The room behind the door looked like a presidential office. It wasn't decorated too prominently, but it was enough to attract everyone's attention.
15 soldiers wearing purple-black uniforms, holding guns, stood around the room, leaning against the walls.
And all of those soldiers were tasked with protecting a single person - Second Prince Modric - because he was literally the brain of the entire Voidveil Empire.
In the middle of the room, Modric was still looking down at his desk and writing something, not realizing that Ash was standing right outside.
Or maybe he had noticed but was deliberately not paying attention.
'Whatever.' Ash ignored everything and walked inside.
It was only when Ash took his first step into the room that Modric's writing hand stopped and he slowly raised his head to look at him.
It was at this moment that Ash could clearly see Modric's face.
Modric "Genius" Voidveil had a face that looked quite similar to Ash "Worthless" Voidveil, but it looked more mature, dangerous, and difficult to read.
He almost never showed any expression, but anyone who had played the game False Horizon knew that Modric was someone who would do literally anything to get what he wanted.
There was a rumor among gamers that went like this: If Modric could manipulate the main character, then the Abyssal Realm would definitely be conquered in less than a year.
Even though it was just a false rumor, it was enough to prove how sharp his brain was.
But after all, the Second Prince was still a good person.
And most importantly, the thing that made Modric different from Ash was that he was wearing glasses. Yes, glasses.
Ordinary people would probably think "what can glasses change?" But all of them were wrong. A pair of glasses could really change a person's entire appearance if they were the right type.
"You're back, Ash?" Modric asked, his voice devoid of any emotion.
Ash looked at him for a long time, swallowing his saliva while thinking about what to say.
Unlike Serena, who had been loyal to him since he was reincarnated here, Ash couldn't trust Modric or any other character.
It's true that in the game, all those characters including Modric were good people, but remember, this was no longer the game that Ash used to enjoy through his computer screen.
All the lives here were not programmed from commands but real people, with real emotions.
And who knew if a good character would become a villain while a villain would become a good person?
In general, he had to be careful and play the role of a Prince who was a troublemaker and arrogant.
"Yo brother, long time no see. Miss this little brother?" Ash slowly approached Modric's desk, not paying any attention to the wary gazes of the soldiers around the room.
"Get straight to the point, did you complete the mission? I heard that when you came back, it was just you and Serena, right?"
Ash didn't even bother to ask how Modric knew about this information, he just casually opened his briefcase and took out a bloody flag bearing the symbol of the Kingdom of Ur and threw it on the Second Prince's desk.
Modric stared at the flag for a while without saying anything.
After a while, he called out to one of the soldiers in the room, whispering something in his ear before turning back to talk to his younger brother.
Meanwhile, that soldier had already rushed out of the room without looking back.
Modric let out a deep breath before forcing himself to smile.
"Well done, my brother. If that's the case, is there anything else you want to say? If not, I don't think we need to talk anymore."
"Of course I do, brother. I still have something very important to report to you." Ash began to change his tone to a pitiful one.
It was time for him to find the culprit who forced that chef to poison his stew. And with Modric's genius brain, he would definitely find that person soon.
"Actually, back on the battlefield, a chef poisoned my food. And when I questioned him, he didn't say a word."
A frown suddenly appeared on the Second Prince's face.
"So, you are saying that the person who ordered that chef has a higher authority than you, right? That means the culprit is one of our relatives."
What an empire's brain. He didn't even need to hear the whole story to know what was going on.
"Yes. That's right." Ash made a fake smile.
"Alright. I'll try to find the culprit as soon as possible. You shall go now."
However, Ash still hadn't left the room, making Modric start to feel confused, as if his little brother was trying to toy with him.
"Is there anything else?"
"Ah…um…well…I want to go to Awakened Academy."
Modirc paused for a moment, as if he just heard something really unbelievable.
"...Sigh, go, I'll arrange for you to go there."
"Thank you, big brother!"
Satisfied with the result he got, Ash immediately went out, not even bothering to say goodbye to the Second Prince Modric - his older brother.
"Big brother, huh?…It's been a long time since you said that word, my little brother." Modric muttered as he watched Ash's back as it gradually faded away.
***
As soon as the door closed and Ash was completely out of that place, he was panting so much that he almost fainted on the spot under the butler's gaze.
Ever since he was inside, Ash had been trying to act like the perfect naughty Prince the entire time, but he didn't expect it to be this exhausting.
No, to be more precise, it was actually because the pressure that Modric "Genius" Voidveil emitted was too great.
He might look like a normal, harmless genius, but only Ash could sense everything.
His eyes looked like he was willing to kill him at any moment. It looked dangerous and threatening. Or maybe he was just imagining it.
If he hadn't clenched his fist so tightly that it almost bled, he would have fainted immediately in the middle of the conversation.
"Are you alright, Your Highness?" The butler spoke, this time, his voice was a little worried.
But at this moment, Ash could hardly control himself anymore. So instead of answering the butler's question gently, he glared at that man and unintentionally released a lot of murderous intent.
But fortunately, the butler only froze for a moment before calmly leading him to his residence.
And that place was one of the three towers that Ash had seen before entering this palace.