Chapter : 326
Chapter : 326
Ira walked away from the ruined penthouse living room. The noise of the shattered glass and the defeated assassins faded behind her. She moved down a long, quiet side corridor. The walls in this part of the luxury apartment were completely pristine. They were covered in expensive, pale blue wallpaper. Soft, glowing magical lamps hung from the ceiling.
Ira did not look back at Princess Iris. She did not look back at Sayma or Naomi. She had felt a very specific, freezing cold magical aura. She knew exactly who was hiding in this isolated section of the building.
She reached the very end of the corridor. A large wooden door stood wide open. It was the entrance to the master bedroom.
Niro stood in the middle of the room. He wore his spotless Royal Advisor uniform. His silver-white hair looked perfectly styled. He held a small, sealed envelope in his hands. He turned his head slowly. He looked at his younger sister. He did not look surprised to see her. His pale face was completely calm.
"You actually noticed my presence," Niro said. His voice was smooth and chilling. "I am slightly impressed, Ira. You usually lack basic awareness. I suppose spending time with those useless girls has taught you a few minor survival tricks."
Ira stood perfectly still in the doorway. Her face showed zero emotion. Her pale eyes locked onto her older brother.
"You sent the assassins," Ira stated in her flat, robotic voice. "You used them as a distraction."
"I did not send them," Niro corrected her smoothly. He brushed a speck of dust off his dark sleeve. "Senator Norman sent them. He is a very desperate, very sloppy politician. He hired cheap mercenaries to clean up his mess. I simply followed them inside. They made a very loud entrance. It gave me the perfect opportunity to search this apartment while your little friends were busy fighting for their lives."
Ira looked at the envelope in his hands. "You found something."
"I found everything," Niro smiled. It was a cruel, arrogant smile. He tapped the sealed envelope against his palm. "Dr. Carrion was a brilliant scientist, but he was a terrible liar. He knew the corrupt politicians were going to kill him. He knew he could not escape. So, he wrote a final letter to his beloved girlfriend. He hid it behind a loose wall panel in this bedroom."
Niro took a slow step forward. His polished boots made a sharp clicking sound against the hardwood floor.
"He wrote this letter just days before his laboratory exploded," Niro explained. "It is a very long, very detailed confession. He explicitly details every single part of the conspiracy. He explains how Dr. Raven manipulated him. Dr. Raven used massive extortion. He threatened to murder Carrion's entire family if the scientist refused to cooperate."
Ira did not blink. She knew the 13th Unit desperately needed that letter. Without concrete proof, they could never accuse a powerful man like Dr. Raven.
"The letter also outlines their grand, horrific plan," Niro continued. He sounded entirely bored by the prospect of mass murder. "Dr. Raven and Senator Norman wanted to launch a toxic Solurius attack on the nation of Nivoria. They planned to load the raw, radioactive magic into a long-range missile. They wanted to drop it right in the middle of a populated Nivorian city."
"Millions of innocent people would die," Ira said flatly.
"Yes, they would," Niro agreed. "The toxic radiation would melt their skin. It would poison their water supply for a hundred years. Nivoria would instantly retaliate. It would start a massive, catastrophic global war. And in the middle of that war, Dr. Raven and Senator Norman planned to seize absolute control of the Belmontia Empire. It is a very classic, very predictable political scheme."
Ira stepped fully into the bedroom. "Hand over the letter. That document belongs to the 13th Unit. We need it to present a case to the Upper Council."
Niro threw his head back and laughed. It was a cold, mocking sound.
"You truly are a foolish little girl," Niro sneered. He looked at her with pure disgust. "Do you honestly think I am going to give you this evidence? My master, the 1st Prince, has many political allies. Dr. Raven is a very useful asset to our faction. If you expose Dr. Raven, it creates a massive political disaster for the 1st Prince. I cannot allow that."
Niro raised his hand. The air around his fingers turned freezing cold. A sharp, jagged shard of solid ice formed in his palm.
"I am going to destroy this letter right now," Niro declared. "I will freeze it, shatter it into dust, and scatter it out the window. Your pathetic 13th Unit will have absolutely zero concrete proof. You will sound like crazy conspiracy theorists. And the 1st Prince will continue his flawless path to the throne."
"I cannot allow you to destroy that evidence," Ira said.
Ira raised her pale hands. The moisture in the air instantly gathered around her fingertips. It formed into two long, flowing lines of water. The water compressed tightly. It turned into two sharp, high-pressure whips. The whips crackled loudly like real leather.
She did not wait for him to cast his spell. Ira swung her right arm forward. The water whip slashed across the bedroom. It aimed straight for the envelope in Niro's hand. She wanted to snatch the letter away from him.
Niro did not even flinch. He simply raised his left hand.
"You are incredibly predictable," Niro mocked.
A thick wall of solid, unyielding ice instantly erupted from the floorboards. Ira's water whip hit the ice wall. The impact made a loud, slapping sound. The water simply splashed harmlessly against the frozen barrier.
Before Ira could swing her second whip, Niro moved. He dashed around the ice wall with blistering, terrifying speed. He was a recognized Grandmaster. His combat skills were completely overwhelming. He crossed the large bedroom in a fraction of a second.
Ira tried to step backward. She tried to pull her water magic back to defend herself. She was far too slow.
Niro grabbed her by the throat.
His grip was like a steel vice. He lifted her slightly off the ground. He slammed her violently against the expensive pale blue wallpaper. The impact knocked the breath completely out of Ira's lungs. Her water whips instantly lost their pressure. They dissolved into harmless puddles on the floor.
Ira gasped for air. She gripped her brother's arm with both hands. She tried to pry his fingers away from her neck. He did not budge. His physical strength was massive.
"You are so weak," Niro whispered fiercely. He leaned in close. His cold gray eyes stared directly into her pale blue eyes. "You have always been weak. You let your emotions cloud your magic. You care about these pathetic commoners. You care about justice. It makes you a massive disappointment to our bloodline."