Chapter 96 – Meadow Wealth [4]

The Tycoon’s heiress was thoroughly meticulous in her dealings.

Not only did she make Cassius sign a contract created by a Tier Four Artifact owned by the Wealth family — one that would result in a judgment before the Church of Death if either party dared to break any clause — she also made him swear an Oath to Mother System covering truthfulness, confidentiality, integrity and respect.

Cassius had no problem with any of it. In fact, he was quite pleased, since it meant he could move forward with genuine trust in Meadow.

The two then discussed how the Company’s earnings would be divided.

Even though Meadow’s inheritance was something Cassius couldn’t fully fathom, he didn’t want the woman working for nothing. Especially knowing how exhausting the role could be.

So after a brief negotiation that went surprisingly smoothly — thanks to her insufferable indifference toward money — Meadow would receive 15% of the shares.

Cassius and Isolde would own the rest, primarily using it to fund their Sect and other ventures as needed.

Afterwards, the two covered many things concerning the contract and how the Company would function.

It was then that the Last Born of the Desdemona shared his real intentions, when Meadow asked the direct question.

He told her honestly that the Company was a front, and that his actual goal was to build a hidden sect unknown to anyone outside its members, funded by the money the company generated.

A sect whose missions would be anything he or any other member deemed necessary, while sharing information freely between themselves.

"Ah!" Meadow had said upon hearing it, visibly surprised by the honesty, she knew Cassius could have easily omitted that part without technically lying.

"I knew it was strange for someone like you to build a merchant organisation."

It was somewhat careless to share that with Meadow before ensuring she wouldn’t breathe a word to anyone else. But Cassius had faith.

And he was right.

After numerous complaints about why he liked being sneaky and dishonest despite being oddly transparent with her, Meadow reluctantly accepted to become part of the Sect. Cassius named it:

Fallen Angel.

At the choice of name, Ananke felt another shift in the tapestry of Fate. Something odd was stirring: an echo from a distant past, of an age long forgotten slowly coming awake.

She observed it for a moment, then closed her eyes, a knowing aura settling around her, before turning her attention back to her Blessed as he concluded the deal that would shake the kingdom alongside Meadow Wealth.

"Who would have thought?" Meadow said, walking beside Cassius, accompanying him down to the lowest floor. Nearly everything had been settled.

"I would never have believed, truly, never in my life, that one day I would work with you, Cassius." She shook her head. "Let alone join a secret Sect with you."

She shook her head again, still bewildered by the whole thing.

She admitted to herself that the prospect of having a reader and Editor she could share her work with openly — without hiding her face — filled her with a reckless wave of joy.

So joyful, in fact, that she had accepted several ridiculous things during their discussion without much resistance.

Now, Meadow could only pray she wouldn’t regret it later. The consequences, if she did, would be steep.

"Life is unpredictable, as you well know." Cassius nodded, then thought of something. "Which is why I want to make a few things clear."

"Hm?" Meadow glanced at him sideways, their steps echoing against the mirror-like stone of the staircase.

No one else was around. Just them.

"You would do me a great favour by not getting too close to either Anesthesia or Emrys." He advised. "You can, if you choose to. But always be careful about what you say or do around them."

"Oh my." She whispered. "You don’t like them, I take it?"

"Me?" Cassius exclaimed with a perfectly innocent expression, pointing at himself. "Queen above, no! It’s them who don’t like me. And I’ll have you know, Meadow, I have done nothing to warrant such feelings from either of them."

"And I don’t believe a word of that." Meadow scoffed. "We have only spent a few hours together and I already can’t bear your presence. Just disappear and contact me through messages only. Your poor face annoys me."

"Can you stop saying poor?"

"If you are poor, you are poor."

"Well, that will change soon enough." He grinned. "I will provide you with the first batch of artifacts after the Event. In the meantime, we need to make our Merchant Company — which I’ve named Devil’s Advocate — official with all the required paperwork. I trust you with that."

"I will handle it." She nodded. "What about the Sect? Who are the other members?"

"For now," Cassius said honestly, knowing she had taken an Oath of Secrecy and Loyalty, "it is only you, Isolde and I. That won’t last long, I already have my eye on a few people."

"I only want to work with competent people." She replied.

"That is not something to worry about." He nodded, then his tone turned serious. "I will warn you, though. Our Fallen Angel Sect will not be one of those gentle organisations that goes around saving people."

He paused. "In the same way we won’t go out of our way to hurt people needlessly, we won’t burden ourselves with saving them either. It is a Sect that serves our goal. And our goal is not to be heroes."

"I am not a naive woman, Cassius." Meadow rolled her eyes. "And I never expected anything noble from a Desdemona anyway."

"Yet you still accepted. You surprise me."

"I am most likely a fool. A fool with a dream." Meadow’s lips twitched. "Just keep your word about being my Editor. I will send you what I write every Sunday. You better read it, Cassius, and tell me honestly what you think."

"Don’t worry. People call me Cassius the Trustworthy."

"That is a lie."

His lips twitched. "I forgot about your Aspect for a moment."

Meadow scoffed, only then noticing they had reached the lowest floor.

Cassius cleared his throat after a few seconds. "Still, I want to tell you what I think you should do right now."

The Tycoon’s heiress looked at him, instantly focused, their feet carrying them toward the wide doors of the reception hall.

"For now," he continued, "do not attempt to write something as difficult and complex as what you had planned. The concept is good, but let your ideas marinate a little longer. In the meantime, write something simpler to develop a feel for the craft and discover the style you want to pursue."

"What kind of simple things?"

"Start with a journal approach." Cassius advised. "Every Sunday, write what you went through during the week. First person, of course. Try to incorporate as many things as possible. Be wild, and most importantly, be honest about yourself."

She nodded calmly, her glasses lending her an oddly alluring, serious look. "For how long?"

"Until you are comfortable enough to articulate your thoughts clearly and in a way that makes me want to keep reading." He said. "The point is not simply to write your thoughts down. It’s to write them in a way that makes them interesting and engaging."

"Understood." She nodded firmly, lips pressed in determination, fist clenched. "I know what to do!"

She looked as though she were preparing for war.

Cassius shook his head in wry amusement just as they stepped back into the reception hall.

His eyes immediately found Océane’s, whose face brightened like a flower at the sight of him.

Beside his loyal maid was the same young man he had spoken with earlier — Omm Min Jambar.

He was standing to the side, reading seriously through his applications as if searching for something he could adjust to improve his chances.

At that sight, Cassius’s eyes flashed with an unreadable light.

He leaned his head and whispered to Meadow. "Consider that brown-skinned young man over there as a potential candidate for Devil’s Advocate."

He nudged almost imperceptibly toward Omm.

Meadow, feigning disinterest while sweeping her eyes around the hall — which had gone quietly attentive at their arrival — noticed Omm and his notably worn clothes.

She growled softly. "Why?"

"He is looking for work. And he is from a village outside the cities...a foreigner in a sense."

By now, Omm had noticed them and was watching with steady hazel eyes. Océane was visibly hesitating between approaching and holding her ground.

"Oh? Do you have a soft spot for foreigners?"

Cassius smiled, and this one was edged with an unexpected sadness and melancholy. "Yes." He whispered, surprising Meadow with the tone. "I actually do. So look into him. If he is not worthy, don’t bother. But if he is, make sure you have him swear an Oath worded tightly enough that even a thought that could cause us trouble would end him."

"Will he be part of the Sect?"

Cassius shook his head. "You are the only one inside the Company who will be. Anyone else who works there will be limited to it. I only need the money and connections DA will generate. Isolde and I will handle the Sect’s membership."

Meadow nodded, apparently satisfied. "Ah well, I will look at his application then."

Cassius smiled and murmured a soft thank you.

They arrived in front of Océane and Omm. The maid immediately bowed her head and fell into step behind him.

Cassius looked at Omm and gave him one last nod. "Omm."

"Yes, sir." He said calmly.

"You must be quite a lucky man."

At that, Omm couldn’t help but smile widely, his handsomeness blossoming through his unkempt appearance, his eyes shimmering with happiness and gratitude.

"I am very lucky, sir." He bowed his head with a respect only he understood the reason for. "Most of all, I am lucky to have been born the son of my parents." 𝐟𝕣𝕖𝐞𝐰𝕖𝚋𝐧𝗼𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝗰𝐨𝐦

"A filial son." Cassius nodded, walking away with Océane after a brief farewell glance toward Meadow. "I like you more with every exchange, Omm. I hope your good luck stays with you long enough."

With that, Cassius walked out of the building, too tired and drained to pay attention to the numerous girls quietly taking pictures of him as he passed.

’Sigh. My wife might have you all killed if she finds out.’

At that thought, he disappeared from view, leaving behind Omm, who watched his retreating figure until it was completely gone.

The young man lowered his head then, smiling faintly, and whispered...

’Father was right.’

His smile deepened.

’You are an angel, Cassius Desdemona.’

—End of Chapter 96—