Chapter 127: Keira’s Injuries

Chapter 127: Chapter 127: Keira’s Injuries

"Is that so?" the man said, chuckling. "Well then, you should at least apply to the Guild Academy. Maybe if you’re there, Keira will actually show up to teach the students more than one day a week."

"I’ll think about it," Derrick said with a light shrug.

"That’s all I can ask for," the man replied, still amused.

He reached into his jacket, pulled out a sleek, gold-trimmed card, and held it out to Derrick.

"I’m Julian Bright, Guild Leader of the Golden Dawn Guild."

As he introduced himself, Julian stared into Derrick’s eyes as if looking for something.

But when he not found anything his lips pursed.

Derrick took the card between two fingers. "Derrick."

"Good luck with your visit, Derrick," Julian said with a nod.

He turned around and walked off toward the elevators, his secretary falling into step right behind him without making a sound.

Derrick watched them go until the lift doors slid shut.

He glanced down at the card in his hand. It had a simple sunburst crest with Julian’s name and private contact number etched cleanly into the metal.

Derrick slipped it into his pocket next to Keira’s handwritten note.

He adjusted his grip on the bouquet of lilies and the heavy fruit basket, then turned back toward the quiet hallway, checking the door numbers one by one as he looked for room 706.

Derrick walked past room 702, then 704.

He stopped right outside room 706.

He knocked twice on the heavy wooden door.

"Come in," a familiar voice called out from inside.

It was Keira, sounding a bit tired but steady.

Derrick pushed the door open and stepped inside the spacious private suite.

Keira was sitting up in the hospital bed, propped against a few plush pillows.

She didn’t look completely wrecked, but her pale face and the light bandages wrapped around her wrist said enough.

When she saw Derrick holding a big bundle of white lilies and a massive fruit basket, her eyes widened.

"You actually brought fruits?" she asked, a faint smile breaking across her face.

"You literally put it in the note," Derrick said, walking over to set the gifts on the bedside table. "Couldn’t show up empty-handed."

He pulled a chair over from the corner and sat down beside the bed.

"So," Derrick started, looking at her. "I just ran into your boss outside."

Keira raised an eyebrow. "Julian?"

"Yeah," Derrick said with a shrug. "He offered me a job at Golden Dawn. Said I should join the Guild Academy."

Keira’s mouth twitched at the mention of the job offer.

"Julian wasn’t supposed to be here today," she murmured, her brows knitting together. "Something must have gone wrong. He suddenly came back to check up on me even though he has already been here once."

"The guy is up to no good. I can feel it." Derrick said, leaning back in his chair. "You should keep your guard up around him."

"What did he talk to you about?" Keira asked, her gaze searching his face anxiously. "I was hoping to keep you out of his sight for as long as I could."

Derrick told her everything that went outside.

Keira listened, letting out a heavy breath when he finished.

She pinched the bridge of her nose. "Ugh... Things are moving way to fast."

Derrick shifted forward, his tone dropping as he cut straight to the point.

"Now tell me what’s actually happening," he said quietly. "Why are you stuck in a hospital bed? And why this?" He took out the note she had left his from his pocket and showed it to her.

Keira reached into her storage ring and pulled out a thin black phone.

She handed it over to Derrick.

"Check this," she said softly. "See if there’s anything wrong with it."

Derrick took the phone, his brows furrowing as he looked at the screen.

He tapped into the device’s system files and scanned through the background processes.

It took him only a few seconds to find it.

Buried deep in the software was a hidden virus.

It was designed to read all her incoming and outgoing messages, and quietly turn on her microphone to listen in on her conversations.

Derrick didn’t destroy it.

If he deleted the virus completely, the hacker on the other end would get an immediate alert and know they were caught.

Instead, his fingers moved across the screen in a rapid blur.

In seconds, he isolated the virus inside a trapped sandbox loop.

The virus was still running, but it was completely cut off from reading data or transmitting audio. To the attacker, the phone would just look completely idle.

"You were right not to text me," Derrick said as he finished up.

"There was a virus listening through your mic and reading your messages."

He handed the phone back to her.

"I didn’t erase it," he explained. "I just isolated it. That way whoever put it there won’t notice we found it."

Keira took the phone back without showing any sign of panic or surprise.

Her face remained completely calm.

"But it seems like you already knew about it."

She didn’t look worried at all, it was like she had already known the virus was there before she even handed him the device.

Keira stared down at the screen for a moment before looking back up at Derrick.

"Is it the same person who hacked my computer?" she asked, her voice low.

Derrick shook his head right away.

"Not even close," he replied.

"The guy who broke into your computer actually had real skill."

"This phone virus is way weaker and incredibly crude."

"It looks like something thrown together by a lowlife hacker who barely knows what they’re doing."

Suddenly, the pale, sickly look on Keira’s face completely vanished.

Her color returned in seconds, her cheeks filling with a healthy, natural glow.

She reached down and unraveled the light bandages wrapped around her wrist.

She tossed the white cloth onto the bedsheet, revealing smooth, spotless skin underneath. There wasn’t a single scratch or bruise on her.

Derrick watched her, taking in the sudden change without blinking.

Keira met his gaze, her expression turning deadly serious.

"It seems someone was actually after my life," she said quietly.