Noelle found it hard to believe she was this well-known.
Cedric felt an ominous feeling strike him. He stepped in to grab Magnus by the arm. "This kid here publicly confronted Lucas and tried to recruit you to his team."
"Oh right, I remember now. They fought back and forth online."
Noelle looked at Cedric and seemed puzzled. "By the way, he called you Ced. Are you two close friends or perhaps rted?"
"Yeah, we''re... Ouch!" Magnus felt a sharp pinch in his back before he could finish. Grimacing in pain, he turned to Cedric and snapped. "What was that for!"
He had been trying to make a good impression on Noelle, but why would Cedric pinch him for that? What the fuck was wrong with him?
Noelle pointed at the two andmented, "You''re definitely rted, aren''t you? You share the samest name."
Then, a thought struck her. Were Magnus and Cedric rted? But Magnus was from the prominent Greene family in Yasnia!
She turned to Cedric with a serious expression. "Why have you never mentioned your connection to the Greenes?"
Cedric nervously exined, "We just happen to share the samest name."
''Yeah, they''re distant rtives," Alfred chimed in as he ran over from afar. "This guy is like my little brother. We met through gaming, and heter got close to Ced too."
Alfred slung an arm around Magnus'' shoulders and shot him a hinting look.
Magnus was briefly confused before realizing Noelle probably didn''t know Cedric''s true identity. He caught on and added, "Right, exactly! Alfred and Ced are both like brothers to me!"
Noelle nced at the three of them without saying a word. All three held their breath and dared not make a sound.
Shortly after, Noelle nodded. "I didn''t realize you all get along so well in real life. You''ve never mentioned anything."
"We talked before. Ced used my ount," Magnus exined.
Noelle briefly recalled what had happened. She''d thought Cedric had been
hacked. Someone had imed to be rted to Cedric, right?
It had been too long ago, and she could barely remember.
Noelle turned to Magnus and asked, "So was that ount yours?"
"Yeah. 100% sure!"
A wave of emotion washed over Noelle as she wondered if it had been Magnus she encountered in her past life, not Cedric.
Magnus noticed her strange expression and asked, "What''s wrong? I logged in that one time, and Ced was the one using it after that."
"It''s nothing," Noelle said and lowered her head. "I''m going to the restroom for a moment."
She left in a hurry, and her mind was filled with memories of her past life and the person she''d encountered then.
She''d always assumed it was Cedric based on his demeanor and the way he spoke. Though she''d never met that man in her past life, she imagined he must be like Cedric.
But now that she knew the ount belonged to Magnus, she felt uncertain. Who would''ve been behind that alternate ount if she hadn''t met Cedric?
She shook off the thought and stopped herself from delving deeper.
Magnus stood under the pir with both hands raised like a child caught misbehaving. He eyed Cedric cautiously. "Ced..."
Cedric raised an eyebrow. "Shut up!"
"I had no idea she didn''t know! I''m innocent!"
Alfred chimed in. "Luckily I arrived in time. Nelly probably doesn''t suspect anything."
Magnus added, "Did you get into an ident with Noelle recently? I noticed she has a scar on her forehead."
Cedric shot him a warning re and pointed at him sharply.
Magnus mped a hand over his mouth. "I swear I won''t slip up! I''ve always been careful since I was a kid!"
"Careful? You''re the reason every single one of my secrets got out!"
Cedric''s temper red at the sight of Magnus, and he turned to Alfred. "Make sure he doesn''t slip anythingter."
Alfred gave him a reassuring nod. "Don''t worry. I''ve got it under control."
Magnus cautiously poked his head out. "Are you scared, Ced? You need confidence! Let me exin to her..."
Cedric''s temples throbbed as his patience reached its limit.
Alfred quickly grabbed Magnus back. "Hey, little troublemaker, how about you head out? You''re not helping by sticking around."