Several days have passed since the capture of Harold, and of course, there has been a massive shift in operations in both the military and the London mafia. Tensions have increased among the mafia as they have not heard anything from their hitman.
Inside an office-like room, Harvey, his siblings, and Luna sat. The room was somber, with genuine tension among them all.
"...It's safe to assume that Harold has failed," Harvey stated as he broke the ice.
"Is that the case? Could someone like Harold get defeated by that bitch, Amber?" Theodore asked. His injuries sustained against Amber have all healed. "Harold has been trained to sneak up on his targets, which gives him a striking ability greater than mine. I even used him as a punching bag before, so his durability should be good. There's no way he'd lose."
"Then why hasn't he reported back to us?" Harvey countered.
"Who knows...maybe he gained empathy and ran away from the mission," Amelia said.
"Nah, no way that sadist would change like that," Harvey responded. "It doesn't matter. We have to assume the worst and that the military captured him. Maybe spilled some secrets, too."
"...Then the Chief would be fed up with us...and possibly dissolve the alliance," Luna added.
"Err...Maybe so," Harvey said.
"...This situation is exactly why I told you not to do anything stupid, Harold."
"Tsk, we don't know if the military will be that rash," Harold stated. "Remember, Jack the Ripper is an even bigger threat."
"Sigh, this has become rather complicated, but we are family, so I'll be here to help. It has always been us versus them, anyways." Luna stated.
* * *
Luna was correct about the chief becoming annoyed with them. Barry was seen in a conference room sitting at the front of a long, rectangular table, conversing with many other soldiers, some of whom included the Enlightenment Program trainers (Trixie and Altius), the Queen Deathbringer, Ryzen, Kreuger, and other unnamed soldiers.
"Thank you guys for making the effort to come here," Barry expressed his gratitude.
"Yeah, well. I thought I told you that my only reason for joining the military was to murder Jack," Kreuger interjected. "But whatever."
"You're Kreuger, right?" I heard you have excellent physical prowess and combat sense, but you shouldn't set your sights so high," The Queen Deathbringer advised. "Jack is too much for anyone to fight alone."
"Heh, just because you super soldiers failed miserably doesn't mean I'd do the same." Kreuger retorted, causing the Deathbringer to stare at him coldly.
"Oh my!" Trixie uttered. Amid Kreuger and the Queen's scuffle, Trixie played cards with fellow soldiers.
"Alright, that's enough, guys. We are a team, after all," Barry reminded everyone. "Let's get to the important matter--"
"Wait! Don't start without us!" Suddenly, Amber uttered as she and Aiden entered the room, to everyone's surprise.
"Ah, you guys made it in time," Barry said.
"Huh?" Altius uttered.
"Don't be surprised. They begged me to participate," The chief explained.
* * *
"Please, let us participate, Chief!" Amber begged as time reverted to Amber and Aiden resting in the infirmary. With them was Barry and Ryzen.
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"I'm sorry, but it would be too risky sending newbies into a mission like this," Barry denied.
"C'mon, sir. You're telling us about the raid because you want us to join," Aiden countered.
"Plus, they not only attacked me but also my friend. I want to bring down those criminals!" Amber declared, which made Aiden slightly flustered.
I admire your determination, but I'm unsure if I can agree to this... Barry thought.
"Barry, Barry, Barry. These two have gotten much stronger. Bringing them along will be more helpful than a hindrance." Ryzen commented. "Plus, this may sharpen their skills even more," Ryzen added before whispering, "Amber will need to draw out more of her potential for Jack, after all."
"I'm not sure what you said for the last part, but thanks, Mr. Ryzen!" Amber thanked. "Please listen to him, Mr. Barry."
Barry looked at their faces and finally relented with a sigh. "Fine..."
* * *
"Tsk! What a reckless decision you made," Altius angrily stated.
"Yeah, I agree, but as long as they stay close to their trainers, it'll be fine," Barry replied. "That and the guidance of Kreuger and the Queen Deathbringer."
Amber shifted her gaze at the super soldier and immediately recalled meeting her when Barry recruited her in the Enlightenment Program.
Oh, I remember her!
"Make yourselves comfortable and have a seat," Barry said, which the duo obliged. "As you all are aware, we, the military, were in an alliance with the mafia, but due to a series of unprovoked attacks, the alliance has been dissolved."
"About time..." Altius muttered.
"Although Jack is our highest priority, the mafia has shown that they cannot be overlooked. So we will crush them before Jack the Ripper shows himself again." Barry declared. "However, if we were to crush them, we must also analyze their forces. Undoubtedly, the mafia's strongest members are the Dexter family."
It's a good thing we have prior information on them... Barry pondered.
"Harvey, Theodore, Amelia, and their cousin Luna Dexter were all past members of the Enlightenment Program, so naturally, we would have information on them."
They were ex-soldiers? Amber thought with a slightly shocked expression. What caused them to change?
"I will debrief you of their blessings...starting with the sister, Amelia Dexter. She wields a culinary blessing that gives her the ability to perform aspects of cooking into deadly attacks on her foes."
"Cooking?" Kreuger asked. "What is she? A chef?"
"Oddly enough, she has a hobby for cooking and frequenting restaurants. She can send slashing attacks at targets as if they were on a cutting board, incinerate them with flames, and the ability to combine attacks like different ingredients in a dish. Her lethality and versatility could make her the biggest threat." Barry continued.
How can she use such a good blessing for evil... Amber thought.
"The brother, Theodore, has a morale blessing. It allows him to boost his physical prowess to well above superhuman levels depending on his confidence," Barry explained. "At his best, he would be the equivalent to an above-average super soldier in the US."
Hearing of Theodore, Amber couldn't help but remember the feud between them.
It's all because of that person's selfishness that things have become like this... Amber thought.
"Next is the cousin of the Dexter siblings, Luna Dexter. She possesses an exhaustion blessing. With this, she can greatly hinder opponents by inducing fatigue and stress. She can even decrease the fatigue levels of her allies, giving them slight boosts to their prowess." Barry continued.
I should fight her then. I'd be the perfect opponent for her. Altius pondered.
"Last but not least is the boss, Harvey Dexter. In terms of power, he might be more dangerous than Amelia," Barry stated. "He has a weather manipulation blessing, which as the name suggests, allows him to control the weather. In his time in the Enlightenment Program, he was able to summon lightning powerful enough to destroy large buildings, drastically lower and increase the temperature in a small range, and cause powerful hurricane force attacks."
All this and Jack is still the bigger threat. Kreuger thought. Whatever, I'll play along and get this over with.
A culinary blessing, morale blessing, exhaustion blessing, and a weather manipulation blessing... Aiden thought. How strong.
"Thanks to Harold Lucas, we've learned about the whereabouts of these individuals," Barry said.
"Huh? Don't tell me you tortured the information out of him," Kreuger assumed with a smirk.
"Nah, that wasn't necessary," Ryzen interjected. "We got all the information...thanks to my ability."
"And what is your...I don't want to know," Kreuger responded.
"Anyways, some of you may be daunted by the sound of their blessings, but we have strong soldiers too. Once we defeat the Dexter relatives, the mafia will have no hope of sustaining," Barry said. "The plan is set, so let's get to work."
"Um, Chief Barry?"
"Yes, Amber?"
"When will the subjugation mission be executed?"
Hearing that question, a smirk appeared on Barry's face.
"Heh, today."