Chapter 603 - Under Suspicion (2)
After a rather absurd chit and chat, Mitsuzuka decided to give up trying to find out more. At least, he got some important points that could clear his suspicions.
Although only a split second, he successfully a.s.sessed these girls" rough strength estimation. Young, but strong... that was the impression he got when he saw their auras during the earlier argument.
For the rest, Elysia didn"t seem to have a proper background. So, she was like a rogue cultivator who was ridiculously talented in various aspects at a young age.
Because of that, the sly old man decided to recruit Elysia, but the latter refused gently and politely.
"You will get a lot of benefits working under our clan. Aren"t you interested in aiming for something more grand and great? Tell me, what are your terms and conditions?" Mitsuzuka still insisted on making an offer in between conversations.
"I"m afraid to say it again and again, but I"m still underage. It"s exploitation and I don"t want to be bound by contracts and laws. If you want, we can cooperate on good terms. Like, I sell and you buy or vice versa." Elysia shook her head.
"Sigh, very well. You always say you"re underage. That"s not a joke, is it? Are you only fifteen, hmm?" Mitsuzuka heaved a subtle sigh.
"I"m sixteen." Elysia felt somewhat relieved because it seemed that this old man would not come up with that offer again.
"Sixteen? Then, you are of the legal age to work in j.a.pan. You will be said to be underage in the business world only if you are fifteen years old or under." Mitsuzuka smirked. He wanted to know what other excuse this little girl would give now.
"E-eh? Isn"t that seventeen or eighteen?" Elysia looked to Erina for help. She is lazy to be interrogated and doesn"t want to be cornered again by this old man.
"Mou, grandfather, bad grandfather. I brought Elysia-san and Sylvia-san here to stay and introduce them to my family. It"s not for you to interrogate like this." Erina scolded her grandfather then looked at Elysia. "Please forgive my grandfather, Elysia-san. He was just overly excited and curious."
"Mm, I see." Elysia just nodded slightly.
At that moment, Elysia"s blouse sleeves accidentally lifted slightly. Kenji accidentally saw the beautiful turquoise bracelet on Elysia"s right wrist. It was oddly familiar and reminded him of something crucial for some reason.
"You have a really unique and beautiful bracelet. May I know where you got it?" Kenji asked politely. He didn"t want to scare the girl as his father did.
"Uhm, this? It belongs to someone. I"m just keeping this for her..." Elysia hid her bracelet reflexively.
"I see..." Kenji just nodded in understanding.
"Father, grandfather, it"s getting late. We"re almost bedtime, so please don"t stay up all night playing shogi and drinking sake." Erina then ended the meeting because she didn"t want Elysia to be bothered by the elder.
"Hmm, yeah, you should go to bed. Mio, prepare a guest room for Erina"s friends." Kenji didn"t beat around the bush and gave his approval right away.
"The guest room has been prepared, Kenji-sama." Mio gave a slight bow of respect.
Hearing that, Erina guided Elysia and Sylvia to leave. She accidentally touched Elysia"s arm several times, but she wasn"t too worried, considering her friend was immune from her curse.
The room fell into silence. Mitsuzuka and Kenji looked at each other with their different thoughts. A shadow suddenly came falling from above. A ninja wearing a white fox mask knelt before them.
"What did you think of the two girls earlier, Anbu?" Mitsuzuka asked in an even tone.
"They are mysterious ent.i.ties that made me gasp in surprise. My survival instincts say the snow-white haired girl was able to overpower you with ease. She had a momentary killing aura just because you suddenly applied threatening pressure to her earlier. Luckily, the black haired girl prevented it. I a.s.sume, they have mysterious powers, sir. They can hide their strength well. Perhaps, they are at the same level or higher than you." Anbu answered according to his a.n.a.lysis.
"Is it like that? Very well, you may leave now. Please monitor what those two girls are doing here. Please make sure Erina is safe." Mitsuzuka pointed his palm towards the exit.
"Yes, sir!" Anbu moved like a shadow and left the room.
"Did you see it, father?" Kenji suddenly asked, then took a bottle of sake and drank it.
"That turquoise bracelet?" Mitsuzuka raised his eyebrows.
"Not only that but also about Erina. She isn"t afraid to touch her new friend"s arm. It"s the first time I see her trying to touch someone else with her hand of her own free will and not being bothered by it.
Aah, it"s been so long, hmm... She never hugged me or gave me a peck on the cheek. Everything is due to her power awakened." Kenji sighed.
"Hey, she"s afraid of turning people into gold. You don"t even dare to get too close to her because of the same concern. That"s why she wears gloves all the time." Mitsuzuka also sighed and drank his sake.
"Haha, I guess she"s still traumatized, huh... I"m not worried about having some golden skin like you. But, look what happened just now. Our Erina doesn"t seem to have that worry when she"s with her new friend Elysia. Oh, I guess there are reports of that. I remember reading that. Wait a minute." Kenji took his tablet screen and tapped it. He looked for something and put it on the table.
"Hmm? Is it Erina and Elysia? Erina grabs Elysia"s arm casually? They really look like two girls taking a leisurely stroll." Mitsuzuka felt quite surprised and pleased to see the pictures. His granddaughter might not be so afraid of other people now.
"Not only that. Look at this one that came from Mio. Erina is literally holding Elysia"s hand bare handed. She"s not wearing gloves." Kenji pointed to a picture in the secret report.
"Hmm, that girl is really something, huh... She seems to be just trying to prove something with this. You know, she still wants to be friends with Erina even after all this. Being under close watch and supervision, pressure from possible risks, and finally from my tests. She just faced it all." Mitsuzuka stroked his beard.
"Oh, so you"re just testing the girl by being an annoying old man? I didn"t expect that, heh." Kenji rolled his eyes with a sinister smile.
After that, he turned to the main topic of his worry. He showed his father a photo of an injured six-winged golden angel. "Look at her right wrist. Elysia has the same bracelet as this injured angel."
"Is this your best photo? Where are the other pixels? I can"t see it clearly. Can"t you improve the image quality?" Mitsuzuka narrowed his eyes and brought his face closer to the screen. He wore his special gla.s.ses, and the result was the same.
"Well, the image quality has been improved a lot. You can see high quality images on various other sides of the angel. It"s just, an energy wave around her makes it a bit blurry. But, it"s still pretty clear to see. I am the one who met her in person, very close to her, and I"m sure Elysia has the same turquoise bracelet as this angel." Kenji zoomed in and out of the photo to prove his point.
"So, what you"re trying to say is that Elysia might be related to this angel? She said that she only kept the bracelet for someone. Is it possible that this angel left it to her?" Mitsuzuka connected the dots into a concluding line.
"That"s what I suspect. Let"s figure it out slowly. You"ve already scared the girl off with your over-testing and interrogation." Kenji shrugged his shoulders and downed his sake.
"Well, she wants to ask for recommendations on mysterious places and treasure spots, right? Erina only asks our intelligence for help with tasks, such as visa processing. Why don"t you talk to Elysia tomorrow regarding that. You are the one who understands the most about it, Commander Kenji. I wonder what she will say tomorrow, hehe..." Mitsuzuka"s eyes sparkled with ideas and interest. He couldn"t wait for tomorrow morning.
"Yeah, I did have that intention." Kenji put his empty sake bottle on the table and tapped his tablet screen. He made a list of recommendations, a nice bait to hook Elysia as his clan"s ally.
Meanwhile, Elysia and Sylvia were guided to a guest room. It was like a room in a five-star hotel in general, but with a traditional theme.
Erina came in and sat with Elysia and Sylvia on the sofa. Mio also came along.
"Again, I"m sorry for causing you trouble, Elysia-san, Sylvia-san. My grandfather might have been affected by sake, but I didn"t dare say so just now. He might be offended if someone said he was drunk." Erina gave a bow of apology.
"You"ve apologized for five times, Erina-san. It"s okay, we understand. I just hope he doesn"t keep interrogating me while I"m telling the truth. Can"t he judge whether I"m honest or not?" Elysia lightly patted Erina"s shoulder.
Erina then exchanged a few words with Elysia before leaving the room with Mio.
Seeing that, Sylvia snorted and pursed her lips. She still felt resentful towards that old human. "What"s with that old thing? He underestimated us. If he dares to be arrogant in front of me, and dares to corner you again, Ely. Please don"t stop me from punishing him."
"Uhm, well... Please don"t hurt anyone." Elysia sighed in surrender.
"Hehe, there are over a hundred ways to punish someone without hurting them. You don"t have to worry, Ely." Sylvia rubbed her hands together with an evil smile on her face.
Elysia, Sylvia, and Vanessa then went around the room to disable any surveillance cameras or eavesdropping devices. After that, they could rest in peace.. However, they would still sleep within the barrier to ensure their safety.