Chapter 201: Cornered
Cain let out a slow breath, his gaze lingering on Faith for a moment before he looked away, as if the question she asked had stirred something he did not want to deal with, and when he finally spoke, his voice carried an almost careless tone, like someone brushing aside something trivial even though the weight of it had already settled deep inside his mind.
"It’s not me," he said, shaking his head slightly as if the answer was obvious. "You’re misunderstanding something."
But inside, his thoughts were anything but calm.
Fuck.
The word echoed in his head with a weight that made his chest tighten just a little, not out of fear, but out of realization, because even he knew that what had just happened could not be hidden so easily, not when every single person in that room had been forced to the ground like they were nothing more than insects under his shadow.
I showed them my might.
He exhaled again, slower this time, his eyes lowering for a brief moment as his thoughts raced.
Well... I can’t blame myself.
His lips pressed together slightly.
That glimpse.
That single moment where he had felt something beyond everything he had known.
That was not something he could ignore.
If revealing a fraction of his power was the price for that, then it was nothing.
Nothing at all.
Because if he could reach that realm, if he could truly understand it, if he could step into that place that even his past self had failed to touch, then everything else would become meaningless.
Still...
He clicked his tongue in his mind, irritation flickering through him.
I need to be careful.
Because even as he stood there, trying to appear relaxed, trying to act like nothing had happened, he could feel it.
Their eyes.
All of them.
Watching him.
Judging him.
Trying to understand him.
And that was not something he wanted right now.
So he repeated it.
"It wasn’t me."
His voice came out a little firmer this time, as if saying it again would make it more believable, as if the repetition alone could bury the truth that had already been exposed.
"It was someone else," he added, his tone steady, his expression calm.
Inside, however, his thoughts continued to spiral in a way that only he could hear.
Right, someone else.
Good excuse.
Stick with that.
You’re just a normal vampire right now.
Just someone trying to survive.
Not an Overgod.
Not someone who once stood above countless beings.
And definitely not someone chasing a realm beyond all existence.
Yeah.
That sounds believable.
He almost laughed at himself, but he kept his face still, his expression neutral as if nothing unusual was happening at all.
The three sisters heard everything.
Every single thought.
Every single contradiction.
Every single moment where he tried to lie while arguing with himself at the same time.
Faith blinked slowly, her lips parting slightly as she looked at him, her expression caught between confusion and something else that she could not quite name.
Ivira’s eyes narrowed just a little, her gaze sharp as she observed him closely, as if trying to peel back every layer of his words and see what lay beneath.
Cornelia, on the other hand, pressed her lips together, her cheeks faintly red, not from embarrassment, but from the strange mix of emotions that his thoughts stirred within her, because even as he tried to deny it, even as he insisted that it was not him, his mind was filled with things that only someone truly powerful could think.
An Overgod.
A being above all.
A glimpse.
He was not even trying to hide it.
And yet, at the same time, he was desperately trying to deny it.
Faith tilted her head slightly, her long black hair falling over her shoulder as she spoke softly.
"...Cain."
He looked at her.
"That wasn’t you?"
Her voice carried no accusation.
Just curiosity.
But that only made it harder to answer.
Cain nodded immediately, too quickly.
"Of course not."
He waved his hand lightly, as if dismissing the entire situation.
"You think I can do something like that? That kind of pressure? That kind of control? That’s ridiculous."
Inside, he was already arguing with himself again.
Not ridiculous.
You just did it.
Shut up.
No, seriously, you crushed Emperor level vampires like they were nothing.
I said shut up.
Ivira stepped forward slightly, her white hair catching the light as she crossed her arms, her expression calm but her eyes clearly unconvinced.
"Then explain it," she said.
Cain did not hesitate.
"I already did."
He shrugged.
"It was someone else."
Cornelia raised a brow, her voice quiet but firm.
"Someone else... who only affected everyone except us?"
Cain froze for a fraction of a second.
Then he recovered.
"Coincidence."
Even in his own head, he knew how bad that sounded.
That is the worst excuse you could come up with.
I know.
Faith looked at him again, her gaze soft but steady.
"And that someone... just happened to appear when you told Pam to be quiet?"
Cain nodded again, as if the answer was obvious.
"Timing."
Ivira let out a small breath, her eyes closing for a moment before she opened them again, her gaze sharper now.
"And that someone... just happened to stop when you stopped caring?"
Cain’s smile stiffened slightly.
"Luck."
Silence.
The three of them stared at him.
He stared back.
For a moment, no one spoke.
And then—
"Cain," Cornelia said softly, her voice carrying a weight that made his chest tighten slightly.
"...you’re lying."
He opened his mouth to respond.
But before he could say anything—
Pam’s voice cut through the tension, filled with frustration and disbelief as she pushed herself up from the cracked ground, her body still trembling slightly from the pressure that had only just disappeared.
"Why?" she demanded, her eyes locked onto Cain. "Why are you hiding it?"
The guards and judges, still struggling to recover, looked at him with expressions that ranged from fear to confusion, their earlier arrogance completely gone as they tried to make sense of what they had just experienced.
"How can you be this strong?" one of them asked, his voice unsteady.
"That pressure... that was not something an ordinary vampire can produce," another added, his gaze filled with disbelief.
Pam stepped closer, her voice sharper now.
"You think we are blind?" she said. "You think we did not feel it? That was your power!"
Cain shook his head again.
"It wasn’t."
He did not even hesitate.
"It was someone else."
His tone remained firm, his expression unchanged, as if repeating the same answer over and over would eventually make it true.
Pam clenched her fists.
"Then where is that someone now?" she demanded.
Cain pointed vaguely upward.
"Gone."
The answer came too quickly.
Too easily.
Too empty.
And everyone knew it.
Faith stepped forward this time, her long black hair swaying gently as she moved closer to him, her eyes fixed on his.
"Cain," she said softly.
"Tell me the truth."
Ivira moved to his side.
Cornelia stepped in front of him.
The three of them surrounded him without even realizing it, their presence closing in, their gazes locking onto him from every angle, leaving him no easy way out.
"You’re powerful," Ivira said calmly.
"You’re hiding it," Cornelia added quietly.
Faith’s voice came last.
"And you’re lying to us."
Cain felt his throat tighten slightly.
This is bad.
He looked at each of them.
One by one.
Faith.
Ivira.
Cornelia.
All staring at him.
All waiting.
All refusing to accept his answer.
He forced a small laugh.
"You’re overthinking it."
Inside, he was already panicking.
They’re not buying it.
Of course they’re not buying it.
You literally crushed everyone in the room.
I know!
Then stop lying.
I can’t!
Why not?
Because—
Before his thoughts could finish—
The air changed again.
Another pressure descended.
Not as sudden as before.
Not as overwhelming.
But enough.
Enough to make the ground tremble slightly.
Enough to make the guards freeze again.
Enough to remind everyone of what had just happened.
Cain blinked.
Shit.
He did not mean to do that.
He did not even realize he had done it.
But it was enough.
More than enough.
The three sisters looked at him.
This time, there was no doubt in their eyes.
No confusion.
No hesitation.
Just certainty.
Cain exhaled slowly.
Then he raised his hands slightly, as if trying to calm them down.
"Look," he said, his voice steady, even as his mind raced.
"It’s not me."
He forced the words out again.
"You have to believe me."
Faith did not move.
Ivira did not speak.
Cornelia did not look away.
They were not convinced.
Not even a little.
Cain clicked his tongue softly in his mind.
This is going nowhere.
He needed to change the situation.
Now.
Before things got worse.
Before more questions came.
Before someone else stepped in.
Before—
"Come with me," he said suddenly.
His voice cut through the tension, firm and direct.
The three of them blinked.
"What?" Faith asked.
Cain turned slightly, his gaze moving toward the direction of the hall where they had been summoned earlier.
"We were called, remember?" he said.
His tone was casual, but there was urgency beneath it.
"We shouldn’t keep them waiting."
Ivira narrowed her eyes slightly.
"You’re avoiding the question."
Cain shrugged.
"I already answered it."
Cornelia looked at him for a long moment.
"...You didn’t."
He smiled.
"I did."
Silence stretched again.
Then—
Faith looked at Ivira.
Ivira looked at Cornelia.
Cornelia let out a small breath.
"...Fine," she said.
"But this isn’t over."
Cain nodded quickly.
"Sure."
Inside, he sighed in relief.
That worked.
For now.
Faith hesitated for a moment longer, her eyes lingering on him as if trying to read something deeper, something he was not showing, but in the end, she stepped back slightly.
"...Okay," she said softly.
Ivira turned without another word.
Cornelia followed.
Cain moved ahead, not waiting for anything else, his steps calm, his expression steady, as if nothing had happened at all.
Behind him, the three sisters hesitated.
Just for a moment.
Then they followed.
And together—
They went toward the place where they had been summoned.