player POV-Chapter 53: Trap 8

When he came close enough to us, Silvar stopped just two steps away. He directed his gaze straight at Kar, who was sprawled in front of me, his body stiff as if the ground itself had pinned him in place. In the moment their eyes met—even if only for a fraction of a second—Kar’s body trembled involuntarily, a clear shudder running from his head to the tips of his fingers.

Kar opened his mouth with difficulty, as if the words were stuck in his throat, then spoke in a broken, trembling voice:

" I... I— "

But his voice was cut off abruptly.

"Shh..."

Silvar’s voice was low, calm in a terrifying way. He took a small step forward, then leaned slightly toward Kar and calmly raised a finger, placing it against his lips to silence him before he could finish speaking.

A heavy silence filled the space for a moment before Silvar finally spoke, his tone still calm.

"Didn’t I warn you?"

He lifted his finger slightly away from Kar’s mouth.

"Didn’t I tell you not to do anything—anything at all—without my permission?"

He tilted his head slightly, his eyes never leaving Kar’s trembling face.

"Even if you were going to breathe... you should have asked for my permission first."

He paused, as if giving his words time to sink deep into Kar’s soul, then continued, his voice growing colder.

"And yet... here you are."

His gaze sharpened, his voice dropping even lower.

"Attacking one of your own teammates... behind my back."

Kar didn’t say a word. His body was still shaking, his breathing unsteady, while Silvar stood before him, frighteningly calm.

Even I felt a slight fear creep into my chest for a few seconds.

Silvar slowly straightened up, then looked toward me and spoke in a calm voice, free of any obvious threat—yet leaving no room for objection.

"Can you overlook what happened here?"

He paused briefly, then continued in the same tone.

"I’ll take care of him on your behalf... so you can leave."

As soon as he finished speaking, he turned his gaze back to Kar, who was still trembling in place.

When I heard his words, I found myself seriously considering leaving.

In truth... even if he hadn’t said it, I didn’t want to get involved with him any further. My shoulder was aching badly from the injury Kar had caused, the pain so intense it was hard to describe.

Leaving now... really was an excellent idea.

Going back to my room, calmly treating my wounds, taking a warm shower to wash away everything that happened today, then lying down and sleeping peacefully without nightmares... just imagining it made my chest feel lighter, and a faint sense of relief slipped into me without permission.

I got lost in that thought for several long seconds—longer than I should have.

"What’s wrong?"

Silvar’s voice pulled me back to reality.

"Why are you still standing there? Didn’t I tell you I’d take care of him on your behalf?"

Then he added, in a calm but irritating tone

"Or do you not trust me?"

Trust you?

I almost laughed inwardly.

How am I supposed to trust someone like you in the first place? Do you think I’m an idiot?

Of course... I couldn’t say any of that out loud. The words stuck in my chest, and I remained silent.

I raised my gaze to him, and our eyes met. His eyes were strangely calm.

I shifted my gaze back to Kar.

He was still trembling, his breathing uneven, as if waiting for a verdict he didn’t know when it would be spoken.

I was just about to turn around and leave.

Just one step... and this would all be over.

But at that moment, a brilliant idea flashed through my mind.

I immediately turned back toward them.

Silvar looked at me with clear surprise—his expression finally showing after all that prolonged calm—then spoke in a slightly hoarse voice, impatience beginning to surface

"What’s wrong with you? Why are you still standing there? Just tell me... what do you want?"

I hesitated for a fraction of a second. It wasn’t fear, but careful thought about what I was going to say.

Then I spoke in a slightly lowered voice.

"Alright... in fact, I do trust you"

I paused briefly, then added, gesturing toward my injured shoulder.

"But I want some simple compensation for what happened to me. As you can see... I was badly injured."

He looked at me in clear surprise, his eyes widening slightly. His expression shifted a bit before he asked more directly

"And what do you mean by compensation? Do you want me to kill him for you? Or seriously injure him?"

I shook my head forcefully, rejecting his words immediately. What would I even gain from killing him?

He looked at me again, puzzled by my behavior, then said

"Then... what do you want?"

I shifted my gaze between him and Kar, who had struggled to his feet, his face pale and body still tense.

"It’s nothing big."

I paused, then continued in a calm tone.

"All I want is a small compensation... I want him to compensate me with some money."

Both of them looked at me in astonishment. Silvar raised an eyebrow slightly.

"And how much compensation do you want?"

This was the opportunity I had been waiting for. If I hesitated now, it would slip away.

I spoke as if I were asking for something ordinary—almost trivial.

"It’s not a large amount... all I want is four hundred thousand Athena."

The next moment, Kar exploded, shouting in disbelief

"What the hell are you talking about?! You call that a small amount?! What nonsense is this?! Are you trying to rob me?!"

Damn... maybe I got a little carried away and asked for more than I should have. Even I almost fainted when I said that number—so what about him?

Even so... I didn’t back down.

I raised my voice as well, addressing him directly.

"And what did you expect?! You tried to kill me!"

I took a step forward. I was overwhelmed by anger at how he had treated me—I could no longer suppress it. 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

"Do you think my life is that cheap?! And why are you shouting anyway? Do you think you’re the only one allowed to be angry and yell?!"

Silence fell suddenly.

Neither of them could respond immediately. They stood there, staring at me in genuine shock, as if they hadn’t expected this from me.

Finally, Silvar spoke in a calm voice.

"Alright... you’ll get what you want."

I froze in place.

He agreed? Just like that?

I nodded forcefully, agreeing without hesitation, as if afraid he might change his mind if I delayed even a moment.

Then Kar tried to object quickly:

"But—"

He didn’t finish.

Silvar cut him off with a cold look alone—one look was enough to make Kar’s body tremble again and swallow the rest of his words.

Yes... Shut up. And give me my money.

Even I felt a shiver run through my body at that moment, but I didn’t care much.

I was... happy.

Finally, my luck had improved—at least a little.