"From this moment on, you have two options."
He raised two fingers and waved them right in front of Dave's furious face.
"The first is simple. Perfect for a coward like you. I'll simply send you to your execution and forget everything connected to you. Including your family... Probably..."
He looked at Dave, who did not believe him in the slightest, and smiled approvingly.
"The second. Starting today, you'll become my slave. You'll do everything I tell you without asking questions. If I tell you to assassinate Baron Orpheus, you'll kindly take a sword and shove it down his throat. If I tell you to spread false rumors among the patrol, you'll repeat them word for word as if you had personally witnessed every one of the lies I come up with. If I tell you to turn left, you won't even dare look in any other direction. Is that understood?!"
Grey stretched out his hand, grabbed Dave by the hair, and lifted his head, forcing him to look directly into his eyes.
"In return, I'll make sure your family's basic needs are taken care of and even give them a chance to escape poverty. Don't doubt my abilities. I really can do that. If I didn't have special methods, I wouldn't have been able to dig up your entire background in such a short time. You understand, patrolmen have certain forms of protection."
He tilted his head slightly to the side.
"A good deal, isn't it?"
Grey fell silent, studying the face of the prisoner he had been forbidden to kill.
Of course, the first option was complete bullshit and existed solely to make the second one more convincing. But he had the right to bring it up if it pushed Dave toward the correct choice. Right? Right?
Silence returned to the basement.
It continued for about a minute.
"How can I trust you?" Dave asked cautiously, still not completely convinced.
Grey pulled a sealed scroll from inside his clothes.
Naturally, it was a witch contract, one of the few he had left. His heart bled at the thought, but there simply were no other effective ways to control him.
"Do you know what this is?"
Dave narrowed his eyes, trying to make out the strange object in the dim torchlight. His pupils shrank the moment he realized what Grey was holding.
"A-a witch... C-contract... You're even willing to associate with the devil's spawn?!"
"Tsk."
Grey clicked his tongue in disappointment, then slapped Dave across the face, trying to snap him out of it.
He looked as though he was about to piss himself from fear.
"Watch your tongue. You're an idiot who's simply been brainwashed. Witches are just as human as you or me. There's nothing frightening about them."
He let out an irritated sigh.
"But I'm too lazy to try convincing you otherwise. Either you sign it, or you'll die and leave your family to fend for themselves."
Grey held out the scroll to him.
"Your choice. I don't want to pressure you."
Dave collapsed to the ground in defeat, looking as though all his strength had left him at once.
Grey looked at him without any expression.
Then he pulled a key from inside his clothes, bent down to the chains, and unlocked the shackles restraining him. Brushing off his hands, he casually tossed over a dagger. The blade buried itself in the ground just a centimeter away from Dave.
"Sign it with your blood," he ordered. "Or try to attack me and choose the worse option."
Grey looked completely relaxed and calm, as though the outcome of all this did not concern him in the slightest.
Would Dave really dare to attack him?
He was certain he wouldn't, but secretly kept his hand tightly around his revolver, carefully watching the prisoner's every movement.
Dave did exactly what Grey expected.
He mechanically picked up the dagger, brought it to his finger, made a shallow cut, and left his mark on the contract. The moment the blood soaked into the paper, it immediately broke apart into tiny particles, and Dave felt his heart skip a beat.
"Welcome to Void's Order," Grey said casually, giving him an approving pat on the shoulder. "You'll learn the details later. For now, follow me."
He turned around and immediately headed for the exit.
Dave silently followed his new master.
He might not have known all the details, but he was absolutely certain of one thing: the little devil had cut off every path of retreat.
Either way, Dave was his subordinate now, which meant he had a certain value. No sane person would harm their own property.
Though he wasn't entirely sure about Grey's sanity...
Once they stepped into the courtyard, they found themselves in front of the bonfire, around which the other teenagers were still happily celebrating.
Grey clapped his hands to draw their attention, then casually gestured behind him.
The teenagers' eyes widened when they saw how obediently Dave was following right behind him.
Grey smirked and said with undisguised pride:
"Well, that's another reason to celebrate. I barely had time to establish Void's Order, and two more people have already officially joined the organization. I don't even know what will happen in a week... Maybe the competition will become so fierce that I'll have to become more selective. Ha-ha."
He theatrically spread his arms.
"Please welcome Dave. He's part of our team now."
Silence hung over the courtyard for several moments. After all, just yesterday, this man had been their prisoner and was suspected of cooperating with the Merciful Flame's Cult. But since Grey had said so, they did not dare object. He probably had his own reasons.
He was their commander, and admittedly, a very effective one.
He would not put them in danger without a reason, which meant Dave had passed the test and deserved their trust.
Still, they couldn't act like him, changing their mood faster than a page could be turned in a book. They were shocked and stared at their commander in disbelief.
As if he hadn't noticed the awkward atmosphere, Grey calmly returned to his seat and sat down. He casually crossed one leg over the other and leaned back, as though the numerous injuries they had seen meant absolutely nothing.
"Why so quiet?" he asked half-jokingly. "I don't remember giving an order to stop having fun. Maybe someone could suggest a game? I want to join in too."
The teenagers exchanged glances.
Their eyes seemed to be asking each other: 'Is he serious?'
The very same person who had demonstrated what true madness meant just an hour ago, then returned as if nothing had happened and announced that he had recruited a prisoner, was now suggesting they play some silly game?
At that moment, they were completely speechless.
"Tsk, you're all so boring," Grey complained. "Well, fine. Then let's discuss our plans for the near future."
He pointed at Dave.
"First, tell us about your abilities. I'm sure they didn't recruit you into the city patrol for no reason. Don't worry. You're part of the team now, which means your secrets are our secrets."
Dave let out a resigned sigh.
Under the scrutinizing gazes of two dozen teenagers, he felt like a clown performing in a circus. Even the damp basement had been a little more comfortable.
Still, he didn't dare ignore Grey's request.
Awkwardly clearing his throat, he began to explain:
"A few years ago, I was lucky enough to cross paths with a Rune Master. As a favor, he sold me a rune."
He rolled up his sleeve and showed everyone a tattoo, or rather, a rune. Thin lines intertwined, forming a simplified design that resembled a minimalist pair of scales.
"It's quite unusual. It allows me to redistribute my body's capabilities. I can temporarily weaken one function to strengthen another. For example, impair my eyesight to enhance my hearing. Reduce my sensitivity to pain and increase my physical strength. Or weaken my body so much that I can barely move... but in return, my recovery speed increases several times over."
Grey froze mid-sentence.
At that moment, Junior abruptly seized control of the body and turned around, staring at the neatly drawn rune. He was utterly shocked.
"Hey, what's going on?" Senior protested, completely unprepared for such an exaggerated reaction. To be honest, he had only asked out of curiosity and hadn't expected much. He hadn't placed any particular hopes on Dave anyway, since he didn't consider him trustworthy.
"Incredible," Junior muttered incoherently. "To achieve an effect like this, you have to account for far too many variables. Muscle strain, nervous system functions, blood circulation, sensory organs... If I tried to create something similar, an ordinary person simply wouldn't have enough surface area on their body to accommodate such a complex design."
"This is truly ingenious. It's a shame I can't see the complete blueprint. Otherwise, I could learn so much from it."
He finally raised his eyes to Dave and asked:
"Do you know where the person who created this rune is?"
Dave shook his head. "I have no idea. To be honest, I thought he was just some ordinary con artist selling junk. I only decided to buy something from him out of pity. But when I tried activating the rune, it worked exactly as he'd described. I even went looking for him the next day, but by then, he'd completely disappeared."
"What's going on in Thorn's Cloaca?" Grey whispered. "First Lydia and Lily, then the mysterious Lady Veronika, the ninth concubine of King Orion, now a Rune Master with such incredible skills, and God knows who else. Isn't that a bit too much for a small town on the outskirts of the Empire?"
"Sir Grey, did you say something? I couldn't quite hear you," Dave asked.
Grey finally released Dave's arm and nodded toward the bonfire.
"Go join the others."
Dave blinked.
"What?"
"I said go get some rest. Or would you prefer to return to the basement?"
"N-No, Sir..."
He shifted his gaze toward the teenagers. They looked just as confused.
Kai was the first to recover.
"Um... alright," he scratched the back of his head and forced a smile. "Then... welcome?"
He pointed at the others one by one, introducing them.
Dave could only nod awkwardly in response to their greetings. He didn't even know what to do with himself when Achilles held out a skewer of meat and gave him a friendly nod.
"I hope you don't hold a grudge against me. I really didn't mean to hurt you. That's just how things were. We simply couldn't afford to take any risks. Now we're on the same team, and I'd be happy to become your friend."
Dave finally smiled sincerely and extended his hand in reconciliation.
"It's an honor."
He didn't hold a grudge against Achilles and still remembered how the latter had tried to talk Grey out of executing him. Who knew? If it hadn't been for Achilles speaking up at the right moment, his corpse might already have been eaten by magical beasts.
Achilles smiled and shifted his gaze toward their leader.
"Now I'll tell you about our plans for the future," Grey said once things had settled down.
"Our first and most urgent task will be your awakening. Tomorrow morning, those of you who haven't started their development yet will undergo an awakening ceremony based on the Roman model. To do that, we'll have to leave the estate and offer a prayer to Aphrodite herself. I'll warn you right now that I'm only 60% confident it'll work, so I won't force anyone. Those who don't want to take that risk, step forward!"
Several people looked nervous.
A true awakening. For the inhabitants of Eridania, those words meant far too much. It meant gaining access to power, the opportunity to develop their very existence. It was a door to a brighter future.
How could they possibly refuse?
Sixty percent was the best they could ever hope for. Who knew when they would get another chance like this? So they pressed themselves firmly against the ground, afraid that their boss might change his mind if he noticed even the slightest hesitation.
"Any objections? Excellent." Grey sighed in relief. He didn't want to put them in danger, but there was no other choice, and time was running out.
"Then let's move on to the next item. We need to deal with the influx of magical beasts during winter. After your awakening, your training will become even more intense. I'll take care of the supplies and provide you with the best equipment available. But the risks will remain, so I advise you not to let your guard down."
"Sunny. Achilles. Kai."
The three named individuals immediately rose to their feet.
"Yes, sir."
"I'm planning to start recruiting new fighters. Our number one target is the ordinary rats from the Southern Districts. Look for children no older than twelve who are willing to join our ranks. Sunny, you're the most familiar with that area, so you'll be responsible for organizing everything. Kai, since you're the biggest chatterbox, you'll be our spokesman. Achilles, use that damn leader's aura of yours and your charisma to their fullest. You'll be in charge. We'll discuss the details separately."
"Lily."
"What?"
"You're staying at the estate. Find traces of that creature and report to me if you can't handle it. Hope will act as your liaison."
"Alright. As you wish, my Lord."
Lily remained her usual self, calmly examining her manicure, but Grey paid no attention to her behavior.
"Understood," Hope nodded.
"Dave, you'll return to the patrol team. Come up with a convincing story, lie through your teeth, do whatever you want. You have three days to return to your post. I'll do my best to get you promoted. You can send Catherine here to train with everyone else. I don't care. It'll be a good opportunity for her too. If you make it in time, I'll even include her in tomorrow's awakening ceremony."
"Yes, sir," Dave obediently replied, with no intention of letting this opportunity slip away.
Now that he'd climbed aboard this pirate ship, he had to make use of everything being offered to him. After everything that had happened, there was no point in playing hard to get and hiding his family from this boy. That would only make life harder for both him and his loved ones.
Grey swept his gaze over everyone gathered.
"Any questions?"
"No, sir!" the teenagers answered in unison.
"Then get your asses to bed. If any of you aren't asleep in ten minutes, I'll skin you alive."
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