Back-up Connections

Things didn't go exactly as planned but he did gain more from this than he initially thought. He already confirmed that all his pursuers were present and he was about to get this over with. But he didn't expect one of the church's people to be such a twisted sadist! He indeed gained a lot...

Instead of ending things prematurely, he decided to use the system's record function to capture that gem. Since he was tied up, he had to get creative, but he got the material crystal clear.

Not only would this particular footage influence players, but it could also piss off the Empire big time!

He wasn't sure if the government was already corrupted by the church, or just corrupted in general, but the people weren't. If he were to show them evidence of their soldiers getting bullied and tortured in broad daylight for no good reason, he could only imagine the uproar.

Not only that, but his experience bar increased by over a dozen percent! It's been stagnant for quite a while now and it seemed like defeating over two hundred B~grade and A~grades along with two S~grades really did the trick. He didn't level up though, but it helped him confirm that only transcendent enemies would help him level up now.

There were, however, other methods of leveling other than combat. He planned to acquire some jobs so he could gain levels when no transcendent enemies were around. If he were to ask Darien, he was sure that he could get a forger job easily and have another extremely powerful way of leveling. The next foreseeable leveling spurt was the completion of this event so he also looked forward to that.

On another note, his progression score with Transcendent's Honor went up by two percent. He got some achievements for defeating the Bishops but nothing else really happened status-wise.

He was in a hurry so he pushed his thoughts to the back of his head and cleaned up the messy courtyard. Blood was everywhere so he just used some hydrokinesis to gather and separate everything. It was good that blood needed a full hour before it oxidized (dried out), so he was still able to manipulate it.

This whole ordeal, from when he left the guildhall till now, thankfully only took around thirty to forty minutes so he still had plenty of daylight.

Before he left, he made sure to do two things.

Kyren incinerated the regular human blood because he didn't need that, and he stored the peculiar pearl white angelic blood in his storage. Maybe it could be used for alchemy or something?

After that, he also checked on the unconscious castle guards who were hidden nearby. It seemed like the sadistic female Bishop was planning to take them along when they finished up here, judging by the way they were tied up. He untied them and left them at that.

[Gate]

He walked through and found himself inside the same alleyway from earlier. He stored his gauntlets and boots in his Soul Realm and exited the alley.

Instead of heading for the guildhall, he went to a nearby restaurant.

There was still one more thing he needed to do before he was free to continue his day.

Using simple reaper tricks, he concealed his presence and walked past the unsuspecting employees, wasting no time by interacting with them. He soon came to Denmark's table and sat down while studying him closely.

Denmark was playing with his cold soup as he blankly stared out the window. He was lost in deep thought as he watched the overcrowded streets move about. His big and round grey eyes well complimented his perfectly trimmed black bowl cut. His eyes looked similar to a normal child's, but when he looked closely, not only did he see great wisdom, but a little something else that he was quite familiar with...

Tyler's father was apart of the military during one of the more recent cosmic wars back in reality. Many of his former military friends would visit Tyler's old home during high school and their eyes were hardened after witnessing the atrocities of semi-futuristic war.

The nightmares of the most recent wars were considerably worse than the previous world wars.

Denmark's eyes reminded him of theirs but on a completely different level. He noticed that Denmark's normal-looking grey eyes were more steel-like and cold than anything he's ever seen. He was impressed by this and his opinion of him rose.

It was quite strange to see a small boy with such a monstrous hidden aura but such was the nature of this world. The existence of magic made things fairly bizarre for someone who's lived his entire life in the modern world.

He studied a summarized version of his previous appraisal of him for a few minutes. While he did that, he notified Leo of the different things to exclude in the summary for future reference, making things more manageable. He got quite a bit of important intelligence from simply reading his info. He especially got a lot on the other three Grandmasters.

<You've discovered the job, [Appraiser], at the [Amateur] level.>

The information wasn't perfect though. After thoroughly examining the info given to him from using [Appraising the Horizen], he figured out a few things. This skill was indeed a jack of all trades, a master of none, but it wasn't as omnipotent as it initially seems.

Some of the information seems to be able to describe important parts of his past, so he thought the skill could give him spectator-level access to any NPC information that the system provided or the ability to literally look into someone's past. But after analyzing the process of the skill, it became clear that the process was much more realistic and the system wasn't as involved.

One of the effects of the skill, <Soul/Spirit Reading>, stated that it gave additional information whenever a soul or spirit was involved. Instead of peering into his past or his Npc information master file, he was actually just looking over the events or memories that left an impression on his soul and mind.

He was also able to look over recent events and memories that the person in question was yet to forget... hence why he was able to see useless stuff like what he had for breakfast... which was surprisingly sugar-filled for someone who was trying to avoid looking childish.

Additionally, he could learn about important defining events in Denmark's life that he may have seemed to have forgotten about entirely, but were deeply etched onto his soul and made up his character.

Kyren began to get lost in deep thought and his presence unconsciously slipped out without him noticing.

"Eh, who are— oh?!"

Denmark was alarmed to find that someone slipped past his senses and turned toward the culprit with a jolt. He was even more alarmed to find that it was none other than the man he was waiting for.

Kyren internally cursed after finding that his cover was blown, but kept up his cool. He was confused as to how he kept slipping up like this, even if he was simply lost in thought. The same thing happened in the guildhall with his killing intent!

Was it because he still didn't have full control over his powers? Or was it something else that he was unaware of? After all that grueling training he did at Reaper training, mistakes like this should never happen even if he was preoccupied. Well, it was a question he would have to look into later.

"It seems there has been a misunderstanding on my end, Grandmaster Denmark." Kyren lowered his head in a small nod as a sign of respect and greeting. He thought about acting high and mighty since his strength was exposed, but he figured that wasn't good for the long run.

"!?!" Denmark felt weird after such an incomprehensible existence showed him face. The man before him probably had enough power to flip this continent over several times!

"I mistook you for those who were pursuing me earlier... Speaking of which, I'd like for you to keep my existence a secret."

Kyren reached into a crack in space and placed a small bug in front of Denmark. Since it was a living being with a soul, he had to keep the eavesdropping-bug in his Personal Dimension.

Denmark took the small bug and reunited it with its other half in his special container, "S-So, you plan on letting me go?"

"Hmm? You've done nothing wrong, am I right? I see no need to waste my energy to silence everyone who discovers my true nature. Furthermore, sending the continent into chaos will be more detrimental than beneficial."

Denmark flinched when he realized he forgot such a crucial element. If he died, the guild would be thrown into unrest at the very least, chaos at the very most. Not just humanity, but the entire continent of Lumeria relied on the Adventurers Guild to keep the never-ending stream of creatures appearing in this world at bay. It would be very bad if the guild's efficiency dropped by even a little bit.

He selfishly thought of lying down and dying this whole time when he was forsaking thousands, if not millions of lives.

This was especially so if a spontaneous Creature Swarm razed the continent, creating a calamity in the guild's weakest hour. If that happened, not just millions but billions of lives would be in mortal danger.

He always said he was a grown-up stuck in a child's body, but he always found himself being as immature as a child sometimes.

"Instead, I'd like to propose a deal with you that could benefit both of us immensely."

Kyren had an idea of making separate connections that didn't involve Genesis. Due to how mysterious he made his organization and his Lord Angevin persona out to be, his relationship with the Grandmasters would only be for business at most. But if he personally approached them with another identity and had a more deep and comfortable relationship, he would probably gain more opportunities than he would as Lord Angevin.

Something from Denmark's expression told him that something didn't compute. What could he possibly help Kyren with?! The man probably has everything life has to offer.

As if he read his mind, Kyren answered with a meaningful and steady tone, "I need connections along with resources and you require a powerful backbone in addition to strength. You fulfill some of my requests or favors and I will allow you to borrow my strength from time to time... How about it?"

"..."

Denmark was at a loss for words. He didn't know how to respond to something like that. Even if this deal was unfairly in favor of Kyren, which it didn't sound like it was so far, he would still benefit greatly from having such an ally.

"I can hunt powerful creatures that plague your adventurers, openly fight back against the church, and complete a majority of the high-profile missions that cause you headaches. Of course, it will also come with a price but I'm not really in it for the money, so everything will be fairly affordable."

'Really! That would be gre—' Denmark internally cheered until all of Kyren's words fully sank in. "Hold up, did you say that you would willingly fight t-the church?!"

"If that's what you wish, I can hunt and weed out their corruption if that's your request."

".....You know what you're saying, right? Even if it's you, I don't think that-"

"Ahaha, it will be fine. Do you know who my pursuers were? Two Bishops and many of their Templars. I needed myself to get captured so that I could round them all up. I know you and the other Grandmasters are having difficulties with the church, so I might be of some assistance."

Denmark's eyes quivered and he swore he couldn't feel his heart beating. A vortex of questions he desperately wanted to ask surged in his head but not a peep came out of his agape mouth.

"And besides the church, I might be able to bring you the core and head of the creature that made you this way..."

"!!!"

Shock after shock befell Denmark as he was nowhere near mentally prepared for everything that was happening.

Kyren leaned in closer and lowered his voice, making him sound like a charismatic devil that was trying to make someone sign a contract with him, "Can you imagine being able to embrace your wife with your original body again? Hasn't that been your dream ever since you became this way?

But sadly, you were given a curse related to all growth so not only your appearance seems young, but also your ability to grow stronger and learn new things are affected also. You'll never be able to get revenge and lift the curse with the strength you have now, so there's no other choice but to rely on someone else....."

Sometimes you have to play a little dirty to really grab someone's attention. Mentioning such personal information will no doubt be harmful or even destructive to their future relationship, possibly creating trust and privacy issues, but if he could somehow form a more personal connection with him through this, it would be worth it.

Denmark froze after Kyren spoke the truth of his curse and situation. He was also astonished to discover the true nature of his curse. He wasn't aware that his growth was also being affected! He just thought that he reached the upper limit of his growth potential, which tended to happen a lot throughout society.

Also, Kyren somehow already knew of his innermost desire of getting revenge and being with his family in his original form, so that should've been off-putting to him, but he immediately became distraught after being reminded of the fact.

Everything he was saying was just too earth-shattering!

Kyren leaned away and chuckled, "But there's no need to rush things. We've just met after all..."

'He's right. We've just met yet he knows so much about me... In fact, he might know more about me than myself.' Although it was a scary notion, he had to remember that the man in front of him wasn't in the least bit normal.

Suddenly, there was a commotion near the entrance of the restaurant, and many unique armed figures flooded in. Their specific table was instantly surrounded with weapons drawn and magical spells hot. They seemed to be a hastily put-together team of adventurers, mercenaries, guards, and mages but they were all definitely the strongest of elites.

Three figures came to the forefront looking particularly hostile and cautious. Killing intent flooded the restaurant and the stunned guests instantly ran for cover or the nearest exit, too terrified to scream.

"Denmark, are you alright!?! We heard there was danger!!" Rosalind had her staff raised and she was ready to cast any type of magic necessary. She looked quite lively for someone who was visually old, and quite dangerous by the pressure she was releasing. When she received news that her dear friend's life was in danger, she could hardly contain her concern.

"You! In the hood! What are your intentions with him!" Mercia, who was usually calm, collected, and cunning was brimming with the most bloodlust. When it came to the people that mattered to her the most, no amount of money could stop her from acting.

"..."

The only one who stayed silent in this situation was Grand Marquess Lorena as she thoroughly assessed the situation, staying the calmest out of them all.

Rosalind showed great concern, Mercia looked about ready to behead someone, and Lorena was busy trying to get her bearings on the confrontation. Their reactions varied greatly...

Lorena was meeting with the other two Grandmasters when news about Denmark came in from his bodyguards. Although she had many personal problems with Denmark and argued with him from time to time (all the time actually), she still considered him someone close so she couldn't sit idly by.

Panic and disbelief filled Denmark's little heart as fear of being misunderstood once again by Kyren made him unable to think properly. If he thought that he sent for help and a fight breaks out...

The situation was much more grave than the problems he usually dealt with so he was still in shock.

Kyren heartily laughed without a care in the world, completely ignoring them all as though they were no threat in his eyes, generating a large feeling of unease in them that made them think twice before acting.

He passed his contact info to the flustered Demark and stood up from his seat, similarly ignoring the threatening weapons and spells pointing at him that seemed to scream for him not to move.

"I know your not the kind of person who would endanger your friends like this so don't worry about it... Just think about it and contact me at any time. Let's keep this conversation our little secret for now... I must be going now, so goodbye..... for now."

[Teleportation]

His figure wavered like it was a mirage all along, and his afterimage faded away instantly, leaving everyone awestruck.