Young Master in the Apocalypse

There was no way Viktor could forget this woman. His hands balled into fists until the tips of his fingers turned white, and many questions appeared in his mind. He was sure he had no more business with them.

"Did they discover that the Witch is Liza? But that is impossible…" he muttered.

Just in case, Viktor asked the Djinn to check their respective strength and found a dozen sky realm among them

"Why do they even bring some Sky Realms here?"

Viktor tried to think of a reason why, but he couldn't think of anything. No one knows Liza's background, and the girl rarely appeared in public. Hell, even while they were doing the expedition in Abyss Pit, she didn't attract much attention from the recruits.

Another probable reason they came is that they were looking for Jessie, but then, why are they searching for a former member they have long considered dead?

Something odd must have happened.

Then, out of the corner of his eyes, he saw Jessie running up. Right when she arrived, Viktor could see that she was sweating, and her expression was twisted into a worried frown.

"Viktor! The Templar soldiers are coming!" she shouted.

Viktor nodded, "Yes, I knew it."

"I don't know why they are coming, but one thing is clear, we need to do something about them as soon as possible," Jessie said. From her voice, it was clear that she was very distressed.

Not long afterwards, Kosta ran up the stairs, and said the same thing with the same worried voice.

With the aid of the Shield Maiden's guards, it would be an easy feat for Viktor to shoo them all away, however, he could not deal with them rashly. There was a chance they would cause a ruckus if they were shooed out.

A ruckus in the first day of opening a bar would be bad for business.

Not only that, the Templar Knights are not exactly from a small organization, if something happened, a lot of bad news would spread, and Viktor can't let his name be mentioned side by side with that religious organization. If any of his two siblings caught wind of such a news, the matter would become more complicated.

After thinking for a while, Viktor finally made his decision.

"Kosta, go greet the Templars and take them all to the VIP room. As for you, Jessie, tell Eva to hide Liza and you need to hide with them as well, do you understand?

The two quickly nodded and ran to do their respective errands.

After they were away, Viktor called for Barry and told him to help prepare a variety of dishes in the VIP room. He had to sigh when he saw Julia's upper-class food, as he would have to serve them for free to the Templars he despised.

"Fuck! Now, my good ingredients are wasted."

Viktor sat at the edge of the sofa and prepared himself. Right now, he looked like a dignified noble, ready to greet their honored guests. Within a few minutes, he could hear the sound of footsteps, and the door opened, revealing knights in full armor and gear. From the 12 knights, only 4 of them entered. Two stood guard at the corner of the room, while the other two were a familiar sort.

Captain Landin and Elena.

"Hello, Romanov, you seem different from the last time we met," Elena said with an arrogant tone.

She was right, the last time they met, Viktor was still too weak.

Her tone was beyond annoying, but remembering their first meeting, where she saved his life, made Viktor feel much more inclined to show some hospitality to them at least. He decided to ignore her taunt and stand up to greet them, "Welcome, long time no see, please take a seat."

Viktor told the two to sit, then flashed them a sincere smile as he poured two glasses of red wine for the two of them. Then, he cut the thigh of a juicy turkey and placed them on two plates for the two to enjoy.

Captain Landin seemed satisfied with Viktor's treatment of him, and the tense situation melted away as they started to talk to each other. The captain even laughed at Viktor's jokes a few times.

The atmosphere became lively and less heavy, however, that did not last long.

Clank!

Elena slammed her empty wine glass onto the table, not hard enough to break it, yet enough to cause a piercing sound. Viktor immediately stopped talking.

"Captain Landin, I don't think we came here to indulge on red wine and luxurious food," Elena said. Her delicate hand held the wine glass tightly.

Viktor clicked his tongue in disdain. His plan to try and defuse the situation failed because of Elena. Thanks to that, Captain Landin's expression turned serious as well.

The formerly lively atmosphere has faded, and a pressure hung in the air. Viktor was alone in the middle of several Templar knights.

"So, tell me then, why are you here?" Viktor asked, forgoing his usual politeness. "We have failed to capture the Witch, but I don't think we have any problems with each other."

He stared at Captain Landin, waiting for his answer. He was curious as to why they came here, especially with 10 Sky Realm fighters in tow. Were they looking for Jessie, or Liza?

Captain Landin shook his head, "That is no longer a problem. We came to look for the Metal Guardian."

Viktor's eyes widened, he didn't expect the Templars to look for the Metal Guardian at all. More questions popped up in his head.

He then laughed, trying to defuse the situation, however, Captain Landin and Elena remained silent.

Elena added, "Viktor Romanov, we are looking for that person. We have spent the last few months in Perm City looking for his whereabouts, and the latest information said he was working under you."

Then, the two explained their reasons to look for the Metal Guardian.

The Vatican City was planning to host a tournament with massive prizes to compete for, and they wanted to invite a lot of the great fighters all around the world, one of them is the Metal Guardian.

Viktor nodded and heard their stories for a while, and after they finished speaking, he spoke.

"I see, that sounds interesting, but you all know that I have just finished opening my club. There are still many things left to do, many errands left to finish. Of course, I will need Metal Guardian by my side, so I will speak for him. He cannot participate."

This tournament held no appeal to him at all. There was no clear prize, and Viktor has his own magical artifact already. Not to mention, the Vatican must have a hidden agenda. There was no way they would give a magical artifact to an outsider without expecting some kind of return.

It was clear, something was fishy.

Hearing Viktor's answer, Captain Landin and Elena looked at each other. Then, they started to whisper amongst themselves.

He narrowed his eyes seeing the two Templars staring at each other. After a few seconds, Captain Landin and the two Sky Realm Templar knights decided to vacate the premises, leaving Elena and Viktor alone.

Somehow, Viktor couldn't help but have a bad feeling about this.

"Viktor Romanov, I know your little secret."

Viktor's eyes widened. He was surprised, but he tried to contain himself. There was no way Elena knows about the Metal Guardian's identity.

"Probably this is about Jessie or Liza," he thought.

Elena pointed at Viktor, "You are the Metal Guardian."

In an instant, Viktor's expression turned stiff, "What nonsense are you on about."

Elena smirked. Viktor's reaction only confirmed her suspicion.

"There is no need for your lies, Viktor, you left a lot of traces. We met in the same place where Metal Guardian broke the record, and I don't recall meeting any groups other than yours."

Viktor swallowed, but he kept his calm. However, Elena was not finished.

"When we were attacked by Gargoyles, your group fell in the deepest layer of the Abyss Pit. How would an Earth Realm group fare against a Cerberus?"

Viktor started to feel intimidated, but he kept his calm. Viez has deleted his traces, and he convinced himself that this was just a bluff.

"The timing of Metal Guardian broke records with you being there, and now Metal Guardian is working with you? Huh, do you think I'm stupid?"

Checkmate, there was no way for Viktor to hide it, but that doesn't mean he would stay put.

"Sure, then, what if I refuse?"

Elena grinned, "You won't," then, she turned to call the people outside, "Bring her in!"

The door slammed open, and the Templars came with Jessie in tow. Her hands were twisted behind her, making her hiss in pain. In an instant, Viktor's rage was ignited.

"Sorry, Viktor, I was careless," Jessie said, still trying to hold her pain.

Now, it was not just his identity at stake. They have involved Jessie as well.