Chapter 72 - 72 – Promise
"Then, I will delete all of the knowledge important to you! Without me, you will not achieve anything!" Theodor shouted.
"And get rid of your only chance at fulfilling your dying wish?" Kyle asked. "I'm not saying that you won't do it, but if you do that, both of us will suffer."
"I don't get my juicy brain juice, and you won't get your last wish."
"I refuse to live a life where some voice in my brain just tells me what to do! I am my own person! I have wants and needs!"
Theodor grumbled. "You are making a huge mistake! You are throwing your life away!"
"Living how I want is not throwing my life away. Listening to you and becoming somebody I despise would be throwing my life away."
"I am not about to become some weird and robotic ghost of a human who just mindlessly follows the path to power or whatever."
"I live my life how I want to live it."
"That is what life is!"
Kyle could feel Theodor seething with rage.
"You are my inheritor! You are destined for greatness! Will you throw all of this away for some mere mortals?!" Theodor shouted.
"I'm not throwing anything away. You are the one holding a gun to my head. If I don't comply with your demands and you fire, it is you who killed me, not me."
"You are the one throwing your wishes away, not me."
Despite Kyle's stalwart tone, he was extremely nervous deep inside.
Theodor was fucking crazy!
This guy was batshit insane!
Spiting him was stupid!
And yet, Kyle was just reminded of his last days on Earth.
He had punched that arrogant thug, and he didn't regret it.
Additionally, Magic Lady told him that he should follow his heart more.
Kyle didn't know how strong Magic Lady was, but he knew that she was stronger than anyone in this world.
She had confirmed that herself.
She could even send someone to a different world and alter their body without them even noticing.
As far as Kyle knew, his Predator's Being was not something this world could create just like that.
And if Magic Lady said that Kyle should follow his heart more, Magic Lady was probably right.
So, he did just that.
'Speaking of, I still have that job. I'm an Enforcer Trainee, right? And I'm supposed to become some kind of Overseer.'
'Then, I need to do some shady shit or something.'
Kyle sighed.
"Impressive," Theodor said after a while.
"What?" Kyle asked in surprise.
Was that a word of praise?
From Theodor?
What the fuck was going on?!
"You have managed to grasp the true extent of your soft power. That is not something a normal mortal can do," Theodor said.
Kyle blinked. "Dude, anybody can see that. It's the M.A.D principle. Mutually assured destruction. Nobody wants to press the big red button."
Naturally, Theodor didn't know what Kyle meant with words like gun or big red button, but he could understand the gist of it.
"I am in a unique position of powerlessness," Theodor said. "This is unfamiliar."
"As much as it hurts my pride, I have to admit that I can not fulfill my last wish by forcing you."
"There is a reason why the progeny of the nobles grow alone. Guidance is necessary, but too much mentoring will only cripple the youngster."
"You win this time, inheritor," Theodor said.
'Did he just call me inheritor? Not foolish mortal?' Kyle thought in surprise.
"However, you must follow my teachings, and you must promise me that you will repay me!"
"You said yourself that you repay favors, and I have given you several big favors! Promise me that you will fulfill my last wish!"
Kyle took a deep breath.
Killing Hieronymus and his lineage.
"Why does it have to be Hieronymus' lineage as well? They are just children. They shouldn't be punished for what their father did," Kyle said.
"These are my terms! Eradicate Hieronymus and all his spawn! There will be no amendments!" Theodor shouted.
Kyle took a deep breath.
He had never killed anyone before.
He hadn't even killed a rapist or murderer, and now, he was supposed to kill some innocent children?
Kyle could feel how serious the situation was.
Theodor had cornered him.
Kyle had said that he repaid debts.
But he also said that he wanted to live how he wanted.
Two opposing sides.
If he promised and reneged on the promise, the first statement would be a lie.
If he promised and kept it, the second statement would be a lie.
And if he didn't promise...
Chances were high that Theodor would just kill Kyle.
'The lives of several innocent people or my own?' Kyle thought.
Theodor was not stupid.
He had been one of the most brilliant minds of the world despite his insane paranoia.
He had dealt with people like Kyle, and he knew how to deal with them.
These kinds of people put a lot of importance on their promises.
The best way to get them to do something was to force them to promise it.
Theodor remained silent while Kyle deliberated.
'I really don't want to kill some innocent kids or whatever.'
'But I also don't want to die.'
'What am I supposed to do?!'
Kyle took a deep breath.
"I promise," he said.
"Say it!" Theodor repeated.
"I promise that I will fulfill your dying wish," Kyle said.
"What was my dying wish?" Theodor asked.
Kyle clenched his fist.
"I promise that I will kill Hieronymus... and his lineage."
"Good! I accept your promise!" Theodor said.
Kyle sighed.
'I don't want to kill them, but I also can't die here.'
'A promise is only valid if at least one of two parties want to keep it.'
'Theodor stopped calling me a foolish mortal, and I managed to convince him to ease up on the suppression.'
'I can kill Hieronymus. Theodor has a personal grudge with him, and that's fine, but I can't possibly kill his children.'
'With time and effort, maybe I can convince Theodor to amend his last wishes.'
'And if I can't?'
Kyle remained silent for a while.
Then, he sighed.
And finally, he just shrugged.
'That's future Kyle's problem.'
"So, now that we have this issue behind us, what am I supposed to tell the others?" Kyle asked.
Theodor huffed.
"I'll tell you what to say to them."
Kyle nodded. "Sounds good."
"By the way, you're much easier to talk to when you don't forget the last sentence you said."
"Insolent mortal!"