Chapter 71 - Make A Choice

Fade looked at the man once more and sighed. This wasn't the first time he had received such a request. Even back in his old world that was more chaotic than this one, there were some that didn't want to kill their enemies. Fade could see the same kindness in them that his sister once had. This was also the reason why his kind sister was killed. 

If he had acted back then and killed his clan members when he felt their killing intent he would've prevented his sister's death, but of course, his sister stopped him from doing that. Still, even though he could've overpowered his sister back then he did not. Back then he didn't want to taint his sister's kindness. 

"I understand... I understand your hesitation but think about your daughter. If I save her and bring her back to you, what do you think will be the reaction of the Yui Clan? They would definitely hunt you down to get your daughter back. Is that what you want to do, to be forever running?"

When John heard what Fade had to say he once again became silent. He knew deep down that was what was going to happen if he took back his daughter. The two of them would be unable to live normally and would have to move from place to place frequently. The only option they would have left would move to the neighboring Empire. Once they do that the country would consider them as traitors and they would never be able to return, that was assuming the Empire would take them in the first place. 

Still, even though he knew all that he just couldn't find the heart to tell Fade to kill his wife's siblings. 

"... No... I can't, I just can't..." 

"I see... Do not worry I would not allow your heart nor your soul to be tainted by these things. I will give you two choices." Fade tossed a card that had Matsuri's name and badge number. 

"Choice number one ask for help from Detective Matsuri, just don't tell her that it was I who sent you. If you don't do anything after two days, choice number two will take effect. Choice number two is me doing my job the way I see fit. No matter what choice you make, it will not taint you for I will take all the sins onto myself. Do not worry, I'm already stained black from all I have done. Surely there's no longer any saving for my soul, so it doesn't matter how many more stains my heart and soul take in, for as long as I can save the next person, then I'm sure she'll be happy." 

John lifted his head to look at Fade, but he was no longer there. In a daze, John suddenly heard Fade's voice echo throughout the shrine. 

"John, just do what you think is right and I will honor it no matter what." After saying those words the shrine once again became silent. John picked up the card and once again looked around. 

...

John returned to his empty apartment fiddling with the card he just received. He went out filled with so much hope but came back with nothing. 

'Should I have asked Fade to kill them?... No, I'm sure that even they wouldn't stoop so low that they would kill their sister that loved them so much. Even if they did, she would never want me to take revenge for her.'

John gnashed his teeth as he looked at the card in his hand. He had two days to decide what to do or else Fade would most likely kill all of his wife's siblings. 

...

The night after John and Loki spoke with each other, Loki was now currently looking at the Yui Clan's estate from a distance. Like most of the martial artist clans, the Yui Clan was hidden in a secret area.

After Harold did some more research he was able to find this secret location. It took Loki several hours to get to this place. He had quickly left the library once the school was over. Loki was rather surprised to see this place that was hidden within the mountains and trees. 

'The mana here isn't as much as the mana in the library but it's still rather abundant compared to other places. Does that mean martial artists strengthen their so called inner energy from the mana of the world? No that can't be it, since I already tested my own inner energy a bit, and the way to strengthen it is different from mana. Then why did this martial arts clan set up in this place, it can't be a coincidence.' 

While Loki was thinking about things, he noticed some movement at the front gates of the Clan. There were several cars coming out of the clan, and despite using [Enhancement] with the aid of binoculars Loki could not see through the windows of the car. He clicked his tongue as he shook his head.

'I better stop thinking about other things, and focus on the mission at hand.'

Loki continued to observe the outside of the Clan Estate and was rather surprised. Unlike the time with the gangs, this Estate was a true fortress that had no weak point that he could see. 

If he had more mana supply he could have used [sensing] to see how many people were within the estate. Yet despite there being more mana in this place than other places he could not do it. It would seem that only the library had enough mana to spare for him to be able to use the spell to scan such a big place. 

'I guess I have no choice but to infiltrate the place. Now with my current limited abilities, this might actually pose a challenge. Not to mention I have no idea how strong the master of this place is...' 

Loki sighed as he started walking towards the walls of the Estate. He didn't get too close as he tried to observe the guards roaming around. It would seem that unlike that time with the Harada family, there were no security cameras anywhere. 

'I guess they're confident in the strength of their guards and now that I look at this place closer, it actually feels like the fortresses back in the old world. They're not using too much technology and the place seems to be stuck in the past. I guess they might feel a bit of disdain in using such things that non martial artists use. Well, that's better for me.' 

Loki silently closed in on one of the guards roaming the outer perimeter. Before the guard noticed Loki's existence Loki had already slipped past him and climbed the outer wall without anyone noticing.