As they left Su Mo's room, Aventurine proactively stepped forward to open the door, like a subordinate.
It was a small detail.
Topaz was now an Emanator of Preservation, her status a full head above his. Even the IPC could only communicate with her in a consultative tone, just like with Diamond. She had already attained a transcendent position.
Aventurine, with the doubts in his life resolved, wasn't overly envious of Topaz's luck. It was her own ability that allowed her to seize the opportunity to get to know Su Mo.
However, with the vast difference in their statuses now, the arduous task of reporting back to the IPC would likely fall on Aventurine's shoulders.
This little gesture was a hope that Topaz wouldn't throw all the pressure onto him.
The moment the door opened and Topaz stepped out, she immediately sensed something. Her steps paused slightly, and she looked in a certain direction.
Aventurine hadn't noticed anything at first, but seeing Topaz's action, he immediately looked over as well.
Compared to him, who was in charge of gambling, Topaz, who was in charge of debt collection, was inherently stronger in combat. After receiving Su Mo's gift and becoming an Emanator of Preservation, her strength had reached a level Aventurine couldn't hope to reach.
Therefore, it was highly likely that she had sensed something Aventurine hadn't.
Sure enough, after taking two steps forward, Aventurine saw a suspicious figure around the corner.
"Stop!" he immediately shouted, thwarting her intention to flee.
A yellow beret, like a detective's, covered her hair. Large sunglasses concealed her eyes, a mask hid her face, and a dark overcoat completely obscured her figure.
There was no more suspicious outfit than this. Apart from the fair skin of her face and her height, which indicated she was a young girl, it was difficult for an ordinary person to get any other information.
Fortunately, Aventurine was no ordinary person. He noticed a tiny wisp of white down peeking out from under the edge of her beret. With the constant temperature system inside Penacony, it was obviously not a winter outfit.
Although there were other possibilities, and it might not be her racial feature, Aventurine had seen a similar being just now, so the first thing that came to mind was naturally this answer.
"A young lady of the Halovian race? This is a top-tier Emanator-level suite. No one without sufficient authority can even reach this floor. And if you're not an acquaintance of Lord Su Mo..."
A flash of white light reflected off his tea-colored sunglasses. Aventurine had a rough idea of her identity. "The songstress of Harmony, Miss Robin?"
At these words, the mysterious person, who was tightly disguised, stiffened slightly. Finally, she sighed and took off her hat and sunglasses, revealing a beautiful face identical to the one on Penacony's promotional posters.
"Yes, it's me. A pleasure to meet you two representatives of the IPC," she said, placing her hands in front of her with practiced social etiquette, her voice extremely dignified.
"A pleasure, Miss Robin."
Topaz walked up to the famous singer. Although her charming appearance made even a woman like her take a second look, she did not let her guard down because of Robin's gentle demeanor.
"This entire floor is Lord Su Mo's room. What are you doing here in such a suspicious outfit, Miss Robin?" she asked, her eyes scrutinizing the young girl before her.
Now that Su Mo was the top priority of the Alliance of Aeons, even if his strength was unparalleled and he didn't need to care about the provocations of petty people, she still couldn't allow such an obvious threat.
It had nothing to do with the other party's abilities; it was a matter of attitude.
"Miss Topaz..." Hearing this, Robin paused, her expression a little awkward.
She had disguised herself, naturally, to visit Su Mo. She didn't mind showing her admiration for him; after all, she truly believed he deserved all the praise in her heart.
But her current sneaky appearance was indeed embarrassing to explain.
She was a public figure, after all. If she told the truth, would Miss Topaz think she was some kind of perverted stalker fan? Even she herself was having a hard time distinguishing herself from a perverted stalker fan.
Fortunately, she had been in many big situations and was no naive fool.
Her thoughts raced like sparks, and she composed herself, speaking with a serious, official tone. "It was the head of the Oak Family, my brother, who asked me to visit Lord Su Mo to ensure that he is being well-hosted."
At the same time, she silently apologized to Sunday in her heart. I'm sorry, Brother. For the sake of your sister's reputation, please allow me to tell a small lie.
With their sibling relationship, as long as the other party didn't specifically confront Sunday, it was impossible to expose her lie.
"Visit Lord Su Mo... in this outfit?" Topaz was naturally not so easily fooled.
Although she didn't think The Family would send Robin, who was not skilled in combat, to assassinate Su Mo, the reason Robin gave and her outfit were a bit hard to believe.
"This... this is to prevent those reporters from creating trouble out of nothing and harming Lord Su Mo's reputation," Robin immediately found a reason.
In fact, this was not an excuse but a description of the truth, so her tone was extremely sincere. "The Charmony Festival is about to begin, and reporters from all sides have gathered in Penacony. It's inevitable that some of them are unruly. And Lord Su Mo's reputation is too high. Only by acting in a low-key manner can we prevent accidents."
If Su Mo's reputation weren't so high, then even if there were rumors, at most it would be about Robin secretly meeting a lover, which would only have a major impact on her own reputation.
But with Su Mo's current status, if they were to be photographed, the headline would inevitably be something like The Family orders star Robin to "serve".
Compared to a being who had created an Aeon, a mere singer could only be described as a plaything. That would damage Su Mo's reputation.
"Makes sense..." Topaz nodded, but from her expression, it was clear she didn't fully believe it.
"You're very considerate of Lord Su Mo's experience, Miss Robin," she said.
"Not at all! Lord Su Mo deserves this kind of treatment! Ahem... I mean, as a member of the Oak Family, it is my duty to ensure Lord Su Mo has a pleasant experience in Penacony."
Hearing Topaz's praise, Robin instinctively became excited. But she quickly remembered her persona and switched back to official wording.
After speaking, she said with some anticipation, "By the way, Miss Topaz! Since your business is concluded, I should be able to visit Lord Su Mo now, right? Will I be disturbing his rest?"
Seeing her excited yet nervous appearance, Topaz was slightly taken aback and gave up on her questioning, simply nodding. "Lord Su Mo is not resting yet. If you want to visit, it should be fine!"
"Thank you, Miss Topaz! I'll go right now!" Robin immediately said happily.
With light steps, she suppressed her joyful heart and, as if dancing, quickly arrived at Su Mo's door.
Seeing her taking deep breaths and giving herself a pep talk like a young girl, Topaz finally relaxed. "Let's go," she said to Aventurine.
"Just leave like this?" Aventurine was a little surprised. "You completely believed her?"
From his rich experience, he was quite sure that Robin had been hiding something, or at least hadn't told the whole truth. In terms of professional experience, Topaz was no less than him. She shouldn't have failed to see it.
"Of course I don't completely believe her," Topaz replied as a matter of course. She was no naive fool. "But it doesn't matter if she's hiding something or not."
Expecting everyone to tell the truth was impossible in itself. "What's important is that she will never do anything to harm Lord Su Mo," Topaz said with certainty.
"Why are you so sure?" Aventurine was a little puzzled. At least, with his experience, he couldn't make such a judgment.
"Other things can be faked, but instinctual reactions cannot." Recalling the sparkling eyes Robin had when she mentioned Su Mo, Topaz reaffirmed her judgment.
"Although I don't know the reason, Miss Robin clearly has an extremely favorable impression of Lord Su Mo. Her eager eyes are very similar to Miss March 7th's when she mentions Lord Su Mo."
"I see." This reason sounded a bit abstract, but Aventurine quickly understood. He had noticed March 7th's sparkling eyes when she secretly glanced at Su Mo. Although it seemed a little silly, that sincerity could not be faked.
If Robin's behavior was similar to March 7th's... then she was indeed trustworthy.
"I didn't expect the famous Miss Robin to also be attracted to Lord Su Mo. Thinking about it, it's actually quite normal." Aventurine also had a considerable filter for his life mentor, so he wasn't surprised by this result.
But after thinking about it, he was suddenly taken aback and said, "Do you think there's a possibility that... Miss Robin wasn't lying just now, that she was indeed sent by Sunday?"
"Why do you say that?" Topaz was a little puzzled.
"Think about it carefully," Aventurine explained seriously. "The Hunt sent Jingliu, Erudition sent Herta, and our company sent you..."
"Is it possible that The Family has the same idea as us, which is why they ordered Sunday to send his own sister to use a honey trap on Lord Su Mo?"
Topaz hadn't thought of this before. Aventurine's reminder gave her a slight shock. "Are you saying that The Family, in order to win over Lord Su Mo, had Sunday offer up the saintess of Harmony?"
"Exactly!" Aventurine immediately nodded.
It wasn't that he was being malicious in his speculation. With Su Mo's current status, if Sunday was truly loyal to The Family and willing to make a contribution, it was highly likely that he would make this choice.
Robin herself already had a very favorable impression of Su Mo. Even if Sunday valued his sister greatly, he might not oppose such a plan.
*"Hiss"*—Topaz's heart skipped a beat. So, this little songbird is here to compete for Lord Su Mo's attention? As long as Sunday was loyal to The Family, this inference was flawless.
"It's possible, no, it's highly likely—"
"Impossible! Absolutely impossible!" Topaz nodded, but before she could finish, she was interrupted by a familiar, angry voice.
The two immediately looked up at the source of the voice and quickly identified the speaker. It was a purple crow.
"Is this?"
Just as Topaz was about to say something, she heard the crow continue angrily, "I would never betray and abandon my own sister, nor would I ever offer Robin as a gift! You dogs of the IPC, don't project your filthy thoughts onto our family!"
There was no need for analysis or recollection. Who else but Sunday could speak in this tone and be so furious?
Obviously, he had been eavesdropping on them all along and couldn't hold it in any longer, jumping out to refute their slander.
If it were about someone else, it would be one thing, but they were talking about his sister. If it were just suspicion, it would be one thing; as the head of The Family, he couldn't expose his convenient surveillance methods just because of some rumors.
But to say that he, her older brother, would actively push Robin into Su Mo's room—that, Sunday absolutely could not tolerate. He was not a generous person to begin with, and when it came to his sister, he couldn't tolerate a single speck of dust in his eyes.
If he wasn't afraid of hurting his sister's feelings, he would have locked her up at home long ago and not let her out. How could he possibly do something to sell her out? No older brother could tolerate such slander.
"Uh... sorry." Seeing Sunday's genuine anger, Topaz felt a little awkward. No matter what, their speculation had been a bit too immoral.
"I'm sorry, Mr. Sunday. I had no intention of defiling the bond between you and your family," Aventurine said even more sincerely, taking off his hat and bowing his head slightly in apology.
When it came to family, he and Sunday were actually very similar. They were both willing to give everything for their family. So, he could fully understand Sunday's anger at this moment.
"However... it was your sister who just said that her visit was at your instruction." After a slight pause, Aventurine's tone changed, and he looked at the beautiful figure that had been standing at the door of Su Mo's room for several minutes.
"And, judging by Miss Robin's performance, she does seem to be in a state of... uh~ one-sided fanatical emotion?" he said, choosing his words carefully so as not to hurt Sunday's already frayed nerves.
Little did he know that this deliberately evasive tone was even more heart-wrenching.
"..."
Looking at his sister in the distance, who had already taken off her disguise, smoothed out her skirt, combed her hair to show her most beautiful self, and was even using a small makeup mirror to carefully touch up her makeup, Sunday took a deep breath.
He sadly discovered that he couldn't refute a single word.
Anyone seeing her behavior would make the wrong judgment, right? And if he wasn't afraid of exposing that he had been following her all along, he really wanted to send the crow to remind her.
Sister! With your conditions, even if you've taken a liking to someone, you don't have to be so humble, do you?