...

Chapter 71: The Mystery Of Ian Rose VI

...

It was a long while before Ian found himself seated in a certain warehouse, a meeting location with Selina comfortably sitting on his lap.

She was hugging him tightly, and her eyes were closed, sleeping peacefully. She was understandably exhausted due to their latest training session.

The moment they med, they didn't leave each other's side, not one step away until they released all the adoration they had for each other in a flurry of pure passion.

In contrast to the previous times, the training session this time went for a long while, all because of his ring.

Not unexpected for Ian as the ring is always absorbing his life force, and while it wasn't able to absorb all of his released life force in the middle of the session, the ring was still able to lift a lot of burden from Selina's shoulders which allowed them to enjoy their intimate training much more.

Ian gently stroked the black Rose and sensed the space within. The process was wonderful, and still just as fascinating to him as it was the first time.

'The space expanded quite a bit, especially in the middle of the session. Intimate activities do really make me release more of my life force. It's the size of a room now, so that should be enough for my next project... Hmm, what should I call it? Hell Zone? Fire Domain? Nah, they aren't suitable.'

Ian pulled out Trigon's scroll. He noted that it has started to regain its radiance since the incident. The scroll seems to be able to infinitely generate Devil's fire through some unknown means though it takes time.

He started the project right there and then. He opened the scroll and instantly transferred it to the ring.

Nature was allowed to take its course, a hellish nature.

Ian opted to caress Selina's silky hair as he waited for his expected guests to arrive though Selina woke up before they arrive. She let out a cute yawn as Ian said with a chuckle, "Good morning, I guess?"

"Tha- That was intense," Selina gently mumbled with a blush. His life force finally didn't get in the way as much, so they were able to enjoy themselves way more than before. Albeit, the final step was still a barrier they can't pass through.

"How?"

"A new toy I recently acquired through a fair deal. It absorbs my life force." Ian chuckled and showed her the black Rose, a gorgeous little thing it was.

Selina's eyes sparkled as she eyed the ring, "Don't tell me?"

Ian smiled, noticing her interest in it, "Indeed, it's made of black diamond, a secret project of mine. The result is as you see, spectacular. You seem like you want one?"

"Well, I-I certainly don't mind one..." Selina stuttered her words, seemingly lost in her own world of imagination.

Ian was amused by her antics, but didn't tease her for it, "I will find something better then, I'll already have an idea of what our next big heist will be."

"What is it?" Selina's emerald eyes shone as she asked with anticipation.

"Hmm, I will tell you later. Let it be a surprise."

Selina let out a cure pout but didn't complain. In fact, happiness was apparent on her face, "By the way, are we like immortals now? I mean, your life force is infinite. You're my infinite life force battery, so I am immortal as well?"

She couldn't help but let out a giggle at the end while Ian chuckled, "Yeah, I think so... Are you okay with that? Someone once said that Immortality is the condition of a dead man who doesn't believe he is dead. This speaks for humanity's fears of immortality and all that comes with that concept. What do you think?"

Selina frowned and started thinking seriously about the question before shaking her head, "I'm not sure." She spoke from her heart. She truly doesn't know how it feels to be an immortal, someone who can not die with time. Granted, it's only pseudo-immortality.

"I... I just don't know. What about you?" She questioned, unsure.

Ian stroked his chin, seemingly in a daze as he spoke.

"I asked such a question before, and I received an answer... He told me that he had never given the question much thought for his mind was always that of an immortal, and he told me that not all immortals are equal in mind.

I've seen many mortals in immortals' clothing. I've also seen a few immortals in a mortal's clothing... Ponder my words, and you shall understand when the time arrives. These were his words."

The duo remained silent for a while more before Selina asked with curiosity, "Who was it? Who told you such words?"

Ian frowned, getting out of his trance. The more he thought about his words, the bigger his frown became, "I don't remember, or more like I don't know..."

Those weren't words that Ian would forget, and he knows that, yet he felt like they had just surfaced in his mind. Moreover, he forgot of the person who spoke such words.

The keywords were 'He told me.' Ian tried to remember again and again, yet nothing came to mind, 'Just what am I? And what is it that I don't remember? Who spoke those words to me? More questions to be answered.'

His frown soon turned to a smile as he noticed Selina looking at him with worry, "Don't worry about it. I am sure everything will be alright. Surely nothing bad can happen, right?"

Selina was a bit confused about his matter of speech, "Why did you say it like that? It sounded like you wanted things to go wrong."

"Hm? I am just trying to trigger Murphy's law."

"Murphy's law?"

Ian let out a mischievous smile, "The fifth law states that if everything seems to be going well, you have obviously overlooked something.

Things were going very well for me as of recently, so I find myself often wondering, what is it that I am overlooking?

So I decided to trigger the first law. Anything that can go wrong, will go wrong. I want things to go as badly as possible to test a theory of mine, sounds amusing no?"

"Hahahaha so silly." Selina just laughed it off and didn't question his words. She was just entertained by his bizarre antics.

It wasn't long before a large truck entered the warehouse. Ian stood up and approached the truck though he welcomed his friends first with a hug.

"Did you do it? How?" Barney was the first to jump on asking.

"I did, all due to God's blessing." Ian shrugged his shoulders as he started opening the truck.

"God actually exists?" Mike wondered as if he had believed his words.

"Who knows? I was just joking. I just got myself a new toy and used it." Ian eyed the things within the truck, his collection. All were well maintained, the only things missing were the Kryptonian swords and Trigon's scroll pieces which he took with him.

They were now in his ring, soon to be joined by the rest of the collection as Ian lifted his left hand and focused on manipulating his life force, something only he can see.

"What are you doing?" Barney wondered while the rest were also looking at him strangely.

"Hm? Don't mind me, just wait at the table until am done." They however stayed and watched as he behaved like someone insane. Then again, is it strange for a crazy person to behave like a crazy person?

'It's rough. Despite my improving mastery, it's still hard to teleport so many things at once.' That went on for a few minutes before the collection simply disappeared, leaving the truck empty.

"What in the actual fuck?"

"I want something like that!"

"Huhh? How are things getting crazier by the day? I swear sometimes I wonder if I'm just on crack and am actually still in the warehouse passed out." Ralf let out a sigh as he rubbed his temples in exasperation.

"Don't mind it, and let's get to the important stuff." Ian waved his hand and went back to the table, taking a seat next to Selina.

'That's not important?' Was the question in everyone's mind, even Selina as she eyed the ring.

Only Layla seemed calm... On the outside at least.

"Alright, this meeting will be brief as we have a lot of things to do.

First, we should reconstruct the Cat's rest. This will be left to you Ralf, contact the best construction company there is. We'll build it to be bigger and better than before.

What doesn't kill you, makes you stronger, and we shall build a stronger base. This phrase should be known to every Rose in the city. While it may be generic, it still works to lift everyone's spirit.

The houses around the cat's rest are already ours, so we will bring them down and expand the base.

Next, all the crime heads are dead and I believe you're already on the task I gave you, right?"

Ralf nodded, already knowing of the fall of the crime lords, "Some of the targets are already dead, but we're still in the process of finding the others and finishing the job."

"Great, the fall of the crime lords won't cause the fall of their families, someone else will simply take their place, so we have to act quickly amidst the chaos.

Remember, the only thing between us and ruling Gotham is how quickly we can act, so let's get to work."

At that point, even Barney had to agree with Ralf, they were probably on crack, 'Weren't we just a bunch of beggars feeding on leftovers of other people not even a full year ago? How did we come so far?'

Barney followed after Mike, Layla, and Ralf, eyeing all of his friends... No, family, 'If I am hallucinating, then I don't want to wake up, or at least wait until I acquire a gigantic sparkling diamond... Please?'

"I should really forget about common sense with you, shou..." Selina started speaking with exasperation.

Ian noticed she choked her words and looked behind him with her eyes wide in bewilderment. They should be alone in the place by now, so the first thing that came to Ian's mind was, "Ghosts? Or..."

...

Chapter 72: The Mystery Of Ian Rose VII

...

Ian noticed she choked her words and looked behind him with her eyes wide in bewilderment. They should be alone in the place by now, so the first thing that came to Ian's mind was, "Ghosts? Or..."

Ian turned around, eyeing the strange being floating not far from him. It was a girl who seemed to be in her late teens. She was adorned in normal attire, blue jeans, and a black shirt. Her skin was strangely greyish, somewhat to the lighter side, but it's still noticeable.

The most noticeable thing about her was her hair, fabulous violet blue hair. It was short, only reaching her shoulders, but that suited her style in a way.

She slowly landed on the ground, her eyes never leaving Ian, switching between observing him and the black ring on his hand.

She was frowning, her expression spoke of depression and even a bit of rage. Her mood could be seen at a glance which led Selina to quickly react and pull out her whip while standing beside Ian, ready to act at any moment.

'Raven?' Ian raised his brows in surprise then e eyed his ring, specifically contemplating what lies within it, leading him to have a pretty good idea of why she's here.

The silence continued for a while as Ian just watched her contemplating all of her life decisions, and she didn't seem to be finishing any time soon, so he had to speak, "Well, Introduce yourself, will you?"

"Ah? yeah, I'm..." The girl seemed stunned for a second and subconsciously wanted to reply though she got her wits back quickly.

She took a deep breath and looked at Ian dead in the eyes, "How did you get it?" She provided absolutely no explanation as to what she was referring to, but Ian understood.

"I assume you're referring to the scroll?" He just used it, just a day ago, and then she appeared, so it was a natural conclusion aside from the fact that he knows who she is.

"Hmm, I see... Were you watching me since then? And how did you know?" He questioned with a frown after seeing her nod.

A slight blush surfaced on the girl's face, seemingly remembering something embarrassing before recovering her previous mood and spoke with venom in her mouth, "Just answer my question! You won't like what will happen otherwise!"

As she spoke, she lifted her hands as a cluster of purple energy started concentrating on them, quite the spectacle it was, for Ian at least.

'She seems quite inexperienced and worked up... Perhaps she just arrived on earth not long ago?' Ian shrugged his shoulders as the said scroll appeared in his hand, "You want it?"

He spoke as if he intended to throw it at her as if it were worthless trash.

"No!" The purple-haired girl instantly reacted as she screamed and released what looked like a purple shockwave from her hands, spreading throughout her surroundings.

The impact of the shockwave instantly knocked both Ian and Selena back. Thankfully, they're both quite nimble as let themselves fly with the impact, rolling with it and getting back on their feet.

Most importantly, the scroll was still held tightly in Ian's hand. If it slipped away and got unfolded, then a disaster is bound to happen.

"Why?" Ian asked, understandably confused. He had a plan but the prerequisite for it was her catching the scroll, then he can act. He wouldn't take any chances otherwise, yet, here she is, scared of even coming close to it.

"Put it back! Just do as I say please." She spoke with a pleading tone, a contrast to her previous manner.

"Hmm, ok." Her actions allowed Ian to see another course of action he could take, "The scroll was kind of a passion of mine. I basically robbed a piece from a certain museum of antiques, and it got my interest, so I took it upon myself to look for the remaining pieces.

I assembled them together, or they assembled together when I collected them all... It's quite magical. What do you know about it, and how did you find out? I have many questions to ask you, so let's have a civil discussion, shall we?"

The girl remained silent for quite a while, contemplating the offer. The only thing stopping her from accepting is her suspicion of him. He doesn't seem to be a follower of her father, but she rarely relied solely on her feelings, so she had to make sure.

She had faced such cultists before, fanatics who worship the demon she hates with every fiber of her being, and that demon is her father much to her dismay.

However, she didn't see any other options. She sought help from the magicians of earth, or its hero only to come back with disappointment. She was desperate, and time wasn't her friend.

So she reluctantly agreed, but still kept her guard up.

It wasn't long before a strange look surfaced on Ian's face, hearing her ridiculous explanation, specifically something she mentioned in passing but remained reverberating in his mind.

It wasn't unpredictable but apparently, the scroll seemed to be connected to Trigon's domain, using the latter as fuel to achieve the miracle known as the devil's breath. That's the conclusion she arrived at, at least.

That was bad news for Ian, especially with his latest actions. The scroll is in constant release in his ring in a specifically isolated part, filling it with that demonic fire.

So while Ian wondered and made many assumptions as to where the scroll gets its power, it is still something else to know for a fact... It's intriguing to Ian.

"So the said demon shouldn't be able to... Well, spawn in here through the scroll or something similar? Can he have any influence through it?"

"It shouldn't be," The girl known as Rachel shook her head and added, "But I don't want you to use it ever again. I won't allow it."

Ian let out a smile as he nodded, "Sure."

He agreed way too quickly for her liking, and he further added, "I'm curious though, why don't you take? Can you just carry it with you in some other way, without whatever you're fearing happening? Or perhaps just take the ring?"

"For several reasons, and I am not stupid." She responded in her usual monotone voice.

"Oh? Well, what are you gonna do now?" Ian chuckled, his expression remaining unchanged despite what her words insinuate.

"I'll keep an eye on the scroll, meaning I'll be watching you, and you'll help me study it. It's in your best interest, after all."

"Hahaha, you're cute." Ian couldn't help but let out a laugh of amusement.

"W... what?" Rachel stammered in confusion.

"You're obviously just a kid, yet you're trying to act like an adult, but very very, I shall meet your demands as long as you can meet some of mine as well."

He didn't give her a chance as he stood up with the silent Selina and added, "But I have a lot of things to take care of which you might know since you were peeping on us, so let's leave it to some other time."

"Hiii! I'm not a kid!" Her words of annoyance fell on deaf ears as Ian really had so much to do.

"It seems that there are a lot of interesting things you haven't told me about, a whole new world with plenty of things to steal..." Once they walked out of the warehouse, Selina couldn't help but let out her naughty side takeover as she acted a bit coquettish.

"Hmm, you're right. There was something I wanted to tell you anyway, and our goals from now on will be mainly supernatural treasures, so I guess I should tell you," Ian shrugged his shoulder, not minding telling her, "Most importantly, we have another teammate..."

...

Chapter 73: The Mystery Of Ian Rose VIII

...

"What did you do!" A crisp yell reverberated throughout a certain roof amidst the darkness, very late at night.

"We had a deal!" Another yell by the same person followed soon after. The source of the sound was a muscular figure, attired entirely in a black suit. He was none other than Batman.

His irritation was obvious as he almost held Ian above the ground as he was grasping the neckline part of Ian's sweater, almost choking him with how rough he was.

Ian however remained impassive as he calmly spoke, "Let me go."

"We... Had a deal!"

"And I've done nothing to breach it," The only remaining crime lord in Gotham lied without batting an eye.

"What? Do you think I'm a child? I know! I know what you've done," Batman was understandably having none of it.

"Then all you've to do is to prove it," Ian was tired of the Bat's unpleasant manners by now as he kicked him to the chest to gain his freedom once again.

"Isn't this what you want anyway? What happened was for the best. Gotham has fallen to my hands much faster than I've ever anticipated, so what's your problem?"

"Innocent people died! You not only killed the crime lords but also destroyed all of the surroundings of their meeting place. Do you have any Idea how many innocents died due to that?!"

Batman was only getting angrier while Ian was simply tidying up his clothing as he shrugged his shoulders, "I mean, I've done absolutely nothing of that, but If I did, I'd say that's collateral damage.

You may not know, but I do. I know how hard it is to assemble all the crime lords in one location. Even in the usual meetings, at most about two-thirds participate."

Batman was speechless, not because Ian's logic makes sense or anything like that, but more because only now did he realize how apathetic Ian is to death.

"How about all the others? How many people died after the incident. The crime lords' families and many others, some of which didn't choose such a life, didn't want to be born into a family of criminals. Have you even bothered to check whether anyone is innocent or not?"

Batman got his cool back as he eyed Ian with cold eyes, only he knows what he was thinking.

"You should know better than me Bat. Getting rid of the head will do nothing. A head will fall and another will take its place, a never-ending cycle. You've experienced what it feels like, haven't you?

No matter how much you tried, it was all for naught. Very little impact. They fear you, but they can never fear you enough... Because of death, they don't have to fear death with you, but they will with me."

"I see... I didn't see it before, but you're the kind that makes excuses for their actions, for the greater good huh? The end justifies the means?

All that you're doing is making an enemy of me, and no matter how much good you do, I will always know that there is even more bad going behind the scenes... I can never trust you with Gotham."

Batman turned around, ready to go on his merry way. His emotions were strangely calm... Until he heard Ian's loud laughter that is.

"Hahahaha hah," Ian shook his head in disappointment, "You don't understand. Have you ever seen it in a different way? The ones capable of spelling blood for the greater good are those that are okay with bearing the guilt of killing and handling all that comes with it.

Many will hate them and despise them, and they know it, yet they bear such a responsibility all the same. There are of course a few bad apples in every field, but you should get my point."

Ian let out a sigh, "But I'm getting ahead of myself. I do not bear such responsibilities nor am I willing to bear them. Death never meant much to me, and its meaning is only losing its value to me, not the opposite.

I don't mind dying, and I don't think I'd feel much if the people around me die though I'd like to believe that I would feel something,"

A strange smile surfaced on Ian's face, one that weirded even Batman out, "I kind of want to know how I'd feel... Hmm. I'm getting too into it, so let me get to the point.

I'm perfect for Gotham. All of your fears and your limitations don't apply to me. There is nothing Gotham's darkness can do to stop except if something too unnatural happens."

Ian turned around as he let out a chuckle. He lifted his hands in the air as he looked at the strangely silent Gotham from the edge of the roof, it's been just as silent for the entirety of the past week since the incident known as the breath of salvation.

"Can you see it? Do you see it? Silence before the storm, but the storm am referring to is one of prosperity and riches."

"Bat, Gotham is in my hand right now, so I can at least guarantee that I'll protect it to the best of my abilities. Otherwise, you can give it your best shot, I'm waiting."

Afterward, Ian took a seat at the edge of the roof and heard nothing more from the Bat. The latter gave no response, perhaps he didn't want to or he didn't have one.

"What a good day." Gotham's crime lord took a deep breath and went downstairs, returning to a meeting he was having before Batman arrived.

It was somewhat of a private meeting as only four people were in it, namely Selina, Ivy, Rachel, and of course Ian.

The meeting was quite special as it's the start of a strange team, a menace for a team.

The moment he entered the room, Rachel jumped to speak first, "I don't get it, why am I here? I won't be a part of this."

Her complaints brought a smirk to Ian's face, "Oh, you're gonna want to be part of this when I'm done, so let's start."

He ignored the obvious staring contest happening between Selina and Ivy. The latter seemed especially mad, seeming as if venom was swirling in her eyes.

"So as I told you all before, I'm planning on forming a small special unit. Its main function is for its members to support each other, perhaps we'll even be able to help you solve your problem Rachel."

Rachel however didn't seem convinced. In her mind, only she knows the monstrosity that is her father, but she was desperate, so she remained silent, thus Ian continued.

"Anything you desire can be met as long as it's something I don't mind doing, or I consider to be worth doing. I am the leader so I'll be calling the shots."

"What can you do? She can control plants, what about you?" Rachel questioned, genuinely curious.

"Lots of things. I'm not stupid and I'm most often than not successful. I also seem to have an infinite life force. I assume you sensed that, didn't you?"

The purple-haired girl nodded though she was still confused, "And what's the use of that?"

Ian shook his head and responded, "We'll talk about that later. Now, I have a few things to say. Our first priority is getting firm control over Gotham, and that's not done yet. It should take a while though a project of mine can make it faster.

Ivy, we'll be building several parks or gardens all over Gotham as well as a few plant shops throughout the city with the main one being close to Cat's rest.

We'll be using your power and I as fuel to quickly grow a bunch of rare plants, a variety of exquisite plants, and perhaps even new species. I'm sure it will become popular very quickly especially since I plan to do some advertisements for it, lots of ads."

Ian didn't get the chance to continue as Ivy stood up with a strange expression and directly jumped at him, hugging him tightly before giving a quick peck on his cheek, "You just don't know how happy that made. I will repay you however you want, so just tell me if you want anything, alright?"

Ian could swear her eyes were burning with passion and expectation, a strange thing considering how she acted in their first meeting.

Her obsession with him was definitely bizarre, he noted that in his mind before shaking his head in exasperation and pulling her back to her chair, making her sit down while she was dazed.

He flickered her forehead gently and said, "All I want from you is to be obedient and don't cause any trouble, or if you want to, just tell me and I can add a bit of chaos to the mix, I'm good at that. Understand?"

Ivy was still a bit dazed but nodded nonetheless, and throughout that strange interaction, Selina didn't make a move or question anything, she just observed Ivy's bizarre state with interest.

"Once all the plants and the vegetarian life spread throughout the city, we'll have a new set of eyes on our side. This is the main reason for this project. You function best in nature, so I'll grant you a Gotham suited for your gift."

Granted, her power isn't so powerful yet. She exaggerated before, but her power's range only extends to a few blocks so far, and that's with Ian's constant supplement of life force which strengthened her quite a bit.

Ian was eyeing the long-time benefits, a godsend has fallen within his grasp, and he will be using it to its fullest potential.

...

Chapter 74: Staff Of All Things I

...

It wasn't long after the meeting before moans and whines of pleasure resounded throughout a certain room, more intense than any previous time that Selina noticed while barely hanging on a thread.

Her consciousness was slipping out, on the brink of passing out, but Ian didn't allow it, not this time at least.

There wasn't much foreplay this time around as he was ready to finally go all the way, just two naked bodies firmly connected to each other. Their lips were passionately battling for dominance, their tongues intertwined.

A while passed before their lips stopped meshing together as they pulled back a bit, leaving a trail of saliva between them, a clear indication of their previously mindless passionate state.

Selina looked into his eyes dazedly, her eyes were glazed with passion as she wondered, "We'...re gonna do it?"

Ian didn't answer but let his action show his intention as he aligned his death spear, ready to thrust it into her sopping wet dimension, the start of chaos.

Their training session was short but wanton. Their passion was unleashed, alas Selina couldn't hold on for long, especially with how deadly his death spear is, a weapon that can kill by giving life, the word miracle suited it quite a lot.

And even with her conscious slipping out, Selina as if by instinct still railed him up with her naughty words. Sweet moans, yells of his name with absolute love and devotion, it was all music to his ears.

Alas, Selina eventually passed out before Ian finished. He wasn't unsatisfied as he gently covered her with a blanket before sitting on the side of the bed.

"I can control it," Ian softly muttered with a look of interest on his pale face. He looked at his hands as he lifted them as if he was looking at something around them, something only he can see.

The corners of his mouth were raised into a smile as he closed his eyes and focused before time runs out.

He focused on the energy he clears feels but can only sense when it's in a wild state, such as this time right after an intimate training session.

At such times, his life forces run wild spreading to all directions through a significant part of it flows into his space ring, constantly getting absorbed by the latter.

The ring however seemed to have very little effect on his life force. It was set up to absorb the life force of anyone wearing it in a matter of a month or two, yet it was absorbing his life force very slowly.

'Hmm, it's hard to control and it seems that my control of it is weakening slowly as the amount of energy getting released becomes lower... Quite interesting.'

Still, he didn't give up and attempted to control his life force and make it flow into the ring. The results however were disappointing, 'The ring should be absorbing about 10% and I can only control another 15%. The rest is basically wasted.'

He stroked his chin with a thoughtful look for quite a while, almost zoning out before he felt a pair of arms and a soft body hugging him from behind.

"Please hug me?" Selina whispered in an adorable tone, almost a pleading tone and she didn't need to say a word more as Ian instantly picked her up in his arms and lay with her on the bed.

"You love cuddling that much?" Ian asked while caressing her short hair while she was trying to dive deeper into his embrace, "How can I not? It feels so nice."

Then there was a brief silence before Ian spoke again, "About Ivy, she's still untrustworthy, so keep an eye on her."

"Hm? I thought it was the opposite with how all over you she was for the past week... She's trying to steal you from me."

Ian noticed she didn't seem bothered with that but just shrugged his shoulders, having a certain understanding as to why, "She's obsessed with me but not in a good way.

She seems to love my life force very much, leading me to believe that her actions have something to do with her power. I will keep her at bay, but just don't pay attention to her provocations."

"Mmm," Selina softly mumbled before falling asleep, too exhausted to say anything else.

Ian waited for a while after she slept and left the room, too many things to do starting with feeding Ivy her share of life force of the date. What comes after is a short sparring session with Richard Dragon then back to business.

The Roses are extremely busy and will still be busy for a while to come. Gaining complete control over Gotham is certainly not easy, and that's even after eliminating most of the crime families.

At least, the Roses acquired most of the crime families' black books the day of the incident which saves a lot of effort. It not only contains a lot of incriminating things but it also has the names and information of corrupt cops and officials, something Ian will certainly use.

Time flies... Two months passed in the blink of an eye.

The Roses were strangely quiet these days, once they garnered enough control over Gotham, they lay low with no further actions. No distractionship plays, no heists. All there was is silence and a few stealthy moves taking place under people's noses.

What was Ian doing all this time? Well, many things including his recent creation. Not something he created along but with the help of several things and beings.

His creation seemed to be a weapon, a staff to be exact though its shape is quite odd. Its color was greyish with what looked like numerous tiny symbols engraved all over it.

The strangest part of the staff was its head which was shaped like a crown with several branches spreading outwards and connecting together to form that shape, it looked quite exquisite.

That's not the end of it though. The outwards branches come back after that to connected at the far top into a sharp tip, almost like a spear, and on each branch, one can notice a small vacant space, a receptacle of sorts.

"Promethium, the material suits the theme I was going for quite well, and It should be extremely difficult to destroy but I should upgrade when necessary."

Ian muttered while trailing his fingers along with the staff, feeling the clear engravings on it, "Em, exquisite. You only need a few things and you will be complete, well, several things actually."

He then eyed the two odd stones lying on a counter before him, a green stone and a red one, "You two will do until I have better... things to use instead."

He already had gloves on, so he just picked up the green Kryptonite first and brought it closer to one of the empty staff vessels while manipulating a bit of his life force into the staff.

The staff seemed to resonate with his life force. It was as if it received an order as a suction force started absorbing the Kryptonite into the vessel.

The process was slow as the staff's fuel was Ian's life force. It was also how he communicates with the staff, he made it that way specifically because that's the only way he can control it.

How much life force can Ian release at a time has a limit which made the process much more demanding and slower, and it would've been even more of a pain in the ass if he didn't spend the past two months focusing on gaining more control over his life force.

To do that of course he worked hard with Selina on their usual intimate sessions, making them much more intense much to Selina's blight... Well, she enjoyed them much more than he did so...

The green kryptonite eventually dissipated in its entirety. Instead, a cluster of green energy was formed in the staff's first vessel, and soon another cluster appeared in the second vessel, a red cluster. Its source was the newly used red Kryptonite.

Ian lifted his left arm in which he was holding the staff and admired the final result of his work, the exquisite work of art, "Staff Of All things you shall be Named."

Soon the staff disappeared into one of the black rings on his hand, indeed, rings. Not one, not two, but five of such space rings... Just how? How many demons did he scam? How much hatred was he accumulating by the second? How many enemies was he making in hell without taking a step in it? He wasn't done just yet.

...

Chapter 75: Staff Of All Things II

...

"Give him the hints needed, but tell me if anything comes up. Remember, if he does anything you don't like at all, eliminate him, but for now, we need him to keep the Bat off our tracks."

Ian spoke as he put on a black winter coat, and straightened himself a bit.

"Why are you leaving again?" It was a question Ralf asked many times but ended up receiving the same exact answer.

"To borrow something." This same answer. Batman wasn't too much of a nuisance, but he did intercept several of their illegal moves, apprehending some of the lower bracket Roses.

He didn't go after Ian but just made sure the Roses don't go too far. They had to go so far because Ian deemed it necessary. He had to eliminate most of Gotham's criminals before they rise up, the ones he knows from their memory. Even if they have yet to become criminals.

In an outsider's eyes, that'd look like a massacre, and it's just that. Gotham will be the center of his future operations as the country pays very little attention to it. In fact, if they could, they would just outright disown it.

Due to that, he wants to have absolute influence in Gotham and a bit of influence in other places, that should garner the most benefits with the least risk and losses.

He found Rachel also known as Raven waiting for him. She had only started to at least open up for him a little bit recently, just a little bit.

Selina was standing next to her, attired in casual clothes with a duffel bag.

"Everything is ready on your side?" Ian questioned, to which she nodded as she approached him and gave him a sweet hug.

"Good luck with whatever you want to do."

Ian pinched her chin and gave her a peck on the lips, "Luck is my bitch, so don't worry. It's you who needs luck... Or just skill, I'm looking forward to your performance."

"Hmm, it's gonna be a cakewalk."

"Confident huh? I like it."

"Ok, stop it you two!" Raven couldn't bear it anymore, acting all lovely dovely in front of her, "Can we be on our way now? Like now?"

The two looked at Raven strangely because making a few annoying remarks, annoying to Raven at least.

"She's gotten cuter."

"Yeah, now she's acting like children her age do."

"I know, she was all grumpy, reeking with depression at first... Now she's adorable."

Raven just stared at the two in a daze before letting out a pout and hurriedly walking away.

"Pffft hahahaha, she is adorable."

They then said goodbye and each went on their own way. Selina was on a mission suitable for her, doing what she has come to love, simply stealing.

Ian on the other hand made his way to the airport with Raven and took a flight to New York City.

"Are you ready to finally tell me what you want to do? Or why do you want to bring me with you specifically?" The purple-haired magician wondered.

"Because you're a magician, and we're meeting one."

"Who?"

"Someone you know actually, the magician you went to for help before meeting me."

"Her? Why?" Raven frowned, certainly not having a good impression of her since the said magician had refused to aid her for the simple fact that she shares the same bloodline as Trigon.

"Knowledge my dear, knowledge." He started to gently stroke her silky purple hair which she would've stopped if his next words didn't get her full attention.

"You have an enemy, that much I figured. You have yet to tell me who it is, but I will tell you how to defeat him... All it comes down to is knowledge. Do you know how powerful he is? Do you know if it has any limits? Any weaknesses?

What if you know locations of things, people, or artifacts strong enough to annihilate him? If one is not enough, collect more. Prepare a trap, if done well enough, he'll surely fall to it.

I can promise you that there are plenty of ways to eradicate him. The simplest of which is creating enmity between him and someone of the same level of power or stronger... Even better, you can just become that strong, it shouldn't be too hard.

The point of what am saying is you just need to know. Know how to become more powerful. How to make him weaker. Places where he will be at a disadvantage. Strong forces that have an inflict of interest in him or can have such inflict if you interfere... Just think and you'll know what you need to know and how to know it, then you'll know it."

Raven remained silent for a while, perhaps contemplating his words before wondering, "Why do I feel like you know who my enemy is?" She has yet to tell him that. In fact, she didn't even tell him that her enemy is actually a demon, and is her father at that.

"Perhaps I know? All you need to know is that the Roses have your back. We've already started spreading throughout the world. Our information network is one of the best and is only improving, so use it however you like."

He patted her head one last time before leaning back in his seat and closing his eyes, focusing on all of his rings, specifically the pocket dimension within the.

He was working on quite an interesting project, one of many. A project related to Trigon's scroll, an idea he came up with when he was studying the scroll with Raven.

They landed in New York soon after, finding a car with a driver already waiting for them in front of the Airport. He booked everything in Gotham, one of the booked things is a hotel suite and a ticket to a show, a magic show.

They arrived at the hotel by nightfall. Ian went ahead and took a shower before bringing his laptop out and started looking through some information.

'First, I'll meet john Constantine, and acquire my goal. Perhaps even...' His thought process was interrupted by Raven, "And where will I sleep? Why didn't you get another room."

"Hm? It's safer beside me. Just sleep on the other side of the bed, and don't care about me. I will likely just stay here the entire night reviewing some stuff." He didn't lift his head but kept looking at the laptop as he casually responded.

"Likely?" Raven frowned, still unsure.

Ian finally looked at her with a strange expression, "What are you afraid of? Like, you're just a child. Go sleep as we'll wake up early, you have homework to do tomorrow... Hahahaha, I'm just joking. I will just sleep on the couch."

Raven found herself pouting yet again as ran to the bedroom, something she found herself doing quite a lot since meeting him. She's not used to anyone treating her like this, even her mother as they had to live under the fear of Trigon getting to them at any moment.

"Adorable." Ian shook his head in amusement and continued reading through all the information collected by the Roses. It was information about an assignment he gave not too long ago, about the location of Olympus.

'Should I find him or let him find me? I did defeat Deathstroke after all, and the method used shouldn't matter to them. If not, then I can only use harsher methods to acquire it.

The other target should either be easier or much harder. I just need the lamp, so it's not necessary to obtain the ring. That makes things much easier.

With the thing I obtain from Constantine, it'll make it so five vessels are filled and five more to go... Not enough, I hope it'll work out as I imagined it would. Now, for some more thinking...'

A lot of thinking that didn't stop until morning, not a minute was spent sleeping, something he was used to, especially recently as he found himself to be much more energetic than he used to.

He attributed that to his constant increase in life force output and control. One may assume the opposite would happen but he doesn't make any sense.

Ian walked into the bedroom to wake Raven up only to find her sweating, and somewhat sleeping uncomfortably.

He gently woke her up, ending up scaring her a bit, "Nightmares?"

"Huh? n-no," She was still a bit dazed as she stuttered her words. Ian ignored her obvious lie and gave one of his strange bits of advice.

"Think about it this way? What's the worst that can happen, everyone dies? You die? I die?"

"That... doesn't make any sense?" Raven responded with confusion apparent all over her face.

"Exactly."

"Huh? I still don't get it?"

"I don't get it either. Put on your clothes and let's go. We have a show to watch..."