Chapter 1896 - Verifying Identity

Simeon felt a sour taste at the back of his mouth how angry he was.

"Get lost before I order my men to take you down!", Simeon shouted at Hong.

He didn't want Hong to leave the base, just to get out of his sight. As long as he leaves this area, Simeon would order his men to capture Hong, and then he would torture him slowly.

Hong folded his arms over his chest. "Really? You can't defeat me so you will use your men? I issued a challenge and I demand to know what your answer is."

"My answer is for you to scram!"

"So, you refuse? Then, I demand Elders to vote on my eligibility to fight Simeon for the position of the Grand Master. You have the DNA report, and if you believe that it's fake, I am willing to give you my blood for another test that can be completed within few hours right here in your lab. Your choice."

Simeon sneered. "You want Elders to vote if you are eligible to fight me for the position of the Grand Master? Even if there is a vote, who do you think will vote for you?"

"Grand Master Simeon, your memory is worse than I thought. Did you forget what happened in the last hour?", Hong asked smugly and he enjoyed seeing Simeon's face twisting in anger. "Why don't you look who is seated at the table?"

Simeon glanced left and right, and his face fell. At this point, he realized that half of the Elders seated at the table are new, and they came with the Lebedevs, and with Hong. Considering that majority of votes is needed to accept or reject something, Hong needs to sway only one person in order to have six votes! Normally, he would suppress anyone who is against him, but how can he show his true self when everyone is watching?

This didn't look good.

'BAM!'

Aiden smacked the table with his palm, making everyone jolt.

"I have a suggestion!", Aiden exclaimed. "Instead of waiting for hours on results of some DNA test that can be faked, how about each of the Elders gets to ask the challenger questions that only a Voronin who grew up here would know? That will save us time, and everyone would get to hear answers and confirm if he is Feodor's son or not."

"That is a good idea.", Haru chimed in.

"Even if he knows about this base, that does not prove his identity!", Simeon roared.

Wing ignored Simeon. "Do we agree to ask him questions, or do we need to vote on questions versus a DNA test?"

"No need to vote on this…", Elder Toma from the Voronin family said. "What you suggest is reasonable. Many years have passed since I saw Gedeon the last time, but this man has the same eyes as Feodor, and I remember several occasions during which I interacted with Gedeon when we were teenagers. If this man can answer my questions, I don't need the DNA test."

Aiden clapped excitedly. "Then it's settled. If you doubt his identity, come forward with questions! After you get your answers, we can vote if the fight for the position of the Grand Master will happen or not."

"I will start", Elder Toma announced and spoke to Hong. "Do you know who I am?"

"Toma Kuzmich. Your mother Tereza was a Voronin."

Elder Toma nodded before asking his next question: "Do you remember the candy shop that was on the street next to the school which we visited frequently?"

Hong frowned slightly. "There was no candy shop. It was a bar where we used to sneak in behind the counter and drink beer from the tap when no one was watching. I remember your father catching us and dragging us out like chickens when we were about twelve years old. That was one of the biggest beatings I ever got, and it hurt even though I was drunk."

Elder Toma broke into a smile. "It's good to see you again, Gedeon. I don't have any other questions."

"I'm next…", another Elder announced.

Simeon's world was collapsing. With these men accepting Hong as Gedeon, Simeon officially became a fake Grand Master. Maybe the common soldiers don't know the background, but each of these Elders is aware that Simeon got the position of the Grand Master only because no one knew where Gedeon is and they assumed that he is dead.

Simeon had Elders in his pocket, who would support him no matter what, but the problem is that those Elders are not at this table anymore because Aiden, Souta, Haru, Wing, and Bo replaced them.

This is a disaster!

It didn't take long for five remaining Elders to confirm Hong's identity through stories that only they would know. All Elders grew up in the main base or they would visit often, and they were close in age to Hong, so they would see each other for holidays and other important events, and two Elders were Hong's classmates.

It's not that any of those Elders would favor Hong compared to Simeon, all of them cared only about their interests. And that is exactly the reason why they were aware of how everyone is watching and since the most vocal supporters of Simeon retired (forcibly), the remaining five Elders understood that it's time to adapt or disappear. After all, who knows how many more challengers are hiding in those seats next to Grand Elder Sarah? No one wants to be next.

"Are we ready to vote?"

Aiden's question pulled Simeon out of his thoughts and he saw that all Elders nodded.

"Alright!", Aiden exclaimed. "Who is in favor of watching Gedeon Voronin fight against Simeon Voronin for the position of the Grand Master?"

"Wait!", Simeon shouted.

Aiden's hand was already halfway up to vote in favor of a fight when he paused and turned to Simeon. "What? Did you want to call for a vote? I know that you are the Grand Master, but since this relates to you, I thought of…"

"No, that is not it!", Simeon interrupted Aiden. He could see that Aiden is mocking him, but Simeon didn't want to bother with Aiden now because there are more pressing matters. "I demand a DNA test be done!"

"And this vote is to see if the DNA test is necessary or not. Pay attention.", Aiden said tauntingly before adding: "Sheesh, you really have memory problems."

Simeon was about to argue, but Aiden shouted: "Let's vote! Who is in favor to watch a fight that might reshape the Voronin family for the years to come?"

Just as Simeon feared, every Elder raised his hand.

"Go on, father…", Maksim's voice startled Simeon. "You are the best fighter. Beat him up and end this farce."

Simeon closed his eyes and shook his head. What does Maksim mean by 'beat him up'? Does he think that it's easy to do? Simeon remembers that Gedeon (aka Hong) was the best fighter in their generation. Feodor always boasted about him. To make this situation worse, it's been ages since Simeon actually fought against someone. Simeon has a reputation as a merciless man, but interrogating and beating prisoners is not the same as stepping into that cage because prisoners don't fight back.

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