RE: Reality Smuggler (R-18)

A few minutes earlier...

 

"Do you think that Assassin is after us?" - Robert asked while driving, his eyes somewhat red.

[Unlikely. Class 4 personnel are strategic assets and usually won't waste their time if they can't get immediate results. The likely scenario would be that the Assassin would neutralize us when using our smartphones and try to find the hideout's location, which he didn't do.] - Eloise said without her mechanical voice.

"Please don't say anymore! I have insomnia these days..." - Madison shook in the back seat.

Robert, Madison, and Eloise were driving back home from the hotel. After staying there for a couple of days without getting attacked, they concluded they were not being tracked, so they got orders to return to the hideout.

Of course, they didn't drive home directly but took several detours, and they were now driving through a wealthy neighborhood in Capitol Hill near the marina.

"By the way, you are using your scanning ability, right?" - Robert asked.

"For the third time, YES! I haven't stopped since we left the hotel!" - Madison retorted with red eyes.

[Stop shouting. You are giving me a headache.] - Eloise said while holding her head. Her remaining eye was also red.

"Sorry... Hey, I have a reading!" - Madison suddenly exclaimed.

On reflex, Robert slammed his leg on the brakes.

BREAK*

"Ah! Robert! WTF!" - Madison cursed.

"Sorry! I'm also on edge." - Robert sheepishly said.

[What is the reading?] - Eloise asked with no nonsense.

"It's a class 1 reading, and it's from that house over there." - Madison reported and pointed at a house they just passed.

"Class 1? That's... low." - Robert said with a frown.

"Yeah, it's there, but it's blurry. Do you think it's him?" - Madison worriedly asked.

[Unlikely. He would likely hide his aura from now on. However, there is a chance that he is a contact. Find that house's number and go.] - Eloise ordered.

Robert grimly nodded and drove next to the house.

"Okay, it's on Summit Ave E, number XX..." - He said.

Just at that moment...

"Hey, that aura is unstable and is steadily rising." - Madison said.

[Drive, now.] - Eloise ordered.

Not asking questions, Robert hit the gas and drove away.

"Hey, what happened?" - Madison asked.

"There are only two options for the case you described. One, a high-class Assassin deliberately raised his aura to drive us away, which is unlikely. As for the second option..."

[Ichor Injection.] - Eloise completed his sentence and took out her phone.

"Seriously?! Who is crazy enough to do that in the city?!" - Madison exclaimed.

"Either from an enemy country, some high-tier criminal... or Sun's Advent itself." - Robert grimly said.

The moment Madison heard Sun's Advent, she went silent.

That is because Sun's Advent is the sole provider of Ichor in the world. Everyone, from the major powers to the crime syndicates and terrorist groups, gets their supply from Sun's Advent.

All the fights between Supers are like weapon tests for them, and the national Supers are like lab rats using experimental shit. The Good Stuff is all kept in their hands. Nobody knows how strong they are, but all their elders are class 4.

As for their influence? They are like the real-life version of the Illuminati, with their members being some of the most influential people in the world, and many Supers are under their agents.

Meanwhile, Eloise's phone call reached.

{Eloise, our most respected mistress! What's the matter?} - A man with a thick Russian accent sounded.

[Cut the bullshit, Giovanni. Find me all info on Summit Ave E, number XX.]

{Okay! Hang on a second. I'll connect to city records. Care to tell me what happened?}

[Either we found the guy, or someone is conducting an Ichor Injection. Is anyone from Sun's Advent?]

{Damn! That's bold. Hm... Okay! Found it. The owner is Tess Hudson, a wealthy Stocks trader, and she lives with her boyfriend, Gulliver Goodman. The boyfriend is unremarkable in all aspects, but the girl seems a bit off. Until recently, she was a fat and ugly lass, but it took two years to become a hot bombshell I would like to get in bed. Lucky bastard.} - Griovvani said with a voice oozing envy.

However, Eloise didn't care about that.

[Drastic body changes are a flag. Anything else?] - She asked.

{Hm... Not really. Oh! It seems like her changes started after meeting that Gulliver guy. And he seemed to have supported her for two years ever since she was an ugly monster. I give him three claps out of respect. Clap* Clap* Clap*}

[Is it authentic?] - Eloise asked, ignoring his antics.

{Yes. I had AI check photos. It seems legit.}

[Then that Gulliver guy is the problem. Check his background.] - Eloise determined.

{Okay! Let me check... Wow. Just wow. His father is a piece of shit. So much that I need to give him claps too! Clap* Clap* Clap*.}

[Focus.] - Eloise said coldly.

{Ah! Right, right. Let's see... the father's side is dirtying my eyes, but clean, and the mother's side... Ouch. She is an orphan and has mental issues. She left both kids to her grandfather, who also raised her.}

[Check him.] - Eloise ordered, but her hopes waned.

{Okay! Okay! Let's see... Aha! Alaskan Gold Miner. Very popular with Alaskan ladies. The record is clean otherwise. Hm... But his origin is a bit weird. Little is explained before 1937, only surfacing in Alaska, and no family testimonials, but born in 1919 in Germany. Possibly an illegal immigrant or Jewish refugee. He died on the 8th of this month, very old.}

When Eloise heard it, her expressionless face frowned for the first time.

[Born in 1919? Little explained before 1937? And he died this month? Are you sure?] - She asked to confirm.

{Yes, I'm sure.} - Giovanni answered.

[... Refocus on that Gulliver. Any recent abnormal behavior?] - She asked.

{Let me check... Hm... He quit his side job after his great-grandfather died and then moved in with that Tess. Nothing else of note.} - He said.

[... Thank you, Giovanni. End the call now.]

{Okay! Tell me if you need anything.}

Bip*

 

"What did you find?" - Robert asked.

Eloise didn't even look at him as she dialed a new number.

[... Nothing. I need to make a classified call. Pull over.] - She ordered.

Hearing that, Robert shut up and parked the car. Some things are better left unknown. You live longer that way.

Meanwhile, Eloise exited the car just as the new call reached, but there was no sound.

However, Eloise wasn't concerned as she dialed another ten numbers.

Only then did the call pass.

{Number 721, what is it?} - A voice asked.

[The break of True Dawn is upon us.] - Eloise said.

{... Where?} - Was all the man asked, but his voice was half-shaking.

[Washington, Seattle, Summit Ave E, number XX.]

{Who?} - The man impatiently asked.

[Gulliver Goodman.]

{... Thank you, Number 721. We will take things from here.}

Bip*

 

She then returned to the car.

"What happens now?" - Robert asked.

Madison also looked over, curious.

[We go back. It is off our hands now.] - Eloise closed her tired eyes.

 

...

 

In the meantime...

"SHITFUCK! Me and my goddamn DOG LUCK! Fucking Murphy's law just LOVES KICKING MY BALLS!!!" - I was cursing while packing things.

The three assholes in the farmer's market came close to us again and scanned the house.

I was safe, but Tess wasn't.

Although Conceal Presence was raised to 7, the Dark Idol can only exhibit it up to its current grade.

While Tess was unconscious, I couldn't help but worry, so I upgraded her house to grade 5, its limit, costing a good 1,875 points, and used concealment on Tess, but it seems like it wasn't enough.

 

Basic Energy: 288,128 -> 286,253

Evolution Energy A: 20,127

Enhancement Energy A: 104,078

 

Although they didn't lock onto her, it was enough to sense her direction; Her house.

And how do I know that? They immediately stopped their car, NEXT TO HER HOUSE! And I well-damn felt that full-throttle scan.

Really, what are the odds? Like, for real, what are the fucking odds?

I think getting into a deadly car accident is more likely.

"Trod, tell me for real. Am I cursed?!" - I asked while packing Tess's clothes.

Ever since I got that damn amulet, I had an unlucky streak.

It is as if the moment I make the slightest mistake, the world would lash at me.

{You are not cursed. You are just being punished for a poor call of judgment. Perhaps you should think thrice before getting blinded by sex.}

"..."

I had no way to retort to that.

I then looked at Tess, who was up in flames.

"... I need something to cover her up." - I muttered.

I quickly found a bedsheet and wrapped it around her... Which didn't help much. Flames seeped through the sheet. And I didn't have a suitable box to put her in.

"... No choice." - I muttered and made a bold decision.

I placed my hand on her and enhanced her Universal Energy affinity to 5.

With this, the remaining time would be reduced by close to half.

And next...

 

Reduce Cost 6. Reduces the cost of teleporting by 60%. Price: 9,000 Enhancement Energy A

Reduce Cost 7. Reduces the cost of teleporting by 70%. Price: 63,000 Enhancement Energy A

Mass Teleportation 6: Allows the Host to Teleport with 6 more living creatures, but the cost of carrying them is 5 times that of the Host. Price: 9,000 Enhancement Energy A

 

Basic Energy: 286,253 -> 186,253

Evolution Energy A: 20,127

Enhancement Energy A: 104,078 -> 13,078

 

With this, teleporting with Tess will only cost 2.1 times the regular price. It is enough for me to teleport around 880 km.

After ensuring I didn't forget anything, I put on Arly.

"Arly, find me cargo planes that are about to take off at the nearby airport." - I ordered.

[Sure. Here are a few.] - Arly said and displayed things on her screen.

There was such a moving company 1.5 miles away.

"Perfect." - I said and picked up Tess.

I then walked to the window and looked at a roof.

"Teleport."

Fwoosh*

Immediately, I found myself on the roof of a neighbor. I then looked toward the airport and teleported from ceiling to ceiling.

It took me less than a minute to arrive at the airport's ceiling, which was 14.5 miles away. Of course, I wasn't traveling in a straight line, so it cost around 5,500 points.

"Scan for an international freight plane that takes off soon. I don't care where." - I said.

[Okay... Go to terminal 2. China Airlines.]

"Seriously? China?" - I raised an eyebrow.

[You said anything.] - Arly retorted.

"China it is, then." - I muttered and looked over and saw the plane.

The last cargo was being loaded, and the back cargo door was open, so I waited until the door was closing before teleporting inside the cramped plane.

And then, I carefully took Tess through the dense cargo, where I found a relatively comfortable place to stay.

"Hah... I won't forget this..." - I muttered, my eyes cold.

While I was waiting, a worker came over to check if all the cargo was safely fastened.

And then he saw us.

He widened his eyes in shock and was about to speak when...

[[Ignore.]] - I spoke in True Words.

Hearing my words, the worker shook before shaking his head.

"... I must be seeing things." - The worker muttered and continued walking.

 

Twenty minutes later, the flight took off.

 

...

 

Vrr* Vrr* Vrr* Vrr*

Too* Too* Too* Too*

Armored carriers and military helicopters surrounded Tess's house, causing the neighborhood to enter lockdown.

"MOVE! MOVE! MOVE!"

Entire squads of heavily armed special forces swarmed Tess's house.

BAM* Shatter*

Breaking through the doors and windows, the special forces searched the house.

"Clear!" "Clear!" "Clear!"

The soldiers reported one after another.

"There is no sign of the terrorists, Sir!" - A commanding officer reported into the intercom.

On one of the helicopters, three middle-aged men and a woman sat.

"So he smelled trouble and slipped away, hah? Sly bastard. Corey, find anything?" - One of the men asked.

"Nothing. I can't sense him." - Another man shook his head.

"Even one of the only three infamous class 4 detectors can't sense him. Either he has top-notch stealth powers, or he left the city. We should have been here earlier." - The woman frowned.

"It's hard to assemble us on such short notice. You even fished Juan here from the Mexican border. It's a miracle that we could assemble here in six hours." - The last man pursed his lips.

"It's too late for anything now. Looking for him is like looking for a specific fish in the vast ocean. All we can do is hope the net we placed would catch him."

 

.

.

.

 

Rattle* Rattle*

The plane shook, the space was cramped, and the air was thin and cold, making my experience all that uncomfortable.

I hugged the still-burning Tess on the plane to keep us both warm, but it did little to warm the coldness in my heart.

"I hate this..." - I muttered.

"I fucking hate this situation..."

"I didn't do anything wrong, but I fucking have to leave my house and identity like a fleeing dog over a moment of carelessness."

Thinking of this, my eyes turned cold, murder flashing in them.

"I was being too soft... Getting money through stocks like some goody-two-shoes. I need to step up my game and take what I want, like how they want to take from me."

"I will now start flipping the playing board."

"No more mister nice guy..."

Just as I finished muttering this, the flames covering Tess were absorbed, and she woke up.

"Iver?" - Tess asked, confused, and looked around.

"Where are we?" - She asked.

"Inside a plane straight to Shanghai." - I bitterly answered.

"Shanghai?! What happened while I was out?" - Tess asked, surprised.

"Murphy's law happened. The Supers detected you, so I had to take you and run away. Hah..." - I sighed.

"... I'm sorry... It's all my fault... I shouldn't have pressured you..." - Tess started crying.

Seeing her like this, I comfortingly hugged her closer and kissed her forehead.

"It's alright. We will get through this together." - I comforted.

"Mm..." - Tess snuggled closer to me.

"However, we might be in trouble now. It will take eight hours for the plane to land, so during this time, I need you to learn to control your shapeshifting and hide your mental energy." - I said.

"But what will we do then?" - Tess asked.

"That's simple!" - I smiled.

"We become the bad guys."