Richard wasn't surprised by Sabretooth's anger.
If the Department of Mutant Affairs had created clones of him, he'd be just as furious. In fact, unlike Sabretooth who merely wanted to teach them a lesson, Richard harbored thoughts of completely dismantling the Department of Mutant Affairs altogether.
"What about Clarice?" Richard asked, turning to Sabretooth. "Do you intend to involve her in this operation?"
Had the system not issued the "Son of the Devil (II)" mission, he wouldn't have minded postponing their attack. But circumstances had changed. The system had given him just three days to complete the task.
Though he currently prioritized acquiring Sephiroth's skills, that didn't mean the Phantom Sword held no appeal.
"Although Clarice hasn't received combat training, she can open spatial gateways to get us inside, and create exit portals when we need to extract," Sabretooth replied without hesitation.
While Clarice wouldn't be directly participating in combat—only remaining outside to manage the portals—Richard still questioned the wisdom of involving her in such a dangerous operation. Nevertheless, he had no intention of challenging Sabretooth's decision. After all, Sabretooth is Clarice's adoptive father.
As if on cue, Clarice spoke up softly: "Even though I can only create portals reaching twenty kilometers at most, as long as you signal your location, I can open an extraction portal wherever you are."
Her abilities weren't suited for direct confrontation, but that didn't diminish her desire to contribute to the mission.
Richard remained silent for several seconds before finally addressing her. "Then we'll entrust our extraction to you."
"Okay!" Clarice nodded eagerly, her face brightening with determination.
Los Angeles
From the rooftop of a nondescript building, they surveyed their target.
The location of the Los Angeles branch of the Department of Mutant Affairs was no carefully guarded secret. Clarice had first created a portal to bring Richard and Sabretooth to the city, then established a second gateway leading to this vantage point.
Although the Department's facility stood just a few hundred meters away, they weren't planning an immediate assault. Richard's mana reserves hadn't fully replenished, and both Sabretooth and Clarice needed time to rest and nourish themselves.
After studying the Mutant Affairs building, Richard turned to Sabretooth. "You must have already formulated an infiltration strategy. What's your plan?"
In terms of raw power, Richard significantly outclassed Sabretooth. But regarding combat experience, ten Richards wouldn't equal the feral mutant's tactical acumen.
After "parting ways" with Wolverine, Sabretooth had participated in virtually every American military conflict—including, but not limited to, the Civil War, World War I, World War II, and Vietnam. Though not a strategic genius, his battlefield experience was unquestionably vast.
Upon hearing Richard's inquiry, Sabretooth's brow furrowed. "I did devise an entry strategy, but the combat protocols I established may not suit your capabilities. You lack my regenerative abilities, so—"
Richard cut him off mid-sentence. "Who said I don't possess accelerated healing?"
"You have regenerative abilities too?" Both Sabretooth and Clarice regarded him with undisguised surprise.
"Yes. While perhaps not as potent as yours, my wounds heal rapidly enough for our purposes," Richard replied with calculated modesty.
The regenerative abilities he'd harvested from Macka had initially been inferior to Sabretooth's. However, his Accelerated Healing had since undergone two significant enhancements—first when he eliminated Inessa and her companions, merging their power with his own, and again after dispatching Aiden and his cohorts.
Although the system provided no detailed metrics on his current regenerative capacity, Richard believed that even if his Accelerated Healing wasn't quite on par with Sabretooth's or Wolverine's legendary abilities, the gap couldn't be substantial.
Macka himself had been a Beta-level mutant, and his regenerative capabilities classified accordingly. Both Wolverine and Sabretooth were also Beta-level mutants.
While powers of equivalent classification varied in potency, Richard's Accelerated Healing had received two separate enhancements. If it still significantly lagged behind Sabretooth's and Wolverine's regenerative capabilities, something seemed fundamentally inconsistent with the system's internal logic.
"How many mutant abilities do you have?" Sabretooth asked, his expression intensifying.
During their initial encounter, he'd assumed Richard possessed only two powers: summoning a long blade and teleportation. But after witnessing Richard harvesting lives like some grim reaper incarnate, he realized the situation was far more complex.
When eliminating Aiden and his group, Richard had openly displayed different type if power.
Sabretooth, unaware of the true nature of Richard's abilities, mistook Sephiroth's template skills and the powers Richard had harvested for naturally awakened mutant abilities.
Throughout his life, Sabretooth had encountered numerous mutants possessing two or three distinct powers. He and Wolverine themselves simultaneously exhibited several abilities—retractable bone claws, accelerated healing, and heightened animalistic senses.
But never in his nearly two centuries of existence had he encountered a mutant simultaneously wielding seven or eight distinct powers.
"That falls under personal privacy—not subject to disclosure," Richard stated evenly.
Though Sabretooth's inquiry stemmed from genuine curiosity rather than malicious intent, Richard remained unwilling to reveal his full arsenal.
"If you prefer not to discuss it, so be it," Sabretooth conceded. "Your Accelerated Healing certainly simplifies matters considerably."
"I've had someone gather intelligence. We have a rough location for my clones."
"We'll use Clarice's portal to enter the facility, then eliminate my clones and extract your father as efficiently as possible."
"Afterward, Clarice will open our escape portal."
This wasn't Sabretooth's original plan—after all, he had initially intended to send Clarice to Xavier's School.
After hearing the strategy, Richard nodded calmly. "Very well. We'll proceed as you suggest."
Following his confrontations with Inessa, Aiden, and their respective groups—or more accurately, after eliminating them—Richard had reassessed the Los Angeles branch of the Department of Mutant Affairs. It seemed less formidable than he'd initially anticipated.
This perception stemmed partly from the fact that neither Inessa nor Aiden had posed genuine threats to his survival. Additionally, he had yet to encounter a situation where his power harvesting had failed.
His current harvesting capability extended only to Beta-level abilities, which confirmed that Inessa and Aiden weren't Alpha-level mutants.
"Since you raise no objections, we'll move tonight," Sabretooth declared.
He glanced toward Clarice, preparing to request a portal for their temporary departure.
At that moment, Richard retrieved a coat from his system space and offered it to Sabretooth.
Without comment, Sabretooth accepted the garment and donned it.
Once Sabretooth was properly attired, Clarice generated a portal to transport them from the rooftop.
Los Angeles Suburbs
A dilapidated residential building greeted them.
Emerging through Clarice's spatial gateway, Richard, Sabretooth, and Clarice entered an apartment featuring extremely "minimalist" interior design.
"This is where Clarice and I have been staying in Los Angeles," Sabretooth said before Richard could comment.
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