Novels by zaligma.writes

The other applicants briefly exchanged glances, silently asking one another what Steven was trying to imply.Was he accusing the Alanis family of helping Luke cheat his way through the assessment?“That’s right. That guy must be cheating. Otherwise, how could he pass when I didn’t?” one of the failed applicants immediately chimed in, his face filled with frustration.“Yeah. There must be something off about this assessment. My scenario was difficult, but others looked way too easy,” another complained.“That’s true. Even mine felt intentionally made harder. But that guy passed without even eliminating an attacker. This is ridiculous!”“Steven is right. This is unacceptable! Give us a proper explanation on how that guy passed!”More voices followed, all echoing the same sentiment. Unsurprisingly, every single one of them belonged to those who had failed.Some simply could not accept their results. Since they had already failed, they no longer saw any reason to hold back. If anything, s

“What... was that?”One of the applicants could not help but ask, his voice filled with confusion. The others remained silent, still trying to process what Luke had just done and what it had even been for.They had seen him close his eyes for a few seconds, then casually pick up an apple and throw it toward a stall near the far end of the market. And now, he was walking in Vincent’s direction, smiling to himself as if he were quietly pleased.Only when Vincent announced that Luke had passed did it finally click in their minds. Luke had already eliminated the threat. And that realization only made things more confusing.‘He passed? He already took down the attacker? Was it the one he hit with the apple?’ they all wondered.Some of them were immediately stunned by the thought. That would mean the attacker had been positioned at a distance. None of them had expected that Luke’s scenario would involve a long-range threat.Still, many found it hard to believe. The idea itself sounded absur

Luke’s evaluation began. Just like in the earlier scenarios, the client would act as an ordinary shopper while he accompanied her. However, unlike Natalia, who seemed to possess a sixth sense, Luke did not focus solely on the client. His attention was divided between her and their surroundings.From time to time, he calmly observed the people nearby while sharpening his hearing for anything unusual. He listened closely to fragments of conversations, trying to determine their intentions and understand why they were doing whatever currently occupied them.Three years ago, he had spent a year in the military, and he had been thrown into war almost immediately after arriving. He adapted to the battlefield faster than most, and the memories of those brutal experiences remained vivid in his mind.Because of that, he could still instinctively sense danger. He could easily tell who posed a threat and who did not.While he was observing the people around them, the client occasionally asked him

What in the world had just happened?At that moment, almost everyone froze where they stood. No one could quite believe what they had just witnessed from Natalia.What she did went far beyond their expectations. Some even felt goosebumps rise on their skin because of how precise and ruthless her performance had been. It was as if she had a pair of eyes at the back of her head.Even Vincent, who usually carried a calm and indifferent demeanor, could not stop his mouth from falling open in shock. He had also expected Natalia to fail the first phase, yet she passed it with ease.Luke, on the other hand, was no longer surprised. Still, he could not help but feel a bit impressed by the way Natalia protected her client. She genuinely cared, not only about the client’s safety, but also about her emotional state.Then a comparison suddenly formed in his mind, especially after noticing that the client had not even realized what had just happened behind her.‘What if she’s been protecting Kina

Natalia let out a quiet laugh before straightening up, making her dagger vanish once more with a simple flick of her hand.“Forget it,” she said, her expression turning serious. “Like I said, I came here for Kina. To become her bodyguard. That’s the only answer I can give you. If you’re wondering about anything else, you’d better set it aside for now. You’re not ready to know those answers yet.”Her voice was firm as she turned away and continued walking. “Just focus on getting close to her. You’ll find some of the answers you’re looking for on your own, eventually.”With that, she disappeared again in the blink of an eye, not caring at all that she had done it right in front of Luke.Luke, on the other hand, remained stunned after witnessing it once more. However, it was no longer as shocking as the first time he had seen her do it that night at his uncle’s restaurant.His gaze drifted back to where she had been standing earlier. And there she was again, calmly listening to Vincent a

He quickly shook his head. He did not even know whether to laugh at the thoughts running through his mind.What was going on with him? Was this the effect of everything that had been happening lately, that his imagination had started running wild like this?“Everyone, come with me.”His gaze snapped forward again. Vincent instructed them to follow him for the first phase of the assessment.“Hey, kid!”Before Luke could even take a step, he subconsciously glanced back and halted when he heard a man’s voice behind him. He saw Steven, his brows tightly knit together.Luke did not bother to speak. He simply looked at him with slightly raised brows, as if waiting for Steven to say whatever he wanted.Steven stepped closer, staring at Luke with a strangely curious gaze.“Have we met before?” he asked after a moment, his eyes narrowing.After experiencing Luke’s unusual strength earlier, Steven had grown quiet, as though deep in thought, occasionally glancing at Luke while Vincent was still