Limitless The Strongest Revenant
Chapter 1041 - 1041: Huh? A lie? [2/2]

I mean, I did love the Simmons family, but in America, hating your relatives was quite common. Parents would be sent to nursing homes the moment they were no longer able to function in society.

In the same vein, the instant a child reaches 18 years of age, they are normally kicked out of the house. All to teach them how to live on their own. Of course, there were outliers, but they were the minority. Our family time was limited to Christmas and Thanksgiving.

Americans value independence more than family time, unlike other cultures. In contrast, Asians love living with their grandparents. Anime has many examples. Bella also lived with her Tía long after she grew independent.

It was interesting. The West shamed men living in their parents; it was the mark of being a loser. Yet aside from Europe, the rest of the world thought otherwise. I longed for family. So, I connected more with Eastern values.

'I agree that letting people grow on their own is important. But it robs families of the chance to spend time together. And they wonder why more people grow depressed.'

Truthfully, while I understood the depths of Carlos and his army's resolve, I do not know how many Americans would have the same dedication. Lilly, for one, would not risk death for David, nor for the Browning family who adopted her. It was the same in my case.

'Although, if I was the one taken, I knew she would,' I speculated in satisfaction.

"Y-You mean you intend to use these soul gears to recover our humans?" At the realization, Carlos began to stammer.

Bella then nodded as she pressed her glasses up.

"The Wizards have already found all the humans of your armies; we just haven't said anything yet. Isthar's Bloodline has expressed its willingness to help. What's more, Inari's Kitchen, Vela's Wolves, and the Seraphs of Satis all volunteered to join.

"As you can see from the deployments, the test has been going great. Once things calm down, we will rescue your people next. I am Brazilian, so I can relate to the feeling of having your important people held hostage."

At my bombshell's explanation, Carlos and Herman visibly began to get emotional. They gripped their fists and tried to hold it in. But my Honey wasn't done.

"[Ethereal] was made to let agents invade South America without the Relentless knowing. This was why we have been using you two to test it. We guessed that you two would be the most similar to His Majesty in terms of abilities. I know that you two are still being tracked.

"While the malice from your soul tattoos are gone, you still have the tattoos themselves. It would be hard to enter the battlefront undetected. This is why the other teams have volunteered. Do not worry, we remember. Hellsend will fulfill its promise."

Suddenly, both of them fell on one knee. Then, both Carlos and Herman gently reached for Bella's hand and touched it to their foreheads. I had no idea what it meant, but my Honey didn't resist. Instead, she made a face of understanding.

"Lady Minerva, I thank you; words cannot convey my gratitude. I owe you, my life. Please save my wife and my children. From this moment on, I serve only you."

Similarly, Herman looked so intently at Bella that his eyes seemed on fire. Although they looked moist as if they were in tears.

"Lady Minerva, for this favor from now till I die, in every battle and every conflict, my strength and my army exist only to fight for you. My family will stand by yours forever."

Bella said nothing and simply nodded.

'Exa, what did they just do?'

[It's a gesture of deep gratitude and respect. In Latin American cultures, placing a hand on one's forehead, especially while kneeling, has great meaning. It is on par with kowtowing for the Chinese or dogeza for the Japanese.]

I may not know much about Latin culture. But I understood the implications of kowtowing and dogezas. It seems like that, much like Robyn, Bella gained her first true followers. And both of them were fucking Specters.

'It might be because, as fellow people from the same culture, she understood its weight on their hearts.'

Truthfully, while I did plan to attack South America, it was to kill the Comando Vermelho bastards. I didn't even remember that I was to save their families until just now. But I did mention it to the Sirens in passing.

Hearing that [Ethereal] and the Gate of Irkalla were both for them was a big surprise. I didn't know that the girls cared about them that much. Before I could comment, Jo then sent me a transmission.

'It's a lie, Darling.'

'Huh? A lie?'

'Bella is lying. We never even thought about the South American bastards. Bella just said it that way to make it seem like she is a pious person. All to con these two into her service.'

"…"

I tried very hard not to react to what I just heard. I mean, I already knew how evil and conniving the mother of the Code family could be. But did she really take advantage of the situation to earn the loyalty of not one, but two Specters?

'Shut it, nutjob. I told you to stop reading my mind. You'll blow my cover. Impressed, Mr. Code? I now have more Specters than you do! Ha! What? You think I'm disgusting for doing this? That I am a vile person for taking advantage of them? Hmm?'

'No, Bella, I don't. I just found you incredibly wise and terribly lovely. If someone who condemns or exposes you comes along, I will just kill them all. If the heavens send lightning tribulations for you, we will suffer them together.'

'…'

Although Bella said nothing, I noticed her fierce blush and how she quickly retreated. The emotions on her link were going wild; they were a mix of affection, embarrassment, relief, and joy. I found it incredibly adorable.

'Tsk. I always knew Darling had a velvet mouth. Sometimes you're way too good with words. She is going to gloat about this for days!'

Feeling Jo's irritation, I could only smile. Bella quickly recovered. She began teaching Carlos and Herman about the technique the Sirens developed. She made sure no one could hear. She seemed really intent on not making eye contact for some reason.

"How adorable," I could only murmur.

Just then, a flash of light and the sound of a loud crackling echoed. I turned around and saw that the {Fabricated} gates had completed. A loud hum accompanied the arrival of the soulgears. Souls around us were drawn to them in large amounts.

Seeing my latest creations, I grew excited. Roach, who saw them, immediately ran over, thrilled. The Awakened and the Seraphs joined him.

"Limitless! Send me now! Come on! To the next target! This one is just for my wives and me, right? GRRR! I am so excited."

"Nigga, I forget how much you love to kick common sense out the window. I knew how long Addi made this thing; you feel me? And you made two in ten minutes. He's going to flip when he finds out."

Before I could reply, a loud thrum echoed. Everyone turned around and saw the arrival of my girls and the third set of princes. The other slots had the wolves return. Naturally, when they saw that there were now three gates, they all made puzzled expressions.

"Husband…"

"Haha, Beloved is really amazing!"

"We were gone for like, what? A little over ten minutes, mate? And Possum's already pullin' crap outta his arse!"

"Ara ara. How wonderful! As expected of Shujin."

"Dearest, you have some explaining to do…"