Team villains except me

Chapter 552 "Grandfather"

The puppet was as clumsy as Dooku.

Norvia calculated the time for Dooku's departure; she couldn't let him set foot on the northern continent. Valerio said she had the most self-destructive tendencies in the team, but she didn't agree.

She knew her own flaws, her own desire for family and her own paranoia, but Dooku didn't understand any of that. Norvia didn't think Dooku understood her very well, that he didn't understand what was normal and what was abnormal.

He didn't care about himself. He put himself in a position where he could be abandoned and hurt. Just like back in that manor in Fabius, Dooku didn't feel worthy of being saved.

In fact, Dooku cared about their words more than himself.

So before Dooku was about to "go home", Nolvia asked Dooku to protect himself. Her words could be ranked first in Dooku's mind.

Dooku had suffered greatly. She could sense it in so many ways. The scars on his arms, the mask he always wore, the head he couldn't lift... Dooku felt so lowly, so worthless, that he didn't even have the instinctive reflex to protect himself.

He had never been respected or loved, so when he felt loved, it took him a long time to respond.

Nolvia never wanted to force Dooku to hasten this process. She could wait, they could all wait, just as they waited for Dooku to slowly speak complete sentences, gradually express his opinions and likes and dislikes. They so patiently and carefully watched over Dooku's growth, not so that he could give them feedback.

Dooku was trying. His approach was equally clumsy. He wanted to deal with the "grandfather" he had previously been unable to resist, and he created these difficulties to hinder their progress—that was not how family members resolved problems.

Elliott asked Irene to smash the puppet representing Dooku.

"Who knows if there are any other traps hidden in that gift box? If it's a will, it would be a waste of time to listen to it. Bringing Dooku back now is better than anything else."

Elliott folded his arms and sneered.

"Look at it now? Even though I failed the exam before, I let you guys look up information about me. I didn't intend to bear any responsibility for it. Dooku passed the exam, so what? He still did something so stupid."

Irene didn't smash the puppet, she was a little hesitant.

Elliott flicked Irene's head.

"Why are you hesitating? You may not trust Dooku, but I haven't done anything to discredit you. During the competition, Dooku and I were both in the Control Group. Don't underestimate me."

Irene covered her head with her hands, glared at Elliott unhappily, then picked up the gift box and smashed the puppet representing Dooku.

The wind suddenly blew violently.

Fiana realized that they were back in real space.

Norvia had just quickly sorted out several ways to reach the northern continent.

Dooku should have known that his puppets couldn't keep them trapped. He should have taken the fastest route, but Dooku knew them. If Dooku had deliberately chosen another way—

"We split into three groups."

Norvia spoke very quickly.

"There are three routes from Garcia's house to the northern continent. Contact Dooku as soon as you see him. We have about half an hour. I will contact Kabra in half an hour. The Abyssal Clan's range of activities is near the Abyss. At the very least, Dooku must not be allowed to enter the Abyss alone."

Hugh nodded.

"Okay. Then it's best to group them up like this: Fiana and I, you and Irene, and Zhulang and Ellit. Fiana and I will tell Garcia and Yalinxiu what happened in the magic circle."

There is no time to waste.

After a quick deployment, the three groups of members left in different directions.

The spider moved very slowly. Elliott waited for her, and seeing that she didn't seem anxious, he thought she was reading the plant's memory.

After a while, Elliott couldn't wait any longer.

"Which direction did Dooku go?"

"How should I know? He walked so fast, and my vision was blocked by that damn puppet."

"So what are you doing? Isn't this a waste of time?"

"Who said that?"

Zhu Yi pulled out the communicator. Her expression was cold, her red eyelashes like bloodshot in the darkness. Then she laughed.

"Ellit, did you know that Dooku is a very powerful puppeteer?"

"Of course I know. Those puppets are really difficult to deal with."

"so."

Zhu Yi shook the communicator in her hand.

"A tracker made by a great puppeteer should be very useful, right?"

There is a moving red dot in the communicator.

Elliott touched himself subconsciously.

"You put trackers on everyone?"

"You think beautifully."

Zhu's eyes were like spinning black holes, and her tone was calm.

"Dooku only did this one. I asked him to do a lot of things, but he didn't want to do more with the tracker, and I didn't force him. He hasn't been in a good state since he came back from the academy today. You noticed that, didn't you? You've been acting so calm this whole time."

"I just understand him. I thought he really wanted to play the treasure game. Then why didn't you tell me earlier that you had placed the tracker? So that Nolvia and the others wouldn't have to go..."

"No. I'm going to find Dooku first, and then I'm going to shake the water out of his head. No one's going to stop me.

"Besides, I don't think Dooku wouldn't have discovered it. He knows us very well. He even knew when we would attack him by surprise. He blocked it. He was determined to find the sadist in the Abyss today, and I'm not sure how much preparation he has made."

"How much preparation could there be? He became different from usual only after meeting that Kabra, which wasn't long."

"Ellit, you saw those puppets. He assembled them using existing materials after returning to Garcia's house. The water used to water the flowers was used by Garcia to replace the water magic, and the fire magic was taken from the fire in the fireplace that Shanna lit. He is a genius. Although we are all geniuses, Dooku is a very special one."

Elliott pulled his coat closer. His handsome face was expressionless.

"What are we talking about? Let's go! What if this is also a trap? We have to follow the route Nolvia gave us and pursue Dooku. Seriously, after we tie him up, let the psychotherapist Fianna hired check on Dooku."

"I agree."

Zhu Yi was very fast, using wood magic to carry Elliott down the road. This was the main reason why Huett had grouped them this way. Given the current situation, using magic was the fastest.

But for Fiana and Hught, it was Fiana's magic circle theory that played a major role.

"...These are the only arrays currently active. The speed of the arrays is very stable. If we replicate the array Dooku might sit on one-to-one, we won't be able to catch up with him.

No existing public magic circle could reach Dooku before him. There were a few magic circles in private territories that could be used, but those lords were difficult to threaten and had erratic temperaments.

Hugh, I've always been number one in array studies. I'm now considered a master of array studies. You know, the arrays in Rose Mansion are all my work.

So, I'm going to build a magic circle here. I know the magic circuits of these magic circles, I can set the destination, and I'm sure I won't make any mistakes."

"can."

"Hught, there are risks."

"It's worth a try. The risk is no greater than if we enter the Abyss and fail to find Dooku."

Fiana glanced at Hugh, she was very calm.

"Assist me. Hugh, we don't have much material."

……

Norvia and Irene have many options.

Nolvia guessed that Dooku might use the mechanical carriage that Mr. Hector had given them. Dooku could increase the speed of the mechanical carriage to three times in a short period of time.

If that were the case, Dooku wouldn't have to choose the circle. He could disguise himself as a merchant trading with the northern continent. Although he wasn't very good at disguises, he could work with the mercenaries he had helped before.

Nolvia still initiated communication with Kabra.

She needs multiple safeguards.

Irene was also in contact with Otekest, who, after understanding the situation, quickly provided them with the most time-saving solution.

Norvia and Irene's first means of transportation was a boat.

Norvia used water magic to propel the boat ever faster, but the vast sea meant this was the longest stretch of the journey. Norvia shielded Irene with water magic. The winter sea was unreasonably cold. Irene looked at the dark waters, a touch of fear in her. As a member of the Gray Wolf Clan, she was naturally afraid of the water, but she and Norvia had known the gentle sea before. With Norvia by her side, she would never drown.

The boat shook violently, but Irene sat very steadily. She didn't need to be distracted like Nolvia to control the boat's direction or use water magic to speed up the boat.

Her communicator was silent, which meant no one had found Dooku yet.

Erin hugged the heart-shaped gift box on the tree. She didn't quite understand why Dooku had suddenly reacted like this. She was still looking forward to the treasure hunt; she hadn't opened the gift Norvia had left under the spruce tree. She thought this could finally be a normal day.

After Mama's death, Teacher Valerio's coma and the end of the Lanier incident, when everyone was too busy to return to the Rose Mansion, and when dinner could finally be lively and not rushed, she thought she would fall asleep with a smile on her face today.

She was sad. She hadn't noticed Dooku's sadness. She'd assumed she was the only one who couldn't process these complex emotions.

Irene hugged the heart-shaped gift box tightly in her arms. She was so strong that the gift box was squeezed out of shape by her hug.

There seemed to be nothing in the gift box. Irene felt that the gift box was very light, and it made a rustling sound when she walked.

Irene bit her lip, she hesitated for a moment, then she gently opened the gift box.

There is only one image stone in the gift box.

It was the kind Elliott always used. Elliott had a storage room in Rose Mansion dedicated to storing image stones. Elliott was always recording them. He took pictures of both the good and the bad.

Elliott gave Dooku many video stones to record his life, but Dooku rarely used them. He even made his own communicator. Dooku was very wary of products that were not made by his own hands.

Irene blinked and was on the verge of tears.

She had a vague idea of ​​what was inside the Image Stone. For a moment, she didn't dare open it. Her hands trembled, and a heat rose on her face.

She thought Dooku was brave. But she didn't think she was brave enough.

Irene closed her eyes. It seemed like a long time had passed, yet it also seemed like only a moment had passed.

Irene opened her eyes. Firmly and without hesitation, she pressed the play button on the video stone.

……

"I am Dooku."

The imaging stone only had sound, and the picture was blurry. It looked familiar to Irene.

Erin thought for a moment and decided that this must be Dooku's desk. Dooku had placed the Image Stone on the desk, but he had put it upside down, so it didn't reflect him, only his voice.

Dooku said nothing more. If Erin hadn't heard the rustling of clothing, she would have thought the Image Stone was broken.

While Dooku was silent, Irene heard Ellit complaining about the excessive smoke in the kitchen, she also heard her and Otkester's howling when they were dealing with a business breakdown, and Spider knocking on the door to ask him what he was doing.

Dooku finally spoke. He was flustered and said he was finishing a project at the Academy.

Zhu Qi said "oh" and told him that Norvia would be back soon, and that Shute and she were going to the magic circle to pick up Norvia.

Irene knew when Dooku had used the Image Stone.

Her eyes were hot and she wanted to cry for no reason.

She could feel Dooku struggling. But they were outside. If only Dooku could open the door, they would stop and solve his problem. He didn't need to be in so much pain, so anxious, as if he was hiding something, afraid to tell Spider-Woman what he was really doing.

Why, Dooku?

"…I am Dooku."

Dooku spoke up.

The quality of the image stone is very good.

Dooku's voice was clear, as if he were speaking right into his ear. His trembling and awkwardness were also clear.

"I'm sorry... I'm a puppet. I'm my grandfather's puppet. Actually, he's not my grandfather, he's my master.

I can't tell you this. My grandfather said he cursed me. The abyss, the space we live in, brings bad luck to those who come. So, I will never have friends, family, or anyone who loves me.

I don't think he's right. But he's powerful. He's the ultimate puppeteer. I'm his puppet. I can't disobey him.

I can't tell you the truth. You'll get hurt. I think if you were more powerful than the master, I could tell you this.

I'm sorry. I haven't tried hard enough. I'm afraid of losing my memory, afraid I won't recognize you. The Master will erase my memory. I'm a puppet, and puppets don't deserve love.

I don't think I'm a puppet. I think my master is lying. You've sacrificed so much for me. I don't want to make you sad again.

I love you. I want to love you forever..."