Surrounded by Five Beast Lords novel Chapter 156

Chapter 156

Chapter 156

Kael lowered his voice, noticing their stares. “So, what are you three elders looking for?”

Elder Johnson replied with a casual shrug, “Nothing. Just browsing.”

Elder Williams’s eyes paused for a second over by Dora.

More specifically, his gaze locked onto the cat nestled in her arms.

“That cat… Elder Williams mused.

He frowned, then looked away.

Probably just my imagination, he thought.

That cat’s eyes always made their skin crawl.

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Up on the second-floor corridor, Shine stood with his hands behind his back, his jet-black robe appearing even more profound under the flickering lights.

He didn’t join in any small talk, just kept his gaze locked in one direction.

Clive.

That young man with dark hair and dark eyes, a subtle mix of lightning and shadow energy lingering around him.

Shine narrowed his eyes and fired off a series of instructions through his Optical Brain.

Dora cradled Lioren in her arms, her eyes fixed on the mysterious figure at the banquet hall entrance, the one wearing the Boss Clive’s mask.

The moment that masked figure appeared, the entire atmosphere in the banquet hall shifted.

He stood at the doorway, his presence carefully contained, yet everyone around him instinctively stepped back.

The mask covered his whole face, revealing only a pair of eyes, deep, cold, and exuding the intimidating aura of a ruthless predator.

“Is that… Boss Clive from the Blackflame Trading Guild?”

“Boss Clive? The emperor of the dark web? The Shawn family actually managed to bring him here?’

Shawn family has connections in both the underworld and the legit world!”

ons rippled through the crowd.

people had awe in their eyes, while others were restless, itching to get closer and maybe say hello.

soon as they took a few steps forward, an invisible pressure made them stop dead in their tracks

ura was simply overwhelming.

mysterious figure seemed unfazed by all the attention. His gaze swept across the hall, finally locking onto the elders rom the Frostveil Planet.

He strode over in their direction.

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Chapter 156

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He struck up a lively conversation with the elders from the Frostveil Planet, acting like it was no big deal, as if they were old friends.

Dora’s lips curled into a faint smile.

She turned her head to look at Clive beside her.

Clive’s eyes locked onto the so-called “Boss Clive,” not with anger, but with a cold, biting sarcasm.

His lips tightened, and he huffed quietly through his nose.

The sound was so soft that no one else noticed, but Dora caught it.

She glanced down at Lioren in her arms, the cat-eared boy’s amber eyes sparkled with mischief.

“Interesting.” Dora murmured, her tone laced with amusement. “Looks like the Shawn family settled for a knockoff.”

Rafe pushed up his gold-rimmed glasses, his blue eyes narrowing. “That’s a lightning-type supernatural ability pressure, but the aura is unstable and messy.

“So, what’s the Shawn family up to? Are they just trying to make a splash, hoping to draw out the real Clive, or maybe planning to frame him?”

“All of the above,” Clive replied coolly, his voice giving nothing away.

Rafe’s blue eyes sparkled with amusement. “Killing two birds with one stone, huh?”

Elmer blinked, his white beast ears twitching. “What do you mean?”

“They set up a fake Boss Clive first, just to make it look like the Blackflame Trading Guild and Frostveil Planet are really in cahoots,” Rafe said quietly.

“Once the smuggling case goes public, this ‘Boss Clive’ acting all chummy with the Frostveil Planet elders in front of everyone at the banquet, that’s all the proof they’ll need.”

Lioren’s cat ears perked up, his amber eyes shot a frosty look at the elders from the Frostveil Planet.

Those old geezers… Lioren thought.

Clive didn’t say a word, but for a split second, the air around him seemed to freeze.

Dora gently held his hand.

He looked down at her, and the coldness in his eyes softened slightly.

Elmer leaned in, keeping his voice low. “So, what do we do? Just gonna sit here and watch them play pretend?”

“No rush,” Dora replied softly. “Let’s just wait and see what they’re planning.”

She glanced around, then looked at her own group.

Clive was intimidating as ever. Elmer was the Shawn family’s disowned youngest son. Rafe was the down-on-his-luck noble, and Lioren… well, he was a cat now, but still impossible to miss.

Mindy was all sharp elegance, and Dora herself was dazzling and impossible to ignore.

Five people plus a cat standing together, they were way too noticeable.

“We can’t just stick together like this,” Dora said.

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Chapter 156

All the beast mates turned to look at her all at once.

“We’re way too conspicuous as a group,” Dora explained.

“Clive and Rafe draw too much attention.

“Me, Elmer, and the Shawn family have bad blood.

“If we stick together, we won’t be able to investigate anything.”

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She paused, her gaze landing on the fake Boss Clive. “The Shawn family didn’t throw this huge event just to flaunt some phony blueberry tree.

“They’ve definitely got something else up their sleeves.

“We need to split up and investigate on our own.”

“No way,” Clive was the first to object. “It’s way too dangerous.”

“Yeah.” Elmer chimed in, sounding anxious. “Dora, you can’t go alone…”

Rafe frowned slightly, but didn’t say anything right away.

I’m not alone,” Dora cut him off, glancing down at Lioren in her arms. “I’ve got Lioren right here with me.

“With him around, I’ll be fine.”

Lioren’s tail curled slightly. “Just leave it to me,” he said.

Clive’s brows knitted together, his eyes full of disapproval.

But Dora’s gaze was unwavering.

Rafe stepped in to smooth things over. “Splitting up is risky, but it also means we won’t stand out as much.

“We can set a time and place to meet up, and if anything goes wrong, we’ll send a signal.”

Dora nodded and looked at Clive. “You go keep tabs on that fake Boss Clive, stay out of sight.

“Since he’s a phony, he’s bound to slip up somewhere.

“Just watch him and figure out what he’s really after.”

Clive paused for a moment, then gave a nod.

“Elmer, Dora turned to him, “hang back by yourself for a while.”

Elmer blinked. “Huh?”

“Give Regina a chance to approach you, Dora said.

“Didn’t you notice how she was looking at you just now?” Dora raised an eyebrow

“Her look was so complicated, regret, trying to pull you back in, and a hint of charity.

“If you’re on your own, she’ll definitely come find you, she wants you back in the Shawn family”

Elmer scoffed. “No way I in going back.”

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Chapter 156

“I know,” Dora said, ruffling his hair. “But you can take this opportunity to mess with Cassian.”

Elmer blinked. “How do I do that?”

“Just let him see who his selfish scheming really ends up helping.” Dora replied.

She shot him a sly smile. “And while you’re at it, see if you can get a read on Regina, figure out what they’re really planning tonight.

Elmer thought for a moment, then nodded. “Got it.”

Dora grinned and gave his shoulder a friendly pat. “Go on, enjoy yourself, eat, drink, and if anyone tries to chat you up, just play along.”

Elmer nodded, his eyes bright and shining.

Dora turned to Rafe.

“Rafe, you stand out the most, so just stay in the banquet hall.

“You know which members of the Sterling family are here, and who’s close with the Shawn family, right?”

Rafe gave a faint smile, a sharp glint in his blue eyes. “Of course.

“The board members’ trusted aides, and my dear cousin, they’re all here tonight.

“I’ll take advantage of my sickly look and mingle with them, acting all harmless.”

Behind his glasses, a sharp glint flashed in Rafe’s blue eyes.

“Dory, we really are on the same wavelength,” he said with a sly smile.

“Mindy,” Dora turned to Mindy, “you…”

She paused.