Stella should feel fear. After all, this was a thinly veiled threat. But she didn't feel fear, for some reason she didn't know. It was as if Elliot's whole body had a magnetic power. She was not interested in Elliot as a partner, but rather for something different...a partner in business perhaps? Stella would never say this out loud, but she was already tired of taking care of this business.
Her father was a veteran of the Brezik army, and with the money he earned, he opened this store. For 40 years he ran this business, and all his employees were always ex-military.
His father also adopted several children and married several women. Now that her father had died, all these people were Stella's responsibility, and she was going crazy about it. Stella in her adolescence suffered from a lack of money, after all, her father never had any money to spare. Because of this, Stella always committed small crimes in order to have money to buy clothes, to go out with friends, and even to eat.
Knowing that so many people depended on her, Stella felt her shoulders heavy and her body tired. But this man, Elliot Amom, seemed unaware of this weight. Not because he didn't have people to take care of, but it was as if he didn't care about this weight, and maybe even enjoyed it! What kind of madness is this?
Stella was still thinking deeply about what to do, but Elliot was starting to get impatient. Every day he spent in this town was one less day he spent with his brother and nephew.
"What's your answer, Stella?" Elliot asked once again.
"It depends on what benefits I will get," Stella replied.
"What do you desire? Property? Brezik credits? Men and women? Tell me what it is, and you shall have it." Elliot said confidently.
"I want you to be my brother," Stella said with a dazzling smile.
Elliot was unresponsive for a second, but then his eyes widened. What kind of request is this? Elliot didn't answer immediately. He stared at Stella, trying to read her expression and body behavior, but all he could see was a smiling face and a confident posture.
"If I were a god... or a demon, capable of fulfilling any of your wishes, would you still ask the same thing? Why not eternal life? Why not ask for the whole world?" Elliot asked with genuine curiosity.
"Don't be a naive big brother! Why would I make a single wish, when I can have a god or a demon for a brother? If I am your brother, won't all this naturally be mine too?" Stella replied smiling.
"That makes strange sense. And how the hell did I become the older brother?! I'm only 19 you know!" Elliot replied.
"Don't worry about it big brother, age is just a number! Hahahaha!"
Elliot felt strangely tired. He didn't do anything and just chatted, but he was willing to sleep until tomorrow. Elliot eventually accepted Stella's request, but just as Stella probably had, Elliot had his ulterior motives.
'Monthly Mission' Elliot thought.
[Monthly Mission: Family is an important part of any social creature: have 4 members in your family. Current number of members: 2
Reward: 2 status points, 100 Exp]
Elliot was still at level 1, he wondered what would happen when he leveled up. Would he develop wings? Special powers? All he could do is wait and see.
"All right. Come on, close up the store, we have a meeting to go to." Elliot said.
He didn't know why, but he felt he would regret his decision to accept Stella's request for the rest of his life.
"Yes big brother~" Stella replied as she bounced around the store.
Wouldn't she even ask what the meeting was going to be for? How could anyone be so nonchalant like that? But that didn't matter anymore, Elliot would now have to take care of her. Elliot hoped she wasn't some sociopathic maniac planning to create chaos and throw all the blame on 'Amom'.
As soon as they left, Stella grabbed Elliot's arm and talked non-stop. She complained about all her adopted brothers and how they are useless and just stay home all day and never want to work. She talked about her father's wives, who just cry and complain about everything all day long.
Elliot lived in a prison by himself for 6 years, so he was used to the silence. Even after returning, it has only been a week, and Elliot has spent most of that time alone. Having someone so close to him and talking non-stop was uncomfortable for Elliot, to say the least, but he endured it. After all, Stella is now his sister.
"What the hell did I do..." Elliot eventually muttered.
"Hm? Did you say something big brother?" Stella stopped talking for a moment.
"No, nothing. Let's go."
*************
Bruja and Mk were beyond shocked. Elliot went out to talk to the sniper and arrives during dinner with a girl, who says she is his sister. They both knew Elliot well and knew that he had only one brother, and he was in another country.
Could it be that Elliot's mother came back and she brought this girl with her? While they were wondering things like this, Stella was amused at their confusion, but then she felt a nagging sensation on the back of her neck, and when she turned around she saw Margot staring at her. Stella shuddered a little and turned her face away.
'What a fright!' Stella thought.
Elliot was sitting in his seat without saying a word. He didn't like to be interrupted while he was talking, so he always waited for everyone to speak first. They all talked for a while, and when they realized that Elliot was just watching everything silently, they knew it was time to talk business.
"Bruja, how are the negotiations with the auction house going?" Elliot asked.
Bruja stood up and clicked on the chip that was in his head. The chip glowed and soon a hologram was projected from the chip onto the table.
"No auction house has wanted to auction our product, as the former owner is rumored to be aviatorily searching for the map. And they also say he is a pretty dangerous person." Bruja said.
From the projection, one could see several cases of collector's murders, with no robbery, but the victim's entire house having been completely turned over. The murders were brutal, to say the least. Because he knew so many people in so many different places, the images Bruja got were very good, and it was possible to see the brutality of the killer.
"I don't care who wants the map back. They were dumb enough to leave such an item unprotected, they got what they deserve. Have you tried contacting the Last Chance Auction House?" Elliot snorted.
"Yes... but you won't like it. They ask for 30% of the value of the item." Bruja said.
Just as everyone knew, Elliot laughed, but his smile was full of veiled threats of pain and suffering to the unfortunate person who was too greedy to lay eyes on something that belonged to Elliot. Elliot hated people who tried to make the most profit without making the slightest effort.
The Last Chance Auction House was one of the most influential auction houses in H-town. But the common population never knew about such an auction house. The reason is very simple: this place was made by criminals for criminals.
All the items were stolen or smuggled in from various parts of Brezik and the world. In darker times, even slaves were sold at this auction house. As long as there was enough credit, it was possible to find anything in the Last Chance Auction House.
Elliot asked everyone for their opinions as he thought deeply about what to do. His initial plans were to rob the mayor, but with the find that was this map, he wouldn't have to risk so much. But as it turned out, nothing would be that easy. Now he had a brutal killer after his head, the biggest criminals in town wanted him dead, and to sell the map, he would need to leave much of the money behind.
"I think we should make do with what we have, Elliot. If we get too greedy, we'll end up like all the others who had good luck but didn't know how to take advantage of it. The biggest criminals in town are after that map, and I'm sure people all over the country have heard about that map too." Mk said seriously.
Mk was the brave type of person, but he hated gambling, and even more so when it was an all-or-nothing bet. He was afraid that he might end up with nothing, even after all his hard work. Worse yet, he might end up dying in the middle of the road.
"As long as you pay me more than we initially talked about, I don't mind killing this killer." Margot said.
"Violence is not the answer to everything, Margot. I've given it some thought-" Before Mk could conclude, he was interrupted by Margot.
"Violence really isn't the answer to everything, but it certainly is the best solution." Margot crossed her arms and said.
Elliot was lost looking at Margot for a moment, but soon pulled himself together and looked at Bruja for her opinion. While all this was going on, Stella looked at everything with interest. Being different from the other children, Stella spent her childhood watching people, to know with whom she could make friends, and who would just make fun of her. This habit has persisted to the present day, and now she can observe little expressions, some mannerisms, etc.
"I think the same as Mk, but... for personal reasons, I don't think we should accept crumbs. We are the ones who fought tooth and nail for this map, we shouldn't let them profit from our efforts." Bruja said as he turned off the chip in his head and sat cross-legged.
Elliot knew why Bruja made this choice. The health of Bruja's brother was getting worse every day. The medicines and surgeries he needed became more and more expensive, and some medicines were not sold in the country. Bruja was desperate for money, and that was the only reason she decided to be part of Elliot's plans.
"What about you, my sister?" Elliot asked Stella.
Stella looked at Elliot with an amused look. She couldn't read Elliot's expressions, as he was always with a poker face. He had no quirks, at most he drummed on his cane. Elliot was the first person she couldn't know the intentions of. Was Elliot just using these people? Did he really care about them? Stella didn't know. But she knew that he wouldn't do her any harm, at least not yet.
"I can't have any say in this matter. After all, I didn't take part in the operation." Stella said with a smile.
Elliot just nodded. He wouldn't admit it, but he liked Stella's attitude. Why wouldn't he admit it? It was obvious that she would get cocky! Elliot tapped the cane once on the floor so that everyone would pay attention to him. When all eyes were on him, Elliot spoke his thoughts:
"I didn't know about your opinions before, but now that I do, I can formulate something that is to the liking of all of us. Those who want to sell the map will go to the auction. The rest of us will complete our plan." Elliot said looking at everyone.
"What? Do you still want to rob the mayor?! Have you gone, crazy bro? The city is in chaos because of that damn map, and you still want to add more gasoline to those raging flames? You really hit your head when you killed those guys, didn't you?" Mk stood up and said everything in one breath.
What Mk said was logical. You can't burn down the house you intend to live in, can you? Elliot wanting to steal from the mayor of H-town without expecting any repercussions was just a crazy, meaningless dream.
"That is another point. Two robberies will be done during the auction. We will rob the mayor and a few other little things during the auction. The mayor's robbery will be of the energy crystals, and the second one, who will lead it will be my sister." Elliot said.
Mk was about to start protesting once more, but all it took was one look from Elliot that he sat quietly. The girls just waited for Elliot to continue. They knew that Elliot would not be stupid enough to create this whole plan just so that everyone would die before they could use even one credit.
"Only those who are willing to leave H-town will participate in this plan. More specifically, leave Brezik country." Elliot said in a serious tone.
Everyone looked at him stunned, but the person most surprised was Stella. Everyone was given an option to go or stay. But why didn't she get that option!
"Big brother, why can't I choose if I want to go?" Stella asked as she raised her hand.
"Isn't it obvious? You are my sister now, wherever I am, you will be too. Do you think I would leave you here, alone and unsafe? Never! What if you get a boyfriend, but he's a piece of shit? Who will kill him, if not me?" Elliot answered as if it was obvious.
Stella first felt touched by Elliot's care for her, but then she noticed all the implications. She will never be able to date?! She will have to live with Elliot for the rest of her life?!
Maybe it wasn't such a good idea to be the sister of a demon...