"Are you serious?"
Seeing that Owen seemed inclined to negotiate, Dean Rictor looked at him skeptically.
"Of course I'm serious. The reason I kidnapped Rachel and want to negotiate with your Melodic Academy is because Middle Earth forced me into this. If you hadn't attacked me, would I be doing all of this for fun?"
Owen snorted, turning the question back on him.
Watching Owen play the victim, Dean Rictor's mouth twitched slightly.
Indeed, Middle Earth was the first to make a move against Owen, but Owen's retaliation—killing Kaldan and several Protectors—was clearly excessive.
Even before Melodic Academy's people had made a move against him, Owen had either killed or enslaved them, and now he was threatening the academy.
For someone like that to claim to be a victim was something Rictor found hard to accept.
However, outwardly, he nodded in agreement.