"Claire. He came on his own. I did that to cover for him." Mr. Eun-ji frantically explains.
"Then tell him that he and I will need to talk when he gets back." Miss Claire replies with a snarl.
Mr. Eun-ji just replies something along the lines of "Yup" and hangs up.
"Can I stay with you for the foreseeable future?" I ask him.
"Hell no, kid. It isn't like she's gonna kill ya. But she'll sure kill me if I let you do that." He chuckles.
Damn. Miss Claire is gonna be mad. I don't think I've ever heard her be that upset with me before.
"So what was the deal with that guy from earlier? How did you know him?" I ask Mr. Eun-ji.
"It has to do with my previous life. In my old gang, I was the leader. I wore a mask with a Joker on it. And there were four main commanders, each leading a faction under me were all members, including them, bearing different card suits, and each commander wore a mask with a king with a different card suit based on the faction they were leading." He explains.
"Okay. That explains who they are. But why are they after you?" I follow up.
"When I was 'rehabilitated,' there was a power vacuum in the gang. So each commander is trying to assert themselves and take control. And they think that asserting themselves means killing the old leader, so, me." He further explains.
So telling that guy that I'm his apprentice was a bad idea. So a huge target is painted on my, well, Parker's back. Hopefully, I won't have to deal with them for a long time.
"You know, Ray, give it a little while and you'll surpass them. I mean, they're not that much stronger than you." He tells me.
"What?! He was destroying me! He literally cut me open!" I exclaim.
"Just trust me, kid. But don't you dare go seeking any of them out. Especially the King of Hearts, he's the strongest." He reassures me alongside a chilling warning. The guy I fought wasn't the strongest one?
I wonder if it's actually true. Again, I'd really rather not deal with them for a while, so I think I'll limit my appearances as 'Parker'.
"Ugh, I better head home. I have to face Miss Claire eventually." I say with a sense of reluctance.
"Good luck, buddy. You need it." Mr. Eun-ji says before patting my back, standing up, and walking away.
After he leaves, I find a secluded alleyway and teleport back to the warehouse. I take the elevator down, and the cheesy pop music playing is filling me with dread rather than annoying me like usual. When the elevator stops, I step out, immediately greeted by a very unhappy Miss Claire.
"Ray! What were you thinking?! You snuck out and got into deep shit, exposing yourself to the world! What if someone recognizes you in the future and you get exposed and killed?! Firstly, you broke my trust in you, and secondly, you did nothing but hurt yourself and make me worry incessantly about you! You are not ready for the world yet, for the life you're going to lead!" She shouts.
I can do nothing but look down. I don't think any apologies or a response of any kind would help. She hugs me and pulls me close before speaking, "I'd never forgive myself if you died. So please be careful."
She proceeds to slightly push me back whilst still gripping my shoulders, expecting me to respond.
"I'll try to be more careful, Miss Claire," I reply softly.
"Good, you better. Now you're probably tired, kiddo, so you should sleep. Tomorrow we train the entire day." She tells me, promptly picking me up and carrying me to my room.
Walking through the door, she immediately throws me onto my bed. "You better not stay up like you did the other night." She says.
"I promise I won't. I'm too tired to." I say, letting out a yawn.
She nods at me in response and leaves the room. I soon after feel my eyes fluttering as if I'm in a tug-of-war between being awake and being asleep. I eventually started gradually falling asleep.
In the morning, I am awoken by a giant walking alarm clock sitting on my floor and walking around my room. It has these orange metal duck-like feet. According to the clock, the time is currently 5:30 AM. I stand up and pick up the walking alarm clock. Placing it back down on the floor.
Miss Claire probably put it there, god knows why. Regardless, I exit my room and head downstairs, walking over to the kitchen and seeing Miss Claire placing three pancakes on a plate. She puts them in front of the chair I typically sit in during meals. I walk in and sit down. "Thank you for breakfast, Miss Claire," I say, making my presence known.
"You're welcome, kiddo." Miss Claire replies as if she already knew I was there. She makes her own plate and sits in the seat across from me. "How did you sleep? Did you like the alarm clock I bought you?" she asks.
"I slept fine, but that alarm clock sure was a shock. I wasn't expecting to wake up to a walking alarm clock." I grimace.
"Well, it made you get up, so you don't fall back asleep, my little Chameleon." She says as she boops my nose.
"I don't do that in the first place." I retort.
I began eating my pancakes, savoring each bite. Miss Claire, on the other hand, scarfs them down. She finishes in about one minute and watches me eat with a smile on her face.
When I finished my food, she grabbed my plate and silverware and put them in the sink. "So, ready for training?" She says while grabbing my hand and lifting me to my feet.
"I'm sure no matter my answer, you're dragging me to the training room anyway," I say, looking up at her.
"You're right, but you didn't have to say it, kiddo." She replies.
She and I walk over to the training room. When we enter the room, she walks to the center of it. "Stand across from me, kiddo. I'll explain what we're doing." She requests.
I walk over to her and look up at her expectantly. She ruffles my hair and begins speaking, "So, today we're gonna start by brushing up on your hand-to-hand combat skills. Then we'll transition to working on getting you more used to portals."
"But first, I'll tell you something important. That B rank you picked a fight with, Cain. His power is called Blink. He can teleport short distances. In his case, he's mastered it. So he probably caught you off guard, and you thought he was just fast, right?" She explains.
"Right," I affirm.
"He and Klein are twins. They're a coordinated and terrifying duo. However, in all honesty. There's something I've noticed lately that's holding you back. Which may have contributed to your outright loss," she further explains.
"And that is?..." I ask expectantly.
"You don't fight like Ray." She states as if that made any sense whatsoever.
"What does that even mean?" I ask.
"You're a tiny kid, you're smaller. You keep trying to fight like me, close and aggressive. Relying on strength. But that isn't you! I mean, I thought Eun-ji's power would've motivated you to act differently. And I thought it worked because of the way you fought the dinosaur! But after the shit you pulled with Ironhide. I'm starting to believe the opposite. Also, Eun-ji told me you approached the fight with whoever you fought yesterday the same way you typically handle fights." She rants. It seems she's in full swing in lecture mode.
"Miss Claire, can you please make sense?" I ask impatiently.
"Rely on your nimbleness and size. Stop trying to be like me. Hell, even when you're older, you'll probably retain your agility." She says, finally getting to the point.
"Okay, but I tried to play it that way when I fought Cain and Klein. And it didn't work. Cain rushed me and hit me." I reply.
"And? Even if what you say is true, Cain and Klein aren't a good metric; they outclass you! Plus, you aren't used to fighting that way! That's what this training is for." She explains, rebutting my statement.
Without giving me room to respond, Miss Claire swings at me, and I barely have time to react. "No powers allowed. Let's get started," she says.
As an immediate reaction, I rush forward and sidestep to throw a jab at her abdomen. In response, she takes the hit and kicks me in the head, knocking me back. "Fight differently!" she commands.
Okay. Gotta rethink my approach. I then rush in again; however, this time, she swings at me the moment that I'm in range. Her blow connects, knocking me back again.
"Differently!" She shouts.
What? She didn't even give me a chance to change my approach! Whatever, I'll try something different.
I rush in once more, and she swings at me instantly. But that's exactly what I was counting on. Instead of moving back or sidestepping, I step forward, moving my head to dodge her hit, using the fact that I'm smaller to my advantage. But instead of trying to hit her, I wait for her to strike again. She attempts to knee me, but I use her knee as a foothold to launch myself up and knee her in the chin, causing her to stagger.
"Bait and counter. Good. You can still strike first, but keep in mind that you will want to fight similar enough to an outfighter in boxing, use your speed and agility to land as many hits as possible without getting hit yourself." She says with a wolfish grin.
"And I can use Mr. Eun-ji's power to better perceive hits and more effectively fight that way?" I ask.
"Correct." She clarifies.
"I changed my mind. We're gonna spend the rest of the evening working on your physical prowess. And from now on, you're gonna do what I'm about to drill you on every day before training." She commands.
"Okay?" I reply. It can't be that bad.
"One hundred push-ups, one hundred sit-ups, one hundred squats, and a ten-kilometer run every day!" She says.
"How would I do a ten-kilometer run in the lair? I can't feasibly do it outside every day. That'd be a high risk for our location to be found." I ask. I mean it's reasonable.
"I was kidding, kiddo. Damn, no one appreciates my references…" She sighs.
What was she even referencing? Brushing off her prior statement, I inquire, "Okay, what's the real exercise?"
"Run on the treadmill that I'll grab and put in the corner at max speed for half an hour, then you'll do an agility ladder in-out drill one hundred times, afterwards you'll hold a plank for ten minutes, then you will do 20 reps of whatever weight exercise that I'll lay out for you before you wake up. You got all that?" She lists before asking me.
"Yeah," I reply dryly. Not exactly looking forward to it. I've never done conventional workouts with equipment. Just laps around the training room and sparring. Hopefully, this will give me some improvement.
Miss Claire gets out all of the equipment needed and guides me through all of the different exercises and drills she's going to have me do. After we're done, Miss Claire pulls out her phone. "Ah, damn. It's dinner time. Sorry, I made ya miss lunch, kiddo." She apologizes. Patting my head. She looks very guilty.
"It's fine, Miss Claire, we just got caught up in training. Not a big deal." I reply, attempting to reassure her.
"I know. I just don't want you to go hungry." She replies in a somber tone.
We exit the training room, she goes into the kitchen, and I go to the living room and sit on the couch. Miss Claire is rummaging through the fridge, the pantry, and some cupboards. She's most likely digging around for ingredients.
"How does meatloaf sound?" she asks me.
"Sounds good to me," I reply. I mean, I'd eat anything she makes. She's a great cook.
As she begins cooking, I contemplate recent events. There's no way I've seen the last of Ironhide. Something tells me that Miss Claire and I will probably see him again relatively soon. I don't dislike the guy. He's always been kind and a true hero in most senses of the word. He's the one person I'd consider unbreakable. Even when defeated, he isn't the type to give up entirely.
But in regards to his pursuit of Miss Claire and me, I can't let him take me and put me through the rehabilitation that Mr. Eun-ji went through. But Miss Claire's solution would be killing him, whether she would take pleasure in the act or not. Part of me isn't entirely sure I want that. Is there any other option?
My silent compilation is broken by the sound of Miss Claire's voice, "Chameleon! Dinner's ready!" she says in a sing-songy tone of voice.
I walk over and sit down in my usual seat. I begin eating when Miss Claire speaks up, "Eat well and sleep well, my little Chameleon. I'm sending you off on your own mission against a D rank hero while I handle an A rank hero at a completely different location." She says while smiling.
That causes me to choke on the piece of meatloaf that was in my mouth, I end up swallowing it before exclaiming, "What?! You won't be there?!"
Miss Claire won't be there to observe and make sure nothing goes wrong this time. I mean, I get having me begin doing things independently. But can I really do it?
What if something goes wrong when she isn't there?