28 - Deal

Upon arriving at Kohaku's mansion, Albert and Mase quickly exited the car, carefully carrying Lele in their arms. Christina, who had been chanting incantations non-stop, struggled to stand on her own, so Roland kindly offered his assistance. The private doctors of the mansion, who had been anticipating their arrival, promptly took over and rushed Lele to the emergency room for treatment.

Nervous pacing filled the waiting room as Albert and his friends exchanged worried glances, their hearts heavy with concern for Lele's life. Every second felt like an eternity until, finally, the doors to the emergency room opened and the doctors emerged.

"Is he okay?" Alber asked, his voice confident and resolute.

The doctor looked at him gravely. "He's alive, but his injuries were severe. It's a miracle he made it this far."

Albert breathed a sigh of relief, but he knew that Lele's recovery was far from over. The doctors had done everything they could for him, but it was now up to Lele's own strength and will to survive.

Days passed quickly as Lele's friends and family anxiously waited for any news about his condition. Lele's parents visited Kohaku's house every day to check on their son, while Albert and his friends stayed in the mansion's guest rooms. Then, one early morning, the long-awaited news finally arrived. The doctor rushed into the waiting room and exclaimed, "He's awake!"

The group of friends aside from Finn, who had been in a feverish state since the day he contributed to save Lele's life, almost threw themselves inside the emergency room. However they were shocked at the sight in front of their eyes. Lele wasn't simply awake, he appeared as if he was never injured in the first place, he was standing up with his usual sun-like smile and no trace of the previous battle could be seen. Albert gave Lele an unexpected hug. After that brief moment he immediately scolded him "What went through that empty head of yours! You could have died!"

"HEHEHE."

"Something is still unclear. How did you fully recover? I thought that at least some scar would be permanent." Mase asked

"I think it happened during my sleep. When I woke up I received a system notification [Having sustained countless injuries you have been guaranteed Regeneration LV 1]"

"Ah yes, of course you would get a random broken skill, why not?!" Mase complained

Kohaku couldn't help but feel inferior as she gazed at Lele, her mind consumed by one thought: 'How is it possible for him to have experienced such an extraordinary surge in power? His yellow aura has doubled both in size and density. If I were to engage in a genuine fight with him like last time, I would have had to wield my weapons and be prepared to lose parts of my body just to survive. However, now I can hardly imagine the extent of his strength. I wouldn't stand a chance. What is even more scary is that a monster like him took such a beating while facing the dragon. What will the future threat be?'

A few moments later, Lele's family arrived at the doorstep and had a heartwarming reunion with their son. They cried and embraced each other, overwhelmed by their emotions. However, a few hours later, an unwelcome guest arrived: Roland, who was escorted by several people in suits. His eyes conveyed his reluctance, as it was clear that he was not happy with what he had to do.

"I'm here to arrest Samuel Borge," he declared with a heavy sigh, his eyes betraying his reluctance to carry out his duty.

The room temperature dropped to a chilling degree as everyone displayed visible anger. Lele's mother was the first to speak out, "First you ask my son to fight for the country, and he almost ends up dead. Now, you show up again to arrest him? Are you all out of your mind? My son is a hero!"

"Despite his heroic actions, Samuel Borge broke the law by evading the census. Your friends are fortunate as there is no evidence of their status as awakeners and thus they cannot be prosecuted. However, I have no choice but to arrest Samuel, as the video of his fight has gone viral not just in our country, but around the world," explained Roland with a grim expression.

After his last fight, Lele understood his position in the hierarchy, and with newfound confidence, he stated, "If I refuse to comply, how exactly do you plan to take me down? I'm pretty sure you can't even touch me."

After watching the video of Lele's fight, Trevisani realized that Lele's bold statement was indeed true. "You're right," he admitted, "even if we deployed every awakener in the bureau, we wouldn't be able to defeat you. But if you refuse to comply, you'll become a rogue awakener with a huge bounty on your head, constantly on the run and unable to be with your loved ones. Is that the life you want?"

As Lele remained silent, Trevisani continued to present his proposal.

"That is why I came up with a deal to make both you and the government happy. This was the best I could come up with."

Albert noticed the bags under Roland's eyes and realized that he must have worked tirelessly to find a compromise with the higher ups. 'At least he is trying to make amends for the ordeal Lele had to face,' he thought.

He then presented the proposal: "You will become a government affiliate and assume the Hero title, serving as a symbol for our country and required to assist in situations where regular resources are insufficient. In exchange, we will not charge you with any crime and will forge your awakened ID to match the date of mana's appearance in our world. This way, when we publicly announce your affiliation with the government, it will appear as if we had kept your existence a secret for strategic purposes. Furthermore, we will not interfere with the affairs of your friends under any circumstances. What do you think?"

"Protect my family and all my private information as an awakener, and I'm in. I don't want anyone to go after my family for revenge or because of my fame. And of course, I don't want to reveal my abilities."

"Protecting your family is not an issue, and as for the rest, it's a given that we would keep your class and abilities a secret. After all, you will become the trump card of our nation."

"Then I agree with your terms."

Albert knew that this was ultimately Lele's decision, but he couldn't help but interject, "Just to clarify, he will have personal freedom outside of his working hours, correct?"

Roland nodded, "Yes, that's correct. If he didn't have personal freedom, this agreement would be pointless. The only caveat is that if we require his assistance outside of working hours, he will be obligated to comply."

With that settled, one of the men in black extracted a large stack of papers from his briefcase. The documents contained various clauses and obligations related to the agreement. They spent almost two days revising the contract multiple times, and Albert's sharp wit proved invaluable in resolving various issues.