Ability Wielders 47 Inner Area

"I prefer to work alone." Hayden downright rejected Gerald's invitation to be taken under his tutelage. "I'll be blunt. In addition to that, what else can you teach me? My combat apt.i.tude is already reaching its peak, I cannot really learn any other skills and would have to rely on external paraphernalia to further develop my combat power. Your Ability is suitable for combat, mine isn't, I cannot see how you can teach me anything."

Hayden didn't, and would never, tell another soul of his dual wielder status. It was already quite a jump for him that he admitted to Eun-ha, his girlfriend, of his status. If that was considered a jump and risk for Hayden, what would be telling Gerald be? It was a ginormous chasm that would he would never be able to jump cross!

Despite being aware that Indestructible Devil can't precisely be countered by normal means, with the only weakness that Hayden has encountered and thought of being subdued by heat, he can't spoon feed people knowledge as it may endanger him.

If it wasn't for the fact that Hayden used his Divine Perception as a cover, he wouldn't even have told Daniel what it does. He simply utilized Divine Perception as a cover due to a single reason, and that was knowledge is the most important thing in a fight and it cannot be countered unless it was through absolute sheer force.

'Well, of course, if it was a mind-controlling Ability, it can be countered, but that's a completely unrelated thing, isn't it?' Hayden nodded with himself. 'Ahh, if I only just used Indestructible Devil as a cover, though that would be riskier…'

Why did Hayden think it was a bad idea to use Indestructible Devil in place of Divine Perception to conceal his dual wielder status? Well, there were three reasons for these.

The first and foremost is that Hayden appears helpless in front of other wielders, a person that can be underestimated as someone who has weak combat capabilities. Underestimation is a weapon in itself if someone could play their cards right.

Second is the fact that he used Divine Perception more often than Indestructible Devil. Sooner or later, people would become suspicious of how Hayden can acc.u.mulate all that knowledge he absorbed in the past six months if his Ability was Indestructible Devil. That would give him a lot of trouble and even with his perfect logical reasoning, he couldn't come up with any sound and iron-clad explanation at all.

He could say he was a genius? Oh come on, n.o.body can effectively master a single martial art within two sessions, do all those basketball deemed-to-be-impossible shots solely with physical talent, and become completely fluent in 23 languages within a span of six months! Even if Hayden started studying in his mother's womb, those feats would be impossible for a mere Level 1 wielder!

Third, and the most imperative reason, is that if he does reveal his Ability to be Indestructible Devil, there was no guarantee that people were not smart enough to not figure out. At least with Divine Perception as a cover, he was free to do anything he wants as long as there were no presences in his immediate vicinity, or as long as he ensures that no one would find out.

If it was Indestructible Devil that was unveiled, oh how much harder would Hayden's life be? Hayden, in spite of being a recluse, was a person that cannot stand disorder and liked challenges. He cannot be asked to answer a test questionnaire without putting his all into it, and he cannot be asked to not share his knowledge and correct people when they're just blatantly wrong.

In other words, Hayden was a helpless perfectionist with OCD and even with the help of Divine Perception, he cannot possibly abandon his old ways. This was the true him before he got into the Scholar Academy, and with the awakening of his Abilities, this repressed personality was reincarnating bit by bit with a higher level of maturity.

...

"Ahh, yes, I knew this would be the outcome." Instead of being disappointed, Gerald laughed aloud.

"You knew the outcome yet you still asked?" Hayden's expression returned to its normal state of nonchalance.

"Hey, what can I lose by asking?" Gerald shrugged. "It was still a possibility that you'll blindly agree, though it was minuscule."

Hayden was speechless. This was the first time he was annoyed of such a minor thing. Anyhow, it didn't hurt to hide his feelings, hence, he just narrowed his eyes and stared at Gerald, transmitting the message 'Now what?'

"Oh yeah!" Gerald didn't expect for Hayden to be a reticent battle maniac. In fact, he had the lingering feeling that Hayden was a bit annoyed with him. "Let me grant you special access to higher-leveled missions as payment for this sparring session. Don't worry, Anthony would know, but with my protection, you'll be fine. Consider this a payment and a favor to you, little brother."

"What do you mean?" Hearing Gerald's words, his eyes constricted further. "You mean, right now, Anthony is monitoring my activities?"

"You didn't know?" Gerald put on his clothes, snickering with dismay once he touched his broken mask. "Aww, that was my favorite mask… Anyways, all of us are monitoring you, Hayden, Anthony, the other Branch Directors, those Eighth Rank Special Agents, and us Walong Sinag ng Araw. You've inadvertently became the eye of the storm with your show of talent by defeating a Level 2 wielder with simple usage of weapons, proving that Blue Agents can fight with their mental capabilities. In truth, your feats have already bested the me back in my days as a Level 1 wielder, ahh, the good old times."

Watching Gerald reminisce his past, Hayden wondered of a few things. 'Well, seeing that Anthony doesn't relentlessly pursue me, nor does this Gerald seem to have no idea, I guess my secret's safe… Can't believe they're stupid enough to not send people to look after me…����

Hayden shook his head. If he were the Branch Director, Hayden would have sent a covert surveillance team to monitor himself 24/7. A person defeating a Level 2 wielder as a Level 1 wielder is an invaluable talent after all, even if it was under special circ.u.mstances, and a Level 1 wielder that can demolish 10 genius Level 1 wielders within 10 seconds.

It was pure stupidity on Anthony's part, which leads to Hayden thinking that Anthony was unreliable. More so since he understood that Daniel was being allocated higher resources than Hayden as someone with higher future combat prospects. He did not blame them as raw fighting potential will be a priceless addition in the case Kamay ng Lagim or some other rival organization attacks them.

'Well, this works to my advantage…' Hayden shrugged it off, unconcerned of this as he had a much greater future plan. 'The main problem I have at hand is getting my hands on technology that would bring protection for my parents.'

With him discovering the existence of Essence Technology, Hayden's thirst of knowledge has been reignited, wanting to see the limits of this so-called Essence Technology and develop weapons more for himself.

'It seems that the universe is preparing me for another round…' For all of this to happen, Hayden was suspicious that the universe was stirring up one h.e.l.l of a storm for him.

Ever since returning from South Korea, it has all been calm. He figured that the situation has regressed to the mean. The main factor of his deduction is his guts. Back in the 7th Grade, Hayden determined that whenever something terribly unlucky would come to his way, there would be this deep-seated restlessness within him, and what's surprising is that it didn't fail him at all, rather, it saved him many times!

Concurrently, that restlessness within him was so intense that he was itching to straight up demand Gerald the knowledge of secret tech. Needless to say, he wouldn't do it as Gerald was a combatant who wouldn't necessarily need equipment, and, well, it would be fishy for someone like Hayden who hasn't showed interest with technology when he first arrived to suddenly show such unrelenting optimism.

"Come, let's go." A measly second has pa.s.sed while Hayden was thinking all of this, his concentration breaking when Gerald's voice rang in his ears. Looking at Gerald, he was now wearing a black mask similar to Hayden's own black mask. "I'll authorize you and tell Ghost Unit to not send bounty hunt missions that you accept to Anthony."

With that, the two exited the sparring room. Gerald asked Hayden of his future plans on his own combat prowess.

"As you said, your future in fighting is practically zilch." Gerald had his eyes wondering on the ceiling of the secret facility.

"My sole way forward is to ama.s.s knowledge. Preferably knowledge on technology." Hayden honestly answered. He's seen enough of Gerald's antics to understand that he was a simpleton battle maniac that would not endanger him, perhaps even help him instead. "Specifically Essence Technology."

"Essence Technology, huh?" Gerald nodded. "I can see how terrifying you may become once you come in contact with those devices… Or worse, manufacture your own, I get shivers just thinking about it!"

Gerald laughed at his own joke. On the other hand, Hayden disregarded Gerald pondering to himself on how he should achieve a power spike.

'Well, it's a given that I should rank up as soon as possible.' Hayden was immersed in his thoughts, his Divine Perception unconsciously activating. 'Mhm… Let's see, s.p.a.ce Rings are said to be made up in the north in Apayao, right? I have to visit them then…'

"Word of advice." Gerald precipitously interrupted Hayden's thought process. "You should relate yourself with the 8th Seat of the Walong Sinag ng Araw. Her epithet, Ba.n.a.l na Tagalikha (1), already gives you an idea of why I'm talking about her."

"Please continue." Hayden's curiosity was piqued. "Who is this Ba.n.a.l na Tagalikha you speak of. She's an inventor, I can tell as much."

"Mhm, let's start it off by saying that she's a miraculous genius wielding an Ability with a similar nature with yours. The difference is that her Ability is purely related to mental cognition." Gerald explained. This wasn't really confidential information, so he had no misgivings revealing it. "What's impressive with her is that how she uses her Ability. She's the leader of the researchers on what we have in the present. Whisperers, Sensory Links, s.p.a.ce Rings, basically all Essence Technology is her brainchild. What more is that she's an amazing strategist and martial artist, though she may come off as distant and detached to the world."

Gerald wanted to add the words 'exactly like you,' but they weren't close enough. He wasn't that dense of a person.

"Thank you for the information." Hayden was genuinely grateful. The fog that obscures his future was slowly clearing up. "While you're at it, is there a way I can contact this Ba.n.a.l na Tagalikha?"

In that instance, the watch on Gerald's right wrist lit up. Nonchalantly, Gerald lifted up his wrist as he talked, his eyes widening a bit before it narrowed. Hayden distinguished a flash of enormous killing intent coming from Gerald, which went away as fast as it came. He chose to disregard this as, as aforementioned, the two weren't close enough, plus, Gerald was a senior.

"You can literally simply walk up to Anthony and request a training program with the Apayao Main Headquarter." Gerald's voice contained a hint of mischievousness which Hayden detected, causing him to shiver involuntarily for some reason. "A training program allows you to transfer to a branch for training. The problem is that there was no insurance that a wielder from the branch you're transferring to would train you as some members of Puting Araw have some grudges with each other, and that Branch Directors doesn't put full guarantee as well. Alongside that, there were intense rivalries at times."

"I can sense you're implying something." Hayden took a deep breath of dismay. If Gerald was talking about the latter part of his explanation pertaining to resentments, Hayden could perceive why that playfulness induced a cold feeling to go up his spine. "What kind of grudge does Anthony have with Ba.n.a.l na Tagalikha?"

"You catch on fast!" Gerald cackled, his roaring laugher attracting the attention of people from all around. "Anthony broke Ba.n.a.l na Tagalikha's heart back in 2034!"

"Ahh, f.u.c.k." Hayden mindlessly cursed. This type of situation… "I see, rancor is one of the worst things in the world…"

"Yep," Gerald was amused of Hayden's situation, patting Hayden on his back vigorously, which Hayden didn't mind as there were more pressing matters at hand. "The Anthony of that time sure was gutsy… Offending her of all people!"

Hearing this, Hayden's countenance plummeted to rock bottom, making Gerald die of laughter. From Gerald's words, Hayden can infer that Ba.n.a.l na Tagalikha is someone who hold grudges well. However… 'It's been more than 20 f.u.c.king years, what the h.e.l.l…'

Hayden's head ached as he understood full well that if Gerald was doing this… Anthony was at fault and Gerald wanted to poke fun at Anthony and Hayden! 'Tsk, a mischievous person has appeared.'

"I guess I'll just have to convince her with my talent…" Hayden's face was as dark as it could get. If he was going to learn, he desired to learn from the best, not from some half-a.s.sed inventor he would surpa.s.s with a single lesson.

"Don't worry." Gerald ceased his laughter at this point. "That woman… She loves raw talent to the point that it's sickening… She's probably keeping an eye out on you than most of us as she's a Blue Agent-oriented White Agent herself. In truth, she was finding someone to become her student, a person with an Ability of similar nature to hers. She'll take you in, don't worry."

Once Gerald's words entered Hayden's ears, he couldn't help but become suspicious. 'She loves raw talent to the point that it's sickening…'

Hayden's shoulders and entire body shuddered when he repeated this phrase in his mind. He legitimately hoped that these words did not mean what he thought it meant.

"Anyways, we're here," Gerald dropped the matter concerning Ba.n.a.l na Tagalikha when they arrived at the Ghost Unit division. Approaching the counter, Gerald showed his badge to the woman at the counter and when she scanned it, her eyes went wide.

The woman stood up and deserted the counter for a while, leading the two to the inner area of the Ghost Unit division. All this while, Hayden and other Second Rank Special Agents and below are merely allowed into the lobby to list in missions, thus, Hayden has not seen the inner area prior.

When one acc.u.mulates enough merits to rank up to Third Rank Special Agent, which was the indication for true skill, they can then access the inner area of the Ghost Unit division and other divisions of Puting Araw; where unlisted missions in the Missions Board area are posted.

In actuality, the Missions Board's name is the General Missions Board where the missions posted were solely low-leveled missions that were simple enough that it can be entrusted in the hands of Initiates, Official Agent, First Rank, and Second Rank Special Agents, who were all considered greenhorns in terms of experience.

On the respective inner areas of each division on Puting Araw, that's where the missions that required true, and sometimes specific, expertise came in, such as authentically high bounties in Ghost Unit.

"Umm…" The woman stopped at the door and glanced at Hayden.

"He's with me." Gerald impa.s.sively spoke. "Don't worry about him."

The woman stared at Hayden with wariness, ultimately opening the door for them. It was clear that Gerald's status alone as an Eighth Rank Special Agent was prestigious enough.

After all, Eighth Rank Special Agents were rare and there were a measly 29 of them in Puting Araw, excluding the Walong Sinag ng Araw. Howbeit, this number cannot be underestimated as it was an absolute force to be reckoned with. If they all got together, they would be capable of annihilating Black Devil's Kamay ng Lagim if not for the presence of the three elusive sponsors backing Kamay ng Lagim that succeeded the death of their Level 5 wielder leader.

With that, the duo walked inside, the woman constantly eyeing Hayden. Gerald appeared to have memorized the layout of the Puting Araw's inner area of Ghost Unit division as he maneuvered his way in front of a gla.s.s door that had a view of an office containing a singular man in a Puting Araw uniform.

Opening the door, the person in the office rotated his head, revealing his manly bearded face. Hayden noticed that the sewn badge on the man was an eight-rayed sun. He was a Level 4 wielder!

"Old friend!" The rugged man had a pleasant expression. It was obvious that the two had a deep relationship. Walking to Gerald, the man hugged him. Letting go, the man talked. "What are you doing here?"

"Oh, can't a man visit his old buddy." The two exchanged glances, with Gerald subtly signaling of Hayden's presence. "How are you, Alex?"

"Ah, I see. I'm good, Gerald." A remote materialized in Alex's hands. Tapping on a b.u.t.ton, the gla.s.s walls of the office blackened, transforming into an opaque gla.s.s, with Gerald removing his mask. "Have a seat, make yourself at home. What is your business here bringing this genius with you?"

Hayden didn't talk at all as a show of respect for these two superiors of his. They can kill him without blinking an eyelid if they ever wanted to, not like they were permitted to, yet they can.

"Well, you see…" Gerald recounted his battle with Hayden and Hayden's outstanding show of martial skills. "There's that. I offered to repay him for his time as I was the one to extend the invitation to a fight."

"He beat you?" Alex ignored Gerald's last statement as he exclaimed in shock, looking back and forth to Gerald and Hayden. Hayden remained silent, solely observing the two.

A few seconds of silence ensued, broken by Alex's flamboyant chortle. "I can't believe the battle maniac has been beaten."

"Well it was my fault…" Gerald wallowed in guilt when he recalled banning weapons. "Anyhow, I'm exercising my authority as Division Leader and a member of the Walong Sinag ng Araw to confer Hayden access missions that solely Third Rank Special Agents and above can accept."

"You really want to do that?" Alex shook his head when he heard Gerald. "Exercising this much authority over this trifling matter? I mean, he's a First Rank Special Agent who has no history in executing missions at all! No offense, Hayden."

"None taken." Hayden didn't really care at all. The information that Gerald gave him was enough, this was just an incentive.

"Hey, a man's got to keep his promise. Additionally, you think a man that can beat me cannot beat any other Level 2 wielders?" Gerald shrugged. "Hayden, this will grant you access to the inner area of the Ghost Unit and allow you to accept missions within it. Anthony would be notified. Nevertheless, don't worry about that, my name will be all over you, protecting you. I'll deal with him. Other than that, you must not talk to anyone about this, nor should you join a team."

"I prefer working alone," Hayden nodded.

Thereon, Alex sighed as he started to work Hayden's special access, with Gerald scanning his badge on Alex's computer. When that was finished, Gerald talked to Hayden of how to accept missions in the inner area and all that stuff.

"You can leave. I'm hoping I get to spar with you again, I won't lose the next time." Gerald patted Hayden on the shoulder.

"I'll take that challenge on." Hayden nodded. "Please excuse me."

When Hayden left the room, the atmosphere transformed into a heavy one immediately. Gerald's face turned ferocious and dismal. "What's this talk of a mole in our ranks!?"