Chapter 86: An Irresistible Offer
Even Aeon was taken aback by what the Principal had said.
"They were tunneling underground?" Aeon asked in curiosity, his face full of confusion.
Toran Fiore turned towards him and said, "The King of Grey Forest cultivated hundreds of large mole beasts, making his attack successful. It must have been anticipating the battle for a long time."
"Is this true?" the Mayor asked, addressing General Solare Samo who had been keeping quiet the entire time.
The General nodded in response. "It also happened outside the city. They ambushed Brigadier Klein Arvent's men and the Special Remoran Unit using this tactic."
"How was it able to prepare? Everything happened one day after the Eclipse Platform's activations," the Mayor said, completely unconvinced.
"Yes. But what if it knew the moment the phenomenon started and was just pushed to act by the activation?" Toran Fiore calmly addressed the Mayor's question.
The Mayor couldn't help it anymore and at that moment, he decided to cut off his involvement in the meeting. "This analysis should be over by now, right? Hurry men. Pack up and we'll be goi—"
"Not yet," Toran Fiore interrupted, "we'll have you sign something first."
Toran Fiore nodded at a person standing by the side of the room. The man was holding an envelope. He headed towards the Mayor and handed it over.
The Mayor, filled with curiosity, opened the envelop while staring at Toran Fiore with furrowed eyebrows the entire time. After he took out the piece of paper inside, he wore his pair of glasses hanging by his chest and started reading its content.
As his gaze fell lower and lower towards the end of the text, his eyes widened. Again, he banged on the table with a fist then pointed accusingly at the Principal. "Have you finally gone senile, old man?!"
The mayor handed the paper to his assistant and have him read the contents as well.
The assistant slapped the piece of paper with the back of his right hand after he had finished reading everything. "You assume that the Greater Demonic Beast, the real King of Grey Forest, is already on the mountain, and yet you want to send a rescue unit to save your men? Ludicrous!"
The men of the City Hall had finally failed to keep quiet. Once again, the room was filled with yells and curses. Despite this, the Academy staff members had all kept their composure.
Then the Principal asked a single question. It was drowned out by the sound of the commotion, but it seemed like many people had heard it. Their mouths failed to utter the words they were supposed to say.
Slowly, everyone's voices died down.
Toran Fiore repeated his question, "Without the Academy, will Sera City still be a major city?"
His voice echoed inside the room and it was heard clearly. Yet, no one could answer his question.
What did being a major city entail?
It meant that they would have a larger share of resources given by the Emperor! Rewards will flow continuously as long as they did their jobs and coordinated well with the Academy.
But now that the Academy only had 20 staff members left, including the Principal, would it still be considered the Academy?
After it shuts down, Sera City will also have to be stripped of its title of being a major city. They would be just like anyone else, without any special treatment.
With some other reasons that would remain unspoken, they couldn't let this happen.
Should they comply?
Fuck!
The Mayor ground his teeth in annoyance. "If you say that the mountain is now a safe haven for magical beasts because there they would be standing at the top of the food chain, then why didn't the beasts head there directly instead of having a large number of them killed in Sera City? And why do you need my help?!"
Toran Fiore acknowledged the question. At least, now the Mayor was quite open to his suggestion. "As for your first question, naturally, they didn't know about the Eclipse Phenomenon. They attacked the city because it was a major threat to them if they were going to stay there. As for your second question, we need men. We need the help of the military."
The Mayor sighed. He knew it would come down to it. After all, the Principal needed his signature in order to mobilize the military. "How do you suppose you could rescue your trapped men?"
"With the help of this boy," the Principal gestured towards Aeon.
Aeon who was just listening to them speak and didn't even know about the Principal's gesture. His gaze was focused on the table as he tried to analyze the matter. He only looked up after General Samo kicked his seat.
"What? What?!" Aeon asked as he looked around in confusion. He realized that everyone in the room was staring straight at him with awkward expressions.
"You, my boy, are the key to rescuing the trapped Academy staff members," Toran Fiore told Aeon.
"Me?!" Aeon asked with exaggeration, "I don't think I'm capable. If you don't mind I will just excuse myself."
Aeon laughed awkwardly as he stood up from his seat. He walked straight towards the door with rapid footsteps when General Samo suddenly grabbed him by the back of his collar and placed him back on his chair.
Montis and Klaus shook their heads simultaneously.
"This boy is the son of Marshall Devon Morgan," Toran Fiore introduced, "and he practices a Tenro that could boost all his physical abilities. This boy could possibly defeat any Seran when it comes to pure strength when subject to the Eclipse Platforms effects."
Eh? Eh?!
Aeon felt as if he was about to pass out. He was being advertised without his own consent!
"If you sign the document, we will retrieve our men and you will be known as the people who healed this city from the brink of ruins. Only good things will head your way despite our struggles," Toran Fiore said, invoking various reactions from the City Hall staff members.
The Mayor's hand trembled. He reluctantly reached for the paper he had handed earlier to his assistant. He took his pen and signed his name at the bottom. "I hope you know what you are doing. We'll be leaving first, you may use the conference room as much as you'd like."
The Mayor stood up and left, followed by all his staff members.
The room fell silent for a full minute. No one spoke. None of them even dared to cough.
"Now that we're finally alone, we could proceed with the briefing," Toran Fiore said. "Montis, if you may."
Montis Leroux stood up with two pieces of paper in his hands. He tapped them both on the table to arrange them before he started reading the important details on the first page. "As you all may know, we are about to attempt to rescue the surviving Academy Staff members who are trapped in the mountains. Aeon Morgan and I would be the ones to lead it while the rest are tasked to hold down the beasts."
"Sir!" an Academy member raised his hand and was immediately acknowledged by Montis. "How will we be able to achieve such a feat when we are up against a Greater Demonic Beast?"
Hearing this question, Toran Fiore nodded. "We are going to take a gamble. We will assume that the Greater Demonic Beast would also have its magic sealed. This way, we could treat it the same way as we would any other colossal beast."
"But we won't have any magic, too. How do we contend against these beasts?"
Toran Fiore nodded at another person by the side of the room. The person had been holding onto a silver cart covered with a mantle. It appeared like it was used to serve food. He brought the silver cart over and removed the mantle, revealing the contents inside.
To Aeon's disappointment, it didn't contain food. It had a bunch of vials, test tubes, and glass bottles.
"We're going to use alchemy," Toran Fiore replied as he took a single vial and examined it. "Although alchemy had been mostly used in the field of medicine, we were also able to create a few used as utilities. Some could even be used to stop colossal beasts."
The person holding onto the silver cart introduced the various items in the cart.
Burst Solution, as soon as it comes in contact with air, it would create a huge explosion.
Galaxy Solution, a more potent version of the Galaxy Flower Fluid mixed with other materials. It could induce hallucinations and at the same time, prevent any person or beast from using their motor functions.
Petrify Solution, after coming in contact with an object, it would transform into crystals that would grow exponentially, consuming the entire object.
Lastly, the person also introduced the potions that they would be used to enhance themselves.
Recovery Potion, Focus Enhancement Potion, Strength Enhancement Potion, Speed Enhancement Potion, Stamina Enhancement Potion. He didn't need to elaborate on such because they were self-explanatory.
"More are to be distributed right before the mission commences," Toran Fiore commented.
Aeon stared at the colorful liquids trapped inside various glassware. It seemed like the Academy had spared no resource whatsoever and are going all out. If those dangerous solutions were tossed at the beasts, there wouldn't be any possibility of dodging. Their bodies were too huge and they were bound to get hit.
With this, he felt like the mission would truly succeed.
However, the question that had been bothering Aeon still stands.
As if the Principal was able to read his mind, he suddenly said, "Now, Aeon, how would this benefit you?"
Aeon stared dumbly at the Principal. He had been really embarrassed to ask the question. At least the latter had saved him some face.
"Of course, we would be offering you something you couldn't resist," Toran Fiore said, tickling Aeon's curiosity.
"We would release both you and your father."
…
Aeon's time seemed to have slowed.
Release them?
They would be able to go home? To their real home?
Aeon fell into a daze.
He eyed the Principal's lips as they slowly opened and closed, mentioning something about acceptance.
When Aeon finally snapped back to reality, the Principal had to re-enunciate his question. "Do you accept?"
"Yes! I accept!" Aeon said as he balled his hands into fists, a wide smile spread across his face. He had already gambled his life before, in Grey Forest, to save Merell. And that was merely to gain some merits. However, this time, the reward was complete freedom. How could he pass?!
Toran Fiore nodded in approval. "The mission will commence tonight, in 3 hours. Get ready to meet up at the back of the City Hall."
He dismissed everyone, having finished with the meeting. Only Aeon was prompted to remain because the Principal would tell him personally about his mission.
After the room was finally cleared and only he and Toran Fiore remained, Aeon approached the old man who was searching for something at the back of the room. "Principal, what's my special mission?"
The Principal turned around and handed Aeon something which he received using both his hands.
"This is a Tracer. You should already know about it. Your task is to save the person tied to this specific stone" Toran Fiore said.
Aeon examined the stone with a smooth surface on his hands. "Who does this belong to?"
"It belongs to the Head Researcher of Project Eclipse, Professor Wilhelm Hugh," Toran Fiore answered.
….
Gifts
-- Gift
received Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone