[Rel's POV]
[Eldoria, rcenary Headquarters]
The karaoke night had co and gone, leaving behind a buzz of conversation about my "hidden talent."
Thanks to my conveniently acquired "Voice of Enchantnt" skill, I'd managed to escape the humiliation of being the worst singer in the room.
But honestly, that was the least of my concerns.
Right now, I found myself at the rcenary Headquarters in Eldoria, about to et with Jaxon Cain.
He was supposed to brief on my squad and the whole rcenary thing that Gerrard had signed up for.
Not that I particularly cared about any of that.
My real goal here was to obtain The Book of Equaliser, probably one of the most powerful skills I'd ever written into existence.
The problem was, I'd had to rush here straight from the Noraebang.
After wasting half an hour explaining to Jan why I needed to leave early, I barely had ti to grab my uniform from the dorm and change before heading to the headquarters.
Now, here I was, ready for another day as a rcenary.
But my true goal was still out there, waiting to be found.
The Book of Equaliser wouldn't be easy to obtain, but I was determined to get my hands on it.
With a sigh, I made my way through the corridors of the rcenary Headquarters.
The familiar scent of tal and disinfectant hung heavy in the air, a reminder of the violent nature of this world.
As I ascended towards the top floor, where Jaxon Cain's office was located, the usual pristine hallways gave way to a scene of disarray.
Caution tape crisscrossed the corridor, and shattered glass crunched under my boots.
It seed Vanessa and Christian had been here before , leaving their usual mark of destruction in their wake.
Those two were a force of nature, given free rein to wreak havoc under the guise of "training exercises." I shook my head, suppressing a smirk.
They were certainly an entertaining duo, if a bit over the top.
Finally, I reached Jaxon's door.
Taking a deep breath, I knocked firmly.
knock...knock...knock...
"Enter," ca Jaxon's gruff voice.
I pushed open the door and stepped inside.
Jaxon, a burly man with a shaved head and a permanent scowl etched onto his face, sat behind a massive mahogany desk.
I couldn't help but fixate on his shiny bald head, a detail I couldn't recall from my writing.
Was he always this bald? I wondered.
Then with a sweeping gesture, Jaxon indicated the chair opposite of him.
"Take a seat, Rel," he said, his voice a low growl behind the mask.
I nodded and quickly complied feeling that my nerves were on edge.
"I'm sure you know why you're here," Jaxon's voice rumbled, the sound distorted by the oni mask.
I nodded, my throat tightening as I t his gaze.
The mask was unsettling, its demonic features seemingly alive in the dim light of the office.
Jaxon leaned back in his chair, his gloved hands steepled before him.
"Before we discuss your squad assignnt," he began, reaching for a remote control hidden beneath his desk, "I'd like to ask you a few questions."
"Yes, sir," I replied, my voice barely above a whisper.
Click!
Rum...
A low hum filled the room as a flat-screen TV descended from the ceiling to Jaxon's left.
He pressed a button on the remote, and the screen flickered to life, displaying news coverage of the incident at the France museum.
"A friend contacted a few days ago about what happened," Jaxon said, his voice low and asured.
"I'll admit, I was surprised."
"Yeah... but luckily everyone was safe," I replied, swallowing hard.
I knew where this was going.
I had worn my rcenary uniform during the incident, and if anyone had seen there, it was only a matter of ti before Jaxon found out.
However, the security caras and all images should have been wiped due to an EMP outage during the lockdown.
That can't be it, I thought to myself. He must be talking about the award ceremony today.
That was the only logical explanation.
Otherwise, he must have been curious about what happened inside the museum, since only those who fought the monsters saw their true faces.
That ant Jan, Valencia, Camila, and myself.
"I know you were there," Jaxon said, his voice cutting through my thoughts.
"But I heard that during the ti of the incident... what if I told you that there weren't just one, but two monsters?"
I tried my best to look surprised, rising from my seat I slamd my hands while leaning onto his desk.
"That can't be possible, right?"
"Well, of course," Jaxon replied, "But according to a special informant on the scene, there were indeed two monsters within the building."
So that must an Jaxon purchased this information from the Visionary Syndicate network.
The only person capable of obtaining information like this was Dempsey Anette.
Surely he wouldn't have known it was who fought the second monster, right?
I could only hope that wasn't the case.
"So, what do you think that second monster was doing?" I asked, trying to steer the conversation in a direction that wouldn't incriminate .
Jaxon grabbed the remote once more and clicked it, changing the image on the screen to a shattered display case.
It was the negative mana stone case, now empty stolen at the hands of Cyran.
"They were here for a mana stone," Jaxon explained, "but there's really no telling what they could be doing with it."
Of course, I knew exactly what their plan was.
They wanted to gather as many negative mana stones as possible to feed and create a vessel for a devil, or to develop a more potent serum to enhance the strength of those who beco demi-humans.
This planned attack was ant as a warning to the world about demons, but the second part, the theft of the negative mana stone, wasn't part of the original plot.
And since negative mana worked differently from pure mana, it was clear that it had a special function, one that only Vladimir Bane, the main villain of the Devil arc, and I, the author, knew about.
"I see," I replied, stroking my chin and feigning ignorance.
I knew exactly what the second monster was doing—it was Jasper, the demi-human I had taken down on the bottom floor.
But I couldn't let Jaxon know that.
"So you think the monster we fought was nothing but a decoy to steal that mana stone?" I asked, playing along.
Jaxon nodded. "Correct. But luckily for you guys, there was another thing that traces to a fight that happened on the second floor, and apparently, the monster was taken care of beforehand."
"Of course, I'm not saying that you were the one who took out the second monster," Jaxon said, his voice taking on a sharper edge.
"The person fighting him was completely anonymous, wearing different attire than what you wore at the scene."
His whole deanour shifted, and a prickle of unease crawled up my spine.
Sothing was definitely off.
"You know," Jaxon continued, leaning forward in his chair, "I was suspicious of the circumstances surrounding Vanessa's visit to a prestigious french academy. But what I found out was that she returned to headquarters a day before the incident happened."
My muscles tensed involuntarily. I couldn't understand why, but I didn't like where this was heading.
"I'm not quite sure where you're going with this," I replied, trying to keep my voice steady.
Jaxon's lips curled into a sinister smile beneath the mask.
"Well, the special informant told that the person who defeated the second monster was a swordsman. There were perfectly clean cut slices throughout the room where they fought."
A bead of sweat trickled down my back.
The air in the room felt thick, suffocating.
Jaxon's words, though seemingly casual, were laced with an underlying accusation.
I needed to steer the conversation elsewhere.
"That swordsman must be incredibly skilled," I said, forcing a nonchalant tone.
"It took three of us from my grade to take down that other monster. Can't imagine facing one alone."
Jaxon leaned back, a thoughtful hum escaping from behind the mask. "Indeed," he agreed.
"The reports suggest the second monster was well above the level of an entire class. A formidable opponent, no doubt."
He paused, his gaze unwavering.
"You ntioned being a swordsman during our initial eting, Rel. And the fact that you could wield two weapons made you a unique case. Given that I haven't witnessed your swordsmanship firsthand, your true capabilities remain to be seen."
I swallowed, my heart pounding in my chest.
This wasn't going as planned.
"So," Jaxon continued, his voice low and deliberate, "I have one question for you, Rel."
"What is it?" I asked, bracing myself for the inevitable.
________
Authors Notes:
- Jaxon Cain had only been told stories from Vanessa and Christian about Rel's swordsmanship.
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