WAR GOD : Rise After Betrayal

Chapter 12

Morning arrived with an atmosphere that was anything but calm.

The lights in the Cole mansion were still on even though the sun had already risen. Several uniformed police officers could be seen coming and going across the grounds. A boundary line had been set up near the side of the building where the window of Elara’s room had shattered.

Elara sat in the main living room. Her hair was not fully neat yet, her face was pale, but her gaze remained firm. In front of her, two police officers were opening their notes.

“So, Miss Cole,” said one of the officers, a man in his forties, “we found the body of a man in the backyard. It is strongly suspected that he fell from the upper floor.”

Elara nodded. “Yes. And that window was from my room.”

“Did you see his face?” asked the other officer.

Elara shook her head. “No. I woke up because of the sound of shattering glass. When I became fully aware, he was already gone from the room.”

The first officer glanced at his partner, then looked back at Elara. “There are no signs of resistance from you. No injuries. And that is very strange.”

“That’s what confuses me as well,” Elara answered honestly. “I’m certain there was someone in my room, but I don’t know how he was thrown out.”

Tom stood beside Elara. “Security was fully in place that night, Sir. But the perpetrator still managed to get in, and we checked the CCTV. It turns out the cameras were already disabled.”

The officer let out a breath. “This man was a professional. His weapon was still at the scene. Very few fingerprints. We will investigate further.”

Elara leaned forward slightly. “Please do it as quickly as possible. I want to know who wants me dead.”

“We will do our utmost,” the officer replied seriously. “Does Miss have any business enemies or personal conflicts recently?”

Elara fell silent for a moment. “In my position, enemies always exist. But direct threats… none.”

The officer wrote something down. “Alright. We will start with professional assassin networks. People like this do not work alone.”

Elara nodded slowly. “I ask you to do so.”

The officers stood up. “We will return if there are any developments.”

After the police left, the living room became quiet again, with only the sound of guards’ footsteps passing back and forth.

Elara leaned back against the sofa. She closed her eyes for a moment, then opened them again.

“Tom,” she called softly.

“Yes, Miss?”

“Who do you think stopped that man?” Elara asked.

Tom fell silent. “I’ve been thinking about it since last night. There’s no way the perpetrator fell on his own.”

Elara nodded. “But not a single guard was inside the room.”

Tom lowered his head. “We were negligent.”

Elara shook her head. “No. This was too clean to be called negligence.”

At that moment, footsteps were heard coming from the direction of the stairs.

Ares came out from the guest room corridor. His hair was slightly messy. He yawned while rubbing his eyes, his face looking innocent.

“Excuse me…” he said softly. “What’s going on? Why is it so busy?”

All eyes turned to him.

Elara looked at him. “You just woke up?”

“Yes,” Ares answered honestly. “I slept very soundly.” He yawned again. “Is there a problem?”

Tom looked at Ares with a serious expression. “Last night, Miss Elara’s life was almost taken.”

Ares widened his eyes. “What?”

He quickly stepped closer. “What do you mean, Mr. Tom?”

“An intruder entered Miss Elara’s room,” Tom explained. “The perpetrator died after falling from the upper floor.”

Ares fell silent for several seconds, then his face turned pale with panic. “My God… Miss Elara, are you alright?”

Elara looked at Ares for a moment, then nodded. “I’m fine.”

Ares let out a breath of relief, then lowered his head. “I’m sorry.”

Elara frowned. “Why are you apologizing?”

“I should have been on guard,” Ares said quietly. “I was in this mansion, yet I still failed to protect you.”

Tom glanced at Ares, slightly puzzled. “That is not your responsibility.”

“Still,” Ares replied quickly. “I’m here. If something happened to Miss Elara, I wouldn’t be at ease.”

Elara let out a soft breath. “It’s alright, Ares. You’re not at fault.”

Ares nodded faintly. “Thank goodness.”

Elara stood up from the sofa. “The police are still investigating. For now, we need to be more cautious.”

Ares looked around. “Was the perpetrator alone?”

“It seems so,” Elara replied. “But I don’t believe he was working alone.”

Ares nodded in agreement. “Usually, people like that don’t move without orders.”

Elara looked at Ares. “You know quite a lot about this?”

Ares smiled awkwardly. “I read the news often. Business cases, crimes, things like that.”

Elara did not respond immediately. She walked toward the living room window. From there, the police could still be seen at work.

“What confuses me,” Elara said softly, “is how that man was thrown out. There were no sounds of a struggle before the glass broke.”

Tom nodded. “That’s right. As if someone attacked him with a single move.”

Ares swallowed. “Maybe… the perpetrator slipped?”

Tom raised an eyebrow. “Slipped so badly that he flew out the window?”

Ares let out a small, stiff laugh. “Yes… it does sound unreasonable.”

Elara turned to face Ares. “That’s what makes me wonder. Who was in my room last night?”

Ares met her gaze. He maintained a confused expression.

“Maybe a guard?” he suggested cautiously.

“No,” Elara replied firmly. “Not a single guard was inside.”

The room fell silent again.

Ares scratched the back of his neck. “What matters is that Miss Elara is safe. That’s the most important thing.”

Elara nodded slowly. “True.”

She looked at Ares longer than usual. “Ares…”

“Yes, Miss?”

“If something happens again,” Elara said seriously, “I want you to stay close to me.”

Ares was slightly startled. “Me?”

“Yes,” Elara replied. “For some reason, I feel calmer when you’re around.”

Ares gave a small smile. “I’ll do my best.”

Tom cleared his throat. “I will rearrange the guard schedules and coordinate with the police.”

“Alright,” Elara said.

Tom left the room.

Only Elara and Ares remained.

Elara looked at Ares, then said softly, “I still don’t understand who fought that man.”

Ares held his breath for a moment, then shrugged. “Maybe… your luck.”

Elara smiled faintly. “If that’s the case, I hope that luck continues.”

Ares smiled as well, though inside his chest, that pulse could still be faintly felt. He remained silent.

“Don’t let Miss Elara know, because I’m still confused about what happened last night,” Ares thought.