And now.
“The godfather is already waiting for you inside.” The attendant led Elysia to the door.
Elysia gently pulled it open.
A vast residence furnished in classical Western style came into view.
A light brown carpet covered in intricate patterns lay over a spotless mahogany floor.
Oak furniture stood in orderly rows along both sides.
The chandelier overhead resembled a crystal crown, while a fireplace burned quietly in the corner.
The entire floor was bathed in elegant orange light and filled with a refreshing woody fragrance.
Behind the long table at the far end of the room, Godfather Falco sat with his hands clasped and a smile on his face.
He feels strangely familiar…
but his bearing is completely different.
“Relax.
Today, I merely invited our rising star here for a chat.” He spread his hands and pressed them downward, easing the atmosphere.
“Please, have a seat.” Elysia exhaled softly, walked slowly across the hall, and carefully pulled out a chair before sitting down.
There is no fear in her eyes, nor any sign of pretense.
She must be someone who respects rules by nature, and her body is instinctively poised to react, he judged.
She truly does resemble a thoroughly trained warrior.
“Is there something you need me to do, Godfather?” Elysia spoke first, her tone entirely serious.
She did not possess the original Elysia’s overwhelming charm, the kind that worked on practically everyone.
Using Elysia’s usual playful tone in a situation like this would probably only make her sound irritating.
“Not at all.
It’s simply that my subordinates have been full of praise for you, and you’ve achieved quite a lot yourself.
Naturally, I had to meet you in person.” Here it comes.
MOTH interrogation technique: retreat to advance, praise before suppression.
Elysia sat upright.
“I’m honored.” He seemed to accidentally knock a pen off the table.
Before it could fall, Elysia instinctively pinned it down in an instant.
She controlled her strength perfectly, making no sound at all.
“Thank you.” He took the pen back and slipped it into his breast pocket.
“To possess such skill at such a young age is something even my men envy.
I imagine the environment you grew up in must have been extraordinary.” As the place where the original Elysia’s journey began, Vostok had laid the strongest possible foundation for the kindness she retained despite enduring countless hardships.
It truly had been extraordinary.
Elysia considered her words before replying, “They gave me the best education, and I honed these skills there.
I’m very grateful to them.” So it really was MOTH’s doing.
Skills and reflexes like these could never be developed through amateur training, he thought.
What he did not know was that most of it came from Origin simply overwhelming everything with raw power.
“Then I should thank them as well,” Falco said sincerely.
“They raised such an outstanding student.
Since coming here, you’ve done many things, and on behalf of Lamington County, I thank you for your contributions.
However, as you know, some of the gangs below are dissatisfied.
I believe you’ll receive an invitation from them before long.
“Personally, I think very highly of you.
I can step in and settle the matter on your behalf.
Of course, you could also choose to teach them a lesson.
After that, they naturally won’t trouble you again.” Offering goodwill while making it clear that he retained the initiative—this was Falco’s strategy for dealing with MOTH.
Elysia thought it over briefly and understood.
MOTH wanted to test her strength.
They’re certainly making a grand spectacle of it.
Having extracted the information she needed, Elysia pushed back slightly.
“I think I’ll accept their invitation.
Though I had assumed every gang operated under your command.” “Hahaha, not quite.” Falco waved a hand without taking offense.
“I merely establish the rules.
As long as something isn’t forbidden, I generally allow it.
Of course, if they cross the line, that becomes another matter.” Now that he believed he had confirmed she belonged to a major force he could not afford to offend, he spoke openly.
“This is balance.
Give them a degree of freedom while restraining them with sufficiently powerful shackles.
And now, it seems a new balance is about to be established.” He placed slight emphasis on the word “balance.” His meaning was clear.
Was MOTH preparing to take control of this place and reshape the balance?
Was Elysia its advance scout?
But in Elysia’s mind, his words carried a completely different meaning.
Her arrival had upset the balance and thrown the situation into disorder.
“Balance is dynamic.
What I pursue is a balance built upon steady improvement,” Elysia explained.
“As for unintentionally increasing other people’s workload, I apologize.” Her meaning was clear.
She held no deliberate hostility toward MOTH.
Does this mean MOTH is dissatisfied with the current situation and intends to intervene?
he wondered privately.
Then Elysia shifted her tone.
“However, stability is the most important thing.
What I’ve always sought is progress founded on stability.” She would act more cautiously in the future and avoid interfering with MOTH’s work.
Hopefully, everything that had happened before could be written off.
Falco relaxed slightly after hearing this.
I see.
It seems MOTH’s full intervention is still some time away.
Aside from that, her views resonated deeply with him.
Falco remained impassive on the surface, but inwardly, he was already somewhat delighted.
She truly is an exceptional prospect.
It’s a pity she belongs to MOTH.
Elysia narrowed her eyes slightly as well.
His meaning twisted through countless turns.
He was an old fox, as expected of someone from MOTH.
Falco clasped his hands together.
He decided to speak more sincerely and see whether he could use her as a connection to MOTH.
Elysia also straightened her expression.
She knew the critical moment of MOTH’s evaluation was about to arrive.
“To achieve so much at such a young age, you truly are an exceptional prodigy.
Sometimes, I find myself wondering whether my son might have reached such heights as well if he had remained by my side.” Suddenly, Elysia had a premonition.
“May I ask your son’s name?” “My unworthy son’s name is Kosma.” Elysia’s hand jerked violently.
Huh?
Kosma, who had dreamed of becoming a hero since childhood, had a father who was a criminal godfather?
Without changing her expression, she carefully looked Falco over.
Their hair and eye colors were exactly the same.
No wonder he had seemed familiar.
He sighed.
“I used to be a police officer.
Even now, I still consider myself one.
Back then, the gangs of Lamington County were constantly fighting among themselves, and order had collapsed.
I took part in a plan and infiltrated the previous godfather’s organization.
“However, when my wife found out, she believed I had betrayed my original convictions and lost faith in me.
Even though she was pregnant, she left me and moved to a remote border town.
Once the situation stabilized, all I could do was send money to them through various channels and try my best to make amends.
My child has a wonderful name, one that means ‘world.’ He resembles me and dreams of becoming a hero.
“But now, I am already covered in filth.
After all these years, I still often ask myself this question.
Can a hero who lives in darkness still be called a hero?” His voice was drawn out, as though he were sighing.
“A person doesn’t have to stand in the light to be a hero.” Elysia spoke with complete sincerity.
Good.
I’ve already moved her.
Falco decided to press his advantage.
“Then, in consideration of my meager contributions, I have an unreasonable request.
I know that you and your colleagues have devoted yourselves to a great cause.
Could you allow my child to join you and look after him to some extent?” In his position, he was destined to meet a bad end.
But he could at least secure a good path and useful connections for his son.
Elysia’s mind, however, was on the verge of overheating.
Why was the godfather acting like this?
Had he mistaken her for the representative of some major power and decided to hedge his bets?
The question was, which major power?
“This path is very dangerous.
Shouldn’t your child stay away from it?” She could only go along with his assumption for now, though both reason and conscience demanded that she refuse.
The path of fighting the Honkai was far too difficult.
“Heh.” Falco smiled.
“With his personality, he is destined never to avoid it.” That was indeed true.
As a boy, Kosma had already acted as a masked hero in his small town.
During the Fourth Honkai Eruption, he had even strapped bombs to himself and tried to destroy the eye of the storm.
With that kind of personality, he would become involved sooner or later.
Of course, as one of the final Thirteen Flame-Chasers and the warrior bearing the Signet of Daybreak, he had already been included in her plan to travel the world.
“I’ll go meet him.” Elysia made her promise.
The rest was clearly a personal matter, so she could simply follow the surface meaning.
“Thank you.
I’ll give you the address later.” Only at that moment did he seem like a father.
“Why not go in person?” Elysia asked, puzzled.
Falco fell silent for a while.
In the end, he only said this.
“I cannot appear to care about them.” Before leaving, Elysia turned back for one final glance.
She saw Falco standing with his hands behind his back, gazing at the night sky beyond the window.
He stood perfectly straight, like an iron tower.
And so, Elysia believed she had passed MOTH’s test, made her position clear, and left an excellent impression.
Meanwhile, Falco believed MOTH would not interfere with the situation in the near future, and he had also secured work and connections for his son.
Both sides had engaged in a warm and friendly exchange and achieved highly constructive results.
Let us thank MOTH for its outstanding contributions to the entire affair.