Chapter 232: A simple…discussion
One wave of her hand.
That is all it would take for Telana Corrada, an Aether Grandmaster, to just wipe out this contemptuous youth that just appeared out of nowhere next to her without saying a single word.
However, she did no such thing.
The fact that Zhen Liu appeared out of nowhere without setting off a single alarm, guard and even her own senses until this very moment made it very, very clear that there was more to this boy than meets the eye.
Additionally, it was known fact around town at this point that Zhen Liu’s puppets took the form of accessories he wore on his person in obviously showy manners. Right now, he didn’t have a single accessory on him.
It uneased her.
“Bribery, violence, or incompetence?”
“Pardon?”
“Would you find it more believable that I bypassed your guardsmen and security measures because I bribed someone who the details, used unfettered violence to make my way here, or that whomever you left in charge of all this was grossly incompetent?,” Zhen Liu asked as he took on an air of detached arrogance. It was the type of air one would find around a crime lord, or those who could predict all the outcomes from a conversation. To Telana, it was like looking at a distorted mirror.
“Hmmm. I believe it’s safer to assume you use none of the above to get here,” Telana observed, “all of my men have been throughly vetted for loyalty and competence, and the lack of alarm and screams indicate that you use subtler means of entry.”
“Good guess.”
“But you’re not going to tell me how, are you?”
“An even better guess.”
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What actually happened about five minutes ago…
Zhen Liu stood on a roof top, observing the coming and goings of the people of the Corrada estate, while his froggy companion was doing…vocal warm-ups.
“Alright, does that stuff actually help?,” Zhen Liu asked aloud. Since there was no one else around at the moment, he could verbally converse with this kaijin as opposed to using telepathy.
Was it less convenient? Yes.
Was it kind of refreshing? Also yes.
Hurricroak finished warming up her throat before answering.
“To be fair maestro, you are asking me to knock out an entire estate’s worth of people from a distance. Without the aid of a microphone, speakers, screens attached to their hands or using a kaijin designed for such things.”
“I…what kind of core would that even use?”
“An insomniac’s desire for sleep? Sloth? A wife’s desire for their workaholic husband to take a break and just take a nap with her on the couch for once instead of planning to go on yet another meeting in a political hotzone of a city, where he’ll end up in a passionate yet ultimately meaningless affair with some manic dream boy?”
Zhen Liu have Hurricroak a funny look when he heard that last suggestion.
“That last one was weirdly specific.”
“…I might have been given access to the saucy fiction section.”
“Bruh.”
“Anyways, [Slumber Choir].”
Hurricroak took a deep breath as her body glowed an unusual purple color, moments before she let out a strange sounding song that seemed to echo with itself.
While others couldn’t see it, Zhen Liu could clearly see strange, almost dream-like notes made of aether float out of Hurricroak’s mouth and into the ears of the patrolling guards.
Clank, clank, snooze.
In a moment’s notice, the entire estate was now asleep or even deeper asleep than before.
“Cool…let’s go have possibly the most awkward conversation in my life…so far.”
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=You know, I sincerely thought you were joking about our lord putting on airs whenever he tried to be enigmatic, but I stand corrected.=
‘Both of you, zip it. I’m trying to be enigmatic here.’
=Hence the Moriarty impression?=
‘Gah!’
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“If no one knows you’re here except for me and you, what’s stopping me from killing you where you sit?,” Telana asked as plainly one would ask for tea in their sugar.
To which, Zhen Liu gave a very smug smile.
“Oh please try, I’m sure my grandfather would absolutely love to kill the woman who personally killed not just one but two members of his immediate family.”
“I thought Harold said he did it.”
“How did you know it was Harold who told my grandfather about her murder.”
“…clever bastard.”
“I try to be.”
“Tea?”
At this point, the tea she was brewing had finished, so Telana proceeded to pour a cup for herself. She of course noticed the empty cup that Zhen Liu had brought himself, and how he placed it across from her own.
“Sure, why not?,” Zhen Liu answered with ease.
As she poured the cup of tea for Zhen Liu, the sitter couldn’t help but notice the unusual color to it.
“Looks rather…exotic,” Zhen Liu mused.
“It’s made from the petals of Five Venom Roses. A rather dangerous flower, but I found the flavor of the tea rather addictive,” Telana responded as she finished pouring. She took up her own cup at this point and took a long drink.
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‘Weird question, how good is my body at handling poisons?’
‘Shut up, it felt appropriate.’
=You’re not immune to poisons yet, but you can neutralize the poisons.=
‘Really? How?’
=That depends on how badly you want to unsettle this lady.=
‘Lets go with…a lot.’
________________________________________________
As Zhen Liu reached grabbed the cup of tea with his left hand, he channeled a small bit of [Chaos] into it. The cup and its content seem to warp in place for a bit…before suddenly turning into a milkshake in a glass cup complete with a straw.
The sight of the sudden change caused Telana’s eyes to go wide, but she managed to school her expressions before it could be visible.
Zhen Liu calmly took a sip of the new drink before putting it down.
“Hmmm. Rose honey milkshake…not a bad taste.”
Telana at this point went from contempt to extreme unease at this overt display of Zhen Liu’s power. There had to be a reason for him being here, and it wasn’t just for refreshments. Unfortunately for her, the only way she could get answers was to ask questions herself.
“So…you know that I’m the one who poisoned your grandmother…are you here for revenge? To kill me?,” Telana asked.
“Mmm, not quite,” Zhen Liu answered, “If I was, then I would have told my grandfather, wouldn’t I? It’d be more his revenge than my own. And if I were to kill you, I wouldn’t be talking with you now. My…puppets would have done the deed already. Besides, my cousin has a thing for your daughter and I believe the feeling is mutual. I’d rather not sour their relationship by painting the pavement with your blood.”
Somehow, that answer didn’t put her at ease.
“Then why are you here?,” Telana asked as she began to subtly charge aether into the palm not holding the tea cup.
“Simply put?,” Zhen Liu said as he began to drink his milkshake once more, “I am here to…make a deal.”
“A deal? What kind of deal?”
“The kind where I stop the horrible visions of your past coming back to haunt you.”
“What?”
Without saying anything else, Zhen Liu produced from his pocket a single scroll of paper, the remains of a wax seal in the shape of the Wolfe Family symbol plain on it.
Telana’s face paled when she saw the paper.
“I understand the point of a contract is to record keep, but never thought it would serve as a murder confession as well. You are…cold blooded.”
