The headquarters of the Esper Association in the United States was hectic.
The employees over there never expected someone important to visit that day. And it was not the higher-up level important, no. The one who visited was the leader of the Esper Association himself, Avos, and his Four Executives.
It was a surprise for the employees, but they quickly prepared a room for them to rest after a long journey to the United States.
Because the headquarters in the United States was considered the biggest out of the other headquarters in the other countries, their preparation was swift and quick.
The head of the headquarters himself was the one who guided Avos and the Four Executives to the room that they prepared. He appeared to be nervous even though he looked way older than Avos.
The room had fancy decorations with a chandelier on the ceiling. The Executives sat on couches, two at each, while Avos sat on an armchair. The only one standing in the room was the head of the headquarters.
Even if the man had the position of the Head, his position was still lower than that of the Executives that had joined the Esper Association long ago. Lucilla Avohert was a relatively new Executive, but she was still an Executive nonetheless and had been in the Esper Association longer than the Head.
“Lord Avos, it has been a long time.” The head of the headquarters, Johnathan Frizzy, greeted Avos politely.
Avos smiled at the head. He had known the head. After all, he was the one who chose the people to head the headquarters directly.
“Ah, Johnathan. It’s nice to see you again. How long has it been? Ten years?”
“Indeed, my Lord. It has been 10 years since I have the honor to manage this biggest Headquarters known by the public thanks to you, my Lord.”
“Time has passed, isn’t it? Look at you. Your hair is now white, and you even have a mustache.”
“Hahaha, indeed. I am but an old man now.”
Avos smiled melancholy. He was an unstable man. Living for a long time had taken a toll on his mind. But, unlike a certain someone, his long life was caused by a product, not a natural ability. Hence, the toll on his mind.
If only that someone would stay on his side, or so he thought.
“Because of age, I become able to guess people’s intention easily, my Lord.” Johnathan’s eyes flashed as he looked straight at Avos.
“How impudent.” The burly man with red hair scoffed at Johnathan’s word.
The man was the Executive that served Avos, one of the first members of the Esper Association. And he was the most loyal follower of Avos.
“Do you mean you know Lord Avos’ plan? Don’t act over your boundaries, withered old man.”
The redhead’s eyes narrowed dangerously. His glare felt like he could feel anyone and made the crying kid shut up.
“What do you think, Draco Als? After all, I am not that incompetent. That’s the reason why Lord Avos put me in this position.”
“Oh?”
Two men, burly and old, glared at each other as they flared their Esper pressure, trying to put each other down. Fire and Ice had appeared around their bodies, respectively, giving a sign of what their abilities were.
Avos only smiled while looking at them. The other executives also didn’t seem to mind, as if they already knew where it would go from the start.
The bespectacled blonde man was quietly reading a book. The short man with brown hair was playing with his holo phone, while Lucilla sighed in exasperation as she looked at the situation.
As the youngest among the people in the room, Lucilla couldn’t order them around, so she could only watch the situation unfold and send some signals to Avos, who didn’t really care about the situation.
Yes. Avos enjoyed the situation like a child watching a show. Because he always spent his time in that dark room with only monitors, he loved watching entertainment. But well, as much as he wanted to see how the situation went, he had priorities.
“Now now, calm down, both of you.” He said calmly.
As soon as he said that, the atmosphere was instantly calmer, as if the earlier confrontation was a lie. Both parties turned to Avos, apologetic looks on their faces.
“I am sorry, my Lord.” Said Jonathan.
“My bad.” Murmured Draco.
“No, don’t worry about it. Fighting is good for making you get closer to each other. I don’t really mind, but please mind the situation next time, okay?”
“Certainly.” Johnathan nodded, then turned serious. “Of all things considered, I still don’t know your reason for visiting this place, Lord Avos. May I ask about your business in this place so I can help you with anything that you need?” The old man asked politely.
“Right, about my business.” Avos hummed and crossed his legs. His disposition didn’t really make him like a leader; he was more like a carefree and twisted person.
There was no serious tone, nothing. Just disinterested and amused. He knew that this building was being monitored but said nothing because it seemed interesting.
The only important thing was his plan. If there was a slight hole or obstacle to his plan, he would eliminate them. It was that simple.
And now, the obstacle that he faced was bigger than usual, the biggest one yet in his life. He was forced to move by himself; the obstacle called the Moon of Akasha, or Akasa Naomi, was that big.
So he came to this specific headquarters to get something.
“Johnathan. This building has that, right?”
Avos raised his index finger, pointing at the ground. It was a sign, a gesture known only by a few select people in the Esper Association. Those trusty enough to be given this rather sensitive information.
Johnathan’s eyes narrowed. The old man looked worried but nodded nonetheless to answer the Lord’s question.
“Indeed. Is your visit perhaps…” The old man’s words trailed. Surely, his worry was related to the thing that Avos talked about.
“Yes. We need to mobilize them. The opponent in this War is rather troublesome. We can lose if we hold back our power. Those dolls are needed.” Avos said, surprising everyone in the room.
War. He certainly said that. A word that never came out of his mouth since the Great Esper War a few decades ago. He said that word again, meaning the enemy this time was strong enough to rival the Esper Association that had grown stronger in the last decades.
Johnathan took the thing seriously. The old man put his hand inside his suit’s pocket and took out a small button. Next, he pressed the button, and a small door appeared on the floor near the wall with a rattling noise.
With a skilled movement, Johnathan gestured to Avos and the others to the newly appeared door.
“Please follow me. I will take you to the dolls.”
Hearing executives of an organization actively involved in kidnapping calling something by the term ‘doll’ is very worrying
Thanks for the chapter
... seriously... Pretty kind nya.. thanks for the chapter nya.