101. WHO HAS THE REAL POWER?

Playing Contra Bassoon.

Instrumental skill, plus one. Musical ability, plus one. Instrumental skills, upgrade.

Current level, proficient. Current progress, eleven out of a hundred. At that moment,

Aiden felt that the bassoon he was holding was perfectly attuned to his body.

Each finger was automatically drawn to the right place. His breath came evenly and

strongly. The sound was like a sob.

Slow, sorrowful, and without end. A feeling of sadness and desolation lingered in the

auditorium. The audience was suddenly filled with sadness and melancholy.

Tears in their eyes. They felt the autumn wind and leaves outside the window. And

alongside the sadness, a sense of nobility and elegance.

Even Bella and her mother, who did not know the melody, stood still, listening to the

music. As the song ended, Aiden put the instrument down and sighed gently. It clearly

had a special quality.

Able to affect other people's minds and fill them with sadness. Aiden was lost in thought, as was the audience. Oblivious now to the player, and trapped in the music.

Long after the song had stopped, they opened their eyes sadly, and wiped cheeks wet

with tears. They wanted the beautiful music to continue, but were afraid of a renewed

attack of sadness. For a moment, no one spoke.

Aiden went up to Bella's mother, who stood, stupefied, and said lightly, You were willing

to gamble, now admit defeat. She shook herself awake, and secretly cursed Aiden and

everyone else. How could this have happened? Unabashed, she admitted to bluff it out.

Gambling indeed. What bet? I don't understand what you are saying. But this time, she

infuriated everyone watching.

The melancholy atmosphere created by the contrapassoon dissipated, and they turned

on her. Do you think we're deaf? We've seen with our own eyes that you made a bet with

this guy. You have to apologize to Dora and get out of the school.

In the face of so much hatred, Beryl eyeless still refused to concede. Instead, she was

arrogant and domineering. Be quiet, all of you.

I will have my husband sort you all out. They were surprised, then remembered the

extent of her family's influence. For a moment, the voices of opposition were sudden.

As Beryl Eilis saw this, her face became more complacent. Her husband, Ronald Eilis, had

such far-reaching influence that she had done this many times before. This time, she

would obviously succeed again.

But suddenly she realized, Aiden was laughing. As if he was in the right. How dared he

laugh at her! Miss Eilis was so flustered that she didn't know what to say.

Go on then, laugh, you idiot! She spluttered. Laugh again, and I'll get my husband to sort

you out once and for all.

Aiden shook his

head.

He smirked and said, Laugh all you want. Is it your husband's position that makes you so

arrogant? Aiden pulled out his phone and scrolled through his contacts. He looked up at

Miss Eilis' challenging stare.

Her expression dared him to shut her down. Just one ring after hitting send, Director

Harris answered the calls. Aiden? What can I do for you? Well, Director Harris, I was

wondering if you're aware of a particular person here in Bayside.

Who? Nathan asked. Aiden replied, Beryl Eilis. Aiden looked at the woman who now

seemed uncertain about what was happening.

She almost looked afraid now. Automatic trigger. Detective ability.

Level, beginner. Target detection. Detection complete.

Results of investigation sent to host. Aiden's eyes flashed, and he said in a solemn voice

on the phone, She's the wife of Richard Eilis and is using her husband's name and

position to oppress people. She also appears to have more money than someone of her

husband's rank would earn.

As Aiden reported his findings to Director Harris, he saw fear solidify on Miss Eilis' face,

suggesting his analysis of the situation was correct. Who are you speaking to? Miss Eilis

demanded to know. She was pale as a ghost now, watching Aiden in shock.

How did he know her secrets? Aiden ignored her. Based on his analysis and her response

to his initial comments, Aiden made another assertion, telling Nathan, Further, I suspect

that Richard Eilis may be acting against the interests of the nation. See what the FBI has

on him.

FBI? Miss Eilis thought. Everyone was surprised. They didn't know who Aiden had called,

but they clearly heard the last thing he said.

FBI. The FBI was responsible for maintaining the security of the country, including

internal and external threats. Was Aiden suggesting that Miss Eilis was a threat to

national security? There was a moment of silence from the other end of the phone, and

then came Director Harris' serious voice.

Thank you for this, Aiden. Let me make a call to the local field office, and I'll call you

back. While her heart pounded in her chest with panic, Miss Eilis didn't back down.

She stilled her trembling and challenged Aiden. You're bluffing. That was not a real

phone call.

Who would a boy like you even know at the FBI? Aiden said nothing, deciding to wait

quietly while Nathan checked into Richard and Beryl Eilis. He knew that at the behest of

the director of the NSB, agents at the local field office would move quickly to assess the

situation. While no one at the school knew what was happening, half the local agents

were deluging the local community with queries about Richard Eilis and building a robust

file against him.

All the phone calls set off local gossip, and even the press was quickly hearing rumors.

Soon everyone was wondering what Mr. Eilis had done to provoke someone powerful in

the government. Soon, Director Harris called back with three simple words.

You were right. Just as he said that, Miss Eilis' phone rang. She looked at the number on

the screen, and her pupils shrank.

Her hands trembled as she pressed the answer button.

On the

other end of the phone, there was a very low voice. I'm sorry, you two.

Take care of our girl and live a good life. Miss Eilis' eyes widened, and she collapsed to

the ground. This... this... this is impossible, she said.

It was obvious that the caller was Richard Eilis, and his words broke Miss Eilis' heart. She

sat there frozen in shock, then suddenly looked at Aiden in horror and shouted, You! The

other onlookers saw Miss Eilis' performance, but didn't know what was going on with

Richard Eilis. Everything had happened in a few minutes, and it was clear that Aiden had

a lot of power.

With just a phone call, someone's life had been instantly changed. Who the hell is he?

People wondered, but Miss Poole also covered her mouth as she looked at Aiden with a

mix of surprise and joy at Aiden's power. She was happy that Miss Eilis could no longer

threaten her.

Her job was saved. Miss Poole vaguely knew Dora's background, but she knew nothing

about the girl's powerful brother. At this moment, Miss Poole's heart felt a connection to

Aiden, but also recognized the distance between them.

She longed to know him better, but knew he had other commitments than to spend time

with her alone. After all, they were just two people in the larger world. That night, Aiden

and Dora's performance won first place, and seeing the sweet and contented smile on

Dora's face made even the frustrations with the Eilis family worth it.

As for Bella and her mother, they quickly left the auditorium in dismay. Aiden suspected

a bit of trouble waiting for them at home, but the trouble was their own fault. Before

leaving the auditorium, Aiden asked Miss Poole if he could keep the Contra bassoon.

Oh, this? Miss Poole seemed tired now. She glanced at the bassoon, which was very

large and awkward. She'd forgotten about it during the chaos of the evening.

She then told Aiden, It was left here by an old security guard who died a few years back.

I've just been using it as decoration. If you like it, you could take it.

Aiden looked at Miss Poole's deep expression and could see right through him. It was

impossible to miss that Miss Poole seemed to have feelings for him, but he had no

romantic feelings towards her. In fact, he already had a bunch of interested girls giving

him a headache.

He didn't care to provoke another, so it seemed best to cut this off as soon as possible. A

few days later, Shannon Pierce returned to the restaurant. Aiden's employees were

impressed by her.

A group boss, his company is not back, 24 hours next in the restaurant. Aiden

appreciated her hard work but made no effort to get to know Shannon. From a distance,

it seemed that she was planning a great event.

During all of this, Aiden's life went on as a bodyguard for Dora. While protecting an

image of being relaxed and at ease, he was always on alert for potential kidnappers.

When picking up Dora, he paid careful attention to his surroundings.

After a week of taking Dora to school, there was still no sign of any human traffickers.

Aiden started to wonder if it had just been a coincidence that the traffickers had

previously abducted Dora. But then one night as they walked back to Lovelace Mountain

again, they found the place to be very quiet, perhaps too quiet.