The Young Master in the Shadows

Chapter 232: Fake (4)

It was dinner time when Monica and the Twins returned home to see that ‘Victor’ was sitting at the head of the dinner table as Eta sat on ‘his’ lap and fed ‘him’.

“Good evening, young master,” they bowed to ‘Victor’ as Monica also nodded to ‘him’.

Monica was still in shock from what happened that day and only talked a little, but the twins knew that this was temporary. Sooner or later she would get better. That’s why they decided to stick to her.

“Oh… Ah… You are late!” ‘Victor’ said as Eta wiped ‘his’ chin

“We went to Monica’s home to get some of her clothes,” Mina said,

“Oh… I see. Go wash up and come have a bite,” ‘he’ Said,

The girls nodded and walked away with Monica who frowned. Usually, she would have a very strange feeling when she looked at Victor, but this time it was as if she was looking at a normal pervert. Nothing unusual.

“Ohhh!” she bumped into someone as soon as she reached the corridor. It was that girl, Margret, who was observing the dinner table from afar.

“Sorry,” she said, she had been absent-minded lately. She turned to leave but Margret caught her arm.

“You frowned when you looked at Victor earlier. Why?” Margret asked

“Ah… It’s nothing…” Monica said,

“Speak!” Margret asked again squeezing her arm and shaking her.

“I just thought he felt strange… He is usually more….” Monica blushed, ”Handsome...” she whispered.

“Oh… I see, I felt the same, “Margret said, letting go of Monica who frowned and then turned to follow the twins upstairs… They carried her bags by themselves, telling her that she was too frail for that.

“You too?” A girl’s voice startled her making her stop in her tracks. It was that little girl who served Lara… What was her name again? El!

“You felt something strange too?” Margret asked with a frown, she didn't like El. This little girl was too foul-mouthed even for her.

“Yes! It is as if big brother Victor is not there… He looks wrong, and smells funny too!” El frowned,

“Smell!” Margret exclaimed. Didn’t Victor once scold Lily for smelling things, telling her something about soul smell … “What does Victor smell like usually, and what is the difference now?” She carefully asked as she grabbed El away from the dining room's line of sight. Monica moved with them, she wanted to listen.

“Ah…” El frowned, she had never thought of that. “Usually he smells like some… Like that sweet-smelling bottle that uncle black used to keep under the bed, but better… Today he smells like… “ She pondered, “Like a wet chicken in a diaper?“

“A wet chicken?” Monica asked.

“Um…His looks are a little strange too. It is as if I am looking at him through an old window…” El frowned, not really finding the right words to describe things.

“...” Margret didn’t know what to say, she had a crazy thought. Ever since ‘Victor’ came to her room today she had the feeling that he had something missing about him, but she couldn't put her finger on it.

“I smelled someone like that before…” El added with a thoughtful expression, “It was that chicken boy…That trany… Alex! He smelled like that too… ” El said, making Margret open her eyes wide… ALEX! She hadn't seen her since the morning. Could it be….

“Come meet me at the study!” Victor’s voice startled them. They stepped to the side and looked into the dining room. ‘Victor’ could be seen having fun at the dinner table, completely ignoring them.

“It’s the real me, I am at the study, don’t make me repeat myself or I will spank your butts!” The voice ordered again… It was definitely Victor.

“Let’s go,” Margret said as they headed to the study on the other side of the mansion.

Reaching there, they took a deep breath as Margret opened the door and entered first, followed by Monica and El who made sure nothing happened to the other two girls before stepping in.

Victor was sitting there at his disk under a mountain of documents.

“Close the door and sit down,” He said,

Margret nodded, then dragged Monica who started hyperventilating to sit down next to her on a couch. El closed the door and then found a seat near it.

They watched as Victor first wrote something then closed his notebook and looked at them with a smile.

“You didn’t disappoint me,” he said, “You are the only ones who found that something was amiss,” he said,

“Is it Alex?” Margret had to make sure, that b*tch took her toys!

“Yes. I am using my skill through him as training, I will be taking him with me tomorrow, and he will act as my double.” Victor said, then looked at Monica and El who didn’t understand what he meant… Those two were not players. But it was time for them to know some things.

“Look at this.” He said as his shape slowly turned into that of a demon. The handsome kind with two ebony horns and elegant tattoos on his now pale white face.

Monica froze in her seat as she began to breathe faster while El, who was still thinking logically, jumped to the door. She couldn’t open it… She couldn’t even find it anymore. The door was nowhere to be found!

“Sit down El, This is just an illusion,” Victor who appeared in front of her said, startling her. She quickly stepped back and assumed a defensive position that she learned from Lara.

Too bad for her, Victor knew how to easily resolve her amateur martial arts. He casually stepped in her direction as she tried to step back again but failed as she realized that he was holding a whip in his hand and it was tying her up. She was completely paralyzed. When did he take it out?

She had no time to think as a moment later, Victor was in front of her. She closed her eyes in fear, feeling him carry her limp body and put it in his mouth…. No, he put her down next to Margret who was enjoying the show.

El was shocked as the whip vanished a second later and Victor returned to his seat. His shape was that of a human once more.

“You are a demon?” Monica asked in anticipation, a very hot demon! She always liked those trashy novels. Was she in a domineering CEO novel or a fantasy one? Does it matter?

“Sorry to disappoint your wild imagination, but no.” Victor said as if he read her dirty mind, “I am 90% human for now. This is magic, illusion Magic… I can fly too!” he said. He didn’t expect such a reaction from her. Wasn’t his effect on her a little too strong?

Well, what would he expect from a teenage girl? He got so used to Lily’s and Margret’s mature reactions that he totally forgot about the girls’ age.

“Are you a wizard?” Monica asked. Wizards were cool too.

El wasn’t completely relaxed yet. But after hearing the question she was a little less edgy and more curious as she looked at him with some anticipation… She was acting.

“In a way… I have magic skills. “ He said with a chuckle, making illusionary flames appear and disappear on his fingertips.

“Why are you showing this to us now?” Monica asked again, licking her lips… Would he bite her and turn her into one of his kind now?

“It’s time for the two of you to learn the truth, you have your own powers! How do you think you were able to discover my illusion otherwise? Didn’t you see how the girls were throwing themselves at Alex, completely unaware of his identity? Even Theta whom I expected her to notice was completely lost.” Victor said, surprising them.

“W… What do you mean?” Monica asked nervously.

“Well… That day in your house I used my illusion power on you,” he said, surprising her, “I didn’t want you to hear as I questioned Clint,” he said,

“Hear what?” She regained some clarity. She felt it was strange when Clint and Victor stared at each other in silence that day… She was so disturbed by her father’s behavior, that she totally forgot.

“The reason why Clint wanted to marry you. Knowing too much might cause your death,” Victor explained.

“Wasn’t it an old engagement letter?” she asked. She was still upset about that.

“No, it was a fake. The true reason was that you have a special body… Very special,” he said, eyeing Monica carefully and making her blush a little.

“Is that why you also want me?” she asked nervously, as El watched their conversation with interest. She was keeping an eye on the window.

“No, that’s why YOU want me… I want you because I like you.” He said, making her blush. she wanted to hear that line.

“What do you mean? Did you put a spell on me?” She asked as she looked down,

“No need to… I didn’t do anything like that. The special thing about your body makes you like me… Didn’t you notice that you started acting around me? Doesn’t your head feel funny each time you approach me?” Victor asked, making her nod. She didn’t notice it at first, but lately, she felt that this was a bit unnatural. It’s not like she hated it though.

“Your bloodline is resonating with mine… You are not 100% human… You have an otherworldly bloodline like me.” He said,

“Otherworldly bloodline?” She asked, not truly believing.

“Yes, That’s why you discovered Alex, your body didn’t react to him… I tested it that day in the car.” Victor said as he grabbed El who was sneaking toward the window from her shirt’s collar.

“Now, my dear El. Why did you drug Lara?” Victor asked, seemingly changing the subject.

“How do you know that?” She asked as she stopped struggling to break free.

“I told you before, I know everything that happens in this house, including how you put those herbs in Lara’s tea. Thankfully they were harmless.” Victor said, spanking her butt.

“Ah…” She glared at him, “I… She kept wanting to go talk to you to spare me the punishment… I felt strange when I met you in the afternoon, so I wanted to make sure that it was really you…” El complained, grabbing her butt.

“Oh… You did good,” Victor said, surprising her as he put her down on the couch again. “In fact, I am doing this to train the girls as some bad guys might disguise themselves as me someday. I plan to reveal the truth after dinner.” Victor said. The disguise as the master was one of the oldest tricks in the book.

Victor thought for a second as he took a leather book and a needle presenting them to El.

“Drop one drop of blood on this book's cover… I want to see if you have some magical bloodline too,” Victor told El as Monica watched, So that's it! He made her do the same that day.

El hesitated, then looking into his eyes, she slowly did it, she felt like she was selling her soul to the devil, but had no choice… Maybe she will be a witch after this or a magical girl!

Victor looked at the book as her little hand touched it, she looked nervously at it too.

“Nothing?” Victor said as the girl watched, “That’s strange.” He said as he looked back at El who seemed disappointed.

“Are you sure you smelled the difference in Alex?” He asked, she nervously nodded,

“You must know that your smelling power might also be a superpower,” Victor said, making her gasp.

“Really?” She asked,

“Yes, now tell me, what does Margret smell like?” Victor said,

“Ah…” El sniffed a little at her. “Normal? she has some of your smell on her but very faint… and she has some burnt wood smell too.” She said, making Margret almost gasp. She remembered the incense burner that was put over their head when they extracted her soul.

“Good, what about Monica?” He asked as he squinted his eyes, making Monica listen with interest.

“I don’t know how to describe it… It is not bad, but not normal… Somewhat nice… she has some strange old rich ladies smell…” she said,

“It’s called perfume…” Victor said, then sighed, “You might have a gift in identifying souls, and extra fine senses… But no bloodline,” Victor said, looking at her with interest. Does it have something to do with her falling into a wine barrel? Too bad his Knowledge Book was still in cooldown time, and he was completely broke at the moment. So either way, he can't afford it.

“Does that mean I can learn Magic too?” El asked nervously as she looked at him.

“Yes… I have been planning to teach you.” Victor said looking at her, “But you are still too young.” He said, making her disappointed,

“Don’t look like that, when the time is right I will teach you with Lara. But your body is still too weak, you might not take it…” Victor stopped talking. Why did this sound dirty?

“I have been exercising with Lara…” She complained those exercises are not easy. She can barely do a part of what Lara can accomplish.

“That won't do… Lara’s exercises are tailored for her!“ Victor said as a book magically appeared in his hand, It was handwritten by him, “Keep this a secret, Read it and train according to it… Oh, I forgot that you can’t read well… Give it to Lara then and let her explain it to you. This is a martial arts exercise that will make you very strong.” He said putting it in her hand, it had drawings anyway, so it won’t be that hard for her.

“Really?” She asked as she flipped through it, it only had about 20 pages with strange diagrams.

“Yes, don’t worry, Lara can read those… She can exercise it too if she wants as long as she can keep up with her own exercise first. It will help both of you learn magic when the time is right.” He said, tempting her, “Now go show it to her… She will wake up soon.” Victor said. This exercise was an authentic martial art made for younger practitioners.

It was hidden in a stash of documents that were found in some dungeon and thrown into the royal library for archiving. He knew a lot of those and has been transcribing them lately for the girls.

“Ahh… “ El nodded as she headed toward the window. Victor grabbed her again.

“Use the door!” he scolded as he shook his head.

“But...” She said as she looked at the empty wall…. The door was there again! Just like MAGIC!

“Don’t tell anyone about Alex,” he yelled after her as she left the room, shaking his head before turning to look at the nervous Monica and Margret.