Is this really a Game?!

Reign straightened up, the calming presence of Mia grounding him. He looked into her eyes and saw genuine concern reflected back at him. He knew she was right; he couldn't afford to lose himself to anger, not now when they were so close to the truth.

"Thank you, Mia," Reign said, his voice steadier. "You're right."

"I need to keep my head clear."

Mia smiled gently. "We'll get through this together, Reign."

.net

"Remember, we're a team, and we'll find him."

Reign nodded, feeling a renewed sense of determination. He turned to leave the men's room, Mia following close behind. As they rejoined the group, Reign took another deep breath, steeling himself for the evening ahead.

The celebration proceeded as planned, with the atmosphere gradually returning to its previous lively state. Reign and his companions mingled with the guests, careful to maintain appearances. Despite the tension simmering beneath the surface, they managed to keep the mood light and engaging.

Reign had gone to visit all three of the powerful people who had bought plenty of items, talking to all three and exchanging pleasantries.

The man in the golden suit was flamboyant, loud, and a bit boastful, but he was otherwise quite easy to talk to and seemed like a person that didn't hide things and preferred to be upfront and honest.

At least that was how he seemed currently, but one could never be certain just what kind of person they were talking to, especially now when the world was filled with powerful individuals who had great control over their body, their emotions, as well as their facial expressions.

Reign tried talking to the hooded person as well, but the conversation barely flowed. The person seemed surprised at first to be approached by somebody, but since it was Reign, the leader of the group that had orchestrated the entire event, it was natural for him to go around and talk to people.

As for the woman who was the true leader of the group that had arrived, she was quite surprised when Reign arrived at her group and started talking to her. He didn't do it openly as it would be impolite of him to suddenly do such a thing and possibly blow her cover.

He started by talking to the man who was pretending to be the leader, then some of the other members, before talking to her. Even though he was talking to all of them, the way he talked to her was different and it let them all know that he was well aware of who was in charge and that he wasn't planning on blowing her cover, which all of them appreciated.

Reign's strategic approach helped to defuse the tension that had settled over the Grand Auction House. The guests, especially those who had sensed his earlier outburst, were reassured by his composed demeanor and engagement. As the evening continued, the celebration took on a more relaxed and festive atmosphere.

Shadow, Mia, Wolf, and the rest of the team remained vigilant, subtly scanning the crowd for any signs of trouble or suspicious behavior. Despite their outward appearances, they were acutely aware of the potential threats lurking in the shadows.

As the night progressed, Reign found himself standing on a balcony overlooking the bustling city below. The cool night air helped to clear his mind. He replayed the events of the day, the encounter with 'Richard,' and Jin's revelations. His thoughts were a turbulent sea, but he knew he had to stay focused.

The voice that had taunted him earlier was silent, replaced by a steely resolve. He would find 'Richard' and uncover the truth about his parents' deaths, but he would do it on his own terms. He would not be driven by rage or manipulated into rash actions.

"Hey," Shadow's voice interrupted his thoughts. "You okay?"

Reign turned to see Shadow leaning against the balcony railing, a concerned expression on his face.

"Yeah," Reign replied, offering a small smile. "Just needed a moment to clear my head."

Shadow nodded, his eyes scanning the city below, a city none of them had seen before as the Grand Auction House was actually not on Earth.

"We'll find him, Reign, you know we're all in this together, not to mention the fact that at least now we have a clue, and Wolf's father will try to come back here, with his knowledge, skill, and strength, I'm sure it will be easier for us."

"I know, I just … part of me wants me to just go and do it myself, to not rely on anybody else and get revenge by myself, on my own terms, you know?"

"Yeah, but that would be incredibly selfish out of you," Shadow said with a stern expression as he stood in front of Reign.

"We would all worry about you, whether you would be in danger or not, whether you were letting your anger get the best of you or not, and more."

"Not to mention that … even though we are not related by blood, you are my brother, and they were my aunt and uncle, I want that revenge as well, I want to see the bastard with my own eyes and help you avenge them," Shadow said as his eyes showed great anger inside of them, to which Reign merely replied with a nod.

He understood Shadow and knew how he felt.

If Jin or Shadow's mother were to die, Reign would feel the same way.

He would definitely not let Shadow go through it alone, nor would he let him get revenge by himself. The two shared a bond that was as deep if not even deeper than what siblings usually had, and they knew each other well.

"The auction went great, we earned a couple of million, and that is after taking into consideration the money we spent to organize everything," Shadow said as he tried to change the topic.

"Other than the sudden appearance of that bastard, everything tonight was quite good, we managed to get in touch with several factions who are nearby, some who are actually quite far away, and we might be able to soon create portals leading to them."

"This auction will allow us to widen our web of connections, and to make exploration easier in the future, of course, not all of them will have friendly thoughts, and some of them might already be plotting something, but that's something we have already known."

"Yes, some of the people we met tonight might turn out to be enemies in the future, or are already enemies of ours, they are just hiding the fact." Reign said as he agreed with Shadow's words.

Shadow nodded. "Exactly."

"But we are prepared for that, we need to keep strengthening our position and gathering allies."

"The more support we have, the better our chances of finding 'Richard' and dealing with any other threats that come our way."

Reign sighed, looking out over the city again. "I just wish it didn't feel like we were constantly fighting a losing battle."

"It's not losing, Reign, it's just... challenging," Shadow said with a sigh.

We've faced worse and come out stronger, we'll do it again."

"We'll find 'Richard,' and we'll make sure he pays for what he's done."

Reign nodded, feeling a renewed sense of determination. Shadow was right, they had faced many challenges before and had always managed to come out on top. They just needed to keep pushing forward, one step at a time.

'Challenges, challenges, challenges, I just wished for once, they were a bit easier and out in the open.' Reign said inwardly as Aethion groaned.

"Then they wouldn't be challenging, boy."

"You have been given a chance here, an opportunity to find the person you desperately wished to find, and you will do so, sooner or later, you will, don't worry about that."

"If you ever come across him again, no matter how good his disguise, we will be able to recognize him."

'How can you be so sure, I mean, I did manage to see through his disguise this time, but the next time, I'm sure he will hide himself better, make it so I don't have a chance to get close, and notice the distortions.'

"You don't need to get close and notice the distortions, we already have a trace, if he ever gets close to you, we will sense him," Aethion said with a smirk as Reign narrowed his eyes.

'Did you … do something?'

"Correct."

"The man was interesting, and one of the four people you were keeping an eye out for, so I did the same thing I did with the other three, I sensed their soul and memorized their soul signature."

"You can change your body, change your face, voice, hair, eyes, you can do all of that with the help of certain abilities and items, but a soul signature, well that is much more difficult."

"Even with your current power and control over soul power, you won't be able to do it, you'll be able to mask your soul signature at best, and I doubt he can do that either."