Shhhh... It's my secret
02. Priority Disciple

Next day.

Baron glanced at Richard through the rearview mirror of the car, his master had been sitting quietly in the back since he got into the car.

Baron intends to convey his master's work agenda today but saw him silent silence so he was lost for words. His attitude is not as usual. Last night must have been the hardest blow for him.

Richard was not one to sit idly by on the way from home to the office.

Richard is a man who is always busy with his tablet or mobile phone, checking everything related to the company through his gawai is his morning routine. If not then he will be busy asking questions with the Baron discussing his work schedule or just busy watching the morning news.

Ten years more Baron worked for him, only this time he saw his master as if he had lost his spirit of life. Though this morning will be held an emergency meeting of shareholders and in the afternoon held a press conference in the media to clean up the mess that occurred during he went abroad.

Baron also knew that last night was not what Richard wanted. As hard as he could be on Lucas because he loved the boy. He just couldn't convey his affection well.

Lucas who began to enter adolescence, his soul which had been restrained because it could only obey what his father chose began to revolt.

Despite the hesitation, Baron finally thought of starting a conversation.

"So morning the Madam came to see me. It seems like the mistress' condition is not so good. He asked about Lucas. I'm just saying that he doesn't have to worry about it."

"Ehm...." Richard just cleared his throat. He did not want the Baron to talk about Ariadne. Although he didn't leave his study last night until morning, he understood his wife's current situation.

"And this...." The baron handed Richard some photos. "He's still practicing boxing secretly in that place."

Richard took those pictures. The photo was taken secretly while Lucas was in the gym. A new hobby he's been doing for the past year.

"What he expected from things like this, he wasted his brain for the sake of his muscles," murmured Richard, "it's futile...." Richard placed the photos next to him. Then he looked back silently out the window.

"You don't want to ask her how she is?" asked the Baron hesitatingly.

"Say what you want to say." Richard answered flatly. "No need to beat around the bush."

"Well," replied the Baron in relief. "Mr Lucas arrived safely last night, now he's staying at Mrs Rosie's house. This woman used to work for Thomas's family...."

"I arranged it like that. You know it too. Among all that information there must be something else that catches your attention. Why not just talk about it?"

"You're right. It's about Mr. Lucas' transfer process. It seems that from the beginning you did want the master to go to school there."

"Why? Is there anything to worry about?"

"From the information I got, the school under the auspices of the WhiteSwan foundation was ranked as the school with the best graduates for ten years in a row." The baron read the article on his cell phone carefully.

"Then...." Baron continued, "the process of admission of new students is carried out strictly due to the presence of admission quota limits and a complicated selection system. Then how can Mr Lucas be taken for granted in the middle of a semester that is running? I never doubted your son's intelligence but...."

"Do you think I did the wrong thing? Thomas is not that kind of person, he is the one who upholds justice" Richard suddenly cut. He began to understand the direction of his assistant's conversation.

Richard picked up a small box made of agarwood, which he had kept in his pocket. He handed the box to the baron.

The baron accepted it with a bit of confusion. The distinctive aroma of agarwood lurks in his sense of smell. He read the inscription written in gold ink on top of the box.

...Student Priority...

...Lucas Theodore's...

...Whiteswan Foundation's...

"Because you divide it, I remember. Do not forget to send the box to the foundation, make it with the fastest delivery," Richard ordered the Baron who was observing the box.

"I'll do it" replied the short baron without asking much more because the small wooden box he had in his hand now seemed to be able to answer all the questions gathered in his head at this time.

...----------------...

Yesterday's.

After being forced into a car, Lucas simply followed without asking where the two big men would take him.

From the view outside the window, Lucas knew where the car he was riding was heading. To airport. Lucas thought that his father would definitely send him to a very distant place abroad.

Arriving at the airport entrance, Lucas went down followed by the two men. "Where are you going to follow me?" asked Lucas who was confused and annoyed to see them continue to follow him. "I won't run away" he said.

"Please." Those were the only words spoken by one of the men. Their short manner of speaking signifies that they are forbidden to talk much to Lucas. They also have no intention of establishing a good relationship with Lucas.

Lucas once again gave up, deciding to follow wherever they took him.

"Europe?

America's?

North pole?

Where are you going to dump me, Dad?

I thought you were sorry for my attitude, but you're making a long distance with me."

That's all Lucas can think of right now. He just felt so tired that even the pain in his head had not gone away. The wound was only treated immediately while on the trip. More importantly, he felt hungry, he forgot the last time he ate.

Lucas drowned himself in pain as the plane began to take off.

.

.

.

"Mr Lucas .. sir, wake up. We have arrived."

Lucas awoke to someone's big voice. He tried to resuscitate himself, although it was difficult to open his eyes. It was the voice of the two men.

With a staggering body he forced his body to stand up and followed them to get off the plane.

The drizzling rain welcomed Lucas' first steps here. "Where is this?" he was a little confused as the raindrops blocked his view, even more so because of the deep darkness of the night.

Lucas does not know where he is, but he can estimate where this place is by reading the situation around him at this time. It was raining and the cold night, the atmosphere was almost the same as when he left his house just a moment ago.

"I'm still in this country."

"Novastica Island," the other man answered briefly confirming Lucas' curiosity.

Lucas was silent to hear the name mentioned. Although he had never come to this island but once he had heard his father suggest a High School on the island of Novastica as a reference. So little did he know because he had read information about this island.

Like being able to read the future he can ensure what kind of life he will live in the future and what kind of road lies before him.

"So so. Dad really knows how to punish me apparently," he said softly with a long sigh.

...----------------...

Richard was a man capable of rising to the pinnacle of success despite having to start all over from ground zero. He works day and night just to keep what he has been getting all along. He wants everyone to stay in place.

He knew very well if he was a little careless and fell, there were many legs that would push him to get worse.

Everything he did, including sending Lucas to Novastica Island was a decision he made with careful calculations. He will not give the slightest gap to the mistake this time.

Novastica Island is an island that is quite far from its residence, can only be reached by air travel for two hours. The conditions of the waters are large and often experience sudden extreme weather changes causing no successful journey through the waterway.

With such circumstances could at least be a reason for Richard to narrow down the scope of Richard's surveillance on his son. In addition, there is an even more important reason for Richard to decide to send his son there. The WhiteSwan Foundation is the answer.

The WhiteSwan Foundation is a foundation owned by Thomas Edison, an old acquaintance of Richard. Richard Thomas is like his own father.

The WhiteSwan Foundation built several orphanages, nursing homes and an upper secondary school. Richard himself remained a regular donor to the foundation.

It was at WhiteSwan High School that Lucas was sent. As Baron said, it is not easy to accept if you cannot pass the initial test, especially if the quota is full. But Lucas didn't need it all, because Lucas received the Exclusive Invitation as a Priority Student from WhiteSwan High School.

Each year, only five children receive the invitation, children with extraordinary intelligence. Lucas is one of them.

The invitation is like a golden ticket, it has a validity period of three years, so whenever the invited child decides to enter WhiteSwan High School during the time period is still valid, he will be taken for granted.

The reason Richard did not include Lucas from his first year was because Ariadne begged Lucas not to be left to school in a place far from his mother.

At that time Richard only agreed because he was sure wherever Lucas was, then he would still shine, for him diamonds are still diamonds even in the mud.

But it turns out that the diamond is starting to lose its light slowly due to the impact from the outside. Since Lucas' first year in High School, Lucas has continued to make trouble. Lucas became like a dog out of chains.

Lucas often ditches, fights, races wildly on his bike, often not even going home. At first everything can still be overcome, but over time his behavior has been out of control.

Exactly two weeks ago, this was the beginning of an even semester in his second year. Lucas harmed a child, who was attending the same school as him, and he hit the boy with his motor sport.

The child had to be in a coma for a week in the hospital, had a few broken bones, even ribs and his skull was almost crushed. The child's body could be said to be almost destroyed.

That was compounded by the fact that the boy was the son of one of Richard's venture investors. The child's parents had a lot of influence in the company during this time.

Not accepting his son almost died because of the actions of Lucas, he who has a lot of media acquaintances, so use the media to bring down Richard by exaggerating the incident of the accident experienced by his son.

Everything is going awry in a fast time. Richard, who was on a business trip after hearing the news, decided to move Lucas there.

He has no time to argue with Lucas, he just wants to focus on solving the chaos in his company and as quickly as possible to muffle the media when he comes home.

...----------------...

Right now, in his silence, Richard only hoped that one day his son would understand the intent of his father's deeds now.

"Someday you'll thank me.

You must be forged.

Because you're a diamond.

Don't lose your light."