Chapter 67- Request
V looked at Markus for a while as if he was reading through his mind like an open book. Not many people could handle his piercing gaze and even fewer could completely resist it.
Markus wasn't one of them but he could at least keep a fairly normal face. After what seemed to be a few minutes, V shifted his gaze to the cup of coffee.
"Guild matters, Mr. Markus. You know the drill. I need to discuss an important matter with you regarding the recent events." He spoke in a cold tone.
Markus' hand instinctively gripped the coffee cup even harder as he waited for V to continue.
"After the end of your family's duel with the Charlamagnes, the news spread quickly like wildfire in the underworld. Of course, it reached all the high officers and I must say… They weren't happy." V's tone became a little colder at the end. "Losing a family as strong as the Charlemagnes is a huge blow to the Guild's influence on the underworld. I'm sure you already predicted that."
"Rules are rules, Mr. V. We sent an official invitation to the Charlamagnes, and the patriarch accepted, I doubt the high officers don't already know the rules they wrote themselves," Markus argued.
"Indeed, that is the truth. But, rules are bound to be broken when unusual circumstances happen. The Guild never anticipated such a major conflict to happen within the families that work under the guild and now, the milk is already spilled and everyone is not happy with it."
"What are you trying to imply?"
V's posture shifted slightly as he rested his hands on the table as he stared directly at Markus.
"The Guild asks you to pay for the cost of this huge loss."
"Huh?" Markus made a weird sound. He wasn't anticipating such an absurd request.
"Pay for the huge loss?"
"Yes, since you are the one responsible for it, you must pay back what you owe."
"What are you talking about? This is absurd!" Slamming his hand on the table, Markus glared at V angrily.
"Calm down, Mr. Markus. We are having a civilized conversation here."
"How can I calm down when I get presented with such a dumb request from the guild?! Pay?! To hell with that!!" Markus' aura leaked slightly as he fumed with anger.
However, V didn't bother to calm him down quietly and instead unleashed his aura, pushing back Markus as he gave him a chilling look.
"Don't be a brute, Markus. You are talking to an 'executioner'. Any blatant disrespect will be considered as you breaking the rules."
His words were akin to icy water dropped on Markus's flaming rage. His face soured as he took a deep breath and calmed down.
"My apologies." He said with a difficult tone.
"I understand your position in this matter. However, think about it for a moment, the whole world now knows about the conflict that happened. That is including every enemy you have, Mr. Markus. They won't let this matter slip from their hands, would they? The only reason they didn't make a move yet is because your family is under the protection of the Guild."
Taking a sip of coffee, V continued. "Now, imagine that protection suddenly vanished for one reason or another, do you think you can handle the consequences, Mr. Markus?"
The question was akin to a stab right where it hurts for Markus. The Lavines just like any influential family in the world has its enemies that are waiting for the right moment to destroy it. But, because the Lavine family had a direct connection to the Guild that was built through years and years of business and mutually beneficial deals across generations of patriarchs, not many would dare to strike the Lavines as that is akin to a direct insult to the Guild.
Even the strongest of individuals in the world, people with enough influence to make the world their sandbox would never even entertain the thought of getting into a war with the Guild as it was almost a certain loss.
'Dammit, so they are threatening me with severing our relationships. Those bastards…' Clenching his teeth, Markus stared at V silently for a while.
"This won't end well for the Guild, V."
"Of course, we already know the consequences of such an event happening. But, the Guild would lose at most an influential family and a relationship that transcended generations ever since the Guild was created. That's it, that's the extent of it. It won't be the end of the Guild. However, for you, losing the Guild is akin to losing everything… Including your family and loved ones."
"... Dammit."
"It's akin to a game of chess, Mr. Markus. You didn't make a wrong move but you certainly put yourself in an unfavorable position. Now, you have two choices, either compromise to get back in the game or… Well, checkmate."
As he was speaking, V looked at a cube of sugar on the table before he put his hand on it. Then, with a simple push, he crushed it into small pieces as grains of it exploded everywhere. That alone was more than enough to give Markus horrifying images of what could happen in the future. It was a nightmare.
"... What do you want? What should I pay?" Finally giving up, Markus asked.
"It's simple… Hand over your daughter, Eva Lavine, to the Guild."
***
"Meow!" The morning finally came and Kai was woken up by the sensation of a rough tongue on his cheek.
Opening his eyes, he looked at the cat by his side. Although it was slightly earlier than when he usually wakes up, he still didn't return to sleep and got up to prepare for the day.
Since today was the start of the festival, Kai didn't have classes. Instead, he will have to do something completely different and a new experience for him.
Eva had told him yesterday that they had already assigned roles for the cafe and since she knew he didn't want to stand out as a waiter in the cafe, she had given him another role that would hide his presence as much as possible and that role is…
"Meow!!" As Kai was thinking about how he should do it, he heard the cat meowing, asking for food.
When he came back home yesterday, he made sure to buy cat food so put some of it in the bowl and handed it to the cat.
However, weirdly enough, the cat smelled it and then pulled away as if it was disgusted by it. This made Kai question whether the cat food was spoiled or something. However, he made sure to choose the best product.
As he was contemplating what was happening, the cat used that time to jump on the table as she meowed, pointing at the food on the table. It was the breakfast that he just made which was a traditional dish of pancakes, fried eggs, a few sausages, and a cup of freshly squeezed orange juice.
"Do you want some of that?" Kai asked with squinted eyes.
"Meow!!" The cat responded.
'What an odd cat…' He thought as he cut a portion of the food and gave it to the cat to eat. The latter immediately dug in.
***
Reaching school, the place was as Kai predicted, bustling with life as students moved around, preparing the stalls and the signs. Everyone had a happy smile on their faces. Everyone worked hard for the festival and so when the time came for it, they were beyond excited.
Except Kai who had never participated in the school festival before so he could only wonder where this excitement came from.
Passing through the hordes of students, he reached his class which looked drastically different from usual with a huge sign that says 'Class C Maid Cafe~'
The inside also looked like a cafe with tables, beautiful decorations, and a well-designed menu.
The moment he entered the place, a student approached him.
"There you are, Miller! Are you ready?"
Kai nodded his head quietly.
"Good, to be honest, you are the perfect person for the role. We appreciate your help."
Then, the student walked back and picked up a box before he handed it to Kai.
"Now, off you go… Nyan Mascot!"