Souls Online: Mythic Ascension-Chapter 57: A Place to Hide

Rachel gazed down at Leo, still cradled in her arms. He was so eerily still, so quiet—if not for the faint rise and fall of his chest, she might have believed he was already gone.

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Luna's fists clenched at her sides, her nails digging into her palms. A storm of frustration churned inside her. She was surrounded by people with extraordinary family backgrounds, people who could actually help her brother while she stood there, utterly powerless.

'What can I do? All I know is how to fight. Fighting isn't going to fix this.. If only I understood more about the game... If only I knew how to help.

Lily was biting her nails, her mind going a mile a minute as she tried to make sense of everything. Leo's wellbeing was tied directly to a game that even the government was looking into.

'This game...what is its real purpose? What could the developers stand to gain from throwing people's lives into chaos? ' 

Horo bit his lips while the presence within him snickered, delighting in his turbulent emotions.

'Little Snake...Why are you worrying about a boy you barely know~? Are you so easy as to put your faith in these humans~? They will dull your conviction~'. 

'You. Shut. UP.'

He howled in his mind but deep down, he knew Arachne was right. The longer he spent with these people, the worse off he will be when it came time to execute his final scheme.

'I am just using them to grow stronger. The stronger I get, the easier it will be to take the Samael Family down. Elise was just the start!'

All he got in return was a snicker. Doubt began to creep in. Why did he feel the need to justify his actions to it? Was he justifying his decisions to Arachne... or was he only convincing himself to ignore the growing unease

"So.....What's the plan guys?"

Rachel was the first to break the ominous silence, standing up and carrying Leo, cradling him in her arms. There was none of her jovial or teasing mannerisms, her gaze was soft as she continued to stare at Leo's peacefully serene face.

Even Luna, with all her skepticism of her intentions, could see the sincerity in Rachel's gaze. She wanted to ask her something but before she could speak, Horo butted in.

"We need to maintain the smoke screen I put in place to keep him safe. Leo's safety needs to come first. If we use Elise like he wanted, it buys us more time—time we can't afford to waste.

Rachel's brow furrowed as she felt something off about Horo's words. While doing so would be helping Leo, it would benefit Horo more. Yet now wasn't the time to bring up her doubts.

She obediently handed Leo over to Horo before she headed towards the back, irritated that she was being manipulated.

Horo could sense that she had seen through his intentions, and a flicker of guilt gnawed at him, momentarily pulling at his resolve. But it was fleeting—he couldn't afford to let it sway him. His agenda came first.

"We will need a place to stay. Somewhere off the radar of the Samael family. Anybody got any ideas?"

Luna took a slow breath, as if weighing the significance of what she was about to say.

"We need to go home."

Lily blinked, taken aback.

"You don't mean..? But you haven't lived there in years. Not since your parents...."

"That's exactly why it's perfect,"

Luna's expression was firm, her shoulders trembled slightly as she thought about returning back to that place. It no longer held the warmth of her family but it was their best shot.

"No one would think to look for us there. It's just another nondescript house in the suburbs. No security, no surveillance,nothing that would make it stand out."

Horo studied her carefully. "How far is it?"

"Not far. Just a short drive from here," Luna replied. Her voice was steady but there was a hint of melancholy in her gaze as she seemed to be seeing something in the distance.

Lily swallowed

"It... might actually work."

She walked over to Luna and held her hand, giving it a soft squeeze as if to assure her that everything was going to be okay.

Horo adjusted his grip on Leo's unconscious form.

"Fine. Let's go."

"Not so fast, pretty boy. You have another job to do~".

Rachel reentered the room with a small and soggy looking bag. She tossed it onto the table nonchalantly before moving to stand in front of Horo.

"You need to deliver this to your family. It will raise your standing and paint you in a good light. That also means you shouldn't go with them or even know the location. Safer that way."

Horo frowned upon hearing and seeing the casual way Rachel was speaking to him. It was as if she was looking down on him and making it seem like he wanted to be on good terms with his family.

However, he quickly switched his expression to a smirk as he calmly glared at the woman.

"Yeah you're right Ms. Rachel. But aren't you in the same boat? Why should we trust someone working for the government of all things?"

Rachel scoffed as she met his glare with a steady gaze.

"I have an interest in this that goes beyond a mere mission. While I may be a thrillseeker, I truly want Leo to be happy. Do you?"

Horo flinched at Rachel's question. He couldn't help but remember that conversation that he had with Leo in the forest.

"...Yeah. I do. This is stupid. We shouldn't be arguing. I will do as you say..."

Rachel accepted Leo's unconscious body from Horo. He then picked up the bag and put it in his pocket.

"I will see you guys later. I trust that you can find out my number right?"

Luna's expression was tense upon seeing the standoff between two people she didn't fully trust.

'If either of them hurt Leo.... I will end them myself!'

"Umm...Luna..What was in that bag?"

Lily felt nauseous as she came to a realization but was hoping that she was wrong.

Rachel had a mischievous smirk on her face as she chimed in and crushed Lily's hopes.

"That was the tongue of a snake~! I hear it is a bit of a delicacy in certain parts of the world."

Lily could feel the vomit rising up her throat while Luna glared at Rachel.

"Quit it with the twisted dark humor. If you want to be like this. You can fuck off right now"

"Fine~! Sorry Ms. Lily~!"

Lily was barely able to hold it in, swallowing the bile back down. She flashed a grateful smile to Luna.

"We should head out right?"

"Yeah. We need to go~!"

Lily shot a quick glare at Rachel but she didn't say anything as they did need to go.

Luna slowly nodded her head as she started walking, guiding them out of the cafe.

It was time to go home.