Julius swallowed dryly. Even after everything, it was still difficult to maintain composure in front of his father. No matter how much time had passed, Johannes's presence alone was enough to make his chest tighten.
A storm of emotions rose within him. Fear, resentment, disgust, and something deeper that he couldn't quite name. It was a familiar sensation that gnawed at his insides every time they met.
And in that moment, Julius understood. No matter the years, no matter the life he lived or the situation he found himself in, he was still chained to the same man.
Johannes Sievernich Schneider.
The man who raised him. The man who broke him. The man he could never escape.
"I heard you called off your engagement."
"...."
That was the first thing his father said. No questions about his recovery, no concern for the son who had spent god knows how long unconscious after an explosion.
But Julius wasn't surprised in the least bit.
"...Because I don't love her anymore."
"You've always been sentimental. That's your greatest flaw, Julius."
"...."
"But perhaps it doesn't matter," Johannes continued. "The Vergissmeinnicht are at the bottom of the barrel when it comes to trade. A fruitless alliance from the start."
At that, Julius understood. His engagement with Aiseline had never been but a whim. Something his father approved simply because he had already expected nothing from it.
"...Father," Julius asked, "how long was I out?"
"Two weeks," Johannes said. "Two weeks because you tried to play hero. Because you got involved in something you were never meant to. But—"
"...."
"For the first time, you've done something good in your life."
"...Yes?"
"I'm putting you in charge of our family's connections with the Secret State Police," Johannes said. "You'll be our representative within the Directorate. Whatever dealings or negotiations come from it, they'll go through you."
Even now, Johannes regarded it as nothing more than an extension of his political agenda. Julius could tell the way his father's mind was already working, calculating what benefits could be drawn from his new position.
There were no expectations. This was just how Johannes had always operated, how he had built himself into one of the most influential figures in modern Germany.
Perhaps that was what it meant to be a Schneider. To see every opportunity, every connection, every person as something to be used, invested in, or discarded.
Dream Industries' success was often credited to the Schneider family's early backing. Others claimed it was the other way around. That the Schneiders had risen because of Dream Industries' rise to dominance in the magi-tech sector.
But Julius knew the truth. Johannes had placed his bets on Dream Industries from the very beginning, back when they were little more than a struggling start-up falling under debt.
Because that was the kind of man his father was. The kind who saw absolution in power. The kind who saw opportunity where others saw ruin. The kind who never gambled unless he was certain he'd win.
If Johannes ever bet it all on black, everyone in the casino would follow suit without him saying a single word. And when the wheel stopped spinning, the entire casino would go bankrupt.
That was the kind of influence he had. The kind of presence that bent the will of others without lifting a finger.
People followed him not out of loyalty, but because he always won.
Johannes Schneider didn't need to command. His certainty alone was enough to make others move.
Yet even a man like that had died a dog's death. And Julius already had a hypothesis about how it happened.
Johannes Sievernich Schneider, the man who had never once tasted defeat, had finally lost to someone.
The man who built an empire on certainty had, for the first time in his life, been outplayed.
"Quite a loyal follower you have, Julius," Johannes said. "Remember what I taught you? Dogs don't bite the hand that feeds them. That boy, Gabriel, dragged you out when you were a hair's breadth from death… even as he was dying himself."
"...."
"Be sure to reward him appropriately."
Moments later, the sound of the guards could be heard from outside the office. They seemed to be in a commotion, muttering about someone forcing their way in. Then came a woman's voice, telling someone to stop.
The door opened. A small girl entered the room, her mother screaming after her from the hallway.
——Anne!
Both Johannes and Julius turned their attention to her. The little girl just stood there, staring at them as if unaware of what kind of room she had just walked into.
Johannes didn't react much. He merely looked at the child once, then at Julius.
"Is this yours?"
"...."
Julius said nothing.
* * *
For the past two weeks, Gabriel had been overseeing the interrogation of the man responsible for planting the explosive in the car.
"I told you everything I know, Knight Gabriel… Just kill me already…"
The man was none other than the driver Gabriel had originally assigned to take Julius back to Berlin.
"Everything you know?" Gabriel scoffed, slamming his fist against the metal table. "I barely know shit, you bastard."
The driver flinched but didn't raise his head. "That's… all I know."
Gabriel's glare hardened. "And I don't know enough."
He leaned forward.
"So, let's start again from the beginning. Who ordered the hit? Who gave you the explosives?"
The driver trembled. Sweat pooled at his brow. "Like I said… I… I never saw their face. Just received a package… the instructions were encrypted."
"You expect me to believe that? That you blew up a car on blind orders?"
"I didn't have a choice!" the man blurted, eyes wide with terror. "They sent me a message before the job… a picture of my wife and son. Said if I didn't do it, they'd disappear next. I—I couldn't risk it."
Gabriel leaned in until his face filled the driver's vision. "And you thought killing your employer would protect them? Do you know whose life you tried to end? A Schneider's life is worth more than your whole family's. Not even your entire ancestry can pay for that."
It was always the same. Every interrogation ended like this. The same pleas, the same excuses, the same empty trail. Just another frightened pawn coerced by someone who didn't exist.
"Then at least tell me this," Gabriel said. "Their voice, how did it sound? Are we looking for a man or a woman?"
"I don't know…" The driver's voice quivered. "It was modulated… so distorted you couldn't tell…"
Gabriel clicked his tongue. "Useless." He turned away, already losing interest. "Take him away."
The guards obeyed, dragging the man from the chair. His muffled sobs echoed down the hallway until the steel door shut.
Gabriel remained standing there, staring at the table. The pattern hadn't changed.
Whoever was behind these attacks knew exactly how to erase their tracks.
It was like chasing a ghost. And deep down, Gabriel was certain that this ghost was the same person responsible for the serial suicides.
At that moment, his phone buzzed.
He answered. "Hello?"
A few seconds later, the call ended. In an instant, he stormed out of the room.
"...Julius."
Julius was awake.