Zarek opened the door to reveal a familiar fat and skinny duo. Well, Salman wasn't exactly skinny—it was just that Jean was very fat.
However, compared to the first time they knocked on his door, they looked a lot more furious this time around. There was a darkness to their faces, and their bodies were drenched in sweat.
It didn't take Zarek much thought to realize why this was. They had probably gone around the whole building trying to find him because he hadn't reported to anyone that he had chosen to move.
Thinking of this, Zarek couldn't help but chuckle. Imagining them having to keep up the same rage-fueled intent with every door they knocked on was hilarious.
"You." Jean pointed a finger, and Zarek's laughter faded.
"Put your finger down before I break it."
The sudden cold and sharp turn in Zarek's tone made Jean shiver from head to toe. The fat man took a strong step back and stumbled, falling to his ass.
"I would watch it if I were you. In almost any other situation, I would have killed you directly."
This was a world of peculiar Talents and unexpected Treasures. In many cases, the point of a finger was as good as the point of a gun if you were careless enough.
Of course, Zarek could see the fat man's quite ordinary defensive Talent, and he could sense that he had no Treasures on him. But his reflexes and instincts were built on years where his Scouting Skill was easily countered almost everywhere he went. He had learned not to rely on it long ago.
It could be said that if Zarek's reflexes weren't so much faster than Jean's, he'd already be a dead man.
"Hey, hey," Salman was the first to recover because he hadn't experienced Zarek's gaze directly. "In case you've forgotten, you're in GFI territory right now, kid. I get that you're strong, but for your sake, learn some humility. This world doesn't have the same rules you're used to."
Salman's words sounded quite antagonistic, but his actual tone made it seem like he was halfway to anger, and halfway actually trying to advise Zarek.
So Zarek chose to let it go, his smile returning.
"You're right. My bad. What did you guys come here for?"
Salman blinked while Jean was still wiping sweat from his brows, unsure of how to pick himself up from this embarrassing situation.
"Come with us."
Zarek raised an eyebrow. "Just 'come with you'? You know I was on a mission for you guys literally just a few hours ago, right? You can't actually want me to run myself into the ground for you all, right? I'd rather just leave."
"This is serious," Salman said slowly, trying to signal Zarek with his eyes to control his words and tone better.
Zarek gave him a glance, then looked over his shoulder.
"Babe! We're going somewhere."
"Coming!"
Priya's voice came from deep within the apartment. No more than a few seconds later, she had rounded the corner in the same outfit she had worn earlier that day.
"Let's go."
…
Zarek was escorted out of the building this time, brought into a vehicle, and then brought to a new high-rise even taller than the one he had lounged in.
The building actually wasn't very far. It was a three-minute walk at most, and there was really no need to use a car given how valuable gas was about to become.
'A show of power?'
Zarek chuckled to himself. Why would they bother with a show of power for the sake of a young teen they thought to be a brash idiot?
No, a show of power would work in such a situation, but not such a subtle one.
It seemed that they were already doubting some things about him. But that was fine.
There was a carefree air to Zarek's smile as he took Priya's hand and walked into the large office.
Inside, he could immediately feel the tension.
There was a long conference table that could have probably held 30 executives at once. But rather than being at full capacity, there were only a half-dozen people present. Well, eight total now that Zarek and Priya were here.
Zarek recognized only two of them: Zade and Marx Occam.
But, he had a pretty good guess who the other group was.
The Pensare Corporation.
Pensare was a well-known electronics brand in this city. In fact, they had a recent partnership with GFI to outfit their gyms with the latest state-of-the-art equipment. Not in terms of the gym machines themselves, but instead convenience measures like the televisions that hung in the cardio stations, or the heart rate monitors that were provided in gratuity.
Pensare obviously hadn't sent their CEO. This was technically enemy territory now, and it said a lot that Zade and Marx were even able to meet like this.
Instead, of the group of four wearing mismatching sets of Treasures, Zarek immediately picked out the leader amongst them.
A middle-aged man with a face so stern his wrinkles almost looked like the etchings of a stone statue. He was slightly greying on top, but it gave him a handsome and refined air. That said, the veins pulsing on the back of his hands painted the tale of a man who was not only used to working with his hands…
But killing with them.
—
Name: [Wyatt Suwa]
Role: [N/A]
Core Stats:
>[Strength: E-]
>[Dexterity: E+]
>[Intelligence: E+]
>[Endurance: F+]
>[Charisma: F+]
Talents:
>[Swift End: E-]
[Abilities: Accelerate]
[Allow your attack speed to reach its peak instantaneously, bending and shifting the pace of your blade with a thought from your intention alone]
—
Hoho… Swift End, huh…
There were many acceleration-type abilities out there. But the ones with unique names like this one were almost always A Class in Growth Potential at the very worst.
With something like that, if Wyatt was skilled enough, he could make his blows as difficult to block as a D Warrior's…
It seemed that they had finally run into some big shots.