"Excuse me miss, but do you perhaps know someone whose name started with a 'c' and ends with a 'c', his last name starting with an 'n' and has a 'g' in there somewhere?" Max asked, and got his expected reaction. The woman in front of him almost immediately went on guard, her eyes widening slightly as he looked around, then closed here eyes for a moment before grabbing Max by his collar and dragging him inside.
Max himself did not resist not only due to the physical difference between them, but also because of the fact that most people who knew Cedric, especially if they were part of the Knowledge Magisters, would likely also be Beyonders.
Once inside, however, Max was dragged through a corridor, his feet not even having the time to touch the ground until he was placed no-so-gently onto a rough yellow couch. In front of him, was the same lady who had dragged him inside, as well as a middle-aged stout man and a much older slender man.
"Who are you. Answer me or your life will be forfeit."
"Well, I am here to give a mission to you guys, if this is the correct address."
The Stout Man just ignored Max and continued to eat his chicken leg in an almost cartoonish manner, while the slender man just calmly observed. Only the woman with red hair spoke, her tone becoming more and more forceful.
"How do you know Cedric?"
"He came over to my home some time ago, then went missing, sent a letter to my old man, who went in search of Cedric, and now is also likely missing." Max just spilt the beans upon realising that the people here were at least somewhat trustworthy considering their reaction to Max knowing Cedric's name, and their worry that although not easily visible on the two men, was still there since they had not left the room. The fat man, although eating voraciously, was also still keeping an eye on Max.
Max's words descended the room into an uninterrupted silence for a good 2 minutes as all three members of the Knowledge Magisters digested the information Max had just told them before a barrage of questions hit him, unexpected from the skinny old man.
"When was this? What did he say? Do you know where he went? Any updates on his location? Who was your old man? How did he know Cedric?"
The old man with a long white beard had already appeared very close to Max, his skinny fingers pressed against Max's face before he even knew it. As the old man spoke, Max felt as though he was strangely close to the old man. He felt as though he could trust the old man fully, and so he began speaking in a slightly methodical voice.
"Cedric Negan had come to our Café Entwine a few days ago, trying to get my old man; Uxas, to join him on a mission. 'Just like the old days' he said. But Old Man Uxas rejected it because he could not anymore, 'not now that I have someone to take care of' he said. Then Baldy Cedric left the Café and never returned. Last night, his tentacle messenger brought a letter saying Old Man would need to give blood to the messenger every 3 days to maintain the contract with Cedric, who had likely gone missing or died. However, if he was just trapped, maintaining the contract was of utmost importance since it could allow him to escape. But Old Man Uxas just backed up his stuff, took his weapons and then left, trapping me in place using his Beyonder powers until dawn."
Hearing these words, the old man stepped back for a bit, his eyes widening in shock, the same as the other two people in the room. Only now did Max's eyes return to normal as he suddenly took in deep breaths, glaring at the old man, but he refrained from saying anything.
However, the old man glanced at him again, and asked, causing Max's thought process to be skewed in his favour once again, and he began speaking once again.
"I came here to ask for your services in obtaining a 'Blue Tailed Sea Bass eye'. It is important for me to be able to rescue Old Man Uxas from wherever it is he went." Max did not elaborate further, as his face was slowly changing to someone who was constipated.
The old man noticed this and focussed his attention on Max and asked again.
"Why do you need this item?"
Max's face contorted even more, his eyes slowly turning red, not from emotion but from stress. His veins bulged as his fists tightened, his eyes began to rapidly change direction and blood began to come out of his nose, much to the shock of all those present.
Suddenly, Max took in a deep breath and regained his senses causing the old man to wince at the backlash of a failed Brainwash. He did not waste a second as he pulled out the bloody sword from its sheath he had used to hide it, brandishing it and speaking.
"I know what this is and I will not hesitate to you use it. Even if you are a Beyonder, you will die. If you want to kill me, I will damn well be sure to take down one of you with me!" Max said with finality in his voice, his eyes still red, even some spots of red where his blood vessels had burst releasing blood into his eye.
This was not something that would have normally happened, but who he had just faced was likely not a high Sequence Beyonder. Perhaps just at Sequence 9 or 8. Based on the attempted brainwashing he had performed, likely a Lawyer from the Black Emperor Pathway. But Max could not and would not reveal that he knew this information, acting like a child who had just lost his only father figure and was now out to bring him back to safety was his best disguise since it was not a disguise at all!
The three present immediately retreated at the sight of the item for two reasons. One was that all of them clearly felt the powerful spirituality of a High Sequence Beyonder characteristic, at least above Sequence 5. Plus, they also almost immediately recognised this weapon. It was the weapons of the original Vice-Master of the Knowledge Magisters; Ural Ves.
And most importantly, it would mean almost certain death for anyone below Sequence 7, and even for the Mid-Sequence Beyonders, if they were hit by the blade, they would also likely face a perilous situation even if a normal human were to wield it like Max.
Immediately, the tension in the room was palpable, until the fat man spoke up.
"Alright, kid. Settle down now, we don't want to harm you."
Max had also recovered from his anger for a bit as he regained his calm and immediately began to think of methods to make the most out of the current situation. After this, he would clearly not trust these people like before again, in fact, he would not trust anyone again. Unknowingly, the memories of Samuel had rapidly corrupted the innocence of Max, or what was left of it. The only trust Max had now was towards old man Uxas, and nobody else.
"You three already know everything. As payment for the old b*stard trying to mind-control me, I expect you to find me the eyes of the Blue-tailed Sea bass within a week. I will return here for the item in one week's time, I expect someone to be present here with my item. It is not an expensive item, it's just that it is not easily found in Tingen, thus I am giving you this time. I can understand you want to search for Cedric, but I couldn't care less about him, and please don't drag me, a normal human, into your Beyonder mess. I will be searching for my old man on my own, and I do not want your interference in this matter. Now move and let me leave." Max said, pointing the sword at the lady who had dragged him into this mess in the first place.
A few seconds of silence later, the lady moved to the side, allowing Max to leave, who slowly walked, making sure to keep the sword pointed at the trio. On the way, he picked up his bag which had his clothes and extra cash and put it on his free shoulder, leaving the one that was holding the Beyonder Sword free.
Extending his left hand behind him, Max reached out for the doorknob. After a bit of searching around without looking, Max located the metal doorknob and twisted it, closing the door behind him.
He did not immediately put away the sword, but since it was already daytime, Max held it in his right hand, which he had in his jacket, before quickly making an escape. He chose to go through countless neighbourhoods, walking briskly enough to move quickly, but not enough to stand out.
After a few streets, and making sure nobody was following him, Max put away his Beyonder Sword he still had to give a better name than Sealed Artifact 1-01 or just Beyonder Sword, and continued his winding journey across almost all of Tingen, stopping here and there to grab a bite of food at Cafés and the likes, before finally letting into a normal-looking hotel
Paying a 10 Soli for staying over for an entire week in advance at a moderately middle-class hotel. Naturally, now that he had money, he would not be living in the East Borough like little Mr. Fool had done for almost a year. Plus, since he was only staying here for a week, there was no point in being too stingy and living in a neighbourhood with an incredibly high crime rate, especially as a normal human and not a Beyonder yet.
Sighing as he put away his bag and weapons excluding his Beyonder Sword, Max leapt onto the bed. Unfortunately, the soft cushions he had been used to as Samuel were no longer present, though it was still soft enough to prevent injuries to Max from the leap.
'It's been quite an eventful day…' Max thought to himself as he closed his eyes and fell into the deep clumber under the crimson moon.