Rui knew what he had to do. He needed to play the role of the injured and tormented weak Martial Squire that had barely made it out alive. He needed to project righteous anger that anybody in their circumstances would have. In fact, it would be rather strange if he didn't have at least some misgivings about what had happened, and would make him more suspicious.
Soon enough, they reached Chairman Deacon's office.
"The chairman is awaiting you inside," The secretary bowed to him, gesturing inside.
Rui nodded, walking in as he pushed open the doors to the office.
"Squire Quarrier," Chairman Deacon greeted him. "Welcome, I'm pleased to see that you've recovered well."
Inside were Chairman Deacon as well as the only three survivors of the Voidhunters.
Instantly, Rui could read the atmosphere. It was dark. The Martial Squires was furious, yet they were holding back, waiting for Rui to also appear so that all of them could discuss the most important matters together.
Squire Fren in particular seemed to be on the verge of exploding. Her eyes were widened and bloodshot as she glared at Chairman Deacon. She did not bother to hide her aura or her strength in her anger and grief over the loss of her Party Saberstrike. The pressure she exerted on Chairman Deacon was so heavy that his bodyguards needed to guard him against it with their protective auras, shielding his sense of danger and cooling it down.
Rui had memorized her data, so he was aware that she had been with her party for nearly fifteen years ever since she met them after they had just discovered their Martial Path. Their loss must have been nothing short of traumatizing to her, so he could completely understand her state of mind being what it was.
('Should have stayed from the assassination contract,') He shrugged inwardly. He empathized with her, but he wouldn't change a single thing he would do if he got a chance to redo the entire thing.
He quickly directed his attention back to Chairman Deacon.
"Thank you, Chairman Deacon," Rui coldly replied with a stern tone. "It's frankly a miracle that I survived, in all honesty. When we were ambushed by a force of Martial Squires that outnumbered us significantly, I was shocked. If not for the fact that I had already begun to move into our assigned positions, I would have been locked in and would have certainly died instead of standing before you here today."
"I am pleased to hear that you managed to get away," He nodded with a heavy tone. "If you don't mind, can you give us a more detail-"
"I do mind, Chairman Deacon," Rui coldly interrupted him.
In ordinary circumstances, Chairman Deacon would not have tolerated such blatant disrespect. It did not matter if Rui was a Martial Squire, a mere Martial Squire was nothing to him. He had many Martial Squires and even Martial Seniors under his direct command. No ordinary would even dare interrupt him in the middle of his statement.
Still, these were anything but ordinary circumstances. He could not act heavy-handed when he was liable for the clear data leak that had occurred when a group of assassins greatly outnumbering the Voidhunters, ganged up on them and slaughtered twelve members of the Voidhunters, leaving only four to survive.
In reality, he did not entirely know the point of the information leak. It could have been on his side, however, it could also have been on the side of the surviving Martial Squires. Of course, he did not think that all four of the surviving members were responsible for the leak, that was far too unlikely.
In this situation, he needed to take responsibility regardless. If he didn't, he could forget about trying to salvage what remained of the Voidhunters. That was his biggest issue at the moment.
"We can talk about my story later. That isn't the most important thing at the moment," Rui coldly continued. "Fact of the matter is, someone sold us out, and instead of looking for a single adventurer, we were instead greeted by, like, twice as many assassins as our own group! I actually am having trouble believing that everybody else but we died!"
That number was an exaggeration, but Rui didn't want to appear perfect with the information he had. That would make him suspicious without a doubt, to Chairman Deacon at least.
"I understand your anger," Chairman Deacon tried to say in a disarming tone.
"No, you don't," Squire Fren growled. "I lost the four most important people to me. SOMEONE SOLD THEM OUT."
The other two Martial Squires that also survived nodded with stern expressions. "Those Martial Squires knew exactly when and where we would be. That's not a coincidence. Someone supplied information to them about us."
"I understand your complaints and concerns," Chairman Deacon raised his hands. "I have already launched a thorough investigation looking into the data leak and the perpetrator. And I will make them pay the second I found out who they are."
This was a lie. Chairman Deacon was already aware of who the perpetrator was. There was no one else it could be asides from Guildmaster Bradt. Rui wasn't the only one who could come to this conclusion.
Rui was pretty certain that Chairman Deacon had not only figured out the perpetrator but had also figured out why Guildmaster Bradt had chosen to sabotage this particular operation.
('He wouldn't have become the economic and political powerhouse he is today if he did not have at least that much insight,') Rui mused inwardly. "Chairman Deacon, the past is already the past. The question I want to know is what measures you're going to undertake to ensure that this never happens again."
Chairman Deacon's eyes lit up as he finally got around to a point that he had been wanting to get around to, yet much to his dismay, he was interrupted once more.
"I don't care about what measures you're going to undertake because you've already shown that you cannot be trusted and that you have powerful enemies that are willing to go to any length to hamper your agents. I'm quitting," Squire Fren got up after declaring coldly, leaving the room.