Chapter 208: Chapter 208: Silas’s Demand
That same evening.
Silas returned to the army with a grim expression. His heart was thumping, and the urgency in his steps was something the soldiers had never seen before.
A few of the soldiers nodded at Silas as he walked past, but he didn’t return more than a stiff nod.
Soon, he stood outside his father’s office. Taking a deep breath, he pushed the door open.
Inside, General Dante was sitting behind his desk, thick papers spread out before him. Across from him was Talia, radiating her usual aloof aura.
The two were deep in discussion.
Neither of them turned right away, though it was Talia who noticed Silas first.
"Here to talk about General Frank’s recent move?" she asked with curiosity.
Silas calmly closed the door and shook his head. "No. I am here to request something else. I want the helicopter at our house."
At those words, General Dante finally looked up. His eyes narrowed. "For what reason?" His words were laced with suspicion.
"Ivy needs to travel to another country," Silas said steadily. "She wants to see her mother."
The temperature of the room plummeted.
General Dante’s face darkened, and with a loud bang, he slammed his palm against the desk.
"Are you stupid, boy?!" He barked.
"Do you not see the state of the world? Zombies roam outside the walls, mutant birds stalk the skies, and the military balance itself is hanging by a thread! And you want to take a helicopter ride to another country? Do you think the apocalypse is some child’s playground?"
His voice, laced with fury, sounded like a raging lion’s roar.
Silas didn’t flinch.
His voice carried the same calmness he always carried.
"It doesn’t matter. Ivy needs this. She wants to meet those people, and I can feel they are important to her. As her husband, I will fulfill her wish."
The word "husband" dropped into the room like a heavy stone.
Talia blinked, stunned. "Husband?" she repeated.
Even General Dante froze, staring at his son in disbelief.
Outside, Henry had just arrived.
He raised his hand to knock, but hearing Silas’s words, his jaw dropped.
’What? Married? He married the Salt Goddess already?’
Excitement bloomed in his heart, almost making him want to rush in and congratulate Silas on such a victory.
But he held back. If he barged in now, General Dante would skin him alive.
Yet he didn’t want to miss out on the gossip and stood there, his ears almost becoming one with the doors.
(A/n: This guy has, sigh... zero survival skills. Just like me! Huh!)
Inside, General Dante’s voice came again, slow and cold.
"Silas. Did you just say... wife? Do not tell me you already tied yourself to that girl."
"I did," Silas said without hesitation.
"We are already married. A grand wedding is yet to happen, but that will come after Ivy meets the people she wants."
"You!" General Dante shot up from his chair; the loud scraping of the chair almost sounded like a sword being unsheathed from its scabbard.
His hand hovered over the pile of documents as though he might sweep them to the floor.
"You have gone insane. I told you before. That girl is trouble. Mark my words, trouble! If you bind yourself to her, you will die because of her!"
His finger jabbed at his son.
Silas’s eyes grew cold.
His voice, though calm, carried resolution.
"It is too late, Father. The deed has been done. If I abandon her now, I would be nothing but a scumbag. I will not betray my wife."
Talia tried to soften the atmosphere.
"Father, don’t overreact," she said carefully, then turned to Silas.
Her voice carried no anger, only genuine worries.
"If you have chosen this path, then you must treat Ivy properly. You can’t just give her a piece of paper and call it marriage. A wife deserves more than that."
Silas’s sharp eyes softened when he looked at her.
He could see that her attitude had shifted.
Talia wasn’t full of hate for Ivy anymore. In fact, there was something almost warm hidden in her eyes, though she tried to hide it.
"Understood," Silas said quietly.
Then he turned back to General Dante.
"You wanted to discuss General Frank, right? I’ll tell you his next moves. But in return, I want the helicopter and a month’s leave."
General Dante’s fists clenched.
His mind went back to the priest’s words from long ago. ’He will fall for someone inhuman, and that someone will be his death.’
Back then, Dante had scoffed. Now he felt the curse tightening around his son.
’This is precisely what the priest meant. She will destroy him.’
Unaware of his father’s inner turmoil, Silas waited calmly.
Finally, General Dante exhaled, closing his eyes. "Fine. I’ll deal. Tell me about Frank."
A smirk tugged at Silas’s lips.
"Smart choice." He took out a folded letter and placed it on the desk. "But first, sign this. It confirms my leave."
General Dante’s eyes nearly bulged. "You want me to sign before hearing your plan? You distrust your father that much?"
Silas’s eyes narrowed.
"You are a man of principles. But when it comes to Ivy, your principles vanish, and all you see is hate. Forgive me if I do not trust you where she is concerned."
Dante opened his mouth, but no words came.
Deep down, he knew his son spoke the truth.
His teeth clenched, but eventually, he picked up the pen and signed. His hand trembled with rage.
"Now talk," he growled.
Silas leaned forward.
"Frank has entrusted us with the duty of protecting the food. Most likely, he will either steal the food like last time he did with medicine or fake a disaster, making it seem the reserves were destroyed while secretly transferring them to his house. The third possibility is that he will tamper with the records to frame the Blackthorn family, making it look like they stole much more than they did. Either way, he wants to destroy trust."
General Dante frowned, falling deep into thought.
Silas then turned to Talia. His voice softened. "How is the interrogation with your fiancé going?"