Chapter 388: Start of a Hunt
388 Start of a Hunt
Asher felt the spatial energy wrap around his body.
However, the sensation lasted only a moment before he stood in the room where Kai and Dane had been sparring.
Both of them paused, sensing Asher's presence.
Tom had already informed them of Asher's impending arrival, so they had been sparring while waiting for him.
"Good morning, Boss," Dane greeted Asher with a smile.
Asher looked around and noticed that Tom was not in the room.
"Is he done?" Asher asked, scanning the training room.
"We've established a secure connection with the Neville Head, but Tom was enhancing the security or something," Kai replied.
Asher nodded, aware that Tom always ensured everything was secure before proceeding.
"You can continue," Asher said as he exited the room.
Kai and Dane exchanged a look, readying themselves to resume their spar, their tension easing as Asher left.
Neither Kai nor Dane could fully relax in Asher's presence after experiencing the full extent of his killing intent.
While Dane trusted his instincts, Kai was more troubled by how someone so young could possess such intense killing intent.
It led him to wonder about the upbringing that had shaped Asher into who he was.
'It seems the rumors were true,' Kai mused silently.
Given the influence of Elite Families, it was inevitable that some rumors would circulate.
Asher opened the door where Tom was working on communication channels, trying to exploit the very channels he had established.
He would continue doing so until even he couldn't find any loopholes.
There was a reason why he was still unscathed after meddling with the database of the World Association.
Tom noticed Asher and paused, closing the series of multiple programs he was running.
"Boss, I have secured the communication lines, but I would need a few more days to test them perfectly," Tom replied.
"Did he give what I asked for?" Asher inquired as he took a seat in the room.
"Yes, but the information was too vague," Tom responded.
Asher listened to Tom, who explained what Jarell had sent them, but as Tom mentioned, it was indeed too vague.
What Asher had asked for was a way to infiltrate the Capital of Halcyon under his name and the method to enter the location that Asher had specified.
Getting new identities wasn't difficult since Jarell had his connections in Halcyon through the illegal trade routes he established. Still, the problem was that Jarell didn't give them any answer regarding how to enter the place Asher wanted.
"I can understand why he would say that, as only the Royals or someone from the Everett or Allister Family can enter that place," Tom replied.
"We can't enter without having someone from these families escorting us," Tom added.
"It's fine, we don't have to rush," Asher said as he looked at the screen.
It was tough to enter Halcyon, unlike the other Four Continents, but the Capital of Halcyon, also known as the Heart of Halcyon, was especially difficult to infiltrate.
Each person needed to carry an identity tag, and anyone without it would set off the alarm at the multiple checkpoints.
The Royal Family of Halcyon didn't want outsiders to establish their own power within Halcyon.
The only powers that were allowed to operate inside Halcyon were the three Associations.
"Besides that, I'm surprised that Jarell Neville agreed to our proposal," Tom said as he turned to look at Asher.
"I thought he would reject it the moment he saw it," Tom said.
He didn't know that Jarell Neville's mind was being manipulated by the artifact Asher possessed.
To push Jarell even further, the information Asher had given him was heavily manipulated.
It was simply a white lie.
"But isn't it a bit strange that a Seat Holder like him is doing as you ordered?" Tom asked.
In Tom's eyes, Seat Holders, the High Council, were the epitome of power that ruled over the world.
The power of the High Council could never be challenged, and that was how the world's peace was maintained.
"What if he betrays us?" Tom said.
There was always a chance that Jarell Neville might set a trap for them.
'I guess he isn't like what he was when I met him,' Asher thought, looking at Tom.
The current Tom didn't even compare to the one he had met when Asher created Zephyr.
One of the founding members of Zephyr, also the person who proposed the idea of creating Zephyr, was none other than Tom Gylip.
"He will not, not as long as he keeps doubting that he will be betrayed," Asher replied.
And that doubt was not going to go away, even if Jarell Neville tried to remove it.
Tom nodded as he turned back to open the program that showed Asher the necessary information before entering Halcyon.
"I tweaked the IDs that Jarell Neville got us a bit," Tom said.
"Even if Jarell Neville tries to trap us, he will have a hard time figuring things out," Tom said with a shrewd smile on his face.
"But I was confused. Why are they physically taking these items instead of using the teleporting gate?" Tom asked, looking at Asher.
"All teleportation gates emit large amounts of mana, and they are easier to locate," Asher replied.
"And in Halcyon, they are even more careful about such things," Asher added.
"And the amount of resources that are needed to make such gates aren't easy to secure," Asher said.
Only the people from the Black Market were able to make their own teleportation gate, and even that was made with the resources they accumulated slowly.
Even the infamous organizations that were heavily involved with criminal activities didn't have a teleportation gate of their own.
Asher nodded as he checked everything Tom had done.
"This will work; tell Dane and Kai to get ready," Asher said as he left.
Around the Borders of Halcyon, many men sat around a campsite.
In the center, two men were standing looking at the items in front of them.
"Did you load the cargo?" a middle-aged man asked as he removed the cigar from his mouth.
"Yeah, but isn't that too much protection?" The man replied.
"We could have taken another contract," The man said with an annoyed look on his face.
"Stop talking about useless things; we have already received the money," the middle-aged man said while looking around.
"And isn't this better than handling those annoying kids?" the middle-
aged man said with a smile on his face.
"And the money they are giving us is ten times the usual rate."
"I guess you're right, but why the hell do we need so many of our men?" he asked.
"We've already cut a deal to smuggle all the drugs, and I need more people there."
"I don't feel comfortable around those people," he said in a hushed voice.
Apart from their own people, some other hunters were also present near the area.
The expression on the face of the middle-aged man changed.
"Don't even think of annoying them. Just a single look at them, and I can tell they are highly trained hunters, not like us," he said.
"Whatever, when I stab one of those bastards, they'll die the same."
The middle-aged man didn't look happy but ignored the man before him.
"THE TELEPORTER IS READY!" someone shouted.
"I heard there are three more people who will travel with us," the man said, looking toward the teleportation portal.
The portal shined as three men wearing black masks stepped out of it.
"Tsk, these bastards are making us all wait," the man said annoyedly.
"Keep it to yourself," the middle-aged man spoke.
Both of them walked to the middle, and there were around thirty people present.
"So, you three were added last minute?" the middle-aged man asked as he looked at the three masked men.
"I'm Richard, and these are my people," he said as a bunch of people looked in the direction of the masked men.
"The mission is to travel through the Forest of Lemar, and we both will carry half the cargo," Richard said.
Richard stopped as one person stepped forward.
He also wore a mask similar to the three men who had just arrived.
"We will be the ones carrying the other half of the cargo," he said, looking at the three masked men.
"We don't mind; we are here as backup," one of the masked men said.
The man nodded, but his expression was hidden by the mask he was wearing.
'Are they from our side or...?' the man wondered but didn't ask the masked men directly.
Apart from Richard and his people who were hired to guide them through the Forest of Lemar, all the other people were concealing their identities.
'All of this is happening because of that monster tide,' the man frowned under his mask.
Normally, they had their own passage and trade route that they had established, and it was much more convenient, but the recent monster tide had attracted a lot of attention near the borders.
So, they had to discard that route and use the help of smugglers like Richard.
Richard also knew that whoever the client was, they were someone powerful enough to move so many strong hunters.
"Hey Richard, weren't these people from the same side?" the man asked in a hushed voice.
"Who knows, maybe they are from different sides, maybe they are hired just like us," Richard replied, but he didn't care.
"Everyone, get ready to move out!" Richard shouted out loud.
Many people stood up as they took their weapons to get ready to travel through the Forest of Lemar.
"My people know this, but there are times when monsters pop out when we travel," Richard said, looking at the masked men who seemed like the leader of his group.
"You don't have to worry about us. Just guide the way," The masked man said as Richard smiled and turned around.