“Alright, alright. Didn’t expect you guys to be allies of justice.” Cold Night Feather chuckled, a hint of mockery in her tone. “When I was young, I wanted that too. Turns out it’s all bullshit. Doing well for yourself is the only rule that holds. Justice? Every justice-loving dumbass I knew ended up dead. Me? I’m the blight that somehow lasts a thousand years.”

She finished, smiling at herself with a bitter tilt. She shook her head, then drained her glass of red in one go.

The three girls stared at Cold Night Feather in surprise. The words were crude, but the bitterness in them was plain to hear.

“Justice may be late, but it never no-shows,” Oliver said, suddenly solemn. Then he slipped back into a cheeky grin. “Okay, I also think justice is bullshit. But even bullshit needs some dumbass to be mankind’s watcher, right? Even if those short-lived ordinary folks don’t even know our messed-up clan exists.”

“Mm. You’re right.” Cold Night Feather nodded and poured herself another glass. “To dumbasses.”

Oliver eagerly poured one for himself. “To dumbasses.”

The three girls gaped at these two offbeat elders. They gave up on whatever schemes the two were hatching and each pulled out her phone to play.

“By the way, your exorcist clans can’t be just your one, right?” Cold Night Feather asked. “This world never runs out of dumbasses.” Somehow, out of her mouth, “dumbass” turned into a term of praise.

“Of course not. The Cromwell Clan wasn’t even top-tier back then. Those old-line houses leaned too hard on their bloodlines, their alchemical weapons, and their magic. But under my grandpa, the Cromwell Clan smartly built businesses in the mundane world. We embraced guns and other new toys. In the end, we toppled those old fossils clinging to the past and became a mega-clan in both the mundane world and the hidden world.”

Pride colored Oliver’s voice. He clearly liked his clan, with a deep sense of identity and belonging.

“But tell me, how’d you end up making her an heir to the clan head?” Cold Night Feather pointed at Shuo Ye. “From what I know, male-preference isn’t rare. Or is it just because Shuo Ye is your daughter?”

“Exorcist clans don’t care if you’re a direct descendant of the first exorcist. We care about ability and bloodline. Direct children just tend to have stronger blood, that’s all.” Oliver shrugged. “There isn’t only one heir to the clan head. Shuo Ye’s just a strong contender because her bloodline’s strong.”

“Bloodline?” Cold Night Feather asked. “You inherited some being’s bloodline?”

“Yeah. They say the first exorcist was a demigod. We carry his blood,” Oliver said. “The purer the bloodline, the stronger the power.”

“Heh. So you’re actually a demigod clan.” Cold Night Feather smiled. “I can help you carry out justice. But how firm my sense of justice is depends on the reward.”

Oliver nodded. “Rest assured. The Cromwell Clan’s payment won’t disappoint you.”