted his head, a playful smile in his now unmasked face. "Are you worried about me, Sharon?" he teased.

"This will be a fight to the death, it's either you or him." She said dodging the question.

Neveah chuckled.

He understood her concern, but a brawl right now wouldn't serve his purpose. "I won't fight him now," he said, his voice regaining its seriousness.

"There's much I need to do, preparations to make." He thought, his gaze back to the screen. "As she said, this is no test. No one will go easy on me. It's him or me. Hahhh... I need to prep myself."

Silence descended upon area. Then, a slow smile spread across Neveah's face, a cold smile. "Let's drag this man along a bit," he declared, as he stood and stretched his body... He then put on his mask and with a wave of his wrist, a shadowy blob materialized before him, condensing into a shadow soldier.

Neveah pressed the tracker shard into the soldier's hand, it's white eyes glowing with light as it nodded and grabbed the chip tightly. A silent command passed between them from Neveah, and the shadow soldier, with great speed, darted out of the area, carrying the tracker and leading Theodore's on a merry chase in the wrong direction.

Neveah watched the shadow soldier disappear into the night, a small smile lingering on his lips.

He still had other plans for Theodore.

" Now then ...should I make an army and see my number limit, I was told to work alone..." He thought

"But what if..." he mused, a sly smile playing on his masked lips.

"What if someone appears and these problems solved themselves… 'coincidentally'?"

Technically, he wouldn't be breaking the rules. By creating circumstances that others solved and he could still accrue his soldiers.

"It's decided," he declared, his voice a low rumble. "Let's start with the nobles."

Darkness engulfed him, a dark vortex that consumed his figure. In its place he stood as mirror image of Theodore's lackey's clothes– a cloaked figure clad in black, adorned with a single, crimson rose badge.

With a flick of his wrist, his remained group of shadow soldiers materialized beside him, each clad in the same ominous attire.

" A good way to get some attention is to make things explode literally and figuratively... Attention will get people talking and people talk shit sometimes that will make the nobles feel offended... I should cause a civil war among the nobles and Commoners then pit the 'united' groups against each other... This will be fun. But still too much work for one person...

I hope it'll be rewarding" Thought Neveah as he disappeared with a lightning strike again.

A satisfied smirk played on his lips. He envisioned the domino effect .

With a final crackle , Neveah vanished once more, a blur of red lightning, leaving only the echo of his laughter behind.

A strained silence hung in the air between Valeriana and Verona. The opulent study, usually a haven of crackling fireplaces and warm candlelight, felt heavy with unspoken tension. Valeriana finally broke the quiet.

"Why did you force Neveah to participate in that… tournament?" she asked genuinely curious .

"Was it truly just to gain combat experience?"

Verona leaned back in her plush armchair. "Partly," she admitted.

"But there was more to it."

Valeriana raised an eyebrow, waiting for further explanation.

Verona sighed. "But majorly I wanted him to see the kind of nobles he will have in his court... And if he can... He should decide who he wants..." She said cryptically.

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