Chapter 42: Athena’s “Love”
At this moment, Louis had already entered Athena’s office. The office wasn’t even locked; the door opened so easily that Louis couldn’t help but feel everything was going far too smoothly—so smooth it was as if this were a premeditated trap.
But he had struck a deal with Joshua. He needed the map that led to Athena’s underground laboratory to rescue Sylus. So even if this was a trap, he had no choice but to step in!
Louis pressed his lips together, slowly walking into the room. Following Joshua’s directions, he headed toward the safe that stored the Aurellan family’s classified information—the fruit of Athena’s years of research.
"I know the code, Louis. All you need to do is follow exactly what I tell you. Remember this well—make even the slightest mistake, and you’ll explode, and I’ll be exposed."
For the first time, Joshua spoke to Louis with genuine seriousness.
He knew the code to the family’s secret safe. It wasn’t difficult—because Athena had never hidden anything from him. She was that arrogant, absolutely convinced that she could never be overthrown.
Athena had even once carried Joshua in her arms while looking through those classified documents together. Joshua had been terrified and thrilled back then, trying hard to memorize something. But in the end, he forgot everything—his mind was that useless...
But it didn’t matter. This time, things would be different. Once it was in his hands, even if he forgot, so what? As long as he was the one who had the final victory!
"Code, code, code..." Louis muttered like a madman, his body tense and drenched in sweat.
"How hard could it be..." Before Louis could finish his thought, the moment he unlocked the first layer—the handle—a blinding light flashed before his eyes. It was a screen displaying characters arranged in a circle, like a magic formation. There were four rings of them, spinning in reverse directions.
Louis recalled Joshua’s words and silently clicked his tongue: "I’m no good at word puzzles..."
Meanwhile, in the Aurellan family’s corporate boardroom, Athena sat in the chairman’s seat. She glanced over the assembled elders, a faint smile on her lips as she spoke softly: "To waste so much of my time... You’d better have something significant to discuss."
No matter how gentle her voice was, it didn’t change the fact that her words were a threat.
An elder, his beard covering half his face, suddenly shot to his feet and barked: "Athena, what is the meaning of that attitude of yours?! The Council of Elders has stood with the Aurellan family since ancient times. Even if you are the head, our voices are still of great importance! But you are always autocratic and domineering, acting as if only you matter. I say such behavior makes you unworthy of your position!"
The other elders stayed silent, but their expressions clarified that they fully agreed with him. Perhaps he was their representative—after all, he sat directly opposite Athena.
Athena suddenly laughed: "I’m unworthy to sit in this seat? Then who is—Joshua?"
The elders were visibly startled. The one facing her furrowed his brows and said, "I never said that."
"Then perhaps you believe you’d do a better job carrying out the duties of this position?" Athena pressed.
At those words, the elder’s eyes widened slightly. For an instant, he couldn’t stop his gaze from betraying his thoughts. By the time he hurried to mask his expression, the old foxes in the room had already seen through him.
"Elder Eslite, why don’t you answer?"
"Could it be you truly intend to replace Athena? Do you not understand the limits of your own station?"
"How bold!"
The other elders swiftly turned to denounce Eslite. Some were genuinely dissatisfied—they wanted Joshua raised to that position, or at least for Athena to loosen her grip on power. Ever since she became head of the family, the authority in their hands had steadily diminished, and so had the wealth flowing into their pockets.
But others felt differently—it was unfair. If anyone were to take Athena’s place, it should be them, not Eslite!
Athena laced her fingers together, resting her chin upon them. She watched the scene of dogs biting dogs before her, lowering her gaze with boredom.
"A bunch of fools."
Her soft voice seemed to snap the elders back to their senses. They suddenly realized they had forgotten Athena was still right there, and panic flashed in their eyes as they wondered if they had just said something they shouldn’t have...
"Athena..." Eslite tried to speak again, but she had already risen to her feet by then.
She smiled faintly, her fingers brushing over the table’s surface as she said softly: "I know you’ve always followed my parents’ will, supporting Joshua to become the official heir."
The elders stiffened at her words. Joshua had yet to succeed, so they could not afford to expose themselves so openly. Some opened their mouths to explain, but Athena continued: "Let me make this clear. Whether it’s Joshua or any of you—if anyone other than me takes this seat, the Aurellan family will immediately lose its glory."
For the first time, she gazed at them with open contempt. In her gray eyes was coldness and mockery: "A swarm of foolish ants, thinking a puddle to be the entire ocean. Your vision extends no further than that. I allowed you to live peacefully as little ants, yet you still delude yourselves into thinking you can soar among the clouds."
At her words, Eslite frowned deeply. "So from the very beginning, you intended to eliminate us?!"
Athena’s words and Eslite’s question shocked the rest of the elders. They stiffened, enraged, and began to denounce her:
"Athena, this is a betrayal of the family’s rules!"
"You truly are unworthy of this position!"
But no matter how loudly they shouted, their bodies trembled uncontrollably.
Athena lifted her chin, her gaze dripping with disdain. Her voice was soft, almost casual: "No. Until now, I was still wavering. But today, I’ve decided—there can be no construction without destruction."
"Die!"
As if sensing her decision, the elder closest to her suddenly lunged forward, a sharp dagger flashing in his grip.
Thud!
Blood sprayed everywhere, splattering across the table—across Athena’s entire face. The elder had already collapsed, his carotid artery torn open, his body convulsing in agony like a fish stranded on dry land.
By now, Athena’s five fingers had transformed into razor-sharp mechanical claws, each over 50cm long, gleaming with a cold, black light.
Fresh blood clung to them, dripping steadily. Those elders who had seen this sight before—if any—were old now, and even they could not withstand the terror.
Immediately, someone collapsed to their knees in fear: "No, Athena, please—we will support you, without ever wavering in the future!"
Athena gently wiped the blood from her claws, shaking her head as if in regret. "No. It’s too late."
She laughed wildly, then launched herself forward. Wherever she passed, the heads of elders were sent flying into the air before crashing down.
A look of pure joy appeared on her face for the first time. With blood streaming down her cheek, she truly reveled in this feeling—this unrestrained slaughter.
Alas, the head of a family ought not to indulge in such pleasures. But the sensation of being the strongest—it was intoxicating, utterly intoxicating!
From this moment on, the Aurellan family would officially become her little kingdom. She could do whatever she pleased. She was its sovereign!
And after that—larger kingdoms, the entirety of Zone 5...
The Smith family would be buried as well.
Farther still... Zone 1...
"Ha ha ha! This feeling—this is it, this is it!"
Athena stood atop the long conference table, her body drenched in blood—yet not a single drop was her own.
Her hand traced across her face, and she knew she must be smiling—radiantly, brilliantly.
"Ah, Cupid, tell me—is this the feeling of love? No, of course you wouldn’t understand. You only know those pathetic, sickly emotions. But I—I have power, strength! Ha ha ha!"