Words Easily Misunderstood

"Mr. Kassadin, there’s no need for you to feel too discouraged."

"According to the original plan, if Mr. Tony hadn’t returned."

"These plans of mine would have been implemented ten years from now. If Mr. Tony returned to Void Island."

"And brought back more technology for Void Island to make money with, the process could be accelerated."

Hearing Mr. Kassadin’s words, Sonia knew that her string of examples had truly dealt him a blow, so she hurriedly comforted him in a soft voice.

Seeing everything Sonia had said, Harvey was not particularly discouraged. He simply realized that he had underestimated how much money it took to establish a faction.

"Sonia, it’s wonderful to have you."

However, seeing Sonia trying to comfort him, Harvey said with some emotion.

"…Mr. Kassadin, why did you suddenly say that?"

Upon hearing Mr. Kassadin suddenly say something like that, Sonia’s serious gaze became somewhat evasive, and a faint blush appeared on her face.

"I mean, with you managing the Void Cult, I can rest easy."

Harvey explained.

Leading the establishment of a faction was not difficult for him, but figuring out how to develop it and manage its ever-growing number of members was not something Harvey excelled at.

However, after entrusting the Void Cult to Sonia, she had not only managed it impeccably, but had even thought through all sorts of plans for its future.

All that remained was to let time accumulate and put those plans into action step by step. With such a reliable steward around, Harvey had been spared a great deal of trouble.

"…"

Sonia had initially thought that after more than a year apart, Mr. Kassadin’s sudden words meant he had changed quite a bit and was saying that sort of thing.

But she had not expected him to mean this. The flustered, bashful feeling in her heart from thinking she had suddenly been confessed to instantly turned into helplessness.

"Mr. Kassadin, you gave me an opportunity, so naturally I won’t let you down."

Regardless of whether she felt helpless inside, Sonia still said with a smile on the surface.

Come to think of it, she had spent quite a long time by Mr. Kassadin’s side and knew what kind of person he was. It was not very likely that he would suddenly catch on.

"You’ve already done very well."

"But how many hours do you rest each day now?"

"Don’t think about lying to me. You should know I can tell whether you’re lying."

Seeing Sonia calm down, Harvey asked.

"An average of three hours…"

Hearing that she had to answer honestly, Sonia paused before replying.

"How long has this been going on?"

Harvey’s eyes flickered as he thought of Sonia constantly honing herself in the underground training ground earlier, and he asked.

"…"

Sonia lowered her head.

"Sonia, although I said I looked forward to seeing you become strong enough to truly stand on your own."

"I never meant that you had to gain great strength within a short time."

"I know you take things seriously, but you still need to balance work and rest."

Seeing that Sonia did not answer, Harvey knew she had likely been living like this throughout the more than year he had been away from Void Island.

Sonia had to manage Void Island, observe the circumstances of every member, and go out to negotiate deals. Whenever she finally had some free time, she went to train.

While Harvey admired and respected such perseverance, he also felt that Sonia was pushing herself too hard.

"I know, but you weren’t here."

"I didn’t have anything to pass the time with."

"And I couldn’t just show myself in public and do whatever I wanted, so I went to train."

Hearing Mr. Kassadin’s words, which carried both reproach and concern, Sonia’s gaze trembled as she spoke softly.

Her reason for expanding the faction was not solely for the other Void Cult members. More fundamentally, she hoped to quickly bring the Void Cult to a point where she could feel at ease without having to keep watch over it at all times.

By then, Mr. Kassadin would no longer be able to use the need for her to manage Void Island as a reason not to take her with him.

She knew that achieving the goal she envisioned would absolutely not happen overnight, so she had drawn up detailed plans for the future.

She would follow those plans and do everything possible to achieve her goal as early as she could.

"Now that I’m back, you can slow down your pace a little and take some time to rest."

"Come sit down and eat with me."

Hearing Sonia’s words and seeing her lower her head, too afraid to look at him, Harvey’s eyes flickered as he spoke.

"But it isn’t New Year’s…"

Although Sonia was somewhat tempted by Mr. Kassadin’s words, reason ultimately prevailed.

"If I tell you to sit, then sit."

Hearing that, Harvey thought of the New Year’s meal and knew he had been at fault for making Sonia develop unnecessary feelings for him. He spoke directly.

"Yes."

Hearing the seriousness in Mr. Kassadin’s voice, Sonia did not dare refuse. She immediately nodded.

Sonia sat in the seat beside Harvey, dressed in a snow-white top and shorts, as obedient as a rabbit.

"Sonia, I heard you developed a technique called Sky Plunder?"

Looking at the quiet and obedient Sonia, Harvey knew he had frightened her. After thinking for a moment, he took the initiative to break the silence.

"Though the name sounds grand and impressive, it only lets people fly. It isn’t some particularly powerful ability."

"However, after the other Void Cult members learned it, they insisted that I come up with a name."

"So I put several names up for a vote, and in the end, they chose Sky Plunder as the name for this ability."

Hearing Mr. Kassadin bring it up, Sonia smiled.

After all, this technique was very common among powerful individuals and the soldiers of Xandar’s Nova Corps.

So Sonia had put considerable thought into researching it.

"Never mind the name. The fact that you were able to develop it without anyone guiding you is quite remarkable."

"I saw Mr. Renoli use the technique you taught him to shine brilliantly while fighting the Chitauri on Earth."

Seeing that Sonia seemed happy to talk about it, Harvey praised her without holding back.

Although flight was not a rare ability among all sorts of powerful individuals, Sonia had created it without anyone’s guidance.

It had directly eliminated the Void Cult members’ weakness of being unable to fight in the air. Without a doubt, that was an excellent thing.

"It’s good that Mr. Renoli was able to help Mr. Tony."

Hearing that Mr. Renoli, a Void Cult member, had displayed such exceptional brilliance, Sonia felt rather happy as well.

The fifth update is here.