Nick hadn't expected that he would get a say in who was going to be the next Governor of Crimson City.
Nick fell into thought for a moment.
Naturally, the Governor had to be a powerful hero, and there were only three of those left in Crimson City.
All three of them were from Kugelblitz.
Nick only knew Aria Light, and she was the most powerful Hero of Crimson City now.
Would Aria be a good fit for the position of Governor?
Nick thought about it for a while.
"Aria Light," Nick told the Technician.
"Who's that?" he asked.
"She's the current Chief Zephyx Extractor of Kugelblitz, the biggest and most powerful Manufacturer for Crimson City," Nick said.
"Any particular reason?" the Technician asked, casually leaning on the table.
"My biggest issue with Crimson City's government was the Blood Tax. The Crimson Fungus is a strong Demon that requires blood to produce Zephyx, and Kugelblitz actively created a slum with high taxes that can only realistically be paid by offering your blood."
"Nearly everyone in the Dregs needed to donate two liters of blood every two or three months to survive while also having no access to nourishing food. This takes such a toll on people that people in their early twenties look equivalent to people in their forties that live outside the Dregs."
The Technician raised an eyebrow. "And you want the Chief Zephyx Extractor from that Manufacturer to run the city now?" he asked in skepticism.
"She wasn't the one that made these decisions. Kugelblitz's shares were scattered across many different people, and when power is scattered across a small number of rich people that never see the suffering they inflict, they will just continue to ask for more and more money."
"When the Blood Tax was brought up in the meetings, she never commented on it. It was always someone else bringing it up. She also never interjected or tried to persuade the Governor when there was a discussion. She just stayed on the sidelines."
"We two know each other quite well by now, and I believe I can work together with her," Nick said.
The Technician scratched the side of his head casually for a while.
Then, he shrugged. "You're the one in charge when it comes to Crimson City. Sure, we're going to ask her to become the Governor. Of course, she can't remain as Kugelblitz's Chief Zephyx Extractor if she accepts, and Aegis expects that she will assume a true neutral position in the city."
Nick nodded. "Thank you, Technician. I am going to talk to her as well."
The Technician nodded. "Alright, that's taken care of, then."
The Technician went to a console sitting on the table and typed in a couple of things.
"Since you are also a CZE, you get two months to get your affairs in order in your Manufacturer. You have to find someone to take over for you. After you leave your position, you have to stay neutral, just like the Governor."
Nick nodded. "I will."
"I would ask you to refrain from wearing your Aegis uniform until you are officially the Liaison."
Nick just nodded.
"Good," the Technician said as he typed in a couple of things. "Everything is taken care of. All the information you need to run the city is available in our network. Crimson City has access to the network, and you can access it via the city console."
Nick didn't look sure. "I don't know where that is or how to operate it."
"Oh yeah, right," the Technician said as he rummaged in his Space Bag.
"There you go," he said as he dumped a book on the table. "Everything you need to know about the city console. Make sure that nobody except the Governor looks at it."
"Of course," Nick said, putting the book in one of his bags.
Naturally, Nick didn't have Ghosty's Space Bag anymore, which meant he had to carry everything himself.
"By the way," the Technician said. "If you prove that you can improve the city, we are going to give you a Space Bag of your own."
"Thank you," Nick said. "I will do my best."
The Technician nodded. "Well then, Nick. It was nice meeting you. I'm looking forward to hearing about your success."
"Thank you," Nick answered with a polite bow. "I will do my best."
The Technician looked at Simon and gave him a couple of orders.
Since Simon was stationed near Crimson City, he was supposed to deal with the people from Anatomy and the current Governor.
After that, Simon and Nick left.
"You've got quite a task ahead of you, Nick," Simon said with a smile.
Nick nodded. "It's a lot of pressure, but this is what I always wanted."
"A way to change the lives of the people for the better."
Nick remembered his last conversation with Albert.
Back then, Albert had said that Nick wouldn't be the right fit to be the Governor since he was not the selfless person that Nick wanted to see as the Governor.
'My motives might be selfish since I want to redeem myself, but I have the good of the people at heart.'
'The current Governor might have thought similarly, but there is one important difference that will make things very different.'
Simon and Nick walked up the long stairway and walked out of the huge building.
"Goodbye, Protector," the two guards outside the building spoke politely.
Simon and Nick took to the sky, and they flew towards the southwest for a while.
"I have to talk to Aurelia first. She needs to know what happened and what I have to do," Simon said.
Naturally, Simon wasn't going to tell her about Nightmare or that Nick met the Champion of Light.
He would just tell her that Nick was now the Liaison of Crimson City and that Simon had to deal with a couple of things there.
"Sure," Nick said.
Nick looked at Simon a bit.
During this small journey, the two of them had become much closer.
Simon had been quite a distant person to Nick originally, but now, it was almost like Nick was talking to a friend.
Simon still outranked him by quite a bit, but Nick didn't feel like they were of two different worlds anymore.
'In the end, both of us work for Aegis, and we both work for the good of mankind. A united goal can create comradery.'
Of course, when it came to their personal beliefs, there was still some difference.
Simon wasn't the biggest fan of Nick's secrecy and his lies. He might also disagree with Nick's hardline attitude when it came to improving the city.
Maybe he was more of a peace-loving kind.
However, Simon could see Nick's conviction, and he could empathize with that.
On the other hand, Nick might believe that Simon didn't seem decisive enough, but he could also see that Simon just wanted to help humanity.
A friendship didn't need both parties to be identical.
They just needed to have enough common ground to relate to one another.
'I am part of Aegis now,' Nick thought. 'Finally, I have the power to change things!'
Nick narrowed his eyes.
'So many powerful people are corrupt. The most important thing is that my convictions stay as they are now.'
'I might not be able to avoid making innocent people suffer for my own power, but I have to remember that there has to be a limit. I can only do that if it is absolutely necessary. A slightly better weapon or a better Barrier is not worth turning the lives of ten innocent people to hell.'
'My rage and hatred exploded when I saw the people of the upper layer. I saw how they lived compared to the people in the Outer City.'
'I must never become like them. My job is to improve the lives of the people. If there is a way to improve the lives of the people, I must do my best to actualize it.'
Simon and Nick landed on top of the building in front of Envy's crater, and Simon went inside to talk to Aurelia.
Meanwhile, Nick thought about the Governor.
'Maybe your goal was similar to mine,' Nick thought, 'but there is one important difference.'
'You are a coward.'
'You are not willing to put your own life at risk for the good of the people.'
'You are so afraid of angering the other Extractors that you granted them freedom to torture the normal people. You wanted to placate their greed by giving them what they wanted.'
Nick's eyes turned steely.
'I'm not like you.'
'I've been in so many dangerous situations.'
'I've infiltrated the Spartans.'
'I've walked into the unknown darkness to find the Nightmare.'
'I've infiltrated Anatomy.'
'The lives of the people WILL improve!'
Nick's eyes narrowed.
'And if the elite is not happy, they will have to step over my corpse!'
'And if they try soft tactics to cause terror…'
Nick's fists clenched.
'I will crush them!'