Ariel was dumbfounded. He finally realized he was not prepared to fight Adrian.He thought his plan to use Thiago to distract Adrian while he and his men retreated from Serpent's Haven was flawless. All of this was so that he could blow up the entire island. Yet, before he could even prepare to retreat, Adrian managed to swoop in and storm his base before he even saw it coming.At that moment, Ariel was starting to break down.Meanwhile, Adrian had no intention of stopping after removing one of Ariel's arms. He moved in to take Ariel's head.Ariel suddenly screamed, "Stop and listen to me, Draco! You won't live if you kill me!"Adrian's dagger rested against Ariel's neck before he pulled the latter toward him. "Ask your men to stand down or I'll kill you.""Fine, fine! I'll do it!" Ariel said through the communicator, "Everyone, stop! Stop this instant!"His men, who were in the midst of an intense battle, did not dare move another inch upon hearing his orders. Adrian comman
Immediately, a series of gunshots were fired, and all of Ariel's men fell over dead.Ariel gaped when he saw this, but the others could not see the despair in his expression thanks to his mask."I'll ask you again… Where's the manual detonator?"Ariel trembled and panicked. "Wait! Listen to me, War Legate Draco, I'll willingly become your subordinate if you let me live. Heck! I'll even be your slave if you want me to! With my help, I could even make you the monarch so that you can rule the world!" Slash!!!Ariel's left arm fell to the ground."Ahh!!!" he squealed in agony. "I've got ten thousand ways to make you tell me everything I want to hear. I don't wish to repeat myself a third time.""I'll tell you, but please spare my life…" Ariel pleaded. "Fine, I guarantee you'll die a little more comfortably if you tell me what I want to know. Otherwise, I'll make you understand what true despair feels like."One…"Two…"Adrian began a countdown, to which Ariel screamed, "Ther
"Will you let me go now?" Ariel asked. Of course, releasing him was out of the question. The thought did not even cross Adrian's mind.Gloria walked over and asked, "How many more men do you have on the island? Which organizations are they from?"Ariel answered honestly, "There aren't many of them left. Only two hundred from Bloody Rose and two hundred more from Black Nergal remain. I've lost contact with them, so I don't know where they are. You've already killed off the rest of them."He did not sound like he was lying.Gloria turned toward Adrian. "We need to make sure nothing goes wrong. There's a huge chance they’re on their way here. I'll have the others secure the parameter.”Adrian handed Ariel to Steel and clapped his hands. "Mya, have the others come over here right now. Tell them that the mission was a success. You're in charge of security when they all arrive.""Yes, sir." Mya nodded.Adrian then got off the plane, while Steel rendered Ariel unconscious before tyin
“The arm isn’t important.”Adrian picked up the communicator and said, “Steel, Flynn, Blaze, Klause. I’m assigning the four of you to another mission. Each of you will lead twenty men to the four coordinates and eliminate the people there. They’re the troops in charge of the manual detonators, so they must be eliminated. I’ve already sent you the coordinates, so go ahead and make arrangements after receiving it and get ready to set out.”The four of them acknowledged their instructions. Adrian sat on the grass and fell silent, taking in a few deep breaths. Following his order, the four of them assembled troops and set out to begin their operation right after reading the coordinates. About three hours later, Lucas led the rest to join the unit on the plains. By then, it was already late and darkness would soon be upon them. After converging, Mya coordinated the watch duty schedule. They started a few fires and cooked dinner around them. Lena came with a first aid kit to dress
The crisis in Serpent’s Haven finally came to an end. The thousands gathered on the plains three days later consisted of surviving troop members, but a large number of corpses on the island could not be taken with them. Adrian had exhausted his efforts, yet he still had to leave behind those heroic souls to guard the island. In the morning three days later, the surviving members assembled on the plains. They stood straight and tall, forming a neatly-arranged troop. In the final hour of waiting, Steel and the others returned after completing their assigned mission.The Serpent’s Haven rescue operation was about to end. Adrian did not manage to save everyone, but the survivors would be leaving with him today. He looked up to the bright sun in the sky and looked toward the unfathomable rainforest. He used his injured arm to grab a handful of soil at his feet, imagining bringing along the souls of his fallen comrades through this action. Everyone stood in silence. Their eyes redde
Everyone boarded the plane. Lucas and Steel flew the plane. They had learned piloting during their training and had experience flying.Novemton headquarters received news of their impending departure. Inside, Crystal said, “Steel, Lucas, four Tempest-1s are already hovering above Serpent’s Haven to escort your flight. You can land at Novemton Airport, and we’ll maintain radio contact at all times.”“Understood.”“Preparing for takeoff…”Hum hum hum!Loud humming noises were heard. The plane accelerated and sped down the runway before lifting off, leaving the island with everyone’s hopes. Everyone sat in the cabin quietly and waited.The plane gained altitude and flew into the cloud layer to find four Tempest-1s waiting. The aircrafts adjusted their positions—front, back, left, and right—and escorted the plane. They sped off back to Navia. Everyone felt relief wash over them as the plane entered Navia territory. Adrian was leaning back in his seat with his eyes shut.Gloria
Adrian received a checkup in the afternoon to confirm that his infected wound was fully healed and was only then permitted to leave the hospital. Gloria had packed up. They swiftly got into a car without alerting anyone and left Novemton to return to Swallowston.***It was dusk. A nineteen-year-old girl was waiting quietly under the setting sun in a distant mountain village. She stood at the village entrance, staring at the road leading to the village. Every time a car drove past, she would get excited and think her beloved had returned. But the cars drove past one by one, and she was disappointed over and over again. However, she did not give up hope.At last, a bus stopped at the village entrance. The girl excitedly looked toward the bus. It left after a man got off. He held a crutch in one hand and a bouquet of flowers in the other. He stood there silently, smiling at the girl. It was Ridge. The girl’s face was instantly drenched in tears when she saw him. She was over
Daniel’s name was etched onto the headstone. Adrian and Gloria placed their flowers before it and bowed. As he read the headstone, Adrian said, “I’ve always thought of you as my senior. You’ve served Wyvern Peak for more than twenty years, and your strength and courage made you my role model. I never expected there would come a day when we would be separated in this manner.“Daniel, meet our other comrades where you are now. You’ll lead them in search of a wonderful future.”Adrian sounded slightly shaky. He had to cover his mouth to stop himself from bawling. Daniel had been there for Adrian’s life journey and had faced many dangers together with him. Yet, Daniel was now gone. No one would understand the pain and agony Adrian felt. He dropped to his knees in front of Daniel’s grave and covered his head with his hands, appearing extremely helpless.Three people approached from behind. A middle-aged woman walked over quietly, holding on to two children of different ages. The boy