Judy let her thoughts run wild with unfounded speculations. The sheer fact that Avi was being accompanied by a Heaven-level bodyguard was enough to blow her understanding of the seemingly harmless Resident out of the water.
'Yes, it all makes perfect sense now. He is definitely hiding his powers. Otherwise, there is no way that he could have cleared this time's Shika Exam with a D-rank assessment'
'... Plus, he knows too much. Even during the meeting with the Boss'
Her thoughts trailed to a different tangent.
Judy wanted to believe that Vikram was either a Union puppet or a Zodiac stooge, but her investigation had given the opposite result.
'He has no connections in other Zones and he has been living in the slums for the past 7 years. Would a powerful person live in the slum for 7 years?'
Judy shook her head in discomfort. All the thinking was making her head hurt.
'... Is it, someone, from Zone Y then?'
'... But who in this backwater has enough power to suppress me? That too, without revealing their presence?'
**
During the Shika Exam, a total of five candidates had chosen to solo the second test. To test their true worth, the Association had given a special item request called "BazingaBC" to those candidates.
Coincidentally these candidates had also earned a C-rank assessment by VANI, except for Vikram.
Association's purpose was to identify young Shikas who could survive the Dandi forest under BazingaBC's influence - an ominous item that could bring ill fortune to whoever was affected by its smell.
However, even the head supervisor (Mandy) wasn't informed of the actual mission and the examiners were only tasked with giving Association's list to the candidates. The effects of BazingaBC were also a closely guarded secret of the upper echelons of the Association that even the Royalties of various Zones weren't aware of.
'He played us like a fool'
'... No wonder he made such a big scene during the Exam'
Judy had observed everything that happened at the Dandi Forest camp through satellite imaging.
'... He knew that the association couldn't afford to offend the whole Zone Y because we are so close to Root Domain's opening'
However, contrary to her conspiracy theories, Vikram's nefarious designs weren't as elaborate as she thought.
In fact, Vikram believed that it was Mandy who was sabotaging his result due to her masochist tendencies, instead of the Association.
Vikram made a big fuss during the result declaration by bringing in a monster to the camp and throwing shit at one of the examiner's face because he required evidence and witnesses, otherwise how could he blackmail Mandy's family?
The cumulative effect of Vikram's discussion with her boss, his spectacle of shooting Potty Rabbit's turd, and the presence of Jane the Ghost made Judy believe that Vikram or whoever was supporting him was the mastermind of everything that had gone wrong with the Association in the recent past.
'Could it be that he was also responsible for Zone D?'
*gasp*
Judy was slowly losing breath due to overthinking.
*****
{ on the other side }
~Can you see me?~
Jane asked while shaking her head, unable to believe that she was falling for the same trap even after two years of becoming a ghost.
*nod*
Vikram simply moved his neck in approval instead of saying anything. He didn't want to alarm Judy as he had already known that she couldn't see the Ghost.
As for why Jane was a Ghost and not something else, Vikram had an idea because of his new Mutation [ Paranormal Species (D) ].
'If she is a ghost and only I can see her', a sadistic grin appeared on Vikram's face, '... let's not be too complacent though'
"Ms Judy, would you give me a minute. I just remembered something urgent that needs my attention"
Judy nodded and Vikram excused himself towards the second floor.
*****
{ Training room }
"She should not be able to hear us here!"
"... so, who are you and what are you doing in my house?"
Vikram closed the gate and turned to talk to Jane who ignored the gate and entered through the wall. He felt uncomfortable knowing how easy it was for Ghosts to spy on him, not aware at all of the absurdity that ghosts were apparently real.
Vikram was careful not to provoke Jane as he talked, his senses crafted in countless wars told him that he was not a match for her. Even Judy was like a sitting duck just a moment ago.
"You can really see me right? This is not a dream?"
Jane, however, had expressions far from that of a vengeful ghost. She was surprised, instead, and their roles reversed.
"Can ghosts even dream?"
He replied in his classic nonchalance.
"Of course! I get tired too, what's with the weird question?"
Vikram felt that the ghost was slightly dumb and that was in his favour.
"So who are you and what are you doing in my house?"
"My name is Jane and this is "MY" house. Don't get too comfortable just because I haven't thrown you out of my house yet-!!!"
.
.
.
**
{ After a while }
"Okay! I get that you were the original owner of this house and how you came to possess it, but didn't you say you were only a first stage Spirit-level Shika before your death?"
"Hun-hmmm"
"Then how can you suppress Judy out there? Her powers are nothing to scoff at!"
"That is because of my mutation, [ Atomic Authority ]"
"... It allows me to mark a limited space as my territory and I gain complete control over matter and space. This home is my territory and that is why I'm the most powerful here", Jane puffed up her ghostly chest in pride when she saw Vikram's dumbstruck expression.
Vikram was baffled, '... Why can't I have powers like this-? What is this stupid [Adaptation] ability even useful for?', he facepalmed.
"... Although, since I'm dead, I can't mark new territories anymore. Plus my spirit is bound to the house. I can't even go to the next house", she said while trying to hide her face in embarrassment. It had been a long while since she have had anyone to talk to and she didn't mind oversharing a little bit.
"Still with that power, I can't understand how those people even caught you in the first place?"
Jane had retold her last moments before her death which were one of the only memories she had retained after her death. The temperature in the room suddenly dropped when Vikram reminded her of her past, but she calmed down right after.
"That is because I was born with a weak constitution and despite having a powerful mutation, I couldn't use my powers when I was alive"
Jane paused for a moment and then said,
"... In fact, I believe that your sister is also like me. She probably suffers the same faith as I."
*****
{ 10 Minutes Later }
"Sorry to keep you waiting, Ms. Judy"
"It's fine. I assume your 'urgent' task went fine.", she replied scanning the pitiful young boy with a missing arm on his left.
She didn't dare to belittle the man in front of her anymore. Even though he looked helpless, Vikram was the most powerful person in the room right now.
He had both power and brains. Had there been any other 17-year-old as dangerous as him and hiding in the plain sight? Probably not.
When Vikram saw Judy from the stairs, she was quietly enjoying the sun in the mini garden right adjacent to the living room. She didn't look like she was worried.
When Vikram came close, however, he could swear that he saw a kind of lingering fear in her eyes, hidden carefully behind the stout and carefree posture that she always carried.
If not for his deeply analytical and perceptive mind, even he would have missed the slight change with which Judy now looked at him.
'Is she alright-? She seems more shaken up by Jane than I thought-!!.'
Vikram was no sadist, he required his subjects to be of clear mind and follow his will as per his schemes. Those were his favourite kinds of people.
However, it wasn't solely Jane's doing that she looked at Vikram with slight uncertainty. It was also his knowledge, his demeanour, and his confidence that gave Judy a feeling of being in a disadvantageous position.
She had come to a conclusion that if Vikram was being protected by someone as strong as her boss, she couldn't mess around with the boy and had to take his proposal seriously. She had even messaged her boss and gotten his approval to lead this deal as she desired.
And what she desired right now, was Vikram, in flesh.
'Association can't afford an enemy like that, not when we are so close to the finish line. We must get our hands on the Root Domain's resources'
'... and if he is not with the Zodiacs and the Union, he might actually become a dark horse in the race for the new domain'
Unbeknownst to Vikram, he had become a priority candidate for the Root exploration to be carried out in a month's time without him having to use Jane's overwhelming power, although it was currently useless where they were standing - mini garden.