Garnet Leyton, or rather Leyton Garnet, was a ruthless man.
At least that's what he thinks.
This belief has been deeply ingrained in my mind since I was four years old.
From the moment he coldly watched his birth mother die.
The body was severed from its head, and the dead man's blood splattered all over the bed.
That was the darkest moment of my life.
But later, Garnet questioned himself, "Is it really true?"
Was that truly the darkest hour?
The answer, however, is no.
It's just that one person died.
Because she was too weak, because he was too weak.
Like a newly hatched cub, it will perish at the slightest disturbance.
He accepted this established fact, both naturally and quite unnaturally.
My heart wasn't even stirred.
Is it because of this environment?
The environment of a Mafia family.
Garnet gave a negative response once again.
No, it's just myself.
Simply because that's who he is.
Cold and indifferent, devoid of emotion.
But this is not normal, Garnet thought to himself.
This is not normal.
But then, in the next second, a line of black text appeared in my mind.
So what?
It was fast, yet so clear.
Like a drop of ink falling into a clear water jar, even the smallest amount is perfectly visible.
In an instant, little Garnet stopped worrying.
Yeah, so what?
Nothing serious happened; I didn't die from it.
Until one day when he was ten years old, Garnet had always been like this.
Cold and indifferent, like a perfect executioner.
Perhaps as an assassin, as a 'knife,' he will become the sharpest one.
But he is not an assassin, nor can he be used as a weapon.
He is the eldest grandson of the Layton Family.
Logically, he should be the rightful heir to the Layton Family.
Sharpness alone is not enough to make someone a head of a family.
But it doesn't matter, he never thought he had to become the head of the family anyway.
That's too tiring, mentally taxing, and...
Is there any sense of accomplishment in managing a place that resembles a garbage dump?
Garnet stood atop the hill, his face expressionless, overlooking the vast Leyton Manor.
Worthless.
A bunch of trash and termites.
Let them fend for themselves.
A bunch of people with no future.
But everything changed after that day when I turned ten.
Unlike many tragic novels, that day was just an ordinary day in Garnet's life.
There was neither a family tragedy nor any sarcastic remarks from relatives.
It was just an ordinary Mafia family gathering.
But at that party, a white cat appeared.
No.
Garnet his gaze and examined it closely. It was a white cat with red eyes, a prized breed.
After examining it more closely, he finally dismissed that somewhat strange thought.
His purple, crystal-like eyes were filled with indifference and scrutiny.
The second son of the Zoldyck Family.
She was merely a foil for the eldest son.
With her expression still indifferent, little Garnet, like a delicate doll, stood in the crowd, abruptly yet strangely blending into the small banquet hall.
But perhaps it was because her eyes were beautiful enough, or perhaps it was because her behavior was strange enough, in any case, Garnet didn't know what was wrong with her that she was able to attract that expensive breed of cat.
The white cat was anything but reserved; instead, it was incredibly unrestrained.
Holding a half-eaten cake, she skipped and hopped around without any aristocratic elegance.
He was humming an unknown song.
He suddenly leaped over and stood right in front of Garnet.
Its blood-red eyes gleamed with an eerie light, like a cat that had discovered a fun ball of yarn.
People always say that Coleman's eyes were filled with blood and evil.
That red color must be an ominous sign, cursed by a demon.
It was like a pool of blood, disgusting and terrifying.
But Garnet never thought that way.
That touch of crimson was clearly the only bright spot in this black and white world.
Like a garden full of Rose, reflecting the arrival of spring.
It is as fiery as a summer fire, and as vibrant as a blooming rose.
The glass-like surface resembled a galaxy, reminding Garnet of the large Orion cloud he had read about in a storybook.
Beautiful and sparkling, with countless glittering points that catch the eye.
But my own purple is the color of hell.
Deep and somber, like a hook to the abyss, one wrong step and you'll fall into endless darkness.
He blinked and heard the white-haired boy with beautiful eyes say those words.
"Isn't it boring?"
"..."
Looking for some fun?
"..."
"How about we go and play a trick on them?" The white-haired boy smiled, his eyes narrowing, the red hue hidden, leaving only the mischievous look on his childish face.
For the first time, the black-haired boy with the stiff face smiled, though faintly, it was still quite noticeable on his face.
Garnet heard himself say, "Okay, what do you want to play?"
The white-haired boy's eyes darted around, a wicked smile playing on his lips, "Let them be disappointed. A great magician should bestow upon the world a great dream, sweet yet cruel."
"A very good idea." Garnet extended his hand and said, "I like it very much. What's your name?"
" Coleman. Coleman Zoldyck, or Zoldyck Coleman, call me whatever you like." The white-haired boy held out his hand, grinning as he retorted, "And you, the Leyton kid?"
" Garnet, it's a pleasure to meet you."
"Me too, little Garnet."
Afterwards, no one expected that the joke from that day would actually come true.
Garnet truly bestowed upon everyone present a ridiculous yet beautiful dream.
Just when you're about to gain everything, you fall from a great height.
It was smashed to pieces.
This also aligns with Coleman's final conclusion.
Sweet yet cruel.
This is one of the few secrets the two of them share.
It's about destroying the entire black market industry in Southeast China.
Even though he had been friends with Coleman for a long time, Garnet didn't smile much.
He felt it was meaningless.
One day, Garnet looked at Coleman, who was always smiling and seemed to be laughing no matter what, and couldn't help but ask, "What's so funny? Aren't you tired?"
Coleman still grinned. "It's a kind of pity, you know. Don't you think they're too pitiful? So we should offer them some comfort before they die."
So smile, consider it a final farewell gift to them.
After all, isn't laughter a beautiful emotion?
"Besides, how can one not smile while having a beautiful dream?"
This statement was illogical, but Garnet understood it.
A beautiful dream will surely bring smiles, so if you, the one who created this dream, don't smile yourself, how can you tell others about it?
'Hey, this is a beautiful dream!'
Garnet wasn't sure if he understood it correctly, but from then on, he also started to smile more.
Compared to Coleman's occasional, irritating, and provocative laugh.
Garnet has a stronger learning ability, coupled with his already handsome face.
His smile seemed to have a comforting effect.
Like a Buddhist disciple high in the heavens, comforting all people.
Therefore, he found himself a 'faith'—Buddha.
Coleman, on the other hand, seemed to have a fondness for gods and demons, often holding scriptures and muttering to himself.
He said he was a messenger sent by God to help people go to heaven.
Garnet tilted his head, a smile on his face, and naturally replied.
'If you're the messenger, then I'm a Buddhist. You're responsible for sending people to heaven, and I'm responsible for sending them to paradise. We're truly kind.'
"Yes," Coleman said, still smiling, closing the book in his hand and grinning, "We're so kind."
But in those red and purple eyes, she saw only the other person's indifferent, even cold-blooded, face.
Lifeless, like two exquisite puppets.
He was compassionate and empathetic, like a Buddhist or a believer.
Sometimes, Garnet would think about things without much emotion.
Perhaps it's precisely because they're both so eccentric that they can become friends.
At that time, he also thought that he could be friends with this strange person for a long time, at least until they were seventy or eighty years old.
After all, Garnet couldn't think of anyone who could kill that white-haired guy.
As for himself, who would dare to touch the head of the Layton Family?
Garnet did not react at all during Coleman's departure and the period following his departure.
It was even more indifferent than Garnet himself had imagined, like...
Just as expected.
During this period, including the time when Coleman disappeared, Garnet lived a life that was no different from before.
It was as if I had never met this person before.
But on the night Coleman disappeared, Garnet, who had always been so composed and at ease, actually broke a glass.
That day, unusually, he did not meet with any of his subordinates, nor did he smile.
He simply sat silently, listlessly, all night long.
He arranged the chessboard in front of him to resemble the endgame position left from their last game.
After that, nothing happened.
The next morning, as the sun shone down, Garnet stretched his somewhat stiff body.
That day, he declined all guests and refused all invitations.
He simply sealed away some of the plans he had developed and completed with Coleman.
On the third day, Garnet seemed to return to his previous life, and then his life became monotonous again, just like always.
However, he occasionally buys some strange cross pendants for admiration.
And she handled all of Coleman's unfinished projects with great ease, while also comforting a certain little orange cat.
Give the lively, energetic Manster a good beating.
Ensure that all necessary functions continue to operate even if someone has disappeared.
Sometimes he would drift off into a daze, casually arranging the chess pieces as they were in the last game with him, only to quickly return them to their original state.
Life went on like this, just like any other ordinary day.
Just like the day I met that white-haired guy.
It's nothing special.
'Yeah, I'm feeling a bit bored and lonely.'