When Roland opened the door to their room, his heart dropped when he saw that Harker wasn't there.
But he tried not to panic easily. He looked around and called out. "Harker? Harker, I'm back!"
And yet he couldn't find him anywhere. He checked the bedroom, the kitchen of the suit, the bathroom, the balcony...
Nothing!
It couldn't be…. that Xi Jiaoshe and his men somehow found him, right? He had just been there earlier, and from the report of Roland's people, they were very discreet in their operations and nothing was amiss. So where could his best friend possible be—
He suddenly saw a hand grip the railing of the balcony.
""Hyup! Ah….." Long black hair flew into the wind as Harker climbed up and jumped inside the balcony's deck.
His eyes widened like a cat caught stealing someone's meal when Roland was standing there, staring at him.
"O-Oh. Heya, Roland…." His heart went back to its original length, and his eye twitched. "Didn't see you there…. Whoops…."
Roland immediately rushed towards him. "Where have you been!? Did you go outside even when I told you not to!?"
"I was just…. grabbing stuff at a convenience store." He showed the bag of beer cans that he had with him. "This fancy hotel doesn't have a single can of cheap Brooklyn Logger."
It was lucky that he thought of swiping these beer cans on the way back in case he didn't make it in time and Roland got home before him. It's not really one of the best alibis, but Roland does know that he wasn't fond of rich people's stuff and prefer the cheap and simple things.
"You should have just asked one of the bodyguards to buy them for you!" Roland argued.
"I know, but I don't wanna trouble the big guys out there. It's just some beer, plus they'll use your money to buy it." Harker patted his shoulder. "Just relax, okay? I'm safe, aren't I?"
Roland furrowed his brows, and still looked on edge. Harker instantly knew that something happened, otherwise Roland won't be too anxious like this. His voice softened, as he bowed his head.
"Okay…. I'm sorry for makin' you worried. But are you alright? What happened with that snake Xi—"
"I'm fine." Roland pushed his hand away. "I got the DNA sample you wanted. It's just his gloves, so it's not much. He was almost onto me, that's why I'm a little frantic."
Roland took the gloves from his pocket, wrapped in a plastic ziplock bag. He then went back inside the suite after handing it to Harker, leaving him alone in a cold manner. He stomped off, clearly upset with him.
Harker followed him. "Hey now! I feel like there's something you're not tellin' me 'ere. Are you mad at me? Come on, Rol, just say it—"
"I'm not mad at you." Roland said with his back still turned at him. "I was just…. I told you to stay put for your own good. Because I don't know how I'll manage to keep calm if something happens to you."
Harker frowned. "I'm really sorry, okay? And you have to remember that I'm a demon lord with powers now. I won't get hurt that easily."
Roland turned to him, sighing. "Just promise that you will stick to the plan and not do that again."
"I promise." Harker said. "Just chill, okay?"
Roland scoffed and smiled at the same time. "I don't mean to nag. I sound like some overprotective father. But you know this is not just some easy situation that we found ourselves into, right? These are supernatural beings we are talking about. It's my first time encountering them."
Harker agreed. "I know. That's why I didn't want to get anyone involved in the first place."
"I am now. We're partners-in-crime till the end, whether you like it or not." Roland punched his shoulder teasingly. "Just remember that you trusted me to be the brains of the operation. So you gotta listen to your brain, mister."
"Roger that." Harker said...
But his heart still ached to see Princess Jinzhu every single day. And so he did, breaking his promise to his best friend.
For the days leading up to Mr. Xi's birthday, he would often sneak out while Roland was not around and personally oversee the Shipment Phase of their operation. While his friend took care of the dangerous matter of shipping as many mermaids as they could back to China….
He visited the princess and her sisters. Sometimes talking about the plan and other steps they could take, but mostly to have idle conversation and get to know each other more.
"So you have gained his gloves, Harker sir." Princess Jinzhu leaned on the rock at her tank. "But you did say that too little 'DNA sample' means you won't be able to use his powers for that long, right?"
"Yeah. But what mattered was that I took a sample before his daughter's DNA ran out. That way, I had gained an Enhanced Snake Ability that's much stronger than his. All I needed was to get a sample from him again to re-activate it." Harker explained.
On the night that he consumed the gloves' skin cells, Harker saw Mr. Xi's ability stats:
[ Xi Jiaoshe's Snake Ability
Raw Power: R
Endurance: A+
Range: R
Speed: R
Precision: R
Potential: D ]
When Harker pressed 'Yes' on the pop-up to gain the Enhanced Snake Ability, this is what showed up:
[ Xi Jiaoshe's Snake Ability
Raw Power: SR
Endurance: A+
Range: SR
Speed: SR
Precision: SR
Potential: D- ]
He asked Yan: "Why did the potential become D-?"
"This means that the ability has reached its limitation, Master. It cannot be enhanced further than this." Yan explained. "Just like I mentioned, already naturally powerful abilities have lower Potential. Mr. Xi had lower Potential for development than his daughter, so this is the small price to pay for merging those two together. This is why the pop-up asks if you are sure or not."
Harker raised an eyebrow. "Why didn't you tell me sooner?"
Yan blinked. "You didn't ask me to, Master. I only do what you ask."
Harker's face darkened, then he shook his head. "It doesn't matter, it's a small price to pay, like you said."
He told Princess Jinzhu all this, who also nodded in agreement.
"At least you will be more powerful than him. And I will also help you." She offered. "I'm pretty fast—"
"I know. But you should focus on getting yourself and your sister away before the bombs' timer begins." Harker told her. "I'll take care of it, all I need is a pearl from you. There's no need for you to join in our fight."
Princess Jinzhu frowned. "I see….. I promise."
But as the golden rule said, 'Do not do unto others what you do not want others to do unto you'. Harker should have remembered that.
A promise breaker would also get broken promises.