"So long as you do not go against what your father has taught you, you can trust that I will always be on your side."
Farlow said this with complete seriousness, and Jason immediately spoke up.
"Then can I ask you for your help now?"
Jason had an equally serious look on his face as he waited for Farlow’s response. Jason knew that going alone into that council room was going to be an absolute bloodbath. Standing up to all ten of the council members would be too much for them, no matter how good their argument was! But if Jason had Farlow on his side, then that would change everything! Farlow was the third seat and one of the strongest members of the council, and Jason was sure that Farlow would have a lot of sway in the decision-making of the council! Farlow could make things a lot easier for them! Farlow also knew exactly what Jason was asking from him, and Jason was surprised when Farlow only gave him a calm nod in reply.
Jason smiled and spoke up in thanks.
"I’m grateful for the help, King Farlow. I suppose my father was right about you. You might be difficult to deal with, but you’re a very kind person."
Farlow’s eyes suddenly narrowed into a glare, and he was about to warn Jason never to speak to him like that again, but Farlow felt his eyes widen when he saw the smile on Jason’s face. An image of Richard’s laughing face suddenly overlapped and replaced Jason at that moment, and Farlow felt a feeling of intense nostalgia spread over his chest as his heart squeezed sadly. All of Farlow’s anger suddenly vanished into nothing, and Farlow let out a sigh before he turned away.
"Even when he isn’t here, that man only knows how to cause me problems. Do well to grow stronger, Jason. And as you do, try your best not to become as childish as that father of yours."
Farlow only said this before finally leaving, and Jason chuckled softly. Jason glanced back at the clouds outside one last time, and he sent his father a word of thanks before returning to meet the rest of his group.
’How’d it go, babe? Did anything happen?’
Gina spoke to Jason through their mental link when she saw him returning to the group, and Jason waited till he was within earshot of the others before he spoke in a low tone.
"I got Farlow’s vote in the case. At least we can be certain that we’ll have one ally."
Everyone was shocked when they heard Jason say this! They all knew this should be the first time that Jason would be meeting Farlow, so they could only wonder how Jason got him to agree to support them so quickly! Riyala’s face burst into a wide smile, and she rushed to hug Jason before giving him a deep kiss!
"That’s amazing, Jason. With the support of the third seat, we won’t need to worry about being overwhelmed by the others."
Jason nodded to Riyala with a smile, and he turned to Gina when he saw her watching Farlow’s retreating back with a complicated expression on her face. Jason asked Gina what was wrong, and Gina seemed to snap out of her trance before she smiled at him and said that she was fine.
"I’m really glad you got his support. I can tell he’ll be a great help."
Gina tried to act like there was nothing bothering her, but the look on Jason’s face told her that he wasn’t buying it at all! Jason told Gina through their mental link to tell him what was wrong and Gina let out a sigh of defeat before she finally spoke.
’I was just thinking about what King Farlow said before he left to talk to you. He said I couldn’t reach ’enlightenment’ while going down the path I was taking. I have no idea what that means, and I was going to ask him to explain it properly, but I don’t think that’s possible. Do you know what he meant?’
Jason frowned when he heard this. Jason had never heard anyone use the term ’enlightenment’ before when referring to magic or mana, and Jason had to go to the system and ask it to explain.
[There is information stored in the system’s database on the concept of Enlightenment. Enlightenment in the context King Farlow refers to is most likely the achievement of ’oneness’. It is a unique trait that is only available to certain mages who have dedicated their lives to the pursuit of a single form of magic. To reach enlightenment, the mage must become more than just a mana user who crafts magic using their desired element. They must allow the element to become one with them. They must give their body to the element and, in turn, accept the element as themselves. The mage who reaches enlightenment does not utilize magic as a tool to achieve their goal. Instead, they see their elemental magic as an extension of themselves. Their elemental magic becomes the very essence of their being itself.]
Jason hummed as he read through everything that the system just sent to him and he structured things properly before he told Gina what the definition of enlightenment most probably was. Gina was surprised when she heard Jason’s explanation, and she felt her brow furrow even more when she heard Jason say that she had to become ’one’ with her element in order to achieve enlightenment. Gina already thought that she was pretty good at controlling the wind. The wind listened to her orders, and she could use it in any way she wanted. What more could she do with the wind that she hadn’t thought of yet? There was no way someone as powerful as Farlow would give her that kind of message unless he noticed there was something wrong with her current chosen path. Gina decided that she would think about it for a little longer.
"Jason, there’s someone coming."
Jason turned when he heard Katarina speak up from behind the group. Katarina had been very quiet since they came here and Jason had almost forgotten that she was even with them, but Jason noticed that Katarina’s expression was tense and weary as she looked down the hallway and Jason realised that Katarina had sensed something that he hadn’t noticed yet, and it didn’t take long before Jason also felt a feeling of sudden despair slam into his senses. Jason’s hand tightened into a fist as he waited for whatever was approaching to show itself, and everyone else was surprised as they wondered what Jason and Katarina were sensing.
Katarina was a Supporter, and that allowed her to possess senses that were sharper than most other superhumans, and the fact that Jason was so powerful meant that the range of his senses was also much larger than those of other superhumans. But even though the two of them were the first to sense the danger out there, it didn’t take long before the others also felt the intense feeling of despair that was approaching them from down the hall. The only way they could describe the feeling was as if they were currently being approached by a predator. It felt like they were rabbits and they had sensed the presence of a fucking wolf!
But Jason was different! Even though no one else could sense it, Jason could immediately tell exactly what was approaching them! This was something that Jason was very intimate with! It was something that Jason lived with every single day of his life, and it was something that he had looked in the eye and laughed at a long time ago. Jason felt like they were being approached by death.