While the Shields were still reeling with their shock, Nick spoke up.
"As predicted by my superior, Julian Winter, Greed has willingly surrendered," Nick said.
Naturally, he had to make up a story for why a second Specter worked with humanity, and he decided to use Julian Winter as his superior.
The purple-haired woman standing amongst the Shields would just be one of Julian's servants.
Like this, there could be several Specters walking in and out of Aegis without anyone believing it was actually Nick.
Well, the Technician, the Politician, and the Champion knew that this was actually Nick, but they wouldn't tell anyone.
"So, you're one of Julian's guys, huh?" Greed answered casually.
He had been assuming the mantle of Zandur for so long that he constantly acted like him.
"This guy is a huge pain in the ass for Death. You should tell him not to show himself near here," he added, trying to get into humanity's good graces with his warning.
Then, Nick turned to the Champion. "I believe killing Greed would be a waste. It is an Adversary that is infinitely easier to work with than the False Prophet. It can increase the power of all the Shields with minimal cost."
The Champion furrowed his brows. "Your words ring true, but I am concerned with security."
"That shouldn't be an issue," the Technician answered. "Our Containment Units today can't be compared to the old Containment Units. Without the Envious Researcher, we managed to leap forward by centuries. I'm confident that my Containment Units can completely isolate Greed from any other Specter."
"I think it would be a good idea to contain Greed."
The Champion was still uncertain and looked to the Politician for his input.
'He changed,' Nick thought as he saw the Champion looking at the Politician. 'In the past, he even ignored the old Left Arm's wisdom.'
'Now, he is actively asking the Politician for advice.'
The Politician looked at the Technician, and the two of them started to talk about the details of the Containment Unit.
"I can't find any fault, but I'm also not a researcher," the Politician said.
Naturally, the Politician was furious with Greed since it had successfully manipulated him for decades if not centuries.
But while the Politician still felt emotions, he was unrivaled when it came to keeping them in check and not letting them influence his judgment.
He wanted to kill Greed, but it was better to spare and use it instead.
The Champion nodded and looked at the Wall.
"Hey, don't look at me," the Wall said, taking a step back. "I'm not good with this kind of stuff. I stand on top of cities and hold my shields in front of me. I don't give commands or advice. I just do what I'm told."
Then, the Champion looked at the Icestorm.
"As long as it can't contact the outside, there shouldn't be any danger. We need the power," she said.
Lastly, the Champion looked at the Inferno, who just nodded without saying anything.
"Then, it is settled," the Champion spoke before turning to Greed. "You will be spared. In exchange, you will be working for us, and you will strengthen humanity."
"I can do that," Greed answered with a casual smile.
Nick waited for the Champion to bring up a specific topic.
The two of them had discussed what would happen after Greed surrendered long ago.
"You will be put in a Containment Unit with a harvest ratio of 90% to repay for your sins," the Champion said.
90% was standard for random Specters.
"If I may, Champion," Nick said.
The Champion furrowed his brows as he looked at Nick, but that was a planned act.
"Go ahead," the Champion said.
"Humanity is not clean, and I can't travel the world to check through every human. Big movements of forces will also elicit suspicion, and at some point, one of the humans will crack and tell everyone about these tests."
"I would suggest asking Greed for the identities of the secret Specters in exchange for a more favorable harvest rate."
When Greed heard that, it showed an expression of pleasant surprise.
"Sure!" it said.
The Champion furrowed his brows.
"Fine," he said. "Tell us about the Specters. For every Specter you unmask, the conversion rate will be lowered by one percent."
Initially, that sounded like a raw deal, but at these numbers, this was actually a great deal.
Since Greed would only get 10%, if it unveiled the identities of ten Specters, it would get 20%, which was double of what it would get normally.
"I have seven," Greed said.
When the Shields heard that, they took a deep breath.
Seven Specters that were inside the ranks of Aegis.
Greed told everyone the details.
There was one undercover Fallen amongst the weaker Protectors.
There were four Demons masquerading as Agents.
There was one Demon acting as a researcher.
And there was one Fanatic in administration.
Greed also told everyone the details of these Specters and how they grew more powerful.
Two of them were very easy to work with.
The remainder was either hard or impossible to work with.
In the end, it was decided that they would keep the Fallen, which was difficult to work with, and two of the Demons, which were easy to work with.
The remainder would be thrown into the Crimson Sea.
The Technician placed a Zephyx Suppressor around Greed and led it to its new home.
The Containment Unit was already prepared.
And with that, the incident with Greed came to an end, and Aegis had received several new Specters.
One Initial Adversary, one Peak Fallen, one Early Fallen, and two Peak Demons.
Sadly, in a way, they had also lost a Shield and a Peak Protector, but those had never truly belonged to Aegis anyway.
There was no big fanfare or a gigantic battle during this event, but it marked one of humanity's biggest milestones.
This was the first Adversary they had suppressed on their own since the False Prophet came to Aegis willingly.
Humanity had finally gained the power to hunt and suppress Adversaries.
The author's patreon. If he gets more than 1000€ per month, he will increase the number of words in the chapter.
/user?u=27791050