Chapter 50: Tough Decisions
( Perseus's POV )
Perseus received a report from Sophia after the first day of class.
In her report she gave him details about life at the academy, about how much she hated the principal and wanted Perseus to kill him if possible and finally and most importantly about Rocky.
"The champion of Gemini is very cunning, extremely strong and very cold to talk to.
He is not easily influenced by charm or beauty and has the mature demeanor of a seasoned fighter"
Was how Sophia described Rocky, as Perseus frowned reading this part of the letter.
He knew for a fact that his sister was extremely beautiful, however, for her to fail in seducing him and to say that she could not beat him in combat, spoke volumes about his competency as a Champion.
"It seems like the champion of Gemini is a more troublesome entity compared to his elder sister.
Hmmm…. Sophia will need to work hard to get in his good graces" He said, as he continued reading the letter.
" Brother, I have thought about an elaborate plan to make him trust me, but you will need to arrange for competent assassin's to infiltrate the university for it to be successful.
I'm going to pretend to be fatally injured after being attacked by assassin's and faint exactly at the champion of Gemini's feet as I utter the words 'Uncle Zeus did it'.
I want him to think that there is a rift inside Olympus and use my injury as a means to gain his trust.
I know it's a dangerous plan, one where there is no margin for error, but I'm willing to take this risk to break through his defenses, as unless a groundbreaking event takes place, I don't see how I may get into his good books" Sophia wrote as Perseus looked at her suggestion and shook his head.
"I dislike my sister's naivety sometimes, she knows nothing about how the real world works-" Perseus said in frustration, as the letter written by Sophia showed him exactly how naive she was.
There was a reason behind why the university for nourishment of young talents was ranked number one on floor zero.
There was a reason behind why despite his lack of faith towards any god and his hate speech, no god or their apostles came knocking for revenge on him.
The mad principal Liam was not a man one could easily mess with and his university was not a place where assassins could enter freely.
For Sophia to request something like this was simple, however, Perseus had to think about the consequences of going through with such a plan as if any loose end tied him to the crime, then the Olympians hold over floor 21 might end that very day.
"I knew she wasn't ready for this mission…. Should not have sent her" Perseus said, as he sighed deeply.
On one hand, he loved her too much to reject her request, as he wished to support her as much as possible, however, on the other hand, he did not wish to jeopardize the position of Olympus by making any rash decisions.
"I guess I'll forward this to father. He will know what to do-" Perseus eventually decided, as he sealed the letter that Sophia sent him and then wrote another one on top as he posted them both to his father.
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( Meanwhile, On Earth, the True Elites Guild )
"Guildmaster Karna, we have received confirmed reports that Joe is on floor 21.
Although we have not confirmed if Riva is being held hostage there or not, we have enough proof to say with certainty that Joe is being sheltered by Olympian forces.
If you give the order, the entire guild is ready to take the floor down and launch a war against Olympus" Chief of scouts, Bunny said, as he presented the proof of the scouting team's investigation into Joe.
Karna viewed the file with absolute focus and was soon satisfied with the scouting leader's findings that Joe was on floor21. However, he was not rash while deciding whether he wanted to declare war on Olympus or not.
"I'm satisfied with your findings, Bunny, good work" he said, as he dismissed his chief scout, however, Bunny stubbornly refused to leave his office as he clutched his palms tightly.
"Guildmaster, are we going to war or not?" He asked in an emotional voice as his tone fluctuated sharply.
Karna, sensing his emotional state, replied with calmness as he said " I need more time to decide, Bunny, I can't rush it".
Gritting his teeth, Bunny looked at Karna and then towards the door to leave his office, as he decided to not leave and express what was on his mind for once.
"I mean no disrespect guildmaster, but I thought when we say 'One for all, All for one' we actually meant it.
I treat this guild as my family and I genuinely believe that if any of us is ever in trouble the guild will go to war for them.
One of us is in trouble guildmaster, and one of our own betrayed us.
If we don't act now, our guild's motto would be for nothing-" Bunny said, as his words made a lot of impact on Karna when he spoke so emotionally.
He was not wrong, if it were not up to Karna to decide and if there was someone else leading the guild who ordered him to fight, Karna believed he would already be on floor 21 right now, undergoing a killing spree.
However, he was the guildmaster now, and he had a lot of considerations to make before declaring a war.
Even if he did not consider the consequences of this war such as the political backlash, or the economic sanctions and the loss of guild members' lives- There was still a bigger concern on his mind that could not be ignored.
" Bunny, trust me. I want to fight as badly as you, and ofcourse we mean it when we say 'One for all, All for one'. However, I can't guarantee a swift victory in this fight.
And this is a year of death.
What happens if a monster outbreak happens just as we are engaged in war with the Olympians on floor 21?
What will Earth do without its strongest guild under such circumstances?
What happens if millions of non climbers die on our home planet while we are busy fighting some war?
Even if I want to be hot-blooded and rash, I can't. There's too much responsibility on this guild and on me to make decisions haphazardly.
Please have some patience and faith in me. I won't let Joe go unpunished, nor will I let Riva suffer for long.
I promise-" Karna said, as Bunny found no words to protest against Karna's logic.
It was true that a monster outbreak could happen anytime this year and that the True Elites could not afford a war during such a sensitive time.
Of Course it felt frustrating, however, there was nothing they could do about it.
"I understand, guildmaster, and yes I have faith in you…." Bunny said as he left Karna's office, dejected.
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/// A/N - Bonus chapter for hitting the PS target, good job everyone! ///
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