God of Tricksters

"Here you go." Theo gave her a cup of water to calm her down.

"Thank you." Ellen gratefully accepted it and looked at Theo. "You've changed, Theo... Our role is now in reverse. You're the one taking care of me right now."

"Hahaha, even I have troubled others a lot." Theo chuckled. "Anyway, if you want to change, we have a Chef, a Researcher, and even a Magician to help you to work with your strength. As for other things, that depends on what you want. Ah, that's right... Do you remember Aisha?"

"Aisha? Ah, the first person that recognized you outside of our group? That Zombie Healer, Aisha?" Ellen widened her eyes in shock.

"Yep. That's her. She's working for me right now while studying to be a good doctor." Theo nodded.

"I see." Ellen looked down as another thought appeared in her mind. "By the way..."

Theo saw the hesitation in Ellen's eyes. He knew what she wanted to talk about, so he said, "I'm sorry, Ellen. There's already a woman in my heart."

"I see, sorry." Ellen closed her eyes for a moment. Even though they were apart, Alea was still her childhood friend, so she just wanted to know about the condition. "Is it Nella?"

"No. It's Agata."

"So, it's Agata..." Ellen thought for a moment. "Have you told Alea about it? I know that your relationship isn't that far to the point you're obligated to tell her too, but I think she deserves to know too. So, if you don't mind, I can break the news to her and comfort her. At least, this is the best thing I can do for you."

Theo contemplated. On the one hand, Theo never knew much about Alea. Although she had shown an interest in him, the latter never openly shared the sentiment unlike Nella. That was why Theo was the one to break the news to Nella back then.

But for Alea, if she didn't ask him out, there was no obligation for him to answer it as well.

At the same time, Theo also felt bad about it since he had disappeared for years. That was when Ellen's role came in. Although he didn't act like a gentleman, this solution would give Alea the least impact.

Theo also couldn't really show his face to her because he was afraid that his identity would be exposed too early.

Theo was in a bind, not knowing what to do in this situation.

He thought for a moment and shook his head. "I'm afraid that I can't allow you to go. I can't go because I can't afford to reveal my identity to her for the time being. The fact that she doesn't know about me being Joker means that her family doesn't tell her anything.

"If I remember it correctly, five years ago, I used my Death Avatar for the first time to kill a Supreme Rank Monster. At that time, all people fainted due to the extraordinary pressure, leaving only the Supreme Rank Experts and Monsters. It means her grandfather and mother already know about it, but they don't tell a single soul about it. It means they don't want her to know as well, believing that a few years should be enough for her to move on. Alas..." Theo sighed.

"So, you're planning to break the news to her personally?"

"In a bit cruel way, I guess..." Theo sighed.

"What do you mean?"

"I've been planning to reveal my identity to the whole world four months from now. But on that day..." Theo hesitated for a moment. "I will propose to Agata."

"!!!" Ellen widened her eyes and finally understood why the situation was complicated. She finally understood why Theo had trouble dealing with it.

She thought about it and asked, "What if you send me to Russia at that time? Since Phyrill is officially in your group, he needs to handle the operation, right? In that case, let me go there and break the news to her. What you're planning to do will surely attract the attention of the whole world, right? If that's the case, I should prepare to comfort her there to avoid such a situation."

"That's..." Theo believed it was a good idea. "Let me think about it first, but I think your idea is good as well."

"Well, Phyrill might be the one to join your group, but I still benefit from it. You even allow me to learn from your group, so the least I can do is this." Ellen smiled. "Please leave everything to me."

"Mhm." Theo nodded. "Well, I'll give you the reply sooner or later."

"I understand." Ellen paused for a moment. "Also, this might be the last thing I want to talk about. What are you planning to do with the World Martial Institute?"

"Nothing much. The only reason for me to be that petty is to make them a reason for me to wreak havoc in Egypt." Theo sighed.

"Huh? For what reason do you want to do it? I mean, we're talking about a country that is known for its research about the new power that we gain from the other side, you know."

"Yes, it's just... I have a conflict with the Fist Saint. Do you remember about the Death Reaper?"

"The former 3rd strongest person in the world?"

"Yes. She had a collaboration with the Fist Saint back then, so I need to solve this problem sooner or later. The World Martial Institute is simply a stepping stone for me. Of course, I'm not planning to fight against the Fist Saint right now since I'm not strong enough. It's just a plan."

"I see. I can understand the situation." Ellen nodded with a serious expression. "Don't worry. My mouth is sealed."

"I know. Why do you think I told you all this? Among our people, you and Phyrill are the hardest to crack, you know." Theo sighed. "I know that you're not going to tell anyone about it."

"Hehe." Ellen smiled. "Thank you, Theo."

"No, it's fine. But... I am Joker."

Ellen was startled and soon understood the reason he said that. The smile returned to her face as she rose from her seat, opening her arms as if she wanted to hug Theo.

Theo just stood in front of her, letting her do whatever she wanted.

She gently hugged him and said in a tone filled with emotions. "Still, it's good to know that you're doing fine... it's truly been a while, Joker."

"Yeah."

******

AN: Sorry, there was a power outage earlier. It just went back on and I could finally log in.