Seeing Daniel truly about to leave the conference room, Brooks quickly backed down, "Wait, wait, wait! I was just joking, don’t take it seriously!"
"Just half a year’s salary? I’ll grit my teeth and pay up!"
A grating sound, like the grinding of teeth, escaped Brooks’s lips, illustrating just how painful this was for him.
Once Daniel had seated himself again, Brooks tried to smile, "Dear Mr. Daniel, can you give a break? Let’s go by the original price, three months’ salary. How about it?"
Daniel rejected him flatly, "Perhaps it’s best to let Alex decide the worth of that secret."
Saying this, he stood up once more, ready to depart.
Brooks had no choice but to surrender, "Alright, alright! Half a year’s salary it is! Co to my office this evening to get it!"
He thought to himself, perplexed.
With such imnse power, one would expect Daniel to be insurmountably cool and charismatic. Yet, here he was, acting like every penny was crucial.
After promising Daniel his hush money, Brooks lost all his energy.
Nursing a minor injury, a bandage wrapped around his forehead, a lit cigarette dangling from his lips, and a vacant look in his eyes – he looked as desolate as he did when Alex had passed.
...
Ten minutes later, Martin called Daniel back to his office.
Besides Daniel, Martin, Brooks, Julia, and Mike were all present.
They were all aware of Daniel’s abilities, so there was nothing left to hide.
With a few minutes to spare before the announcent, everyone chatted casually.
In a corner, Brooks whispered to Julia, "Julia, I have a mission tonight. Can I borrow so gold from you?"
Julia looked puzzled, "I’m just a Level 2 Evolver. I only get 1000g of gold a month. You, as the captain and a Level 3 Evolver, receive 2000g of gold every month. Why would you need to borrow from ?"
The captain gets that much?
Daniel couldn’t help but muse internally, no wonder Brooks was so devastated.
Half a year’s salary, amounting to 12kg of gold, could fetch five to six million in today’s gold market.
Moreover, for Evolvers, gold was the pri weapon against monsters.
Especially for those in the Investigation Bureau who were constantly on missions, the consumption of gold was terrifyingly high.
At that mont, Martin interrupted the ongoing conversation, "Quiet down, the draw is about to start."
Everyone’s eyes turned to the television screen, except for Daniel who was engrossed in sipping his coffee, not even bothering to glance up.
Knowing the outco in advance ant there was no elent of suspense for him.
On the TV, the host was announcing the accumulated jackpot for this round, a whopping 20 billion StellarCoins.
Brooks couldn’t help exclaiming, "My God, if one hits that jackpot, there’s no financial worry for the rest of one’s life!"
20 billion StellarCoins, even just sitting in the bank, could generate tens of thousands of StellarCoins in interest daily.
Behind the host, lottery balls whirled rapidly inside the machine.
Soon enough, the first set of winning numbers appeared, "56, 41, 33, 47, 10, 10, 11!"
Followed by the numbers for the second lottery ticket: "41, 03, 28, 25, 40, 33, 35!"
"..."
"..."
"..."
Silence filled the room as everyone waited with bated breath.
In a short span, the winning numbers for all five lotteries were displayed.
After comparing the numbers on the screen with those on their tickets, everyone double-checked ticulously. A collective gasp filled the room.
They hit the jackpot!
All five lottery tickets matched perfectly!
Brooks, his face drained of color in astonishnt, quickly approached Daniel and excitedly shook his hand.
"Man, from now on, you’re my blood brother! I’ve just given you all my wealth, and now I’m flat broke. Brother, can you show so rcy and predict the numbers for the next lottery? I’m not being greedy, just the one with the 20 billion jackpot will do!"
If no one claid the top prize this ti, the next round would have an even bigger pot!
Martin sternly interrupted, "Enough, Brooks! Every ti Daniel peers into the future, he risks amplifying his power uncontrollably. His gift isn’t ant for such trivialities."
Brooks reluctantly released Daniel’s hand, murmuring with a hint of bitterness, "How can you call it trivial? Maybe you don’t need the money, but I do."
Martin sidestepped Brooks’s comnt, turning his attention to Daniel.
His deanor had softened considerably, contrasting starkly from monts ago.
"Mr. Daniel, your ability has been confird. The head of the intelligence departnt has reported to that an unusual energy has been detected in the Central Supermarket."
"The creatures inside aren’t man-made traps. On behalf of the Global Supernatural Phenonon Investigation Bureau, I formally invite you to join our ranks. Any conditions you set forth will be t."
Daniel nodded in agreent.
This was precisely the outco he’d hoped for, making his earlier use of the recall ability worthwhile.
Ten chances a day might sound ample, but in the face of real ergencies, they could quickly run out.
Martin continued, addressing the others, "The nature of Daniel’s ability is of utmost importance. I’ve decided to classify any information related to Daniel’s skill as top-tier confidential. Since you’re already aware, there’s no going back. However, from this point on, you are not to ntion his powers in the presence of others."
Mike queried, "When the Investigation Bureau brings in a new mber, it’s bound to draw attention. What do we say if we’re questioned about him?"
Given Daniel’s entry into the bureau and his status as an Evolver, it was natural for others to grow curious about his capabilities.
Martin pondered a mont before responding, "Externally, we’ll say Daniel’s ability pertains to danger perception, that he can sense threats occurring re seconds into the future."
The others nodded in agreent, finding the explanation reasonable.
Martin turned to Julia, "Julia, Mike, you both are privy to the situation. Until Daniel becos a seasoned investigator, he’ll be part of your team. Take him now to complete his onboarding procedures and assign him a reliable liaison."
Julia and Mike nodded, "Understood."
Realizing it was his cue, Daniel followed the two out of the office.
After watching the trio leave, without turning his head, Martin suddenly posed a question, "What do you make of this Daniel?"
Brooks paused, glancing around the room. Noticing no one else, he responded, "Are you asking ?"
Martin shot him a glance, "Obviously! Who else is in this room?"
Brooks quipped, "Well, who knows? Leaders like you love to have so ’hidden company’ in their offices."
Martin was left speechless.
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