Monday, July 26, 1740
On the hotel stairs.
After leaving Claudius with Lyxander, Colossus went down the hotel stairs and headed toward the CCTV room.
The burly old man walked down the stairs, his white hair and the sword hanging at his waist made Colossus's aura extremely intimidating. As if anyone he met could die just by feeling his presence.
However, from below the stairs, another equally terrifying aura emerged. A bald old man with a hunched posture, carrying a cane to support his steps, appeared from below the stairs.
One of the 100 most influential assassins in history, Grey, and the knight of the Second Prince of the Hell Empire, Colossus Newton. Now, these two old monsters had met.
Their auras clashed, making anyone who felt it seem as if they would be blown away by the deadly pressure of these two old monsters.
On the hotel stairs, Colossus and Grey stared at each other. The contrast between the two old men was striking. Colossus stood upright, full of confidence in his strength, while Grey, with his hunched back and supporting cane, looked incredibly weak.
However, that difference was natural considering the vast gap in their ages. Colossus had only reached 70 years old, while Grey had lived for more than 200 years.
Seeing the hunched old man below him, Colossus smiled widely.
"Long time no see, Grandpa Grey."
It was quite strange to hear an old man call another old man "grandpa." But it couldn't be denied that Grey had already been a grandfather even when Colossus was still a toddler.
Grey finally raised his head and smiled warmly at Colossus.
"Oh, Colossus. You've changed a lot, child."
"Hahaha." Colossus could only laugh seeing himself, already so old, being called a child.
"And you haven't changed at all, Grandpa Grey."
Without the slightest fear, Grey walked up the stairs. The more steps he took, the stronger the aura he released became. But when he got close to Colossus, the deadly aura he emitted disappeared just like that.
Not only his aura, Colossus's aura also disappeared, stopping the violent clash between them.
The reason the auras of these two old monsters stopped was because of Colossus. The man let Grey pass just like that, even making way for him.
Grey's white eyebrows lifted. His face remained calm, but a clear question could be seen on it.
"You're not going to stop me, child?"
Colossus did not answer immediately. He stepped down first and turned his back on Grey.
"It's not good to disturb the elderly. Besides... you'll understand my reason for letting you pass once you meet Claudius."
After saying that, Colossus simply left, ending the meeting between the two old monsters.
•••
Lyxander and Claudius showed pressured expressions when they met Grey. As if both of them had been struck by a massive boulder from above.
Even though Lyxander did not know who Grey was, he could feel the immense aura from the hunched man—an aura of a monster.
'Damn it, why is my luck so bad.'
Lyxander cursed inwardly. From losing at cards, meeting ten hitmen, to being followed by Claudius—today felt utterly terrible, as if the previous days weren't enough to make him realize that he was a walking bad omen.
He quickly took off the bag he was carrying and stepped forward in front of Claudius.
"Run, Prince. I'll handle this old man."
But there was no response from behind. Lyxander turned to look at Claudius. When he saw Claudius's eyes, he was shocked.
Claudius's gaze was sharp and calm. There wasn't even the slightest trace of fear in his red eyes, as if he was completely certain he could escape from the old monster before them.
Lyxander stepped back and stood beside Claudius. That look made him believe that a prince of the Hell Empire must have a way to escape this dangerous situation.
"So what's the plan?" Lyxander asked.
However, shattering his expectations, the next action taken by Claudius was shocking and completely unexpected, leaving Lyxander frozen.
Claudius knelt before Grey and begged for mercy.
"Please… spare our lives!"
Lyxander's jaw dropped. He was so stunned he couldn't say a word.
"You don't have any plan?!"
Claudius only smiled bitterly, cold sweat pouring down his body.
"A plan? What else can we do? That's Grey. One of the 100 most influential assassins in history—a true 4-star."
"Just give up, Lyxander. We're finished here."
Claudius's smile was filled with conviction—of course, it was conviction in death.
"Haha..." Lyxander could only laugh, as if he had just seen the god of death standing before him.
But soon his expression turned serious. He couldn't just give up like this. Quickly, Lyxander considered several options—pressing the watch in his pocket to call another crow, or dragging Claudius and running as fast as possible.
The first option relied too much on luck, and even if another crow came, there was no guarantee they could fight a 4-star.
The second option was no different—it also depended heavily on luck. Even though Lyxander was confident in his speed, escaping from a 4-star seemed impossible.
"Damn it!"
Lyxander cursed and bit his lip.
"I can't accept this… how can I just die here without a fight?"
He immediately took a stance, his gaze sharpened, and his breathing rhythm changed drastically.
The aura around Lyxander became oppressive. Not only his aura, but everything about him turned serious and dangerous.
Claudius's eyes widened. For the first time, he saw the usually carefree Lyxander become so serious. He also saw Lyxander's lips move, forming two short words.
Speed Limit—
Seeing the change in Lyxander's aura made Grey's eyebrow twitch slightly. He stared at Lyxander for a moment.
'So that's it. No wonder Colossus left so confidently.'
"You may go," Grey said shortly.
"What?!"
"What?"
The oppressive aura Lyxander had built collapsed instantly. He returned to normal. Not only Lyxander, but Claudius, who had been kneeling, stood up and frowned.
"You're letting us go just like that?"
Claudius asked in confusion, clearly unable to believe Grey's words.
Grey sighed, then looked at Lyxander once more before turning to Claudius.
"Second Prince, you may not know this. But the man beside you is the younger brother of Pigeon Xander. I have no intention of offending an existence as terrifying as the Grim Reaper of Entity Corporation."
Now it was Claudius's turn for his jaw to drop. He was too stunned to say anything.
"Wait… what?! Isn't your name Lyxander?"
Lyxander smiled slightly.
"My real name is Lie Xander. My father merged it into Lyxander, so people often misunderstand and think I don't have a family name."
Claudius was still trying to process the information, realizing that the person in front of him was the younger brother of Pigeon Xander. It was as if their positions had been reversed, and Lyxander had become the important one.
"Wait, so that's why your name is read 'Lie' instead of 'Ly'? Hah… I should have realized. It's rare to see a Tamisra descendant without a family name."
Lyxander chuckled lightly to show politeness, then turned to look at Grey.
"In that case, I hope we don't meet again."
Lyxander and Claudius waved their hands and immediately ran away as fast as possible, escaping from Grey.