Chapter 738: Concealing Truth
Alice’s smile blossomed like a sunrise as she locked her gaze on Max, but her next words, sent through the quiet intimacy of voice transmission, carried a far more cautious tone. "You promised you’d come to the Middle Domain, and you did. I’m truly happy about that, Max. But for now... we should act like we’re only acquaintances."
She paused for a brief instant, her mental voice growing more subdued, tinged with frustration and faint bitterness. "I’ve come here with some of my family members. They’re just here to keep an eye on me. I hate them. They never let me do anything I want. Everything I do, everywhere I go, they’re always watching, making sure I am ’safe.’"
Her beautiful red hair seemed to catch fire under the shifting light as she finished, her eyes flickering briefly toward the bustling crowd behind her.
Max followed her gaze, and his own expression darkened as he saw the approaching figures. Emerging from a busy avenue a short distance away, a group of young men and women began striding toward them with palpable arrogance radiating from their bearing.
Their steps were measured, deliberate, as though they owned every inch of the marble floor they crossed. Their robes were elegant and richly adorned, bearing insignias of a Phoenix that glowed subtly in the crimson light—symbol of the Phoenix God Nation within the Four God Nation.
The young man at the head of the group stood out starkly even among them, his broad shoulders and slender waist lending him a commanding silhouette. Strapped across his back was a massive black iron sword, its hilt wrapped in dark leather, the blade so large that it seemed like it would split the floor beneath his feet if he so much as swung it.
His sharp eyes gleamed with cool appraisal as he took in Max’s presence
Max met the young man’s gaze steadily, his own eyes calm, though he inclined his head slightly in acknowledgment, silently agreeing to Alice’s silent plea to stay cautious. "I understand," he replied in a swift mental whisper. "And don’t worry about me, Alice. I can handle myself."
Just then, the young man in front finally spoke, his voice deep and authoritative as it rolled out over the low hum of conversations and footsteps filling the Hunter Association hall. "Junior Sister Alice, who is this? Why don’t you introduce him to us?"
His question held a faint edge, polite enough on the surface but carrying an undercurrent of probing curiosity—and perhaps even the slightest hint of suspicion.
Alice straightened slightly, her expression smoothing into polite serenity as she turned toward the group. "He is Max Morgan," she said, her voice calm but carefully neutral as she executed the delicate balance of concealing deeper truth behind a surface-level explanation. "I’ve met him recently during some of the times I’ve come to the Hundred Battle Regions."
The young men and women exchanged quick glances among themselves, some eyes flickering with curiosity, others with thinly veiled disdain, as they assessed Max like a curiosity plucked from the wilderness.