NOVPUBIn the lounge...
"Hello everyone. I'm glad you could make it..." Muku greeted everyone upon arrival.
"Hello. Umm, where's Jade?" Emily asked Muku. She had sensed them at the same location before.
"She won't be joining us right now. I'll tell you the reason why as we go on. I am not privy to all the information though" Muku replied while taking a seat.
"Oh, okay. I'll go check on her after this..." Emily replied. She felt worried for her friend. However, she had to be around for the important talk. Jade was a strong girl anyway, so, it was okay to delay a little.
"Yeah... Layla, what's wrong?" Muku acknowledged Emily's words and then moved on to Layla.
The stoic girl had basically been gazing at him intensely from the moment he arrived. Which was odd since she wasn't like that when they met before. He could sense a hint of anger behind her gaze.
"Hhm? Oh, it's nothing serious. We can talk about it after this. You can proceed with the meeting" Layla replied in her usual tone. If Muku hadn't seen her gaze, he wouldn't have suspected that something was going on.
"O... Kay? Anyway, everyone here heard the voice, right? We'll get to that and decide how we're going to deal with it. However, for now, I have a few things to say first..." Muku put aside Layla's issue for the moment.
He then proceeded to mention the prompt everyone got. Which led to everyone gathering. Chloe had to pause her ranking up process even though she was already close to a breakthrough. The others also stopped what they were doing.
However, Muku put that aside. He felt that the group needed to be on the same page in everything before making decisions about that. So, he proceeded to tell them about the information he got from Iris.
He first started by revealing that there was likely a Monarch behind the scenes of NL Base. Then he mentioned how that information was based on Jade's matter. Which was when he revealed the information on Jade's mystic background.
After that, he finished with the hypothesis which everyone might have already considered. Which was how Chloe's father, William, was probably under the control of the mysterious Monarch. Along with some, if not all of the base's residence. As for Abel's matter, it was briefly mentioned somewhere along the lines. No one really cared about it.
The mood in the room took a dip instantly. While everyone might have realised it. When Muku said it was still very impactful.
The reason why it was a tricky situation was because of William's involvement. If he wasn't there. The choice would have been simple. Pack up and leave. They had enough problems in their lives.
However, he was involved. If they left, it would be abandoning the only living parent of one of their members. Which was not an easy choice by any means. It would haunt them forever. It would likely create a division between them and Chloe as well. So, they were definitely in a tough spot.
"It's okay everyone, there's no need to stress yourselves thinking about it so much. I'm sure he willingly offered himself up to the Monarch. So, he doesn't need saving. No one needs to put their lives in danger for someone who decided to put themselves in that kind of situation" Chloe spoke with a reassuring smile on her face.
They might have bought it if tears weren't coming out of her eyes as she spoke. It was clear to see that she had resolved herself and made a tough decision. She had decided to give up on her father to keep everyone safe. A truly admirable but very painful decision.
"Tsk, so what if there's a Monarch there? I won't be scared off. I've already survived that petty ahole Ares. So what's one more Monarch? There's no way they are physically here anyway. I can totally take out an avatar" Muku spoke soon after Chloe went quiet.
His words made his stance on the matter clear. He didn't say "we" since he wanted to give everyone the chance to decide for themselves. Though honestly, the fact that he decided to help kinda tied everyone down with him. If they didn't help they'd seem like shitty teammates.
It wasn't necessary to manipulate them like that though. After all, he knew them all well enough.
"I'll also join you. I refuse to be bullied by aliens!" Audrey spoke soon after Muku.
"I wonder if the Monarch can resist my poison" Hope also joined in.
"Put him in front of me, and I'll burn him away" Emily confirmed her participation as well.
"Anything for my little sister" Layla chimed in.
Elsa then joined in followed by Freya who had to tune out the protesting Iris. Iris felt like she wasted her time when she told them about the Monarchs.
Instead of demotivating them, they became even more fired up. How crazy was that? Is it what humans mean when they say ignorance is bliss?
That has to be it. If they knew the terror of Monarchs. There was no way they would have been so eager to get involved.
"You guys... Thank you. I really appreciate it. However, I refuse to go along with it unless someone comes up with a plan that keeps everyone safe" Chloe spoke emotionally.
She was moved by their willingness to help despite how dangerous the situation was. Though, she wouldn't put them in obvious danger just because they were willing.
"Do you have any ideas then?" Muku asked her. All he could think of was storming in through the front gate.
He had noticed that the stronger he got. The less willing he was to use his brain. It seemed way easier and quicker to just brute force your way to a desired outcome... Should be considered staying away from Jade for a while? She was probably the one influencing him to be like that.
"No, but... I'll stand by my words. No plan no action" Chloe replied. She wasn't in the right state of mind to make a plan. However, she still wouldn't change her bottom line.
"I might have a plan..." Audrey suddenly chimed in.
If it was the old days, she would have likely kept her thoughts to herself and let the others contribute. Which was because she had a slight inferiority complex at the time.
However, that changed after her time with Muku. It made her feel sufficient. Which she didn't feel like before despite hiding it well. So, she was more willing to be heard and contribute.
Which the others noticed. They also felt like there was something different about her. She also seemed a lot more beautiful as well.
No one disliked the change though. Just that a slightly sour look flashed on Emily's face. It was just a lingering emotion that was significant.
Layla was the happiest of all despite her facial expression not changing. What Audrey didn't know was that her daughter was constantly observing her. So, she's always the first to know when there's something different about Audrey.
Her lack of experience made her unable to understand most of what was going on with Audrey. However, she could still tell that Audrey seemed a lot better than day compared to how she had ever been before.
Layla's eyes then trailed to Muku. She narrowed them a bit before returning back to normal. There was a slightly conflicted look in her eyes.
"Sure, what is it?" Muku asked expectantly. He had always wanted Audrey to participate more in their meetings. So, seeing her finally doing so, made him happy.
"Muk... I mean, our leader here has a domain that can make one invisible right? Why don't we use it to sneak into the base? Blindside Chloe's father, knock him out and kidnap him? We can keep him unconscious until we figure out a way to free him from the Monarch's control... It's not perfect. But it's all I have" Audrey pitched everyone her plan.
After she finished speaking. No one said anything. The whole room was deathly quiet as they just stared at her. Which made her feel very self-conscious. She couldn't help but blush. Maybe her plan was really as dark as she thought it was in her head.
"... Audrey..." Muku finally spoke after a while. He only said Audrey's name then stopped.
"Yes?..." Audrey replied nervously. She didn't know what he was going to say next. Maybe he hated it so much that he was speechless.
"Your plan... That's the best plan I've ever heard! Hahaha, I didn't know you could also think like that. Boy was I wrong about you all this time! Hahaha" Muku started out low then exclaimed out loud. Expressing his agreement with the plan.
"Hey! What do you mean by that?! Are you indirectly cursing me?!" As Audrey exclaimed in protest. She felt like she lost face in front of everyone for coming up with the plan. Especially with Muku's exaggerated reaction.
"No, your plan is not bad. I also like it. I don't think there's a safer plan than that. We don't have to risk much as long as we're careful" Chloe spoke before Muku could.
Audrey's plan was the exact plan she was waiting for. If they executed it perfectly. Then everything would be okay. They wouldn't even need to fight.
"Really?" Audrey asked suspiciously. She was wondering if they were just being nice.
"Definitely!" Chloe replied.
After that, everyone expressed their agreement. They then moved on to figuring out how it was going to be executed.
