♛

"MASTER LEIGH, WE HAVE arrived," Étienne says, shaking Max's body so he could wake up. Max slowly opens his eyes and gives out a loud yawn before looking out of the window. It was already dark out, and they were in the middle of nowhere.

     "Where the hell are we?"

     "At the address that your whistleblower sent us," Étienne answers.

      Max rubs his eyes and looks out of the window again. "What is this place? Are we in Dungeness? This is practically a desert."

     "I was skeptical about it too, but look there, a few miles away from where we're parked," Étienne then says as he points at something in the distance. Max moves close to see it too, and when he finally does, he realizes that there's this big facility in front of them.

      "Is that it?"

      "Looks like it. I didn't get close because I'm afraid they might start shooting us," Étienne explains before looking back at Max. "Leigh, I know that when you want something, you'll do anything to get it. But I'm telling you this now...this is dangerous. This is an underground company that we have no connection with. This isn't like the Mills Company where we can set a meeting."

      "Do you not know me enough?"

      "I do, and that's why I'm warning you about it now," Étienne replies, but Max just stares at him in silence. Étienne didn't want to give in as he knew the risks, but after a few more seconds, he sighed and massaged his temple in defeat.

      "There's nothing stopping you, is there?" Étienne asks, and Max nods his head, making him sigh again.

      "Alright, I have no choice then. But you're not heading inside alone like earlier. We're going in together," Étienne answers and Max immediately smiles, glad that his loyal butler is willing to do all this for him.

      "What's your plan then?"

     "Well, you said we have no connection with them, right? Then let's make a connection. If it's about business, then I know exactly what to do," Max explains.

     Étienne was still reluctant, but he finally nodded his head and started driving towards the facility. As they got closer, Max realized how big it actually was. There are thick walls that are as high as six meters, and there are cameras and guards everywhere.

      Max adjusted from his seat and painted a serious expression on his face as Étienne drove towards the large metal gate that was surrounded by guards that were even holding K9 dogs. It almost looked like they were entering a different country with this type of security.

      Étienne stops in front of the gate as a guard approaches them while the others sniff their car out. He then pulls the window down and hands him his identification card. "I am here with the master of the Sinclaire and the Lemieux family. We would like to request an audience with the person in charge," Étienne explains without blinking an eye.

     The guards started talking amongst each other, obviously surprised by the sudden visit. One of them grabbed their phone and started mentioning their guests to the person on the other line. For a moment, Max thought that this might not work out and his family name wouldn't be enough anymore. But just like the angels above heard his worries, one guard gestured at Étienne to head inside as the large gates started opening.

     Max tried his best to suppress a grin as Étienne successfully got inside the facility.

     When Étienne parked the car in front of the main building, Max looked out of the window again in amazement. He was used to ceiling large structures, but this was totally different. It felt like they were in a secret agency.

     "I can't believe they actually let us in," Max says as he fixes his clothes.

     "You shouldn't be too thrilled. We don't know these people, so the best you can do is stick close to me," Étienne explains, and Max nods his head in understanding.

     Étienne takes a deep breath and pulls something out from the compartment before stepping out of the car to open Max's door. As soon as Max got out, a man wearing glasses and a badly tied necktie suddenly rushed out of the building to welcome them.

     "Sir Sinclaire!" He greets. "This is a rather surprising...and late...visit."

     "Good evening," Max answers as he shakes the man's hand.

      The man looked nervous, and sweat was even streaming down the side of his forehead. "My name is Fritz, chairman Salvatore Valor's assistant. We're not really the type to be welcoming anyone in our facility, but the chairman insisted to let you in."

     "Salvatore Valor? It seems like he's more eager to speak with me than I am of him," Max explains, and Fritz nervously laughs before adjusting his glances.

      Max was confused as to why Fritz acted like he was seconds away from shitting his pants, so he took a step closer to the secretary before asking, "My apologies, Fritz, but I could tell from a mile away that you're sweating and shivering all over. Is there something that displeases you?"

     The question was supposed to be harmless, but when Max got closer, Fritz practically froze. "Y-You look...exactly like...madam Luna," Fritz suddenly reveals, instantly making Max's, and even Étienne's, eyes widen in complete shock. "During my first day of the job here, she visited the facility, and I was—" Before Fritz could even say anything further, he immediately stopped himself. He covers his mouth and shakes his head, surprised to have said too much.

     "M-My apologies. Please follow me, and I'll lead you to the chairman's office," Fritz says, turning around and swiftly heading back inside the building.

     Max and Étienne follow behind him. But as they got inside, Max quickly turned his head to Étienne and whispered, "Mother visited this place too?! I thought you didn't know anything about this place?"

     "I didn't! I didn't know about that either," Étienne defended.

     As Max was once again filled with so many questions, the three of them hopped inside an elevator that brought them to the highest floor. The elevator was made of glass, so Max got a perfect view of the facility, which looked more like a factory.

      When they got to the top floor, Fritz led them to a room at the end of the hallway, which Max can only assume is where Salvatore could be found.

      "You may head inside. The chairman has been waiting," Fritz says while gesturing at the door.

     Max nods his head, and Étienne opens the door for him as Max finally steps inside the room.

     Max was expecting to see a normal office, but to his surprise, he was welcomed by a living room space that had a kitchen on the side. With one glance, Max finally understood that the chairman actually lived in this very facility. No wonder he was able to accept their request to speak to him. He literally had nothing to do but to stay at home.

     "Such a big guest at this hour," a voice says as a man steps out of the room while only wearing a boxer and a bathrobe. "I wasn't expecting any visitors, and I was in the bath when you arrived, so I apologize if I wasn't able to prepare myself to at least look presentable."

     Max backs away as this big man stands in front of him. This was chairman Salvatore Valor, the head of the underground company named Red Tigers. If Max didn't know who he really was, he'd think that he was some kind of bodybuilder with those muscles of his.

     The man knows how to take care of his body despite his old age, so props to him.

      "I'm sorry for our sudden visit, but is it so difficult to at least change to something more decent?" Étienne angrily asks, mad that he was willing to disrespect his master like this.

     "Come on now. You came here uninvited. My choice of attire should be the least of your concerns," the chairman explains before taking a seat on the sofa and grabbing the cocktail that was on the table. "Join me."

     Étienne is about to decline the offer, but Max glares at him before taking a seat on the other sofa. Chairman Salvatore had a point. They came here uninvited, so it's best not to fuck him over on his own turf.

     "Maximilian Leigh Sinclaire. Have people told you that you look a lot like your mother?" Salvatore asks while taking a sip of his drink.

     "Yes, and most of the time, it's not directed as a compliment."

     Salvatore chuckles, and then he looks at Étienne, who is standing right behind his master. "And you must be the most trusted butler. The Lemieux's were infamous for their...followers. If you ask me, they're trained more to be like spies than butlers. I'm telling you, they can kill."

      "I'm not here to talk about my butler."

     "Ah yes, it's about the Stepanov bombing then, correct?" Salvatore then asks, surprising Max and Étienne even more. "You're not the first heir to come here looking for answers. The young master of the Alexeev family came to me once in the past as well, asking me if we made replicas of the bombs they sold to the Rosario family."

     "G-Gavriil? He came here already?"

     "Yes, Gavriil, that's him. The poor boy was probably looking for his family's innocence but found nothing here. We didn't make any replicas of the bombs they made. I made a promise with his mother in the past that I wouldn't," Salvatore explains.

      When he saw the confusion in Max's eyes, he took another sip of his drink and explained further, "Did you know that young master Gavriil's mother and I...we were kinda like...business partners. We helped each other with creating these weapons, weapons so high-tech no one would be able to copy them. But her husband was displeased, and we were forced to break it off. In exchange for not letting her husband kill me, she told me never to recreate her weapons. So I did."

     Max takes a deep breath and clenches his fist.

     Looks like he was back to square one.

     And here he thought he might be up to something.

     "We are all pawns in this game, Maximilian. Pieces in a chessboard where the white team and the black team try to kill each other off, not knowing that the real bad guys...are the players. The ones who are controlling this whole game. It's just how the way things are," Salvatore then says before putting his now-empty drink down on the table.

     "What was my mother doing here then?" Max finally asked the question he's been dying to ask since he heard about it from Fritz.

     "Your mother and I were friends when we were kids, so as her only son, I'll share this with you out of respect for her," Salvatore reveals. "She came here to warn me about a party and said my family was going to be invited. She warned me not to let my son attend it. It was later did I realize that it was the Stepanov party that killed everyone."

     "Y-Your son?" Max asks in shock. But then, something hit him as soon as he asked it. "Red Tigers..."

     "He's studying in one of the brotherhood schools that Janus built. Not sure which one, though. His mother never really tells me anything about it," Salvatore explains. "My wife and I have never been on good terms with each other. She came from a very wealthy family. I came from a dying one. We were forced to marry, and after giving her a child, she kicked me out. But that bitch doesn't even want to sign the divorce papers. Said it would ruin her reputation. But anyway, I know you're not very interested in my married life, so I'll cut that part short," he says with a chuckle.

     "When Luna told me about that invitation, I couldn't really agree to it since I have no direct contact with my son. I don't know if he attended that party or not," the chairman then adds, instantly making Max remember a conversation he had with Uchdryd during the Elites' Convention.

     "A member of Crème de la Crème is studying in our house. And like you, Cindy, and Gavriil...he was also there. During the bombing incident that killed Viktor's family, he was one of the attendees."

     "Was that him? Was he the heir Uchdryd told me about?" Max whispers to himself before looking back at Salvatore.

      "Thank you, Chairman Valor. This was helpful information indeed," Max says, suddenly making the chairman chuckle.

      "Your mother called me Chairman Valor too," he explains. "You know, she was always different from the rest. I don't know if you know, but when we were kids, she was Crème de la Crème's rank 1, just like you. Everywhere she went, everyone's eyes would just fall on her. She commanded the room with one look. She always took my breath away."

      Max didn't know why, but when he heard Chairman Salvatore praise his mother like that, he suddenly felt tears forming in his eyes. "You're one of the few people who didn't call her a monster."

     "Your mother wasn't a monster, Maximilian," he says. "She was just misunderstood."

     Max takes a deep breath and nods his head; glad someone thought of his mother like that.

     "Well, if that's all you wanted to know, then—"

     "Actually, Chairman Valor, I didn't come here about that," Max finally reveals, instantly making Salvatore look back at him with a much more serious expression. At that exact moment, Max was now facing the chairman of this underground company and not his mother's childhood friend.

     "Is that so? Then what on earth is a Sinclaire doing here then?"

     "I'm hoping you know who this person is. She goes by the name Payton Wolfe or maybe even Siren. There's a possibility that she visited this place or bought something from this company last February. It was in a small aluminum case." Max says, pulling out a picture from his pocket to show it to the chairman.

     Salvatore leans close and checks the photo before resting back on the sofa again with a much more sadistic look in him compared to earlier. "You know, when it comes to business talk, I don't just spill shit because a kid wants information. Considering how you were raised by chairman Denzel, I bet you know what I mean."

     Max takes a deep breath and looks at his butler before nodding his head. Étienne nods his head back and then pulls out a check and a pen from his pocket before handing it over to his master. These were the items that Étienne took from the compartment in the car earlier. It seems like they've been prepared when such a situation arises.

     "How much are we talking about?" Max asks while holding the pen, instantly making Salvatore laugh.

     "You really are Luna's son," he says before looking back at Max seriously again. "10 million, and I'll talk."

     "Five hundred thousand," Max answers, purposely giving the lowest number so Salvatore would know the range of where Max is going with this exchange.

     "Oh, come on. You're better than that, Sinclaire. 7 million."

     "3 million."

     "5."

     "Deal," Max immediately replies, writing the check and handing it over to Salvatore.

     The chairman takes Max for the offer and grabs the check before picking up the phone. "Fritz, hand me my customer list from the month of February."

     After a couple of minutes, Fritz, Salvatore's secretary, heads inside the room with a bunch of files. He handed them to Salvatore, and then Salvatore started reading them manually. "I know, having these digitalized would be easier, but my company is very secretive. I don't want hackers to get a hold of any of this information," Salvatore explains, even though Max and Étienne didn't say anything.

     After looking through all of them, Salvatore sighs and looks back at Max. "I had no buyer with the name Payton Wolfe nor Siren. But when you mentioned that small aluminum case, I could only have one guess. I've only sold that product to three people. One was in Berlin, the other one in Barcelona, and the other one was here. I'm guessing you're looking for that person," Salvatore says, and Max nods his head in reply.

     Salvatore got up from his seat and walked towards another room. When he got back out, he was holding a black folder and the same aluminum case that he saw on the CCTV. He sat back down on the sofa and looked through the items before saying, "This is our new product. It's only a prototype, but people have wanted their hands on it since we released it."

     Salvatore hands the item to Max. Max stared at it for a while, but when he opened it, he couldn't believe what was inside.

     It was a bullet.

     "Beautiful, isn't it?" Salvatore asks while Max continues to stare at it. "At first glance, you'd think it's a regular bullet, but when you shoot this to your target, they'll temporarily lose their vision."

     "Are you fucking serious? A bullet that can temporarily take someone's vision? Is that even possible?"

     "But as I said, this is just a prototype. It might not work. It might work. But they still bought it, so it's not my problem," Salvatore then says before grabbing the case back from Max's hand.

     "Magnus has this case, and he was sent to spy on J.S High...did he give this to someone there? Why would..." Before Max could even think of a possible connection, he suddenly stood from his seat and realized something.

     "It's for the battle!" He shouted, confusing everyone in the room. "Someone among the brotherhoods will be using that bullet. They're going to cheat during the battle, so a brotherhood from J.S High would lose. That's the only explanation."

     "I don't know what you're talking about, but good for you for figuring it out."

     Max takes a deep breath and tries to calm down. "We need to go. We need to tell the others," Max says, and Étienne nods his head and walks to the door to ready the car. But before Max could even follow his butler out, he looked at Salvatore again and asked him one final question.

     "The name of the person who bought this bullet. What were their names?"

     Chairman Salvatore opens the black envelope and looks through the details. "They didn't use their actual name, but they used a codename instead," he says before looking directly into Max's eyes. "It's Revel. They used the codename Revel."

- END -