As if an invisible hand had grasped his heart, Russell's pupils tightened slightly.
In his green eyes, the slender vertical pupils of a cat emerged.
Whether it was the fact that the other party knew his mother's name... or the identity he had disclosed, both made Russell feel a subconscious tension.
It sounded like it was just a "general manager."
But with the prefix of the Seven Giants added to this title, the meaning was entirely different.
In this era, of the eight remaining Floating Islands, each of the Seven Giants controlled one. For example, Happiness Island, where Russell was about to arrive, was the location of Tianen Group's "headquarters."
While nominally, this world had no countries, armies, or laws... in reality, the "headquarters" on each island essentially acted as the emperor of their respective islands.
The Tianen Group, Hudson Ocean Mining Company, Ampoule Biomedical Technology Company, Peach Blossom Trading Company, Chongguang Co., Ltd., Thoth Spiritual Energy, and Mental Heavy Industry — among them, the Floating Island controlled by Tianen Group was Happiness Island.
On each island, there were "branches" of the other six companies.
In some sense, these branches were basically embassies, and they had even more power than embassies.
Because these branches could also support smaller companies on other Sky Islands and participate in the rule as well. It's just that their influence was much weaker.
These branches did not have a "24-member board of directors" but were directly under one of the directors from the headquarters. This director also served as the "general manager" of the branch.
Half of these directors were Elves with lifespans so long they seemed endless.
Their positions had never shifted.
Only twelve spots on the board were replaceable, competed for by "Short-lived Species." Mortal directors, who could only live for a few decades and who might have already used up three-quarters of their lifespan by the time they rose to the position of director, couldn't compete with those long-lived Elves. The power they held was naturally far less than that of the remaining Elf directors.
— In other words.
This Old Elf named "Amirus" was one of the world's most powerful eighty-four people.
When Russell realized that the person he had saved was such a Big Shot, he didn't feel elated but rather a sinking feeling in his heart.
He became aware that he had gotten involved in something complicated and troublesome.
But he had no intention of getting mixed up in it.
So, in the blink of an eye, Russell revealed a perfectly astonished expression, "Such a Big Shot like you... would travel alone on an airship without bodyguards?"
"Bodyguards? Having them or not doesn't really make much of a difference. Anyone bold enough to attack me would naturally do their homework in advance."
The bare-chested Old Elf spoke in a calm and gentle voice, "Look, take the current situation for example... Whether I have them or not, what difference would it make? There would just be a few more people dead because of me."
"I was able to save you merely by chance..."
Russell spoke softly, "At most, I could only say it was a 'narrow victory.'
Claiming Bad Day's achievement as his own was somewhat shameful for the current Russell.
But that's all he could say.
Because he wanted to steer the conversation away from "Alice."
If it had been an hour earlier, Russell would have had a clear conscience, nothing to fear — it would have been simply following his mother's last wishes to seek the protection of his uncle after her death.
But now, things were different.
After being told by Bad Day that there was something fishy about his mother's death, that she had been a member of the wanted criminal organization "Babel," knowing so much that "Russell shouldn't know," he no longer felt confident about not revealing things he shouldn't in front of someone who had lived for more than a thousand years.
"It's thanks to it, right?"
Amirus's gaze fell on Russell's Spiritual Energy Weapon, with an interested smile, "Thanks to you... for bringing it onto the airship.
"Looking at it reminds me of your mother."
— The old man clearly hadn't been fooled.
No...
Or rather, it might have been a deliberate flaw left by Bad Day to attract attention.
Exposing a small mistake to hide a bigger one — Russell immediately grasped Bad Day's intention.
After a slight pause, Russell composed his thoughts and promptly showed a slightly embarrassed expression, "Yes, Your Excellency. I used some methods to bring it aboard. But thanks to that... I've just graduated and haven't mastered Spiritual Energy. Without the Spiritual Energy Weapon, I wouldn't have been able to fend off those vicious thugs."
He tried to divert the topic towards "illegally carrying dangerous items."
Amirus just smiled and didn't pursue the matter any further.
He simply showed a nostalgic expression, "This Spiritual Energy Weapon, I had given it to Alice back then. It was she who saved my life... and I presented this prototype as a gift to her.
"And now, she has left 'Sage Beheading' to you. You happened to use it to save me once."
Amirus looked at Russell, showing a gentle and kind smile, "Without a doubt, this is a cycle of cause and effect."
Russell's heart stirred.
Wait a moment.
If mom had indeed saved Amirus back then...
That must have been twenty or thirty years ago. Considering that during the Bad Day in his youth, mom had given "Sage Beheading" to Bad Day, she must have obtained it even earlier.
At that time, mom might have only been in her teens.
How could a teenager save an Old Elf?
Russell did not fully trust what Amirus said.
But he at least agreed with one thing—if someone truly had the motive to assassinate an Elf and had the means to bypass all those deeply ingrained societal defenses, merely having bodyguards incapable of stopping bullets, let alone intercepting spiritual energy users, was meaningless. Of course, there were still those who liked to have bodyguards... but that was more for show or prestige.
And those who couldn't get past the bodyguards, like small-time thugs, would get caught in the planning stage or even while still forming the motive.
The artificial intelligence on Chongguang Island was designed for this. It scrutinized all information on the network, analyzing everyone's behavior, conversations, expressions, and experiences to assess their psychology and motivations and issue real-time evaluations.
Eventually, before the person had the chance to commit a crime, mechanical police would be dispatched for surveillance. And once sufficient evidence was gathered, they would be arrested and controlled directly.
Although Russell was not very familiar with Happiness Island, he presumed that the Tianen Group must have similar measures in place.
And if Elves have been able to live for so long, maintaining their reign, could they really have no means of resistance? Russell was more inclined to believe that the Elves' methods of dealing with violence were kept completely secret... like Chips, for instance?
How could a crisis threatening a Director like Amirus, who could bypass such defenses, be resolved by his mother, a healer without any direct combat ability?
Watching Russell remain silent and not saying a word, the Old Elf sighed softly, supporting himself against the wall corner as he slowly stood up from the ground.
Amirus remarked in a low voice, "Indeed. You don't just resemble your mother in appearance, but in personality as well."
"Rest assured, I'll take care of the matter of you boarding the airship with your Spiritual Energy Weapon. Not only that, but the legitimate self-defense actions you took against those thugs..."
Amirus paused for a moment, then rephrased, "No, rather — the fact that you stepped forward without hesitation, acted bravely upon seeing the injustice, rescued over a hundred innocent civilians from armed thugs, and I too was saved by you."
"...Is that alright?"
"It's the truth. If such merit were not publicized, Tianen Group would surely find someone else to claim the credit."
Upon saying this, Amirus patted Russell's shoulder, adopting a firmer tone, "This small matter can only count as a fraction of the favor for 'having saved me.' Don't decline it."
Russell nodded helplessly.
He hadn't really done anything; it was Bad Day who had saved all these people.
This deep-seated guilt made him reluctant to accept such credit—but if Bad Day's merit was going to be claimed by someone Russell didn't even know, Russell would rather take it himself and thank Bad Day afterwards.
Whether by coincidence or intention, after accepting Amirus's kindness, Russell felt his relationship with the old man had drawn a bit closer.
"Where is your jacket?"
Russell casually asked, "I'll fetch it for you. If it has been damaged, you might consider wearing my coat for now."
This was not an attempt to curry favor, but a subconscious act of courtesy.
The captain had been untied and was free again, so the airship would soon be landing.
Russell couldn't bear to see an Old Elf who had just been kidnapped, still with marks on his skin, standing shirtless in shorts before the passengers on the ship and even in front of the media's barrage of cameras.
The custom of respecting the elderly and caring for the young from another time and space had sunk into his heart as Russell recalled his memory. It was this subconscious response after accepting kindness.
— Not wanting to gain too much from others, hence seeking ways to give something back.
"It's still in my room, the one closest to here," the Old Elf replied with a smile, speaking cheerfully, "They were concerned that I might have hidden something in my clothes. So they simply stripped me before tying me up. I have to admit, they were smart... otherwise this kind of thing wouldn't hold me."
Russell understood, "Then I shall fetch it for you..."
But he had taken only a few steps when he suddenly realized something.
The boy with cat ears turned back in surprise to look at the aged Elf.
If he had fallen asleep after being infected by that virus, how could he know where his clothes were?
If so... does it mean that the old man hadn't fallen under the control of the virus from the start?
Was this to avoid confrontation with the enemy?
Watching Russell turn back, Amirus nodded slightly at him.
— Although without any evidence, Russell suddenly felt that Amirus was acknowledging his internal guess.
Russell was suddenly filled with self-doubt.
Had he and Bad Day's duo performance really deceived him?