"Who are you, little boy?"
The old lady looked at the little boy who was staring at her with a not-so-friendly smile.
Little Mortal snorted,
"Now you don't remember me, old rival?"
The old lady furrowed,
"How can you be my rival?
Do you know how old I am?"
A group of three people came in a hurry at this moment.
They were forced to leave after the military salute with the rest.
One of them was Lady Butterfly, and the others were Sword God and an old man who looked like an older version of him.
Little Mortal gasped in shock when he saw Lady Butterfly coming,
"So you are already using your illusory technique to fool me?"
Then he brought his guards up,
"Bring it on!
Do you think you are the only one getting stronger?"
The real Lady Butterfly landed between them and said in panic,
"Guardian Mortal, that's my mother!"
But Little Mortal didn't get fooled,
"Impossible!
You aren't even real, go away!"
Sword God, who already knew about her mother's trouble from the first day she met with their little guardian, tried to help,
"Guardian Mortal, I can testify that she is my grandmother!"
Little Mortal rolled his eyes at him,
"How can she be your grandmother?
Can't you see?
She looks younger than your mother?"
The old lady indeed looked younger...
The old man tried to save his wife,
"Guardian Mortal, she was too talented and became an immortal at a younger age, that's why..."
Little Mortal looked at the old man in shock,
"Who are you?
Why are you pretending to be my
'not so lucky to be my teacher' older version?"
The old man felt completely at a loss.
He didn't even know what he was saying.
Sword God, who understood what he meant, said helplessly,
"He is my grandfather..."
Little Mortal was at a loss for words now!
He turned to Lady Butterfly's mother,
"Your illusion is so advanced now that you can make a whole family to deceive me?"
The old lady didn't even know what was going on.
She could only feel that this little kid was an important person to her without knowing why!
She said helplessly,
"Alright, what did I even do to you that makes us rivals?"
Little Mortal snorted,
"Now you admit it?
Don't you remember how many times you beat me?"
The old lady furrowed,
"What are you talking about?"
Lady Butterfly tried to clear the misunderstanding,
"Guardian Mortal, that was me; she is my mother..."
Little Mortal suddenly froze.
Then he pointed at the old lady with a trembling hand,
"S-So... You never fought with me using your real body!?
It was always your illusion that beat me?!"
The crowd didn't know what was going on in his head, or how to clear the misunderstanding.
Sword God thought of something and said,
"Guardian Mortal, my mother would beat me up, too, when I was a child.
But I didn't take it to heart, did I?"
Little Mortal looked at him blankly.
Then became excited,
"So she beat you up, too?
Let's take revenge together!
I'm sure if we both team up, we can deal with her!"
And he attacked the old lady!
Sword God attacked too, without his own will!
The old lady recognized her grandson, and when she saw him attacking her, she got angry!
Not long after, Sword God and Little Mortal were lying on the ground like corpses!
The old lady didn't know who this child was,
But she had a favorable impression of him,
And only knocked his head once to give him a lesson.
And that one knock was enough to knock him down!
But Sword God?
He dares to attack his grandmother?
He got beaten up for real!
The old lady was strong!
In the end, Lady Butterfly, who didn't know what kind of game this little guardian was playing again, left hurriedly with her parents!
When they left, Little Mortal stood up as if nothing had happened.
He looked at Rose and said,
"Assistant Rose, why don't you take your father with you to the hospital? He doesn't seem well."
Rose, while speechless, took her father away...
What was that for?
It was as if her father was the target this time?
When they left, Little Mortal smiled coldly,
"This guy didn't correct his sect address and made so much trouble for me..."
Then he looked at the old manager,
"Did he think I won't get back at him?"
The Old manager went into deep thought and said,
"Guardian Mortal, from the World Law's feedback, I can tell 'Fate' is on the side of the guardian candidates.
Maybe that was the hand of fate that led you there,
So you could catch those black robes sooner,
And stop them from ruining your plans from the start?
Even your 'coach assistant' technique was because of that."
Little Mortal's jaw almost dropped to the ground!
Immortal Manager and Princess Xena tried their best not to laugh...
Little Mortal, after a brief shock, suddenly attacked!
"You silly old man!
Now you remembered to be smart all of a sudden and share important information with me!"
"Guardian Mortal, I was wrong!
Forgive my big mouth!
Wait no! I didn't even know about this until now!"
But Little Mortal didn't let go of him,
"You are smart enough to 'analyze' fate for me, but you aren't smart enough to analyze your own fate!"
The old man screamed,
"I'm no fate expert, Guardian Mortal!
Leave my old bones alone!"
And finally, Immortal Manager saved the old man,
"Guardian Mortal, how about I take him with me and give him some extra work?
That's the best punishment for a lazy manager."
Little Mortal finally stopped,
"Humph, I let you go this time because of the young lady Immortal!
You'd better be careful what you say next time!"
The old manager fled as fast as he could before his little bully changed his mind.
After they left, Little Mortal turned to the only person left, who was looking at him nervously.
Princess Xena wasn't from this universe,
So she didn't feel 'safe' around this little monster like other creatures in the guardian territory.
Little Mortal said with a 'half-smile',
"Well, well, well, we are finally alone..."
Princess Xena gulped nervously.
Little Mortal, in senior mode, continued,
"How about we put our differences aside, unite,
And free your place from the influence of parasites!"
Princess Xena tried to explain her situation before too many misunderstandings were made,
"Guardian Mortal, I think you misunderstood my reason for coming here."
Little Mortal raised an eyebrow,
"Aren't you from the 'Night' planet?"
"I am."
"Aren't you Xena, the eldest daughter of the Armand family?"
"That's me."
"The vampires, right?"
"Yes."
"Weren't you sent here to kill a guardian?"
"I was."
"Where is the misunderstanding then?"
Xena, while puzzled about how he knew everything about her, said,
"It's a long story..."
Little Mortal became excited when he heard her say, "Long story!"
"I have time!
Tell me about it from the start to the end!"
He already brought two chairs so they could sit down.
He had a bowl of snacks too, ready to eat while she was telling the story!
Princess Xena, who was forced to sit, cleared her throat and started,
"As you know.
There are two families on our planet.
One is the Armand family of vampires,
And the other is the Grey family of werewolves."
Little Mortal nodded.
"I know that part."
"There are humans too, but, you know..."
Little Mortal nodded again,
"They are donating blood in return for you protecting them."
Princess Xena felt relieved when she saw he didn't care about their relationship with humans.
It seems he only cared about good or bad, enemy or friend, and not what race you are.
"From childhood, I always felt things around me didn't make sense.
Reality was different in my eyes...
There were people that I could see, but others couldn't.
Some people would disappear,
And nobody cared, but I would remember them clearly...
I was always scared to talk about it to others because when I spoke to my mother about it once,
The same night, one of those people that others couldn't see came to my room and did something like a ritual before leaving..."
Little Mortal raised his eyebrow,
"Oh, you are one of them!"
Xena asked in surprise,
"One of whom?"
Little Mortal shrugged,
"Don't know who exactly,
But there are creatures out there that, no matter what level of being is close to them or trying to influence them,
It won't work on them.
You can find them in incomplete universes mostly, or in special places, such as your planet.
And the one who tried a ritual in your room was probably trying to connect your side with a higher being,
So the other party could brainwash you.
But even Higher beings can't influence creatures like you."
Xena finally understood why she was different.
She was going to ask how she was being dragged into his nonexistent illusion then, but remembered he was claiming to be level 85, not level 6.
She sighed and continued,
"After that night, I kept everything secret to myself while ignoring what I wasn't supposed to see.
I just tried to train myself in the hope of getting strong enough to face these obstacles...
So I started traveling around the world to see if there were others like me.
Our planet, though, isn't that big, at most half of the former cultivation planet, and while I didn't find anyone else like myself, I found out a fact."
Little Mortal asked excitedly while munching on his snack,
"What fact?"
"The fact that strong warriors or members of both families would disappear from time to time...
Until one day, in the Grey family, I saw the reason for that with my own eyes!
One day-"
Little Mortal interrupted her,
"Wait, wait!
Aren't the Grey family all black?
How could you go there?
I heard you vampires are all white and werewolves all black!"
Xena closed her eyes, and her appearance changed from the kind-looking grandma next door to a young and beautiful lady with ginger-colored hair and green eyes.
But Little Mortal was looking at her like he was still waiting for her answer...
"I can change my appearance, Guardian Mortal.
Like now that I turned to my real appearance."
Little Mortal furrowed,
"What change?
You are still the same ginger girl!"
Xena bit her lips.
Her innate ability to change appearance wasn't effective at all when it came to him...
He was always seeing her actual appearance from the first day they met!
"Guardian Mortal, you are level 85; it's only natural that it won't work on you...
But I used it to change my skin color and infiltrate the Grey family.
It was then that I found out, even those people that only I can see, can't see through my disguise!"
Little Mortal gasped,
"So overpowered!
Wait a moment!"
Then he ran to his whiteboard, came back with it, and started adding some information.
==================
Main quest:
Find the coordinates of the lost planets.
Side quests: (not necessary)
1. Information gathering
2. The current condition of the planet manager.
3. The outsiders' identity.
4. The current condition of the two families of puppies and bloodsuckers.
5. Place the perfect baits for the wanted criminal.
6. Yes or No?
-If Yes, the preparation plan.
-If No, the evacuation plan.
Extra information:
-Princess Xena's disguise ability works at least on L4 creatures.
-The ritual guy is the main Apostle?
========================
After he was done, he said,
"Alright, get back to the story.
You saw what?"
Xena cleared her throat and continued,
"There was a group of 4 people, who descended from the sky, all with golden wings, like angels!
The family leader, Ronan Grey, welcomed them respectfully!
It was unbelievable for me to see this stubborn old wolf show respect to anyone like that...
After that, he brought one of his three sons to them.
As if he needed to be tested first, and after he was 'accepted',
they used a compass that they brought with them, and the family treasure of the Grey family, to find a coordinate, and then they used a mirror to open a passage and send Ronan's son in.
What they promised him or what he was supposed to do, I didn't know at the time.
After that, I didn't stay there and left secretly.
But to my horror, a couple of years later, the same person appeared and started the same ritual from my childhood...
And it wasn't only once; he appeared again and again as if it was a yearly visit!"
Little Mortal changed a line.
=====
Extra information:
-Princess Xena's disguise ability works at least on L4 creatures.
-The ritual guy is definitely the Apostle.
Is he too vigilant, or did he already know about her?
-Ronan Grey is an insider.
=====
Xena felt good talking about her life to this little overpowered ally.
How long had she been hiding her secret?
Thousands of years...
Now there was finally someone listening to her...
Even doing some analysis at the same time!
She continued,
"This matter continued until I was summoned by my mother, Cassandra, to go back for an important matter.
So I didn't have any other choice except going back home."
Little Mortal added more information.
=====
Extra information:
-Cassandra Armand is probably another insider
=====
"When I went back,
my mother told me about beings of a higher level in 'secret'.
She told me that noble vampires like her were called level 3 in the 'outside' world, and if we want to get stronger, we need to advance to a higher level.
When I asked her, 'How can we get stronger?', she said, 'There are opportunities given by angels, coming from heaven.
But for that, we need to do missions for them.'
When I heard my mother's voice that night,
I felt it was a bewitching voice that was trying to force me into believing her."
Little Mortal asked,
"You were level 2 or 3 at that time?"
Xena answered,
"One step away from 3."
Little Mortal nodded and changed a line.
-Cassandra Armand [confirmed level 4 insider].
Xena was stunned!
She pointed at the new line and said,
"Guardian Mortal, can you explain to me what it means?"
Little Mortal said,
"It means your mother is working for the enemy.
She is 100% under the control of that 'guy',
like the Grey family leader."
Xena asked,
"Under the control of what 'guy'?"
Little Mortal looked away,
"Not telling."
It seems it was a higher being that he couldn't say the name of?
Xena could only continue,
"That night, I thought of running away when my mother told me there was an opportunity for me to do a mission for angels.
But I suddenly received a message that I could say for certain it was from the planet itself!"
Little Mortal gasped,
"What message?"
Xena could remember it like it was yesterday,
"Go, but don't kill."
Little Mortal was disappointed,
"That's it?"
Xena nodded,
"Yes, it was like a prophecy to me, but now I think it was-"
Little Mortal cut her off,
"Planet manager!"
Xena nodded,
"So, I didn't run and stayed behind to see what the 'mission' was.
A couple of days later, my mother called for me.
The four 'angels' that I saw with the Grey family last time were there too.
This time, it seems I was supposed to see them,
because my mother was talking to them.
Then the same thing happened.
I was tested, and I later found out what the test was for, and then they used our family treasure and the same compass to find a coordinate.
When they opened a passage, they told me about my mission, which wasn't too complicated.
I was supposed to find anyone with a token like the one you gave me, kill the other party, and then notify them about the result."
Little Mortal added some other information.
=====
Extra information:
-Both family treasures work for finding coordinates.
-The compass is a necessary item.
-No need for the mirror.
=====
When he was done, Xena continued with her story,
"At this point, I knew what the message I received from the 'planet' meant.
It meant the one I should kill is the one I shouldn't.
But I wasn't sure how to know if anyone has a token or not?
So I decided to act as a kind old lady wherever my destination was, and just avoid killing anyone.
But before I departed from my home planet, another group of people joined me.
The one leading them was a 2-meter-tall creature with black stone armor that was covering him from head to toe, and the rest were a group of short and black creatures with stone weapons.
They were like Gargoyles, but without wings.
The 'angels' told me they follow me in this mission as support."
Little Mortal shook his head,
"No way they were allies!"
Xena nodded,
"Indeed, when we entered the passage, they all tried to kill me.
It was then that I knew what the 'test' was for,
because my power suddenly fell to level 1.
However, another force intervened, breaking the seal and even propelling me one step forward to reach level 3 and resist those creatures...
And I think you know what happened after."
Little Mortal nodded,
"The one who helped you was your planet manager, who broke the seal of those 'angels'.
The ones trying to kill you were that ritual guy's underlings.
He always suspected you, so he just tried to send you on your last trip while sending his own minions to do the job.
But you beat them up, and Miss Fire took care of the rest."
Xena nodded,
"After that, I became a 'pill maker', because it was an easy job here, and due to my job and the effect of being two levels higher, everyone would be kind to me."
Little Mortal put his snack away and stood in front of his whiteboard,
"Alright, let me come up with a 'perfect plan'."
Xena nodded.
Little Mortal started mumbling to himself while writing his plan.
"The hidden boss is sending these people to their final destination, even though they kill the guardian for him.
That's why they disappear; in reality, they are killed after coming back from their trip, so..."
1. Princess Xena needs to die after she goes back.
Princess Xena,
"..."
"The planet manager seems to be under control on the surface, but in reality, he/she is still waiting for an opportunity."
1. Princess Xena needs to die after she goes back. 2. Find the manager secretly.
"To get the compass and one of the family treasures,
We need to bait the four apostles out.
But to make the family treasure work, you need to be the family head, from what I read in my notebook...
Meanwhile, I would also catch the hidden boss.
His law is so annoying."
Then he tapped his guardian token,
"Is he on your wanted list?"
The token responded,
[Affirmative.]
Little Mortal nodded.
1. Princess Xena needs to die after she goes back. 2. Find the manager secretly.
3. Become the family head of vampires or werewolves.
4. Find karma connection -> the best target is the ritual guy.
Then he suddenly drew out the blade from his stick and attacked Xena!
Princess Xena didn't even know why he suddenly decided to kill her!
Weren't they all friendly just now?
Wasn't she supposed to die on her planet at least, to be the 'bait'?
While her face was filled with fear, and her mind was in turmoil, she heard Little Mortal saying,
"Did you record her?
I'm not sure if I can scare her again."
The little crystal vibrated.
Little Mortal nodded,
"Good job, remember to use this face for when they try to kill her."
Princess Xena closed her eyes.
Some veins popped up on her forehead!
'This little devil...'
Little Mortal brought out his notebook and wrote down the final plan.
========================
Secret mission:
-Find the coordinates of the lost planets.
Main quests:
-vGather the family treasures (0/2).
- Bait the apostles and get the compass.
- Catch the ritual guy to find the wanted criminal.
- Find the manager secretly to find the answer
(Yes or No?).
========================
"Alright, now I know what I should do when we go there.
But before that, I need to be ready for the newborn's ceremony too.
And today is the ninth day; our uninvited guests should be here on day 10..."
The space mirror vibrated.
Little Mortal frowned,
"Why?"
Not only that, you even have the 'Buyer' in a prison cage.
Who is going to ask my master for a free passage?>
Little Mortal looked at the space mirror blankly...
He then shouted, as if he had completely erased any information about the uninvited guest.
"Big guy, come here."
The backpack came.
"Listen to me carefully, everyone.
I'm going to explain to you about the newborn's ceremony protocol."
The treasures vibrated to say they are listening.
"In this protocol, we all need to act fast, in sync, and precisely.
As you know, the guardian token now has access to your abilities,
which means you don't need to follow me all the time, while I can use your abilities.
Now,
This is what we need to do if I use the code name 'protocol newborn's ceremony activate'!
First, the guardian token should connect to the space mirror,
It doesn't matter where I am.
Second, space mirror, you need to open a passage to me immediately.
Third, big guy, send those beggar clothes out for me to change into.
Fourth, little crystal, you need to join me so we can go back together.
Fifth, the guardian token needs to hide in the same place we are at that moment.
Nobody can detect you because of your black cover!
And sixth, the space mirror, closes the passage in the end.
Is it clear?"
The treasures vibrated.
Little Mortal nodded, but suddenly shouted,
"Protocol newborn's ceremony, activate!"
And in front of Xena, who didn't know what he was even talking about, the treasures perfectly did what they were told!
Little Mortal, satisfied with their teamwork, threw the old, dirty clothes back in the backpack and said,
"Alright, guardian token.
Connect to the headband set and little crystal for now.
It's time to leave."
Then he turned to Xena,
"How are you supposed to go back to your planet?"
Princess Xena brought out a candle,
"They said 'light it up' when you want to come back.
Should I do it now?"
Little Mortal shook his head,
"Not now.
Space mirror, you check this candle and find where it leads to."
Then he looked at Xena,
"We need to start the mission soon.
Any questions?"
Xena finally found the opportunity to ask what she always wanted to know,
"Why are we being controlled like this?
Why are they sending us to our death?
Who is behind all of this?
Is there a way for us to free ourselves?"
Little Mortal went silent.
Then he rubbed his chin and started answering,
"You are being controlled because you were there from the start, on the night planet, with decent power to do the job for them by killing the guardian candidates before they grow.
Why are they sending you to your death? It's because when you kill a guardian, you are being marked by guardian law, which is mixed with world law, and the next time a guardian candidate sees you, they recognize you on the spot.
So you don't have any use for them after one mission, and you know about things that you shouldn't.
So they just kill you to silence you.
And Who is behind all of this?
Not telling.
Is there a way to free you?
We will see about that.
And for your information, the reason they chose your planet is because of its uniqueness.
You can find the location of any other planet from there.
Why?
It's a long story; just know it once belonged to a higher being, but not anymore.
Anything else?"
Xena, while disappointed, shook her head.
This little guardian wouldn't tell her about anything related to higher beings, probably because of their 'godly' abilities.
Little Mortal climbed up his backpack and went in.
A while later, he came out in a black shirt with short sleeves and black pants.
He was barefoot again.
He raised his hand in front of Xena, like a child asking for a hug,
"See if you can pick me up."
Xena picked him up easily, but...
"How heavy am I now?"
"As heavy as a grown man..."
Little Mortal nodded,
"Good, now that I have become the guardian,
My territory can reduce my weight to that of an adult, combined with my headband set."
Xena asked,
"Guardian Mortal, why are you barefoot again?"
Little Mortal said with a dissatisfied tone,
"Some of my high-quality treasures, like these guys
that I get as a birthday gift,"
He pointed at the treasure hanging on his backpack,
"Or my sports shoes that I borrowed recently from my dragon friend, made some people jealous.
So if I go anywhere under the watch of a higher being, they might detect it and try to steal them from me!"
Then he shook his head, as if he was disappointed,
"So uncultured and boorish..."
Princess Xena was sure now...
This little devil didn't really acquire these unique and overpowered treasures in a 'legal' way, like a birthday gift.
So the real owners were still after their stuff?
Doesn't that mean, equal to the number of birth treasures, he has higher beings after him?
Princess Xena gulped down nervously while thinking,
'Who am I teaming up with ...?'
After a while, the space mirror vibrated.
Little Mortal stood up,
"Good job, open a small passage.
Let's see what's going on on the other end!"
The space mirror opened a passage as big as a coin.
Little Mortal and Princess Xena looked at the other side curiously.