Chapter 51: Investigation [1]

Samantha sat behind a wide desk of dark alloy. Behind her a floor-to-ceiling window looked out over the entire sprawl of Bloomingdale—neon streets, layered traffic, and the distant glow of the Dimensional Gate district. The moment Rael stepped fully inside, Susan closed the door with a soft but final click. She remained in front of it, blocking the only exit.

Rael felt their mana at once.

Two distinct Master tier presences filled the room. The last time he had been near Samantha he had sensed she was strong; but now, after his own awakening, the difference was impossible to miss. Each of them stood three full tiers above him. In their eyes he was little more than an ant—something that could be crushed without effort or consequence. The stronger of the two auras belonged to Samantha she looked close to Grandmaster Rank. It pressed against his skin like cold weight.

He forced a polite smile. "Samantha. I didn’t know you worked for the Association."

Susan’s head snapped toward her sister. "You know her?"

Samantha’s expression stayed perfectly flat. "No. We don’t."

Rael caught the warning in her eyes and adjusted without missing a beat. "Right. We don’t."

Susan turned on Samantha at once. "Hey. Turn off your aura. Who are you trying to flex on and tell me how did you know him?"

"You don’t get to talk to me like that," Samantha replied, voice sharp. "I’m your superior here, and I’m the older sister."

"Some older sister," Susan shot back. "The one who ran away from her own assignment and dumped it on me."

They were at each other’s throats in seconds, voices overlapping, old arguments clearly rising to the surface. Rael stood between them with two pastry boxes still in his hands, completely lost. He had no idea why he had been brought to the top floor, why Samantha held such a high post, or why the two of them seemed ready to start a real fight in front of a stranger.

He cleared his throat. "Excuse me. Could you tell me why you called me here?"

Both women stopped. Their attention locked onto him at the same time. The combined pressure of their auras spiked. Rael’s lungs tightened.

"Really," he managed, "could you turn the auras down... ma’am whose name I apparently don’t know?"

Samantha’s gaze hardened. The playful edge that had been present during the sibling argument vanished. "Was it you?"

Her tone had become deadly. One wrong answer and he could feel the bloodlust waiting behind it.

Rael kept his voice level. "Could you explain what you mean by that?"

Susan pushed off from the door, walked to the desk, and sat on the edge of it. The motion made her posture shift; Rael registered the way she settled her weight and the line of her body without meaning to. The observation felt strangely out of place, and he wondered for a brief moment whether the sealed Intelligence or simple hormones were to blame. He set the thought aside.

Susan leaned forward slightly. "Were you the one who killed all the awakeners inside the Dream Realm in this city?"

The question landed like a blow. They already knew people had died in the First Realm. Rael had no clear idea how much he should reveal to two Master tier Association officers who were openly suspicious of him.

He answered with a single, flat word. "No."

The courtesy he normally used with powerful people dropped away. In that moment he spoke as if rank did not exist. Susan’s mouth curved in a small, interested smile.

Samantha continued, quieter but no less intense. "Do you know what happened inside the Dream Realm?"

"Why should I trust either of you?"

Susan’s hair lifted slightly as heat and mana gathered around her. "Don’t test me, boy. I like the confidence, but there is a line between confidence and arrogance. Cross it and you will regret it. Answer the question."

The pressure increased until Rael’s bones felt the strain. Old noble pride kept his spine straight even while the air tried to force him down. He memorized the feeling and filed it away with a quiet promise that one day the balance would be different.

Samantha’s voice cut through the tension, carrying clear authority. "Susan."

Susan turned, still irritated. "What?"

"Back off. Now."

Susan clicked her tongue but obeyed, sliding off the desk and dropping into a side chair with open reluctance.

Samantha waited until the heavier aura receded, then spoke again, tone carefully measured. "I’m sorry about that. We need answers, and we need them to be truthful. You can trust us."

She paused, then formally introduced them both.

"My name is Samantha Ross. I currently serve as Regional Commissioner for this city. The woman beside me is Susan Ross, my sister and also a member of the Awakener Association."

The surname hit Rael like a second shock. Ross. The name his family had spoken with open hatred for years. Victor Ross—High Chancellor of the country, leader of the Awakener Association, the man who answered directly to the king and whose entire purpose was to keep the noble and sovereign houses in check. The nobles called him the bane of their existence. If these two were truly his daughters, or at least connected to him, then the risk of speaking was lower than it first appeared.

Still, Rael had never met them before. They were older—closer to ten years his senior—and he had no memory of their faces from university or family gatherings. He remained cautious.

"Can I trust you?" he asked.

Samantha’s expression softened with genuine relief. "Yes. You can."

She leaned forward slightly. "First question. Were you part of the awakening four months ago?"

Rael nodded once.

"Do you know what happened to the people who never came out of the First Realm?"

He considered the words carefully, then answered. "Yes."

Samantha’s breath caught. "Are any of them still alive?"

"No," Rael said. "They’re all dead."

Silence filled the cold office.

Samantha’s next question came quieter. "Can you tell me who killed them?"

Rael met her eyes without flinching.

"Her name is Aurelia Crimsonvale. Heir of the Crimsonvale family."

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