Anthony and Benjamin were taken aback by her question.
When Anthony was thinking about what to say, Thalia's eyes were fixated on them.
“The two of you know Shadow Seeker and are very close with her, right?” Thalia asked.
“Why do you ask?” said Anthony.
“Why do you think I asked? As we all know, Shadow Seeker never sticks her nose into the business of others. Besides, based on the message she sent me, she seems to be worried about the two of you, so you must know each other very well.”
Um...
Anthony never thought that Natasha would send a message to Thalia.
Looks like Nat is really anxious, but fortunately, at least it means that she is all right now.
Anthony secretly let out a sigh of relief.
However, as he looked at Thalia's displeased face, his mind began spinning rapidly, trying to come up with a plausible explanation.
When he finally thought of something, he said calmly, “Yeah, I know her. Why? Don't you know that?”
“How would I know if you didn't tell me?” Thalia's brows snapped together, and she raised her voice. “You clearly know that my mission this time is to find her, and yet you're still messing around? How many times have you promised me that you will no longer hide secrets from me and lie to me? Yet you still do it!”
Seeing Thalia's anxious expression, Anthony quickly tried to comfort her, “Calm down first!”
“How am I going to calm down?”
Anthony sighed and explained slowly, “Everyone knows that I know her. Besides, just because I know her doesn't mean I know where she is!”
“You're still fooling around with me!”
“I'm telling the truth. Besides, Kyle knows her too, so why aren't you mad at him?” asked Anthony.
“I—”
“Kyle was the one who introduced her to me last time. Why don't you know about this? You even called me that night!” said Anthony, shirking the responsibility.
Hearing Anthony's words, Thalia was momentarily speechless. She blinked and fluttered her long eyelashes as she asked, “What do you mean?”
“Last time, Kyle arranged for me to compete with Shadow Seeker. Everyone in the entire hacker world knows about it. When we were competing that night, Nat came and I went to chat with her. Didn't I tell you about this?” asked Anthony.
“So, you're saying that the two of you knew each other last time? W-When you were competing?” asked Thalia. She suddenly felt like she lost her strength, and even her tone became feeble.
“Yeah!” Anthony nodded.
Benjamin, who was watching at the side, couldn't help but look away.
He's so good at making stuff up! Also, it's surprising that Thalia is seriously deceived by Tony's innocent expression.
Thalia looked at Anthony, not knowing what to say. Moments of silence later, she asked, “T-Then if you two met last time, why does Shadow Seeker care about you so much? How does she know that you're here?”
“Shouldn't you ask her about this?” said Anthony. After glancing at Thalia, he continued, “But according to my guess, the reason why she cares about me might be because I'm a good rival. We're both the top hackers, so she cherishes me as her rival, I guess. After we competed with each other last time, our relationship has indeed become quite ambiguous. So, if anything happens to her, I will be worried, too.”
The reasons and excuses he provided were enough to convince Thalia.
After he finished speaking, Anthony even nodded in affirmation as if he was trying to persuade himself, too. “Yup, that's it.”
Thalia listened with her brows furrowed.
If that's the case, it does make sense.
However, she still felt that something was off, though she couldn't pinpoint what exactly didn't make sense.
She then looked at Anthony and asked, “Then how does she know that we are in Zaewora?”
Anthony replied, “Hmm... Maybe I accidentally told her when I was chatting with her. I don't even remember it. But it's not surprising that she knows. Think about it. Shadow Seeker is the top hacker. She's everywhere and also at the same time nowhere to be found. So, it isn't hard for her to know about this.”
Benjamin was at a loss for words.
What a whole bunch of nonsense! And while he's at it, he even praised and flattered Nat. Judging by Thalia's expression, she's almost brainwashed by his words.
Benjamin tried his best to hold back his laughter and hung his head, tucking into his food. The whole conversation had nothing to do with him, so even if Thalia found out about the truth afterward, he would not be held accountable.
Thalia paused for a long time, and she couldn't find anything wrong with Anthony's explanation. Looking at the boy, she said, “Well... what you said made sense.”
“Because that's the truth!” Anthony then looked at her with an aggrieved expression. “You can't just reprimand me without knowing everything! I'm just a kid! You'll scare me like that...”
“I—” Thalia didn't know how to respond.
“Forget it. You didn't mean it. You don't have to apologize. I've forgiven you,” said Anthony.
“Forget it. You didn't mean it. You don't have to apologize. I've forgiven you,” said Anthony.
Thalia was speechless.
“Sit down and eat!” Anthony said.
Thalia sat down as told and only regained her senses after taking a seat. “You're just a kid? Why didn't you say you were a baby?”
Anthony raised his head and looked at her. “Well, if you put it that way, I guess I am!”
Fixing her gaze on the boy, Thalia put on an ingenuine half-smile. “Look at you! You don't even look like a child, let alone a baby! Let this be a warning, Anthony. If I catch you fooling me again, I'll let you face the consequences!”
Anthony replied, “You're threatening me again!”
“This time, it's not a threat. It's a warning!” said Thalia.
Anthony thought for a moment. Then, he pushed the plate of fruits before him over to her side. “Okay, okay. Let's not talk about it anymore. Eat some fruits. They're good for your skin!”
Thalia scrutinized him with her dark eyes before she picked up a fruit and started eating it.
Anthony merely smiled at her.
Only then did Thalia's anger start to dissipate a little bit. “But how am I supposed to reply to Shadow Seeker's message?”
“Ignore it,” said Anthony.
“Is that appropriate?” asked Thalia.
“She's just warning us, but it's our business, not hers. We get to decide if we're following her instructions or not,” Anthony replied.
“Besides, why didn't she message you? Why did she contact me instead?”
“She did message me, but I didn't reply to her.”
“I see. Looks like Shadow Seeker really cares about you!”
Anthony smiled without saying anything.
Of course, because she's my mother!
Suddenly, Thalia remembered something and asked, “Oh yeah, I heard you tell Benjamin just now that your mother contacted you?”
Talking about these two topics one after another is indeed terrifying.
Even though he was worried that Thalia would connect the dots, Anthony still pretended to be calm and composed. “Yeah, the call was connected.”
“What did she say?”
Anthony heaved a sigh. “What else would she say? She wants me to go back and wait.”
“Then, you...”
“I have to find her,” said Anthony.
Seeing the determined look on his face, Thalia nodded. Then, an idea suddenly popped up in her mind, and she looked at him. “This isn't right...”
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