Chapter 190: A Distant Relationship
"After all that happened, we couldn’t have the people know the truth since it would cause mass panic. It’s never a good idea to tell the public about possible world-ending scenarios. The people needed a hero, someone to heap their praises on for saving the world. So we gave them the five Rulers and allowed them to think that they were the ones who did the dirty work. The people got their hero, the Rulers got to become celebrities, and our involvement in the shadows remained a secret. Everyone’s happy. Well... almost everyone. Sorry to disappoint, Jason, but I really don’t know where your father is. And I have no idea if he is alive or not. But we are grateful for what he has done for all of us."
Cerci gave Jason a meaningful look, and Jason released a calm sigh before he nodded. He should have known finding his father wouldn’t be that easy. But at least he now knew more about what his father was really like. Jason’s image of his father was that of a regular, everyday dad with horrible jokes and kind words. His father worked in the restaurant with his mother almost every day, so Jason could’ve never guessed that his father was actually some superpowered alien protecting the world. When did he even have the time for all that?
Jason took a few seconds to fully digest everything that Cerci had said before he finally asked.
"There’s something I’m looking for. It’s an artifact called the [Banshee’s Tear]. Do you know where I can find it?"
Cerci made a sound of surprise.
"My organization doesn’t deal with artifacts. Our job is to save the world, not handle commerce. But from what I’ve heard, there was a Banshee in the recent Gate in Greenville. It was handled by the—"
"BloodRaven Guild."
Jason cut Cerci off before he could finish, and Cerci just nodded. Jason’s eyes narrowed as he thought about his next course of action, and the next time he spoke, there was an undeniable bloodthirst in his words.
"I guess I’ll just have to go ask them for it myself."
Cerci rubbed his throat calmly while trying not to sigh. He already knew that Jason wasn’t going to just ’ask’ them for anything. According to Cerci’s spies in the SMD, the BloodRaven guild was directly responsible for the attack that happened inside the Red Gate earlier today, so it was likely that Jason would try to wipe out the BloodRaven guild for what they did. But Cerci didn’t need to worry about something like that. His job was to protect the world from external dangers. Anything that happened between Jason and BloodRaven was something that the Enforcers would have to deal with.
Cerci continued.
"I think we should get back to the topic at hand. Did you understand everything I said so far? Those monsters found their way to our world by following the trails left behind by other interworld travelers. Earth shouldn’t have discovered mana for at least another ten years, but it was sped up because of how many Dimensional Tears were being opened here. That girl you’re harboring, she already led one group to Earth. And it won’t be long before she leads even more to you. Next time, it could be your sister, or even worse, your mother who’s targeted. Give her to me and I’ll make sure your family is safe. I’ll make sure I take care of her."
There was an experssion of absolute openness on Cerci’s face that made him look like a man that you could trust. The stories that Jason had heard from Cerci, as well as the easygoing, open personality that Cerci was displaying, would have been enough to make anyone become relaxed and trusting around him, but Jason was different. Jason still remembered the message that his father gave him through the [Book of the Apocalypse], and there was nothing that would make Jason trust Cerci after a warning like that.
Jason’s words came out very calmly, but they were enough to wipe the smile off Cerci’s face.
"Thanks for stopping by, Cerci. If you need to talk to me in future, then you can reach out to me personally, but I never want to see you around my mother’s house again."
Jason stuffed his hands in his pockets and turned to walk away, and Cerci watched him with narrowed eyes before he said,
"I hope you won’t come to regret this decision, Jason. The world you’re a part of is far more dangerous than you think."
Jason didn’t bother turning around. He just raised his hand and waved back at Cerci before he entered the house. Once Jason was gone, Cerci scoffed in irritation before his expression shifted from the easygoing look he had previously to a blank, pessimistic look that made him appear more like the dangerous man he was. A beautiful woman emerged from the side and approached Cerci with a coat, and Cerci allowed the long coat to be put over his shoulders. He took out a cigarette from his pocket, and the woman produced a lighter and helped him light the cigarette before speaking up respectfully.
"Are we really just going to let him leave, sir? I thought you said you wanted to make him trust you."
Cerci blew out smoke and shrugged.
"I can’t do that anymore, his father already got to him first. If he didn’t know anything about me, then maybe we could have lured him over to our side, but the way things are now, we can only hope to have a similar relationship as what we had with his father."
The woman stared in the direction Jason had gone before she said,
"And why don’t we just force him into obeying us, sir? I could feel his power earlier, and he is only an S Rank. It wouldn’t be that hard for me to subdue him."
The woman was a high-level S Rank, so she was sure that she had more power than what she had sensed from Jason, but Cerci waved the woman’s suggestion away immediately.
"No, don’t be stupid. He might be an S Rank now, but he was an A Rank only a week ago. His growth rate is even higher than what his father possessed, so it won’t be long before he becomes something beyond our control. I wouldn’t want to make an enemy of someone like that. The best course of action is to make sure we maintain a good relationship with him and leave him to keep growing. He already has a lot of attachments to the people of Earth, so at least we can be sure that he will fight to protect us if things get out of hand like before. Besides, didn’t you read his files? He is a Necromancer, so he has more power than what you’re sensing."
"And what of the interworld traveler he is with? Will she not cause problems?"
Cerci frowned when the woman asked this, and he took another drag from the cigarette before he sighed to release the smoke.
"Forget her for now. I would’ve liked to study her, but it’s not worth it. Create fake identity documents and filter them into the government archives slowly so we can claim her mutations were a result of some Gift if she is ever exposed. Also, tell our agents to move out and allow the Enforcers to come and apprehend him."
Cerci started to walk towards a high-end military-grade vehicle that was parked at the side and the woman moved away to make the call to the other agents. Cerci would have preferred to have a better relationship with Jason since he knew that Jason would be crucial for Earth’s survival in the future, but he was satisfied with the way things were for now. He would just have to keep working hard towards the greater good.
Cerci got into the military-grade car and they drove away, but none of them noticed the shadow that attached itself to the car and followed after them.