Beast-Tamer: Limitless Evolution-Chapter 217: That’s Insane

That’s Insane

"... The fuck do you mean NO?!?" Osho flared his nostrils in agitation. This girl had to be doing this on purpose. Getting him hooked on every word, only to reveal that she didn’t even know the location of the supposed item that would help her in her ambitious mission.

"Hey, give me some credit. The cult doesn’t even have a clue about its location, but at least I have something that points in its general direction. That’s 27 years vs centuries, and the former is winning." Belle countered, making Osho rub his forehead.

"Or maybe the cult is perfectly aware of everything you’re doing and is just waiting for you to find it so that they can swoop in and steal it. Ever think of that?" Osho asked dryly.

"That’s a reasonable suspicion, actually," Belle smiled sharply. "After all, its methods are too obscure to fully understand in a single lifetime. So I wouldn’t be surprised if that were the case. Actually, I’m banking on that being the case." That gave Osho a pause, and he looked at Belle strangely.

"... And why is that?" He asked slowly, looking at her like she’d just said something that would send a lot of people into an uproar. Which was pretty accurate.

And it wouldn’t stop, as Belle grinned, her eyes glinting with something that might have been brilliance or insanity. Perhaps both. You never knew with her.

"Because, if they are indeed watching, it means they WILL come. And if they come, I’ll know when to strike."

"..." Osho stared at her like a deer in headlights.

"You’re joking." He said incredulously.

"Not at all, little brother!" She spread her arms. "The Starry Sky Cult hoards knowledge like dragons hoard gold. I could spend the next century digging through texts and ruins, but that’d still just be scratching the surface. But if they think I’ve found the key, or they think I’m close, they’ll play their hand. They’ll send someone, or someones, and when they do..." She slid her hand across her neck until it hovered near her mouth, making her look wonderfully horrifying.

"I’ll extract information from their corpses."

Osho: ( ﾟ□ﾟ)

"You’re actually insane." He said with exasperation.

"Perfectly aware!" She said cheerfully. "But I’m also practical. Say I succeeded, that information the cult has on things. Secrets of top organizations, locations of hidden realms and rare resources, ancient texts and prophecies, all of it. Much of the information is naturally kept with special individuals since finding hard copies is near impossible. But if they send said individuals after me and I kill them, I can get the information, possibly more." She leaned forward.

"I’m not just chasing the treasure, I’m waiting for the hunters." Osho let out a breath and rubbed the bridge of his nose.

"Okay? So say you’re right and they send those individuals after you... how on Azure Star are you gonna resist them? The cult has existences on par with the peak humanity has to offer. You’d wipe the floor with most people, yeah, but if the cult has no issue erasing the surviving stars from previous generations, what are you supposed to do?" He asked with a frown.

"I have my methods," She said cheekily. "You aren’t the only one who has been doing things to improve himself beyond expectations. Neither are you the only one with secrets." Osho fell silent at that.

In all the years he’d known Belle, both in this life and the past, she was probably one of the most reliable people he knew. Not only was she scarily smart, but she seemed capable of achieving things that shouldn’t have been possible, even for someone in her position.

Maybe such skill is what fueled her ambition. Was it arrogance? Perhaps... but maybe she was one of the few people who could back it up.

"... Information is the heaviest thing in the world, you know?" He sighed.

"Trust me, I know." She chuckled.

"... You’re suicidal." Osho huffed.

"I prefer efficiency." She winked at him.

"... Okay, fine. With all that said, where do I fit in all of this? To be frank, I want nothing to do with the cult, so it can burn for all I care. Moreover, with how you’re speaking, I’m clearly not strong enough to assist you in defeating the hidden powerhouses the cult can send yet." Osho folded his arms.

"I love how you said ’yet’," She chuckled softly. "But you’re right. Knowing you, whatever happens to the cult is just an afterthought. However, I do need your help with something you happen to be good at." She smiled, and Osho raised a brow.

"What? Research?" He asked, wondering if she wanted him to decipher an item.

"What? No no, not you... non-cult-related skills." She leaned forward.

"Remember when I said I needed the Architect’s Lattice but don’t know where it is? Well, I found something that could help in finding it." She lowered her voice.

"A fragment." Osho blinked.

"Of the Lattice itself or something else?" He tilted his head.

"Something else. I doubt that thing can break, if the scripts were being honest, that is," She shrugged. "No, it’s the fragment of a map which leads to where the Lattice is located. One of 4 parts." She flicked her wrist, and a piece of paper appeared in her palm.

It seemed... unassuming. It had no aura, and Osho didn’t feel anything particularly awe-inspiring when he looked at it. It just seemed... old. However, he did feel that Gale had an odd reaction to it, but the bird said nothing... yet.

"Apparently, the pieces resonate with each other, so get one piece close to another, and there will be a reaction. Of course, that doesn’t do much if you can’t get them close together." Osho stared at the piece before slowly locking eyes with her.

"So I’ll ask again, where do I fit in this equation?" Hearing this, Belle rested her chin on her palm and stared at Osho with amusement.

"My~. Playing dumb, are we?" She leaned back. "No matter. I just that, you know. Since you just happen to be the Wandering Star who is good at wandering and finding things that shouldn’t be found, I thought I could ask for your help in retrieving all the parts of the map." Osho’s eyes widened for a second, then he schooled his expression.

"You’re asking for a lot." He said flatly.

"Oh shush. It’s not like I’m asking you to do it for free," She rolled her eyes, then she tried to put on a pitiful expression. "But... I would REALLY appreciate it if my darling brother could help out his elder sister for free, just this once?"

Osho: (•_•)

Seeing his flat stare, the pitiful expression vanished as Belle clicked her tongue.

"Tch, greedy."

"LOOK WHO’S TALKING!!!" He snapped before rubbing a hand over his face.

"What if the cult follows me?" He huffed.

"Now that, I’m sure they won’t." Belle’s smile was a bit easier, now.

"... How would you know? I’m clearly the best candidate for finding something like that." Osho frowned, confused by her assurance.

"You’ve also made it abundantly clear that you don’t like the cult," Belle pointed out. "So much so that you wouldn’t even consider helping any of us out even if we paid you." Osho narrowed his eyes at that.

"So how are you so sure that I would help you in finding the pieces?" Belle’s eyes softened at that.

"Because I’m asking you as your sister, not the Celestial Star."

"... Tch." He averted his gaze. Curse her and her awareness of his affection.

"... So what are you offering?" He finally asked.

Sensing that she’d snagged him, Belle grinned and took out something from her spatial storage.

"Something I believe you will be VERY interested in." Osho’s eyes shifted to the item, and as soon as they did, they went wide like saucers.

"Th-That’s...!"

***

Osho exited the apartment building, his mask back on his face. He looked up at the building towards where Belle’s apartment was. He couldn’t see her as the glass was one-way, but he knew she was watching him.

’What a mess.’ He sighed and scratched his head as he looked forward and started walking.

That was another heavy thing added to his growing list of issues that needed to be resolved at one point or the other.

’She didn’t give me a specific time frame, so I don’t know if I should get started immediately or later.’ Osho frowned.

’Then again, I’m gonna be moving around a lot soon, so maybe...? Argh! Damn you Belle. You know that not telling me specifically when you want something done will make me anxious!’ He cursed inwardly as Belle had perfectly exploited one of his odd traits.

’Ugh, whatever. It should be fine to be a bit lax about it, considering what’s about to go down.’ Osho checked the time. The whole meeting with Belle had taken a bit over an hour.

"I should get going. The others are waiting for me." He sighed and hailed a taxi.

Back in the apartment, Belle watched as Osho got into a taxi and sighed.

’Do well little brother. I’ll settle things once my end, too.’