Haruto rushed out into the hallway, expecting to see either Daisy or Philo, but stopped short when he saw a completely unfamiliar figure standing by the door.
It was a young woman wearing a deep brown hooded cloak, pulling her hood low to hide her face. Though her features were mostly obscured in shadow, it was impossible to miss the heavy gold chains draped around her neck and the expensive gold rings sparkling on her fingers, shouting wealth from a mile away. Even her hands and wrists were adorned with fine gold jewelry.
She turned her head, blinking in surprise as she looked at Haruto. "Oh, sorry... I think I came to the wrong apartment."
Haruto blinked, raising a hand. "Excuse me, who are you?"
The girl tilted her chin up slightly. "What does it matter to you what my name is?"
Before she could turn away, a sudden realization hit her behind the hood. Wait... isn't this Haruto? What is he even doing here?!
Just then, the heavy master bedroom door slammed open behind Haruto. Lilith stormed out into the hallway, her face twisted in absolute fury. "Who is it?! Why are they interrupting right now?!"
Haruto held up his hands defensively, pointing toward the stranger. "It's just a lady who accidentally ended up at the wrong door!"
Lilith glared daggers at the hooded figure, her voice dropping into an annoyed hiss. "Did you really have to pick the worst timing possible to show up?!"
The hooded girl flinched under Lilith's intense glare, murmuring a quick "Sorry," before turning on her heel and hurrying down the corridor to make a fast escape.
As the girl hurried down the corridor, Haruto watched her back, a strange sense of familiarity nagging at the back of his mind.
"Wait, hold on a second," Lilith called out, stepping forward. She rushed after her and gently stopped her by the arm.
The girl startled offering an apologetic nod. "Look, I'm really sorry. If you need money or something, just take it—"
"Money? What are you even talking about?" Lilith said, crossing her arms with a sharp glare.
The hooded girl turned around, her voice tense. "I'm sorry for wasting your time. Just let me go."
"Don't change the subject," Lilith snapped, her eyes narrowing. "Why are you acting so secretive? Show me your face."
"Why does it matter what my face looks like?" the girl argued back.
"Take the hood off right now," Lilith demanded, her tone leaving no room for argument.
With a heavy, reluctant sigh, the girl reached up and pulled back her deep brown hood, letting it drop to her shoulders.
Her face was revealed—a mature, strikingly elegant woman around Haruto and Lilith's age. She wore gorgeous gold feather earrings, and intricate gold ornaments woven through her hair, making her look like royalty.
Haruto stared at her, his eyes widening as his brain frantically searched his memories. Wait a minute... I know I've seen her somewhere before.
Suddenly, it clicked.
Oh! It's Gelli!
The realization hit him like a truck—she was the girl from the Wizard Quest, the owner of the Omnitheater who had handed over all those massive cash bet.
Lilith narrowed her eyes, studying the elegant woman from head to toe. "Oh... I feel like I've seen you somewhere before, but I can't quite remember where."
Before Gelli could offer a vague excuse, Haruto chimed in from behind, his eyes lighting up. "Gelli? Is that really you?"
Gelli flinched, shooting him a helpless look.
Lilith whipped her head around to look at Haruto, completely stunned. "You know her?"
"Come on, remember?!" Haruto urged, stepping closer. "Wizard Quests! The massive bet someone placed on me for one billion credits!"
Lilith's eyes widened as the memory snapped into place. "Oh, right! And her name was Gelli, wasn't it?"
"Bingo," Haruto said with a grin, pointing at the gold-adorned woman. "She's the one."
Gelli let out a resigned sigh, offering a weak, awkward smile. "Ah, yeah... it's really me."
Lilith crossed her arms, raising an eyebrow. "Okay, but what are you even doing here?"
"Yeah," Haruto chimed in, tilting his head. "Aren't you supposed to be back in Allesta?"
Gelli shot them an incredulous look. "I could be asking you the exact same thing. What are you two doing here?"
"We're here on business," Lilith replied smoothly.
Gelli's eyes widened slightly in surprise. "Oh? Is your whole team here, too?"
"Yeah," Haruto nodded.
Gelli's expression lit up with a warm, welcoming smile. "Well, it's actually really nice to run into you guys—"
Before she could finish, Lilith stepped right into her path, cutting her off with a sharp glare. "Hold on. You haven't answered my question yet. Why are you here in this sector?"
Gelli raised her hands defensively, offering a nervous smile. "Like I said before, I just ended up here by accident!"
Lilith narrowed her eyes, stepping closer with an intimidating aura. "An accident? Fine, let's say it was an accident. But if you already knew Haruto, why were you running away like you had a bounty on your head? There's definitely something fishy going on."
Sensing the mounting pressure, Gelli flinched, a cold sweat beading on her neck. "It's not like that—!"
"Then why are you really here?" Lilith cut her off, her voice dropping into a sharp, interrogative tone.
"I'm here on business too, okay?!" Gelli blurted out, her composure cracking under the intense scrutiny.
Lilith stopped dead in her tracks, blinking in surprise. "Oh? Business?" Then, her gaze shifted suspiciously back toward Haruto, turning to Gelli.
"Wait. How do you know this place?"
"Well... I come around often enough," Gelli admitted, glancing sideways at Haruto.
Lilith crossed her arms, her eyes darting between the two of them. "Is there something you're trying to hide in here?"
Gelli shook her head frantically, waving her hands in front of her face. "No, no, absolutely not!"
Lilith raised an eyebrow, stepping right into Gelli's personal space. Her eyes narrowed into sharp slits. "Do you know Daisy or Philo?"
At the mention of those two names, a cold bead of sweat trickled down Gelli's temple, and her posture visibly stiffened. "I... what do you mean?" she stammered, trying to play dumb.
"Just answer what I'm asking you. Nothing more, nothing less," Lilith commanded, her tone dropping into a icy, uncompromising whisper. She stepped back toward the doorway, gesturing firmly with her thumb. "Get inside the apartment."
Haruto rushed forward, trying to intervene. "Whoa, Lilith, take it easy! Why are you putting so much pressure on her? What did she even do?"
Lilith snapped her head around, fixing Haruto with a glare that could freeze hell over. "Haruto. Shut up for two minutes, okay?"
Haruto immediately zipped his lips, holding his hands up in surrender.
Gelli looked anxiously at the apartment door, biting her lip. "Look... I really have work to take care of—"
"It won't take much time," Lilith interrupted smoothly, crossing her arms as she waited at the threshold. "Inside. Now."
As they all stepped inside the apartment, Gelli nervously smoothed down her clothes, looking around the sleek room before turning back to them. "Okay... so what do you want?"
Click.
Gelli flinched, spinning around just as Lilith pulled the apartment door shut and firmly locked the deadbolt.
"Why are you locking the door?!" Gelli asked, her voice pitching up in panic.
"Just so nobody disturbs us," Lilith replied smoothly, walking over to the couch and sitting down with a relaxed posture. She rested her chin on her hand, fixing Gelli with an unblinking, analytical stare. "Now, let's skip the games. Spill it... are you the Founder?"
Gelli forced an awkward, plastic smile, instantly sitting up straight and waving her hands dismissively. "What? No! What kind of crazy question is that?!"
Lilith didn't blink, her expression remaining dead serious.
Haruto stepped in, crossing his arms as he pieced the clues together. "Wait... think about it. Daisy explained the three types of Founders to me." He held up a finger for each one.
"There's the Technology Founder, the Cheat Founder, and the Money Founder."
Lilith snapped her head toward Haruto, her eyes lighting up. "Money? Look at all that gold!" She gestured toward Gelli's heavy chains and rings. "She literally hands out billions in credits like pocket change through Wizard Quests!"
Gelli let out a nervous, high-pitched laugh, shaking her head. "What on earth are you even talking about?"
"Don't play dumb," Lilith countered, leaning forward with a sharp grin.
"InfactPhilo already told me. The name of the third Founder—the Money Founder—is Gelli."
Haruto blinked in surprise. "Seriously?"
Lilith shot him an exasperated look. "What, didn't Daisy ever tell you?"
"No, I never even thought to ask," Haruto muttered.
"You're honestly an idiot sometimes," Lilith sighed, shaking her head.
Before Haruto could argue back, Gelli let out a defeated sigh, her shoulders slumping as the fake smile vanished. "Alright, fine. You got me... I am the Founder."
Lilith crossed her arms, raising an eyebrow. "Then care to explain what you're doing here in this sector?"
Gelli bit her lip, looking away awkwardly. "Well... I heard that two of the other Founders were meeting up, so I just thought... maybe I should come see what's going on. Is there something wrong with that?"
Haruto's jaw dropped slightly. He stared at her in utter disbelief. "Wait... what?!"