Chapter 786 Confrontation [Pt 2]

786 Confrontation [Pt 2]

"Don't walk away from this... Adonis."

The moment these words echoed in the air, the one being addressed suddenly froze up.

He slowly turned his head, mechanically shifting his face to look at Rey, who was a few steps behind him. Rey had a serious look on his face—something akin to a frown—as he gazed deep into Adonis' eyes.

Then, before the latter could even utter a word in response to the name he had just been called, Rey took a few steps forward and caught up to him.

"I cast Sound Magic around, so no one heard what I said except you." Despite saying this, there was no hint of relief in the tense face that Adonis had.

Perhaps he would have felt a bit more relieved if he hadn't been called by his actual name by a new student, but right now? Right now, he was in the middle of making a choice.

He was thinking only one thing.

—How to get rid of R'ai and keep his identity secret!

"Relax, Adonis. You've grown a lot more tense since we last met." As Rey uttered those words, now right in front of the still Adonis, he placed his hand on his shoulder.

This time, there was no attempt to shrug it off, or walk away.

The boy was perfectly motionless.

"Who are you?" Narrowing his eyes, he finally uttered the words that anyone would be expected to ask in his shoes.

It was only at this point that Rey partially lifted the [Perfect Veil], revealing his true self right there and there to the boy who went from being cautious... to downright shocked. His bulging eyes revealed just how intense his surprise was, but the beads of sweat that danced on his face, and the slight tremors of his quivering lips also added to it. He slowly parted his lips as he uttered a single word.

It was both a confirmation and a question.

"... Rey?"

**************

Every room in the Boy's Dorm was identical, and Rey's was no exception.

Adonis said nothing.

"What have you been up to? What exactly is it that made you leave everyone behind? I have so many questions for you, Adonis..."

"...." Once again, Adonis didn't respond.

At least, not until after a few seconds had passed and he managed to collect his thoughts.

"Why are you here, Rey?" Upon hearing the question, Rey frowned. He could feel a tinge of annoyance rising in his chest, but it vanished almost instantly.

'I'm trying to reason with you here, but you're not making it easy for me, Adonis...'

Rey knew he had a lot of explaining to do on his part. He still hadn't apologized to Adonis for lying to him, and even now... even now he felt guilty as he looked at his friend's downtrodden face.

But... something was off.

The person he was looking at wasn't the Adonis he remembered.

"I can't tell you that."

'There's still so much I don't know, Adonis. I want to trust you, but... you're not giving me anything here.' Rey thought to himself.

More than anything, he wanted to share the plan with Adonis. Having an Otherworlder as a trustworthy ally in this Academy was not something he expected, and it was probably not what Adrien expected as well.

If they both worked on this—in conjunction with Lucielle—they could achieve their mission and throw a wrench in whatever ulterior plans that Adrien was bound to have.

But... Rey couldn't just tell Adonis yet.

"I understand." A dry response came from the golden boy's lips as he finally raised his head and looked at Rey point-blank.

His eyes were cold—fueled with resolve, but concealed by a layer that seemed impossible to unravel.

"I also can't tell you anything about my purpose here either."