《Imperfect power》chapter 17

Isaac's POV:

Eric had completed his part of the job, though he meddled in my plans. Instead of him eliminating Cassandra and avoiding unnecessary casualties, he risked Lauren's life and left the matter to Philip. I must admit that he knew what was going to happen, so there was no real risk involved. However, attending an unexpected orgy was a rather unconventional way for him to calm his own nerves. But then again, it it him after all. Well, as long as it works, I won't complain.

"What are you thinking so hard about?" Ethan asked. Ethan, my friend, possesses absolute physical power. He stands at 6.26 feet tall, a rather large fellow with a build somewhere between a bodybuilder and a heavyweight fighter.

"I was just wondering what we should do about Eric. For now, I'd rather not have him meet you or the other two." I said, sipping my tea.

"The other two? Surely I can control myself, but is there a problem with him meeting Cyrus?" Ethan inquired.

"The two of them have the kind of temperament that could lead to a fight over a few insults if said in a certain way. Both Eric and Cyrus have egos that speak for themselves; they would end up in a fight. The outcome is obvious, but it's better not to provoke either of them." I explained.

Maybe I needed to make some emergency plans. Then again, nothing can stop Eric at full power if he stops holding back. The worst-case scenario would be that we wouldn't have time to blink, and we'd be gone. For someone with highly reduced power to already reach a black hole... And then there's that thing I don't even want to think about.

Something at the edge of this universe is watching over us and has the power of absolute.

It's so powerful that even my knowledge about it is blocked; it might be the source. It also gives off a different feeling, as if sometimes it's already here on Earth. Our ace is still in a very bad state, and I don't think she'll help us if we get in trouble.

"After all, I still think that facing our problems head-on would be better. Let's just go and explain everything to Eric." Ethan sparked me with his idea.

"Well, I guess nothing will happen to me if only you go. But don't expect me to negotiate over your life once he messes you up."

"Why would he mess me up?" Ethan asked, confused.

"Oh, well... Just because you can withstand any type of force and increase your power infinitely doesn't mean you can escape the time stop or mental block or even a black hole. This is where sheer force doesn't work."

It is precisely why I find myself bothering about that guy during my free and working time.

"I will not lead to any situation that would bring me to a fight with him, I promise." he said. I didn't need his promise.

"Better if you don't attack anyone at all. The highest chance of survival you'll have is if you aim to befriend Philip first."

"So be it, I'll go meet him right away!" he said and jumped out of the window.

"Good thing you asked about his address, idiot." I whispered to myself. If he has Philip on his side, then Eric would be more likely to stay in a good relationship with him since he really cares for Philip.

Guess I'm free for a little while; might as well visit the girl. Flowers might need watering.

Ethan's POV:

It's refreshing to run on water from time to time, especially on such nice weather. About 80 miles left until I reach land, and then I'll have to leap my way to avoid causing any damage.

As I contemplate, I realize I don't actually know where Philip lives. I only know the general area, coincidentally close to Eric's mates' location, which I remember by heart. Since Philip's house remains a mystery, I might as well pay a visit to those girls; befriending them should be fine.

...Ah, here I go, reaching the land. About six jumps and I'll be in their city, then just a walk to their apartment.

*Ding dong*

[Yaaaas?! Is that the pizza delivery?] one of the girls answered.

"No, it's-..."

[Then fuck off, we didn't invite anyone!]

[Angie! Don't be mean, at least let them say who they are; it might be something important.]

[Ugh... fine! Who's there?!] She shouted through the entry phone.

They seem kind of out of the ordinary; no wonder Eric befriended them, I guess. But how should I introduce myself?

"Um... Power of absolute."

[Power of wha- . . . Shit! Jade! JADE!!!] She just got louder. I suppose it wasn't a good idea.

Shortly after, they let me in, and I used the elevator to get to their floor.

What a nice elevator. Shakira's voice is so calming through the radio. 10/10 to whoever thought of this design.

"Sooo... are you like... Eric's friend or something?" the green-haired girl asked.

"No, I was planning to meet him." I replied, obviously lying. "But I didn't know the address, so I ended up here. This location, I knew from Isaac." I explained to them.

They might be wary of me for a while; it might take some time to gain their trust, especially after such an unfortunate entry.

"Ah, yeah, sure! My name's Jade, and this is Angie." she said. Okay, what the heck? Was it that simple?

"The heck did you expect from them? To be angry at someone who can do whatever he wants with that kind of power?" I heard a man's voice behind me.

"I believe you don't need to explain yourself. You're Ethan, the absolute physical power, and you came here in no bad manner." he said.

"Eric!" Angie rushed to hug him.

So that's him? I didn't expect him to be so... different from what I anticipated.

"I'm Eric, fortunate to meet you." He extended his hand towards mine.

Even though he's just as delicate physically as an ordinary person, something's telling me to be extra careful.

It was the most stressful handshake I've ever had.

"What intentions do you have now that you've achieved the pleasure of becoming my acquaintance? I won't intrude your mind anymore. Too much trouble." he said, confirming he had been reading my mind. I just wanted to say hi, but now I just gotta go with the flow.

"I was thinking of getting to know each other; you mind?" I asked.

"Heheh... what's there to know that Isaac wouldn't tell you? My looks are what you see, and the best way to gauge someone's character is through alcohol. Though I'm not a drinker, and it's pretty early, so would you mind some tea instead?" He kindly offered.

Guess he's a nice guy after all; maybe there is no reason to worry about him. Isaac is being overdramatic.

"I'll take whatever flavor you've got in stock." I replied to his earlier question.

"I'll go prepare something and get snacks." Jade said and left the room.

"So how does your power work?" Angie asked.

"I get as strong, durable, and fast as I want, simple right?" I explained shortly. It is just as I said, and it's easy to understand since my power is not as complicated as Eric's or the others'.

"Oh! Oh! Squeeze my hand!" she shouted.

"Are you sure?" I asked, then glanced at Eric as he nodded.

I took her wrist in my hand and squeezed as hard as necessary. Her bones cracked, and her entire wrist got crushed to the thickness of gaps between my grasp. Her expression didn't change from happy amusement, and once I released her wrist, it went back to normal.

"Jade! Come here quickly! I wanna test something out!" Angie shouted.

Jade, glancing from the kitchen, knew the situation. Just as I grabbed her wrist and grasped it harder, her smile didn't fade, but her eyes widened. Instantly, Eric put his hand on mine.

"That's enough!" he said and glanced at me seriously.

"I exceeded 10^32 times the sun's mass. She's incredible." I exclaimed in amazement.

"That's as far as you'll go." he said and lifted Jade's hand to kiss it.

"I didn't want to see that future." he whispered.

I just realized that I was about to break her arm if he didn't stop me. And that would bring consequences on me.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to." I apologized, hopefully in time.

"It's fine, I'll be there for her if anything were to happen, and you didn't know what would happen either. You're forgiven." he said and sat back down. I could still tell that he's thinking about it. It seems those girls are very important to him, and though they might be nearly invincible, he still worries.

He's a good man, and he gained my respect. Once we had our chit-chat over tea, I left to report to Isaac.

"You've risked losing your life over three times in five possible scenarios of an encounter with him." he said.

"W-what?" I got shocked by his tone.

"If it wasn't for his mercy thanks to the single glance at those girls, he would've killed you. He wanted to and was about to." Isaac continued nagging.

"But nothing happened, right?"

"For you, it didn't, but he looked into the future where he actually did something brutal to you, just to calm his nerves."

This brought a different light on Eric in my eyes. Respect slightly turned to fear.