Outside the pub, Ronin quickly found a bench to sit down on. Leaning back, he let out a deep breath.

I never imagined it to be this draining.

The technique took too long to set up and couldn’t be maintained for long either.

He inwardly sighed, well, I guess that's why people practice.

He could choose an easier mental image, but that would reduce the potency of the technique. Argus was an influential member of the underworld and likely had plenty of guards. If he was going to sneak up to such a man and place a tracker on him, he’d want as strong of a mental mask as he could muster. There’s no way he’d half ass something like this.

Continuing to breathe, heavily, in, then out, in, then out, he gathered his strength, all the while, carefully watching his surroundings.

As time passed, his breath lightened and his head cleared up, and by the time about 30 minutes had gone by, he felt ready.

Now how in the world do I train Snapshot?

He’d look like a total weirdo if he ran around trying to jump in and out of people's eyesight here. People would notice. No, that was not stealth, he needed somewhere less crowded, like an alleyway.

Looking around, he spotted a dark passage behind the pub. There were people around the passage, but none nearby actually seemed to be walking towards it.

Doesn't seem like it's used much...Yeah, this should do just nicely.

Pulling the hood over his head, he rose and began casually making his way over.

Nothing to see here, just your normal… Well, who DOES hang around a pub in the middle of the day anyways?

Before Ronin could find the answer, the badly lit passageway was before him.

It was empty, for now, but that could change. He walked in and found a spot to hide.

Hopefully, he wouldn’t have to wait long...

image [https://i.imgur.com/EBoScIM.png]

Step, step, step

“You’ve been hyping up this place for weeks now, you're sure this place is for real? I know how your memory gets when on a bender,” a voice rang out across the empty alleyway.

“Listen, the red velvet ain’t just cheap, it's one of the best brothels in the valley! Just wait! They’ve got this new girl, Starly, and I’m telling you, her skills with her hands are legendary, to say nothing of her looks,” another voice argued in response.

As the two inebriated middle-aged men made their way along the alley, Ronin walked out.

Spotting the gray clothed, hooded stranger, the men became nervous, but the moment they blinked, he disappeared.

“Di-did you see that? I'm getting a bad feeling about this,” one of the men asked nervously.

“I-I saw it too, let’s get out of here.”

However, as they continued walking, they began noticing a rising ominous feeling, like an indistinct tingling at the back of their necks. With every step, it kept rising, getting worse.

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Their steps became hurried.

One of the men moved his hand back, trying to scratch the feeling away. It didn't work. The feeling was still there. Should they move faster maybe? They needed to leave. He turned his head toward his friend to ask-

There... mere centimeters behind his friends balding head, literally breathing down the man's neck, was the stranger!

He blinked. The man was gone again.

He couldn’t contain himself anymore. “RUN!” He shouted, sprinting out of the alleyway with all he had.

image [https://i.imgur.com/EBoScIM.png]

Tsk!

Frustrated, Ronin headed back towards his hiding spot.

He’d failed.

Snapshot became harder to do with more people around. He'd messed up his predictions of one of the men, causing him to be spotted and the rest was history. The two men had run out of the alley like kids fleeing a rogue horde of ruddles.

It appears I’ll have to spend some time mastering this as well, Ronin thought.

He went back to his old hiding spot and waited until more people entered the alleyway.

The minutes passed as he sat there, crouched down in anticipation.

Slowly, but surely, he heard it. Faint sound of approaching steps beckoned the arrival of a new practice target.

Yes! This time I'll do it.

This time it was a lone stranger.

As the lone figure approached, he once again, walked up to the man, waited for the man's eyes to blink, then moved.

“…”

As the minutes turned to hours, Ronin altered between the pub and the alleyway. He didn't notice much improvement in the beginning, but as the hours passed, he got better.

He became more proficient in Presenceless, lessening the price of putting on the mental mask.

He could also consistently stay hidden from up to 2 people with Snapshot now.

As for using both techniques at once? He hadn’t tried it, yet, it was too costly.

But when I do use both techniques? I’ve got a feeling that would be VERY overpowered, he thought to himself, his lips curving into a slight smile.

But now, it was time to call it quits. He'd been practicing for hours and needed rest. He headed back towards his shuttle. Reaching the gated parking lot, he flashed his parking ticket and was let inside. Stepping into the ship, he entered the cockpit, turned on the engine and made a call to Nagata.

As the call connected, his implant's projection function activated, and a screen of the more than likely, high, uncle appeared.

[Yes?] Nagata asked.

Ronin pulled the control stick back and the shuttle began rising up from the ground.

[How’s the progress on Argus?] He asked.

The hologram of the older man could be seen nervously rubbing its hands together, [is this really the only way? I’m sure there are many out there who would help.]

Ronin chuckled in response, [now that you mention it, I did get an offer.] He transferred over the contract he’d gotten from the academy.

Nagata began reading, likely a little slower due to the drugs running through his system, but his eyes quickly shot up once he reached the relevant section.

[This… This is-]

[A slave contract,] Ronin finished. [I’d have to give up everything I’ve achieved. All the funds I’ve accumulated, all future patents, my personal freedom, everything… 10 years of my life. That's the price.]

Only the soft hum of the engine could be heard as Nagata took it all in.

[Huuh, maybe I’ve grown soft over the years, but I never thought the academy would be this domineering. Part of Tar’s genius strategy is about fostering good will between the chosen candidates and the state. It’s what makes geniuses still want to help Tar after they leave for higher systems. To shackle them instead…]

[Maybe they saw a unique opportunity with me. Regardless, I won’t sign it. So, will you help me?]

[Alright, let’s do this,] his uncle said, then began compiling the target package.

As the shuttle reached the higher sections of the valley and the dim, smog-blanketed light outside began brightening up, Nagata sent the documents over.

Ending the call, Ronin drove the final leg of the journey before landing back at Maximum solutions. It was time to see what had gotten his uncle so scared. Ronin pulled up the documents.

The holographic image of a blond-haired burly man appeared on the factory floor as his Uninet began projecting. Besides the man, was data on homes of residence, travel routes, surveillance systems, subordinates and more.

He scratched his chin, “Argus huh, so that's what you look like.”

He thought back on the time his apartment blew up, the harrowing hunt, his time in prison…

“I have a feeling we will be meeting very soon…”