Chapter 95

Beyond the Veneer

Almost two months rapidly passed as the New Year began approaching. Cain noted quite a few things that had happened in the meantime -- the ‘Death’s Phantom’, for instance, made the very top of the list of the ‘Top 10 Strongest Conquerors’ as well as the ‘Top 10 Mysterious Conquerors’. Several investigations have been launched into the enigmatic figure but none have yielded any results.

After that day, there were no more attempts at Rick’s life and it looked as though whoever was behind the assassination attempt learned their lesson. Cain, however, wasn’t as quick to believe it; highly cynical of the human nature, he knew that the people who resided on the top for most of their lives would hardly ever relent at the first signs of trouble. That was also one of the reasons he had asked Rick to keep a closer eye on his associates as that was one of the easier ways to get close to him.

Beyond that, he largely stuck to his original plan not to go back into the Tower just yet. That, however, wasn’t the case for others. Everyone except for him had ventured back into the Tower at least two times, mainly so that they can slowly make their way to Level 40 as a prerequisite for the challenge on the Second Floor. Furthermore, it was always done in pairs and Cain usually sent them to some of the more hidden, but still relatively close, grinding spots on the First Floor.

Lukas and Daniel made the most trips as they were the lowest levels of the group, usually escorted either by Jamal or Emma. In part it was due to levels, but also in part it was due to Cain aiming to give them an opportunity to grab some better gear that was far more suited for their classes.

Furthermore, about a week ago, everyone rushed back into the Tower except for him -- the whole party of six plus even Rick who got a bit jittery after not having gone back inside for so long. Save for Lukas and Daniel, Cain suspected others should hit level 40 by the end of this trip which was also when he planned on going back into the Tower and to the Second Floor.

In the meantime, he spent most of his time playing around with Lana and occasionally visiting Rick’s warehouses to see whether there were any new, interesting items that could provide some value. He’d found nothing, however, except for one, single-use item that he picked up on a whim:

//Eyer’s Grace(B-) One-time Use

Activate: Increase Main Stats of up to 10 people by 20% for eight hours. Does not stack.//

The item was a precursor to many, much more powerful buffing consumables that would start to appear more frequently on the Fifth Floor and above. Though it sounded spectacular, in reality, it was good for one boss battle at best as eight hours was really nothing in the Towers.

It was still decent to have; if for nothing then as a trump card of sorts in case they ran into some unexpected situations.

Yawning, he stood up from the sofa and went to the balcony, glancing over the railing and at the living world down below. A great deal has changed in the past two months, especially globally. However, he hardly focused much on it; to him, it didn’t particularly matter just how many raging wars were occurring at the same time across the world over the Towers -- he’d lived through it all once already. Wars would continue to happen until, eventually, they would turn to skirmishes between corporations. Though nations would continue to exist, it would mostly be in name alone as their governing bodies would hardly have the influence to govern anything.

“Hm?” he glanced down curiously at the gates of the apartment complex, noting that the guards were having a heated discussion with some. Charging Body into his eyes, he took a closer look, noticing a man in his mid to late twenties. Though Cain didn’t recognize him, his features did seem familiar.

Seeing as Lana was still fast asleep, and as he was somewhat bored, he stretched for a moment before leaping over the railing and landing gently in front of the apartment building through charging Wind to slow down his descent. Startling the few guards around, they looked at him in eerie wonder as he sauntered over to the front, ignoring their gazes.

“What’s going on?” he asked one of the guards as he climbed the wall and looked down.

“A-ah, Mr. Gregory,” the man jumped, startled for a moment, before replying. “Some random man showed up a couple of minutes ago claiming we have kidnapped his younger sister and threatening to go public with his accusations.”

“Oh?”

“When we asked him who his little sister is,” the man continued. “He instead demanded access into our compound to look for her himself.” Ah! Cain only now realized why the man seemed so familiar -- after all, blonde hair and blue eyes weren’t exactly common.

“... let him in.” Cain said, smiling strangely.

“Huh? Are you sure?”

“Yeah, just tell him his sister is in the lobby.” he added before turning around and walking back over to the apartment complex and sitting down into one of the very comfy chairs of the lobby, taking out a cigarette and lighting one up. If he’s her family, Cain mused inwardly while waiting for the man. I first gotta figure out what kind. It’d be better to just keep him here until she shows up, though.

He didn’t need to wait for long -- just a minute or two -- before the man sauntered into the lobby with a deeply-etched frown on his face, looking around maniacally. However, he only spotted Cain sitting down and smoking, his frown deepening, as he made his way over.

“Hey, you,” the man called Cain out, prompting the latter to look up with a confused expression on his face. “There should be a girl here. Where is she?”

“Oh, you mean the girl? Yeah man, she’s right there, next to you.”

“What? There is nobody here except for you.”

“Oh my God! You can’t see her?!” Cain exclaimed flamboyantly. “She’s all spooky and stuff, man. Whispering crazy nonsense. It’s a good thing you can’t see her.”

“... you people have kidnapped my sister!” the man exclaimed, veins popping up on his forehead. “I demand to see her, right now!”

“Or, or,” Cain said, smiling faintly. “Maybe, just maybe, of course, your sister ran away from home ‘cause you tried to marry her off to a guy three times her age when she was sixteen. But, y’know, what the hell do I know? I’m just some random guy who can see ghosts.”

“Don’t lie to me!” the man erupted. “My sister knows her holy mission and she would never jeopardize it! You people must have fed her head with lies when you kidnapped her!”

“... she’s not here,” Cain said, putting away the cigarette and standing up, casually walking over to the man. “And, I recommend, you don’t be either.”

“A-are you threatening me?!” the man asked as Cain stopped in front of him, looming half a head over the man. “I will sue--”

“Pipe down,” Cain’s voice turned chilled as he interrupted the man. “I’m not in the mood for entertaining your crippling inability to be a normal human being. I don’t know what happened between her and you lot, but I sure as hell know whatever it was, she was in the right. So, while I’m still being generous, take your ass back to whatever woods you crawled out from.”

“.. o-or what?” the man asked, not wanting to back down. “You can’t scare me! God is on my side!”

"I'm sure he is, buddy," Cain said. "But I imagine he's too busy dealing with people who don't sell their sisters off into marriage to care for what happens to you. So, I'll say it again -- get out of here and run as far as your legs carry you. Or, and I mean this with all of my heart, I will splatter your brains against that wall.”

“E-eh? Craig?!” Cain jumped at the newcomer’s voice, turning to the side where he saw a party of six walking into the lobby. Senna jumped out among the masses and exclaimed, prompting the man to turn to the side, seeming reinvigorated.

“You were here! I know these people kidnapped you and I came to rescue you! Come with me, now. Family is waiting for us."

“Kidnapped... her?” Emma tilted her head bemusedly.

“Man, I did not know we were in the business of kidnapping young girls,” Jamal joined. “Now I feel kinda bad.”

“... they didn’t kidnap me, Craig,” Senna said, sighing lowly. “I ran away. But... you already know that. You need to go.”

“Don’t listen to their bedeviled lies, Senna!!” the man exclaimed hurriedly. “Your cause was just and holy! The world is full of sin and it doesn’t understand! You--”

“Shut up!!” Senna interrupted him with an angered look on her face. “I’m sick and tired of your bullshit! I never want to see you again, do you understand?! Never!” she abruptly ran off and away from the group, causing everyone to frown as they looked at the man.

“I’ll talk to her,” Cain said as he made his way toward the elevator. “You guys get him out.”

By the time Cain reached the elevator, she had already taken off. Sighing, he entered a different one and went up to her floor. He found her sitting on a sofa, red-eyed, the silence reigning supreme. For a time now her iron-like countenance had managed to fool them all, Cain included. However, right now, she appeared... so fragile, Cain realized, like a glassed cup. At the end of the day, no matter her bravado, she was only a sixteen-year-old girl thrust into a very unforgiving and cold world... well before the Towers fell.

Cain sat next to her and stewed in silence, watching the hands of the clock hanging on the opposite wall tick, second by second.

“Do... do you think I’m weak for running off?” Senna asked abruptly, well into their silence.

“To be honest,” Cain replied. “That was the first time you behaved like my very skewed image of how a sixteen-year-old teenage girl behaves. So, no, I guess.”

“... he was a good brother,” Senna added, curling her knees up against her chest and resting her chin on top of them. “I always believed that. He’d buy me dolls, cute dresses, would play with me... but... he bought into the story, you know? When I was told I’d be getting married, I genuinely wanted him to stand up. But... just like the rest... he remained silent. I don’t blame him, though.”

“...”

“Just like me, he spent his whole life in that hellhole.” she continued. “But unlike me, he never had to compromise who he was. He cares for me, I know. Yes, it’s in his own, twisted and warped way... but he does care. Deep down, he truly believes I will burn in hell unless I spend my entire life repenting. And that belief is what drives his fear.”

“...”

“... aren’t you gonna say anything?” Senna mumbled lowly after Cain remained silent.

“There isn’t much for me to say, though,” Cain said, sighing and putting his hand on her head gently. “Other than that I’m proud of you. When I was your age, I was a growing, nervous train wreck. I’d fold under pressure and I was slowly beginning to morph into an eventual shitstain I’d become. But you... you are a different breed entirely, aren’t you?”

“...” Senna silently rolled her eyes before closing them, enjoying the warmth of his hand. “You and Emma... are amazing, you know? You two are basically like kids that forgot they grew up. Yet... every once in a while... you remind us that, indeed, you aren’t kids.”

“I can’t quite say whether that was praising us or insulting us... so, I’m gonna run with the former.”

“Ha ha ha,” laughing freely, Senna slanted forward and leaned into his shoulder. “Teach me, at least.”

“What?”

“How to be so carefree!”

“Oh, that’s simple,” Cain said. “Just look at the world… and pretend everything is a joke!”

“Everything?”

"Yup, everything!" Cain nodded. "Your struggles, my struggles, struggles of the millions, and billions of other people. One reason why we get so emotionally exhausted all the time is that we are constantly bombarded with sad and depressing news. In the end, though, we only have so much empathy to give. Savor it for the few moments where people you love are living through their hell. We can't care about everyone and everything… just hope that what we have to offer is enough to those we want to care about.”

“I dunno… that sounds really unhealthy.”

“Oh, trust me, it’s the worst,” Cain added with a laugh. “Imagine being that big of an asshole that you literally partition your empathy. Sheesh, talk about a lost cause.”

“So… uhm… I mean…”

"..." Cain glanced down at the awkward-seeming girl who was biting her lower lip and curling up her toes. "You're already one of us, kiddo," he added. "I'm always here. So is Em'. Come hell or high waters, you can just hide behind us and we'll take it all on. But it's a fair trade-off -- if you do something fucked up, I will ground you for a month. No phone, no computer, no Tower. So, tread carefully, young lady.”

“... it’s scary,” Senna mumbled, closing her eyes. “How quickly you make people drop their guard around you. I dunno… there’s something so harmless about you it’s ridiculous.”

“That’s true -- I would never even hurt a fly!”

“Ah, yes, wouldn’t hurt a fly, but is pretty cool with committing mass murder~~”

“... y’know, you lot are fairly casual about the whole mass-murder thing,” Cain said, looking down dubiously. “Even Em’ just gave me an hour-long lecture about how I shouldn’t do it anymore. For a reference, she once hounded me for a good week to not toss my cigarette butts anywhere I wanted.”

“I think…” Senna said, opening her eyes and looking up. “It’s ‘cause… we trust you. But you really did go a bit overboard. Maybe I should ground you.”

“Oh, this sounds like it’s gonna be a blast! What am I losing?”

“Your free time privilege!”

“E-eh?”

“You’ll have to spend at least an hour a day training me from now on!”

“...” Cain put on a displeasing front while sighing inwardly. She really was just a sixteen-year-old girl, all else set aside. Moreover, a girl starved of basic human compassion her whole life. “How about we make it four and add Lana? That girl really looks just about ready to bust into the Tower to see more magic.”

“... deal.” Senna grinned innocently as she heaved up and hugged him abruptly. “If you flake on your promise, I will hurt you.”

“Oh my. Well, now there’s no way I can flake. I hate being hurt.”

“I’m gonna go and say hi to Lana,” she quickly shuffled aside, hiding her reddened cheeks. “Thank you.” she added in a muffled tone.

“Anytime, firefly.”

“...” she glanced at him for but a flash, her lips beaming into a wide smile, before running out, leaving him alone to stew in the overwhelming warmth.

Chuckling and shaking his head, he stood up and walked over to the balcony, lighting up a cigarette. I need to get back into the Tower quickly, he mused inwardly with a sigh. Otherwise… I might really never want to get back inside again…