A New Hope

"Y-you a-are ki-kidding, right?" Xio stutters while looking at Max with an hopeful expression that says "Please tell me you are joking".

"I wouldn't joke about something serious like that, especially with someone like you who I consider a friend. So I told you this, in order to keep you away from the crossfire of those bigwigs." Max replies to her in a calm and comforting voice.

At this Xio just sits down and starts thinking about her life and her father who she admired since she was little.

Xio Derecha, formerly known as Xio Dere, was originally the eldest lady of the Dere family. Her ancestor served as an earl palatine before, and her father, Mason Dere, was the leader of the Household Guards Division and the captain of the royal guards, with Viscount Stratford as his deputy. However, seven years ago, her father was accused of participating in a revolt and executed. Her family was deprived of their aristocratic title and fiefdom. Xio had to change her surname to hide, and left East Tucker with her mother and brother to live in East Chester.

Xio came to Backlund alone, looking for chances to improve herself and hoping to restore her family's glory and her father's reputation.

Xio has since then worked as a bounty hunter. She had helped many middle-lower class people to coordinate and mediate disputes over a long period of time. She is also quite famous in East Backlund borough among the working class and mafia. She had a lot of hidden channels.

Likely because of her family background, Xio was born as a half-Arbiter, therefore limiting her choices in Beyonder pathways to the Justiciar pathway. Hence she consumed the Arbiter potion to become a Beyonder after coming to Backlund.

All of this was for her to restore her family honor and now she hears that it's basically impossible to do it, because the royal family itself might be involved in the unfair execution of her father.

At this point, she could only think of one thing that she could do and that would be revenge. Though she doubts that she could accomplish that either given the difference in power.

While Xio is thinking all this, there has been silence at the table for minutes. Fors is just comforting Xio by patting her shoulder.

Eva is just looking at her brother in confusion as to what he is thinking by dropping a bomb like that on Xio. 'Doesn't my brother like Xio? What is telling her a truth like that going to accomplish? Or is he just putting all the cards on the table? What is he in such a hurry for?'

Max on the other hand was thinking about many different things in parallel.

'Do I really have to speed up my power ups even more to not suffer from unexpected bullshit like today?'

'Should I really go ahead with this shit?'

'It's going to be busy morning tomorrow, meeting with Klein and all.'

'I should meet with Amanises too, to get those Attendant of Mysteries characteristics and Fool Uniqueness that she practically has.'

'Yeah that idea would be more appropriate in that situation.'

There were some other thoughts too but that's enough for the word count.

Xio calms down after a while and says, "I agree with you Max that I shouldn't interfere with those matters because they are out of my league. But even though I now know that there's almost no possibility of restoring my family's and my father's honor. I still want to take revenge against them. And I would do anything to accomplish that. I hope that you would help me."

"Anything? Really? Is revenge against those who committed injustice against your father what you truly desire?" Max asks with a "surprised" face.

"Yes. But in case something happens to m-" Max stops Xio from speaking any further by hugging her.

"Stop. It's alright, I will help you get justice with your own hands you don't have to worry." Max says to Xio while patting back of Xio's head while Xio's eyes start leaking tears. She then hugs him back too while crying her eyes out.

Eva is just looking at this with inner amusement, 'Did that shit actually work? Though I can partially understand it, it's Max after all.'

Fors just looks relieved for her friend but also feels something mysterious seeing Max her supposed dating partner to be, hugging her friend Xio like that. She feels that she could write scenes like these in her novels for drama.

Max and Xio hug like that for a minute and then separate. Xio has a red face now, but it's not clear if it's from crying or blushing. "Are you alright?" Max asks her.

Xio just nods in response and then looks straight into his glasses-covered beautiful grey eyes and asks, "How do you plan to help me take revenge against royal family who might be supported by these archangels? I don't suppose you are an angel right? Do you have a Grade 0 Sealed Artifact or something that you would use against them?"

"Hmm to take revenge is actually really simple. I would help you raise your Sequence with my powers as fast as possible while increasing my own of course.

"And no I am not currently an angel, just a Sequence 4 Saint but it won't be much longer till I reach the level of archangel because I recently got something. Also I will also have an archangel subordinate soon too.

"And lastly yes, as a matter of fact I do actually have a Grade 0 Sealed Artifact designated as 0-08 and known as Quill of Alzuhod. But I won't give it to you because it would bring attention of an existence that must not be named on to you."

Max answers all of Xio's questions in a concise manner, leaving her and Fors dumbfounded and wondering where all of his confidence was coming from.

Eva on the other hand was dumbfounded by another thing and blurted out, "You mean to say that Voldemort exists here in this world?"

Max was about to erase Xio and Fors memories of the last outburst from Eva but he was dumbfounded by their reaction to it.

"Oh yeah Voldemort from Roselle's novel is similar, now that I think about it." Fors says thoughtfully.

"Is he gonna know about you guys since you said his name?!" Xio panics.

Max on the other hand had a helpless smile on his face and said inwardly.

'You really didn't leave any room for future transmigrators Roselle. I mean seriously, you didn't even leave Harry Potter alone.'

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That was the chapter. Hope you liked it.