Hmm… which character should I use? A classic mustache-twirling villain? A space wizard who loves democracy but enjoys electrocuting people? Or should I be a deadbeat dad in black armor who likes crushing windpipes and cutting off his son's hand?
[Ewwww… What are you even thinking? Why are you going in that direction? (￣﹃￣;) ] the system cut in.
{Shut up~ Weren't you the one who told me to choose any character!?}
[Yes! I did say any character, but must you go old school like this!? C'mon! (ー_ー゛) ]
{Ughhh, fine! Let me think!}
"Why are you here, Maximilian Sterling Graham?" Strauss asked again, his hand subtly sliding into his coat.
I glanced at the old man. He didn't seem particularly wary of me… or maybe he was just confident in his quick draw, judging by his cowboy-like outfit.
Ah! I've got it.
"Tell me, Mr. Strauss. Despite your high authority and clearance, how many secrets are you truly aware of? Especially the ones that matter." I spoke in a calm, calculated tone.
Strauss was clearly caught off guard, though he did a good job maintaining his composure. Truthfully, aside from the data I copied, I didn't know sh*t.
[Don't tell me you said that just because it sounded cool? (눈_눈) ]
{Exactly.}
[ (눈_눈) ]
"What are you trying to say?" Strauss asked, eyes narrowing. Oh? He's trying to read my reaction. Nice try. With Blood Mongoose's black ops knowledge and experience in my system, that trick won't work on me.
There was no deeper meaning to what I said. I just thought it sounded cool.
I smiled... the kind of smile that suggests I know more than I really do.
"If I told you, you wouldn't believe it. It's better if you seek them out for yourself."
[Ding! You gained 500 VP for shaking Heinrich Strauss, Level 9 IHB Officer!]
[Wait! That worked!? That line actually worked!?] the system exclaimed in disbelief.
It seemed the system didn't have control over her own reward distribution, or else she wouldn't be this surprised.
With that, I walked past the two and into the darkness. The sun had already set, and I decided to use the shadows—and my ability to manipulate darkness—to vanish.
"Hey, sonny," the old man called out, and I stopped without turning around—for cool points, of course.
[ (눈_눈) ]
"For helping us apprehend Necrotox… thanks. If it weren't for you, this city might've already fallen," the old man said in his southern drawl.
[Ding! Deducted 200 VP for receiving heartfelt praise from Oldcowboy, the Veteran Hero.]
[What!?]
{What the hell!?}
Both I and the system were shocked by the message. Deducted 200 VP!? That's a thing!? So if I do something heroic and get thanked, I lose VP!?
I turned my head slightly, looking back at the old man. "It was just a coincidence. I didn't do it for you or anyone else. Don't thank me," I said, trying to sound as cold as possible.
Seriously, please... don't thank me again, old man. Every thank you give me costs me points. Just shut up already.
Oldcowboy chuckled. "So… you're that type, huh? Have it your way, son," he said with his southern drawl.
What type!? Don't go imagining something far-fetched! I'm not some brooding dark hero who refuses gratitude or anything like that!
I couldn't stay here any longer. I had the sinking feeling that if I stuck around, I'd lose all my VP before long. With that in mind, I picked up the pace and disappeared into the shadows.
"Wait! Maximilian! Come back!" Strauss called out, but I had already vanished into the darkness.
There's no way I'm sticking around any longer!
— Strauss's POV —
"Wait!" I ran to where Maximilian had vanished. But… there was no one there.
"He's already gone… There's no use searching for him. If he really is Blood Mongoose's protégé, you won't find him at night," Mr. Blackwood said to me.
"Mr. Blackwood, what do you think he really meant?" I asked, taking a deep breath to calm myself. I'd just lost my composure. That's not like me at all… I never thought those kinds of words would get to me so much.
Hearing what I said, Mr. Blackwood turned toward the abandoned house—the one that was supposed to be a safe house under the protection of the UEC. This house should've been a safe haven for Blood Mongoose's daughter.
"If you ask me, I think it's about Blood Mongoose's daughter… Maybe it was an inside job, or maybe… it was the UEC themselves," Mr. Blackwood replied, his southern drawl still thick.
I took another deep breath. Now… I'd finally calmed down.
"Mr. Blackwood, it's not that I'm naive or unaware of how the world works… but for the UEC to do something like this, Ms. Lane must pose a significant threat. Otherwise, the UEC wouldn't risk its reputation," I reasoned.
"Mr. Strauss, I don't know the exact reason behind all of this. But as that lad, Maximilian said, you need to seek out the answer yourself. Otherwise, you won't believe it. Maybe… there's some deeper meaning he wants us to uncover on our own," Mr. Blackwood said.
"You're right, Mr. Blackwood. There's no use standing around wasting time. Let's go in and see what's inside. Maybe we'll find some clues."
After that, Mr. Blackwood and I went in to search for evidence.
Even though the trail had gone cold, we were able to deduce quite a lot from a simple investigation.
For example, there had definitely been a struggle—the girl appeared to have been kidnapped. She was still preparing a meal in the kitchen and had a cup of coffee.
Judging by the half-eaten cookies and signs of a struggle, she must've been taken by surprise while going about her routine. She resisted, based on the traces of gunfire. We also found several syringes. The shots missed… she must've had good reflexes. Perhaps she received some training from Blood Mongoose.
Most importantly, we discovered tranquilizer darts, the type only UEC special forces can acquire. These kinds of darts are illegal, and even on the black market, their prices are sky-high. A normal crime syndicate or organization outside the UEC wouldn't be able to use them this wastefully, there were a lot of missed shots.
"It seems… I need to call in an investigation team," I said.
"What did you get out of all this, Mr. Strauss?" Mr. Blackwood asked.
"A lot, actually. Aside from the fact that Ms. Lane has been kidnapped by an unknown force with close ties to the UEC… I also realized something else. The one who broke into the IHB Data center last night appears to be Maximilian," I said.
"Is that because he showed up here today? Is it possible Blood Mongoose knew about this place and told Maximilian?" Oldcowboy asked.
"No, Mr. Owen Lane didn't know about this place. He died before Ms. Lane entered the program and received pensions and compensation from the UEC. The only place that records the existence of this location is the IHB Datacenter," I explained.
"I see…" Oldcowboy paused. "Then what are you going to do now? Investigate the kidnapping? Or let it go? You should already be certain that Maximilian is Blood Mongoose's protégé."
"I'll continue the investigation, Mr. Blackwood. I want to know what really happened and why there's been no report about any of this. By the way…" I paused. "What do you think of Mr. Graham?"
"That lad?" Oldcowboy smiled. "He's a good guy, what can I say. A bit shy—said he didn't do it for anyone and didn't need thanks, even looked disgusted at the idea of being thanked… but his heart is in the right place."
"Should I register him as a Hero?" I asked.
"You shouldn't, Mr. Strauss… I've got a feeling he wouldn't like that. Moreover, he seems to prefer being free. Registering as a Hero comes with baggage—you have to give up a lot of your freedom," said Oldcowboy.
— Meanwhile - Maximilian House —
Maximilian had already arrived at his house. He placed the notebook he took from the abandoned house on the table in his bedroom.
It was too late for him to tinker with it now—he needed to rest first. There were a lot of things to mull over.
[Tell me honestly, Max,] the system suddenly spoke as Maximilian lay down on the bed.
"Huh? Tell you what?"
[The character you chose to portray yourself as—was it the ninja who massacred his entire clan except for his younger brother? (눈_눈)]
Hearing the system's question, Maximilian let out a knowing smile.
"You know about it, yet you still dare call me chunibyou? If I'm a chunibyou, then you're a weeb!" he teased.
[That's not the point. The point is—that line, 'Despite your high authority and clearance, how many secrets are you truly aware of? Especially the ones that matter.' It was so cringe! How could you say that out loud!? (￣▽￣;)]
"Oi! You're the one who told me to change it, and I did! What's wrong with you?"
[I know I told you to change it, but… seriously… that brooding edgelord!? I knew you liked edgelord-type characters. Just admit it! (´∀`)]
"...."