As for why they didn't go their separate ways, in fact, the moment Deathstroke received the news, he realized he might not be as confident as he thought. He believed that no matter the situation, he could always protect Joseph. But this situation was a bit too complicated.
First, if the plane can't land, a forced landing at sea is extremely risky. Even if they survive the sea landing, there's no telling which group might capture them, and there's a risk they might be killed. Even if they manage to land safely at Hurgada Airport, they might still be detained by the Egyptian authorities.
Deathstroke deeply regrets not revealing his profession to Joseph. The title of the world's number one mercenary holds significant value, even more so than some important figures' children from major countries. Because he can be utilized, offering more than mere ransom demands.
If Joseph knew his identity, he would have a huge bargaining chip. As long as he tells those people that his father is Deathstroke, they will surely spare his life. Even if these people had a grudge against Deathstroke, they wouldn't easily kill Joseph out of revenge. The benefits they could gain from having Deathstroke work for them are too great.
Not to mention that the commission was fake from the start, Deathstroke's mission completion rate so far is 100%. Every single task he's taken on has been completed. Even when the targets are important figures from developed countries, he has never failed. His black and yellow armor is synonymous with the God of Death. No one wishes for him to descend upon them.
If one could manipulate him to kill someone, that person is as good as dead. It doesn't matter if they're a superpower user or how important they are. Once Deathstroke takes action, there's no failure. This is the only potential successful decapitation operation. Just based on this, no one would pass up the chance to control his relatives.
They wouldn't even torture Joseph. They're also afraid of Deathstroke's revenge. If they want to establish a long-term cooperative relationship with him, they must treat his son well. Otherwise, if Deathstroke, out of anger, decides not to save him and kills them all instead, they wouldn't be able to stop him.
But now it's too late to say anything. Deathstroke can't get in touch with Joseph at the moment. It's uncertain if the situation will improve later. Maybe the plane will land safely at Hurgada, and Joseph will bring him good news.
Thinking like this, Deathstroke found an empty car by the roadside. With skillful hands, he hotwired it and started the engine. This time, Shiller sat in the passenger seat. He asked, "Who did your son go with? His classmates?"
"Yes. With two of his classmates, they planned a graduation trip."
"Is there a girl?"
"Yes. But I haven't heard of Joseph pursuing her, and Dongqing never mentioned it either." Deathstroke paused for a moment, then added, "Of course, I wouldn't interfere with his love life. I rather hope he has a girl he likes."
"He sounds like a loner?"
"Not exactly. He's just not very good at communicating with others."
"Is he not good at communicating with others, or just not good at communicating with you?"
Deathstroke felt another stab in his heart. But he couldn't afford to dwell on it now, so he said, "When it came to choosing a school for him, Dongqing suggested I put him into a private school. Because he said with his personality, he wouldn't fit in at a public school. I followed his advice. But he still hasn't made many friends."
"And these two accompanying him on the trip..."
"They're among the few, to be precise, one. He has a relatively good relationship with the boy. Perhaps that boy is pursuing the girl."
"Kind of like you," Shiller chuckled, "You only have Dongqing as a good friend too."
Another knife twisted in Deathstroke's heart. He said, "I was quite popular during high school."
"Yeah, because back then you were a blond, blue-eyed sweetheart. People are always drawn to people like you."
Deathstroke slapped the steering wheel and said, "I meant good buddies, not those... those punks..."
"How did you handle them? I mean those who had a crush on you."
"Gave them a punch, of course," Deathstroke said, "If I weren't strong enough, I wouldn't have been chosen as an experimental subject. I played as a quarterback on the football team. The girls cheered for me. Those punks all avoided me."
"Did you attend public school?"
"Yeah," Deathstroke said, "Public schools back then were not bad. Unlike now, they're pretty much big brothels."
Shiller seemed amused by the metaphor. He said, "Yet you're considering sending your son there."
"The one near my home is alright. Mainly because Joseph isn't much of a scholarly type. Private schools are too stressful. Plus, there's not much time for sports, and I really hoped he would take up football."
"Didn't he ever get into trouble at school?"
"Actually, he surprised me," Deathstroke said, "Not only did he stay out of trouble, his academic performance is decent. Except he didn't make many friends, everything's fine."
"Are you sure he's not just hiding the bad news?"
"Probably not. His school friend has come over a few times. He's a pretty straightforward boy. A bit reckless but righteous. If there was any real issue with Joseph, he'd tell me."
"Didn't he take up football?"
"No, he's not even interested in any ball games. Once, I wanted to hang a football poster from my younger days on his bedroom wall, and he didn't like it." Deathstroke shook his head, seemingly with regret.
"One last question," Shiller said, "What does he look like?"
Deathstroke looked at him with some confusion, then said, "What kind of question is that?"
"It's very important, especially for a high school student."
Deathstroke thought for a moment, then yanked off his mask — he now had his younger appearance. Blond hair, blue eyes, handsome face, slightly rugged features, a typical American heartthrob. Like a Hollywood movie tough guy, but his hair and eye color were a bit too frivolous, more like the male lead in an American high school romance drama. If that's not precise enough, he's pretty much like Thompson from the Spider Man series. The classic heartthrob, captain of the American football team.
"Joseph looks a lot like me," Deathstroke said, "but his outline is more like his mother's, more delicate."
"Then I think your previous assessments of him weren't very accurate."
"What?"
"You said he has no ability to be drawn into any kind of whirlpool."
"What's wrong with that?" Deathstroke asked while maneuvering the car at high speed, "He's an introverted kid, never liked the fighting. Even among peers, he's always the one being protected, I can see that."
"Or maybe he's just acting like a hostage," Shiller said, "then manipulating kidnappers with specific personalities."
"What a mess." Deathstroke didn't understand again. Sometimes he thought the other Shiller was too straightforward, never willing to discuss family or emotional topics; sometimes he felt this Shiller, who was willing to talk, was the pure Riddler. Asking a bunch of questions just for a conclusion, but without any real basis, pure guessing.
"I think you can slow down," Shiller said, "There's not much time left for Hurgada."
"What?"
"Have you figured out how to execute the plan?" Shiller turned to ask.
"What plan?...Oh, you mean that plan to guide him in investigating my real identity, then showing him my strength?" Deathstroke seemed a bit flustered, he said, "We have to rescue Joseph first. Otherwise, everything is just talk."
"You don't plan to use this opportunity?"
"Come on, that's my son!" Deathstroke slapped the steering wheel hard, "He might be trapped tens of thousands of feet in the air, unable to get down. How can I have the time for this?!"
"You actually are a good father," Shiller said, "Your anxious emotions are almost blinding me."
"Wait." Deathstroke seemed to think of something, he said, "Did you say before that you can see the entire Arab world?"
Having said this, Deathstroke realized he was crazy. How could this be possible? He thought the only correct thing Shiller said was that he was too anxious now, otherwise why would he pin hopes on such nonsense?
"It's true," Shiller said, "But only when I'm in a very bad state, there will be a moment of Illusion. Now it should be impossible."
"You're not carsick anymore?" Deathstroke asked, "Do you want me to drift a few more times, open the Heavenly Eye for you?"
"The problem is, using this method to open the full map perspective, you can't decide who I lock onto." Shiller said while hugging his arms, "I would habitually lock onto my enemies, then rush to them as fast as possible. Then you would probably have to rescue your son yourself."
Deathstroke hadn't planned to do that anyway. Creating a crazy Shiller would first be dangerous for himself. Just thinking about it made his neck ache a bit.
Now they had to race against time, no delays allowed. So it was best not to create additional problems, focus on getting to Hurgada quickly.
In this region, Egypt is considered a big country. The length from north to south and east to west is not short. Although Hurgada isn't in the far south, there's still some distance from Cairo. By the time they got close, it was already dark.
The more troublesome thing was that this place was under control, ordinary cars couldn't enter. Deathstroke had already pulled out his Great Sword, ready to slice and dice his way through. Shiller stopped him, then reached out to him: "Money."
Deathstroke hesitated a moment, then took out a wad of US Dollars. Shiller directly stuffed the crowd of US Dollars to the inspection personnel. As expected, they were quickly let through. Deathstroke slapped his forehead, clearly should not have any high expectations for the law enforcers' quality here.
However, thinking about this, he started to worry again. If the plane landed successfully and Joseph was taken by the local law enforcers, and he didn't know how to bribe them, he might face violent enforcement.
Thinking about this, Deathstroke gritted his teeth, nearly crushed the steering wheel. He had already imagined a thousand ways in his mind, how to tear those who bullied his child into pieces.
"You didn't think this way when beating Robin," Shiller's voice appeared like a ghost beside Deathstroke's ear, startling him.
Deathstroke turned his head to look at Shiller, eyes filled with suspicion and disbelief: "You really have Mind Reading Technique?"
Shiller didn't answer, Deathstroke explained on his own, "I didn't abuse those little birdies. In fact, they cause me trouble every time. I also don't understand, I was just repairing a car or standing on a building looking at the view, why would they come over to fight me."
"Probably because installing car bombs and remote sniping is illegal."
"Oh my God, you really have Mind Reading Technique!"