Rhen and his group head down to the showroom parking lot, and are stopped by Felipe who is standing next to Aliana.
"Do you need anything, sir?" Asked Felipe.
"I'll be back, we have business with the Chief."
When Felipe asked Rhen if he needs a driver, he politely declined. Driving is one of his favorite past-time with the exemption of getting stuck in traffic.
Rhen finds it meditating just to drive along the bridge or along a highway with beautiful scenery and soothing music in the background.
"Have a good day Young Master." Aliana bids him a farewell.
"Allo stesso modo bello. (Likewise beautiful.)" This time he is able to kiss the back of her hand.
Aliana can only blush and smile in response since she cannot understand what Rhen is talking about.
"ꇘꑾ꒒ꇘ꒐ꑾ. (Thank you.)" She replied in Sylnarian. She doesn't want to be outwitted by him after all.
"꒒ꑾ꒐ꁹꑾ ꇘꋫꉓꃄꑾ. (Your welcome.)" Likewise, Rhen does the same and leaves heading towards the parking lot.
Aliana's eyes widen as she discovers that Rhen can also speak in Elven tongue.
Felipe laughs in delight. "So, what do you think of the Young Master?"
"Well, he is very charming and intelligent. I didn't know there are humans who can speak Sylnarian."
"I can speak a few words myself; it was Young Master and his brother who taught me everything I know today." Felipe smiles when he thinks of Rhen; he's proud to be able to serve him.
Rhen walks towards a black substantially tinted vehicle in the parking lot.
Instead of anything flashy like a sports car or a luxury car, he chose something more normal to avoid drawing attention to himself.
Rhen drove out of the hotel with Azrel in the passenger seat and Scarlet in the rear after ensuring their comfort.
Upon reaching the highway, Scarlet asks Rhen a question while he's driving.
"Hey Rhen Isn't that Aliana?"
"That's what she said, is she your classmate of something?" Rhen replied.
"No, but she's my schoolmate. She's quite popular even though she's a low ranking noble. Anyways, I'm quite amazed you're trying to woo a High Elf. Didn't you say they're traditional?"
"Well..." Rhen gives it a thought, Aliana is beautiful, and he can see why she's popular.
He is aware that most High elves only have relationships amongst themselves. Especially nobles no matter what their rank.
The only High elves that would seek other races are women who have no other options.
Rhen thinks of a reply to Scarlet.
-
[I love her]
[She's cute]
[I just want to fuck]
-
"I think she's cute." Rhen gives her a halfhearted response, he wanted to add that he's only interested in what Aliana has in between her pants, but Scarlet might not like that answer. It's not like he has high hopes for it. If it happens, it happens.
Other than that, Rhen's expectations are low; he doesn't even intend to have a long relationship with Aliana.
As long as Rhen manages to put her in his bed, he's already contented.
***********************
Afternoon
Central Police Department, Frendon City, Kadwein.
-----------------------------------------
The automobile pulls up to the Central Police Department and enters.
Rhen is immediately stopped by two Wood Elf guards with assault rifles; after recognizing Azrel on the passenger seat, they let the car pass without incident.
Rhen gets out of his car and parks it where Azrel always parks his.
"Lead the way, brother," Rhen told Azrel.
"Just follow me, I think the Chief is in his office right now.
Azrel escorts him and Scarlet inside the busy office.
Rhen notices several secretaries scurrying around, Humans, Wood elves, and Halflings all working together to file a mountain of documents.
The Dwarves are no longer employed as blacksmiths, but rather as Codesmiths in the IT department.
There are some people who salute Azrel, but most of them are too busy minding their own business.
Azrel finally leads then to an imposing brown door with a plate hanging on the front written in all caps "CHIEF". Nervously his hand is poised to knock. He took a deep breath and tapped his knuckles against the wood,
*knock* 3x
"Come in." A deep, gruff voice greets the trio.
They proceed inside, but Scarlet hesitates for a moment. It is only when the Chief signals for her to enter that she does so.
In front of the varnished desk is a brass plate with his name Police General Matthew Goodman.
Unlike the traditional boomer High elf in Sylnari, Mat as Rhen likes to call him has fully embraced the Modern era.
Mat is sitting back in his office chair, flipping through his old black and white military photos. He was still a private in the previous century's Sylnari-Kadwein war.
It is a struggle between two superpowers with Demigia covertly helping Sylnari, often known as the war of Science and Magic that took the lives of millions of people. For the time being, the two countries are at peace.
He caressed the picture of a human woman pinning his stars when the day he became an army general, unlike the previous picture, this one is colored.
Rhen has no idea why he changed occupations nor how did a High Elf become part of the army since he keeps his private life to himself. Now, everyone refers to him as Chief rather than General.
Azrel does a salute. "Reporting for duty sir!" Instead of a Hero, he stands there like a proper officer.
Despite not being in the force, Rhen also does the same half-heartedly.
Scarlet trails behind the two of them, wanting to salute as well, but Mat's presence makes her nervous.
It's presumably because it's her first time seeing a High elf as big and jacked as Mat.
If this were a video game, Mat's stats would all be allocated to his strength. Leaving everything else to default.
"I'll cut right to the chase boys. Orders from above." Mat places a document with a picture and a badge on the desk. Before continuing, he adjusts his sunglasses.
"The High Senate orders you kill or capture the most wanted man in all of Eternia, for the crimes of terrorism, Illegal arms trade, genocide, regicide, and attempts to usurp the current Sylnari king, His Highness Elwind Sylvania. I believe you boys know him very well." Mat points at the picture.
The image depicts an aged High Elf with a deranged smirk, aged and tangled hair. An amateur photographer took the photograph. It was shared on social media before being quickly removed.
A Crimson blood clan high-ranking member is accompanying the Old High Elf. Rhen knows the Old High Elf very well.
"Guh!" An image of his nightmares from the night before appears in his mind.
He felt the pain coursing through his chest again to the level of Lena's ring.
"Are you alright?" Asked Azrel worryingly.
"Just a headache." Rhen then moves his attention to the document. "Elendor Shadowsong, the Crimson Blood's founder Aka Wraith. I'll be Damned he's still alive and kicking after all these years."
"B-but We even dug out his grave and confirmed he is a Wood elf. He should be dead centuries ago. You're saying he's a High elf." Azrel pointed out.
"Yes brother, the similarities are too striking. I will never forget that grin of his while he murdered our family. He probably kept his race a secret all this time."
Rhen conjures a dagger made of shadow using dark magic and stabs the picture in the head. The dagger starts to corrode the wood beneath it.
He then looks Mat in the eyes, enraged. After years of assassinating his minions and officials, he can finally exact his revenge.
"Where is he Mat, tell me I'll bring his head to you by sunrise."
"This is why I called you boys here in the first place. The picture was taken a decade ago in Neotopia, he's still probably there hiding with his terrorist group or not."
Scarlet leans over to Azrel and whispers. "Hey hey. I thought they were almost wiped out. I mean Rhen has been going all out since you came to office."
"Yes, but we only manage to purge them in our country, they have a massive organization outside our borders. However, as long as you stay out of trouble, you won't get to see them. They're really good at hiding thou." Azrel replied to his girlfriend.
Rhen receives a police badge from Mat. "This is your honorary badge boy. You and your brother will be conducting a joint covert operation to capture him dead or alive."
Rhen smirked at the prospect of joining the police force, knowing that without him, he wouldn't be able to obtain this information.
"Thanks, Mat." Rhen smiles and pats Mat on the shoulder. "I owe you one."
Despite Rhen's informality, he nods and grunts back.
"So, what are we waiting for, let's go and bag him. I'll talk to my team and organize a C-17 for our flight."
"Hold on boy, I know you're excited, but the thing is. We do not know where his exact location is. Every time we put agents on the ground, they all disappear, or Wraith will move to a different country because of intel leaks.
You and your brother are our only hope, we need someone strong enough to survive a direct attack from his S-rank inner circle members, and someone who is capable of gathering intel like your brother."
"How many people know about this?" Rhen asks Mat.
"Just me, the President, and your three." Mat then faces Scarlet. "That means you are part of the team, Girl."
"HUH!?" Scarlet exclaimed in surprise. She waves her hands in front of her frantically rejecting Mat. "W-w-wait, what are you talking about? I'm not a soldier. I'm just a student." She stutters on her words.
Scarlet was just a civilian a few minutes ago, and now she is at the heart of a major military covert operations.
"I'm afraid so girl. You don't have to fight if you don't want to, but you already know far too many even if you're not in this mission." Mat pulls out a Classified Information Nondisclosure Agreement form and hands it to Scarlet.
"Welcome to the club Scarlet." Rhen smiles sarcastically and gives her a thumbs up.
"Don't worry Scarly, there's no need to fight. As long as you keep your mouth shut, you won't face jail time." Said Azrel.
Scarlet gulped when she heard the phrase "Jail time." She examines the paper she is holding. Thou light, she can feel its enormous weight brought upon her shoulders.
"Don't worry girl, this is just for formalities. In our eyes, you're still a civilian. Unless you plan on joining the cause."
"Alright, here goes nothing." She signs the paper and gives it to Mat.
"Very well." Mat leans back on his office chair making a squeaking sound.
"You two will fly in ten days, you can either use Le Straza's private jet or fly economy, it's up to you. Just a reminder this operation is held in utmost secrecy, be sure you know who to trust. We don't know where Crimson blood clan goons are watching, so I recommend not using your Soul weapons since that's how they can track your magic signature. I also recommend not using your Evolved skills.
The girl on the other hand can use hers without limit. Honestly, I prefer if we can have her as a support." He added.
Mat looks at Scarlet, despite his eyes being covered by the tinted lens of the sunglasses, she can feel his gaze looking straight through her soul.
Scarlet knows what Mat wants, the question is if she's ready to stand toe-to-toe with Rhen and Azrel.
"Uhhhh..." She then moves her eyes from Azrel to Rhen as if passing the decision-making to them.
"It's your choice, Scarlet, no one is going to force you."
"Whatever choice you make Scarly, I'm going to support it 100%."
Scarlet feels overwhelmed by the pressure; she is confident in her abilities as an Rank-S hunter, but only when the foes are monsters and bosses.
Fighting other people in a life-and-death situation is another ball game, even if she's just going to be there for support.
Still, it's a one-in-a-lifetime opportunity to work with the two.
All her life she's been watching the two brothers fight a life-and-death battle against the Crimson blood clan's forces.
The tales of their battles with the forces of evil can be traced back centuries and even trickle down to the pen and paper of comic book artists.
Scarlet is a secret fan of these comic books, specifically Nightblade and the Night City and Lightbringer the Bringer of Justice volumes five and six.
She's been in awe of the stories the fans have written over the years, but she doesn't want it signed by Rhen or Azrel since it seems weird, and her desire isn't to be a military personnel; she wants something more in life.
"Soooo..." Scarlet's eyes darted about as she about to ask the most crucial question of her life.
"Do I get to wear a superhero costume?" She smiles broadly at the three men in the room.
Mat shakes his head, sighs, and responds in a rough tone. "We're not really playing heroes, but yes, yes can."
"YES! Finally, I'm gonna call myself The Crimson Phoenix." She pumps her fist as if she just accomplished a major milestone in her life.
"Well then, any more questions?" Asked Mat in a loud tone of voice as he concludes the meeting.
"NONE!" All of them answered at the same time.
Mat stands up and does a salute. "Dismissed!"
Similarly, the three of them saluted appropriately, as did Scarlet.
[Main Quest received: Kill or Capture the leader of Crimson blood clan, "Wraith"]