Chapter 653: Ana's Deal [Pt 1]

Ultimately, Beruel's story was told with all three members of the room present--all of which were stunned by the discovery.

"So, what will you do now?" Kuzon smiled, glancing at Ana.

A grin was on her face, just as he had expected. He could already guess her answer to the question.

"Well, I suppose it's worth a try, isn't it?" She now moved closer to the distraught Beruel.

Placing her small hand on his sunken shoulder, Ana looked at the old fellow in the eyes and asked him with genuine intent and a very excited face.

"Fairy King Beruel... do you want to be young again?!"

"U-uh...?"

"You see, I'm feeling very generous today, so I want to help you. Of course, there'll be terms and conditions. But, what do you think?"

Beruel was still in a daze. He couldn't comprehend why and how the little girl in front of him could say something so absurd.

'She's casually placing her hand on me, and she's speaking in this familiar tone. We've hardly met, and yet...'

Even without Beruel's bigot tendencies, he still felt the girl was being rude to him. Still, just as with Jane's actions in the past, Beruel couldn't find himself hating it.

His tired eyes stared at the girl, and while millions of thoughts ran through his mind, he decided to humor her efforts.

"I'll try anything at this point. What terms are you suggesting?"

"Become my lab partner!"

"W-what?!"

"If I help you become young, you'll have to devote your first ten--no, let's say twenty--years to me and my cause. Once that period is over, you can do whatever you like." Ana smiled, excitedly placing both hands on her hips.

'Is this girl serious?' Beruel found himself asking.

How could she think of making someone like him--the Fairy King--a simple lab partner? This surpassed any insult Jane had made to him.

'Ah, well, not quite...'

"Of course, you'll leave the Nether Cult and become one of the good guys. You can do that much, can't you? I mean, that's why you joined them, isn't it?"

"You're forgetting I also joined the Nether Cult for the purpose of reviving my past subordinates and taking back my Kingdom." Beruel's eyes narrowed at the young girl.

His resolve to tread a dishonorable path, so long as it helped to achieve to his goals... this girl was mocking it! He couldn't stand for such a deal that clearly proved disadvantageous to him.

"I'm surprised you think you have a choice here. What do you think, Kuzon?" Ana chuckled as she glanced at the boy behind her.

"I think he's being delirious if he thinks we won't take away his Arcana and leave him stranded so we can destroy his evil organization. I mean... I said this already, but their goals won't be achieved."

The little energy on Beruel's face suddenly drained when he heard Kuzon's statement. He looked at the two kids and wondered what kind of evil spawned them.

"Y-you guys..."

"Don't worry, Beruel. I'm sure you're a meticulous man, so you must have collected the flesh and blood samples off your dead comrades."

"Subordinates. And yes, I did. I also tried replicating the cells while artificially creating bodies for them. Of course, without their souls, those are practically useless."

"Well, Jared has an Arcana called [The Hanged Man]. It can revive your dead comrades so long as those samples are present. The fact that they have bodies prepared even makes it easier, don't you think?"

"W-wha--?!"

"I mean, you don't have to be in the Nether Cult. I can save you, Jared can save your fallen subordinates, and as for your Fairy Kingdom, well... when you regain your body and subordinates, you can deal with that yourself."

"A-ah, I see..."

"But only after your time with me has expired. Plus, I don't really like the idea of taking back the Fairy Sanctuary. Jane is such a nice lady, and everyone there is so happy."

Beruel's eyes widened upon hearing Ana's last words.

"J-Jane? You've met her?!" The pitch of his tone increased at this point.

"Y-yeah, what of it?"

"How is she? What does she look like now? Ah, she can make herself virtually immortal, so it's practically the same. But she could still have gotten Plas-Gic surgery, so there's a possibility she looks different. Does she still wear her lab coat everywhere? What hairstyle does she have now? What is her...?"

Ana slowly stepped back from the rambling Fairy King's obsessive questions.

His bloodshot eyes widened even more as he asked for more details, creeping out the young girl. To her, Beruel looked nothing more than a perverted old man.

"W-well..." She could only laugh awkwardly.

"Looks like someone's smitten. Our dear Fairy King still likes Miss Jane so much."

"N-no! I'm not! I mean, I don't like... her at all..." Beruel's voice trailed.

For a shut-in old man, he sure was exhibiting a lot of pep and energy. Besides, how could he lie to them when they had all heard his story not too long ago.

"Then, how about this, I promise to tell you all I know about Jane if you decide to accept the bargain. I could even ask her stuff you want to know."

"A-ah, is that so...?"

"Yep. The thing is, I don't think you're a bad person, Beruel. That's why I'm giving you this chance. I think you're brilliant and, well, useful. I want to work with you and develop the ultimate mesh of Magic and Technology. Doing that, I'll finally be able to surpass Lewis Griffith." Ana's eyes were shining with excitement at this point.

For a moment, silence prevailed. Everyone stared at Ana's bizarre announcement with an odd look. It almost seemed like she was out of her mind.

"Wait, what? You want to surpass Lewis? You? Hahaha!"

"H-hey! Why are you laughing.".

"I knew Lewis back in the day. We shared contradicting opinions in terms of women and culture, but we got along finely. Do you know why?"

"Uh, why?"

"Because he was brilliant!"