?Chapter 865:


    “That’s easy. Trent can handle him,” Ellis answered calmly. He had already thought it through.


    Trent gave a subtle nod, adjusting his sses with ease. “Leave it to me.”


    By the time the clock struck seven, Freya and Kristian had arrived. As soon as they walked in, Ellis stood up and motioned toward the seat next to him.


    Freya walked over and sat beside him without much thought, unaware of the subtle arrangement behind it.


    Watching her settle so easily, her friends exchanged quiet nces and let out a collective breath.


    Step oneplete.


    After a light meal to take the edge off their hunger, the group shifted focus to the next part of the n: games.


    They usually yed deduction games, but tonight was different. The goal was to help Ellis get closer to Freya, which meant changing things up.


    “Let’s y something,” Greta suggested, her eyes briefly meeting Frederick’s with a knowing nce. “Got any ideas?”


    Without hesitation, Frederick offered, “Truth or Dare?”


    It was the perfect opportunity to nudge Ellis toward a confession—and with any luck, Freya might be caught off guard.


    “I like that,” Greta said, a hint of approval in her voice. She knew exactly where this was headed. “Everyone else okay with that?”


    Trent gave a small nod.


    Freya didn’t raise any objections either.


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    The only one who seemed uncertain was Kristian. He tugged gently at…


    Kristian tugged at Freya’s sleeve, his unease evident, almost like a shy teenager. “Freya, I’d rather not y this game.”


    The room fell silent for a moment.


    Freya, unfazed, turned to him. “Then what do you want to y?”


    “Let’s y something simr to ‘Never Have I Ever.’ We can bend a finger for the things we’ve done,” Kristian suggested, his tone a little too casual. It was clear he had nned this. What he really wanted was to figure out if Freya had a fear of ghosts. “Sound good?”


    “Works for me,” Greta said, quickly adjusting to the change in direction.


    Frederick’s eyes flicked to Ellis, as was his habit.


    If Ellis gave the green light, he’d go along with it, too.


    Ellis didn’t rush his response. He nced at Kristian, his gaze steady, and then replied with quiet finality, “Sure.”


    With Ellis giving the go-ahead, Trent and Frederick nodded in agreement. As expected, Freya went along without a fuss.


    “This game’s about being honest,” Frederick said, already thinking of ways to use it to Ellis’s advantage. “If you’ve done it, bend a finger. If not, leave it up. The one with the most fingers left at the end gets the punishment.”


    “Understood,” came the unanimous reply.


    “I’ll kick things off. Just follow my lead—bend a finger if it applies to you, keep it straight if not,” Frederick said as he looked around the group. Then, with a grin, he announced, “I picked up hacking from K.”


    Freya raised an eyebrow.


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