Chapter 1202: were you reborn?

"So, First Brother, since you didn’t get punched last night, did you get the answer that you needed?" Hugo inquired as soon as he sat across from Atlas, having just boarded a private craft to take them home. He blinked innocently, watching Atlas lift his eyes at him. "No matter how much I think about it, I just can’t get any answers!"

"I mean, my first brother, who didn’t want to get hurt in the slightest, wants me to punch him," Hugo continued, emphasizing what Atlas had asked him to do the night before. "It doesn’t make sense to me! I need answers; otherwise, I might lose it."

Atlas leaned back and closed the magazine on his lap. "Hugo, do you believe in reincarnation? Or rather, rebirth?"

"Huh?"

"What if I tell you some people claim that they were reborn, and this life isn’t actually their first one?"

Hugo blinked and then blinked again. His cluelessness and confusion were written all over his blank expression. "What the heck?"

"I was trying to get knocked out just to know whether it’s the truth or not," Atlas continued indifferently. "It seems that only when a person hovers between life and death would they unlock that part of their mind. Though the myth about using only ten percent of our brain has been debunked, I am always open to other mysteries of this world."

"..." Hugo opened his mouth, only to realize it was already gaping. "First Brother, you always render me speechless, whether by awe or the level of ridiculousness you say. This one, however, really takes the cake. Wow! What were you reading in the castle? Or have you proven that Grandma Pierson is a mythical creature?"

"Not a mythical creature, but a real princess."

"Brother, there were real-life royalties in modern times. You can see them if you open the news. There’s one just recently in Anteca. I know because I had to do some guard duties during the conference. So boring!"

"And I don’t care about them." Atlas shrugged indifferently. "Modern royalties don’t fascinate me, nor do they intrigue me. I am more interested in ancient civilizations and how humans evolved to today’s time."

Hugo scratched the back of his head, shaking his head. "Well, if that makes you happy, but I don’t think you should associate reincarnation or rebirth with that. It’s a weird combination."

"I think it’s interesting." Atlas slowly peeled his eyes from the person across from him to the window. "Being reborn many years prior to your untimely death with memories of the future. Intriguing."

"Goodness..." Hugo shook his head once again, only to arch a brow. "Huh? That is weird."

"Hmm?"

Hugo furrowed his brows. "I think someone has that kind of delusion."

"Oh?"

"Yeah. He claimed to have been reborn and wanted revenge. Do you know where that person is right now? Prison." Hugo remarked matter-of-factly. "Yep. You got him behind bars for assaulting Slater and hurting Penny in the process. Remember that time she was hospitalized?"

Silence fell between the two, with Hugo smiling a bit, using this to stop his brother from walking down a very dangerous and crazy path. However, Atlas had a different thought. He furrowed his brows, pondering a bit.

"I think that person did mention being reborn or something," Atlas murmured, recalling that occurrence months ago. He hadn’t paid much attention to it because he didn’t have time for nonsense. Besides, he had simply gone to see that person because he wanted to see the person he would put behind bars. And that man certainly seemed fit for prison.

But now that Hugo mentioned it, and considering what Atlas overheard last night, it made him narrow his eyes.

"Uh... First Brother?" Hugo called, tilting his head to the side. "Just in case you don’t know, I said that as a warning. You should stop thinking that Grandma Pierson is an old immortal, which now leads you to consider rebirth. It’s not good, you know? In a medical setting, they’d say it’s getting worse."

"What if I tell you that your little siblings claim they were reborn? Would you believe them?"

"Huh?"

Atlas fluttered his eyelashes back to Hugo. "Want to see something interesting?"

"Yeah...? But not when you’re the one asking me." Hugo felt a slight chill creeping up his spine, thinking that Atlas was kind of losing it. The trip was supposed to relax them and make them forget about the busy life of the city, not make them lose their minds!

Just what was going on with him?

"Then come with me once this plane settles." Atlas turned to the window, seeing that they were still about to take off. "After all, I do not like being trapped in a pool of questions that might drown me in the future."

A glint flickered across Atlas’s eyes, leaving Hugo greatly bewildered. However, as a man of his word, Atlas told him to get up once they settled in the air. With that, Atlas and Hugo made their way to the other side of the private plane, where Slater, Penny, and Zoren were sitting.

****

"Hehe. Don’t worry." Penny giggled proudly, winking at Slater across from her and tipping her head at Zoren, who sat beside her. "Renren knows all about it — I told him! So your secret is safe with him too."

Slater’s jaw dropped, darting his eyes between Penny and her husband. Zoren didn’t react despite hearing Penny’s initial question, and even now, he was just sitting there as if his ears weren’t for hearing and reacting.

"You... told him?" Slater gasped when he recovered. "How much have you told him?"

"Everything?"

Once again, Slater was rendered speechless, his eyes wide at his sister. "And he’s okay with it?"

"Of course!" Penny hooked her arm around Zoren and flashed him a smile. "He’s in love with me, and love is blind. So he’s fine."

This time, Zoren subtly smiled at her and nodded. "Don’t worry, Third Brother. If you’re not comfortable speaking with me around, I’ll gladly leave and join First Brother and Second Brother."

"Speaking of..." Penny furrowed her brows, noticing Atlas and Hugo approaching. "Shhh for now. They’re here."

All three—Zoren, Penny, and Slater—turned to the approaching figures. When Atlas reached them, he casually scanned their faces before his eyes landed on Penny.

"Penny, were you reborn?"

Thankfully, Penny was securely belted in her seat; otherwise, Atlas’s unexpected and blunt question would have knocked her out of her chair as that had caught her entirely off guard.