Having a claw pointed at one’s chest isn’t necessarily the most comfortable thing that can happen to you. Still, much to Fredrick’s credit, he didn’t flinch or react much, only nodding his head and following behind me as we walked through the dark store to the table and chairs I had laid out previously.
"Now, how about you take a seat, and we have a nice chat? There are quite a few things I would like clarification on." I stated boldly with my back turned to him, as if unafraid of a sneak attack, which…technically, I wasn’t worried about it.
So far, the guy hadn’t once shown any inkling of hostility or malice against me after finding out my identity, and so I profiled that it was out of his character to attack me unprovoked; after all, suddenly, I was the big bad—the boogieman of the Origin Timeline.
People have fallen to my hand for FAR fewer reasons than simply attacking me, and with that thought in mind, I swept my cloak with a flourish and sat down in my chair gracefully as if I were an aristocrat putting on a show.
Watching as Fredrick took his place on the opposite end of the table, I withdrew a couple of candles from my inventory along with a lighter, some dessert plates, and cups.
Since I was playing the role of a host, I had to offer up at least some small snacks and beverages, and that was what I did.
Within half a beat, the candles were lit, giving Fredrick enough light to see in the darkness, and some cookies and snack cakes sat perched on the two plates along with a container of Particle water.
None of the items drew much attention from the young man, but the moment the glass vase-like container filled with particle water came out of my inventory, Fredrick Gulped audibly, causing me to chuckle.
"Hm, it appears Erik has been keeping the good stuff from his children. Go on then; it’s just some Alpha Grade Particle water; have your fill." I stated in a chipper tone while pushing the vase toward him.
"Don’t…don’t mind if I do," not wanting to show his excitement at getting to drink some of the Flavorless water, Fredrick took the vase into his trembling hands and poured himself a glass before taking a few small sips and relishing in the surge of Particles rushing through his body, bringing him back up to the Peak of Alpha-Rank after having been under Particle Suppression for who knows how long.
"So…do tell me, for all the money Stillwater has, why would you be interested in gathering P*Kemon cards? It’s not like you are hard up for cash; from what I understand, Erik does well in paying you guys over there."
Leaning forward, I steepled my fingers and rested my chin on my outstretched thumbs.
Hearing my question, Fredrick opened his mouth to speak, but I stopped him immediately, my following words causing him to reevaluate his statement.
"And before you say something ignorant like, ’I just happened to be in town,’ do take notice of the fact that I am fully aware you aren’t from here; in fact, you aren’t even from the state of Florida to begin with."
"I came here on a mission…and when I heard that the first set of Cards was about to come out, I had my operators…." Pausing, Fredrick glanced over his shoulder across the room where the corpses of his two henchmen lay before continuing.
"check through the phonebook for any nearby card shops that would have them. My younger brother was super into them as a kid, and I remembered when the pandemic of 2020 hit, he was depressed for months when he found out how much money they were going for."
"Since his birthday is coming up soon, I figured I’d give him a bunch of packs as a present…"
"I see….tell me about this mission of yours, who could draw the attention of Stillwater here in Orlando…unless it’s for an exec of, say, Didney World….ah….so you were on an assassination mission; thus they sent you, quite interesting." My eyes didn’t miss the subtle change in body language that Fredrick exhibited when I had basically figured out his mission without any clues or prior knowledge.
It wasn’t that hard to figure out, considering I knew how his organization worked, and with how big of a juggernaut in the entertainment industry Didney would eventually become, it made sense for Erik to send his kids out to plant some operatives in charge of the company ahead of time.
In a sense, it was similar to what I had done with Henry Potter, and frankly, it made me rethink the intelligence level of the one in charge of Stillwater.
"I guess there’s no hiding anything from you, Xipher…"
"Lord… it’s Lord Xipher, don’t get it fucked up; just because I am sitting here having a civil conversation with you that doesn’t make us acquaintances, friends, or allies. Killing you would be as simple as squashing a bug, and if I am straightforward with you, I am only speaking with you out of boredom; I could easily rip the memories from your head if I so wished, and you would be utterly helpless to prevent it from happening."
The sudden 180 in my attitude finally made Fredrick flinch, causing him to fix his posture and speak more politely quickly.
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"I apologize, Lord Xipher. I meant no offense in my words," In the flicking candlelight, I could see the sweat rolling down his neck, and I shook my head casually before returning to my Playful Xipher mode.
"Ahh, don’t worry now, young pony; I took no offense; it was just a mild inconvenience, is all, but do keep in mind, even your father puts some level of respect on his words when speaking with me."
"Now then, go ahead and ask that question that is rattling around that noggin of yours, young pony, because if you don’t, you may never get an answer…providing you walk away from this conversation in one piece."