Chapter 14: Jayem's Determination
As Kael and his group were making their way to their new home, Jayem was fiddling with the phone he had stolen.
"It seems like you're so bothered by that phone. Is it because one of those girls is your ex?" Lawrence chuckled.
"Of course not!" Jayem has never been in a relationship in the past. He was simply thinking of doing something with this phone that could help them.
"Oh, I forgot, you're still single." Lawrence tapped Jayem's shoulder in comfort. He had a few girlfriends in the past, but he left them all, as he believes they would only get in the way of his goal. On the other hand, despite being mid-twenties like him, Jayem never got into a relationship ever. He even got to the point where he started thinking whether the latter was gay or if he preferred men over women.
"It's just, I think we could use this against that gang boss." Jayem proposed.
"What do you plan on doing?" Kael's interest was piqued.
"I don't know if you both would like this. I believe you two could still remember how it felt when we first arrived in Avalon and when we returned?" Jayem approached closely. He could still vividly remember how he nearly lost consciousness when he landed in Avalon and when he returned to Noverra. If it weren't for his willpower being strong, then he would have been knocked out.
"I don't think that gang boss will stop searching for us. So, why not one of us pretend to be the person I just killed, then introduce him to Avalon? Once he gets inside, we ambush him and try to eliminate him for good. And if ever he could escape and return to Noverra, the other person on the opposite side would be the one to complete the job."
"What about his right-hand man and left-hand man?" Lawrence couldn't help asking. He was referring to the second-in-command and third-in-command. Those two could also prove difficult to handle for them.
"I think we could just make the three of them enter at the same time as the gang boss," Kael answered. "It shouldn't be difficult to kill disoriented people, right?"
Lawrence and Jayem weren't weak. In fact, right now, they're both stronger than him, and the only reason they believed he was stronger was because he successfully bluffed them the other night.
"That's also what I was planning." Jayem nodded.
"The question is, who's going to volunteer to pretend to be a member of that gang?" Kael looked at Lawrence and Jayem. He has to prepare the guide for Avalon that he plans to give to the duo later, so he can't do it.
"I…" Lawrence was hesitant. He knew Kael would not volunteer.
"Since it's my plan, I'll do it!" Jayem volunteered. This was also what he intended to do from the start. He wanted to test his individual skill.
"Are you going to be fine?" Lawrence voiced out his concern.
"Don't worry."
Before leaving, Jayem shared with Kael and Lawrence his plan. He talked about the rough estimation of the location where the gang boss would most likely spawn in Avalon, that is, if he could make sure they entered the portal from the junk shop they went to last night.
"We'll wait in that location. Otherwise, you'll have to deal with them yourself." Kael warned Jayem of the risk.
"If you think you can't handle it, then leave immediately. Don't bother risking your life to complete this operation. There's always going to be a next time, understood?" Lawrence rested his hand on Jayem's shoulder.
Jayem smiled in assurance before finally bidding farewell and leaving Kael and Lawrence.
Watching Jayem's back, Kael could see that Lawrence was slightly shaking in worry.
"You could always just come with him if you want." Kael chuckled.
"No!" Lawrence was determined.
"You sound like an older brother watching his younger brother go to school for the first time."
"School?" Lawrence turned his attention to Kael. "I never went to school, so I could never understand that feeling. But I do understand what you meant."
"Just say yes," Kael snickered.
After a few more minutes of walking, Kael and Lawrence finally reached their new home and also their new base of operation.
In front of them was the exact two-story apartment that they saw in the picture. However, there was a slight issue…
"Should I bring the computers and the rest of the stuff from your apartment here while you take care of cleaning and preparing this place?" Lawrence took a step back. The property was so dirty as if nobody bothered to clean it for months.
"Are you sure? You're still injured from last night." Kael smirked.
"What injured?!" Lawrence started jumping around. "I'm completely fine!"
"Alright!" Kael didn't mind it.
Unbeknownst to Lawrence, he was actually a clean freak. That was why when the duo first entered his apartment, everything was clean and organized.
"See you then!" Lawrence quickly left as he feared that Kael would suddenly change his mind after seeing just how much cleaning needed to be done inside. After all, the exterior was already a mess, let alone the interior.
"I guess it's just me, myself, and I, again," Kael sighs deeply. But he wasn't discouraged. "Let's begin!"
It was already evening when Lawrence finally returned to their new home. With him were a few kids that he had paid to help carry some of Kael's miscellaneous belongings while he carried the important items.
"Thanks, everyone!"
Lawrence handed each of the kids ten caps before bidding farewell.
"Now let's see how Kael's progress is going," Lawrence said, knocking on the door.
"It's open, Lawrence!"
Kael responded from above him.
"Eh? You're done cleaning?" Lawrence was taken aback as he watched Kael wearing a new set of clean clothes while casually drinking a glass of water from the balcony.
"Turns out it was only the exterior that was messy. Probably to prevent attracting unwarranted attention to this place," Kael turned around and got inside.
Lawrence hurriedly opened the door to confirm Kael's claim.
As soon as he entered, Lawrence was immediately greeted by a space that seemed to be a direct contrast to the environment of Rustfall. In fact, he could even say this place is no longer part of Rustfall because of how clean and organized everything was.
There was a wide flat-screen television and three sofas arranged neatly to form a square with a small glass table at the center in the living room. An elegantly arranged dining area. A polished kitchen with all the necessary appliances, plus a counter. Then there's a bathroom door that has a double door, meaning it has a huge space inside.
"It was already like this when you entered?" Lawrence asked Kael while the latter was walking down the stairs.
"I did a bit of cleaning, but yes." Kael nodded. "You can find the rooms upstairs. I've already picked mine."
"Manager Drex should have shown us the interior design," Lawrence could only blame Manager Drex.
"He was obviously in a hurry, so of course he could only show us a rough image of the property."
"What am I even talking about. I should be happy," Lawrence started forming a smile on his face.
"That's right!" Kael nodded.
Suddenly, their conversation was interrupted by a knock on their door.
*Knock! *Knock!
"That should be Manager Drex," Kael motioned his hand for Lawrence to open the door since the latter was closer.
As Lawrence opened the door, it wasn't Manager Drex that appeared, but Jayem instead. But the latter wasn't in good condition. It seems like he just got beaten up by someone.
"What happened?!" Lawrence hurriedly came forward to assist Jayem.
"I got in…" Jayem smiled with blood still on some of his teeth.
Without wasting any time, Kael and Lawrence hurriedly brought Jayem to the dining table.
"There's a medkit under the sink, get that!" Kael ordered.
Lawrence soon returned with the medkit.
"What happened? Tell us?!" Lawrence was enraged.
"After I returned, the gang boss immediately called for me to ask me for a report… Ouch! Careful!" Jayem slightly pushed Lawrence's fingers away.
"Shut up!" Lawrence smacked Jayem's hand as he continued cleaning up the wound close to the latter's eyes.
"Anyways, when the gang boss saw me, he didn't even suspect that I wasn't the person he ordered, as he just immediately asked for a report. So, I told him everything that we did. And I think it's because of the fact that I didn't try to steal our luggage and bags that's why he beat me up."
"How unreasonable!" Lawrence exclaimed.
"After that, he just let me go and asked me if I knew where we got all of those expensive materials. Of course, I told him about Avalon and informed him that we needed computers." Jayem grabbed Lawrence's hand to stop the latter as he tried to stand up with the assistance of the chair. "I volunteered to look for computers so that I can use them as an excuse to get treated."
"So, he didn't notice that you are not the person he ordered to follow us?"
"Apparently, he does that all the time. He gives an order to someone random without even bothering to remember their face."
"And you're going back?!"
"Yes, I have to! Because now he remembers my face." Jayem started walking to the door. "I already found them their computers and I put them in their junk shop."
Jayem looks at the clock. "It's around eight right now, so you guys have less than an hour to prepare your ambush. I'll try to buy as much time as possible using the document Nexus had provided to everyone as an excuse."