Mako was recounting what really happened in his battle against Catherine.
Ana grew increasingly worried with every detail Mako shared.
"That's horrific," Ana said.
"Aren't you a warrior, Ana?" Polifemo teased, noting her expression.
"I am! But it's still hard to imagine Mako in those kinds of situations."
Mako flushed, more offended than anything else.
"Anyway," Mako said, steering the conversation elsewhere, "there's still something bothering me about all this."
"Come on, it was just a joke," Ana said.
"I don't mean that," Mako replied with a sigh. "I can't shake a thought from my head…"
Mako hesitated.
"I'm sure I knew Catherine from before," he said, his tone serious.
Ana and Polifemo stared at Mako. A minute of silence followed.
Before anyone could ask, Mako noticed their looks.
"I don't know what to tell you. It's just… a kind of déjà vu. But I can't remember when or how…" Mako continued, staring into space.
Ana and Polifemo exchanged glances.
"Maybe it's not important," Polifemo said.
"Of course it's important!" Ana countered.
Polifemo grumbled, "Ugh! I see. I'm gone a few days, and you no longer respect me as your master, your sensei, your guide."
Ana narrowed her eyes, her look screaming loud and clear: We never respected you like that…
Mako narrowed his eyes even further, saying with even more audacity: I'm not sure I've ever respected you at all…
"Insolent brats!" Polifemo squealed.
"Alright, alright," Mako said, trying to calm Polifemo. "Maybe Polifemo's right."
Polifemo was the most surprised by these words.
"What I mean," Mako continued, "is that I've got nothing but this hunch, this déjà vu, this… I don't know what."
"And we have other priorities now," Polifemo concluded.
Ana couldn't help but smile, reminded of something.
"Right! You're in the Royal Court now, Mako. How exciting! We can finally attract noble investors! Or even better… royalty," Ana said, almost dreamily.
"It won't be that easy…" Mako sighed, sounding defeated.
"Of course it won't," Polifemo scolded. "How can you be discouraged about that after what you've accomplished?"
He was right. Mako knew from the start that reaching the Royal Court wasn't a fix for all their problems, but…
It definitely helped.
Mako smiled, relieved to have them both back.
◇◆◇
At that same moment, elsewhere in the city…
Erick, Mako's younger brother, woke to a sharp, stabbing pain in his knee.
He couldn't see anything. He only heard murmurs in the background.
Suddenly, someone removed the sack covering Erick's face. He could see again.
As his eyes adjusted to the sudden light, Erick took in his situation.
Mako's younger brother had a makeshift tourniquet on his knee, applying enough pressure to keep him from bleeding out.
He tried to stand—his first instinct was to fight.
But it was useless. He was tied to a chair.
"Easy, tiger," one of the strangers present said. "You don't want us to mess up your other knee, do you?"
Erick, defiant, maintained his proud expression, glaring fiercely.
Looking around, Erick realized he was in some kind of hangar.
'Maybe a warehouse for one of the royal companies,' he thought. 'Or perhaps one of the port hangars?'
He didn't know where he was. He only saw hooded figures around him, their faces covered, all armed.
He couldn't count them exactly, but at least a dozen surrounded him.
"Why haven't you killed me yet?" Erick asked coldly.
"In a hurry?" the hooded man in front of him mocked.
Cruelly, the man kicked Erick's wounded knee.
Erick clenched his teeth, determined not to give them the satisfaction of hearing him cry out.
"Ha, ha, ha!" several of the hooded men laughed.
"And to think people like you are nobles," the thug in front of Erick said bitterly.
Erick met his words with indifference, sweating from the burning pain in his knee.
"That's nothing," the hooded man continued. "Unlike you nobles, paying for our systems never makes us as strong."
The man paced around Erick, picking up a small crossbow.
"A shot like that could be fatal for anyone if not treated properly," he said.
Erick began to notice something.
"I know who you are," Erick said through gritted teeth.
"Oh, do you?"
"Yeah, I recognize your voice… You're one of the idiots who works for that moron Fox." Erick, saying this, eyed the loaded crossbow.
"What an excellent memory!" the hooded man exclaimed energetically. "Do your systems make you smarter too? Not just stronger?"
He removed his hood, revealing that he was, indeed, one of Fox's thugs.
Without any shame, he aimed the crossbow at Erick's chest.
"Still, you're not immortal… One pull of this trigger, and it's over," the thug said, licking his lips.
"Don't get carried away, boss," one of the other kidnappers said, his voice trembling.
"Tch!" the thug with the crossbow clicked his tongue in annoyance.
But with a careless motion, he shifted the crossbow, pretending it was an accident…
He pulled the trigger!
Erick let out a guttural scream.
"Oops! My apologies, your high nobility," the thug with the crossbow laughed, joined by the other henchmen.
The arrow struck Erick's shoulder.
Just then, another hooded man ran in.
"He's almost here!" he shouted, delivering the news.
"Perfect, about time," the crossbow thug said.
After a brief wait, the mastermind behind it all arrived.
Erick expected to hear Fox's familiar voice. After all, he'd recognize that pretentious laugh after years of dealing with him while running the House of the Sun.
What he didn't expect was that trembling voice, laced with fear.
'You… bastard…' Erick thought, clenching his teeth in fury.
He knew who it was.
He couldn't see them, as they stood behind him, but Erick recognized the voice instantly.