Light had listened long enough. His mask stayed still on the screen, but the voice that came out next didn't have the calm he usually used.
"So all of you sat here," he said slowly, "and not one of you can give me a clear answer."
The room went quiet again. None of the Twelve dared to lift their head and see at the screen.
Light's breath came through the speakers, steady but rough at the edges, as if he was dragging his patience back into place and failing. "I asked for one thing. One F-rank boy. A nobody. And you turned it into this mess."
Winter lowered her eyes, but Light wasn't focused on her alone anymore.
His words hit all of them. "How difficult was it? Tell me. Since when did killing a boy with a trash bloodline become this hard for the Crownless Twelve?"
No one answered him. Not a word. The whole table went silent, and everyone felt it, no one wanted to look at him.
A few heads lowered, some just stared at the floor, and others stayed frozen in place as if hoping someone else would speak first.
These were people who always acted like they ruled everything from the shadows, yet right now they had nothing—no reason, no answer, nothing to defend themselves with. Just a failure showing in their faces.
Void head was also lowered with the others, but his movement looked slow and lazy, almost like he was doing it only because the room forced him to. His shoulders slumped a little, and he let his mask angle downward, just doing it because he had to.
Inside his head, he was anything but respectful.
Perfect. One meeting and I get dragged into Winter's mess.
I don't even know who this Shen Yan kid is. F-rank, trash bloodline, whatever.
He let out a tiny breath through his nose.
What a pain. Hope this ends soon.
Light continued before anyone could even think of speaking. "Every one of you sat here for years. You controlled cities, nations, armies… but you can't handle this? You can't finish a simple task?"
Forge clenched his jaw but said nothing.
Storm's sparks faded around her hair.
Light's tone dropped lower. Everyone got tense. "I don't want excuses. I don't want guesses. I want results."
Silence stretched again, heavier than before.
Light pushed one final line through the screen, sharp enough to cut across the table. "Do not sit there and look at me like this is normal. If Shen Yan is alive by the next report… all of you will answer for it."
Light didn't say anything else. The big screen flickered once, the glow dimmed, and the connection cut out in a sudden blink. The room, which had been full of his anger a moment ago, fell into a dull silence.
The twelve masks slowly lifted their heads again, like the moment passed. Winter stayed still, her posture straight, but a thin tension clung around her shoulders.
Void was the first to move.
He raised his head, then rolled his neck once, letting out a small breath like he had been holding it out of annoyance rather than fear.
"Wow," he murmured, voice low but clear enough for everyone to hear. "Winter… you're really in trouble this time."
Void's voice held a lazy amusement, and the words slipped out like a small poke meant to get under Winter's skin.
Winter didn't look at him, but the edge of her mask lowered a little, like she was forcing herself not to react. Her fingers curled on her lap for a moment, a small sign of the irritation building inside her as Void kept talking.
Void tilted his mask slightly, almost curious. "All that frost and calm… but you couldn't handle one tiny F-rank kid? And your shadow couldn't either?"
He let out a quiet laugh. "You two got shown up by a boy who probably can't even pay rent."
Storm gave him a sharp glance. "Void. Enough."
Void shrugged. "What? I'm just saying what everyone's thinking."
He rested his elbow on the arm of his chair. "Light almost melted the screen. And we all had to lower our heads because Winter and her little shadow… lost track of some nobody."
Fang's voice came in firm and low. "Winter has her reasons."
Void snorted softly. "Yeah. Terrible ones."
Winter's fingers tightened on her lap, just for a second. She kept her eyes straight ahead, not giving Void a single look, but the cold around her seemed like it wanted to grow sharper.
Void noticed, and his tone lifted with a lazy smirk behind the mask. "Don't glare at me. I didn't send those rookies. You did. Your shadow did. Not me. I'm just enjoying the show."
Forge let out a long exhale through his mask, metal bands shifting on his arms. "If you don't have anything useful to say, stay quiet."
Void leaned back a little. "I am being useful. I'm reminding Winter how badly she messed up. Might help her focus next time."
Winter remained silent, her cold aura shaking faintly around her like a winter night wind trying to stay steady.
Judgement moved suddenly, his chair scraping back as he stood. The sound cut across the chamber, sharp enough that Void finally stopped leaning back.
"That's enough, Void."
Judgement's voice came out hard and steady, each word dropping with a weight that shut down the room. "If you cannot help, then don't stand here adding noise. Winter doesn't need your useless comments."
Void lowered his head a little, but the small tilt in his posture showed he was still amused underneath. He didn't answer.
Judgement turned toward Winter next. His tone softened, but only a little. "Winter. Listen."
Winter raised her eyes slightly, meeting his gaze for the first time since Light left.
Judgement continued, his voice slow and solid, like someone laying down bricks one after another. "You failed this time. But that doesn't end anything. You need to understand what blocked you."
Winter stayed quiet, waiting.
"Someone is protecting Shen Yan," Judgement said. "Not the boy himself. Someone's covering for Shen Yan. Someone who knows how to hide tracks."