Chapter 120: Stay on our side

There was another long pause before Gillion finally spoke. "I’ve been keeping an eye on you for some time now. Even before you saved my grandson, you had already done something that earned you the ire of an old friend of mine."

Kai’s brows rose slightly. "You mean... the Vancroft family?"

Gillion made no attempt to deny it.

Kai sighed. "If you know the whole story, then you should understand why I did what I did."

"I do," Gillion replied with a nod. "And I’m not here to reprimand you for your actions. A man devoted to his family can become anything when the people he loves are threatened."

A faint smile appeared on Gillion’s face before he continued, "And Hunter Kai, I must say, your devotion to your family is rather admirable. You went against a Monarch itself to protect them."

Kai grimaced. Of course, the Chairman would know about the entire incident. Unlike most people, he had access to information that others could only dream of obtaining. Hunter Hannah had been present for almost the entirety of the ordeal, after all, and she had no reason to conceal anything from the authorities.

"That brings me to an interesting question, Hunter Kai. On the day Hunter Drake harassed your family, you certainly displayed aggression, but the energy you released was nothing compared to what you unleashed against the Monarch."

Kai swallowed hard. The old man was perceptive, as one would expect from someone of his standing. He had probably spent more years studying people and their behavior than Kai had spent alive.

"It couldn’t have been that you weren’t worried about them back then," Gillion continued. "You knew Hunter Drake was mentally unstable and capable of doing anything just to see you suffer. And yet, the time you took to reach your family was rather... underwhelming compared to what you were capable of."

Kai drew a shallow breath before responding. "I could have simply been pretending to be weaker to avoid attracting the authorities’ attention. Unfortunately, I ended up on their radar anyway."

He could have outright rejected the man’s assessment, but Gillion’s words left enough room for him to entertain the possibility that the old man might actually be right.

Truthfully, however, it was the conviction behind Gillion’s words that made Kai believe denying them would be a futile exercise.

"Hunter Kai." The Chairman leaned forward, resting his hands on the table. "I have a rather good ability to read people when they’re displaying extreme emotions. And these two incidents have told me something important about you. If anyone directs malicious intentions toward your family, you won’t stand around calculating the consequences of your actions."

Gillion’s smile deepened ever so slightly.

"I believe that if you had cleaved Hunter Drake’s head instead of merely severing his arm that day, you wouldn’t have regretted it even once." Shrugging he added, "I have several more evidence but I believe this one represents your true self the most."

Silence settled over the room as Gillion finished speaking.

Kai was staring down at the table, feeling as though the old man had somehow opened a record of his entire past and read through every thought and emotion he had ever experienced.

If someone had told him that Gillion could read minds with his ability, Kai would have believed them without a second thought.

But right now, the question wasn’t whether the old man could read him. It was how accurately he had managed to understand him.

"What do you want from me?" Kai asked, lifting his head to meet the Chairman’s gaze. His eyes had turned dead serious.

All the possibilities and scenarios he had considered before entering the office had completely faded from his mind. He wasn’t even trying to predict what the old man might say next. Whatever came, Kai was prepared to face it.

Yes, this was a secret he would never want anyone to discover. Yet, if it ever came to light, he would feel a strange sense of relief.

At least then, people might think twice before targeting his family. They would understand that by threatening the people he loved, they risked creating their own killer.

So, despite having been thoroughly unraveled by a man he barely knew, Kai wasn’t nearly as nervous as one might have expected.

"It’s actually I who should be asking you that question, Hunter Kai. What is it that you want?"

Kai frowned. "What do you mean?"

Gillion leaned back in his seat, looking considerably more relaxed than before. It was as though the conversation had finally taken the direction he had intended from the very beginning.

"I am a rather simple man," he continued in a softer voice. "All I wish for is to maintain peace in this world, something a certain race seems determined not to allow."

His expression grew slightly grim as he regarded Kai. "Tell me, Hunter Kai, do you know anything about the Sages?"

Kai shook his head. "Not at all."

Gillion hummed thoughtfully. "Then let’s leave that conversation for another time. For now, I want to help you in whatever way I can."

With that, he opened a drawer and retrieved something before placing it on the table between them.

Kai glanced down and found a silver card with a black strip running through its center.

"This card will allow you to use the Hunter’s Barter without requiring an officially registered license. Additionally, you’ll have access to Association facilities throughout the nation without having to answer unnecessary questions."

Gillion paused briefly before continuing, "I’ve also instructed Adam to provide you with whatever support you might need. Whether it’s participating in raids, arranging training, or helping you get out of a troublesome situation, you can count on him."

Kai’s eyebrows rose in genuine surprise. "Why... are you giving me all this? What do you want in return?"

Gillion shook his head.

"Nothing, Hunter Kai. As long as you remain on the side of humanity, I would consider it an honour to be of assistance to you."

This was the first time Kai had met this man. And his first impression of him?

’He is hella weird.’