Dungeon Raider System-Chapter 622: Counter offer

Uriel had yet to hear any news about Sharp's whereabouts when Lister finally lost his patience and instead of sending Halstead like usual, he showed up in the global airport hangar numbered 07 where the Pegasus remained docked. It was his first time seeing the ship in person, yet all it took him was a sight to realize that pictures didn't make the ship any justice.

It was supposed to be a makeshift ship made with spare parts salvaged from an almost depleted lost city, but its imposing size and elegant design put the Pegasus at the same level of any Mapple corp. zepellin he had ever seen, if not even better.

Unbeknownst to the governor, while the ship itself remained idle the same couldn't be said about its crew who worked 24/7 to make the upgrades Medusa proposed. Before Uriel unveiled Lister's plan the ship was nothing but a means of transportation, but now it was their strongest weapon and their best bargaining chip.

"Please, come inside." Nika showed up from the shadows without bothering to hide the nature of her trait and gestured the two men to come in. This time it wasn't Halstead by the governor's side but Allegro.

"Are you sure it's not a problem to let me in too?" Allegro was more than used to have things his way, but now he wanted to avoid conflicts at any cost.

"Not really, we've been expecting you. Are those for me?" Nika asked in confusion after noticing the bouquet of red roses carried by the holy rank hunter to which Allegro replied by awkwardly shaking his head, though Nika didn't seem troubled. Despite Allegro's otherworldly beauty, to Nika he was nothing but a nuisance.

The further the governor ventured into the ship the more he realized that he had been misled by the reports that reached him. On paper everything was correct, they were truly a small company that struggled financially and their management lacked in many aspects. In reality, though, it translated into more power focused on fewer people.

Not even companies ten times their size possessed a zeppelin or even the means to maintain such a ship, but everything inside the Pegasus told the story of a beautifully crafted well oiled machine that was shown the same love a mother would a son.

"I have to say, this ship is way bigger than I expected." Were Lister's first words as soon as he stepped inside the meeting room.

"If you came here just to compliment the ship you tried to steal, then you're wasting both our times." Uriel said coldly.

"You know damn well why we're here. You've been playing hard to get and I can understand why, but we all know you're going to accept in the end. The thing is, we're running out of time. This is bigger than your company, bigger than any of us, it's about humanity," Lister spoke solemnly and Uriel let him speak without interruptions.

"you may think it's unfair that we tried to steal your ship, but our motives are pure. If we don't find out what's going on in the world, we may not only lose the city but our existence as a race."

"That is... unlikely." Luna spoke in her annoyingly slow manner.

"You're only saying that because you don't understand. This world is too big and there's powers at play that can't be messed with, but at the same time it's so small and fragile. Life itself is dancing on the edge of a knife, a sudden movement and it's over."

"Then help us understand why is it so important that we risk our lives for a city we don't care about." Uriel tried to keep his anger at bay, but just being in Allegro's presence made unsavory thoughts appear in his mind.

After taking a taste of the power he could wield by absorbing the life essence of a holy rank hunter all he could think of now was of taking him by surprise, stealing his life essence and becoming a holy rank hunter without any strings attached.

But he also knew there was no certainty that killing a holy rank hunter would turn him into one and the only thing he could do was to remain calm and listen to what the governor had to say.

"I'm sorry, but you're not qualified. There's so many things only high ranking officers from the government can know. Any information leak could spell the doom for humanity." Lister's voice sounded stern, yet his face seemed apologetic for some reason.

"You keep talking down to us like we're nobodies when we actually proved otherwise. I'm sick and tired of hiding what I'm capable of, I'm done infiltrating into places I should be greeted like a hero but I don't want to become a government puppet.

I just want to do my own thing and for people to let me in peace, so tell me what you want from me right now or we'll leave this city as soon as you step out of this ship." Uriel knew as well as Lister that exiting the city by air could be potentially dangerous, at least until they found out the reason why no other zeppelins had showed up.

However, his poker face was so impeccable Lister had no choice but to believe him. freewёbnoνel.com

"You know how we keep telling the masses that we're at war against cryptids, that we're close to victory and that a single hunter can make the difference? That is all lies. The world already ended." Lister expected a reaction from the young archaeologist in front of him, but he didn't expect it to be laughter.

"That's all? All this secrecy about something anyone with a brain can find out on their own?" Uriel could barely speak due to how much he laughed.

"You already knew?" Lister lifted his eyebrows in shock. It was the second time he was taken by surprise by Uriel, but this time it didn't bother him in the slightest.

"We all figured it out. Humanity was in the verge of collapse even before the arrival: contamination, riots, pandemics, starvation, war, you name it. By the time cryptids arrived they didn't make much of a difference."

"They are just one step above on the food chain." Luna nodded.

"Then... why don't you want to help us? Don't you want to help us rebuild civilization?" Lister stuttered his words as the new information was starting to sink in. If the Dungeon Raiders knew humanity was struggling to survive and even then refused to help, the only explanation he could think of was that they simply didn't care.

Of all the possibilities this was the one what scared him the most as it meant he didn't have anything to bargain with.

Money, resources, anything he could offer would be meaningless as they could simply stock their ship and wait out until the city fell to take anything they wanted for themselves. Scavenging and looting lost cities was the most common trade of hunters and it wouldn't be long until the megacity of Hollywood became one.

"Don't get us wrong. We do want to help, but in our own terms. First, my baby is completely off limits. Wherever it goes I go." Medusa explained.

"Second, I want to know the whereabouts of my sister. Tate said she resigned the army and moved out of the city on her own, but no one knows where to." Luna added.

"I'll see what I can do..." Lister managed to say before being cut off by Uriel who pushed a few pages in front of him. The handwriting was clear and beautiful portraying the calligraphy of someone who spent years practicing it, someone who didn't have a smartphone for most of its life, yet there was something unsettling about the deep red ink.

"It's blood." Allegro pointed out, his holy rank senses allowed him to identify even the faintest trace of blood in the air and the paper sheets reeked.

"This is..." The more Lister read the document the more shocked his expression became until his jaw almost hit the ground, yet the biggest surprise was when Uriel handed him a fountain pen he knew too well.

"Don't get any funny ideas, it's mine now." Uriel shrugged, though in reality he didn't care if the governor attempted to steal it. All he would need to do to recover it was to spare a thought and the fountain pen would be stored back in his museum.

"I don't know how do you intend to do any of what's listed in this paper... but if you hold your part of the deal, I'm more than willing to do the same." Lister's eyes were glistening in emotion. The contents of the contract were deranged to say the least, but after being taken aback so many times he had no reason to doubt his words. "Just to be sure.

You do know that pen is actually an artifact and that any contract written with it must be fulfilled?"

"I'm counting on it." Uriel let out a devilish smile when Lister hurried to sign the paper in front of him.