American comic book: My Father is Superman, am I just an NPC?

Chapter 38 The Truth Within Reach

The whole world was silent.

It was as if even the light from the chandelier hanging in the apartment lobby had been frozen in place. Such power—Ian felt he should have known it wasn't the authority of an ordinary Grim Reaper.

This is perhaps all because my intelligence is not high enough, which makes me unable to bear the burden of my wisdom. As a result, my wisdom often falls into an intermittent state of failure when it is not crucial.

Just as Ian was feeling regretful.

The fake Tessa's clear black and white eyes narrowed slightly as she stared at him. Her brows were furrowed so deeply that it seemed she was trying to force herself to look like a twenty-eight-year-old woman instead of an eighteen-year-old.

Ian's heart skipped a beat again. Since he had already decided that the other party was a big shot, he hesitated for a moment before tentatively asking the question.

"You seem to be in a bad mood?"

Ian knew that now was definitely not the time to expose her lie. No matter how old a woman is, she would fly into a rage when her lie was exposed.

"Could it be... that Death also has those few days every month?"

He was well aware that he was no match for the powerful figure who was jumping up and down in anger, but fortunately, he had high enough emotional intelligence to know that he should play dumb at this time.

Ian brought out the acting skills he had been taught by Madison.

but.

Upon hearing this, the fake Tessa's expression stiffened.

"Do you think you are funny?"

Her voice sounded like it was being squeezed out from between her teeth.

"what?"

Ian blinked, looking slightly bewildered. Seeing this, the fake Tessa took a deep breath, trying to maintain her composure; she even looked up and rubbed her temples.

It's not that my head really hurts.

But if she didn't use her hands, she was afraid she might slap Ian to death—that would be really scary, and she really didn't want this guy around.

“In just a few hours, I have sensed that you came very close to death several times... You were just conducting an investigation, there was no way you could have encountered any danger.”

The fake Tessa expressed her confusion, which may be why she came to find Ian again not long after. She saw things that she could not understand when Ian triggered the curse several times.

“I live in a metropolis, right next to Gotham. Of course, it’s dangerous everywhere when I’m out and about.” Ian blinked, trying to get away with it by being cute.

however.

"You're not telling the truth, I can feel it... Yes, you're drawing strength from your near-death state." Sure enough, the older a woman is, the sharper her eyes become.

She had clearly deduced Ian's situation.

but.

Perhaps because the system's status was higher than hers, she was only making a judgment based on observing Ian, so her tone when she spoke still carried a hint of uncertainty.

What can I say?

Ian realized that even someone as powerful as this person seemed unable to see through his biggest secret. He pondered this as he offered a somewhat vague explanation.

“MacArthur said that death never misses its mark, but man always finds a loophole.” Ian’s voice was righteous and indignant, mimicking the old general’s tone in a high-pitched voice.

"????"

The fake Tessa was confused again.

"Isn't that what Morpheus said?"

She looked at the boy in front of her with a suspicious gaze.

“Oh, okay, you found out. Well then, even if Morpheus said it… MacArthur’s quotes wouldn’t be complete without this one.” Ian made no attempt to hide the regret on his face.

"It seems you know not only death, but also the Sandman." The fake Tessa narrowed her eyes meaningfully, her gaze seeming to see right through Ian's soul.

Ian did not shy away from the question.

Despite the dizziness he felt from making eye contact with the other person, he nodded.

"I'll figure out your secret sooner or later." The fake Tessa wasn't angry at all; instead, she suddenly laughed, as if she had discovered something interesting.

Her reaction brought a slight smile to Ian's lips. To be honest, compared to those who like to flaunt their "prophecy" in front of ordinary people, only to cower and hide their true abilities when facing powerful figures, Ian preferred not to deliberately conceal anything. Of course, he had genuinely considered this a few times. Those powerful beings could easily extract a person's soul in a matter of minutes if they wanted to know something. No matter how cautious one was, could an ordinary person's soul truly be hidden from beings who had lived for countless years?

Ian's [Blood Reversal Furnace] has already been detected!

Forget about whether there are any clues or not; if he acts too aggressively, attracting attention inevitably brings risks. And if Ian wants to gain long-term immortality, he can't avoid dealing with the powerful figures in front of him.

Gains and risks are always proportional. That's why Ian didn't want to live in constant fear and anxiety. He recalled his first meeting with the big shot in front of him, where he had mentioned information he shouldn't have known, but his secret was never discovered by the big shot afterward.

This either means the other party doesn't want to search his memories, or it means... the other party can't search his memories. Ian, who understands that the other party wouldn't give him a chance to save someone for no reason, is more inclined to believe the latter.

That is the judgment.

He took another tentative gamble at this point.

And the facts have proven it.

The prestige of the Metropolitan God of Gamblers continues to rise. Not many people in the DC Universe know Sandman's true identity, and the identity of the female boss who shows him no respect is self-evident!

The ultimate concept of the DC Universe, like the Sandman, belongs to the Infinity family—Death! Through a small bet, Ian gained validation for his idea.

"The bigger the storm, the more expensive the fish. I should also give myself a slicked-back hairstyle." Ian gave himself a mental thumbs up. His expression made the female boss, who was actually a fake Tessa but a real "goddess," feel even more confused.

but.

The fake Tessa didn't ask any questions; she had other important things to say.

"I remember telling you that you can only rely on yourself for this, right?" It was unclear whether the fake Grim Reaper was unaware of Ian's ordeal, or simply didn't care whether Ian had seen through the truth or not.

She seemed completely oblivious to Ian's acting skills.

"Big sister, take a closer look, look at my face... Doesn't it look like the face of a stray dog?" Ian wanted to subtly express that he was having trouble dealing with a problem that even Superman couldn't handle.

"If you keep making people angry like this, you probably won't have to worry about whether you're good or bad anymore." Fake Tessa gritted her teeth and glared at Ian with annoyance.

"okay."

Ian chose to keep quiet.

The fake Tessa stared at him for a few seconds, then turned to look at Kara, who was frozen in place and had just shown signs of distress. A complex look appeared in her clear black and white eyes.

“I was going to teach you a lesson for not following the rules, but you’ve shown me something unusual.” The fake Tessa paused for a moment.

It's like they're weighing something.

“You can ask her for help, but only her.” The fake Tessa made her decision, her tone leaving no room for argument or rebuttal, causing Ian to freeze on the spot as if struck by lightning.

"Isn't that enough? Let me find another one, no, two!" Ian tried to bargain. He had already made up his plans, but he didn't expect them to fall through.

First, find Supergirl who won't harm Superman, then use Supergirl's connections to ask the Flash for help, and then use the Flash's connections to find Wonder Woman. What a perfect network management plan!

The client rejected it outright?

Does this mean you can understand the plan and proposal?
Faced with Ian's unwillingness to accept defeat.

The fake Tessa, on the contrary, did not show the same emotional fluctuations as before.

"Believe me, I've already taken a huge risk by condoning your behavior." Her tone was low, carrying a strange undertone, and even revealing a hint of weariness.

Why would it be so risky?

Ian was very surprised and puzzled.

In this regard.

The fake Tessa did not respond.

"We don't have many cards left, and every loss will be irreparable." She simply sighed, played the riddle-maker for a moment, turned around, and disappeared directly out the door.

Ian felt there was important information in the big boss's words.

but.

Before he could even sort out a clue...

The world has resumed its constant operation, which had been suspended.

(End of this chapter)