Chapter 37 37. The record for the fastest promotion in the Star Club has been achieved!
"You take this thing."
The kite man drove the car to the place where he was connected with his superior according to the prompt of his ID card. In this plain-looking stolen car, Mason handed a bat flare gun to his younger brother.
This was obtained from Young Master Nightwing when he left last night. Mason has already got the blueprint but has not had time to make it.
He said to the kiteman:
"If something happens in a while, I will bear it first, and you fly to the sky to ask for support. Don't worry, Batman is now focusing on me. As soon as the signal goes off, he will definitely come to check it as soon as possible."
"Um."
Charles picked up the flare gun and put it in his jetpack. He glanced at the building in front of him again and his face became weird.
He said to his boss:
"Why did they choose this place to meet? Is this implying us?"
Mason glanced out the car window.
In front of the parking place is Penguin's Iceberg Bar.
This luxurious and strangely shaped place has 5 chain stores in Gotham, but the bar in front of you is the first store built by the Penguin in this city, and it is also the home of the Penguin Gang.
This place has "special meaning" to Mason.
His new life begins here, and his old life ends here.
The wine bottle that killed the young man was thrown from the height of the Iceberg Bar. Mason still doesn't know which brother who was drunk threw the bottle casually and welcomed a soul from another world into this world.
Maybe have to find him later and "thank" him a lot.
"Go ahead and have a look."
Mason squinted his eyes, opened the car door and walked up the steps.
He wore that gray windbreaker and bypassed the police cordon and walked in from the side door of the closed bar with ease.
The place that had been closed for nearly ten days was very deserted. The two found the power and turned it on again. They took the elevator all the way up, and when they entered the top floor, they saw a light shining outside Penguin's original office.
The ball of light was suspended at the door, like a pointer.
Mason patted the kite man on the shoulder to calm him down, he also let out a sigh of relief before pushing open the door and walking into it.
The huge floor-to-ceiling windows allow the morning light to shine into the gorgeous and spacious office. In front of the two of them, a tall figure wearing the same style of old K's starry sky cloak is standing in front of the window, as if overlooking the morning scenery of Gotham.
Only one person came.
But looking at his masterful demeanor and this big villain's cool stance when he appeared on stage, one can tell that he is definitely not ordinary.
Mason and Charles were like employees summoned by the boss, standing with their hands tied in an office that was so clean that people could be seen on the ground, waiting for a lecture from the superior in front of them.
Maybe this is also the moment of fate?
"Old K is dead?"
The superior in front of him finally spoke after being silent for nearly a minute.
A calm male voice, very magnetic, doesn't sound too young and has a faint sense of oppression.
"Well, our beloved captain unfortunately died in the ruins of Hogwarts College. He was holding a suspected cursed item, but was besieged by monsters in the Forbidden Forest.
We would love to help him.
But we are too weak to even collect his corpse. We can only follow his last wish and burn his corpse in that hell-like world just like the monster he finally hunted. "
Mason spoke most of the truth in a steady voice.
By the way, he took out Hagrid's hunting knife from his luggage, which was still stained with the venom and blood of the acromantula. He put the thing on the desk in front of him as if he was handing in evidence, and said:
"Charles and I tried our best to use the magic items left by old K to capture several monsters that participated in killing him. If you need it, we can release it.
But it's dangerous. "
"No need!"
The superior waved his hand and said:
"When you embark on this road, life and death should be ignored. It doesn't matter how he died. The important thing is that his death can please the dark stars and illuminate our way forward."
He said this sentence like a eulogy, and Mason felt chills in his heart when he heard it. If I remember correctly, Old K also said such words.
More than once.
So, is this also a Stellaris tradition?
"Let me introduce myself, my name is 'Hunter', of course it's a code name."
The superior turned around, revealing a face with a star mask. The cloak with the pattern of stars almost covered his entire body, like Batman's cape, there was almost no gap.
He stretched out his black-gloved hand, touched the blood-stained hunting knife, and introduced in a gentle tone:
"Currently serving as the "Exploration Master" of the Stars Club."
He stated his position, but seeing the blank faces of Mason and Charles in front of him, the Mr. Hunter froze for a moment, then asked in a strange tone:
"Didn't old K tell you about the inside story of the Stars Club and the division of members?"
"He promised to talk after our 'entry test'."
Charles gestured, and then replied in a sad voice:
"But he died so suddenly."
"I see."
Mr. Hunter nodded and said:
"Then I will forgive you for your faux pas this time.
Let me replace old K and briefly introduce our organization to you. You are now E-level personnel, and new members of the organization generally have to be guided by specific C-level personnel to familiarize themselves with daily work.
Old K was supposed to be your novice guide, but he had an accident.
When you complete the first mission to explore a different world, you will become D-level personnel, which can be regarded as the backbone of officially entering the Stars Club. After 20 missions, you will be assessed and promoted to C-level.
There are internal regulations for the promotion of B-level and A-level members, and you don’t need to know too much now. "
"Then are you an A-level personnel?"
Mason asked softly.
"No, I am the great explorer."
Mr. Hunter emphasized his position again, he looked Mason up and down, and said:
"It is the commander-in-chief above the 12-member A-level council. The three great mentors of exploration, combat, and logistics are in charge of the daily operations of the Constellation Society and the internal and external affairs of the organization. There is also a Lord 'Fate' above the three of us.
He is the founder of the Star Club. "
"Big shot!"
This thought jumped into Mason's mind, making him immediately bow to the person in front of him to salute, and then kicked Charles, who was still stunned, the kite man also hurriedly bowed to salute after recovering.
I thought that the superiors sent would be at most the same level as old K or one level higher, but I didn't expect a big boss to come directly!
This is the same as when a new employee in a company reports to a superior, thinking that the other party is just a business manager, but the guy sitting there listening to his nonsense is actually a member of the company's board of directors.
Isn’t this too scary?
"Well, the etiquette is very standard, and I am very satisfied with her quick thinking and restrained personality."
Mr. Hunter nodded, pulled the penguin's boss chair and sat on it, waved his hands in a comfortable and relaxed posture, and said to Mason and Charles:
"It seems that the newcomers selected by old K this time are of good quality. I guess you must be thinking why I came here, let me explain to you.
Don't be so formal, Mason, and Charles.
I am an easy-going person.
sit down.
Our conversation will probably take up a little of your time, but I hope you have nothing urgent to do today. "
When the big man spoke, Mason and Charles naturally obeyed.
The two sat on the black sofa, maintaining a decent posture, and then they watched Mr. Hunter playing with the giant hunting knife that killed Old K, and said in a gentle tone:
"The first reason why I came here is very simple. Has old K told you the story of his rookie team? I am his rookie guide, his old captain.
At that time, the Stars Club was first established, and the regulations were not yet complete, and the 12-member council had not yet been established. I had to do this kind of thing to bring in new people occasionally.
Old K was selected by me.
In the original 7-member team, he was the only one who survived to become a C-level member, and the others had already pleased the dark stars with death.
What a tragedy.
Now the best student I ever had is dead.
Frankly, this makes me a little sad. "
You should have said earlier that there is such a relationship.
"Your heart is beating faster, Mason, are you a little nervous?"
Mr. Hunter brushed the blade with his fingers, and suddenly said something faintly.
"I'm only 17 years old, Mr. Hunter."
Mason whispered:
"The most powerful person I've ever met is nothing more than the guardian of the city, a transvestite named Batman, and you are the leader of a huge organization that spans countless parallel worlds.
The old captain I failed to save is still your friend. It would be strange if I wasn't nervous under such circumstances. "
"Well, that makes sense."
Mr. Hunter nodded, no longer entangled in this problem, put down the hunting knife and said:
"As for the second reason, it is the particularity of the world you are in.
Old K may not have had time to give you the definition of the parallel world of the Popular Science Society, but I must tell you two that the world you live in is extremely dangerous.
It is rated A in our world evaluation system.
But to be honest, it’s not because it’s only dangerous at this level, but because the highest rating in our system is only A-level.
Especially if you have a Kryptonian called 'Superman' in your world."
Mr. Hunter paused, shook his head and said:
"The combat mentor "Swordsman" with the strongest frontal combat power in the Stars Club encountered him a few years ago when he was exploring the world, and was broken by his two punches and fled back to the Stars Fort in embarrassment.
Since then, all large-scale explorations of the world by Stars have been frozen.
You shouldn't be based here.
This place is not suitable for newcomers like you, which is the second reason why I came here, you can use a safer world as your base.
This is your special power, and I can help you arrange it. "
"Wait! Mr. Hunter, I have a question."
Mason raised his hand and asked:
"If the exploration actions in this world are frozen, what about old K?"
"I'm talking about all 'massive' exploration operations, Mason."
Mr. Hunter emphasized:
"Listen carefully! Also, don't interrupt me, this is not a good habit. There are other teams in your world that are operating secretly, and the lowest members of those teams are all C-level personnel.
As for old K
He could have been a B tier, but because of his wild style of acting, his promotion got stuck after twice killing Team K.
At the B-level level, what we need is an explorer and leader who can grasp the overall situation, not a reckless person. "
Mason nodded.
At the same time, I thought in my heart, if old K's combat power can become a B-level, then this group of stars will not seem to be as strong and invincible as I imagined.
Among other things, Batman probably won’t have too much trouble beating Old K, and Superman can defeat another big boss of the Constellation Society head-on, so I have to lower my evaluation of the Constellation Society only in terms of combat effectiveness.
Downgraded from "Like a God" to "Invincible".
Hmmm, it doesn't seem to make a difference either?
"So, what's your answer?"
Mr. Hunter gave Mason and Charles three minutes, and he asked:
"Do you want to change to another base world? For the sake of old K, you can choose from the thirty-three C-level worlds I am currently in charge of."
Mason glanced at Charles, who gave him a look of "Boss, you decide, I obey". The young man nodded, stood up and said to Mr. Hunter:
"No, we don't want to change the base world, my lord. This is not because we think too highly of ourselves, but because we have already established certain connections in this world, and obtained some very precious things through hard work.
Like this one. "
Mason took out a set of blueprints from his luggage, put his hands on the desk in front of Mr. Hunter and spread them out.
The battle line on the blueprint is a set of very complicated and labeled battle suit diagrams. If Batman is here, he can tell at a glance that this is the structure diagram of his regular bat suit.
Mason’s character card has completed the analysis of the main body of the bat suit. The young man drew these before to study them, and this will come in handy.
"This suit. The technological content is good, it is very suitable for close combat and stealth infiltration, and there are so many reserved weapon slots, obviously it can be modified multiple times to meet different combat needs.
good! "
Mr. Hunter is obviously also a knowledgeable one.
He stretched out his hand to stroke the drawing for a closer look, and when he was observing closely, Mason suddenly noticed a strand of playful long hair emerging from behind Mr. Hunter's mask.
Um?
Is this a woman?
Still a man with an artistic style?
"Are you dedicating this set of blueprints to the organization, Mason."
Mr. Hunter asked:
"Although it is only the most basic blueprint of the battle suit structure, those members of the organization who take the technological route will probably like it very much. It can give you a lot of urgently needed things in exchange.
If you trust me, I can help you find a suitable buyer.
At the trade fair one month later, you can close the deal. "
"Of course, my lord, I can't ask for more."
Mason responded.
Then he took out a dark jewelry box and opened it in front of Mr. Hunter. Inside was an irregular, thumb-sized blood-red spar.
When he saw this thing, the very calm Mr. Hunter also clasped his fingers.
"This is?"
He looked at Mason, and the young man explained:
"Old K's relic, my lord. He said that he entered that world just to find this thing, and he also said that it was a reward task organized by the organization.
This is the Philosopher's Stone.
is the treasure we found in the ruins, but unfortunately it has been broken in the disaster, we searched the whole ruins and only found this one.
We can't expect rewards from bounty tasks.
This is what Old K accomplished by himself, so I think, as his old captain, you should complete that task instead of him and get that reward. "
Mr. Hunter didn’t speak but stroked the small piece of Philosopher’s Stone in front of him. After ten seconds of silence, he let out a strange laugh and said to Mason:
"You are really a sharp little guy, I almost know why old K chose you to take over as the captain. But unfortunately, I can't use the rewards of this task.
Because its reward is to increase the level of members.
Old K is looking for this thing to complete the B-level promotion, Mason, and I have no more promotions.
Take out your ID card. "
After he said something, Mason pinched his fingers decisively and took out the star identity card.
Mr. Hunter also took out his own card. It was a luxurious crystal card, and its texture alone was much higher than Mason's poker-like thing.
The moment the two cards touched, a ball of dazzling red light flooded Mason's arm. The intense burning sensation made the young man dizzy. He fell to the ground and was hugged by Charles who rushed over.
"This is the case for the first promotion, not to mention that it has been promoted two levels in a row, which can be regarded as a promotion record that is not big or small. This is a normal situation."
Mr. Hunter said to the kiteman:
"Take him to the next door to have a rest, and we can continue talking when he wakes up."
"Thank you, my lord."
Charles walked out of the office with the unconscious Mason in his arms. After the two of them left, Mr. Hunter reached out to pick up the blood-stained giant hunting knife.
He stroked the sharp blade and stood in front of the French window.
After several minutes, he sighed and said:
"Old K, did you call me here just to let me see him? This is the 'parting gift' you want to give me, and you think he can help.
But how did you, an old hunter, be killed by such a rookie?
Did you miss it? Or do you no longer want to live?
What a shame.
well.
May the death we all come at last please the stars of the unforgiving darkness.”
(end of this chapter)