"Ow! What the hell, Zinnia?!" he groaned, clutching his skull.
Zinnia chuckled softly but her eyes stayed serious. Turning to Isabel, she took charge of the situation with calm authority.
"Here's the truth," she began, her tone steady and reassuring. "We're not a dangerous group. We collect and dismantle old phones, take out the parts that still have value, and sell them. That's all. If Kaivan brought you here, it means he trusts you. And if you're here… you'll probably end up helping too."
Isabel listened intently, her head nodding slowly though her eyes still flickered with curiosity and confusion. From the corner, Ethan and Raphael watched silently, waiting to see how she would respond.
After a long pause, Isabel asked softly, "So... none of you are, um, part of something dangerous like terrorists, right?" Her tone wavered, but there was a faint relief behind her words.
"We're not dangerous, don't worry," Zinnia replied casually. But before the atmosphere could settle, Radit couldn't resist another jab.
Leaning back in his chair, he smirked. "Though technically, one of us used to be, "
SMACK!
Felicia, who had been silent the entire time, slammed her hand down on Radit's head. The blow was so hard he toppled off the chair, hitting the floor with a loud thud! His eyes spun like a broken compass before his body went limp.
The entire room went dead silent.
Zinnia gave Felicia a thumbs-up, smirking. Felicia simply sighed, emotionless. Grabbing Radit by the collar like a sack of junk, she dragged him out of the room.
"Carry on. He just choked a bit, I'll give him a fast version of CPR," she said flatly, disappearing behind the door with calm, measured steps.
From upstairs, a weak voice cried out, "Hey! I'm still alive! Help! I'm not electronic waste!"
Felicia's cold reply echoed back, "Sadly, you malfunction more often than a broken phone."
Radit began to panic. "No, no, NOOO, !"
A series of thuds and creaks followed as his screams faded up the stairs, blending into a chaotic rhythm of horror and comedy. The others could only exchange helpless glances, half pity, half laughter.
Meanwhile, Isabel swallowed hard, her face pale and trembling. Her pinkish-red eyes widened in disbelief.
"W-What was that...? That woman just hit that man once and dragged him away like a bag of trash... This is a dangerous group…" she muttered under her breath.
Kaivan, who had been quietly observing, exhaled deeply. He knew Isabel wasn't used to this kind of madness. With calm steps, he walked toward her, one eyebrow raised as he studied her frightened expression.
"Looks like I need to explain it more clearly," Kaivan said flatly. "We buy broken phones, dismantle them, and extract the gold. It's just a way to earn some extra cash."
Isabel tilted her head, still confused. "But… you're all still young. Why become scavengers?" she asked innocently, without any ill intent.
Thivi froze instantly. Her eyes sharpened like blades. "Hey! We're not scavengers! We buy them, we don't pick them off the ground!" Her voice bit through the air, heated and fierce.
Kaivan quickly stepped in, resting a hand on Thivi's head and ruffling her hair gently. "That's enough. Don't be mad. She just doesn't understand yet," he said softly, though his tone carried quiet authority.
Thivi grumbled, turning her face away, forcing her anger to settle.
From the corner of the room, Ethan leaned back lazily. "So… which part of the phone actually has gold in it?" he asked lightly, though his eyes gleamed with curiosity.
Zinnia promptly grabbed a small whiteboard. She wiped it clean and began sketching the structure of a phone, her hand moving swiftly. "Here, these are the key parts that contain traces of gold. Small, but valuable," she explained with enthusiasm, her voice steady and warm.
Ethan, who had been quietly observing, stepped closer. He ran a finger along the edge of Zinnia's diagram. "So, which section actually has the real gold?" he asked, eyes unblinking.
Zinnia nodded, still focused. "The connectors and the circuit board traces," she said. Her hand moved quickly as she illustrated each layer, detailing the extraction process. Her tone was confident but calm, drawing everyone into her world of precision and logic.
Raphael nodded slowly, his face serious. "I didn't realize there was this much to be salvaged," he murmured, touching his chin thoughtfully. Then he looked toward Isabel, waiting for her reaction.
Isabel studied the diagram filled with notes and arrows. Her brows furrowed slightly, but there was a spark of wonder in her eyes. "I never imagined a phone could be a source of gold. It feels like… a hidden discovery," she said softly.
Zinnia smiled, satisfied. "It takes patience and the right tools. That's why we work together. That's what this group is about," she said, glancing at each of them with a glint of pride in her eyes.
The conversation flowed easily, laughter mingling with newfound fascination. In that dimly lit room, they no longer felt like a random team with a task, they were becoming something closer to a family bound by trust.
But amidst the warmth, Isabel, who had been quiet for a while, finally spoke up. "When all this is done… how do you hear the text results from far away?"
The question stopped everything.
Kaivan turned, slightly puzzled. The question wasn't just sharp, it came from Isabel, who rarely spoke during technical discussions.
He looked at her, curiosity laced with a hint of admiration. "You thought of that yourself?"
Isabel nodded, but she wasn't empty-handed. She lifted an old, worn-out book, the Tome Omnicent. Its ancient pages fluttered as if stirred by unseen wind. Her eyes met Kaivan's, steady and clear.
"No," she said softly, gaze fixed on the blank pages. "I asked this book what was really written there." Then her eyes shifted to Kaivan. "And it told me the mind map isn't complete yet, it's missing something."
The room froze. Even Zinnia, usually quick-witted, stood motionless. The Tome Omnicent lay open in Isabel's hands, alive, resonant. The impossible truth hung heavy in the air: the book that had always responded only to Kaivan… had now opened for Isabel.
The silence was deafening. Every breath, every heartbeat echoed louder than words. Then Frans broke the stillness, his voice low but meaningful.