After a few minutes, Alex emerged from the bedroom wearing a simple black T-shirt and a pair of trousers.
The Joker persona was gone, replaced by the casual, sharp-eyed woman I'd seen earlier.
I looked at her and didn't waste any time.
"So, spill the beans already. What do you want?"
"Hmm, impatient as always. What's the hurry? Let's eat something first,"
Alex replied, drifting toward the kitchen with an annoying amount of nonchalance.
I narrowed my eyes. Her casual behavior made me uneasy.
"You know I hate it when people talk in circles. You have my weapons, I owe you a favor… so just say it. Why go through all this trouble?"
Alex stopped in her tracks and turned toward me, her expression suddenly calm, almost soft.
"And straightforward as always. Haa… I just wanted to make up for past years…"
She paused, then continued slowly. "I'm sorry about Master Varkov."
I stared at her quietly for a moment, the irritation draining out of me. I nodded slightly, acknowledging the weight of those words.
She nodded back, the air clearing between us, then she asked, "So, what would you like to eat?"
"Actually, a coffee is fine," I replied.
"Hmm…" She turned back to the kitchen.
Having a Spirit Body might be a curse, but it had its perks. Besides essence, I didn't actually need food. I could survive on soul essence alone, though I still ate for the habit of it.
Whatever I consumed never really helped much, except for adding an extra washroom stop to my day.
I always thought it was strange, it was called a Spirit Body, but it felt more like a half-spirit, like a ghost trapped in a mortal shell, struggling to break free.
[You don't think of yourself as some immortal god, do you?]
Gisella's voice chimed in.
'Hell nah. I kind of thought that in the past… and I got beaten with a wooden club by my master until I remembered I was human.'
[That's good.]
'Now I just think of myself as a demi-god.'
[..]
'Listen,' I spoke, pulling my focus back, 'how good are you against mental and emotional attacks?'
[As I am right now, I don't think any of those attacks would affect me. Why?]
'Alex can implant ideas into people's minds. Doubts, suggestions… I need you to watch out for me, just in case she tries something funny.'
[Why would she do that? Isn't she a friend?]
I looked at Alex's silhouette in the kitchen. Her image overlapped with memories of her as a teenager, someone who looked exactly like her, yet completely different.
'Yeah… but she likes to play "friendly" tricks.'
[…Alright. I've got your back.]
'Thanks.'
Soon, Alex returned with a steaming cup of coffee and a plate of cookies.
"Here you go."
"Thanks." I took a sip. "Hmm, it's delicious."
"Glad you like it," Alex said with a smile, sitting opposite me and picking up a cookie.
"So," I started,
"where have you been these past years? Really?"
"I was at the North Sea… with my uncle."
My eyes widened.
"North Sea! How are you still alive? I heard sailors there use Pale-rank people as live bait for sea serpents."
Alex took a slow, deliberate bite.
"Rumors tend to be exaggerated. The North isn't that bad, especially under the management of the Dravik clan, they've done a great job keeping the peace."
"Is that so? Well, since we're talking about the North…" I leaned forward, my inner child getting the better of me.
"Did you see that?"
Alex smirked. "You mean the Frost Dragon?"
I nodded eagerly.
"The big, giant white dragon? Almost five hundred meters tall?" Alex continued dramatically.
"With beautiful white scales and giant wings that could cover the whole sky?"
My eyes sparked.
"An Ocean-class guardian monster of the North!"
"So you did see it! I knew it was real—"
Alex shrugged casually. "No, I didn't see it."
"Oh." My excitement died instantly.
"I wasn't there for a vacation, Kai. I was there for training," she said, though her eyes were twinkling as she reached for a small wooden box on the table.
"I find something similiar though.'
It was dark and worn at the corners. She opened it.
Inside lay a small white scale, no larger than two fingers, smooth and faintly luminous.
Fine golden runes were carved along its surface, glowing softly.
"Is that—"
"A dragon scale," Alex said.
"I found it at the base of a cliff after a heavy storm." She took out another similar pendant.
"I don't know if they belong to a Frost Dragon or not, but they are definitely white scales. Here."
She handed one to me. I caught it, mesmerized. "It's beautiful."
[It is,]
Gisella agreed in my head.
"If I'm correct," I muttered, "the runes are for good luck, right?"
Alex raised her eyebrows. "Oh! When did you start studying runes?"
"Just recently," I replied, thinking of the staff in my pocket.
"Hmm, that's good. And yes, they are for luck. I carved them myself. Channel some essence into it."
I did as instructed. The pendant glowed faintly, but nothing else happened. I frowned.
"Nothing happened!"
"It's activated. Keep it. It's yours," Alex said.
"Oh! Thank you!" I slipped it into my pocket without thinking.
[...At least pretend to refuse for manners' sake,]
Gisella sighed.
'Why? It's a dragon scale.'
Alex let out a small laugh and leaned forward, ruffling my hair.
"Haha! Yep, same as always."
"Oye!" I slapped her hand away.
"I missed that scowl of yours," she said, her smile turning more serious. The playful atmosphere shifted.
She munched on her cookie, and a heavy silence stretched between us until she finally spoke.
"You know about the favor."
"Hmm." I nodded, bracing myself.
"Do you remember when we broke into the museum back in the day?"
I froze. That "break-in" had nearly gotten us executed. "Hmm?"
"It's something similar."
[Oh boy…]
Alex twirled a strand of her red hair around her finger, looking me dead in the eyes.
"Say, would you help big sis break into the Miller clan's secret archive?"
"Pfft!"
I almost spat my coffee across the table. I stared at her in pure shock, realization dawning on me.
I had walked right into a geopolitical disaster.