Arias had delayed leaving his residence that day. Between the constant calls being received on his phone and the sound of notifications, he could see the events from the previous night creating a sort of wave among the social elite. Unfortunately, he had little interest in the mundane matters that offered very little return in the long run… unless something caught his eye.
Rather than entertaining the ass-kissers and backstabbers, Arias spent his morning studying a profile. Through Roulette, he received quite the useful file regarding Mercy, the final piece he needed to deal with Luthor.
But unlike the individuals he had encountered thus far who were naive, lacked knowledge, were easy to manipulate, or tempted by money, Mercy was driven by something else.
"A sort of one-sided love?"
This thought crossed Arias's mind as he sat on his sofa with a digital data pad in one hand and a drink in the other. Following this train of thought, Apeiro's voice resounded within his mind to comment on the matter.
"[From what I've witnessed, love among lower life forms is like a disease,]" she voiced, with some disdain in her tone.
Her tone caused Arias to raise a brow, but he didn't pursue it. Apeiro was always upfront with her thoughts, so if she didn't elaborate on something herself, Arias could only assume it was a topic she didn't want to go into detail about.
A part of Arias was quite curious about what had transpired in her life as his mother and the events that had led up to it. However, being the type of person he was, Arias could only hope to let it go with time. The past was the past.
"It's more like a drug than anything else. To some, it could be the best experience they've ever had… while to others, it's nothing but a source of tragedy and empty bank accounts."
Following his answer, Apeiro proceeded to ask, "[So how do you plan to deal with her? Woo her? Or leave her no choice?]"
Arias just smiled at this before shaking his head. "A subtle combination of both. I know better than to try and change the heart of a woman in love. Direct force isn't an option either."
"[I see, so then?]"
"It's a matter of making her see the bigger picture. Unlike Barbara or Harley, she's not naive or too far blinded by love. She can at least understand the situation. Lex's lack of affection towards her doesn't do him any favors either, but—"
*Knock*
Before Arias could speak further on the matter, a knock resounded on his door and caused him to shift his attention. Apeiro's voice also grew fainter once this occurred as she said, "[Seems you're needed.]"
She didn't try to hide the annoyance in her voice, but Arias didn't point it out. Rather, he just stood from his seat and opened the front door.
Upon doing so, he immediately came face to face with Diana, who wore a complex expression on her face.
"Is something bothering you?" he asked immediately upon noticing her facial expression.
In response, she looked to both sides of the hallway she stood in. At that point, no one was present; even Slade was doing one of his casual rounds of the building. At that point, Arias could tell that Slade at least had some suspicion that Arias was more competent than he let on, but since nothing was said, he continued to act his role as well.
After looking both ways with a not-too-subtle glance, Diana finally spoke. "I'm unsure if this is normal, but Harley seems odd today, unlike her usual self. I felt you should know this and that perhaps you could shed light on the matter."
Although sudden, the question didn't come as a surprise to Arias. Since Diana hadn't been around in the secular world long, it was no surprise that she didn't know about the relationship between Joker and Harley.
However, Arias didn't have the time to entertain her questions, so he gave her a rough explanation of the events and just advised her to give Harley space. He himself knew he couldn't approach her again too early. She had to mourn or whatever nonsensical emotion she was feeling.
But like with most women, it would come to pass, and he knew this, so he didn't stress. After all, it wasn't like she was essential to his plans.
Satisfied with the short but elaborate explanation, Diana nodded and placed her hands on her hips with her head high before commenting, "It all makes sense; she made the right choice."
Diana's answer lacked empathy, but that could be easily associated with her lack of understanding towards people and her bluntness.
Thankfully, she had no more exhausting questions to ask, so Arias could also leave and pursue his own matters. The matter being Mercy.
He approached the door to her residence not long after leaving his own. Mercy was not expecting his visit; after all, thus far, he kept her at a distance due to her obvious relation to Lex.
After opening the door, she showed some slight confusion before displaying a look of annoyance and responding rudely, "What do you want?"
Arias ignored her question and just let himself into her assigned residence while shifting his gaze around the place.
Mercy obviously disliked this and didn't hesitate to express her disapproval. "Boss or not, could you not enter my place as you please?"
Her brows furrowed and her eyes narrowed as she said this, but Arias only smiled before asking, "Or what? You'll quit?"
He wore a smug look on his face as he said this, as if saying she couldn't go anywhere else. This greatly irritated her, but she didn't reply, as if holding her words back.
Seeing her reluctant to curse him, Arias's smirk grew even wider before he approached her and circled her figure.
"Lex was right, you do have quite the temper," he commented, causing Mercy to grow curious and answer in return, "He said that about me?"
Arias proceeded to laugh mockingly at her before shaking his head. "No, but it's entertaining to see you so excited at the prospect of him mentioning you."