Chapter 120: This isn’t about you, I need to vent my rage

In another world, sick music would have played when Brent dropped that bomb. However, this wasn’t another world, and that wasn’t something that Brent planned for.

So only silence followed his statement before the Guild Captain stared at him incredulously and spoke.

“What?” He demanded and Brent gave a shrug.

“You heard me. The truth was, dear old gramps left everything to me. That includes the money, the name, the companies, the property, the titles and also, you and your entire Guild. My brother isn’t the one who is going to be the next head of the family, not legally. That’s me. It was the last fuck you my grandfather could think of after my brother chased me out of the city, tried to kill me several times, and erase the fact that I even existed from the face of the earth. Tragically for him, I was thriving in another city.” Brent said with another shrug.

The Captain was in full blown shock, as were the rest of the Lieutenants around him. Brent glanced over his shoulder.

“Esper Parker, please make sure to stay on your guard.” Brent reminded him. “Esper Gardner, please go close the blinds.” Esper Gardner moved at Brent’s request, getting a small protest from the others in the room but they quickly stopped from a stern glance from the older Espers.

That’s kind of what it felt like. Old versus new. The Phoenix Guild was a ’younger’ Guild compared to the Chronos Guild, but it was only in the last, gosh, 10 years since the old Captain had retired and a new Captain had been put in their place? That had happened a few times in the history of the Guild. Instead of the colour being repossessed and the name being retired like some of the other Guilds, the Chronos Guild was inherited by another Esper. Another S Class normally. That hadn’t happened with the Phoenix Guild, at least not yet.

Brent wasn’t actually sure if that was something that Aunt Dina wanted to do, since it was considered an unusual practise in the Esper and Guide world. Usually Espers were too possessive and wanted to make their own mark on the world. However, the backing of the James family was too tempting for some Espers, and that included the Espers before him.

Brent gave them a soft smile.

“Who the fuck even are you? You say brother…but I don’t remember there being anyone like you around in your family.” The Captain spoke, his voice gravelly and pissed. However, he didn’t seem to want to step out of line immediately. Maybe he remembered how the gunshot had felt.

“My name is Brenton James, but most people call me Brent. I’m the only Guide in the family, in fact, I’m the only awakened person in the family.” Brent’s smile took on a slightly sinister tilt when the Captain turned a shade of white that was usually reserved for processed paper. “I am sure that you are aware of the contract that you signed when you became the Captain, aren’t you? That if an awakened member of the James family did appear, they would have the right to take over the Guild, no if ands or butts?” It was something that had been found out by Brent when he was combing through the contracts and papers.

They needed anything they could get their hands on, especially when it came to dealing with his brother. It also partially explained why his brother kept taking dangerous steps. This was a clause that could go into effect even if he had become the head of the family. Something that had been written in from the beginning, one that was the second point on the contract.

The Captain looked shaken.

“I never heard that there was-”

“Oh, but you did.” Brent interjected, taking off his glasses finally, showing off the glowing blue eyes that indicated that Brent wasn’t a fucking liar. Not only that, but he was a powerful Guide. That had every Esper in the room on edge and Brent could feel it. “There was a huge press release when it happened, and then two weeks later I went missing and when I came back I was disfigured and shoved away from the limelight. It was only 8 years later that I managed to escape the hold that my brother had on me and I finally went somewhere where they appreciated me. Somewhere where I learned how to run Guilds.” Brent hinted heavily.

The Captain looked shaken, and there was a good reason for it.

He was not an S Class Esper. He was an A Class Esper pretending to be an S Class Esper. The opposite of Aunt Dina.

On paper, Aunt Dina was still an “A Class Esper”. No one in their right mind would believe that, especially any Guide that touched her and helped her calm down. She felt like every other S Class Esper out there to Brent, besides Sergei. A damn vacuum. Was it because she didn’t want the hassle? Was it to give her a little less lime light? Was it for tax purposes? Brent didn’t know, nor did he really care.

However, the man before Brent was doing something a little worse.

He was taking the place that an S Class Esper would take, and then using his Lieutenants to hide the fact that he wasn’t as strong as he said he was. Oh, he was strong, that wasn’t negotiable. He had immense powers, but his pool just wasn’t as deep as an S Class Espers were.

Kind of like a flashy peacock with a small dick. Great at putting on a show, but shitty where it counted.

Brent’s smile was anything but kind as he scanned the shocked faces of the people before him, people who were beginning to piece together some of the truths and lies that had been told to them.

“So, here I am. Back to claim my rights and what is owned to me, but yet I’ve come to understand that you lot are doing something fucking horrifying.” Brent didn’t hold back. He didn’t need to. They knew damn well what they were doing if they were turning the colour that they were when faced with someone like Brent.

They hadn’t paled when it came to being faced with Espers, oh no. They felt like they could reason with Espers. They might even be able to reason with civilians. The one group they couldn’t reason with would be Guides. Why?

Because Brent knew that they were helping the E.A.G. get away with the crimes that they were committing against Guides. There was no other better cover unless the E.A.G. had taken over the police force of the city. Brent had used the information that Aunt Dina had gathered, that she had offered when Brent was pulling his hair out trying to figure out where the E.A.G. was coming from, to help narrow down his theories.

That was how he knew with almost certainty what was going on.

Brent let out a soft sigh, shaking his head as he met their gazes.

“I can’t believe that you fucking idiots would think for a second that Guides aren’t important. Have you forgotten that without us you fucking explode? Bye bye Espers.” Brent said with the prettiest smile he could muster. That only made the powers in the room whip around. Brent rolled his eyes. “Oh please, don’t act like you didn’t make this bed yourself. I wonder, how much of my people’s blood are on your hands?” Brent asked. He wanted to pull out his gun. Really wanted to get this threat ball going, but he hesitated.

He didn’t want to reveal that too soon. Especially since…Colby hadn’t shown up yet. He needed to keep some secrets for himself.

Because he knew. There was no way that his brother was going to ignore such a blatant move against him. Either he was going to show up, Colby was going to show up, or both. And Brent?

Brent wanted to prove that he was different from his brother, but not as different as he thought. Brent just liked to get his hands dirty, personally.

“I-It’s not like that!” One of the Lieutenants broke. “I don’t hate Guides. I’ve never hated Guides! Your brother-”

“How convenient that you can blame someone else for the actions that you have taken, or the inactions you have taken. How many people have you turned your back to? How many horrors have you witnessed happen with your own eyes?” Brent asked and another Lieutenant on the other side of the frozen Captain spoke up.

“Who are you to blame us and criticize us? You left. You left the city! You didn’t stay to witness everything happen. You ran away!” It was a rather short man, his eyes glowing green and from behind his glasses. The glasses made it hard for Brent to determine whether that was the green of an Earth Esper, or a Healing Esper.

Either way, it was rather bold of him to say that, but it did give Brent the tiniest of hope that some of the Chronos Guild could be salvaged.

“Is it running away when if I didn’t, I’d be fucking dead right now?” Brent asked coldly. “I had no power, he turned the public against me, and then brought in a terrorist organisation into my family’s sacred home, sacred spaces. He ruined any good will that we had, spat in the face of the sacrifices that my family made, good and bad, all for fame. For money. Because he had a fucking complex over the fact that I was awakened and he didn’t? Do you think I, as a man 10 years fucking younger than him could do anything? I was a fucking kid.” Brent didn’t shout, but the words had an impact.

“I had to fucking escape. I had no choice, but he’s a fucking civilian. Any one of you fuckers could have stood up to him, could have spat in his face. So what if he has Espers protecting him? So what if he has the support of the public? One wrong fucking move and he could have disappeared. This horror could have been stopped, and now? Because of your inaction? I’m going to have to do all the fucking work that you wouldn’t.” Brent snarled, annoyed, pissed off, and upset that he had to do this alone.

He wasn’t fully alone, backed by the Phoenix Guild, but not backed by the people who he wanted by his side. He was sure that this was how Kellen had felt. Frustrated, annoyed, but too damn angry to let anyone else do this work.

The shift of power in the room was the only warning that Brent got before he was drawing his gun and leveling it at the head of the man who had appeared next to him. No hesitation, no fear.

Colby was the one who took a step back, surprised by the hard look in Brent’s gaze.

“How fast do you think you can teleport in order to dodge a bullet, Colby?”

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