Chapter 418 - 365: The Todd Family’s Conditions
Chapter 418: Chapter 365: The Todd Family’s Conditions
The people of this world seemed to share a silent, profound love for the land beneath their feet. Even as humanity fought amongst itself, there were still those who wanted to fight for the land they so dearly loved.
In that, they were much like Flora Bloom. A Veridian born, a Veridian soul. It was a belief etched into their very being—a quality he was now seeing in someone he’d never paid much mind to before: Liam Todd.
Lex Cross pulled out a communicator and handed it to Simon. "You’re doing the right thing, Family Head Wallace. I believe Neal will understand. This is a special communicator made for our spec-ops unit. Flora has one as well.
If you run into any trouble in Argent from now on, you can use this to contact us."
Simon accepted it without hesitation. It was good to have a lifeline.
The next day, Lex Cross led his team. The other twelve special forces soldiers and ten personnel responsible for designing and building the communications base station headed for the agreed-upon airport tarmac at the Argent base.
When they arrived, the heads of the four great families were all present, each with an entourage.
Upon seeing Lex Cross, Five, and the others approach, Chelsea Todd’s face lit up. She joyfully dragged a small suitcase as she ran toward them.
"Lex! Five! You’re finally here! I’ve been waiting forever!"
With a sour expression, Five sidestepped Chelsea Todd. He went straight into the aircraft’s cabin to inspect the power system and fuel supply. Once he confirmed all safety systems were operational, he directed the ten base station designers to board.
As if she belonged there, Chelsea Todd dragged her suitcase and excitedly boarded the plane, completely ignoring Five’s blatant snub and the cold looks from the rest of the team.
Lex Cross had scanned the area the moment he arrived. He didn’t see any of the researchers they had met in the Thorne family’s laboratory.
He strode over to Liam Todd and Hector Grant. "Family Head Todd," he asked, his expression impassive, "where are the people I asked for?"
Liam Todd and Hector Grant struggled to keep smiling. They turned and beckoned to the people behind them. Instantly, several superpower users who had been standing with the Grant, Todd, and Adler family entourages stepped forward to stand before Lex Cross.
Donovan Yardley was among them, leading the group.
’Liam Todd and Hector Grant were still holding on to a sliver of hope. They believed Lex Cross and his team couldn’t possibly distinguish between superpower users and ordinary researchers. They would plant their own people, have them scout out the situation in Morhaven, and then make their move.’
But they were mistaken. It was true that ordinary people—and even most superpower users—couldn’t sense the difference. And since researchers typically had no superpowers, they were indistinguishable from anyone else in a crowd when not in their lab coats. Who could tell them apart?
But Lex Cross and his team were different. Like Flora Bloom, they possessed immense spiritual power, allowing them to sense the superpower energy, however faint, radiating from this group.
Moreover, Lex Cross’s photographic memory confirmed it: not a single one of the researchers from the laboratory was in this group.
These people were nothing more than spies, planted by the families in an attempt to infiltrate Morhaven.
The deal he’d struck with Hector Grant and Liam Todd was simple: they would provide the researchers, and in exchange, he would take Chelsea Todd and a few of their families’ trusted superpower users to Morhaven.
’It was a mix of overt demands and hidden schemes. Lex, unafraid, had accepted readily. Once they were in Morhaven,’ he thought, ’it wouldn’t matter whose people they were.’
But they should have never tried to pull a fast one on him, hiding the real researchers and substituting them with other superpower users.
Lex Cross smiled, his hawk-like eyes scanning the three family heads, pointedly excluding Simon. "It seems you gentlemen aren’t people of your word."
The expressions on Hector Grant and Liam Todd turned awkward. Titan Adler was also finding it hard to maintain his composure. After all, the three of them had devised this plan together, and his Adler family had supplied the most replacements.
Just as a sarcastic smile spread across Lex Cross’s face, Gavin Todd, who had been absent until now, appeared. He was pushing a wheelchair and followed by seven ordinary, non-superpowered people, all hurrying toward the plane.
The moment Hector Grant saw those seven people, the color drained from his face. He glared fiercely at Lex Cross. "Captain Cross, what is the meaning of this? These seven are my Grant family’s current medical personnel! You can’t just poach them as you please!"
As he spoke, Hector Grant moved to block the seven from coming any closer. But he had barely taken a few steps when a massive bolt of lightning struck the ground before him. A thin crack instantly fissured the tarmac. Terrified, Hector Grant froze in place, his legs trembling.
"What... what do you think you’re doing!"
"Saul, get them on the plane."
Simon walked over to Gavin Todd and took over pushing the wheelchair. In it sat a frail, pale-faced woman, her legs lifeless.
Up close, the woman bore a striking resemblance to Simon. Her features—brows, eyes, lips, and nose—were sharp and well-defined. She wasn’t conventionally beautiful, but possessed a strong, noble air.
"Dad, aren’t you coming with me?"
The woman looked at Simon, her eyes welling with tears. "Please, Dad. Let’s leave together."
Simon squinted his tired, tear-filled eyes and shook his head. "You go find your brother first. If I get the chance, I’ll come back and see you both."
With that, Simon began pushing the wheelchair toward the plane.
To Lex Cross, Titan Adler was his father in name only, a complete non-entity. But now, he approached, dragging the blind Mason Adler along with him.
"Your brother can’t see. He has no way to protect himself in Argent. You take him to Morhaven, and I’ll let bygones be bygones."
Lex Cross gave Mason Adler a casual glance. Though he did nothing, the blind young man felt a sudden, inexplicable chill.
"’Bygones?’" Lex sneered. "’You mean the part where you and Selene Lynch conspired to murder my mother? Or the part where you sent assassins after your own son?’"
Everyone present had been a person of status before the apocalypse. They all knew the head of the Adler family disliked his eldest son, but they had no idea the family history was this sordid.
’Favoring a mistress over the legal wife, murdering said wife, then trying to assassinate the firstborn son so the mistress’s child could inherit? Even the dramas of the ancient imperial courts weren’t this juicy.’
Humiliated by having his family’s dirty laundry aired in public, Titan Adler’s face contorted with rage. He shot a furious glare at Selene Lynch and Mason Adler, who stood behind him.
"Those were just misunderstandings," he blustered. "I was helpless in the matter of your mother. But now, with the world in chaos, you have power. You should at least lend a hand and protect your little brother, shouldn’t you?"
Lex Cross’s gaze flickered to Selene Lynch, who was cowering behind Titan Adler. A smirk touched his lips. "Fine. Let him come. If you’re so comfortable letting Mason follow me all the way to Morhaven, why would I refuse?"
Titan Adler’s heart dropped at Lex’s words, but after a moment of consideration, he remained silent. Selene Lynch, however, turned deathly pale. She looked ready to rush forward and pull Mason back, but Titan Adler grabbed her arm, stopping her.
"Get back here! Think of the bigger picture!"
Titan Adler’s voice was laced with an authority that few dared to defy. But Selene Lynch, her heart aching for her son, still spoke up, her voice weak.
"But what if... what if Lex kills our son? He’s my only boy!"
"What do you know?! Get back!"
Lex Cross had no time for Titan Adler’s family drama. Seeing that everyone who was meant to board had done so, he cast a final glance at Simon, whose eyes were filled with sorrow and reluctance. Then, he led the last of his people onto the aircraft.