The Unshackled King (by David Wu) novel Chapter 80

"What do you know?" Bob snapped. "He's already engaged, and he's showering you with gifts? That's not kindness—that's him trying to get something. I'm telling you, stay away from him. And those clothes? The shoes? You're not wearing any of them."

"Dad, you—"

Eliza couldn't even finish. Her own father was completely unreasonable.

Frustrated beyond words, she stormed into her room and slammed the door behind her.

Bob waited a moment, then slipped into the bathroom, locked the door, and pulled out his phone.

"Hey, Damian... Yeah, I'm a little tight right now. Can't make the payment just yet. But don't worry. My daughter just got some new stuff—really expensive. Never worn. Worth a few hundred thousand, easy. Maybe we can work something out..."

*****

At the Stewart Mansion, Stefan didn't get back until almost ten.

Audrey spotted him the moment he walked in.

"Stefan, you're back late. Did you eat? We saved you dinner—let me heat it up."

Stefan said quickly, "Mrs. Stewart, I already ate out—"

"You." Chuck emerged from the living room, fixing Stefan with a suspicious look. "Out this late. You weren't fooling around, were you?"

Stefan blinked. Chuck had surprisingly good instincts. Not that he'd been "fooling around" exactly—but he had spent the evening with Nina and Eliza, both of whom were... easy on the eyes.

"Chuck, what nonsense are you talking?" Audrey shot her husband a look. "He was probably out collecting debts. Have you seen how efficient he is? In two days, most of the company's overdue payments will be cleared."

"Collecting debts," Chuck muttered under his breath. "Big deal."

"Oh?" Audrey's eyebrow went up. "Big talk from you. Fine. Stefan, you're off debt-collection duty. Let Chuck handle the rest. Let's see how 'big a deal' he finds it."

Chuck opened his mouth, then closed it. He tried again, but no words came out.

Stefan hid a smile and headed upstairs.

As he passed Sara's room, he heard it—the faint sound of running water.

Sara's showering?

Every step he took, his Solar Apex Vitals Body reacted. The Mystic Cold Pulse Energy in the air—faint, subtle—was being drawn to him. Pulled by his very presence.

He wasn't absorbing it. Not yet. But it was there. And it was coming from somewhere specific.

His eyes narrowed. The vein. It's under the lake.

That explained why the water was always cold. Bitingly so. The vein's energy seeped upward, affecting everything around it. And the South Compound Villa—where Chuck's eldest brother's family lived—was closest to the lake. Zoey's condition, her chronic issues... the cold energy had probably made everything worse.

Stefan made a mental note. Tomorrow. I need to find a pharmacy. Buy ingredients. Start refining elixirs.

He calculated quickly. Meridian Opening Elixirs. At least ten of them, if I want to unlock the True Dragon Meridian properly.

He hoped the local pharmacies carried what he needed.

Then he stopped. He sensed something under the lake.

There were lights along the edge of the lake, but they didn't reach this spot.

Stefan pulled out his phone, switched on the flashlight, and aimed it at the area where he'd sensed something off. The beam cut through the clear water, and there—at the bottom—he could just make out a formation of rocks. At first glance, it looked like the kind of decorative arrangement people'd see in any man-made lake, placed there for aesthetics.