Chapter 105: An asset

"I apologize for keeping you waiting, gentlemen." Adam spoke as he stepped into the conference room.

The moment he entered, several pairs of eyes turned toward him, their gazes filled with curiosity. Despite the fact that most of the people gathered in the room wielded considerable authority within the nation, none seemed particularly bothered by Adam’s decision to interrupt the meeting to take a call.

"I take it you managed to relocate Hunter Kai safely?" Daniel asked, raising his eyebrows.

Needless to say, the only reason Adam had been allowed, or rather encouraged, to take a call in the middle of such an important discussion was that it had come from the biggest sensation in the world right now.

Adam nodded. "Yes. I’ve arranged a safe place for him to stay."

"And where might that be?" the Minister of Foreign Affairs asked.

Adam’s expression shifted slightly. The man was his superior, and under ordinary circumstances, Adam would have been expected to answer him without hesitation. Yet this was different. Kai’s safety had been entrusted to him, and he had promised that the location of his shelter would remain a secret from anyone who had no business knowing about it.

The silence stretched a little too long to be considered ordinary.

The others quickly understood that Adam was reluctant to answer. It wasn’t that he didn’t know what to say. He simply didn’t want to betray the trust that had been placed in him.

Just then, a quiet yet domineering voice resonated across the room.

"Don’t pressure him. Adam is the only bridge connecting us to our savior at the moment."

The speaker was the oldest man in the room, and undoubtedly the one who commanded the most authority.

He had a lean build, with white hair neatly combed back and a crisp black suit that complemented his upright posture. His eyes were entirely white, devoid of any discernible features, making his gaze all the more unsettling. The wrinkles on his face suggested that he was in his early fifties, though his actual age remained a mystery to everyone.

Leaning back in his chair, he crossed his left leg over his right. His expression revealed nothing of his thoughts.

"Adam, I trust you’ve managed to earn Hunter Kai’s confidence?"

Adam relaxed slightly. With the Chairman himself stepping in, no one in the room would dare press him further.

Taking a quiet breath, he replied, "I wouldn’t say he trusts me without question, but we’ve built a decent relationship. At the very least, I believe he’d contact me if he ever found himself in an emergency."

"That is reassuring enough." The Chairman nodded. "Make sure he has everything he needs."

There was a brief pause before the Minister of Defense spoke up.

"But we still need answers to a few questions. He’s the only person who has fought the Void Monarch and lived to tell the tale. More importantly, he’s the only one who can give us a proper understanding of its strength. Throughout our history, we’ve never come close to understanding what kind of entity we’re dealing with."

Voids had plagued humanity before, and Balendhall was far from the only country to have suffered from their appearance. Yet, despite years of fighting them, humanity had made little progress in understanding the Monarchs themselves. Their usual strategy had been to hunt the creatures that emerged from the Void and endure the chaos until the Monarch exhausted itself and the Void eventually disappeared.

This encounter, however, had been different.

For the first time, a Monarch had revealed itself in a manner that allowed the Hunters to confront it directly. More astonishingly, a single Hunter had managed to corner it.

Adam’s expression grew troubled at the thought of bringing Kai in for questioning.

He knew Kai well enough to anticipate his reaction to such a proposal. The man would hardly welcome being summoned to answer a series of questions, especially after everything he had been through. Worse still, forcing the issue could severely damage the trust Adam had worked so hard to establish.

At the same time, Adam couldn’t simply dismiss the Minister’s concerns. Considering the threat they faced, the request was entirely reasonable from the perspective of national security.

"I agree with your concerns, Cyrus," the Chairman said, drawing the room’s attention back to him. "However, I believe there is a reason Hunter Kai has remained secluded and out of the limelight despite having clearly reawakened."

Adam wasn’t surprised that the Chairman had already figured out Kai’s reawakening. By now, reports concerning Kai and his past life must have reached the desks of the most influential officials, not just in Balendhall but across the world.

"Then..." Daniel began, hesitating briefly before continuing. "Should we wait for him to approach us on his own? I doubt that would get us very far."

The Chairman offered a faint smile.

"What we need to establish through our available resources is trust and mutual reliance. As far as strength is concerned, this particular Hunter has already demonstrated that he doesn’t need anything we can offer him."

His pale eyes narrowed ever so slightly before he continued.

"That is why we may need to find another way to earn his trust before moving on to the next stage. Only then can we allow you, Cyrus, to ask the questions you’re so eager to have answered."

The Defense Minister nodded in understanding. Whatever excitement he had felt at the prospect of finally learning more about the Void Monarch settled as he leaned back in his chair.

No one else raised an objection. Their interest in Kai was undeniable, but with the Chairman himself urging caution, none of them was willing to risk jeopardizing their chances of gaining his cooperation.

The Chairman then turned his attention toward Adam.

Although his expression remained unchanged, Adam had the distinct feeling that the man was watching him closely. He straightened in his seat as the Chairman spoke.

"I believe you have something important to attend to, don’t you?"

Adam blinked in surprise before nodding.

"Right. If you’ll excuse me, then."

He rose from his chair, offered a brief acknowledgment to the others, and left the conference room.

Once the door closed behind him, the Chairman hummed thoughtfully.

"Junior."

There was only one person in the room whom the Chairman addressed that way.

"Yes, sir?" Daniel replied, leaning forward slightly.

"What has your father been up to these days? I haven’t seen him in quite some time."

Daniel was taken aback. The question had come so unexpectedly that he struggled to understand what had prompted it. Nevertheless, the answer slipped out almost instinctively.

"He’s mostly been staying at home, sir."

"Hmm." The Chairman considered this for a moment before speaking again. "Then why don’t you be a good son and help two old friends reunite over a cup of tea?"

Daniel grew even more confused, but he saw no reason to question the Chairman’s intentions.

"Of course. I’ll relay your message and speak with Sandera to arrange a meeting at a time convenient for you."

The Chairman gave him a brief nod before turning his attention to the rest of the room.

"You’ve all been managing your respective departments for quite some time now. I don’t believe I need to barge into your offices and tell you how to do your jobs."

Silence settled over the room as the officials exchanged glances. No one seemed entirely certain where the Chairman was going with this, and none was eager to interrupt him.

The Chairman rose from his chair. The others immediately followed suit.

Shaking his head in mild disappointment, he surveyed the room one last time.

"There is a burning world outside. Why are we still sitting here and chatting?"

That was all it took.

Chairs scraped against the floor as the officials gathered their belongings and prepared to return to their respective duties.