I TOTALLY forgot that Enzo also lives in the Penthouse since he's in the Top Ten.
Zirkus originally met Enzo at the entrance.
Much to his surprise, he was allowed in the lobby as Enzo's guest.
It's like the lobby of a five-star hotel.
"Enzo, hurry up and tell me why you asked to meet here," Klaus Irvin said impatiently while covering his eyes with his hands. "You know that I can't stand unsightly things, right?"
Zirkus just maintained his business smile.
I'll save your life, Klaus Irvin. But I'll definitely get back to you later. I promise that~
"I already canceled my appointment with Rivo and Nixie," Enzo announced indifferently. "I have time to join your Treasure Hunting Game, Klaus."
Klaus Irvin gasped, and then he removed his hands from his eyes. Of course, the dragon only looked at Enzo. "Really? You'll join the game this time?"
"On one condition, though."
"What is it?"
Enzo pointed a finger at Zirkus. "I'll only join if Zirkus Huxford will attend, too."
"Huh?" Klaus Irvin asked, shocked. Then he turned to Zirkus with a look of disbelief on his handsome face. "You?"
"Yes," Zirkus said, smiling brightly at the shocked dragon. "Me, Zirkus Huxford."
***
OUCH.
Zirkus knew that Rivo Creswell and Nixie Winslet were scary, but the two looked scarier now after they literally cornered him.
These kids are angry.
The hero and the heroine grabbed him when he was about to return to his room, and then they dragged him to the fire exit. And the next thing he knew, his back already touched the cold wall while Rivo Creswell and Nixie Winslet stood in front of him intimidatingly.
"Enzo bailed out of our scheduled trip," Nixie Winslet said. "This is the first time that he did something like that."
"What did you do to Enzo?" Rivo Creswell confronted Zirkus. "He said he's going to join Klaus' Treasure Hunting Game. But he's not interested in that thing. So, what did you do to force Enzo to come and join you?"
Hmm.
Zirkus could see why Rivo Creswell and Nixie Winslet would be upset.
I feel bad that I ruined their group trip, but I need to know what might have pushed Enzo to kill Klaus Irvin in the original novel to prevent that from happening this time. Hence, I have to be at the treasure hunt with Enzo and Klaus Irvin.
"What made you think that I FORCED Enzo to come with me?"
Well, he did bait the villain.
But he didn't force Enzo. Moreover…
"Enzo isn't the type of person that you can boss around," Zirkus said in a serious tone that made him sound like the adult that he was. "Moreover, Enzo is already an adult who's capable of making his own decisions– so why are you acting this way?"
It was time to put the hero and the heroine in their place.
***
I ALWAYS say that these kids are scary, but I'm not really that scared of them.
Zirkus, as Sol Kang, wasn't really a good person.
Since he grew up as an orphan, he was often bullied because of his poor background. Hence, to protect himself, he learned how to fight. Up until his first year in high school, he was actually known as a delinquent in their neighborhood. He was even hailed as the 'top dog' of his school, aka the best fighter.
He only turned over a new leaf when he met a foul-mouthed yet warm police officer who helped him change for the better.
But that person disappeared and abandoned me, too…
"Tsk."
Zirkus clicked his tongue, annoyed that he remembered something unpleasant.
"Did you just click your tongue at us?"
It was Nixie Winslet.
Right, I'm in the middle of a confrontation…
"Yes, I clicked my tongue, but that's not the point," Zirkus said, his voice still indifferent. "I'm asking you why you're treating me like this when it was Enzo who decided to cancel his trip with you."
Initially, he planned to salvage Zirkus Huxford's reputation because he thought the original owner of his new body was a complete bastard. After all, he woke up bullying Enzo Fenton. But that didn't seem to be the case.
If the original Zirkus Huxford was truly a bully, then his schoolmates wouldn't have the courage to call him 'ugly' right in front of his face.
Unfortunately, I can't see from Zirkus Huxford's memories the reason why he suddenly targeted Enzo. Plus, his "friends" that I met that night haven't returned to the academy yet for some mysterious reasons.
Hence, based on the things that he noticed so far, it was safe to assume that the original Zirkus Huxford was just a big pushover and not a bully.
Someone else probably urged him to bully Enzo.
"Enzo is our childhood friend, and we've known him since we were kids," Rivo Creswell said firmly. "We are his family. There's no way he'll prioritize YOU— the person who bullied him— over us. You must have blackmailed him."
Zirkus couldn't help but laugh in disbelief. "For someone who claims to have known Enzo since they were kids, you sure do NOT know him that well."
Rivo Creswell and Nixie Winslet looked shocked by what he said.
Yep, this was still him salvaging Zirkus Huxford's reputation.
After I turned over a new leaf as Sol Kang, I learned how to socialize and bow my head when I needed to in order to survive the real world as an adult. But that doesn't mean I will let these kids walk all over me when I'm innocent.
Like he always said, he knew when to bow his head— and this was certainly NOT the time to do so.
To save the world, Zirkus needed these kids to follow him. And in order to do that, he had to teach them how to respect him first. He wouldn't be able to do that if he would just let them look down on him just because they were physically stronger.
I will not bow down this time even if I end up getting beaten up to a pulp.
"How can you say that, Huxford?" Nixie Winslet asked, obviously upset. "You don't know anything about us."
Except I do.
Zirkus wasn't able to finish the entire story because he was already transported into this world just before the final volume of The Legendary Fisher was released.
But he had read enough to know about the trio's friendship.
The three didn't really have a real friendship since Rivo Creswell and Nixie Winslet had no idea Enzo was the traitor until he stabbed them in the back.
"Huxford, you don't have the right to comment about our friendship," Rivo Creswell said sternly. This time, the hero looked really pissed. "I don't know what you want from Enzo, but leave him alone. Don't turn him into a rude person who'd ditch his friends for a stranger."
Zirkus was about to open his mouth to speak, but someone else beat him to it.
"Is it different from canceling a date just to hang out with your childhood friends?"
Oho?
It was Yelena Dover.
Oh, I already smell the drama.