"Are you certain of that, Mark? I understand that there are some connections capable of wetting government hands and reducing the penalties you will face, but that is not advisable, and it will most likely end up backfiring. You are already a criminal as far as the government is concerned. Trying to worsen your situation is inadvisable."


    "Why do you care?"


    "I''m only looking out for you, Mark."


    "No, Szar. You are looking out for yourself and the NSA. This has nothing to do with me. I know your organization lost a lot of members and recruiting me will bolster your standing in court when you face the charges. But I will not be changing my mind. I''m not joining the NSA."


    Szar remained perfectly calm after hearing Mark say this and Mark could not tell what was on his mind at all as he waited for a response. After some time, Szar sighed as he stood up. He stalked towards the window behind him and stared down at the people below with his hands held behind his back.


    "It is true that we lost a lot of people during the raid, and I will not deny that one of the reasons why I want you in the NSA is so that you will help bolster our standing among the other powerhouses in the country. We might be a government organization, but that does not mean we are the most powerful. But what weck in manpower, we make up for in information and connections.


    I can assure you that joining the NSA will give you more benefits than joining any independent guild. I stake my reputation on that promise. Join us, and let us make the world better together."


    Szar''s words were sweet and they fell off his tongue easily with an intonation that would make anyone nod their head and agree to whatever he was saying easily! But Mark did not see things in the same way. Rather than an easygoing voice that spoke the truth, Mark could only think that Szar sounded like a snake.


    Mark''s mind immediately traveled toward a story that his mother would tell him when he was a child about the Garden of Eden and a serpent that fooled a woman named Eve into eating a forbidden apple. That was a long time ago, but that story could never leave Mark''s memory.


    Was this how Eve felt when the serpent told her to eat the apple in the Garden of Eden?


    Mark used the opportunity to open his system and activate the True Eye skill to see what sort of stats Szar had, and Mark tried his hardest to remain perfectly unaffected as he read through the stats.


    …


    Name: Ryan Szar


    Race: Human


    Title: THE TRICKSTER GOD''S FAVOURITE


    Rank: S


    Potential: A


    Skill: ???


    Description: ???


    Affiliation: True Evil


    …


    What the actual fuck?


    The title and potential that Mark saw were already enough for him to be cautious of Szar, but one thing that really made him raise his guard up in front of the white-haired man was his affiliation. There was no room for doubt or misinterpretation at all. This bastard was a demon in sheep''s clothing.


    This was the first time that Mark was seeing someone with an affiliation in True Evil and he couldn''t believe that the affiliation was for Szar. Mark has been using his skill on many people since yesterday.


    He was just doing it so he could get used to the feel of it, and so he could try and improve his skill more by training it but there hasn''t been a single person whose affiliation was True Evil. The affiliations were either True Good, Chaotic Good, or some of the Neutral variations like True Neutral or just simply Neutral.


    Although Mark didn''t show any outward reaction to what he was seeing, there was an obvious change in his aura that Szar immediately noticed. Szar''s eyes narrowed slightly as they scanned over Mark''s entire body.


    Every little thing became ringly clear to him, from the slight tightening of Mark''s arm muscles that showed his readiness to jump into a fight and the slight movement of his eyes towards the window that was an indication that he felt trapped.


    Szar didn''t know what just happened, but he did his best not to allow that to affect his own aura as he continued seriously.


    "I suppose you will not change your mind about this then. I understand, and I''ll respect your wishes. I just hope that you will remain open to more coboration between the NSA and you in the future. James fought hard at your side to make sure that this city remained safe, and in his memory, we would like to keep this rtionship alive and strong."


    Szar stretched his hand out to shake Mark''s, and Mark wondered what sort of ns were going through Szar''s head at that moment. Is he thinking about the best way to kill me? Or is he formting some sinister n in his head to put me under his thumb? Why did Szar really want to have Mark in the NSA in the first ce?


    With a nickname like The Trickster God''s Favourite, Mark knew that Szar could be ying a game that no one else would understand, and he was just waiting for the right moment to expose his true intentions. Mark did not want to be anywhere near the NSA when a n like that was revealed.


    Mark decided that he would try his best to not have anything to do with Szar or the NSA from that moment onwards. But he would have to watch them from a distance to make sure that he was ready for when something dangerous was going to happen.


    Mark knew that not everyone in the NSA was evil, so there was a chance that most of the people here were innocent and they didn''t know anything about Szar''s affiliation or objectives. If Mark just ignored this, then Szar''s ns could endanger all their lives, so Mark would have to put Szar on a leash to make sure things do not go out of control.


    ''Or should I just take care of him now?''


    Mark had never taken a life before, but he was not the sort of person who shied away from taking a life if it was the only way to ensure his and other''s safety. Mark knew that killing Szar right now would be the best possible option to prevent any of his ns from even getting off the ground.


    But Mark decided against it as he realized that the oue of the fight was unpredictable and itssting effects would be too devastating.


    They were both strong, so killing Szar in one shot was impossible, and worse of all, if Mark starts a fight here, then he will definitely be branded as the one in the wrong. As far as everyone in the world was concerned at this moment, Szar was a civil servant working to make the world better. Mark attacking him out of nowhere will only make Mark gain more enemies.


    Mark shook Szar''s hand and smiled as he felt pressure from the handshake, but Mark did not mind as he returned the pressure in equal measure. Szar was an S ss, and since he was a higher rank than Mark, Szar thought he could overpower Mark if they were ever in a contest of strength. But Mark did not reduce his pressure until he felt Szar pulling back his hand.


    Once Mark left the room and shut the door, the smile on Szar''s face dropped as he squeezed his hand into a fist to relieve the slight pain he could feel from the handshake. He turned around to look outside the room window again, and he narrowed his eyes at the people passing by on the ground below.


    "Fucking parasites."