?Chapter 935:
Questions multiplied in Katrina’s mind like breeding serpents.
Maxine offered no enlightenment, merely flicking her wrist in dismissal. “Proceed with your challenge. Return to me when the month concludes.” With that, Maxine settled deeper into her ornate throne, cradled her head against her palm, and closed her eyes to rest.
Katrina swallowed her curiosity and withdrew from the hall with measured steps.
Jules trailed in Katrina’s wake like a reluctant shadow.
Beyond the hall’s imposing doors, Jules ventured, “Maxine’s wisdom runs deeper than mountain streams, and she never squanders resources carelessly. Granting youmand of the entire Serpent Society for one elimination seems excessive, yet she must harborpelling reasons.”
Katrina’s eyes snapped shut in exasperation for a second before fixing Jules with a withering stare. “Must you voice such painfully obvious observations? Do you imagine Ick the intelligence to grasp that much?”
Jules’s distaste for Katrina’s condescending tone burned hotter than forge mes. Conversing with her resembled wrestling with a rabid wildcat—all ws and venom. Meaningful dialogue remained perpetually beyond reach.
Yet, the specter of the approaching month, when her word would be hisw, forced him to swallow his frustration whole. Channeling his rage into false calm, he persisted patiently, “I mean, Elliana possesses hidden depths we haven’t fathomed yet. This mission demands our utmost vignce.”
Katrina’s response dripped with scorn and sarcasm. “How astute of you to notice.”
Having delivered her verbalshing, Katrina stalked forward, treating even minimal conversation with Jules as cruel punishment.
Jules remained rooted in ce, grinding his teeth as he watched her retreating silhouette, fantasizing about wrapping his fingers around her slender throat. But constrained by his position, he ultimately had to digest every humiliation. As an adopted child of the Griffiths family, he floated through life like driftwood on turbulent seas, his true identity buried beneathyers of uncertainty. Tolerating Katrina’s venomous temperament had be an essential survival skill.
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Two measured breaths restored Jules’posure. He adjusted his mental armor, quickened his stride, and drew alongside Katrina with practiced deference. “So, what do you have nned for me next?”
Katrina halted mid-step and regarded Jules as though he were something unpleasant stuck to her shoe. “For the next thirty days, vanish from my sight. Your presence nauseates me.”
The insult detonated Jules’ carefully controlled temper, his knuckles popping like breaking timber. Were they anywhere else, he would have dly introduced Katrina to his fists until she begged for mercy through bloodied lips.
But Katrina disregarded his barely leashed fury. She sneered and continued her departure.
This time, Jules didn’t follow her. If she wanted him to stay away, he would dly oblige. Let her stumble through this challenge without his support—in thirty days, her inevitable downfall would provide delicious vindication. After Katrina disappeared around the corner, Jules expelled a contemptuous snort and pivoted toward the opposite corridor.
Following their dramatic exit, an elderly figure with silver hair entered the abandoned hall. Despite his advanced years, vitality radiated from his every movement, each footfall resonating with quiet authority.
Davin, the visionary architect of the Enlightenment Institute, had arrived.
Upon crossing the threshold, Davin offered Maxine a respectful bow. “Ms. Griffiths.”
Maxine’s eyelids fluttered open as she indicated a nearby chair with a graceful gesture. “Please, be seated.”<fn6229> Checktest chapters at f?i?n?d?n?o?v?e?l?</fn6229>
Davin settled into the offered seat before inquiring, “Ms. Griffiths, you called me here suddenly. Is there something urgent?”
“Indeed, a critical situation demands your attention—one concerning Rita’s daughter, Elliana,” Maxine’s voice carried newfound gravity.
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