“…We should discuss this with my father. With how big the issue’s gotten—to the point where Kai’s started hiring international assassins—, I’d rather not make the final call on my own…” muttered Fujiko as she shook her head, prompting Gerald to remain silent… It was around noon when the four of them arrived at the Futaba manor. Thankfully, Gerald didn’t sense any hiding individuals nearby anymore. Either way, upon stepping out of the car, the group was greeted by the sight of Takuya’s secretary who had been waiting outside for them this entire time. Upon seeing them, the secretary quickly held onto the things Fujiko was carrying before saying, “Miss Fujiko! Mr. Crawford! Do come in! The master’s been waiting for you!” Simply nodding in response, the group then entered the manor... and soon enough, they came across Takuya who had been waiting for them in the parlor. Getting to his feet the moment he saw them, Takuya took a brief glance at Aiden and Master Ghost before turning to

Upon hearing that, Takuya immediately shook his head with a chuckle before saying, “…You’re joking, right…?” While it was true that Gerald was inhumanly strong, there was no way he was going to be able to take on such a large and powerful family alone, right…? “Oh, I meant every word I said, patriarch Takuya. Do you not believe me?” asked Gerald in a serious tone, signifying that he wouldn’t joke about something like this. After all, getting the Futabas out of this crisis was his one-way ticket to learning the secrets of the Seadom tribe. Thinking about all the times Gerald had protected his daughter—and putting Gerald’s serious tone into consideration—, Takuya eventually replied, “…I believe you!” “Good. With that said, just give me some time to exterminate the Kanagawas. As for Endo and Izumi, I propose that we end them as soon as possible,” replied Gerald with a smile. “Well, had they not had the information we needed, I would’ve killed them ages ago. Now that we know thei

A short while later, the man returned alone before saying, “Elder has invited you in!” “Thank you for sending him the message,” replied Gerald as he placed his palm and fist together before entering the area with Fujiko… After walking for about ten minutes, the duo finally arrived at the old man’s home. Since the man hadn’t guided them there, the duo had made their way here solely from memory. Regardless, as Gerald pushed the house’s door open, he made sure to whisper, “Speaking of which, once we meet the old man, don’t say a thing. I’d like to test him first…” “Got it,” replied Fujiko with a nod. With that, the duo walked toward the parlor where the old man could be seen sitting on the tatami floor. Before him, was a bottle kettle, and despite noticing Gerald and Fujiko’s presence, he didn’t move an inch. Knowing that the old man could speak in the Weston language—and since there wasn’t anyone else around—, Gerald didn’t bother speaking in his awkward Japanese and simply s

Gerald was only agreeing since this old man seemed to know Daryl well. With that in mind, Gerald couldn’t deny that he was curious about his grandfather’s past. After all, though he had met him as a child, his memories of Daryl were vague, to say the least. Perhaps with this old man’s help, he would be able to learn why his present grandfather underwent such a drastic change… “Excellent. Then do have some more tea as we continue chatting. I’ll get a room prepared for you two by tonight. Speaking of which, isn’t it high time you told her to come back inside? After all, there really isn’t anything to hide. Besides, you two are a couple, no?” replied the old man with a smile. “You knew…?” said Gerald as he scratched the back of his head. “While we don’t directly contact those from the outside world, it doesn’t mean that we’re left oblivious about what happens out there,” replied the old man with a nod. Not knowing how to respond to that, Gerald then invited Fujiko in again, making

Following that, the three avoided talking about Daryl for a while, choosing to drink their tea instead… Sometime later, the old man turned to look at Fujiko before asking, “…The Futabas have had a long-standing feud with the Hanyus, correct?” Momentarily caught off guard, Fujiko quickly snapped out of it before replying, “…Indeed…. Though, I didn’t expect you to know about this…” “I’ll have you know that we Yamashitas are quite knowledgeable about what happens beyond our territory… Regardless, while we did know about your feud, we never expected your families to actually start attacking each other,” explained the old man who was now feeling much better after not talking about Daryl for a while. “To be honest, the feud only began again quite recently. While I still don’t know what the Hanyu family’s motive is, they suddenly sent assassins after my head some time ago… Had Gerald not stepped in to help me back then, I could’ve died back there…” muttered Fujiko as she wondered what