Chapter 100

Chapter 100: Chapter 100

Ingrid arrived at Berthanon’s office with Lysander walking beside her. Freya, Maya and Lanxiang had gone back to Maya’s office to stay since it was only Ingrid that Berthanon wanted to see. Besides, Freya said if she saw Berthanon, she wouldn’t be able to keep off from killing him.

However, before they could reach the entrance, two guards stepped forward and blocked their way. One of them looked directly at Ingrid before shifting his attention to Lysander, making it clear that the restriction was meant for him.

"Only Ingrid is allowed inside. Berthanon specifically requested to see her alone, so you’ll have to wait here until their conversation is over."

Lysander’s expression immediately darkened. He looked at the guard with a coldness that made the man instinctively straighten his back, but he didn’t seem particularly interested in following the instruction. Instead, he took another step forward, and the guards immediately positioned themselves between him and the door.

"Move out of my way. I have no reason to trust a man who has already allowed his people to hurt her."

"Lysander." Ingrid called his name before he could take another step. She moved closer and gently touched his arm, drawing his attention away from the guards. Although she understood why he wanted to accompany her, she didn’t want them getting into a fight over the entrance. They still had too many things to arrange, and causing a disturbance now would only make their escape more difficult.

"Don’t worry about me. I’ll be fine, and it’s not as if I’m going to spend the entire day in there." Ingrid moved closer to him and whispered, her voice only meant for him, "We came here to find out what Berthanon wants, so I’ll hear him out and leave when I’m done. We shouldn’t start fighting his guards over something that can be avoided, especially when we still have other things to take care of."

Lysander frowned, clearly unhappy with her suggestion. His eyes moved from Ingrid to the office door, and he seemed to be considering whether he should simply ignore the guards and follow her anyway. Ingrid gave his arm a reassuring squeeze before continuing, hoping he would understand that she wasn’t asking him to abandon her.

"If anything happens, I’ll yell your name, and I expect you to come running without wasting a second. You won’t have to wonder whether I’m in trouble or whether I need your help, so just stay here and wait for me. I promise I won’t deliberately put myself in danger, I’ll be careful about what I say to him."

Lysander stared at her for a few more seconds before finally giving in. He still looked displeased, but he nodded and stepped back, making it clear that he would wait outside. Ingrid smiled at him before turning towards the guards, who opened the door and allowed her to enter.

The office was spacious, with expensive furniture arranged neatly around the room. Several shelves filled with books and documents stood against the walls, while a large desk occupied the far end of the room. There were also a few comfortable chairs near the windows, one of which was currently occupied by Berthanon. He was seated with his legs crossed, looking completely relaxed, and the sight of him immediately brought back the anger Ingrid had been trying to suppress.

Her fingers curled slightly as she remembered what had happened in the examination room. She could still recall the unbearable pain that had spread through her body while the memory-search machine operated, and she remembered how helpless she had felt when the people around her refused to stop it. Berthanon had known there would be consequences, yet he had allowed the procedure to continue without the slightest concern for her safety. Now he was sitting comfortably in his office, looking perfectly content with himself.

’Lorna, can I just stop time, stab him, and run away with everyone?’

The system remained silent for a moment before responding. ’Technically, Host can attempt that. However, your Time Stop skill currently lasts for only a few seconds, which isn’t enough time to carry out the entire plan. Even if you manage to stab him, the effect will end before you can escape the office, and the guards outside will have enough time to catch you. There is also the possibility that Berthanon may survive the attack, which would make your situation considerably more troublesome.’

Ingrid rolled her eyes. ’Why do you have to spoil my fun? I was only asking a simple question, but you managed to turn it into a whole lecture about everything that could go wrong. Can’t you just encourage me once in a while?’

’I am required to inform you of the limitations of your abilities. If not, you would probably fly to the sky with nothing but chicken wings.’

’Then keep your information to yourself. I don’t want to hear it!’

Ingrid was still mentally arguing with the system when Berthanon’s voice brought her back to reality. He had noticed her standing near the entrance and was now looking at her with a pleasant smile.

"Ingrid, you’ve finally arrived. Come and sit down. I hope you’re feeling better after what happened earlier, and to be honest, I was quite relieved when I heard that you had regained consciousness. I must admit that the situation with the memory-search machine was unfortunate, and I sincerely apologise for the way things were handled. It wasn’t my intention for you to suffer so I hope you won’t allow that incident to affect our relationship."

Ingrid didn’t move towards the chairs. She simply stared at him, her expression carrying none of the warmth he seemed to expect. His apology sounded so rehearsed that she could almost predict the next sentence before he said it. She had no interest in listening to him pretend that he was concerned about her wellbeing when he had been one of the people responsible for putting her through that ordeal.

"Stop beating around the bush and get to the point. I’m not interested in listening to you apologise after the damage has already been done, especially when you knew there was a possibility that the procedure would hurt me. You were aware of the risks before allowing those people to use that machine, weren’t you? So what exactly do you expect me to do with your apology now? Should I thank you for finally acknowledging something you knew could happen from the beginning?"