Chapter 113 - Discussion Over Drinks

Layla sighed once again as she spoke go Arthur.

"Pacify them when classes are over Okay?"

"Yes Ms. Layla."

Arthur replied politely to Layla before suddenly grinning mischievously, seeing this, Layla instantly felt he was up to no good.

"So Layla I saw your dad when I went back to the castle after mum dragged me out of the crystal realm."

"Your mum did what now?"

"Don't sweat the small stuff."

Layla gave Arthur a look that said it was definitely not small stuff but he just ignored it and continued speaking.

"I happened to walk in on a scene of your dad and mine playing video games together, it was quite a sh-"

"Hold up, my dad? Playing video games??"

Layla interrupted Arthur and asked to confirm what she just heard. Arthur laughed as if he expected her reaction and nodded.

"Did you run out of ideas for your pranks or something?"

Layla stared at him skeptically, the idea of her father playing games seemed like the kind of thing Arthur would think of just to mess with her.

"Nahh, still got a few dozen more ideas. But on a serious note I actually did see your dad playing games."

After Arthur's reply, Layla stated at him silently for a few moments before bursting into laughter.

The sound of her laughter attracted the attention of quite a lot of their fellow classmates, they were all wondering why she suddenly started laughing out loudly.

She had a light smile on her face as she laughed at Arthur's words. Her beautiful eyes were slightly curved and seemed to be filled with a glimmering light.

Arthur looked at her expression and had a thought.

'She really is quite pretty...'

Of course, he wasn't the only one who thought that way. A few of the guys who turned over were captivated by Layla and were staring at her with heated gazes.

However, they all suddenly felt chills down their spines and turned their gazes away. They didn't need to be geniuses to figure out the reason for the chills they felt.

A certain sliver haired prince was currently glaring at them with ferocious eyes, none of them dared meet his gaze.

'It seems the intimidation with Law essence works well Huh?'

"What are you looking at?"

Layla who noticed that Arthur's mood suddenly dampened, turned around while following his line of sight, however all she saw were her classmates going about their lives normally.

She tilted her head in curiosity and asked him, however, instead of answering, he just shook his head and smiled lightly.

"There there..."

Arthur then started patting her head softly, taking care not to ruin her current hairdo.

"Why do I feel like you're treating me like a kid?"

"You're imagining it."

She gave him a skeptical look before sighing in exasperation.

"Honestly Arthur if you want to prank me or something, come up with something more believable will you?"

Arthur just laughed seeing as Layla refused to believe him, the image of the strict, strait laced, workaholic father she had known for 13 years made her unable to believe his words.

"Anyway, I'm going home for a few days, I have something important to handle.

Nicole's also doing the same, her parents wanted to see her for a bit, probably about something important if they are having her go home."

"Why are you telling me this?"

Arthur raised an eyebrow and asked Layla who suddenly started telling him about her plans. Hearing his question, she stared at him dumbfoundedly for a moment before directing her gaze elsewhere.

"Why indeed? I just felt like....I think?"

While making small talk like that, the two passed the time quietly, completely oblivious to the looks their classmates were giving them.

Edward looked at them while having thoughts that would earn him a glare from both Layla and Arthur.

'And yet they say they aren't together...'

Of course, he didn't dare voice those thoughts out loud.

◇　◇　◇

"Here are the reports, your highness."

"Mhhmm."

Cattleya nodded lightly as she collected the thick bunch of files from the maid's hands. 

Seeing this Diablo, who was seated opposite her, raised an eyebrow before asking.

"What's that?"

She dropped the files on the table and took a glass of wine before replying.

"Information on all of Arthur's subordinates."

The contents of the files were the all the Information on all of Arthur's subordinates she could get.

Both the ones she originally knew of, and the ones she just found out about.

"Why don't you digitalize it all, or use a memory gem?"

"If it concerns Arthur I like to be very thorough, I tend to slack off if i read stuff like this in digital form."

Diablo nodded in understanding at her words, he had walked in on her playing games or doing something else countless times when she clearly had loads of work to do.

'If only she could take her territory seriously without me having to force her to.'

He sighed, remembering the tear filled gazes of her assistants as they pleaded with him to make her authorize the hundreds of documents that had been waiting for her authorization for months.

'To think they actually sent an official plea, just how much did she neglect the territory these past few months?'

He decided to think about all of that at another time and turned his attention to the files in front of Cattleya who was dismissing all the servants in the room.

He picked up one of them and opened it up, skimming through it, he showed a look of surprise at the contents.

"The ancient breed giant's descendant is working for him? Now that's something I didn't expect."

He flipped through Lewis's information and found out how Arthur and Lewis met, and why Lewis decided to serve Arthur.

"Ancient breeds are closely connected to progenitors, i can't have the descendant of one lurking around my son unwatched."

Cattleya said as she flipped through the file containing the list of planets and star systems that Arthur had ordered Lewis to go to in the past two years.

They all had one thing in common.

"They're all in the crystal realm."

She handed the file to Diablo after she said that, Diablo dropped Lewis's file and collected it, before skimming through it.

As he was doing so, she continued speaking.

"I found a bag containing a Law crystal among Arthur's stuff last time I went to the academy, there was a memory gem there too, alongside some records of various planets in the crystal realm.

He came back as soon as I found them so I didn't get to see what was in the memory gem."

Diablo raised and eyebrow and asked, his gaze still on the documents in his hands.

"You're sneaking through your son's stuff now?"

"That wasn't my intention okay? I had just looked at the traces of his fight against the first monsterized kid and my authority was still active.

When I got to his room, I noticed the power of a law within so I got curious, that's how I found it.

The bag had an inhibition rune inscribed on it and I would not have noticed it of the bag wasn't slightly open."

Diablo chucked lightly, before suddenly stopping. Noticing this, Cattleya spoke up.

"What did you see?"

"How did Arthur know how to find what planets had law crystal cores?"

"That's what I want to know, he didn't tell me either."

Cattleya shrugged her shoulders and replied, she poured a glass of wine for herself while continuing.

"I bet it has to do with that woman he met, she's partly the reason why Arthur knew he can use a Law's power.

However, I still don't know how he's doing that."

Diablo nodded and dropped the file. He downed his glass of wine before speaking.

"I have a guess but I'm not sure, I have to cross check a lot of things before I can arrive at a conclusion.

If I'm right, then Arthur's future enemies won't just be the gods and their allies.

I hope I'm not."

Cattleya stared at her father silently for a few moments. Diablo noticed this and looked back at her silently too.

They both stayed the same way for nearly a minute until Cattleya broke the silence.

"I think you may be right, though I'm not sure what you are thinking."

"What makes you say so?"

Diablo asked and Cattleya laughed lightly before replying.

"You, Hades and Arthur. The three of you all give off the same vibe."

"Vibe?"

"Yeah, like you're different from normal somehow.

You and Hades have realised it about yourselves long ago, Arthur's realized that you and Hades may know something.

Hades on the other hand has recently begun to suspect Arthur, and you have suspected Arthur has known about you two for a while now."

Her words barely made any sense. If Nine out of ten people heard her say that, they would have ended up giving her looks of confusion.

However, Diablo, would not be part of those nine.

He understood what she was talking about completely.

'She always says pure bloods are too sensitive but she's even more so.'

He moved his gaze from her and looked out the window. 

'I really hope Arthur is the same as us but at the same time I hope he isn't.'

Shaking his head, he began questioning when he became so indecisive about serious matters like this.

He looked towards Cattleya who had gone back to reading her files and thought.

'Probably because it concerns my family Huh?

I guess this must have been how 'he' felt.'

He took another glass of wine and drank it, deciding to just relax and leave his worries for another day.