Suddenly, a clamor erupted outside, causing Faith, who was deep in thought, to frown.
The lounge area for the teams was divided into different sections and private rooms, but the soundproofing between the rooms wasn't perfect.
Immediately after, Cody, one of Faith's subordinates, entered, accompanied by Selena—Faith's illegitimate younger sister.
Selena was currently a bit disheveled, her clothes askew, her neatly tied hair messy. It was clear she had just been in a fight.
Although Faith had a general idea of what had just happened, he still asked. Cody bowed his head and replied,
"Selena caused trouble, Master."
Selena, hearing this, looked aggrieved and bowed her head, clenching her hands so tightly that her knuckles turned white.
"I'm sick of this..."
"Cody, please take my sister outside for a moment."
Faith didn't seem interested. He waved his hand, ordering Selena to temporarily leave, and his gaze returned to the chessboard.
After completing all his external arrangements, Kain finally returned to his team's lounge area. However, his work wasn't over, as he still needed to manage internal affairs.
Upon his return, Kain's first action was to summon each team member for a private meeting, including Elna.
When confronted with Kain alone, Elna couldn't help but feel a little tense. But thinking of her mission, Elna could only force herself to remain calm, recalling Faith's prior instructions on how to act.
"Elna, I apologize for my unwarranted suspicions earlier. Please don't blame the others; I simply told them a bit more."
Hearing Kain say this, Elna almost couldn't hide her excitement. Had her efforts with Kain finally paid off?
Thinking of this, Elna's emotions couldn't help but plummet.
Her past originated from an organization specializing in robbing and murdering nobles.
Their methods were audacious. They kidnapped and trained promising children, forcing them to act perfectly. Then, these children would be placed in orphanages, waiting for noble or wealthy families to adopt them or seek servants. From there, the organization essentially had an "inside" within these strictly protected families.
At the opportune moment, the organization would find a suitable time to exploit a loophole in these families' defenses, kill everyone, and steal valuables. The children would then be reused for the next time, continuing for a new operation.
Elna was one of those children, trained to be a beautiful and talented child to please those who came to the orphanage for selection.
Elna had witnessed many children like herself go mad, even commit suicide, after just a few such operations.
And it made sense; no matter how they were trained, this organization was nothing short of hell. Meanwhile, many of the families who adopted them were genuinely good people, treating them like family, giving them the warmth of kinship they'd never known.
But after all that, they still had to assist the organization, indirectly killing and directly watching those who loved them turn into lifeless corpses. That experience was too horrific even for adults, let alone for a child. So, it was understandable that some sought death.
Elna... almost did too.
The reason it was "almost" was because, in her very first operation, Elna met Faith, who was only seven years old at the time.
Of course, Elna wasn't adopted into the Sword family; instead, she was adopted by a nobleman who was a friend of Faith's parents.
And on that day, Faith's parents brought him to that noble family, where Faith met Elna.
The very next day, she was exposed.
The day after that, Faith used her to track the organization's movements, and they were almost entirely wiped out shortly after by the overwhelming power of the Sword family.
Elna had never felt such a mixture of defeat and admiration for anyone. Though Faith was still very young, his intellect sent shivers down her spine.
Even with her thorough training, it couldn't escape Faith's eyes.
After that incident, Faith took her in as a subordinate. He said that he needed her, whether for her talent or her acting ability, to build his own personal force.
For example, in this very instance, using her acting skills to infiltrate Kain's team.
She just never expected that here, she would encounter someone who was barely inferior to Faith.
Very quickly, Elna adjusted her emotions. But Elna didn't know that everything she displayed had already been perceived and noted by Kain.
The so-called "perfect performance" is almost non-existent; one only needs strong enough observation skills to grasp it.
Human emotions fluctuate, and actors are no exception. They are simply skilled at controlling their emotions to flow in a fixed stream, and this fixed stream is "playing someone else."
However, this isn't 100% stable. In certain moments, actors will break character and return to their true selves.
Take the recent conversation as an example.
Kain's acknowledgment caused Elna to expose a weakness, though only for a very brief moment.
Because in that instant, Elna's attention reverted to her inner self, and her focus on the external world decreased. This made her external actions—which were originally performed for the outside world to see—become closer to her true nature.
This isn't too hard to understand, really.
Think of it like a man eagerly deep in thought about something as he walks home. He doesn't realize his steps are quicker than usual. That's because he's in a state of deep contemplation, and his eagerness—his true emotional state at that moment—is manifesting outwardly as faster-than-normal steps.
So, what's the point of this?
The purpose is actually quite simple: Kain needs Elna to believe that she has truly gained his trust. Whether Faith believes it or not isn't important; what matters is that Elna believes it.
And her reactions are the most truthful answer.
"Elna, I'm going to tell you something."
"It's about that box."
With that, Kain moved to another spot and brought the box over.
He presented his deductions about the upcoming round, just as Faith had told her earlier. Then he opened the box.