The sun rays attacking Arthur’s face awoke him to a new day. His eyelids opened slowly to the brightness outside his windows. He rose up from his bed, standing up and stretching his body. He looked at a clock by the table near the door of his room and noticed the time.

(5 to 9 huh? Guess I’ll get some breakfast),

He turned to his right, facing the wall in which his bed was against. He pressed his hand against it, and like a secret entrance to an ancient tomb, the wall opened.

Unlike a secret entrance though, this didn’t reveal some long lost secret, instead, it just revealed to him his wardrobe. Arthur didn’t really pay attention to the clothes he wanted. He simply picked out something he enjoyed wearing. He took out some black jeans and a black shirt.

He ducked down to take out some black trainers along with some black socks.

He got dressed, checking himself out for a second, before walking over to the table by the door. He picked up some keys, his phone, and another device, along with a wristwatch, to which he immediately tightened around his left wrist.

He unlocked his door, stepping through it after he did so. When he was greeted with the upstairs hall, he noticed Aliza’s room door was closed. This was a surprise to him. The only time Aliza closed her door was when she went to bed, and she usually woke up much earlier than him.

“Is she still asleep?”,

He asked himself before approaching the door.

*knock knock*

“Liz? You in there?”,

No response.

Arthur opened the door slightly.

What his eyes laid upon, was a female sleeping, mouth wide open and her arms and legs all over the place. The sheets were a mess while one of her two pillows were on the floor.

Arthur felt a sort of discomfort, or even disgust, in seeing is sister in such a way.

He closed the door and proceeded to walk down the stairs.

As he got to the last step, he could hear a voice coming from a speaker in the living room.

“Those Americans… Have they no shame or honour? They have enveloped nearly half the continent. They’re ‘support’, have killed the innocent, destroyed the economy, spat on cultures and now they’ve spilled my family’s blood!? Alexander! We need your help!”,

As Arthur approached, he saw his dad sat on the couch with a laptop in front of him. Arthur purposely made his presence known, but Alexander both acknowledged and ignored him.

“Aten, I understand your pain and anger, but right now we can’t move. Reign is still developing it’s A.I. Operative Army. Have you spoken to Alfonso about this?”,

Alex spoke to the man across the laptop.

“That prideful bastard!? He has ignored our pleas! Claims that our country should be able to defend itself. Does he not know what Egypt did to help build his Superpower!? What Egypt had done in the war!?”,

“Listen. My hands are tied right now, but… if I can, I’ll send someone to help”,

“Please Alexander! We’ll take any help we can get right now!”,

“Alright. Just hold as much as you can. I’ll see what I can do”,

“Thank you”,

“We’ll talk later”,

As Alexander finished his sentence, he closed the laptop and sighed while relaxing back on the couch. Arthur approached him slightly, standing between the archway that connected the living room and the kitchen together.

“What’s going on?”,

“Seems America wants another war”,

Alexander replied, rubbing his eyes.

“What? Did they not learn the lesson The Fatherland gave them last time?”,

“You know them… they’re still acting as if they’re not actually involved, but that’s just bullshit”,

Arthur simply stood looking at his father.

“Oh, that’s right. You’re heading off to Georgia, aren’t you?”,

Asked Alex looking to his right at his son.

“Right you are”,

“What’s the Contract?”,

“Search and Recover. You won’t believe this though. Guess who the Employer is?”,

“Hmm? Who’s that?”,

“Dr. Stone Harlow”,

Alex laughed.

“Let me guess, he’s lost one of his precious A.I.?”,

“Nope. His son was kidnapped”,

“Ohh? That’s good”,

“Ain’t it? Having Washington owe us one? Couldn’t have asked for a better job”,

Alexander stood up and headed towards the kitchen. He walked past Arthur and aimed his sight on the coffee machine.

“Want some?”,

“Naa~ I’ll be going out for breakfast”,

“When do you leave?”,

“Tomorrow. Leónidas is setting everything up”,

“How many?”,

“Don’t know really. They have protection from the Asianican Mafia though”,

“So… it’s a good assumption they’ll have A.I. Integrated Guards?”,

“I’m going in with the possibility, yeah”,

“You think Dragovich is part of the group?”,

“I very much doubt it. He’s never been the ‘dirty hands’ type”,

“What are your plans for the rest of today?”,

“I’m just going over the information, maybe go over what Guinevere will be required to do as well. Apart from that… I guess, just take it easy for the day”,

“Hmm… fair enough. Has she said anything about your ‘job’?”,

“Not really. I think she understood the basic concept of it though. Anyway, I’ll be going. Will you be staying?”,

Alexander looked deeply at Arthur.

“No, I’m afraid not”

“I see. Well, don’t forget to say goodbye to Liz this time. She… cried last time, you know?”,

Arthur was about to walk towards the door, but a sudden question popped into his mind.

“By the way?”,

“Hmm?”,

Alexander looked at his son as he sipped a cup of coffee.

“Have you heard from mum?”,

“I have actually. She’s in Venezuela”,

“Venezuela? In South America? What the fuck is she doing there?”,

“Apparently she found a Totem”,

This instantly set off something in Arthur’s head, well more precisely, it set something off in Guinevere. She created a projection of herself and arose from the ground in black smoke.

Arthur, surprised by this, called her name.

“Guin?”,

“A Totem!? Your mother found a Totem!?”,

Guin asked as she shook Arthur around.

Alexander saw how flustered and ecstatic Guinevere was acting, and immediately knew why. He didn’t have to understand or even hear her words to see an A.I. this happy about that specific subject.

“Okay, okay! Calm down! What are you getting excited for?”,

Alexander looked confused for a second.

“Arthur, do you not know what a Totem is?”,

“Huh? Not really”,

He replied still being shaken by Guin’s excitement.

(That’s odd… his A.I. never told him about them?),

Alex thought. His attention was then focused on Arthur, has he tried to wrestle his way out of Guinevere’s grip.

“Would you cut it out already!!?”,

“We need to go find her! Like, right now!”,

“Huh!? Are you an idiot? We can’t do that. I have a Contract remember? Tomorrow?”,

“Well cancel it! A Totem is far more important than some human child”,

“Guinevere!”,

Alex suddenly shouted.

This made her stop, along with causing Arthur and her to look his way.

“لماذا لم تخبره عنهم بعد؟ [Why haven’t you told him about them yet?]”,

Arthur looked at his dad with a strange look. Why was he speaking a different language?

Guin looked at Alexander and replied with a sharp look to her.

“[STATIC]”

“SHE SAYS ITS NONE OF OUR BUSINESS, ALEX”,

Águia translated.

Alexander smiled in response.

Guin finally calmed down and made herself disappear, back into the black smoke. Arthur simply stood there, confused as to what happened, but his mind quickly let the subject go.

“Anyway… I’ll be going dad”,

“Yeah. See you soon”,

As Arthur opened the front door entrance to leave, the sight of a familiar face, awaited outside, hand raised to knock and everything.

“Huh?”,

“B-- Belle!?”,

Arthur unwillingly said with a high pitch.

“Oh, hey Arthur! Great timing! We’re you expecting me to knock?”,

She asked with a beautiful smile as always.

“Umm, no. What-- What are you doing here?”,

“Ah, I just wanted to see if Aliza wanted to go shopping with me”,

“She’s still asleep”,

“At this hour!?”,

“Hmm, hold on, let me get her for you…”,

Arthur turned around, walking up a single step of the stairs. He took a deep breath and screamed.

“OI! FAT ASS! GET THAT POOR EXCUSE OF A FACE OUT OF BED!”,

Alex spat his drink as he took a sip, not expecting that shout. Right afterwards, tumbling was heard from Aliza’s room and immediately Arthur made for the door.

“Have a good day Belle!”,

He said as he sprinted to the car.

Aliza came rushing down the stairs, in pyjamas and all.

“Oh no you don’t! Cinzeira!”,

She slammed her hand down, and the black flaming fox appeared just outside. Arthur had started the engine and quickly got the car moving.

“Stop him!”,

Shouted Aliza from within.

Cinzeira appeared grow her tails, like flaming tentacles. They went high in the air, before coming down, aiming for Arthur’s car. However, the attack was halted mid-air, as one of Arthur’s anilities created shields to block the tails, giving him just enough time to escape.

Belle simply watched the spectacle, before looking inside the house and seeing Aliza with an angry look to her. Belle smiled.

“Hey Liz!”.

Arthur pulled his car into a parking lot, before exiting it and locking it behind him. He walked around the lot and right at its corner, he was greeted with a café. The sign above the door and large window, was black with a simple cursive style writing of its name.

(Been a while since I’ve been here),

He thought as he entered through the main door.

The smell and sight inside instantly warmed his heart. It was warm and yet refreshing at the same time. He was greeted with a counter around his left, lined with displays of an assortment of foods and sweets.

To his right were tables and chairs pinned against the walls. The tables were a dark mahogany colour while the chairs, on the actual seat, seemed to possess red velvet for pillows. The lighting was simple, with overhanging LED golden lights from the ceiling.

The floor was wooden as well, only a bit lighter than pine. The walls however, seemed to mimic a sort of brick texture, surely due to the wallpaper.

It wasn’t too crowded, he noticed. However, inside his head, Guin became surprised.

“There’s A.I.s in here?”,

Her question was rightly asked.

While it wasn’t crowded with humans, A.Is of all shapes and forms roamed the café freely. A small Wyvern, bronze-ish in colour, flew around the said lighting. At the very end of the café was a man with a dark suit, while opposite him was what looked like a Werewolf, of grey fur.

Against the window table, was a woman, maybe in her 40s, conversing with what looked like a small Scorpion on top of the table. She was more playing with it than conversing to be honest.

Arthur raised his hand and spoke.

“Guinevere”,

The Limboic made its presence, appearing just behind Arthur. He turned around slightly, and with a slight smile, he said.

“Let’s eat!”,

As he fully came into the café, Guinevere stepped in with him. Immediately, he was met with conversation.

“My, what a gorgeous A.I. you’ve obtained”,

The voice came from the elder woman to Arthur’s right, the one playing with the small Scorpion.

“Thank you, Miss Yuuki”,

Arthur then presented Guinevere, as if showing a new friend to the family.

“Guinevere, this is Miss Ria Yuuki. Say hi”,

Guinevere was lost as what to do. She was clearly flustered from being put on the spot like that.

“Haha~ don’t be shy. I may not understand your voice but this little one will”,

The woman said with a chuckle, pointing to the Scorpion on the table.

Guinevere took out The Relinquished Armoury and a recognisable red light appeared from it.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, human”,

The lady was taken aback. She understood what Guin said. However, the most shocked person there wasn’t her, but Arthur.

While to him, Guin sounded just like she always did, he could tell what was happening due to the woman’s expression.

“Oh my. You have a wonderful ability”,

Guin looked closely at the woman.

She had grey hair already coming from her roots, which ran down to her shoulders. Her face was pretty, yet signs of ageing had already taken their place. Her eyes were a warm oak brown, like firewood before being thrown in the fireplace. She wore a simple grey and blue dress, which accompanied her nicely.

Guin gave her a smile.

“Thank you. You are very kind”,

“Guin… since when--“,

“Your sister was the first to know”,

She said to Arthur, looking at him.

Arthur was still in surprise, but he shook his head. While he too found the ability wonderful, there was something more important at stake right now. His stomach.

“If you’ll excuse us, Miss Yuuki”,

“Of course. It was nice to see you again Arthorius. A pleasure to meet you, Guinevere”,

Arthur smiled before proceeded to the counter. Surprisingly, there was no one behind it. He found it strange.

“Yo! Sayuri!”,

He shouted.

Footsteps from the kitchen of the café were heard, before a person walked through a pair of red curtains to Arthur’s and Guin’s front.

Standing in front of them now, was a middle-aged woman.

She had her pink and sky-blue hair tied up in a ponytail. He eyes glowed a bright pink as the café’s lights hit them. She was quite the figure, perfect curves, and all. Her face was slim and elegant, yet the slightly dirty apron covering her clothes, did little to accompany her beauty.

“Sup, Hyuga. It’s been a while”,

“I keep telling you. Arthur, or Arthorius. Not bloody Hyuga”,

“Yeah? And I pretty sure I keep telling you to stop by more often. So, I guess Hyuga it is”,

“But I’m here now”,

“And your name will still be there tommorow”,

“Ughhhhh~~”,

Sayuri’s voice was mother like. Not too sweet nor too sour, much like the various sweets she sold at her shop. Her voice definitely suited her age to say the least.

“So? What brings you by?”,

“Breakfast”,

Sayuri then looked slightly right. Her gaze was now upon Guinevere. Guin felt a little discomfort coming from Sayuri’s eyes, so she looked slightly away.

“Will she be eating?”,

“Uh? Now that I think about it… Guin, do you even need to eat?”,

“No Arthur. A.I. don’t need to feed. We have no sense of nourishment, since our very beings don’t actually possess that trait anymore”,

Guin told him.

“Huh. Interesting. Well, I guess that’s a no”,

He said back as he looked back at Sayuri.

Arthur then looked at Sayuri’s hand currently resting on the counter. More specifically, her left hand. He noticed the glittering ruby attached to a white gold base, a ring, covering her fourth finger, and this bought up a question.

“You got married?”,

“Huh? Oh, you noticed. Yeah, 7 months back. It was private, we didn’t invite anyone”,

“Congratulations. Who is he?”,

“Meet him yourself. Darling!?”,

From the red curtains currently behind Sayuri and to Arthur’s front still, a burly and muscular man stepped through. His height and muscle were enough to rival even Arthur’s father. However, unlike Alexander, this man was darker in tone. His hair was short while a long black beard accompanied his face.

To be blunt, he possessed the aura and atmosphere of someone who no one would want to mess with.

“You called”,

“Yes, rock brain. Say hello, this is Hyuga”,

“Hyuga?”,

The man’s voice was powerful and deep. Arthur didn’t know if he was putting it on or whether this terrifyingly low voice was actually his own. Arthur felt a sort of helpless feeling when facing the man, totally the opposite of when he faced his father.

“This is Alexander’s youngest kid. The one I told you about when Anastasiya came to visit”,

Sayuri informed her husband.

“Ahh, yes. Hmm, he’s smaller than I thought”,

“No, you’re just a giant, you oaf of an ogre”,

The man approached closer to the counter and raised his right hand, for a handshake.

“A pleasure kid. Name’s Monterio”,

Arthur felt a sort of hesitation to shake the man’s hand, but he placed a strong smile, and with an equally strong hand, he shook Monterio’s own.

“Good grip”,

“Yeah, yeah. Back to the kitchen with you. Anyway, what will you be having?”,

Sayuri asked hurrying the conversation along.

“Britannian Style Breakfast”,

Arthur replied.

“Salt and pepper with it?”,

“Yes, please”,

“A’ight. Take a seat. I’ll be right with you two”,

Sayuri started pushing her husband into the kitchen while Arthur and Guin took a seat in one of the middle tables along the wall. When the two were fully seated, Guin whispered.

“She’s very commanding huh?”,

“Hahaha~ yeah. Gets it from her mother. Sayuri is part of a female majority family, so they kind had to learn to toughen themselves up. Some men are even afraid to date her sisters”,

“Is that so? Still though. To be able to speak to such a hunk of a man like he’s dirt… that’s more than toughness”,

“I’ll be honest Guin. She probably has more balls than me. And I’m a man”,

Arthur whispered.

Guin laughed at the remark.

Sayuri placed down a giant plate in front of Arthur. Along with it, she placed down a glass cup, along with a jug of water, some cutlery, and a few napkins.

“Enjoy it kid”,

“Thanks, Sayuri”,

She then left, leaving him to eat in peace.

Arthur looked down at the plate. It was full to the brim. Sausages, bacon, beans, two fried eggs, two pieces of toast, a couple of roasted tomatoes and a few mushrooms. The browns and reds attacked his eyes, with only the white and yellow of the eggs being a pleasant relaxing colour.

Arthur picked up the knife and fork and went to work, quickly gobbling down some of the sausages along with some tomato.

While he chewed and watched Guinevere staring at him, he pulled out a mini laptop sort of thing from his pocket. He flipped open the minute computer, revealing a keyboard about the same size as the screen, which in turn was only about 5 to 6 inches big.

He turned it on and rested it on the table in front of him, waiting for it to finish its boot up sequence. While he waited, he took another mouthful of his breakfast.

The screen flashed for a second, revealing a similar screen to his home computer. Black background with a single outline of a flower, awaiting to bloom.

“Hmm… Arthorius”,

He said as he finished swallowing.

The flower, much like before, bloomed its petals and the screen changed entirely.

He clicked a few keys and eventually ended up with the Contract he was doing tomorrow. Before he went over the full thing though, he looked at Guinevere.

“Are you paying attention?”,

“To what should I be paying attention to exactly? Your food?”,

“Haha~ no, no. I’m going to go over the Contract details. I want you to listen carefully so you can fully understand the situation”,

“Alright”,

“Good”,

Arthur scrolled the page down on his screen slightly.

“The Spirit Guides Group is consisted of over 1300 members, it’s an organisation based worldwide. While most their actions are confined to America, Britannia and The Fatherland, there have also been traces of them spreading to Africa and Asianica in the past.

They’re a dangerous group. Most members are A.I. Users, with most being accepted simply because of their A.I.’s fighting capability. The entire organisation is led by one man, Galhhour Borne.

He started the organisation soon after he came upon the discovery of A.I., when he obtained his own at the age of 19, in August of 1990. He is a wanted criminal around the world, and yet, no one has ever been able to reach the man. Our hostage, however, isn’t being held by the boss, but a Sub-Commander--“,

“What’s that?”,

Asked Guin.

“It’s a person that answers to one of the boss’ right hand men”,

“So, third in line so to speak”,

“Yeah basically”,

“Okay…”,

“He goes by the name Thracian Pauls. He joined the organisation just 10 months ago. Although, due to his A.I.’s fighting ability and the man’s willingness to follow orders, he ranked up the chain pretty quickly.

He and a small Squadron of the members, kidnapped Dr. Stone Harlow’s son, Adrian Harlow. The boy is the mere age of 12. He was taken on his way back from school in New York. For some reason, still currently unknown, the boy had no guard with him.

He’s been wanting to follow in his father’s footsteps ever since he could remember, which is the likeliest reason as to why he was taken”,

“What exactly is he following?”,

“Stone Harlow is the descendant of the creator of the first Sentient Augmented Integration. Adrian has been studying to try and create one that surpasses his great-grandfathers, and now his father’s work”,

“Could he not just copy his father’s work?”,

“Unfortunately, not. You see, the A.I. was the product of an accident. An unrecorded accident”,

“Ahh, I see-- wait a minute. Does this Harlow man work for America?”,

“Yeah, why?”,

“Isn’t America the enemy of The Fatherland? Should you be helping the enemy of your country?”,

Guin asked justifiably.

Arthur however, laughed at the question.

“My country? Guin, I told you, didn’t I? Wars, countries and the like, don’t interest me”,

Guin was about to speak, but for one reason, held off on it. Instead, she shook her head slightly, and returned to the topic at hand.

“Anyway, about this group. How many are there?”,

“There’s 6 in total, but counting the protection of the Asianican Mafia, there’s 26 to deal with”,

Arthur informed her just before taking another mouthful of food.

“And what exactly are we meant to do with them? That’s a lot to evade or hide from, much less get a person away from them”,

Arthur looked at her slightly confused. He swallowed his food before giving her an answer.

“What do you mean evade? We’re going to kill them”,

While Guin flinched at just how easy Arthur said that, it wasn’t Guin, Arthur was looking at. Someone else in the café also had a small, almost minute, and well hidden, reaction to his words.

Sitting behind Guin, two tables across, was the man with the Werewolf lookalike A.I.

The man had a long, brown trench coat. On his head he wore a baseball cap, dark blue in colour. While his back was turned to Arthur, Arthur noticed when he spoke those words, that the man’s head moved slightly.

While anybody that would have heard Arthur’s words, would clearly show a reaction, the man had not moved a single inch ever since Arthur took a seat. Only then, when Arthur said that particular sentence, did he actually show any sign of even being alive.

However, Arthur ignored him. Physically at least. Mentally, he was recording everything about the man and his A.I., ingraining it into his brain.

“We’re just going to kill them? Just like that?”,

Guin asked still shocked at how easy Arthur spoke of killing another.

“What? You’ve never killed anyone before?”,

“No, no, I have, I’ll admit it. But… you seem way to casual about it”,

“Oh, well, it won’t be my first Contract, you know. Most Contracts I accept are actually Assassination Contracts”,

“You’re kidding!?”,

“See for yourself. Anyway, back to business”,

Arthur scrolled down further on his mini laptop.

“Adrian is being held in the Radisson Verde Iveria Hotel, in Tbilisi City Centre, Georgia. More precisely, he’s on the 15th floor, room 1508. There’s always 3 people with him at all times, while the rest come and go, patrolling the entire floor. It seems they’ll be leaving the country in 3 days, so tomorrow is our best chance.

Leónidas has booked us a flight from Tokyo Haneda to Tbilisi. It’ll be around 20 hours or so, we’ll be getting them in their last day before they leave. We’ll have a car ready for us at landing, to which we’ll drive to the hotel.

I’ll book a room on the floor below. You’ll go to the floor above. I’m planning on using the equipment being sent to me to strike above, penetrating the floor and possibly take out a few targets. The use of it though will be mainly for confusion.

Once I do, smash the ground below you and enter into the room. You secure the boy; I’ll take out anyone in the way. We’ll escape by the same car, taking the boy to the airport and sending him on a private plane, owned by the Black Letter Programme, back to the States. At the same time, we’ll catch a flight back to Tokyo. And that’s about it”,

Guin simply looked at Arthur, while he finally finished his meal.

As Arthur set down the cutlery on his plate, the man sat in the couple of tables over, stood up and walked out. Arthur watched him leave, but only with his eyes, making sure never to give away the fact that he was.

Following behind him was his A.I. The Werewolf took heavy and strong steps, looking down at Arthur as he walked by, but Arthur ignored him.

As the two left the café, Guin began to talk.

“Hey, Arthur? Tell me, why did--“,

Arthur though, quickly interrupted her.

“Guin. That A.I… what did you think of it?”,

“Hmm. You noticed as well? I’m surprised he even had the courage to feel such a way. He was definitely listening in. That murderous aura was almost impossible to hide”,

“What kind of A.I. was it?”,

“I can’t tell you definitively as I’ve never seen it before, but, taking a few guesses, I’d say it’s a Humanoid Archetype, between the number of 150 and 200, maybe. Most probably a Claw Class. Why?”,

Arthur smirked slightly.

“It’s Master, he was part of either the Mafia or the Spirit Guides group”,

“Eh? Wait, WHAT!?”,

Guin looked at Arthur frantically before looking at the entrance of the café, hoping to spot the man before he left.

“He was listening in to our conversation. I’ll put my bet on being part of the Mafia though. I’ve never heard of the group being here in Japan. He wasn’t very high on the chain though… maybe a subordinate of the Sub-Commander?”,

“Wait, Arthur, this is bad!”,

“Huh? What is?”,

“If he was listening, and if indeed he is part of the Mafia or that group, won’t this mean they will know everything we’re doing now!? They’ll leave right away!”,

“Huh!? You think I’m that stupid!?”,

Guin stopped for a second. She was extremely confused.

“Wai-- What?”,

Arthur sighed, rested his head on his hand, as he placed his arm on the table, propping his head up.

“Everything I said was a lie. The whole plan, what we’ll do, everything. It was a lie”,

“Eh?”,

“You think I’m dumb enough to talk about this shit in public? I may be confident in my ability and work, but even I ain’t that careless. I noticed how he got interested in the conversation earlier, so I led him on. I just figured out who he was”,

“Wait… you know about him?”,

“Kind of. Leónidas gave me a tip that somebody has been watching my family for a while, more specifically, my dad. Never thought I’d see him here though… what does the Mafia want with him?”,

“B-- But, even if that’s the case, they now know that someone else knows about Adrian and they’ll be preparing for us!”,

“That’s what I’m counting on”,

“What?”,

Arthur raised his right hand.

“Remember what I told you that night after I said I was a Mercenary?”,

Guin had a quick flashback to the very short conversation they had.

“You’re a soldier for hire?”,

“Not a soldier. I’m a Freelancer of sorts. I work for a Company known as The Black Letter Programme”,

“Wait… what are you saying exactly?”,

Asked Guinevere, still not understanding as to why Arthur would give away such information.

“Black Letter Members are infamous now a days. While no one knows who they really are, if you can capture one, not even Adrian Harlow is worth a penny anymore, compared. My dad is probably the only Member that actually has announced his true identity, so he’s become a high value target to these organisations”,

“But… why?”,

“Because were professionals. My dad especially. I told you he was in The Fatherland Army, right?”,

“Riiiight?”,

“Well, he was contracted to be. Black Letter is a company with the most professional ‘workers’ on the planet. And that ranges from killing to building. I’m sure you can imagine, capturing one and either ransoming or even selling a Black Letter Member, will fetch you a very good amount. So, tell me. They have two options. Leave earlier than expected or hold their ground and possibly capture a Black Letter Member. Which one do you think they’ll choose?”,

Guin finally began to realise.

“That’s why you mentioned the name…”,

“Indeed. I wanted to force their actions into only one possible outcome. Having them leave early would be bad, even for me, so instead, I made sure to let him know that I was a Member as well. In that case, they’ll now be increasing security and preparing to ambush us, forcing them to stay put. I may not be my father, but the Mafia doesn’t care. A Member is a Member, be it Alexander Hyuga, or anyone else. Money is money”,

Guin was impressed. Genuinely.

“You thought that far ahead?”,

“It’s not that hard. Anyone in my position would have done the same. Soldiers try and do it all the time, giving false information to trick their enemies. Hell, even in schools they teach this to kids”,

“So, what is the real plan then?”,

Arthur smiled.

“That, Guinevere, is something you’ll find out soon enough”,

Arthur closed the mini laptop on the table and placed it in his pocket. He then took out a wallet from the same pocket and left some money on the table.

He stood up, Guin followed suit, before the two of them left together.

“Bye Sayuri! Moneys on the table!”,

He shouted as he left through the entrance of the café.

Outside, the sun shined brightly. It was warm and a gentle breeze ran through the air. Arthur stretched his arms high, before relaxing them back down. Guin came up to his side.

“So, what now?”,

She asked.

“I guess, enjoy the day. Leónidas still needs to send me confirmation, so for now, we can relax. Anything you want to do?”,

“Hmm…”,

Guin thought about his question for a moment.

“I guess… you could show me around? I’m still unfamiliar with this era”,

“Yeah. Alright”.

A phone was heard ringing in a dark room. It rang, and rang, and rang, until finally, it’s owner picked it up. He clicked the little green screen prompt to answer and raised the phone up to his ear.

The person on the other side of the call, spoke for a bit, before getting any words to come out from the person who answered the phone.

“вот как? [Is that so?]”,

The caller kept talking for a little while longer before the person ended the call with his final words.

“Я понимаю. Я сообщу боссу. Хорошая работа [I understand. I’ll inform the boss. Good work]”,

He hanged up the call and stood up from the chair he sat on. He walked over to a door and knocked twice, before entering. As the man did, he bowed his head slightly before speaking to an older man sat behind a very luxurious desk.

“ Сэр. У нас проблема [Sir. We have a problem]”,

“ Что это? [What is it?]”,

The older man asked with a tired and very coarse voice.

“ Кто-то преследует Адриана Харлоу. Похоже, они из Программы Черных Букв [Somebody is pursuing for Adrian Washington. They appear to be from the Black Letter Programme]”,

The man sat down behind the desk, placed the pen in his hand down. He set it down gently as he moved his eyes upward to look at the man that just entered. The cold, hard, dead green eyes in his sockets, stared down the man.

“ Ты в этом уверен? [Are you certain of this?]”,

“Да, сэр. Кроме того, похоже, что это не просто какой-то новичок, а владелец 13-го [Yes, Sir. Also, it looks like it’s not just some rookie, but the owner of the 13th Zealot]”,

The unmoving dead eyes had a tiny reaction.

“У Чёрной Буквы есть еще один Мастер с архетипом Зелота? [Black Letter have another Master with a Zealot Archetype?]”,

“Похоже на то, да, сэр [It appears so, sir]”,

“Мужчин уведомили? [Have the men been notified?]”,

“Пока нет, сэр. Я ждал, чтобы услышать ваше слово, о том, что мы должны сделать... [Not yet, sir. I was waiting to hear your word as to what we should do…]”,

The older gentleman seemed to smile, ever so slightly.

“Like I was saying, Asianica is the combination of Russia and most of the Asian countries. The also control most of the Pacific Ocean, hence where the combination of the three names come from. It’s an Alliance that formed after America tried to invade Russia. China took the initiative and immediately sided with the Russians. The United Korea Republic joined soon after as well, causing most countries in Asia to also get involved. Japan was the only one not to join”,

“Yeah, but you said Japan is now part of The Fatherland Superpower, right? Doesn’t it make a high likely target of war if Asianica ever decided to start one?”,

Guin asked.

Arthur and Guin has been walking around the streets for a while now. He left the car back at the café’s parking lot, since he decided to eat there for lunch as well.

“They wouldn’t be that stupid. The Fatherland understands just how important of a position Japan is on the map of the world, so its defensive capabilities have been greatly improved due to The Fatherland’s funding and military. Basically, the King has gone through great lengths to make this an impenetrable island, and the Asianica Alliance knows this”,

Arthur informed her.

“Yeah, but I don’t understand why though. Why would Japan willingly join The Fatherland?”,

“Because of America. Since America rejected, and still does, the conquering of Europa by a single country, while the World War may have ended, America is still trying to conquer back some of the countries The Fatherland took, without directly having a hand in it. Japan poses a problem for America though, since it allows The Fatherland to basically pincer America if it ever did get to another war. That’s why Japan was the first country outside of Europa to join the new Superpower. Basically, the King and the Japanese Emperor recognised just how powerful of allies they could be”,

“So, let me get this straight. The Americans are just… what? Funding rebellions all over the planet in hopes they can take back their own land, hoping to return the borders as they once were, just to take down The Fatherland?”,

“Pretty much”,

“But, by what you told me, Europa seems content with the current system. Everyone lives peacefully and without prejudice. Why would America want to dismantle that?”,

Arthur stopped walking and Guin followed suit. He simply looked at her with an obvious expression.

“Isn’t it obvious?”,

He asked.

“Clearly not”,

She replied.

“It’s because they’re no longer the most powerful Nation on Earth”,

Guinevere chuckled.

“So, wait. They’re doing this because they no longer hold the world in its palm?”,

“Yeah, basically”,

Arthur said as he began walking again.

As Guinevere followed behind, she felt a sudden presence above her. As she looked up, she saw something come down from above her. It was coming in hard and fast, and estimating its trajectory, she noticed it was heading straight for her and Arthur.

She quickly ran to Arthur’s side and pulled him to the side, evading it completely.

The ‘something’ crashed to the floor, sending someone who was taking a ride on it, flying to the side of the road. The person rolled and tumbled, before hitting the side of a wall and coming to a stop.

The thing that crashed, was quickly identified as n A.I., and he simply stood as if nothing happened. Although, below it, the ground had cracked, like it was shot with an artillery shell.

“WHAT THE FUCK HARIEL!!?— ow, ouch, ow— Have you ever heard of soft landings!? Damn man… at least bend your knees if you’re just going to nail straight into the ground”,

The voice was instantly recognised by Arthur.

“H-- Hikaru?”,

He said softly as he looked at the boy currently on the ground, scratching his head.

Hikaru looked up, surprised to see Arthur in front of him.

“Oh, hey Art. What’s going on?”,

“Uhh… not much. Hey, are you okay?”,

“Yeah. I’m used to this”,

Hikaru responded, standing up and shaking his clothes to remove any dirt on them.

(I don’t think that’s something you want to say proudly),

Arthur thought while approaching his friend.

Suddenly, Hikaru began bleeding from his nose. Arthur took notice was wanted to approach him, to make sure he was truly okay, but Hikaru turned him away.

“It’s fine dude. Hariel, a little medicine here”,

Hariel raised his hand and pointed to Hikaru. Arthur’s friend suddenly became engulfed in a golden light for a few seconds, and just as quickly as it appeared, it disappeared.

After the light was gone, Arthur noticed. There no longer was a nosebleed, not even scratches or bruises on Hikaru.

(Amazing!),

He thought, genuinely impressed with Hariel’s healing ability.

“What are you doing here?”,

Arthur asked.

“Oh! That! Before we decided to crash into the ground like a fucking meteor, Hariel said he wanted to meet your A.I. Since I told him I didn’t know where you were, he grabbed me and just started flying around the city until we found you”,

“W-- What?”,

Arthur was stunned at his friend. The amounts of reasonable questions flooding his mind, wanted answers, but he ignored them. Well, except for one.

“Why did he want to do that?”,

“Don’t know”,

Hikaru replied raising his shoulders.

Arthur looked back at Hariel, but he appeared too busy. Guinevere and Hariel were staring at each other with powerful gazes. While it wasn’t that special, Arthur got a weird feeling.

“Do you know each other?”,

He asked Guin.

“Unfortunately…”,

She replied.

“What do you mean ‘unfortunately’?”,

Before Guin could answer, Hikaru burst out.

“Wait, do they know each other? What!? Hariel, you know Arthur’s A.I.!?”,

Arthur turned to Hikaru, wondering why he was so surprised, but then realised.

(Does he not know the truth either? Hasn’t his A.I. told him? Why not?),

“Hey, Hikaru?”,

“Yeah?”,

He looked at Arthur with a smile.

“Remind me again. What are a A.I.?”,

“Huh? Have you forgotten already? That’s unlike you…”,

“Yeah, sorry. I’ve just been too busy to remember”,

Arthur said, trying to avoid that specific conversation.

“A.I. are Creations using a Mother Block designed specifically for its User”,

(So, he doesn’t know. Why hasn’t Hariel told him?),

“Hey, Guin?”,

“Yes?”,

“Can you ask a question to Hariel for me?”,

“[STATIC]”,

Hariel suddenly spoke out. Of course, Arthur didn’t understand the unintelligible static, but he had a suspicious feeling. Not due to Hariel speaking, but to the reaction Guinevere had. She appeared distressed, almost like she was about to kill him if he spoke any more.

Her claws began to take shape, ever so slowly, almost as if she was holding herself back with all her power. However, instead of using violence, she spoke.

“BE QUIET, ‘HARIEL’. ANOTHER WORD AND IT’LL BE YOUR LAST!”,

Guin sounded angry. Arthur got the clear feeling that that was no empty threat.

“Hey, Guin, chill out. Why are you getting so worked up?”,

“It’s nothing…”,

She replied, right before she disappeared into the black smoke, as many times before.

Arthur and Hikaru were left to wonder what to do. They were puzzled as to what happened or what that was all about.

“Hey! Hariel! What did you say!?”,

Hikaru shouted at him.

While the two appeared to argue about something, Arthur didn’t really pay any attention to them. He just kept trying to get through to Guin, but no response was ever heard. He wondered just what exactly Hariel must have said, to make her feel like that.

As his attention focused back on his friend still arguing, he felt a light vibration coming from his right pocket. Arthur instinctively looked down at his pocket, before reaching in a grabbing his phone.

As he saw the caller’s name show up at the top of the screen, he casually answered the call.

“Yeah?”,

Arthur spoke first.

The person on the other side began to talk as well, but Arthur could hardly hear them. Why? Because Hikaru was still arguing.

“HEY! Would you two knock it off for five fucking minutes!?”,

Hikaru and Hariel became silent and stared at Arthur. He sighed heavily before carrying on with his call.

“Sorry, go on”,

“Who are you with?”,

The person on the other side of the call asked.

“Hikaru”,

“Oh! Even better! Hey Belle, I think I found our challengers!”,

“Still with Belle I see. How is shopping going?”,

“Pretty boring actually. Tends to get that way when one already has everything they want. Belle on the other hand, pretty much bought the whole store to herself”,

(Typical),

“Why did you call me Liz?”,

“Right, that. Can the two of you meet us at the old Olympic Arena?”,

“Huh? What for?”,

“You’ll see. I’ll give you 15 minutes to get here. Bye~”,

“Wai-- ugh…”,

Arthur put his phone back into his pocket after Aliza ended the call.

“What’s up?”,

Asked Hikaru approaching his friend.

“You doing anything?”,

Asked Arthur.

“Hmm, not really. I literally just came here cause Hariel wanted to see you’re A.I.”,

“Want to come?”,

“Where to?”,

“Aliza is with Belle. She wants to meet us at the old Arena”,

“Sure. It’ll be a long walk though. Maybe an hour…?”,

“It’s fine, I got the car by Sayuri’s café”,

“Oh, cool. Onwards and upwards then”,

Arthur began walking back to the café he had breakfast in, only this time, he had two new companions along for the walk.

After a few minutes, they reached the car. Arthur unlocked it, allowing Hikaru and himself in. Hariel spoke to Hikaru, and he simply nodded in response.

After the doors we’re shut, seatbelts in place and engine warm, Arthur drove out of the parking lot and onto the street.

He must have driven for about 10 minutes before coming to a stop.

As he turned off the engine and unbuckled the seatbelt, Hikaru doing the same, he looked outside through the windshield. He stared at the massive circular building in front of him. He looked around and saw a few cars parked up here and there, and even a few groups of people hanging around.

He opened the door as he saw his friend do the same to get out. Arthur stepped out as well, locking the car when the two doors shut.

“Maaan~ it’s been a while. I don’t think we’ve been here ever since Secondary, have we?”,

Hikaru commented as he looked up at the building.

“Nope. The last we came was on Belle’s 16th birthday. We came to watch the grown-ups battle it out with their A.I.”,

Arthur replied with a smile.

“How time flies”,

Arthur then looked at the building Hikaru was also looking at.

It was massive. Its official name was The Augmented Integration Fighters Olympics Arena Number 3, but everyone now knew it as The Old Arena. After a major catastrophe between two fighting A.I. left the building in shambles, there was a project to rebuild it. But it never came.

The building itself was circular. An elliptical plan, 190 metres across and 160 wide. An area covering around 24’500 metres with a total height of 55 metres. The structure is made from engraved travertine stone, being held together with engraved gold pieces and live clamps.

It’s overall design was extremely historical during its glory days, with some claiming it was the very reincarnation of the long lost Colosseum. It could hold a total of 78’000 spectators, later being upgraded to the full 100’000.

The surviving part of the outer wall was comprised of three stories of superimposed arcades surmounted by a podium on which stood a tall attic, both of which are pierced by windows interspersed at regular intervals. The arcades are framed by half-columns of the 3 great Alliances of Old. Allies, Axis, and the top representing Humanity, while the attic is decorated with A.I. statues.

To put simply, this was a World Wonder once upon a time, to which now laid in ruin, graffitied, and used by delinquents.

Arthur was always fascinated by the structure. Even when he was a little boy, he’d always come with his mother and father to watch Aliza battle it out with other Fighters, for the Olympic Title of Master of Integrations.

The tens of thousands of people cheering and screaming, a sound no one could ever forget. The spectacle of seeing fire, ice, water, air, metal and rust, feathers, and fur, all come off from A.I. fighting each other in glorious battles was unmistakably one of the coolest and awesome things to spectate.

A building meant to represent that no matter the wars, the conflicts, the hates and destructions, humanity could always sit with one another, united, not by Alliances and Treaties, but by enjoyments and connections.

He took a deep breath, as if to try and clear away the old memories, and slowly exhaled.

“Come on. Let’s see what they want”,

He said as he began walking, Hikaru following closely behind.