In the time that it took for Christopher and Noah to make their way into the house, Harold had increased his guard after learning of Christopher’s identity. Christopher, on the other hand, found himself on the receiving end of a less-than-warm welcome. Before Harold came out to greet them, Christopher saw that someone had served three cups of tea, one of which was placed in front of what was presumably Harold’s seat, which meant the remaining cups were meant for Noah and himself. Christopher took the cup that was set down before him and briefly sniffed the tea, noting the plain aroma that indicated the tea was of common quality. However, Noah was served with the finest Darjeeling, which happened to be the same type in Harold’s cup. With a scoff, Christopher sipped his commoner’s tea impassively and waited patiently for Harold to greet them. Meanwhile, Harold knew precisely what the two men were doing here, given that Noah had called him up earlier and asked about the Icarus Root. He tried to stall for as long as he could and he did not enter the living room until after Christopher and Noah were halfway through their tea.“Well, if it isn’t Director Turner! I’m terribly sorry to keep you waiting. I’ve been feeling unwell recently and I was having a short round of treatment before this, hence the delay.” Harold sounded apologetic enough as he addressed them, but Christopher and Noah could tell that the man was not sorry in the slightest. The truth was that Harold had no intention of talking to Noah, seeing that the latter did not have a large fortune to his name. However, he could reconsider his decision if Noah could come up with the money. Noah, on the other hand, was used to these tactics to which these business-types frequently subscribed to. He understood what Harold was trying to convey—he would not hand over the rare and near-priceless Icarus Root, so Noah ought to stop daydreaming about it. Christopher had been the one who suggested that they paid Harold a visit and with this in mind, Noah turned to give him a meaningful look. Meanwhile, Christopher smiled as he looked up at Harold and began, “Mr. Myers, if I could ask—” However, he was interrupted in mid-sentence when Harold made an angry and disgruntled noise before snapping irritably, “Be quiet. Can’t you see that I’m speaking to Director Turner? What right do you have to interrupt this conversation? Sit still and keep your mouth shut.” The real reason behind Harold’s late entrance was because he had asked someone to look into Christopher’s background. While there wasn’t much information that could be dug within such a short time frame, he managed to find out that Christopher was a nobody, which was more than enough assurance for him. Meanwhile, upon hearing what Harold had said, Noah frowned. He turned to give Christopher a worried look, but he visibly relaxed when he saw how unruffled the young man was. “Mr. Myers, he happens to be a friend with whom I have recently acquainted myself with. He might not have much experience, but his medical skills are impressive. Who knows you might even need his help in the near future?” “Thank you for the kind offer, Director Turner, but I don’t think I would need his help at all. I’m just a bit under the weather, that’s all, and there’s certainly nothing chronic going on. If there’s nothing else you’d like to ask me, then I suppose we should wrap this meeting up,” Harold replied icily with an annoyed look on his face. The man had as good as asked them to get out of the house. Upon hearing this, Christopher shot a frosty look as he pointed out flatly, “Correct me if I’m wrong, Mr. Myers—you often wake up in the middle of the night, you have terrible nightmares, and there are even times when you feel as if your blood has run cold. Following the onset of these inexplicable symptoms, you experience sharp chest pains and you sometimes find yourself rendered immobile within the first ten minutes of your abrupt awakening.” He was indifferent as he said all those and the words seemed tethered to his very presence as they reverberated throughout the living room. When Harold heard the painfully specific description Christopher had given, a look of astonishment registered on his face. “H-How do you know all this?” he demanded as he pointed a trembling finger at Christopher. He had always been vague about his symptoms whenever he was at the hospital for a check-up and he never told anyone else about them either. Not even his wife knew of the strange illness that plagued him. However, here was a young man who could so accurately point out his symptoms even though they had only just met. Harold swallowed convulsively as a chill ran down his spine. He had been undergoing extensive treatment for this illness for years, but it didn’t seem like he was making any headway in his recovery. None of the check-ups and lab reports could pinpoint the cause of the illness, so how was it that a young man such as Christopher could? Upon hearing Christopher and Harold’s tense exchange, Noah glanced at Christopher in bewilderment. He didn’t think that Christopher could so easily deduce what Harold was experiencing just by looking at him and listening to his voice. And yet, that was exactly what he did to discover all of Harold’s symptoms. Looks like Hilda might just be cured, after all, Noah thought with relief. Presently, Christopher scoffed contemptuously. “How I’ve come to know all this is none of your concern, but let me tell you this: if you can’t find a cure for your illness in the next three days, you will start having seizures tonight and by tomorrow evening, you will be foaming at the mouth. On the third day, your legs will stiffen and you will die an agonizing death.” There was a dark edge to his words as he said that and right now, he was regarding Harold like how one might regard an insignificant pest—one that could be easily crushed at any given moment. As soon as he heard this, Harold began to tremble. It was true that his illness had only gotten worse over the years, but when he thought about how Christopher had said he would die in the next three days, he broke into a menacing laugh. If that were the case, then I would have died years ago. Emboldened by the thought of this, he sneered, “Stop bluffing, boy. You may be right about my symptoms, but who are you trying to kid by saying that I’d die in the next three days? Do you take me for a fool? I would have collapsed years ago if things were truly that serious!” He snorted, believing that Christopher was only trying to scare him into giving up the Icarus Root. Did he honestly think I wouldn’t see this coming? “Well said, but I take great offense at your remark. Now that you’ve pissed me off, there’s nothing more for you to do other than feel your symptoms worsening over the next three days. When that happens, don’t bother asking me for help unless you can come up with fifty million in cash. Let’s go, Director Turner,” Christopher responded with a sinister smirk. Indeed, he had been trying to scare Harold into surrendering the Icarus Root, but he did not make empty threats. Harold’s death would be inevitable if he could not find a cure in the next three days. Without sparing Harold so much as a second glance, Christopher marched out of the stately Myers Residence. Noah, on the other hand, had wanted to ask about the Icarus Root until he caught sight of the devious look on Christopher’s face and he instantly knew that the young man had his own way of doing things. As such, he did not press any further and instead followed the other man out of the house. While this was happening, Harold watched the both of them leave and let out a disdainful scoff. “How naive could you be? As if I would ever beg for your help and pay you fifty million for it! I might be feeling under the weather, but that doesn’t mean I’d fall for your stupid tricks! How ridiculous!” Outside the house, Christopher noticed the woeful expression on Noah’s face and broke into a light chuckle before he consoled, “Don’t worry, Director Turner. Harold will definitely come crawling to me for help in the next three days, unless, of course, he decides that he’d much rather die.” Noah nodded when he heard that. He had personally witnessed Christopher’s medical skills and right now, he completely trusted Christopher. As a comfortable silence settled between the both of them, they got into the car and left.