‎A somber silence hung over the table.

‎Inwardly, it took everything Norvax had to stop himself from laughing out loud.

‎Just then Steve's order arrived.

‎The waitress offered him a polite smile, carefully placing the tray of steaming pastries in front of him.

‎" What are these called?" Alissa asked softly, smiling at Steve.

‎Steve's eyes lit up enthusiastically.

‎"These are Molvo puddings, they're unique to this part of the world. "

‎Gesturing slightly with his fork, he continued explaining.

‎" And this is a Juborg tart."

‎The tart in question resembled a chocolate tart with several exotic fruits artfully embedded into it.

‎" I'm a sweet tooth, you see and and also a food enthusiast. I simply must try out the dishes of the different places I visit."

‎Steve gently sliced into the tart, slicing off a generous portion for himself that quickly disappeared into his mouth.

‎He hummed satisfactorily, letting out a dramatic sigh.

‎Edmund stared at him in amusement, tilting his head slightly.

‎" Is it actually that good?"

‎Steve rigorously nodded his head, offering him a slice of the delicious-looking pastry.

‎"Oops!"

‎Xander accidentally knocked the plate aside.

‎Chuckling in embarrassment, he picked up the piece, popping it into his mouth.

‎His eyes widened slightly, glowing with a soft russet light.

‎" Wow! This is actually really good."

‎Abandoning any manners, Xander boldly reached across the table, stuffing himself with said pastry.

‎Norvax raised an eyebrow at the sight.

‎" Well, that was certainly unexpected...Time to step in as a responsible father," he thought.

‎" Cade Wilson, what do you think you're doing?" he actually said, his face wrinkling at his best attempt at indignation.

‎Edmund too stared at him incredulously, while the look on Alissa's face was one of pure genuine shock.

‎Warren, on the other hand, was unbothered, his focus entirely on the quickly diminishing plate of cookies before him.

‎An innocent smile played on his lips as he calmly dabbed at his lips with a napkin, regaining a semblance of dignity.

‎" Ahem, pardon my manners, Dad. I don't know what came over me."

‎Xander looked down at the table, refusing to meet Norvax's gaze.

‎Steve laughed good-naturedly, waving his hand dismissively at Xander's antics.

‎" It's alright, I appreciate a fellow food enthusiast. We can simply order for more."

‎A mischievous grin appeared on Xander's face, his eyes narrowing slightly.

‎" Ah, yes," he said, licking his lips.

‎" That pastry was simply to die for, literally, if you catch my vibe."

‎Steve stared at Xander for a second too long, then let out a nervous laugh, scratching the back of his head in embarrassment.

‎"Kids these days..."

‎Norvax was suddenly on high alert, warning bells blaring in his head.

‎" Something's wrong," he thought, his gaze subtly shifting, slowly sweeping over the people in the cafe.

‎Nothing appeared to be out of the ordinary, but Xander's abrupt change in attitude wasn't part of the plan.

‎"What is it?"

‎Nrvax stole a furtive glance at the receptionist.

‎Soon his attention shifted to the waitresses and then to the people at the surrounding tables, but still he noticed nothing out of the ordinary.

‎"Could I be imagining things?

‎Alissa immediately noticed the discrete change, shifting slightly in her seat.

‎" Next time, just order something, Cade. There's no need to act like a brute," she said, taking on the role of a patronizing aunt.

‎Xander's gaze shifted to her, offering her a sweet smile. He masterfully played the role of an embarrassed teen, chuckling nervously.

‎" I'm sorry about that, Aunt Kate," he said, lowering his head slightly in what passed for embarrassment.

‎Norvax remained on high alert, his gaze shifting to the waitress moving around in their petite uniforms.

‎" Here, try the Molvo puddings," Steve said, offering Edmund a slice from his place.

‎Eyes lighting up in glee, Edmund eagerly reached out for the delicious-looking treat.

‎A moment later, a dark knife blurred through the air, its tip stopping just short of Edmund's exposed throat.

‎" Like I said before," Xander said with a smile," The pastry was simply to die for."

‎His lips burned into a wicked smile, his eyes gleaming dangerously.

‎Xander's fist firmly held onto Steve's offending hand, refusing the knife from budging even a millimetre forward.

‎Startled by the insane speed, Edmund fell back onto his feet with an inaudible yelp.

‎" The pastry..." Xander spoke quietly.

‎" It was poisoned. If an ordinary human, or say you, Edmund, had eaten it, you'd be dead within seconds," he said, increasing his grip on the man's limbs.

‎A dark grin appeared on Xander's face, a brief shimmer of light flashing through his russet pupils. In that moment, his demeanor shifted completely.

‎" I, on the other hand, am anything but ordinary."

‎Warren paused, staring at Steve with an inscrutable expression.

‎"I knew I didn't like him."

‎Alissa stared at the man and the youth in shock, hesitating for a brief second.

‎As it turned out, the second almost cost her her life.

‎"What the hell is going on here?"

‎Despite having been recently elevated to the kill squad, Alissa had the least experience with such situations and, therefore, was noticeably slow to react to the threat in front of her.

‎A split second later, a second blade materialized in Steve's hand, flashing towards her throat.

‎Norvax intercepted the dark blade, twisting it away from Alissa's eye in the nick of time.

‎"Damn it, Aisha never spoke of anything like this happening," he inwardly snarled.

‎A ripple of gasps and screams erupted in the cafe when people noticed the two blades and the two men struggling.

‎Steve continued smiling pleasantly despite straining against the two.

‎" You guys are truly no fun, huh?"

‎He turned his gaze to Alissa, smiling warmly.

‎"It was nice meeting you..."

‎He paused, his eyes darting to the glass pane.

‎" Unfortunately, I can't have them finding me here," he said, smiling warmly at Alissa.

‎In the restaurant, everyone had resumed doing what they'd been doing as though Norvax and Xander weren't struggling with a blade-wielding maniac.

‎"And from the looks of things, they are already here."

‎Xander took in the abnormality calmly, slowly twisting Steve's grip.

‎To his surprise, the man's wrist continued to bend following the unnatural trajectory of the maneuver, almost as though he had no bones in his hand. Meanwhile, around them, the waitresses continued serving the customers, as though nothing was out of the ordinary.

‎"What the hell? Is this another Talented at Work? Are we dealing with two culprits?"

‎Steve chuckled at the look of confusion on his face.

‎" Hope we can meet up for a drink or two when we next meet?" he said, winking at Alissa.

‎Xander frowned slightly at the choice of words.

‎" You're not going anywhere, pal, not until we get done answers out of you," he said calmly.

‎Steve laughed in amusement.

‎In the next moment, his body dissolved, turning into a mist drifting away with echoes of his ghostly laughter.

‎In a heartbeat, Xander deftly leapt over the table, slicing through the mist with a peculiar silver blade that had appeared in his hands at some point in the jump.

‎A muffled scream erupted from within the mist, then it vanished in the next instant.

" He still got away, huh. I guess I should have laced it with a toxin of some sort. That should have slowed him down considerably."

‎Xander stood staring at the pale crimson liquid dripping from the blade.

‎Raising it to his nose, he casually sniffed it, nodding slightly.

" A metallic iron scent, it's unmistakably blood, so at least I managed to hurt him."

‎"What the hell?"

‎Norvax stared at him in curiosity, observing his odd behavior.

‎The young assassin had reacted much more quickly to the threat than his Talented counterparts.

‎" What do they feed kids these days?" he thought with a grimace.

‎Producing a dark cloth, Xander methodically cleaned the blade, returning it to its former pristine condition before it once more disappeared on his person.

‎His four companions watched him in a stunned silence.

Warren watched him with renewed interest, calmly biting into the last cookie.

" Well, that was a letdown. I thought you'd actually managed to get him," he murmured amidst bites.

Edmund turned Warren with a piercing glare, then slightly shook his head.

Warren spared him a glance, calmly finishing his treat.

‎Turning back, Xander noticed the surprised gazes of the rest of his companions.

" How were you able to hurt him in that firm?" Alissa asked, her eyes narrowing in curiosity.

Xander smiled, shrugging slightly.

‎" Umbranite, we use it for weaponsmithing. It can affect Talented abilities, in case you were wondering how I managed to cut him."

‎Norvax sighed, sitting back down.

‎Xander nonchalantly took his seat, smiling at the incredulous looks on their faces.

‎" And I have a question."

‎Norvax raised an eyebrow at that.

‎" What is it?"

‎"Why is everyone behaving like nothing has happened despite the mess that just occurred?"

‎" Oh! That..."

‎Norvax palmed his face slightly, then raised his eyes, glancing at the door.

‎"She would be responsible for that."

Xander's eyes widened slightly, then followed the direction Norvax was looking.

‎Just then, the bell above the door chimed gently.

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