I'm fucked again, aren't I?
That was Alden's last thought before his untimely demise.
…Or at least, that's what he expected.
Instead, he heard a whisper.
It was undeniably Cipher's voice… But the calm, confident tone from before was gone.
"I said, 'Give it back," she repeated, just a bit louder.
Alden kept his face blank. He stepped forward and silently placed the bra back on the table.
For a moment, Cipher said nothing.
Alden felt a stinging pain on his left cheek. The sound of the slap echoed across the room.
"Pervert," Cipher muttered under her breath, staring at him like he was some bottom-of-the-barrel degenerate.
Alden's head nearly snapped ninety degrees.
Thankfully, Cipher had clearly held back.
If she hadn't, he would've been pasted. Probably along with the wall behind him.
She didn't want to kill him—not while there was a chance it'd cost her daughter's life too.
His cheek was bright red and burning, but Alden didn't make a sound. His expression didn't even twitch.
His mind, however, was as noisy as always.
Yeah… definitely deserved that.
Vanyaa had told him how her Steal ability worked randomly sometimes.
He'd dismissed it as a skill issue.
He'd thought his enhanced senses and precision control would overcome any randomness.
Overconfidence had a price.
Quietly, he returned to his seat without a word. He didn't try to explain himself.
Because he'd read too many stories where the protagonist tried to resolve misunderstandings… and only made things worse.
No matter what he said, they wouldn't believe him.
That much was obvious from Vanyaa's look.
She was staring at him like he had personally committed some war crimes in front of her.
She knew how her ability worked—and she still gave him that look.
It was proof enough that he had officially sunk into the deepest pits of degeneracy in her eyes.
An awkward silence spread throughout the room before Cipher spoke again.
"Vanyaa, go out. I need to talk with him alone."
Vanyaa hesitated, clearly reluctant after what had just happened.
But one glare from Cipher and she was already on her way out.
Alden mocked her in his mind, more to distract himself from the humiliation than anything else.
Once the door closed, Cipher's eyes returned to him.
"I can see why the rumours are calling you a playboy and a degenerate." She said. "You definitely do live up to those titles."
"I'm not like that. It was a mistake." He replied.
"Mistakes could happen once, but you are already beyond that." Cipher spoke, amused.
She didn't let Alden respond.
"Let's get to the point. What do you want, Alden Draven?" She leaned forward slightly. "Or should I just call you Alden now?"
Alden wasn't surprised about her knowing about his excommunication. It only indicated she even had spies inside the Draven family.
"Only Alden is fine." Alden smirked.
"You don't seem that affected by your excommunication."
"Can we talk about business?" He had no intention of discussing his personal life.
Cipher's lips twitched slightly, but she didn't say anything else about it.
"So what is it you want?"
He took a breath. There was no use tiptoeing around it.
"I want to be a member of the Obsidian Exchange."
At first Alden's goal was only to become a VVIP member of the exchange. But after seeing the scale of its operation, he changed his mind.
It wasn't anything complicated. He just wanted backing.
He could tell Obsidian Exchange was much more than just powerful. Just from how casually Cipher spoke about confidential information from the Draven family was proof enough of their reach.
Moreover, on his way, Alden had seen a symbol on one of the statues in the main hall.
He knew that symbol from the novel.
A radiant sword piercing a black sun.
The symbol was of one of the most notorious and powerful secret organisations in the Empire.
So the Obsidian Exchange was a front. A well-crafted cover for something much bigger
Given how even the elite bowed their heads to Cipher, she clearly held high rank in the Accord.
That explains how she had kidnapped Seles with ease in the novel.
Nothing about her connection with this organisation was mentioned in the novel, at least explicitly.
But after Cipher's death, the organisation was introduced as a villainous organisation that attacked to kill Lucien many times.
That was also the reason why he remembered them so clearly.
The Accord hadn't succeeded in killing Lucien. But they had claimed the life of a key character:
He died trying to save Aurelia during one of their attacks.
From what he knew, Lucien later destroyed the organisation once he reached overlord rank.
He found information about the darkness of the imperial family.
The organisation actually worked to destroy corruption. It actively resisted the tyranny of nobles and the imperial family.
And now that Alden knew Cipher was connected to them. He wasn't going to miss the chance to join.
Cipher blinked, caught off guard by his request.
A smirk appeared on her lips. "Ambitious, aren't you?"
Alden stayed silent, letting her process it.
"You think you can just walk in here, flash a little confidence, and get welcomed into our organisation?"
Her tone wasn't mocking. If anything, it was curious—amused.
Alden replied. "Just a chance."
Cipher's smile widened, but there was a glint in her eyes now—sharp, calculating.
Alden raised an eyebrow.
"Prove what, exactly?"
"Strength", Cipher said, her voice losing all its warmth. "You want to be one of us? Then show me you're not just another fool with a sharp tongue and a lucky skill."
He'd expected this. Hell, he'd planned for it.
"Fine," he said. "Who do I fight?"
Cipher's eyes narrowed, pleased with the lack of hesitation.
She pressed something on her tablet beside her.
"Rane, a beginner apprentice rank," Cipher said casually.
"I know your rank is lower than his, but you don't have to defeat him."
"If you just survive ten minutes against him, I'll consider it your win."
Alden just shrugged but didn't respond.
He just nodded calmly.
But his mind had other thoughts.