He struggled for a long time before opening his mouth, “It is difficult to explain everything to you right now. Anyway, is going back to the Juan family the only thing you want to do?”
“Yes, but… Shaquille kidnapped me but did not kill me. He asked for more bounty from the original buyer while asking the Juan family for ransom. I suspect that he wanted to make money from the throne war, and that there is a mastermind behind all this. I want to get to the bottom of this.” She stood and spoke carefully.
He thought about it and did not refute her reasoning.
“How do you plan to get to the bottom of this?”
“If I go back to Shaquille, I am confident that I can find out the real reason behind this.”
“You plan to go back and become a hostage again?” He turned his head again, looking utterly furious. “Is this a joke? The Juan family is not worth you risking your life like this!”
“But if things go well, I can find out who the culprit is behind all this…”
“No. 3, the throne war is just a stupid game of power. It means nothing to you, do you still not get it? If the family head wants to sacrifice you now, even I will not be able to save you!”
She bit her lip and could hear the sound of her heart breaking. The pain of being betrayed stung across her chest, but she remained calm and looked at him bluntly. He was now fuming.
“I am not No. 3 anymore. My name is Diana,” she said, trying to not show her fear. She then continued sadly. “If you are willing to cooperate with me… I will pretend to not have heard the ‘dangerous’ things that you have said.”
“What ‘dangerous’ things?” he asked ruthlessly.
“Asking me to betray the Juan family… Those who have betrayed once will do it again,” she turned her head away with a sense of regret. Only by not looking at his eyes could she continue to remain calm. “Teacher, if you continue to say these things, you will be asking me to turn my back on the Juan family. In that case, I will not be able to trust you… and will have to use the method you taught me to deal with you.”
He gave a slight pause.
“What are you saying?”
“Also, I will not go with you until I see other Juan family mercenaries. I do not know where you are taking me, and do not want to know. If you really want me to trust you, please bring more people with you.”
“Damn it, you—”
He was utterly speechless.
Stay alive! This was a natural instinct of all living beings. He did not think that she would object to the idea.
It was then that he realized that he might have approached this all wrong. His anxiety had led to this impasse.
Only the sound of wind whistling in their ears was heard during this period of silence. They confronted each other numerous times with their eyes. He could not think of a better solution. If he forcefully took her away, she would see him as a spy of the other throne candidates. Then, she would try to run away from him and return to the Juan family until the end of the throne war. She also would never be able to trust him anymore.
It was understandable for her to act this way, because this was what he had taught her all along.
