Chapter 166: As Expected, It Was You

Chapter 166: As Expected, It Was You

The Vampire Lord paused mid-step, gave Sophia a quick once-over, then slowly moved forward.

Sophia stayed on high alert, shifting sideways to keep pace with him. The two began circling each other, opening up distance then suddenly closing it. The man's footwork and fighting style felt strangely familiar to her.

He seemed to be holding back, only blocking occasionally, showing no intent to actually attack her. After going back and forth like this for a while, the man suddenly took advantage of a brief exchange to press right up against her, close enough to make Sophia's brow furrow slightly.

That familiar scent wafted over again.

Sophia shifted, about to break free from his hold and speak.

Suddenly, all the symbols on the pedestal lit up at once, and the mechanism activated with a thunderous roar.

The clock in the castle struck three times, deep and solemn, making the entire space vibrate.

Meanwhile, in the corridor, Thalia braced her injured arm and pushed herself up from the floor. She raised the prop sword and thrust it straight toward the Vampire Lord.

The blade pressed against his chest.

The scene froze in that instant.

"Great! Everyone did amazing! Game over!"

A few minutes later, staff members emerged from the side, announcing the experience activity had ended successfully. The lights came back on full brightness, and the watching tourists burst into enthusiastic applause, with whistles and clapping coming in waves.

The six people stood in the escape room, each catching their breath. Emily clutched her chest, laughing cheerfully, clearly delighted.

Victoria dusted off her hands. Thalia twirled the prop sword, smiled, and returned it to the staff, then flexed the arm that had actually gotten hit earlier.

The man playing the Vampire Lord stepped aside, his black cape falling down.

During the fight, the clasp holding his mask had loosened and it slipped off. He didn't catch it in time, and it fell straight toward the ground.

Just as he was about to bend down to pick it up, a slender hand beat him to it and grabbed the dark brown mask.

When he looked up, his eyes met Sophia's, standing right in front of him.

She held up the mask in her right hand, raised an eyebrow, and said, "I knew it was you."

Caught red-handed, Alexander didn't seem embarrassed at all. His expression remained calm. "It's me."

Seeing this, Jack clicked his tongue, realizing his own identity couldn't stay hidden either. He simply removed his silver mask and looked sheepishly at Victoria.

Victoria pursed her lips and turned her face away, refusing to look at him.

Thalia observed the four of them with interest and shrugged. "Alright, since both male leads are here, I won't stick around to be a third wheel."

Then she glanced at Emily, and suddenly, as if remembering something, she smiled. "Emily, want to come with me? Now that I think about it, I do owe you something. This is the perfect chance to pay you back—I'll take you out for some serious fun. How about it?"

Hearing this, Sophia's frown deepened. She opened her mouth to refuse and tried to pull Emily behind her, but Emily nimbly dodged around her and skipped over to Thalia's side, showing an innocent smile. "Sophia, please let me go. I'll be really good, I promise to contact you right away if anything happens, and I'll definitely come back safe."

"Besides, I hope you and Alexander can sit down and have a proper talk."

"There's nothing for him and me to talk about." Sophia reflexively objected. Seeing Emily's big eyes flash with hurt, she sighed helplessly. "Fine, I get it. You can go. But be careful and come back early."

Emily quickly cheered up again, nodding vigorously. She linked arms with Thalia, waved at them with a smile, and walked away.

Sophia pressed her lips together, having no idea when Emily had joined forces with Alexander.

But naturally, she had no intention of giving Alexander a chance to explain. She stared at Alexander's face for a moment, then said coolly, "You should know very well why I came here, right? I think Mr. Kensington should leave. There's plenty to keep you busy in Emerald Harbor."

"No need to waste any more time on me."

Sophia calmly tried to persuade Alexander to leave. Seeing him about to speak, she cut him off first. "It's getting late. I need to go. I have a puppy at home that needs taking care of."

Seeing her turn to leave toward the exit, Victoria quickly followed, not sparing Jack a single glance. Jack, knowing he was in the wrong, wisely didn't try to stop them.

The two tall men just stood there in silence.

Alexander's blue eyes gazed deeply at Sophia's retreating figure. After a moment of silence, he slipped his hands into his pockets.

Jack looked somewhat dejected and asked in a low voice, "What do we do now?"

Alexander lowered his eyes, then quickly raised them again. Without answering, he stepped forward and walked ahead.

The next morning.

Sophia hadn't slept well and got up later than usual. After learning Jack was here, Victoria had caught a flight back to Emerald Harbor late last night, and Sophia had gone to see her off.

Coming downstairs, she found Emily sitting at the dining table with a stack of new textbooks in front of her, reading intently.

"Scott came really early today," Emily said without looking up, her voice somewhat guilty. "He's in the study now. Says he needs to confirm some curriculum plans with you."

Sophia narrowed her eyes, sensing something odd, but replied, "Okay."

She took a deep breath and walked toward the study, pushing open the door.

Alexander sat in the study chair with several textbooks in front of him and a cup of steaming coffee beside them.

Today he wasn't wearing a mask, scarf, or had his bangs covering his face—just his usual appearance that Sophia was familiar with.

Sophia seemed almost amused by her anger. Although she'd already guessed that Scott was Alexander, she really hadn't expected him to reveal himself so blatantly.

She leaned against the doorframe, looking at him with no intention of entering, and said coldly, "Alexander, what game are you playing now?"

"I'll teach Emily according to plan." Alexander didn't engage with her question, speaking on his own. "This week I'll assess her math foundation first, see what level she's at, then decide whether to have her enter competitions."

"Stop changing the subject." Sophia crossed her arms. "How long exactly do you plan to stay in Silvermoon City?"

Alexander pressed his lips together, closed the textbook, set it aside, and looked directly at her, answering honestly, "Haven't decided yet."

"What about Emerald Harbor?"

"Rufus is there," he cut her off. "No problem."

Sophia stared at him, frowning deeply. "You're that confident I won't kick you out?"

"Of course you won't." Alexander smiled, his face full of confidence. "Because you won't find a more suitable tutor than me. Besides, Emily really likes my teaching style."