Payton then cried out, "Sir! This man ruined my manhood! You have to avenge me!" Urias' expression darkened as he looked at Adrian with sharp eyes, "Why did you attack Payton? He's a kind-hearted boy."Adrian was speechless. Urias was blind to Payton's true nature. If Payton dared to assault his own fellow disciple, what would he not do?Juleen quickly interjected, "Sir, Payton tied me up and planned to defile me. Adrian saved me."The realization hit Urias hard. Payton, someone he valued, was supposed to be level-headed. He never expected his potential successor to do such a thing."Is this true, Payton?" Urias demanded.Payton, having slid down from the tree, enduring pain and bitterness, found it hard to deny. Adrian sneered. "Time to own up to your actions, my friend. Why are you being a coward after all those tough words you said?"Embarrassed and wishing he could dig a hole and hide in it, Payton regretted provoking Adrian and lamented his actions. He quickly came up wi
Juleen had made up her mind to help Adrian at all costs. "Sir, I've laid out my terms. You have to agree to them if you wish for me to return." Urias was on the brink of fury.Adrian glanced at Payton, noting a familiar silhouette and suddenly recalled the night of the black-clad attackers. He gritted his teeth and said, "I shouldn't have spared you, Payton. You're one of the few who attacked me that night, weren't you?"Payton was alarmed. Everyone was masked and clad in black that night, so Adrian could not possibly recognize him. Payton had only shown up briefly before leaving the rest to the leader of the Randells."That's nonsense! I don't know what you’re talking about!” Payton said.Juleen's heart sank. She had heard about the attack on Adrian, thinking her father was too impulsive to go as far as to trouble an outsider. Little did she know it was actually Adrian who was attacked that night.Juleen did not want to deny the truth. Since her family was involved, she felt ob
Payton was visibly nervous under Adrian's intense scrutiny. He started playing the victim, saying, "I only wanted to stand out. If I defeated you, I’d be the object of everyone's envy."That was far from the truth. It was obvious he was lying. Adrian coldly said, "If that's the case, you wouldn't have shot a single arrow and run away. Refuse to tell me the truth once more and I'll end you."Urias glared at Payton, feeling disappointed. Seeing Adrian so resolute, he naturally sought to protect his apprentice, "Young man, Payton has already received his retribution and didn't harm you. I'll discipline him and promise he won't cause you any more trouble."Adrian scoffed, sensing a clear attempt to shirk responsibility. "I won’t show mercy until I get a proper explanation.”Urias' expression darkened. Payton was his apprentice, and his only option was to defend him. "As Payton’s mentor, I am to blame. If you want to settle accounts, you can do so with me.""Sir!" Juleen disagreed wi
Adrian's gaze then landed sharply on Payton. "If you even think about running away, I'll break your legs. You hear me?""Okay!" Payton immediately stopped in his tracks, trembling. He desperately wished for Darryl and his roc to come to his aid.Urias was suffering internally. Adrian had yet to counterattack, genuinely giving him three chances. In truth, he would be doomed if Adrian retaliated. "Here comes the second move!" Urias boomed."No, please!" Juleen said frantically, knowing Adrian could not dodge the attack and seemed unwilling to fight back. "Sir, why don't you use a less lethal attack?" Urias was in a tough spot. He could not just admit defeat in front of his apprentices. That would be an even bigger embarrassment than losing. "He's free to retaliate if he wants to,” Urias said."I'm a man of my word. Go ahead and attack me all you want. I won't hold it against you even if you end up killing me,” Adrian repeated.Urias developed a respect for Adrian. Despite havi
Adrian's gaze was sharp. The moment the silver needle was drawn, it reflected the sunlight straight into his eyes."Urias, make your third move,” he said."I concede.” Urias believed there was no need to continue the fight, fearing for his life if that were to pass. "I won't meddle in your affairs."Payton was in despair. He had planned to strike Adrian during the third move, but now the opportunity was gone, and he was sure Adrian would not let him off."Sir, I can help you!" Payton urged."Idiot!" Urias scolded, thoroughly disgusted with his apprentice. He would not have been embarrassed if not for him. "What exactly did you do that night?" he questioned.Payton, in pain, tried to confront Adrian. But as he moved, pain shot through his legs. "I didn't do anything. All I did was to try and please Juleen!" he answered."Hmph!" Juleen saw through his true colors and believed he was lying. "I'll find out the truth even if you refuse to spill it."Urias took out a pill. "This is
Payton fell into the water. He grasped onto a reef, managing to hold on despite the surging waters.Seeing Urias approaching, he cried out, "Save me, sir. I'm drowning!""Traitor!" Urias spat out, utterly disappointed in Payton. "Where did the Withering Spirit Poison come from?"Payton looked toward Adrian. "Will you help me if I tell you the truth?""I will," Adrian conceded as Payton was his only lead.Payton, sobbing and sniffling, confessed, "We were out hunting, and it was my first time. They had me shoot the first arrow and then sent me away, claiming it was to test my strength."‘Hunting?’ Adrian was taken aback, then realized he was thought of as prey.Those men in black could not have been from the Randell family as their faces were all destroyed. What was going on here?"Be more specific!" Adrian demanded.Juleen and Urias exchanged confused looks. Hunting in the forest was one thing, but why at the Riston family's estate?Urias' face darkened with anger. "You were
Adrian crouched down and asked patiently, "How does one go about joining this hunting group?""You probably don't qualify," Payton replied, too scared to look at Adrian. "We only accept people with our skin color. That is the purpose of this group—to protect our interests."Urias became even more upset. Matson had controlled everything in the Greenhursts, and everyone was willing to follow him, leaving Urias essentially powerless. Thankfully, Adrian had killed Matson."You're despicable!" Adrian was beginning to understand. He had thought Four Great Factions had collaborated in destroying the Randell family, but now he saw that was not the case."Matson was one of you, wasn't he?""Sort of," Payton answered weakly, "He was a high-level member involved in their plans, while I’m just a small fry who had just entered their ranks."Adrian took a deep breath. The hunting group was not only widespread but also powerful, gaining support by purporting to protect the interests of those fr
"You've given me nothing but humiliation!" Payton retorted, "Following you leads nowhere. Those in the hunting group of my age are already famous."Urias was speechless.Adrian found a clue. In Medicis Manor, only Axel and Claude could profit from such a group."Ms. Juleen, you should go back with Urias. I'm in a dangerous situation, and staying with me will only bring you bad luck.""No, I won’t," Juleen rejected, "You're severely poisoned and are no match for them. I want to help you."Payton was secretly elated. Adrian was poisoned, and if he shared this with the hunting group, he would surely receive a substantial reward."Didn’t he just get the antidote?""The antidote is useless!" Juleen knew the poison was in the dragon bone, and that was not Matson’s doing. "This has nothing to do with the Greenhursts."Payton's joy intensified. With this information, the hunting group would be overjoyed. As long as they withheld the antidote, Adrian would eventually be doomed.Adrian