OLD-WORLD EXTRA

Chapter 174: Court Hearing

Chapter 174: Court Hearing

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Emir's gaze remained fixed on the message as time seemed to stretch.

A tense silence enveloped the room, the air growing heavy with an almost palpable pressure. The gang members, now fully healed and gathered around him, exchanged fearful glances.

Each of them was acutely aware of the invisible force radiating from him.

Unintentionally, he emanated an aura of pure killing intent.

A chilling manifestation of his emotions that seemed to constrict the very atmosphere around them.

Heartbeats quickened, and breaths became shallower as they involuntarily found themselves caught in the weight of his presence pressing down on them.

It was like an unrelenting vice grip on their senses.

"E-Emir... PLEASE!"

It took a stuttering plea from Kiera to break the silence, her voice a desperate tremor.

Emir's sigh then cut through the room like a gust of frigid wind, his expression hardening into an icy mask.

His gaze shifted to meet hers, and the intensity of his stare sent a shiver down her spine.

It was a look that held no warmth, a gaze that seemed to pierce through to the core of her being.

"Stop tracking your targets," he commanded, his voice steady, each word heavy with a chilling finality.

"The court hearing is tomorrow..."

As his words hung in the air, a collective gasp seemed to echo in response.

The realization settled over them like a dark cloud, casting a shadow of apprehension across their faces.

At that moment, they all understood the gravity of their situation.

The impending reckoning that awaited them at the court hearing.

'I expected this... But still, tomorrow?'

'We don't have anything to play against them.'

'I can only trust that Elijah pulls his weight...'

"Kiera, Jack, Sarah, Evan, Hiro, and little Leo...."

"I don't know what will happen tomorrow, but there is one thing I know."

"Your lives will be in danger."

"Prepare for the inevitable, as I won't be there to help you all."

Kiera stepped closer to him and nodded, her eyes enough of an answer to his words.

"Good. Hopefully, all of you will live through it, but I'm not placing my bet on it."

"Anyways, see you all later, yeah?"

But before he left, Hiro approached him and quietly whispered in his ear:

"I know this might sound insensitive considering what's going on, but I have to ask. How did you fly around like that? Did you flash step?"

Emir looked at him for a moment and replied with a chuckle:

"No... And it's a secret I won't be sharing."

He then left the tense training room and headed out to meet his mother.

...

"When did you get the news?" Emir asked as he sat down to eat dinner.

Placing her spoon down for a moment, Laura looked to her right.

She eyed the starving Lily as she devoured everything on her plate, appearing unbothered by what just happened.

Turning her attention back to Emir, she answered:

"I messaged you right after they sent me the updated document..."

Emir nodded.

"I see... I've made some preparations for it, but they aren't ready yet."

"I've only got one card I can play in court, and I don't trust it to be a winning one, but it's all I've got."

Laura showed a sad smile, knowing that if even her son was troubled, then she couldn't help save the company.

And her face slowly grew irritated as Lily continued eating as if all was normal, munching away at her food.

"Sweetie... Don't you have anything to say about this?"

"Ah, well, it's my brother we're talking about here; I know that he'll get us through this, no problem." Lily said, with a spoon full of food in her mouth.

Emir lightly chuckled at her response, but Laura didn't join in on the fun and was about to reprimand her way of eating...

But then a sudden ring emanated through Emir's terminal, giving her pause.

Picking it up, he swiped and read the message.

{They brought the court hearing of the Prince Emporium company to tomorrow; I don't know the details, but I've heard something along the lines of a merger with a hunter's den or

something.} Elijah

'So the merger was the spark that ignited the fire....'

'Was I rushing into it?'

Shaking himself out of that thought, he replied:

{Alright. Prepare yourself; tomorrow is the day; show up on time; testify against the claims facing the company; throw your name around as much as possible; and say that you were a

loyal customer.}

{Say that you know the ins and outs of the company and that what they are spewing out are fraudulent claims that you, the heir of the Moon Scribe family, won't stand for.}

{...} {...}

{...}

'Is the burner terminal broken?' Emir wondered, but as a few moments passed, he finally got a

reply from Elijah:

{Understood, is that when you will give out her location?}

{If you do your job well, yes. I took an oath, not something I can go back on.}

{I'll do my best then.}

{Good. I expect a lot from you. And don't contact this ID again; you won't be receiving a

reply.}

After typing that out, Emir didn't wait for a reply and immediately broke the terminal in half. Applying more strength to his arms, he squashed it into a ball, destroying whatever was on it.

Laura and Lily looked at his actions in interest but didn't comment on them, realizing what

they meant.

"It's too bad that neither of you chose a specialization yet; I could easily have one of you melt

it with fire."

Finally done with her meal, Lily gulped her last bit of food and asked:

"Do you want me to be a spell weaver?"

Shaking his head, Emir chanted:

"Aetheric Shield."

Which formed two small connected shields in an infinity shape around his hands, covering the

terminal.

"No... You can leave all the fighting to me."

"You two can eventually decide on whatever specialization you want later. Just make sure you like it; after all, you'll be stuck with it for the rest of your life."

Moments after saying that, he concentrated on empowering his shield with Aether to the

extreme, and with a simple locking of his hands, he began grinding the terminal, reducing it

to fine metal shavings.

Both his mother and sister ignored the amount of strength needed to do that and continued

eating.

"Is there anything you want me to do before tomorrow?" Laura asked.

Emir took out a few tissues and wrapped the metal shavings and plastic dust in them while

saying:

"Rest well. That's all I'll ever need from you...."

"We both know that no matter what you say or do, they will find something, anything, and

blow it out of the water."

Picking up his fork and spoon, he eyed the chicken curry rice in front of him and added:

"I'm not telling you not to try, but instead, I'm telling you to be ready, ready for their mental

attacks, ready for them wearing you down, trying to find the many skeletons we have hidden

in our closet."

Laura silently nodded while Lily chuckled, saying:

"That's a nice analogy... where did you hear that from?"

Emir replied to her with a shrug as they continued talking, with Emir and Laura finally beginning to enjoy their meals, readying themselves for the inevitable.