22 Bladeworks Building

After a quick shower, Adam walked out of the apartment complex wearing a clean set of clothes, which were a bit too small for his current stature; a white shirt under a zipped up black hoodie and blue jeans.

He did not have many choices, but thankfully some of them were originally too big for his previously short stature.

"Are you ready? " Mark rolled down the driver's window and asked in a slightly annoyed tone. Adam had told him to wait for 15 minutes, but he waited for a whopping 30 minutes.

"Where are you taking me? " Adam asked as he sat on the comfy leather passenger seat while casually disregarding Mark's comment.

"Well, that's a nice apology... " Mark said before starting the car, "Master Darius has some urgent business to discuss with you. " He continued.

"... I'm sorry. " Adam apologized, "I'm kind of exhausted, so don't take it to heart. "

"What were you up to? " Mark asked while looking at Adam with a concerned expression. "Master Darius and James were looking all over for you, and since you don't have a smartphone, no one knew where you were. "

"I was... handling some business... " Adam replied as he averted his gaze. He didn't expect the quest to take as much time as it did, so he had to improvise a spontaneous lie.

"Hmm... I won't ask anymore, but if you want to avoid Master Darius' endless questions, you better think of a better excuse. He's not the type to settle for such a vague answer, " Mark spoke with a cheeky smile. "Now, reach under the seat. There's something Master Darius got for you. "

"Another gift? " Adam said before pulling a small, black box from underneath the seat, "is this a phone? "

"Yeah. " Mark replied, "everyone in the task force receives one, so just take it. "

"You're on the task force, too? " Adam asked with a slightly surprised expression.

"I may not be a B-rank High Human, but I'm still capable, okay?! " Mark said in a slightly offended tone, "Although, I'm not a core member yet... "

"Is that so... " Adam replied in an uninterested tone while carefully unboxing the phone.

"Is this your first phone? " Mark noticed Adam's blank expression and tried changing the topic to a more interesting one.

His words, however, fell on deaf ears as Adam kept fiddling with the phone while the same blank expression hung over his face.

'He's not even listening... ' Mark looked at Adam with a worried expression, 'well, he must have his own worries... '

_____________

After a short drive through Brooklyn, the car stopped in front of a huge skyscraper in the middle of Manhattan.

It was the main building of the Morris family's pride and joy, Bladeworks. Inc. One of the largest corporations in America and a big supplier of top-grade magic weaponry.

"Let's go. " Mark said as he parked the car and opened the door. "Master Darius is waiting. "

"Okay. " Adam replied before following Darius into the building.

The two walked into the gigantic towering building and the first thing on their way was a huge, majestic water fountain in the middle of a giant hall full of beautiful receptionists.

'Giant conglomerates are something different... ' Adam thought as his dark eyes wandered around the beautiful place.

"Amazing, right? " Mark woke Adam from his elongated daze. "You should see the view from up there. Let's go. "

Adam silently followed mark towards the elevator, at the far end of the hall. He thought the building was quite elegant, but didn't have the mental capacity to appreciate it at the moment.

_____________

After a long lift, the two got out on the 350th floor and walked down a long hallway leading to a large, opaque glass door.

"Go on in. I'll be waiting here. " Mark stopped in front of the entrance and gestured for Adam to walk in.

"Okay. " Adam reached for the knob and entered a luxurious, modern office with large windows showing a beautiful scene of the Manhattan Island.

"Adam, you're finally here. " It was Darius, who spoke while sitting at the desk on the left side of the office.

"Darius... " Adam looked at Darius with a nostalgic expression.

"Please, grab a seat. " Darius said before extending his hand to the seat on the other side of the desk with a gentle smile. "We have a lot of catching up to do. "

"Dude, your smile is scary... " Adam said while warily approaching the seat.

"Do you know how hard I've been trying to contact you?! " Thick veins bulged on Darius' forehead as he spoke. "Where have you been?! "

"I'm sorry about that, but I had to visit some relatives on Staten Island. " Adam calmly replied, "it took longer than expected... "

"Did something happen? " Darius asked with a worried expression, "you don't seem well either. "

"No, everything is fine. " Adam tried reassuring Darius with a smile, "Anyway, Mark told me you had some urgent business to discuss. "

"Yeah, it's about the task force. " Darius leaned back in his chair before continuing, "I know I was the one who invited you, but there's a test that you need to go through first. " He said in an apologetic tone.

"When is the test? " Adam asked in a slightly interested tone. A test was the perfect opportunity for him to test his growth compared to other High Humans.

"It will take place in two weeks' time. " Darius noticed the slight change in Adam's expression and spoke with a smile. "You should use this time to train. It won't be easy. "

"Got it. " Adam replied as a spark of life flashed in his previously uninterested eyes, "well, if there's nothing else, please excuse me. "

"Hold on. " Darius stopped Adam before he got to leave his seat and extended a silver card. "This is your High Human license. I received it in your stead, since you were busy, make sure you always keep it on you. "

"Oh, thanks. I planned on visiting the association after this, but you just saved me the trip. " Adam received the license with both hands before thanking Darius.

"Also, contact James. That guy has been worried about you for a while now. " Darius said before handing Adam a small piece of paper. "This is his number. "

"Alright, thank you, Darius. " Adam put the paper in his pocket and turned to the office door.

"Adam! If there's anything I can help you with, just tell me. " Darius spoke just as Adam was about to open the door.

"I will. " Adam replied with a smile before opening the door and leaving the office.

_____________

After another long elevator ride, Mark and Adam exited the building and got in the car.

"Okay, off to Brooklyn. " Mark spoke as he started the engine

"Actually, you can drop me off at the 32nd precinct. " Adam said while registering James' number on his phone.

"Why the precinct? Did something happen? " Mark asked in a worried tone.

"No, I just need to meet up with someone. " Adam replied with a forced smile.

"Alright, put your seatbelt on. " Mark said before driving towards the street.

'I hope they're okay... ' Adam thought while looking out of the window with a worried expression.