Chapter 123: The commander vanished inside the vehicle
Cain looked at the officer with the semi-robotic face with eyes completely devoid of any emotion, regarding him with an indifference unfitting for a security detention situation... Soon, a faint, annoying headache pulsed in Cain’s temples.
He simply could not comprehend how his simplest affairs converted so rapidly into trouble, nor why everything had to degenerate in this absurd manner without the slightest logical reason!
Cain lacked an official identification document, and this individual equipped with cybernetic limbs had already captured his face directly with his robotic eye... In the absence of Lucy, who was resting in the room and remained the only one currently capable of using memory-erasing magic—a power Cain could not utilize ever since his abilities were sealed—the situation had become thoroughly irritating.
In other words, if Cain did not intervene immediately using his power, he would be led away by the police before everyone like any common criminal, without having the slightest hand in this charge or even understanding what was transpiring!
Deep down, Cain was fed up with this cheap farce... As a supremely powerful entity possessing legendary fortunes lusted after by entire realms, he found himself stumbling over the most absurd, mundane routine obstacles! Simple things like official ID cards ought to have been presented to him on a silver platter in a grand imperial procession, their documents forged from the rarest and most expensive magical materials... yet now he was directly threatened with arrest! What kind of nonsense was this?!
He sneered internally: Must I now go personally to put an end to this farce, threatening high commanders and ruling regimes to force them into granting me an official marriage certificate?!
The man with the half-iron face spoke in a taunting tone, catching the signs of surprise and shock etched across the features of the old man and his grandson: "I suggest you exit this luxury vehicle quickly, before my officers step in to drag you out by force."
(Author’s Note: This man is not the same officer who arrested old man Darrin.)
Old man Vincent stood up abruptly, speaking with a trembling voice that nonetheless carried a core of protest: "We have no connection whatsoever, near or far, to that damned ’Smile’ organization! I swear to you by our decades-long reputation, we are merely respectable jewelry merchants with significant weight in the market... You cannot tarnish our long history with such false claims!"
Cain remained seated on the plush chair with the same noble posture, legs crossed, pondering this absurd situation into which he had plunged himself through his overabundance of lenient choices...
He mused ironically to himself how a capable, majestic Duke like him could end up close to being arrested by ordinary humans, whose strongest individual and security personnel did not exceed a strength level of "2-Stars"!
And how his situation had deteriorated to the point where he and his wife acted like children, engaging in pointless challenges and wagers while the consequences piled up around them in such a childish fashion!
The man with the cybernetic limb shattered the silence of his thoughts, looking down at old man Vincent with disdain: "Ha! No connection? Do you think us naive enough to believe your tricks?! Erasing the security camera recordings in your front-store branches in Boise City, Ohio, and claiming lamely that they were mysteriously damaged... Even trying to convince us that every single employee in your jewelry shop suffered memory loss and forgot the features of that man and that woman from their minds?! Do you take me for a fool standing before you to swallow such a fable?!"
Vincent shouted in extreme agitation, utterly panicked: "I swear to you that we possess no link to the members of the Smile organization! I received the security reports from the shop, and the majority of those who witnessed that couple confirmed they felt a stutter in their memories and forgot the facial details completely! We are a merchant family lacking energy magic capable of erasing memories or tampering with minds!"
Cain flinched, shock settling deep within him upon hearing this abrupt confession!
So... the jewelry store they had entered and left right before the truck full of artifacts was destroyed by Lucy had originally belonged to the properties of the Ian family itself! He and Lucy were the direct cause of bringing this storm down upon the heads of this old man and his grandson due to that truck and their uncalculated actions!
The cybernetic man cut off Cain’s train of thought, replying to the old man in a dry tone devoid of any hope for negotiation: "You can recite all these flimsy excuses while seated on the interrogation chair before the investigator, and he won’t believe you either way... I am conversing with you calmly to avoid raising panic in this quiet street, and you have the right to summon your legal counsel as soon as possible."
The limbs in old man Vincent’s body froze, his face draining of color like a corpse following these strict threats... His fear stemmed not merely from the commander’s words, but from the reality that he was accompanying a guest of such supreme importance, only to fall into this shameful, humiliating predicament right in front of him!
Terror dominated Vincent’s heart, fearing he had failed the Duke and drawn his wrath. He felt duty-bound to apologize to him immediately and afford him the opportunity to escape, even if he had to message him later through his subordinates without causing him to harbor resentment toward his family...
Vincent turned with deep submissiveness and a remorseful tone toward Cain: "I am deeply sorry, Master Cain... You may depart immediately and bypass this blockade. Once I emerge from this predicament, I promise you with all I own to contact you instantly to finalize what we agreed upon."
Cain clenched his fist with readiness, attempting to formulate an exit to save the Ian family from this security blockade without needing to use his destructive power, lest he create a major scene.
Nathan added in a pleading, trembling tone: "Yes, Master Cain... Please leave safely now, and my grandfather and I will try to settle everything."
Anger ignited in Cain’s temples, his heat rising... He was on the verge of resolving the identity documents crisis and concluding a convenient commercial deal through these two individuals, only for everything to be ruined in a single instant!
Despite the strict oath he and Lucy had sworn not to use their energy except under exceptional circumstances demanding force... and despite his direct ability to vanish and escape alone, his pride and nobility forbade him from abandoning these two men behind to face the security blockade because of him!
Yet the officer with the half-iron face interrupted his continuous thoughts once more, speaking authoritatively and targeting Cain with his robotic eyes: "I alone determine who leaves and who remains in custody! You cannot depart so simply, sir... In fact, I suspect you are a primary accomplice with them in this crime, and part of the terrorist entity itself!"
Cain turned and looked at him, then curled the side of his lips into a harsh, cold smile radiating menace, asking in a low voice: "I truly wonder whether this talk will prove useful to you in any way?"
Cain said this while smiling into the face of the stunned officer...
The officer replied dismissively in a provoking tone: "Does the gentleman intend to hold friendly chats in the middle of this crowded street? That seems entirely unprofessional... How about we get to know your esteemed identity within the interrogation halls?"
At that exact moment... Cain grew fed up with continuing this cheap banter with this tiny human entity!
At a terrifying speed exceeding the speed of light and sound, Cain reached out and grabbed the officer by his collar with immense force, causing his heavy body to hurtle toward the vehicle like a weightless feather! In a fraction of a second, Cain tore open a dimensional portal of abyssal darkness within the interior of the limousine with his other hand, slamming this cybernetic officer into its depths with absolute ease, before the portal snapped shut over him, erasing him completely from existence!
"W-What in the hell...?!"
The words escaped old man Vincent’s lips in ragged, disbelieving fragments. Before their very eyes, Cain had opened a dark dimensional portal and tossed the blockade commander inside as effortlessly as one throws away a piece of stray trash—without so much as batting an eye or exhibiting the slightest fear of any legal or security repercussions!
The bodies of old man Vincent and his grandson Nathan froze entirely in place, a bone-chilling coldness paralyzing their ability to move. In an involuntary movement driven by absolute terror, both bodies recoiled violently backward, pressing hard against the plush leather seats, their wide-eyed gaze fixed on Cain as if staring at an inhuman entity.
Outside the vehicle, the demeanor of the police officers and armed guards completely shifted. Their posture of authority and control evaporated into thin air, replaced by utter disorientation and chaotic confusion; for no military handbook contained a term capable of describing what they had witnessed mere moments ago! The commander of the escort—equipped with state-of-the-art cybernetic tech—had vanished in the blink of an eye inside the car right before their eyes!
The officers began whispering in terror, pointing their weapons toward the limousine with visibly trembling hands. Swallowing hard, one of them asked sharply:
"S-Should we open fire now?! What are we waiting for?!"
Another officer yelled into his radio in sheer panic:
"Where did the commander go?! How did he vanish from in front of the vehicle so fast?!!"