Cyberpunk: Ultimate Cyborg System-Chapter 556: Favors.

Jordan’s brows twitched.

"I do not believe we have the kind of relationships where you can just ask for favors."

"Even though I have given you quite a few?" Dante said. "Cleaning up Red Hill is going pretty well. Do you think you could have made half the progress in as much time?"

"Innocent people have died," Jordan pierced him with a glare. "Because of you."

"Boo-fucking-hoo,"

Dante’s voice echoed through the old warehouse, and each time it did so, the change in his tone became more apparent. He returned the glare, not faltering in the face of the two law enforcers.

"Do I have to say it out loud? What you have allowed to happen under your nose?"

"We haven’t allowed anything," Jordan replied.

"Yeah, yeah, spare me the bullshit. You think anyone is going to believe that it all happened under your nose for years and you didn’t even notice? Give me a fucking break."

Dante knew well that things weren’t that simple. Though they might be called the authorities, police were almost powerless against the city’s underbelly, mainly because they had rules to follow. Corruption runs deep in such organizations, too, which is why it wasn’t too strange that Black Skull’s disgusting practices have gone unchallenged until now.

That said, Dante wasn’t about to give them the benefit of the doubt—not after they tackled a trillionaire the moment he created something that challenged Eidolon’s dominance. He had no doubt that they could have come up with something to deal with the Black Skull problem, yet they didn’t. That could only mean that they didn’t believe the matter to be worth the effort.

"Anyway, I’m not expecting much from you," Dante said. "Just make sure your men don’t get in the way."

"Seems like you’ve gotten more cocky since the last time we met," Caroline said.

Ignoring her, Dante continued addressing the police commissioner.

"I need you to call the third station in Blue Moon, Nightsun. Tell them to stop whatever they have been planning on doing for the next few days." He said. "Better yet, tell that to the other stations, too. I have been nice enough to come to you with this. If you fail to handle it, you’d better have enough recruiters to fill the gaps afterward."

Jordan’s expression darkened, and his silence lingered. A few more details would have made it easier for him to understand the situation, but Dante decided to leave him to find out the rest on his own. A tired sigh escaped the commissioner, and his shoulders seemed to slacken a little.

"I understand. I will ensure that this matter is handled."

"Great," relieved that the message got through without him having to do anything extreme, Dante turned to the red-haired woman. "Now, to our main event for the day."

Caroline said nothing, continuing to glare at him with crossed arms.

"Which one would you like to get first?"

"What happens to the one you killed last?" She replied.

"He will be added to the queue," Dante said. "We don’t mind an extra month of peace, though I don’t feel like your promises are very trustworthy."

"A few extra months, huh?" Her brows went down, anger returning to her face. "Is that why you went after those three?"

"Now, what could it be that you’re talking about?"

"You want me to spell it out for you?" She said. "We have many villains to deal with, yet Ghost is the only one mad enough to make our heroes their main target. We know they are responsible for the disappearance of Frostbite, Scream, and Red Bolt."

"Ooooh, those three." Dante feigned ignorance.

"You talk about us being untrustworthy, yet you keep going after our people. How is it a peace deal when you keep attacking our people? Do you think you can keep extending it by kidnapping more people than you give back?"

"Not really. We never trusted that you would keep your word." Dante said. "And you aren’t making it easy to trust you."

"Out with it already!" Shouting, the BEO Commander stepped forward. "What happened to those three? Why did you do that to them? Are they... are they still alive!?"

"Calm down, will you? You aren’t that young anymore."

Caroline’s eyes shot wide open, and her jaw dropped. Jordan started coughing for some reason, causing her anger to shift to him momentarily. Dante didn’t falter when she returned her glare to him, and that seemed to take the wind out of her sails.

"I already had my guess, but from what you have said so far, it seems you weren’t the one behind it after all," Dante said.

"What are you talking about?" Caroline asked.

"Nothing," Shrugging, Dante stared at the floor for a moment before looking back at her. "You are the BEO commander, so it should be easy for you to find out when and where each of your freaks is deployed, right? They can’t just go on missions without your knowing. Or..."

"..."

"You are just a figurehead. A face they put out to the public. You don’t have any real power. That’s why three of your freaks from three different freak teams can just go and disappear. They don’t have the freedom to go where they want, and you clearly weren’t the one who told them where to go. With that being the case, who could be the one they truly answer to?"

The first time they met, Dante confirmed that the BEO commander was being kept in the dark about Volcan. This time, he was trying to measure how much was being kept from her. It was unlikely that she was entirely oblivious, being the one tasked with handling the BEO. Even if it didn’t have as much sway as it should, it was still a very important organization in a world where Enhanced Individuals run rampant. Surely the one leading it would have some idea about the truth of the world.

Going by her changing expressions, Dante figured that the commander was starting to realize a few things. That told him everything he needed to know, so he decided to bring the meeting to an end.

"You still have the phone I gave you, right?" He turned around to leave. "Just call the same number. Your corpse will be delivered then."

"Huh? Wait! What about-"

"The three freaks are still alive, so we will be keeping them for later." Looking over his shoulder, Dante met the commissioner’s eyes. "I will be counting on you for that matter. Don’t disappoint me."