The three Harbingers stood frozen, their faces a chaotic mix of confusion, bewilderment, and mounting panic. The flawless assassination plot, backed by absolute intelligence, had completely shattered in a matter of minutes.
"Damn it, what the hell is going on?!" The rust-haired Harbinger gripped her head, her voice cracking with pure anxiety. "If headquarters finds out we let the Saintess slip through our fingers, we're as good as dead!"
"We had verified intel on the escort plan!" Lea exclaimed, her eyes wide with disbelief. "There's no way you could have altered the entire deployment without us noticing! Our spy within the—"
Before she could finish the sentence, Amon's laughter cut her off again—sharp, triumphant, and utterly mocking.
"You know, my mother and Grand Duchess Nova designed that entire plan specifically with your traitor in mind," Amon explained, finally composing himself as a wide, brilliant grin spread across his face. "We just weren't entirely sure who the mole was... until the end of the birthday banquet."
"Whatever," Louise scoffed, trying to mask her growing dread behind a mask of cold malice. "Even if we were outsmarted, it changes nothing for you. You're still going to die tonight, Amon Von Crown."
"Oh, I wouldn't be so sure about that," Amon replied, his voice dripping with unshakeable confidence. He shifted his gaze toward the wreckage of his sports car, prompting the three Harbingers to follow his eyes.
The battered chassis of the vehicle rattled violently. A heartbeat later, the metal warped and vanished entirely into thin air. In its place stood a lone figure, radiating an aura so profoundly chilling and oppressive that the ambient moisture in the air began to crystallise into frost.
"Oh no..." Lea whispered, her face draining of colour as the trio instinctively took a step back.
Emilia Von Crown stood tall amidst the frost, her eyes locked onto the assassins with absolute, murderous intent.
"You bottom-feeders made a fatal mistake tonight," Emilia said, her voice a low, terrifying promise of execution. She raised her hand toward the darkened sky, the magium in the atmosphere instantly bending to her will.
"Glacial Realm."
The atmosphere shattered. The empty highway and night sky blurred into an unrecognisable smear before re-forming into a vast, silent wasteland of jagged ice. Emilia stood atop the parapet of a towering, frozen castle, her gaze dropping down onto the three Harbingers.
The assassins were completely immobilised, caught mid-retreat. But this wasn't mere ice; the very air around them was dead. They were entirely locked in time. Even Amon, though untouched by the frost, found himself completely paralysed, unable to twitch a single finger.
"So this is the power of an SSS-Rank..." Amon thought, watching as Emilia leapt down from the castle wall, her boots making no sound against the frozen earth as she approached the trio with an overwhelming, suffocating pressure. "To think the Riversong Empire has six more monsters like her... The Aimus are completely delusional to wage a war against this empire."
Emilia stopped directly in front of the frozen Harbingers. With a casual flick of her wrist, the three SS-Rank threats simply dissipated into thin air, leaving nothing behind.
Panic flared in Amon's mind. He desperately wanted to shout a warning—to tell his mother about their conceptual regeneration, that they would just return from history—but his jaw wouldn't move.
<< "Notice. Such a warning is entirely unnecessary. Emilia Von Crown has eradicated any probability of their regeneration. Her spell, Glacial Realm, does not merely freeze opponents in time; it severs causality itself. Things like spells, skills, probability, logic, immortality, regeneration, and so on hold no meaning to her within this spell. The absolute destruction of the Harbingers was finalised the moment the realm manifested." >>
"So... she can literally freeze and erase skills, spells, probability, logic, immortality, and regeneration?" Amon was genuinely baffled, completely stunned by just how unfathomably broken his mother truly was.
<< "Correct. Furthermore, to answer your impending query regarding my lack of assistance during your engagement, it would have been inconsequential. There are currently no spells within your arsenal capable of bypassing a Harbinger's standard regeneration matrix." >>
"Well, it's a good thing I never intended to win this fight in the first place," Amon chuckled internally, answering the voice of his System as the frozen world began to disintegrate around him.
The oppressive cold vanished as instantly as it had arrived, the frozen wasteland dissolving back into the dark, quiet stretch of the highway. Amon felt the paralysis lift from his limbs, his muscles finally relaxing.
"Your plan worked flawlessly, Mother," he said, offering a genuine, tired smile.
Before he could even take a step, Emilia closed the distance between them. She threw her arms around him, pulling him into a fiercely tight embrace, after getting rid of the mechanism on his wrist.
"Don't," Emilia whispered, her voice trembling slightly as she buried her face in his shoulder, her hands tracing the back of his jacket as if confirming he was still whole. "Don't you ever volunteer to be the bait again, Amon."
"You and I both know it was the only way, Mother," Amon replied softly, wrapping his arms around her to return the embrace. His voice was steady, a calming counterweight to her rare display of vulnerability. "If I hadn't taken the lead on the stealth route, the mole would have immediately realised it was a decoy. The Aimus network knows how you think. They knew you would only trust your own son with the true asset if you were certain of its success."
. . .
Amon gazed at the holographic system interface hovering at the edge of his vision, the glowing text radiating a profound sense of accomplishment.
[Quest Complete]
Primary Objective:Ensure that the Saintess reaches the Holy Empire safely.[Completed]
Secondary Objective:Prevent the Aimus from causing major harm to the escort party.[Completed]
Hidden Objective:Kill the Assassins.[Completed]
Enjoy your Rewards!
The tangible satisfaction of a perfect clear did absolutely nothing to shield him from the current reality. He was back in the Crown Mansion, sitting across from Sophia. The grand birthday decorations outside the door felt completely detached from the suffocating atmosphere inside the room. Her expression was ice, masking a tempest of unsaid words.
DraconicSoul: "You know, I didn't like the streamer at first because of how OP he is, but after looking at the fight against the Harbingers and witnessing Mama Crown's strength, yeah. I think I know why he is OP." |
RandomGuy69: "Same, I thought that this stream would be similar to an isekai stream with no real stakes, and pointless fan service. But I was proven horrendously wrong, lol." |
FangirlingIsMyPassion: "That is why patience is a virtue. If y'all had waited before throwing your criticisms..." |
ForestHuntress: "I don't think we should be concerned about that, but for our streamer who will be interrogated by his absolute brocon of a sister..." |
It was gratifying to see the digital audience finally comprehending the sheer scale of the world's power ceiling—and why his lineage demanded such strength. But the chat's newfound respect wasn't going to bail him out of this room.
"I've heard everything from Mom," Sophia began, her voice entirely stripped of its usual warmth, sounding dangerously hollow. "You officially became a Prosecutor today, and immediately used that status to throw yourself into mortal danger by volunteering to be the bait for the escort operation."
"So?" Amon kept his expression anchored to a calm, unbothered smile. "Why are you getting so worked up, Sophia? I'm completely fine, aren't I?"
"I have every right to be worked up!"
Her fist slammed against the heavy mahogany table, the violent impact rattling the tea set between them. Pure, unadulterated anger flared in her eyes. "You almost died out there tonight! Just like when you were eight years old—courting a dangerous entity all because you wanted to be a brilliant little prodigy and bring honour to this family!"
Amon opened his mouth to offer a calculated, logical defence, but the words died in his throat. The cold facade she always wore to intimidate the world was completely fracturing. In the corners of her eyes, tears were beginning to well.
"You've always been so reckless, so entirely careless with your own life..." She looked at the table, her voice cracking. A single tear spilt over and traced a path down her cheek. "Do you even understand what would happen? If you vanish, Mom and Dad would be utterly broken."
Sophia looked up, her vision blurred by the tears spilling down her cheeks. Her breathing was ragged, her chest heaving as she tried to swallow the suffocating knot in her throat. The imposing, authoritative aura she usually carried had completely collapsed, leaving behind only the raw, trembling vulnerability of her obsession.
"I always manage to forget just how completely derailed her wiring is when it comes to me... Damn it, the System absolutely screwed me over," Amon thought, internally cursing the cosmic interface.
It was the effect of an old quest reward—one that had tweaked Sophia's psychology to ensure that she possessed a forbidden, maddening love for her brother.
"Listen, Sophia," Amon finally spoke. He leaned across the mahogany table, his voice shedding every ounce of its usual playful sarcasm, turning incredibly calm and gentle. He reached out, his hands moving slowly as he placed them over her trembling, clenched fists. "Take deep breaths. Calm down."
Sophia stared down at his hands resting over hers, her fingers twitching under his touch. Her frantic breathing hitched, the warmth of his skin acting like an immediate anchor against the spiralling panic in her mind.
"Look at me," Amon guided her softly, his crimson, skull-patterned eyes fixing onto her tear-streaked face with absolute focus. "The plan was calculated, and Mother was right behind me the entire time. Look at me. I'm completely safe, and I didn't leave you."
"But you could have," Sophia choked out, her voice dropping to a desperate, ragged whisper as her fingers wrapped tightly around his, gripping him with a force that would have crushed the bones of any ordinary human. "You gamble with your life as if it belongs only to you, Amon. It doesn't. If you die... I will burn everything down. I mean it. I won't live in a world where I can't have a future with you."
Amon kept his expression entirely neutral, keeping his breathing steady despite the chilling weight of her words. He could see the stream chat absolutely losing its collective mind at the sheer drama unfolding on screen.
CatnipIsDelicious: "YOOO???? HOLD UP??? WHAT DID SHE JUST SAY?? BRO, THE YANDERE ENERGY IS OFF THE CHARTS!!" |
VillainEnjoyer: "I knew she was interested in her brother, but never could've seen this coming. She is astronomically downbad for her brother. Holy peak fiction." |
DraconicSoul: "Amon's poker face right now is legendary because if I were him, I'd be writing my will. She is genuinely terrifying." |
ForestHuntress: "So… This is the result of some quest reward… Damn, the System did him dirty… |
Ignoring the digital chaos flickering in the corner of his eye, Amon gently squeezed Sophia's hands, forcing her to lock eyes with him again.
"I'm not planning on dying anytime soon, Sophia," Amon said, his tone striking a delicate balance between a soothing reassurance and a firm command. "So stop crying. It doesn't suit the proud daughter of the Crown family."
Amon let go of her hands, keeping his expression gentle as Sophia hurriedly wiped away the remaining traces of her tears, trying to reclaim her stony composure. Right on cue, a sharp, rhythmic knock echoed through the heavy wooden door of the study.
"You may enter," Amon called out.
The door creaked open to reveal Costoria Leone. Over the years, Amon's childhood friend had grown into an exceptionally striking young woman, possessing a statuesque, sensual figure and a flawlessly beautiful face.
Her style remained distinctly sharp and rebellious—currently, she wore a cropped grey shirt with a black tie falling sharply down the centre, wide black cargo pants accented by heavy silver chains at the hip, and scuffed black combat boots.
And, unfortunately for Amon, her obsession with him easily rivalled his sister's.
"You're truly blessed to be receiving such sweet words of assurance from Amon, President," Costoria commented, her voice smooth but carrying a distinct, dangerous undercurrent.
She walked over to the mahogany table, her boots clicking against the floorboards, and casually claimed the seat directly beside Amon. She leaned in slightly, a thin, knowing smile playing on her lips. "But what I am more curious about is what exactly transpired tonight to warrant such a blessing."
Turning her sharp gaze fully onto Amon, she propped her chin on her hand. "Care to explain, pretty boy?"
Amon remained perfectly composed, leaning back into the cushions of his seat as he walked Costoria through the intricate, layered deception of the Saintess's escort mission.
He detailed how Grand Duchess Chloe Nova had originally drafted a double-blind strategy. The plan involved two distinct teams: a heavily armed convoy to act as a loud distraction for the assassins, and a stealth team to slip away with the Saintess.
When his mother, Emilia Von Crown, first heard it, she hadn't minced words, immediately calling the strategy cartoonish and flawed. But Chloe had countered with a harsh reality—the plan had to look a bit foolish because they were entirely aware of a high-level traitor embedded within the escort team. The trap had to be fed to the mole naturally.
Emilia then refined the trap into a triple-cross. The official brief given to the escort team stated that a lone, high-tier Prosecutor would handle the stealth extraction with the Saintess. But the hidden truth was that this lone Prosecutor was meant to be the actual decoy. The real Saintess was supposed to be hidden in plain sight, disguised as ordinary security personnel inside the massive, heavily guarded main convoy.
However, the strategy still carried an immense risk—the Aimus were highly analytical and might deduce that the lone driver was a trick. That was when Amon had stepped in. By volunteering his own life as the lone driver, he made the bait irresistible.
The Aimus knew Emilia would never risk her prized son as a mere fake; therefore, his presence practically guaranteed that the Saintess was in his car. It was a psychological masterstroke that completely blinded the Aimus.
"And as a result, I had to face three Harbingers on an empty highway," Amon finished smoothly, letting out a small, dramatic sigh. "Which admittedly put me in a bit of a perilous situation. Luckily, Mother had materialised in the nick of time and cleaned up the mess."
"Fascinating," Costoria said, her eyes glinting with a dangerous mix of amusement and displeasure. "You gambled with your life for the safety of another girl. Truly fascinating."
"I can't help but notice your jealousy, Costoria," Amon replied. His expression remained entirely neutral, though his mind was already mapping out the dark possibilities of where this conversation could go. "I expected a congratulation from you, you know?"
"You deserve to be locked up in a basement," Costoria said, her tone dipping into something sharp and obsessive.
"I agree with her for once," Sophia chimed in, her voice carrying the same suffocating edge.
"Save your obsessions for later, you two," a familiar voice chimed in. They all turned toward the door to see Emilia Von Crown standing there. "Amon became a Prosecutor today and went straight to a highly important mission. He is exhausted."
"Thank you, Mother! Thank you for saving me from these psychopaths!" Amon internally screamed with pure, unadulterated relief.
"Yeah, I do feel pretty tired," Amon said aloud, rising from his seat. "I'll talk to you both tomorrow." He offered a brief wave and wasted no time escaping the room.
Emilia turned to Costoria, her expression softening into a warm, maternal smile. "Costoria, I've already spoken with Alexia and arranged for you to stay here tonight. Go get some rest. You must be drained after the party."
Costoria let out a quiet sigh. "Alright, Duchess."
. . .
Brilliant rays of morning sun filtered through the window, hitting Amon's face. He twitched, opened his eyes, and sat up. The digital desk clock read 6:03 AM.
He slid into his Crocs, got out of bed, and took a long stretch before heading into the bathroom. A few minutes later, he stepped back out with a towel wrapped around his waist, vigorously drying his damp hair with another. A cold morning shower never failed to wake him up, a routine he strictly followed.
He walked over to his wardrobe, pulled out some casual clothes, and tossed them onto the bed. The moment they hit the mattress, a familiar, glowing interface snapped into existence right in front of his face.
{Quest: Genius Final Boss}
Primary Objective: Secure first place in the R.S. Advanced Academy Entrance Exam.
Secondary Objective: Break Sophia Von Crown's record.
Hidden Objective: ??? [Figure it out yourself]
Rewards: ???
Penalty: Sophia Von Crown & Costoria Leone will experience a massive surge in their obsessive tendencies.
"Are we being deadass?" Amon stared at the floating text, a volatile cocktail of disbelief, horror, and sheer annoyance bubbling up inside him.