It was around 2 pm when Leo finally emerged from the building, tired and lifeless. She meandered toward the car that awaited her. Kiera sat inside, expression unchanged, looking no different than a robot in default mode. When she opened the car door and settled in, she breathed a sigh of relief.
"By the looks of it, you didn't have a good time inside," he said plainly.
"Have you ever gone through a corporate interview?"
"No."
"Then don't ask stupid questions. Those people seemed to have some sort of beef with me. They made me talk so much, I couldn't believe I had that many words in me."
"Hmm… I thought it would be easy since Argon should be indebted to you," Kiera added.
"Don't even get me started on that man. He is annoying for some reason. I met him at the main entrance, and he seemed annoyed at me rather than thankful for saving him. I think he really wished to die at the hands of the sniper, and I came between his wish by saving him." She retorted. Kiera almost smiled at this. "He even seemed offended when I decided not to recognize him."
"Well, that means he knew you were at the interview. That is interesting." Kiera's lips curled up.
"What is? Me being tortured in the interview room? Does it please you to see me suffer in both places?"
"No, the fact that you had a tough time after finding out that you were at the interview. It seems that you have already qualified," Kiera said confidently.
"Yes, sure. I like when you are delusional," she said, but it had just been two seconds after she said those words when there was a buzz in her pocket. She looked around and picked up the phone that she had been given recently by the all-gracious Magnus to keep track of her at all times. "Dear Applicant, You have successfully qualified for the next round. Congratulations on interviewing— What on earth?" She was confused.
Kiera's confident smile became even broader. "Told you so. That man can be predictable at times," he added.
"But what is the second round of the interview about? I thought there was only one round." Leo turned to look at Kiera for answers, as if he were her personal internet browser, barely wanting to use her own mind.
"He must want to talk to you one-on-one. So he created this. I bet he wants to check if keeping you will be beneficial or if you would only be a burden for the company."
Leo's gaze narrowed as she processed those words. "He wants to know if I was involved with the attack?"
"Who knows? That is the most I could predict till now," he said. "When is the second round?" he asked. Leo had read the message only from the pop-up notification and now pressed on the message to see the details.
"It is at 2:30," she said and then pulled out her fingers to count the amount of time she had. "It is 15 now so—"
Kiera rubbed the partition between his brows, clenching his eyes painfully. "It is fifteen minutes. I didn't know you were that dumb!" he said. Leo turned her head toward him and bared her teeth.
"It is not my fault you people have caused me so much stress that I have forgotten basic education," she replied angrily, her cheeks flushing because he was sort of right. She shouldn't have had to count such a simple thing, but for some reason, she did.
"You better go back inside then, and I will let Master know of the success," Kiera began to pull out his phone when Leo instantly snatched it out of his hand, displaying an impressive speed that even Kiera couldn't avoid.
"Don't do it! Can't you just wait until the final result is out? I don't want to die if I somehow manage to fail this round," she said, her face clearly uncomfortable after Kiera's words. He remained frozen in his spot, watching Leo with confusion.
"You are fast."
"Don't get distracted! I am telling you not to talk to the Grim Reaper until I am back in the car with the acceptance letter in my hands."
"What did you call Master?" Kiera's brow lifted.
"Okay, now are you going to snitch on me? I thought we were friends!" She clicked her tongue and moved her head side to side as if disappointed.
Kiera was taken aback again, and before he could respond, Leo got out of the car and hurriedly marched toward the main door again.
"Friends? He thinks of me as a friend? Why?"
Leo reached the reception once more and spoke, "I am here for the second round of the interview. I just received the notification that it will be held at 2:30."
The receptionist instantly smiled and responded, "So it is you that the boss wants to interview?" She was cheerful. "I was wondering who it was. You must have caught the boss's attention somehow for him to want to meet you personally." The girl was overly friendly, making Leo feel a little awkward, so she just nodded until the receptionist was done talking.
"Seems like Kiera was right. This is a special round made up for me," she thought, puzzled but determined to remain calm.
"Please follow me," the receptionist said and stepped forward. Leo followed her to the elevator, and the receptionist pressed the button for the fifteenth floor. The ride was long, and Leo waited patiently. As the doors opened, the receptionist let Leo take the lead and brought her to the waiting room.
"Have a seat, and someone will join you in a moment." She smiled and headed toward the front desk beside a secluded door in the wide corridor. "The candidate is here," she said to the woman at the desk, who nodded. The receptionist then retreated to the elevator and disappeared.
The waiting room was right across from a spectacular door. Inside the room were soft, plush leather sofas, so comfortable that you could sink in and fall asleep the second your body touched them. Just across the sitting area was a tall wall clock, its impressive hands slowly ticking away the time. Leo sat on the sofa, placing her head against the headrest where she instantly sunk in. Watching the clock tick by slowly made her feel sleepier by the second, and before she realized it, she had fallen into the clutches of slumber.
The woman at the desk entered Argon's office and spoke, "Boss, the person you asked for is here."
Argon's gaze lifted, and he gave her a serious look. "And what about Kant? Did he leave like I told him to?" he asked, seemingly not wanting to be judged by him once again.
"Yes, Mr. Kant has been sent away like you asked."
"Hm... okay, you can leave too for the day. I don't think I have anything else I need you to do," Argon said.
"Yes, but before leaving, should I let him enter the office? He is waiting for you outside," she asked.
"No need, I will deal with him on my own. You can just leave," Argon said. The woman, though confused by his sudden, odd behaviour, nodded and decided to enjoy the early end to her day.
When she left, Argon smiled, leaned back, and looked at the ceiling. "So, Mr. Leo, let's see what is so special about you that Autumn couldn't stop complimenting you. I have to see that for myself—" He rubbed his hands with an evil grin. "But before we do that, let's see how good you are at waiting."