Ed glared at the shadow while rapidly thinking, 'Military tech is out. Anything of substantial value I have is from Sinless and Nexus will already know about it. I might be able to sell the secret about Yuki's or Dupe's powers... but I won't. Dupe is one of my most valuable cards and Yuki's powers are far more valuable if I'm the only one who's able to utilize them. That just leaves my research into human and esper bodies. I refuse to believe Nexus has the information from my research, though they likely have similar research from other espers. It's worth trading it away. The information isn't actually that valuable and I'm sure most of it has been done before.'
He purposefully made a hesitant expression, as if he was unwilling to make the trade. "Would you be interested in my research findings involving research of human and esper bodies? It includes information on causing 2nd awakenings, injecting mana into ordinary humans, and other miscellaneous research such as brain transplants."
"Oh?" The shadow swirled around him several times before speaking. "Many espers do similar research. We already know plenty about such things. Show it to me and I'll decide if it's worth anything."
'Tsk. Like I'd fall for that.' He shook his head while trying to look insulted. "No! It's my life's work! How could I just hand it over for free?!'
"Kekeke." The shadow laughed. "So stingy. You have sparked my curiosity. While it's true many espers do similar research, most are unsuccessful. It's also a niche hobby and not many are willing to sell such research. Tell me. What do you want in exchange?"
Ed thought back to a book he had read a few months ago. He had picked up reading as a hobby whenever he had free time. In the past, he only read engineering books. Now, he would delve into business books, history books, and any others he deemed helpful to his long-term goals. 'When negotiating, throw out a ridiculous offer. It'll no doubt be turned down, but it gives an advantage in negotiations.'
"My research is quite valuable with excellent results. I want information on all espers in Florida. I also want a method for dissolving mana-powder, a cultivation technique I can pass to other espers, knowledge on how Sinless exo suits are made, and a method for ordinary people to activate mana-powder safely."
"KEKEKE. GREEDY! SO VERY GREEDY!" The shadows eyes turned triangular in shape to show its dissatisfaction with such demands. "I cannot agree to such an outrageous deal. Do you think I'm stupid?"
"Of course not." He replied. "I'm open for negotiations. Why not make me an offer?"
"I'll give you the method for dissolving mana-powder. Nothing more. Nothing less."
"That's hardly an offer." Ed frowned. "I'll likely discover the method myself before too long. Even if I can't, I'm sure I can find another esper that knows the method."
"Fine." The shadow wrapped around his body once again. "I'll include the information on all Florida espers. That is my final offer."
"Throw in the cultivation technique or Sinless tech and we've got a deal."
"Absolutely not!" The shadow hissed. "Cultivation techniques are far too valuable. The sects guard over them as if they were their own parents. Even I have only managed to acquire a couple weaker techniques. Sinless tech is easier to get ahold of, but America lacks such things. The value of it being sold to an American is very high. I definitely won't include it in the deal."
"Fine." Ed nodded. "Just the method for ordinary people to activate mana and we've got a deal."
"The deal is made!" The shadow agreed. "When you wake up, a small portal will appear. The information you want will be in the portal. Place your own research into it and the deal will be complete. Normally, I'd make you sign a contract not to disclose the purchased information, but there is no need in this case. You haven't purchased anything particularly confidential."
"A nondisclosure contract?" He scoffed. "Why would you rely on such an outdated concept? An esper could always just break it."
"You don't know." The shadow let go of him while shaking its head back and forth. "Still young. You, little hatchling, are still at the tip of the iceberg. There are methods you have yet to see. Secrets beyond your understanding. It is time. The portal will be waiting for you when you awake."
The shadow disappeared in a puff of smoke. Dark cracks appeared on the white space and it shattered. The pieces of white space floated off into the void, quickly disappearing. Ed glanced around the unfamiliar black void. 'Is this a dream still? Or maybe my subconsciousness?'
Suddenly, he spotted a brilliant glow. He saw his 7-colored mana-core come into view. All 7 elements existed in perfect balance. A golden thread of energy danced around the core for a bit before floating away. Then, he awoke.
"Ugh." He groggily rubbed his eyes. 'What was that space?'
He looked around the room and spotted a small white portal, square in shape. A large book and two small books were visible within it. He grabbed the three books. 'Florida Esper Combat Rankings, Mana-Powder Dissolution Methods, and How Ordinary Humans Activate Mana Powder.' He smiled in satisfaction towards the books. 'The only method I know for ordinary humans using mana now is through mana-ammunition, which is extremely crude. The strong impact basically forces the mana-powder to activate. It's hardly suitable for the things I want to make.'
Ed left the room and went to his underground lab. He sat down and began to create copies of all his research notes. It only took him about an hour to do so. As his mana increased, he could vaguely feel his mind improving. His memory had improved drastically, as had his processing speed. This, combined with the fact that he could just melt ink onto the paper, led to it being fairly quick to create copies of notes.
He returned to his room and the square white box still remained. He put the copies inside and the box instantly disappeared. 'Good. Now let's take a look at the information.'. He headed for his office and sat down with the three books.
'First up is obviously information on the governor.' He opened the largest of the three books and began reading.
Name: Charles Bustion
Alias: Governor Bustion
Affiliation: US Federal Government. Florida Government. Hunter Association.
Power: Basic control over fire.
Traits: Gluttonous, Greedy, Kind, Lustful, Prideful, Slothful, Wrathful.
Combat Style: Prefers to keep his distance while covering enemies in flames.
Offense: S (7)
Defense: A (6)
Agility: A (6)
Versatility: D (3)
Overall Grade: B (5.5)
Ed's eyes widened in surprise. 'So weak?! He's barely above Ms. Willow in the overall grade. Does this include the power of the golden energy? It should. Otherwise, I don't see how OP Baldy could be ranked so high... And what's with those traits? This guy is a walking pile of trash. Kind? Does he treat his subordinates well or something?'
He placed the book down in dissatisfaction. 'His power is seriously just basic control of fire...? I doubt he's even had a 2nd awakening yet.' The results were not as he expected, but that didn't mean his life had become any easier. Not even OP Baldy had managed to kill the governor, only injuring him at best.
He grabbed the next book, Mana-Powder Dissolution Methods. There were numerous methods described within it. However, most of them required highly specialized equipment or powers. Ed's frown continued deepening until he almost reached the end of the book. 'Finally! One I can use! The guy that came up with this is a genius. I can't believe I didn't think of it.'
Most espers would try dissolving mana-powder in water first, just like you'd do for almost anything else. However, that wouldn't work. Mana-powder is not like other materials. Ed had tried it once as well with no success, though he had expected that. After all, how can somebody dissolve fire mana-powder within water? The entire idea made little sense. Not that the other elements worked with water either.
The method the esper in the book discovered was quite similar to what Ed had tested recently in Georgia. He read it once again, 'To dissolve mana-powder, what is needed is compatible human or animal blood. If mana-powder is mixed with incompatible blood, then the solution will be destroyed. However, when mixing with compatible blood, the mana-powder will successfully dissolve. Applying this method to a living human or animal will simply kill or maim them. However, their blood can be drained periodically, and then used for dissolving the mana-powder. This has opened a wide range of new experiments that were previously impossible...'
Ed finished reading the notes on the blood dissolution method. "Good." He said aloud while smiling. "That just leaves How Ordinary Humans Activate Mana Powder." He opened the book and began reading. Similar to the last book, there were many different methods. Fortunately, most were useable this time, though many of the methods were crude applications like mana-ammunition.
'Oh, this method might work for what I want.' He nodded while reading. 'So, manullium has uses beyond simple mana-collars. Mana-powder has an adverse reaction when coming into contact with manullium directly. So, a trigger or similar mechanism can be used to activate and deactivate mana-powder. I really need to find a way to get my hands on manullium. Maybe World Walker will have some ideas.'
He grabbed the three books and left his office. The three books were locked within his underground lab for safekeeping.
'Time to head out.' He changed into a more formal uniform and clipped his Harmony mask to his belt. Then he got on a train heading for Miami. It'd be quicker to fly, but it'd likely be considered rude to fly into the city he was requesting help from. 'I wonder if any of the mayors have golden faith energy? The governor is well-known throughout the state. So, it isn't that surprising he has a wealth of golden faith energy regardless of whether he's actually popular or not. I had to appear in newspapers throughout Georgia for my single thread of energy. I'm guessing some of the popular mayors in bigger cities have the energy, though on a much smaller scale. I'll need to be careful.'
He soon arrived at the large city of Miami. The train traveled through a tunnel past the giant city walls. It wasn't nearly as grand as Steam Work City, but it had its own charms. Cities in Florida were almost always covered in sunshine. Ads with pretty women in swimsuits decorated many buildings. Tourism wasn't what it used to be, but it was still a significant business for most of the state. There were all sorts of gift shops, restaurants, and hotels catering to visiting guests.
Ed ignored all these sights and headed for the center of the city where the mayor's office was located. He had to take a steam bus due to the distance. He arrived at a white building with multiple steps leading up. This building doubled as the city hall and mayor's office. He walked up the steps and entered the building. Many people traveled to their respective destinations within the building.
He spotted a receptionist desk and walked over. "Hello. I'd like to meet with the mayor." He waved at her.
"Name?" She replied in a high-pitched monotone voice without looking up from her nails, which she was currently filing.
"Forge." He answered.
"Do you have an appointment?" She questioned.
"No, I don't." He frowned. 'Does she not recognize the name?'
"I apologize, but the mayor is booked full for the next two months. Please leave your name and reason for the appointment and we'll get back to you as soon as possible." She pushed a clipboard and pen on the desk forward without even glancing at him.
"I don't think you quite understand." Ed tried smiling politely, though it caused his lip to twitch in agitation. "I'm sure the mayor wouldn't want-"
"No appointment! No meeting!" She interrupted him while speaking loudly. Several nearby people turned to look at the scene.
"Look lady, I'm giving you one last chance!" Ed began to raise his voice.
"Security!" She yelled. Two large men holding steam rifles walked over. "Listen buddy. Don't cause any trouble." One tried to grab him by the shoulder.
"Fuck it." He sighed. He melted the steam rifles as soon as the guards got close. The steel turned into thin chains that bound the two guards.
Bang! He slammed a fist against the desk. "DO YOUR GODDAMN JOB AND GET THE FUCKING MAYOR!" He screamed at her as flames appeared in his hands.
"AGH!" She screamed in fear while falling out of her desk as she tried to back up. "You... Who are you?!"
"I just fucking told you I'm Forge! Now get going!"
"Yes!" She replied while stumbling away towards the mayor's office. A high-heel shoe was left behind on the ground as she ran.
One of the bound guards muttered aloud, "Forge? From Georgia?"
"That's right." Ed smiled towards the two. "It's so hard to find good help these days. I can sympathize with the mayor."
A few minutes later. A chubby man jogged over to them. "Ah, you're Forge?" He wiped his sweat and asked while glancing at the mask on Ed's hip.
"Right." Ed nodded. "I'm here for a discussion. Shall we head to your office?"
"Of course!" The mayor hurriedly agreed while leading him away. He gave an evil eye towards the secretary as he left. His voice trembled as he spoke, "I'm sorry about that, haha. I'll make sure such things don't hurt our relationship again in the future."
"Sure." He replied while smiling. 'Something's not right. They shouldn't be this afraid of me? Most of the bad things I've done are unknown to others. That leaves three possibilities. One, Nexus sold information on me to the mayor. Two, Nexus sold information on me to the governor, who then passed it onto the mayor. Three, the guy is a major coward. The last option isn't impossible based on the information on the mayor in the Florida Esper Combat Rankings book.
The two sat down in the office.
"Haha." The mayor laughed cheerfully. "Allow me to properly introduce myself. I'm Mayor Rodriguez, though you probably already knew that."
"Mm." Ed nodded. "It's nice to finally meet you. I'm Forge. I suppose you can sort of consider me as the mayor of Reef City, though it's unofficial."
"Indeed." The mayor agreed. "If an election was held then I'm sure you would win. I doubt that anyone in the city wouldn't vote for you right now, haha."
"True. Well then, let's get down to business. As I'm sure you're aware Mayor, Reef City is in desperate need of food supplies. I wish to sign a food contract with Miami. There is an abundance of food throughout the rest of Florida. This is a good opportunity that I'm giving you. You have the chance to capitalize on it first before I ask other cities."
"I've heard of your situation." The mayor sighed. "Such tough times in the world these days. Unfortunately, Miami is currently suffering its own food shortage and I won't be able to help. A pity. I hope this doesn't hurt the friendly relationship between us."
Ed's eyes narrowed in dissatisfaction. "Are you sure that's the game you want to play, Mayor Rodriguez?"
"Game?" The mayor's eyes narrowed as well. "Haha! I have no idea what you're talking about."