In spite of the rattles and the constant shaking of the car due to some bumpy pocks on the road, the awkward silence inside was killing him. "Are you sure you got the right direction?" Charles questioned his own sanity for trusting a nine year old kid.
"I am sure, Mr Russels." Rune responded confidently. "I am just taking a shortcut to reach my uncle's friend in the shortest time possible or else…"
"Else what?"
"Who knows? Something bad may have happened to him or he may no longer be alive."
"Don't scare me like that." Charles sighed, scratching his head. "I am curious how you made certain Adrian was in danger."
"Do I have to tell you?" Rune groaned, clearly uncomfortable with having to explain directly her way of thoughts.
"I would like it if you could."
"When I researched Adrian - his code name, I found out he is particularly meticular to make sure someone didn't eavesdrop on him or get hold of important information about uncle. All I got were pictures and videos of him interacting with Callisto without their discussions involving a mission. I got the least information of him out of all the other four because I rarely found videos with him in it. He is not someone who would allow himself to be tracked like this."
"So you came to this conclusion just from this little evidence?"
"Of course not. The IP address it came from was suspicious. Instead of a proper basic security wall, it made use of a lot of backdoors and side traps. It's a thing unorthodox security gates usually do."
"I don't understand much about computer science but you are saying the IP address's security gate wasn't simple. It was made complicatedly?" Charles somehow managed to paraphrase it.
"Right." Rune said.
"Then, there's a possibility that the company didn't want anyone to breach their privacy. I mean the fact that they had several traps in store for hackers is suspicious but it's understandable, isn't it?" Charles asked.
"I know that getting their IP addresses hacked is a serious issue, but there's never been one that traps the hacker in and traces it back to their source. This was too sketchy to let go of." Rune declared. "If there's nothing at all, in a way that's also good,"
"You are right. We have arrived." They landed at an abandoned building with an open roof. It reminded them of a colosseum. When they heard some groaning and shouts on the floor above, Charles had a gut wrenching sensation in his stomach. "Kids you should…." Just as Charles was about to warn them not to disappear from his side, Rune and Raul already rushed ahead to the second floor via the stone stairs.
Charles was about to lose his patience. How could they be so mature and childish at the same time? Summoning blood familiars, he sent them after the children to protect them. After all, if the children got hurt, it was obvious he was going to be blamed for the whole ordeal.
Rune and Raul were immediately greeted by the iron scent of blood sprawled all over the floor and on some dead bodies. "Luckily, it wasn't Adrian."
Adrian, a black haired man, stepped from the shadows with blue eyes, a blade sheathed at his left side. "What were you saying about me?" After cracking his neck once or twice, he approached the kids, who noticed his clothes were stained with blood.
His delighted face frowned upon seeing the two kids in front of him. He kneeled to speak on the same level as the kids so as to not scare them. "Where are your parents?"
"They are not here." Raul replied innocently. Rune was disgusted at how sweet his viscous voice sounded unlike the rough himself.
Amused by the different reactions in the twins, he chuckled. "Then, what are you doing here?"
"We came here after my sister tracked you." Raul honestly spoke the truth. Rune scratched her head while sighing.
Although Raul and Rune were scrawny kids, Adrian didn't underestimate them. "You tracked me? Why?" His visage was calm but the kids could sense he was ready to slaughter them any second if they told him anything wrong.
While Rune stayed at a distance away from Adrian, wary of him, Raul was surprised Adrian even believed him. "Ah, we thought you were in danger. A tracker was attached to you, but" Raul scanned his surroundings, "it seems you made use of it and lured them here."
"It was a tactic." Adrian grinned, amused that a little boy like him could understand his line of thought. He was more intrigued by the way both of them didn't flinch when they saw dead bodies and that they weren't bothering to question him. "Boy, what's your name?"
"Raul."
"I am Rune." Rune introduced herself, still standing away from him.
"Why are you standing so far away? I am not a monster, who is going to eat you."
"I know. It's just…you are dangerous." Rune said. "Will you let us go alive if I spill everything?" Rune emphasized on the word 'alive'.
Adrian was dazed for a while in surprise before bursting out in laughter. "Ahahahaha! Me…..kill you…? Hahahaha!" It appeared he found Rune's wariness and speculations about him amusing.
Out of the corner of her eyes, she perceived a man in a military outfit who was sprawled on his death charge at Adrian.
"Be care…ful!"
Before she even warned him, Adrian instantly dodged the man's strike with ease, approaching the man. At a close range, he instantly hurled a packing punch at the man's chest. Smirking at this familiar sensation, he could feel that organ working hard to keep this failing body alive. As he squeezed his left hand, blood gushed out of the man's circular wound. Adrian smiled as he howled in pain. "Arghhh!!!"
Not paying the loud screams any mind, Adrian pulled his hand out. He looked upon the man with indifference. "You deserve it. I was having a nice talk."
Terrified for his fate, the man cried out in silent tears, clutching at his chest where he found a gaping hole pierced through his whole body. In shock, the man was dumbfounded. A second later, the man's eyes turned bloodshot, blood dripping out of his eyes, and he dropped lifelessly onto the ground.
Raul and Rune admired Adrian's work. "Neat."
His black outfit shone as it reflected the moonlight, his black gloves were drenched in blood while his face was cold and expressionless.
"And also beautiful." Raul added.
Adrian chuckled again, narrowing his eyes. "Both of you are so amusing." At this point, he had no idea how many times he said 'amusing'. Oh, that was the fifth…or was it the fourth….?
"I thought our uncle's friend was in danger but seeing as you are fine, we may have meddled in unnecessarily." Raul apologized.
Adrian accepted the apology. There was no way anyone would have sent these weak but brave kids to spy on him. "Your uncle. Who is it?" He asked in a softer tone, willing to give them the benefit of the doubt.
"It's Callisto." Charles said as he appeared all of a sudden. "Anyways, what's with this mess?"
"Why are you here?" Adrian asked, as a cold smile appeared on his face.
A chill ran down his spine. "I drove them here." Charles pointed to the two kids, beckoning them over. "We should leave."
Ignoring Charles, Rune approached Adrian. "I want your contact details."
"What for?"
"I want to chat with you."
"Sure. Just do it in your parent's sight." Rune happily nodded as Adrian added in his contact details. "You aren't curious about why I killed the people here?"
Rune replied, baffled that he would ask this question. "I know what you do. This is what your job is essentially about. Our dad too is the same."
"I see." He'd never seen nine year old kids be this calm of him before. They would usually cry in fear or run away from him, but this reaction is refreshing. Although it was enjoyable to meet new people and 'him', he still had something else to do. "See you later."
Rune waved back at him, saying. "Shall we go now?"
Raul followed Charles back to the car. Charles sighed in relief. "It was good that he left early."
"Why? He was such a nice person though?" Rune blinked in surprise as she entered the car.
"That's what you say because you hadn't seen his true self."
"His true self?"
"Yeah. It's much darker, deeper and complicated than you kids can understand." Charles drove away from the location as if he was attempting to run away from Adrian.
What Charles said sparked her interest. This case between Adrian and Charles….she's going to slightly meddle in it.
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As Langa and the others left, Freya summoned a waitress, asking for any other special products. Flashing a card at her, Freya smirked. "Are you sure you don't have any more?"
The waitress, flustered by her sudden change, answered. "We do. It's sure to be the best experience both for you and your husband."
"Oh?" Freya said in a teasing tone to the waitress as Lloyd followed her. "I am quite curious as to how it will enlighten our experience."
The waitress, who shivered from her breath on her ears, backed away from her, covering the part of ears that turned red. "E…eh? I am not that sure. There will be someone else to explain the procedures to you."
"What a shame." Freya sighed, glancing seductively at the waitress who took her leave at once after guiding her to a staff room.
Lloyd shook his head at her. "Are you trying to put the whole crowd into a frenzy?"
"What do you mean?"
"Your looks are more attractive than you made it to be." Lloyd informed the oblivious Freya. "Look at the people staring at you."
"Oh!? Is that perhaps a compliment?"
"It's not a compliment but the truth." Lloyd said as he closed the door behind him.
"I see." The dark room lit up as if it jolted awake from sensing human presence. A group of people had already sat down on a couch, positioned next to a wall under a Venice city painting. The interior of the room was commodious, consisting of a wardrobe full of intriguing antiques and a large couch with a glass table. A lush, red carpet covered the whole floor that Lloyd felt displeasure in staining it with his dirty shoes. Taking them off, he placed them outside the room.
Freya, who had already taken off her heels at the door, headed in the room and explored it although there wasn't much to see. "The designer had an interesting style of positioning things."
"They did, right?" A young man, who finished talking with his group, remarked. "I tried asking for the staff to tell me the name of their designer or even just give me a hint but they refused me several times. So I thought I should examine this work of art before it disappears. "
Freya sat opposite him, gesturing to Lloyd to sit beside her. "Why do you think it would disappear?"
"Small-time designers like him or her wouldn't be prioritized over the more popular ones. Once the customers and the sponsors get bored of the design, it would disappear since this style is not popular for reception of guests. I wanted to catch a glimpse of that designer."
"Don't lie. I think you have some other business to come here, aside from your curiosity towards that designer." Freya grinned, a nasty look in her eyes. "You are here for the goods. Right?"
Not reacting to her probing around, he calmly introduced himself as Guise, a businessman, who made the average amount any middle class family would.
Lloyd chuckled, saying. "That's something a usual middle class wouldn't say though. I was actually surprised you would say how much you earned because I thought a human would be unwilling to give out their personal details or something of that sort."
"Human?" Guise repeated it in surprise.
"Aren't you one?"
"I am, but I am surprised you noticed from this distance."
"This distance…?" Lloyd was about to correct what Guise said since they weren't really that far away, however, Freya stopped him from talking.
"Anyways, about the designer, why do you seek them? Do you want to recruit them?"
"Yes…something similar. I want her or him to help with a project I am currently working on. " Despite his glasses, which made him look older, his visage was quite young, where in terms of human age, he's probably in his 20s or the 30s. His confident and collected facade, along with his proper sitting stature and his eloquent mannerism of talking, added to his aura of an experienced merchant.
"Then, if I find that designer for you, will you grant me a request only you can do?"
"Hmm….." Guise pondered upon it. Freya was sure he would be in a dilemma. To fulfill a request of a stranger he'd just been acquainted with for an easily replaceable person was difficult. She was about to give him some more time to think it over when he accepted it.
"Really?" Freya asked, surprised that he would agree so easily.
"Just on one condition. I will give you a down payment for it since I am sure it's not easy to find that designer, however, you must prove that designer is truly the one I am seeking for and not an imitator. I want to trust you but my upcoming project is very important to me…"
"Of course. Although I might have to ask, she proves that herself. " Freya grinned, extending her left hand to seal the deal. Guise responded in kind by shaking her hand gently.
Lloyd, who was sitting silently, watching their interaction, spoke up. "Mr. Guise, do you know the reason why the others are sitting so far away from us?"
"They are the regular customers. They don't like us because they seem to have a strong belief that they will lose their drugs if they yield it to us. As if....someone was trying to make use of them to test us."
"Why would you think the mastermind would test us? We are nothing but a small timer." Freya shrugged, commenting.
"I don't know why you are so humble but if you really are a small timer like you said, then why would you be even for? Besides, you couldn't have obtained that card without an acquaintance in this circle or a lot of money."
"I am just a rich heiress, still supported by her parents as she has grown up."
"With money, huh…. I chose the same route."
"I see. I am glad you did. If you chose the former method, you may have put yourself in more danger."
"What do you mean?"
"Old Fogey, don't you get it?" The groggy man, who was sleeping on the couch with his leather hat on top of his eyes, got up from his sleeping position. "If you have the connections to get into here, without bribing the guards, the higher ups are bound to get suspicious of you and keep a tight watch on your activities within the group."
"Really? I thought acquaintances weren't a big deal."
"It might not be in your realm, however, in this underworld, where everything goes, your rule in the Luz realm is not applicable."
"I see. I still have a lot to learn." Guise acknowledged his mistakes. "If it may not be too much, may I learn your name, dear hunter?"
"Ah!" The man lit up in surprise that he was recognized. "You know me?"
Freya could recognize this face from a hundred miles away. It was Alexis de Montreal. What was he doing here? "I am Xavier. What's yours, beautiful lady?"
"Freya."
Alexis approached her, kissing the front of her hand. "I am honored to make your acquaintance."
"Same here."
A clap resounded throughout the room, attracting the people's attention towards a woman, having a cold smile on her countenance, wearing a magician outfit. The silence was broken by the regulars, who didn't hide their hostility, as they commented on her childish outfit.
What they said had a silver lining of truth that she looked childish. However, it wasn't because of the outfit but rather because of her short height. "Here's your regular portions."
As soon as she finished her statement, the gang quietened their ruckus, awaiting their reward. 2 puppets handed over a full packet of white powder to each of the people there. The girl turned to the new group and handed them a smaller version. "Welcome."
Fortunately, Freya and Lloyd were both wearing gloves, otherwise, if this drug pack were somehow snatched away and their fingerprints on the gloves would be discovered. It wouldn't be a favorable situation for them to clear up. "Thanks." Lloyd said.
"I've heard of rumors, but what exactly are their effects?"
"It's a surprise." The girl advised. "You aren't allowed to ask the regulars. Try it out together since you are a couple."
Lloyd thanked her for the advice. "We will keep it in mind."
As Lloyd and Freya headed back into the bar, Guise followed them on hot heels.
"By the way, what is up with that guard beside you?" Lloyd asked, pointing at the clump of air beside him. Freya couldn't see anything though.
"As expected of werewolves, they have high senses." Guise chuckled as he let his bodyguard show himself.
"Wow," Freya acted surprised while Lloyd bowed his head slightly to the guard.
"Is he a hunter?"
"Yes. How could you tell he was male?"
"From his strides and the look in his eyes." Freya said.
"Can you really conclude something from it? From those two clues?"
"Yeah. You can't?" Freay asked, baffled why he couldn't understand. "It's really easy."
"I see. Anyways," Guise raised an eyebrow as he asked to confirm about it. "I take it that you will remember our deal?" It seemed the 'project' he spoke of was really important.
"Of course! It will pay me quite a lot so…." Freya had a nasty smirk in her eyes. "Don't worry. I quite like money so yeah. Trust me."
Guise paid his farewells as he excused himself saying he had some other matters to attend to. Lloyd caught onto what he was doing. "Just now, wasn't he trying to run away from you?"
"I don't think so. I am not that scary. On the other hand, if you only frowned," Freya made his eyebrows go down, "you would be scarier."