Those words came too suddenly...
Scarlet looked at Old River with terror all over her face.
'They knew my identity??'
Only when those words came out did Scarlett realize her current situation. She tried to step away from the kind old woman, yet the soft hand on her shoulder was like a tenacious pincer.
"Where are you going?" Old River asked, smiling lightly: "Don't be so scared, little girl... just answer my question sincerely, and nothing bad will happen..."
But how could Scarlett not be scared?
"Aunty River... I met him a few days ago in the Mercenary Guild. I swear... I'm not following him... "
She had to escape, so lying was the only solution to this problem.
Alas, her falsehoods were found out quickly.
"Hehe... The first part is probably the truth. The last part is clearly a lie. Stop this nonsense. Just tell us the truth... Otherwise..."
It was a clear threat, yet that smile on her face was even more dangerous.
The situation was evolving so fast that Atlas could only look at them in surprise. In fact, it took him a while to recover and meddle in the discussion.
"So, my instinct was right..." Atlas mumbled in realization: "Damn woman... What is your clear intent? I never met you before..."
Suddenly, he stopped speaking for a while because an idea popped into his mind: "You... are you one of the Bloody Butcher of Saints' followers? Are you here to gather information about me?"
Atlas didn't know her real identity, so it was more than expected to think like that. Alas, Scarlett didn't take it so well. Actually, she was even angrier: "Damn idiot... you are that Dog's follower... Are you out of your mind?"
Seeing her reaction, Atlas was becoming more and more convinced of his assumptions: "Damn slut... I'll chop your head and send it back to that bastard..."
Atlas hated the Bloody Butcher of Saints to the bones because his worries had risen to a frighteningly high level. He was so annoyed by that fellow that hatred for him had penetrated deeply into his mind.
He never killed a human being before, yet facing such hideous creatures, he would do anything.
Suddenly, Astra appeared in his hand. His intent was clear. He wanted to murder Scarlet and finish all this fast.
The situation was escalating. But fortunately, there were other people in the room besides that madman.
"Atlas... Calm down. She is not who you think she is... Let us handle this matter."
Just when Atlas was ready to kill her, two people walked inside the shop.
Actually, there were two other people with them, yet their current condition was quite precarious because their bodies were tied up.
Scarlett did not know who the two elders were, but she knew the two bound men well.
'Impossible... my guards... Who are those people?'
She was in complete despair and was correct in thinking that way because no one could save her anymore.
"Grandpa... grandma... Who are those two?"
The arrival of August and Marigold with two strangers surprised even Atlas.
"Hehe... little Atlas, those are elite guards from the Inflamed Chalice City..."
"Huh?!... and what the hell are they doing here?" Atlas shouted, but then an event of the past appeared in his mind: 'Could they be here because of what happened in the treasury room? Did they find out what I did?'
Still, ignorance about the actual facts of his thoughts got him far from the truth. Luckily, he wasn't alone.
"They are here for this little girl. They must protect Scarlett Scalis since she is the only daughter of the City Lord of the Inflamed Chalice City..."
Finally, part of the truth emerged, allowing Atlas to realize that this story was even more complicated than he thought.
"Grandpa... can you explain what the hell is going on? How did you find out about her?"
Atlas wanted to know the truth because he felt like an idiot now, unaware of the shadows surrounding him.
"Well..."
There was no reason to hide the facts anymore, so August began to disclose everything he knew.
After the report, Atlas was shocked and angered at this point: "So... your father already knew the truth, yet he still used me as a scapegoat? Damn him..."
Scarlett was left speechless. The fear inside her was so great that she could only despair. She knew her life was in danger since those people had talked freely about such essential topics.
She wasn't so stupid to scare them with her father's name since it was clear about their position against them, so what could she do?
"Hey... Did you lose your voice?" Atlas was speaking to her at such a close distance that Scarlett could see the anger seething in the depths of his eyes.
The elders left them some space, yet they were ready to stop him before he could do anything beyond salvation.
"Hey... speak to us!!" Atlas shouted again, not at all concerned about who his interlocutor was. He didn't care if there was a woman in front of him. All that mattered was finding the truth and eradicating any possible future danger.
"Little thief... you approached me at the Mercenary's Guild... then at Grandma River's Shop, and finally here... Speak!! Why did you do that? What's your real purpose?"
Atlas shouted one question after another, giving no rest to her poor mind, already on the verge of collapse, and as expected, something broken...
Tears started flowing out of her eyes.
Even if she had experienced the brutality of this world and sometimes acted like an arrogant woman with her closest people, she was still a young woman with a pure heart.
Her attitude was just a facade that emerged after a terrible past event, not her true self.
Tears kept flowing, and silence ruled the room for a while.
Such a scene could have affected most people's hearts.
Unfortunately, Atlas had experienced deceit and the brutality of this world, too, so it took him only a moment to regain his previous stance.
"Stop acting like a victim... Do you think I'm so stupid? I have already met vicious vipers like you. All this drama is useless."
Pestered by his continuous remarks, she couldn't endure anymore and looked back at him with her face covered with tears: "How could you be so heartless and stupid? Surely, I'm in the wrong here, but you... you are more vicious than a beast?"
"Vicious? Hehe... Sure, I'm cruel, but what about you? Give me a proper reason, and I will stop doing this... End your suffering and tell us the truth..." Atlas retorted with scorn.
Seeing that no one around could help her, Scarlett looked back at him and spoke: "You want the truth? You already knew most of it... As for why I am here..."
Reaching this point, she lowered her head, not wanting to face him, and continued: "I'm here to meet you, bastard..."
Her words caught almost everyone by surprise in the room, but Atlas was the first to ask: "And why do you want to meet me? What's your real objective?"
She knew well the answer, but how could she speak about that?
There was another pause, and seeing her condition, old River couldn't endure anymore: "Okay... calm down, everyone. Atlas, step back for a moment, please. I will personally handle her from now on."
Atlas wanted to vent a bit more, yet he conceded, seeing the expression on Marigold and River's faces.
"Little girl... I promise you that nothing bad will happen. Just tell us the truth, and don't care about that stupid fellow anymore. His anger is justified, yet he acted a bit too much harder than he should have."
Her approach was gentler than before, but informing them about this matter was a bit problematic.
It took her a while to find a bit of courage to speak about that: "I will tell you about it, but not with that stupid fellow around…"
"Hey... you are not in the position to demand anything... and why the hell should I leave if it's related to me. You're crazy!!"
Atlas was correct, but Marigold's next word made him stupefied.
"Atlas, leave us alone for a moment..."
"But..." He wanted to retort, yet August acted faster than anyone else and dragged him along with a strange smile on his face: "Old Mold, let's leave for a moment..."
Old Mold knew something strange was happening, so he silently followed the duo, leaving the women alone.
"Hehehe... little girl, what could it be so embarrassing that you sent Atlas away? Don't tell me that you fell in love with him..."
Being alone with them gave Scarlett some peace, so she started acting more willingly: "No way... That ungrateful fellow is too much... who would ever fall in love with him... humph!!"
"Hehe... your words tell one thing, but your actions suggest an entirely different story. Anyway... can you tell us why you are here?"
"I'm not here with bad intentions... It's all my father's fault... that stupid old man wanted to..."
It was still too embarrassing to speak about such a thing, but in the end, she found the courage to say, "... he wants to make Atlas his son-in-law..."
"What??"
As expected, her reply shocked the two old women.