Chapter 369 Confrontation

The situation froze for a moment. Seeing no sign of reaching out, Lionel Money showed no sign of embarrassment. Instead, he readily took the two clean, tall crystal glasses in front of the black-haired youth and winked at the attendants. They immediately stepped forward and quickly filled the empty glasses with wine. The clear golden liquid shimmered in the crystal glasses, emitting an expensive and alluring sheen.

"Then let's meet, Mr. Ghost."

Lionel smiled, leaned over, and respectfully handed one of the crystal glasses to the ghost.

"Before everything is settled," the wealthy man said meaningfully, "I always believe that any encounter could be a good deal."

The banquet hall was lit by thousands of candles, and the ghost was shrouded in a hazy and flattering soft light. A bony hand, tightly wrapped in a black glove, was casually supporting its jaw.

Two flickering candlelights were reflected deep in those smoky-gray pupils. The swirling golden wine, refracted by the crystal glass, left swaying, tiny, and luxurious light golden reflections on his profile and lips.

But nothing could conceal the coldness and sharpness in his calm and indifferent expression that seemed to see through everything, especially when he slightly raised his head to look at people.

History had destined him to sit at the center of the turbulent storm that had swept across the entire continent of Ambrose. All the great honors and sacrifices, all the despicable betrayals and escapes, all the collective chaos and individual struggles - would be used by him.

Under the gaze of those gray eyes, the eager smile on Lionel's face froze almost imperceptibly for a moment, and he even subconsciously softened his breathing - until the man reached out and took the cup from his hand, his smile was slightly infused with some warmth called "genuineness".

"Mr. Ghost, I—"

There was a slight click, and Lionel Money's words were interrupted, and his expression froze.

The black-haired young man calmly placed the clear crystal glass on the table without even glancing at it, but simply pushed it away a little with his fingertips.

"Thank you for your kindness, but I don't drink."

His voice was calm, without any apology or provocation, as if he was not rejecting a wealthy tycoon who controlled the lives and property of countless people, but simply stating an insignificant and self-evident fact.

"you--"

Shame on you! Roland Moni felt his breathing become especially heavy. In today's Silver Iris Empire, how could anyone dare to humiliate his father so brazenly?! Even the Queen would maintain basic courtesy in front of Lionel Moni!

A mixture of absurd disbelief, intense rage of humiliation, and a twisted sense of schadenfreude burst out from his chest, momentarily even covering up the fear that had been lingering in his bones since he heard the name "Ghost," and perhaps even the regret he didn't want to admit.

But his father seemed to have eyes behind him, and raised his hand to stop him. Before he could blurt out the scolding, Lionel Money suddenly burst into laughter.

"Alright, alright!" His laughter echoed throughout the empty hall, making one wonder if the murderous intent that flashed across his eyes was an illusion. "As expected of Mr. Ghost, you're as eccentric as the rumors say. It makes me seem a bit too rigid!"

Magnus picked up an apple, wiped it on his clothes, and began to chew it, watching the farce with great interest.

The Mad King never drank, not even a drop. Initially, this was known only to his closest associates, but later, no one dared to persuade him to drink. Even at the banquets held to curry favor with the new king, not a single drop of alcohol was served. Perhaps he was already mad enough even without drinking, and no one wanted to gamble on what he would look like when he was drunk.

But there were some very interesting pictures in the "prophecy" he saw.

The Mad King at that time was not yet a Mad King. He was just a little bug struggling desperately between the gods, the church, the royal family and even various forces. He was a sacrifice whose wishes were not cared about by anyone.

In the face of numerous dangers where an ordinary person would die a hundred or eighty times a day, as a weak ordinary person, he cleverly used his unique value to save his own life - of course, it is also possible that he did not save it. Even Magnus had "seen" him several times when he was on the verge of death and suddenly erupted with extremely terrifying power from the depths of his soul, helping him to escape danger time and time again, and then became more and more crazy.

He silently treaded upon the spider's threads, moving between various factions, lurking in unseen corners, absorbing nutrients from hostility, greed, and contempt, and growing madly and rapidly. Before his opponents and enemies could even react, they were silently trapped in the invisible spider's web, until, at the Mad King's will, they were caught off guard and plunged into the abyss.

But this is not a natural reward from fate; it is often achieved through long-term dormancy, forbearance, pain, and even self-torture and destruction.

In those fragments from the "future", Magnus "saw" the younger Mad King being retaliated against by a group of bored and stupid young nobles for fun. After the other party refused his toast as usual, they pushed his head into the wine barrel again and again in public. The liquid that came out of his nose and mouth was even mixed with a lot of blood - they almost drowned him alive.

That day, the future "great prophet" who witnessed this scene did not speak sarcastically and resentfully to others. Instead, after the crowd dispersed, he squatted on the ground and tried to wipe the face of the young man who was drenched in alcohol and curled up on the ground unconscious.

The other party was obviously completely drunk, but he was still able to grasp his wrist accurately and gave him a smile that made the hairs on his body stand on end, no matter whether it was the Magnus in the "prophecy" or the current Magnus.

They're doing well, the man remarked with a kind of creepy satisfaction, the plan is going well - and as for you, Magnus, do your thing and don't let me down.

Magnus was too lazy to guess what happened to those audacious fools. It was nothing more than being torn apart and sold off completely, and then left without a burial place... But what did Magnus think about this now?

——Damn madman.

So the bard crunched his apple, watched with a touch of pity and interest as Lionel Money finished his own drama of compensation, then announced the continuation of the banquet and everyone returned to their seats.

Roland had already obediently given up the main seat and had to squeeze in with Lesia, who was gloating. He looked coldly at Lionel Moni and Victoria sitting in the main seat, and smiled as he invited everyone to continue enjoying the dinner.

Lionel turned his gaze to the person beside Ghost, a flicker of deep apprehension and a faint fear in his eyes. He had previously avoided any attempts to directly speak with this person. He felt that they were Ghost's subordinates, and he shouldn't have provoked them by stepping over them. This was one reason. Another reason was that he sensed something from them... something that, if unleashed, could completely destroy the place.

Who could this powerful figure beside Ghost be? A powerful sorcerer with healing powers. After much deliberation, the most likely candidate was the mysterious "Dragon Rider."

However, there is very little information about this person circulating in the market. Even a wealthy businessman of Lionel's level cannot get a few words out of the high-level officials of the royal family and the Vatican who have dealt with this person. This vagueness makes Lionel even more wary of this person - to have reached his current position, Lionel is by no means a dull fool. His intuition and sharpness have saved him time and time again.

Lionel Moni was a businessman, more generally, an arms dealer. While the Protector Company had been founded with the support of the Silver Iris Empire's royal family, trade didn't define borders. War was the easiest way for them to make money.

Besides, who would be willing to be controlled by a difficult and greedy royal family for a lifetime? For the sake of huge profits, Lionel did not mind taking risks and making some small moves, or even pouncing on the royal family when it was about to fall and tearing off a few pieces of flesh.

But what if one of the two opposing sides turned their attention to him? Watching the tigers fight from a distance could make the Protector Company a lot of money, but if it was chased and bitten by a mad tiger, it would only end up being torn to pieces.

So, whether it was the threat of the Dragon Knight or the People's Party behind him, even if Ghost was just a fragile ordinary person, he absolutely could not die here. Ghost had clearly understood this, which was why he acted so brazenly in front of him. But since the other party had chosen to infiltrate Dusk Star Manor, it was clear that this "ghost" was not without interest in the things he possessed, right? If there was something he wanted, then there was a deal to be made.

Thinking of this, the smile on Lionel's face became even warmer and more appropriate.

"Mr. Ghost is truly a young and promising man," he said, his voice filled with an uncomfortable admiration and intimacy, as if he were an old man admiring the younger generation. "Such courage and boldness are truly admirable!"

The guy completely ignored the soft-spoken compliment. Instead, he stared at him with a hint of curiosity and asked casually and bluntly, "You mean to say that after I captured the city of Osiris, destroyed your mining experiments, and imprisoned your former client and spy, I still dared to sneak into your estate under an alias?"

Lionel Money: "..."

Does this person always talk in such a way that makes people's eyebrows jump?

"You're such a jokester, but these are just superficial things. It's a story of friendship." The old fox's expression remained unfazed, and he shamelessly changed the subject, "Tonight, let's not discuss boring politics. This is just a Moni family dinner, and you're my long-standing guest."

"You've already met my good-for-nothing brat. This is my daughter, Victoria. I'm sixteen years old and still unmarried." He smiled and patted his daughter's shoulder. The doll-like, delicate girl's eyelashes trembled slightly, and under the tablecloth, her slender fingers curled quietly on the hem of her skirt for a moment.

The next second she slowly raised her eyes, with a carefully crafted innocence mixed with shyness and curiosity, and gently met the pair of smoky gray eyes that were so calm that it was heart-pounding.

"This child has privately begged me to take her out to see the world and meet the great people who change the world." Lionel's tone was gentle, like a loving old father who doted on his daughter. "Victoria, say hello to Mr. Ghost quickly."