The next thing they did was to celebrate. Kelvin decided to treat himself to ice cream while helping Wrath change the channels with one hand and read his phone with the other hand. This way, the two of them can actually have a good time. Or sort of.
It was this festive atmosphere that the terminal interrupted by buzzing. Its annoying buzz did its job well. It drew both their attention and made them stop what they were doing.
Wrath pretended to yawn and said, "I bet it is that information broker that you tried and failed to kill."
It was indeed the information broker that he tried and failed to kill, but Kelvin was not impressed by the guess. It is because there was not much of an option for those who would text him ever since he dropped the mission he put up in the terminal.
So there's only one person who should be sending messages to him and it is even more likely to be the information broker since he had just completed a mission and had informed him of it.
He would have been impressed if the person to text him was the leader of the Thunderstorm Villain League, and Wrath had guessed it right. Or, to be honest, he would be half impressed and half suspicious that Wrath cheated since it has good eyesight.
He was thinking of the possibility of Wrath cheating as he picked up the terminal and read the message. Wrath also came to read the message. Its phantom head overlapped with his, as the two of them stated at the terminal.
"Congratulations, Metal Claws. Or should I say, Metal Man? Or is it Steel Man? Either way, impressive beta ability. It will take you a long way in the professional league if you decide to advance. I recommend that you advance."
"That aside, good work on the job. The police force is happy with your work. You saved the victims and helped to put a lot of villains behind bars. You did all of these without making a fuss or causing trouble, so they like you. I like you too. So I have decided that you have passed the test."
"You have two options now. You can end your contact with me here and continue to live your life as if I didn't bait you to kill me and almost died because of it, or you can learn why I put up the assassination mission. If you are curious, you can text me now and come over to my place. You know the address."
Kelvin was curious. He wanted to go and find out what all the fuss was about, but he was hesitant because he was still suspicious. After all, the fact that they didn't kill him when he went to finish the human farm mission doesn't mean that they don't have bad intentions for him.
He has seen in just two months that there are worse things than death. He can become a drug-addled laborer working on an narcotics farm every day for practically nothing but the privilege of being able to touch the secretions of the narcotics plant.
He could also be a drug mule carved every day to produce narcotics, and he could become a human plant harvested for his flesh. The list is far beyond what he has seen. So it is a bad idea to walk willingly into someone's fortress alone.
It is the same fortress that he didn't have the confidence to infiltrate when he was prepared. Now he doesn't dare to go near it.
So he texted back, "I am interested, but I am not going anywhere near your place. If you have something to say, say it here. I don't see why I have to go to your place just to learn why you have a suicidal fetish."
Wrath asked by the side, "Aren't you going to ask me what I think?"
He replied without looking up, "I already know what you think. You think we should go. You are always looking for trouble and anything to entertain you regardless of the danger."
Wrath grumbled. "You say that as if it is a bad thing. You are the one who risks his life for money. How is that any different?"
He thought about it for a while before replying. "I thought I could handle the danger. It turned out that I was wrong. As for you, I am sure you don't think I can handle the danger. You just want to satisfy your curiosity."
He had a lot of arguments to make about how money is more important than entertainment, but he didn't mention them because that kind of importance is relative. What is important to him doesn't need to be important to Wrath too.
So he chose to equate the value of entertainment to money and tackle the argument from another angle. It seemed to work because Wrath became even more unhappy.
The shadow spirit huffed and turned away from him. But it turned back when he received a reply.
The information broker had texted back. His message said, "Good choice. That was another test. It would show if you are a cautious man or a stupid one. It could also indicate that you are confident of escaping, which I would be intrigued to see."
"Don't worry. You don't need to come to my place. Let's meet at a restaurant. It is a nice public place where you can escape. You chose the one and bring only your appetite; I'll pay. Text me the address when you are ready.
I hope it will be today in less than four hours."
Wrath was excited when it saw the message. It raised its hand and pointed a finger forward as it said, "Let's go."
Kelvin chuckled as he stood up. He went out of his apartment down to the basement. He took the elevator there. Wrath was chatting his ears off about what kind of restaurant they should pick.