Vote Of Confidence

The awkwardness from before was unbearable.

I stood frozen, replaying how I had been in nothing but boxers the whole time.

My cheeks were flushed red and I could still feel shivers down my spine when Grandma gave me 'that' Knowing look-

Nooooo! It's not what she thinks~

Grandma Sylvie, bless her soul, had maintained a straight face.

But the faint twitch of her eyes betrayed her inner struggle not to burst into laughter—or perhaps give me a more questioning look.

"Clean yourself up first, Noah," she had said, her voice unusually calm as she turned on her heel and walked out.

"And eat something. You look like death warmed over. Whatever you're planning can wait until you're not... disgusting."

Disgusting?

Ouch, that stung more than I let on.

And so, here I was, standing under the lukewarm water that sprayed out of the shower head.

Watching the water swirl down the drain, my face burned, not just from the heat but from the sheer humiliation of the earlier scene.

Smooth, Noah. Real smooth.

Running fingers through my wet, black hair; I lathered the soap applied on them as I scrubbed away the dried sweat and faint traces of blood from earlier.

My mind wandered back to her expression when she mentioned Grandpa Venus...The current Patriarch of Romero House-

'That was quite a save though,' I thought.

Me being almost naked actually worked in my favour since Grandma ran away and forgot about the fact that I had still some beans yet to spill.

Huff

I sighed, deciding that anything more about the book or the fact that I somehow knew the future should be kept a secret.

I let out a deep breath, leaning against the shower wall.

The Book of Sin had mentioned something about what the patriarch wanted, I was sure of it.

But my memories of it were starting to get mixed because of all the stress.

It was not like I could not recall and write everything I read in the book to another copy but gaining strength was more important right now. 

I scrubbed harder, trying to shake off the unease clinging to me like the grime on my skin.

If this really was connected to what I'd read… I needed to be prepared.

Once I was done, I stepped out, drying myself with a towel quickly. The cool air of my room greeted me as I changed into fresh clothes. Simple, practical—nothing fancy. I didn't exactly have a wardrobe full of options.

Most of them were a set of white and black coloured T-shirts and a few track pants. 

I know I know,

I am supposed to be a noble and that I had a status...A standard to maintain.

Right?

Then please give this poor noble some gifts and money for I am penniless.

The fact that my so-called noble inheritance was nothing but a creepy old book that disappeared into thin air should tell you enough-

I am a poor noble-

Yes!

I need money.

Give me Money!!

Pheww

"Noah! You better eat something before you start any more of your shenanigans!" Grandma's voice rang from the living room, loud and clear.

I groaned inwardly. She was persistent, I'd give her that. But she had a point.

Whatever I was about to do next wasn't going to be a walk in the park.

Awakening my empty physique was going to be a fucking drag, if I went according to the book of Sin, I had learnt of this method a few years into the future.

I still could not come to terms with if I should trust what was written in the book but if I was being honest..there was no harm in trying to awaken my physique.

I couldn't shake the urgency. The more time I spent delaying, the more restless I felt.

"Fine, I'll eat," I muttered to myself, stepping out into the hallway as I shouted. "But only after I'm done."

Grandma Sylvie was waiting in the living room, sipping from her cup like she hadn't just ordered me to clean up my act.

Her eyes flicked to me as I approached, a faint smirk tugging at her lips.

"Feeling human again?" she teased.

"Depends on your definition of human," I shot back, plopping down on the worn-out couch.

She raised an eyebrow but didn't press further. "At least you don't smell like a sewer anymore. That's progress."

"Thanks for the vote of confidence."

Her smirk widened as she set her cup down. "So? What now? Are you finally going to listen to me and eat?"

I shook my head. "Not yet. There's something I need to do first."

Her expression darkened slightly, but she didn't argue.

"Just don't push yourself too hard," she said quietly.

"I won't," I replied, though we both knew it wasn't a promise I could keep.

As I stood and made my way back to my room, her voice stopped me.

"Noah," she said, her tone softer than before.

I turned to look at her.

"I'm serious about what I said earlier," she continued. "I hope you succeed. Because… things are about to get a lot more complicated."

Her words lingered in the air, heavy with unspoken meaning. I nodded once, not trusting myself to speak.

After all, although she was right... The trouble Ma was speaking about wasn't meeting the Patriarch. 

No.

It was the fact that an assassin was going to come after me tonight.

That and...

Grandma Sylvie was going to die.

***

A/N: This is to inform you that I will be uploading only 1 Chapter a week until April end due to my upcoming exams.

The bonus chapters, however stay.

Every 100 Chapter = 1 Chapter