Chapter 49
Duan Cai sat in his living room as he flipped the pages on a book casually while reading. A cold cup of tea was in his hand where he sat. There was nothing he enjoyed more then the sound of silence. Across from him in that silence sat a very flustered feeling Lester as if the man had no idea what to say to him.
"Yes?" After a while Duan Cai could not help but to break the silence because of the sight of the fidgeting man before him.
"Pardon? Oh, sorry, given the circumstances it's hard to bring things up." Lester pondered over his own words as if he was stepping cautiously on a sheet of ice.
"If you're here to give your condolences they are not required. I have enough of that from everyone else here at Inferno Nexus." Duan Cai inhaled sharply as he thought about how everyone was behaving these few days. If he was supposedly to act differently because a mortal died he was not sure what he was suppose to be doing. The more he thought about it the more he wondered if mortals found his behavior unusual but even if he felt pained in such circumstances he did not understand what he was supposed to be doing differently. His mortal eyes stung slightly as the thought of the mortal parents that were once his body's parents came to mind in that moment.
"That's not the only reason I am here, Cai." Lester shook his head slightly as he pondered over his words again with a slight pause before finishing. "I need to borrow you for something."
"Borrow me?" A puzzled expression swept across Duan Cai's face as he was unsure what the words meant.
"Yes!" Lester nodded and raised one hand slightly while he spoke. "There is and event coming up soon for Yang sect and I would like it if you came with me for it."
"Are you trying to elope with my boss?" Leon scoffed as he walked into the room while Lester was explaining the situation. His expression was cold as he glared daggers at Lester. Lester had naturally began to blush at the accusation but quickly jumped to his feet towards Leon.
"No! It's a regular event thrown by Yang sect where they bring in other benefactors and clan leaders to compete. It's suppose to be a friendly event but I thought it might be a good opportunity for you guys because naturally who else do you think will show?"
"We arent-" Leon began but was cut off quickly by Duan Cai's dominating tone.
"I'll go." Duan Cai loudly stated out with determination.
"But-" Leon felt like he could not get a word in edge wise the second that he was cut off by Lester was well talking over him.
"Great! I'll send you the details later for it." Lester smiled brightly at the thought of having successfully invited Duan Cai to his clans event. Even if it was for a logical reason that he had invited the man he still felt accomplished.
After a while when Lester finally left the mansion it was down to just Leon and Duan Cai in the living room. Duan Cai had stood up to leave the room but found himself pinned against the door frame by Leon with a angered look in his eyes. It was clear that he was furious with him for leaving him out of his decisions again. There was something else hidden in his eyes that Duan Cai could see and he was unsure what it was but it looked almost like Leon was afraid of something and yet he could not comprehend what that was.
"Duan Cai!" Leon burst out his name with a fierce tone that even caught Duan Cai slightly off guard.
"Leon, what-?" This time it was Duan Cai's turn to be cut off from talking. Leon's fist harshly slammed itself against the wall beside Duan Cai's head as if to silence him. It was not enough to startle him but surely pulled his attention to Leon.
"Don't think I don't know why you accepted that invitation. You're going because he said they will be there! Are you trying to make suicidal choices on your own?! Do you ever think a damn thing through?" Leon started to rant with all his fury as he glared down at Duan Cai. In that moment he did not care if Duan Cai was his boss, friend, child, no he did not care about titles at all or difference in strength.
He knew in his heart that the only reason Duan Cai was accepting the invitation to Yang sect's event was simply because Juniper and the Kaen sect would be there. It would also be a chance for Saigai to show up before them as well. If Duan Cai went to the yang sect on that day it could spell disaster and the risk was simply something that Leon did not want to take and yet Duan Cai had accepted the risk as if nothing else bothered him in the slightest. Was his boss simply so blind as to the danger to himself that he could not realize anything?
"La Mia Stella," Duan Cai reached out and gently placed his palm against Leon's cheek. "I have nothing to loose by going."
"Your life is not a joke." Leon slapped his hand away as he took a step back from him. His fury had subsided slightly but he still felt like taking a swing at Duan Cai to see if he could knock some sense into him. He knew there would be no point in trying though.
Duan Cai thought it over for a second before speaking. It was true that not many mortals were capable of harming him unless they got lucky enough to catch him off guard but he knew if he left things as they were that it would be near impossible to calm Leon down from this matter. If things were going to be troublesome later he needed something to at least help smooth things over for now.
"I'll take you and the dog with me so don't worry. If anything happens you two will be there." A slight smile at this suggestion caused Leon to shudder at the thought of entering Yang sect. It was a sect full of those who practiced the art of light. To him they all felt like a joke but for someone like him who had been born of Kaen sect parents when he was a child he could not complain; Kaen sect specialized in fire abilities. Each sect had their own specialty and for Yang it was light.