Back at the White Comet’s guild office, Yuuto gazed, eyes wide, at the static holographic screen. It was a look of shock but also something else-a look that could kill. The man looked like he had seen a ghost, but instead of fear, he felt anger and wanted to eradicate it from this world.
He stood up from his seat, lowering his head slightly, causing his silver hair to darken the upper half of his face. It was clear he was upset about something.
He suddenly reached into the side of his guild uniform, pulling out a small white cube device. With a soft touch of his right index finger, it expanded into a holographic phone-like device with a blue translucent screen.
He calmly dialed a number and put the phone to his ear. As it slowly rang, he walked up to the massive window behind his table and chair, reaching out to touch it slightly. Although he didn’t seem to apply much pressure on the glass, cracks suddenly rippled on its surface.
~BEEP~
“Oh? What’s this? To what do I owe the pleasure, Guildmaster Yuuto?”
A voice suddenly came from the phone. It was Cheng Zhi, branch master of the Reapers Guild,
a guild well known for its shadowy dealings. Yuuto had had previous, personal dealings with the guild, but back then it was more out of curiosity than genuine interest.
“Cheng, I’m going to ask you a question, and I want a straight and honest answer.”
“Do you understand?”
Yuuto spoke calmly, but there was an intensity behind his words. He was in a foul mood, a state he hadn’t entered in years, for the simple belief that anger clouds judgment and a leader always needs to reason with a clear head.
Perhaps now his judgment was getting clouded. What could be the cause of this aura of rage that seemed to surround him?
Well, it was simple: the fear of losing his precious guild members, his family.
And the strong desire to punish who was responsible, or at least whoever wanted his family dead.
He was certain they were in danger due to the signs he witnessed before the signal was lost. Others couldn’t be absolutely certain, but that wasn’t the case for Yuuto. He knew very well which of the guilds could be capable of such a thing.
Cheng smiled as he got into a pool in his villa, a lady nearby handed him a glass of wine. He nodded, dismissing her, then said,
“Who am I to refuse a request from Mr. Immortal? Please ask away.”
“I’ll answer honestly…”
“…to the best of my ability.”
Yuuto’s eyes moved slightly to gaze at his phone due to Cheng’s choice of words. He then spoke.
“Why are you trying to get my guild members killed?”
“There is no argument or conflict between us, so it’s obvious someone else put you up to this.”
“Who is it?”
“What are you talking about? I don’t understand what you are- ”
Suddenly Yuuto cut him off, his tone so intense it was suffocating.
“Look….”
“….boy, think twice before you lie to me. I don’t know where you’re getting this misplaced confidence from, but I’m not going to tolerate it.”
“Do you take me for a fool? That I would think this was some accident?”
“Don’t make me laugh.”
“Depending on how you talk, I could personally decide to rid this entire megacity of the Reapers Guild, and not even Galisk would be able to stop me.”
“You would just disappear, and it would be like you were never here.”
“Do you understand?”
Yuuto spoke, casually referring to the Union president as if he were someone random, as if the world’s strongest awakened wasn’t even a threat to him.
As he spoke, his silver eyes began glowing, becoming slightly reptilian. Along with it, a silver clock-like crest appeared in his right eye.
Cheng Zhi momentarily fell silent. Yuuto then spoke up, saying, “Now tell me, who put you up to this, and I’ll let you and your kids go and focus on the real problem.”
There was a brief pause; neither of them said anything.
Suddenly Cheng spoke up, “Look, old man, perhaps living for hundreds of years has caused you to have a few screws loose. I mean, what the hell, man? Who could give me orders? No one, that’s who.”
“This must all just be a really big misunderstanding. Geez, old man, sending threats to a guy trying to chill on his day off is messed up, you know.”
“Do you go bothering every shady guy you know all because something messed up is going down somewhere?”
Yuuto’s tone remained serious as he asked, “Should I take this to mean your kids are doing this independently?”
“Again, randomly placing blame. I’m not so sure about what you are talking about, but I’m sure they’re giving their best out there to represent my guild’s interests. I mean,” Cheng suddenly smiled, “what else could they be up to?”
And by his guild’s best interest, he was refering to the Reapers having to get rid of Alister due to the request of the Li family. And due to the nature of the request, to make it all look like a major accident, Ren and the others needed to accompany the young summoner to the grave. For a few seconds, there was complete silence. Suddenly, Yuuto began to laugh.
“Hehehehehe… Hahahaha.”
“Haaaaa!”
A sound so unsettling one would easily mistake him for some sick bastard if they didn’t know him. He then let out a sigh, his shoulders slumping slightly. His mana suddenly began to emanate from his body as he spoke in a deep tone, his hair slowly raising upwards. “This is so foolish. Imagine, me of all people, expecting truth from the likes of you. As if I need it. I almost forgot people like you only understand the language of force.” Suddenly Yuuto’s mana raged out of his body, with a massive boom, shattering the massive glass window before him and sending all the contents of his office flying to the other end of the room, crashing into the wall.
He then spoke, saying, “So let me make this clear to you, Cheng. If even one of my kids doesn’t return, then you can kiss goodbye to any more days off since you won’t be alive to get
any.”
~BEEP~
Yuuto’s mana then began to calm down, the raging energy gradually subsiding until the room returned to its previous state. He took a deep breath, his eyes returning to their normal silver hue. He dropped his phone back into his guild uniform pocket, his face regaining its usual
composure.
“Aiko,” he called out.
The door to his office opened, and lady Aiko stepped through. She wasn’t bothered with the sight of the office in ruin, but rather stood attentive, her eyes reflecting her usual readiness.
“Yes, Guildmaster? What do you need?”
Yuuto glanced at her, his expression firm. “Get a ride ready. Depending on how things go, I
may have to go worm hunting.”
Aiko nodded, understanding the gravity of his words. “Understood. I’ll make the arrangements immediately.” She turned on her heel and left the room, her footsteps echoing down the corridor as she moved to carry out his orders.
Yuuto stood by the shattered window, looking out at the city below, his mind already focused on the steps he would take to protect his guild and deal with the threat at hand.