The next morning, Raven received an official summons to the Evren estate. He knew something was wrong, walking through the luxurious halls while muttering to himself: "Looks like Ryo exposed me... What do they want from me now?"
Inside the grand hall, the Head of the Evren Family sat on his ornate seat, his sharp gaze fixed on Raven before speaking:
21Please respect copyright.PENANAUTWC1E8HRQ
"You’re quite strong, Raven. That’s why I have a special task for you. I want you to oversee this operation… You must ensure that the money reaches its recipients safely. You only need to secure the funds until delivery, where our family’s representative will handle the rest."
21Please respect copyright.PENANACzHJZvB0EH
Raven stared at the head of the family for a moment, thinking: "Right now, I’m stronger than everyone here… except for him. Should I refuse? Or accept?"
21Please respect copyright.PENANAfyyXcAPoE7
Then he asked in a calm but firm tone: "And what’s my reward for this job?"
21Please respect copyright.PENANAw8jQyOuJmK
The Head of Evren smirked slightly and replied with confidence: "Complete this task successfully, and you’ll receive a massive financial reward."
21Please respect copyright.PENANAYMFbWJFbcj
Raven considered for a moment before nodding and saying: "Alright… I’ll do it."
21Please respect copyright.PENANA6wD2aGZGKn
21Please respect copyright.PENANAE7sjBamjAP
Raven returned home, lying on his bed as he thought about the upcoming mission. Only three days remained before the event, so he decided to use this time for training to be fully prepared.
21Please respect copyright.PENANAsajgiIL1yA
Meanwhile, on the borders of the state of Esteria, in a desolate place far from prying eyes, there was a secret tunnel leading to the underground headquarters of the Arcadia Organization. The headquarters was vast, dimly lit by faint lights that gave it a mysteRyous appearance.
21Please respect copyright.PENANA24ejasnADq
Not all the members of the organization were present, only four of them gathered in the private meeting room. At the head of the table sat Roderick, the leader of Arcadia, . Beside him sat his deputy Zairos, . In front of them were Ivan and Kain, arguing over the incoming money.
21Please respect copyright.PENANA8urXAt3K0p
Ivan (in shock): "800 million Phoenixes?! How did they agree to this number?!"
21Please respect copyright.PENANAm1E6q8rcZW
Zairos (with a sarcastic smile): "Heh, how could they refuse? Fear makes humans do anything.
21Please respect copyright.PENANAcIp36kM3u4
Kain (laughing): "800 million?! We should have raised the number to a billion! Since they can afford it, why not exploit them more?
21Please respect copyright.PENANAds2TpxMvhx
Kain (slouching in the chair): "Honestly, with this amount, we won’t need to work for a long time!
21Please respect copyright.PENANAfPURNaOmZP
Ivan (raising an eyebrow): "By the way, why did you go without your mask, Zairos?! Have you lost your mind?"
21Please respect copyright.PENANAl9HDw01Hdn
Zairos (nonchalantly): "Let them figure out my identity... what do you think will happen?"
21Please respect copyright.PENANAogqx0oqrNf
Ivan (angrily): "We wear masks to protect our normal lives! Without them, everyone will know we’re part of Arcadia, and that will bring us trouble!
21Please respect copyright.PENANACPLBgZ8R7I
Zairos (coldly, with his eyes gleaming with a hidden threat): "No one can do anything. And anyone who dares to challenge us... will die.
21Please respect copyright.PENANAP1pJDUzXBW
Kain (stretching out in boredom): "Anyway, when will the money arrive? I need 200 million now, you know I love to travel and explore the world! Why waste my time in these meetings when I could be flying somewhere else?"
21Please respect copyright.PENANAAEVzfqBAw8
Ivan (seRyously): "We’ll take 400 million and keep it to fund the organization's operations. As for the other 400 million, we’ll distribute it among the nine members."
21Please respect copyright.PENANA8m3YBYbeJ9
Kain (angrily): "Nooo! Boss, don’t agree to this! If we divide the money fully among us, we won’t need to work again!
21Please respect copyright.PENANADogwkQyu43
Roderick (in a calm voice, but with a deadly authority): "We will follow what Ivan said."
21Please respect copyright.PENANAA7bIl827p9
Roderick: "Who will go to receive the money?"
21Please respect copyright.PENANARgschZYeEn
Zairos: "I’ll go. I want to see them."
21Please respect copyright.PENANAzVSnwoylJB
Kain: "I’ll go too. It's an easy and profitable job. I should thank them for messing up our work, haha."
21Please respect copyright.PENANAeIiKFPhoMQ
Ivan: "I’ll go as well. These people are crazy; they need someone sensible with them, and I think that’s me."
21Please respect copyright.PENANAUQ8gYT7YUa
Roderick: "Heh, fine, but don’t scare them."
21Please respect copyright.PENANAQmvM0c6poa
Kain: "Don’t forget your masks."
21Please respect copyright.PENANAiHSRLilxnA
Raven prepared for the mission. He was accompanied by a delegation from the Evren family, consisting of 20 people. He looked at the delegation and asked in surprise, "Why all these people just to deliver money?"
21Please respect copyright.PENANASuITVvMKSC
The family representative replied, "Because we are delivering the money to the Arcadia Organization."
21Please respect copyright.PENANAlRwAgZdtRH
Raven, shocked, responded, "Arcadia? The powerful organization?!"
21Please respect copyright.PENANAHezAYn9AlW
Raven and the delegation arrived at the meeting location. The family representative told Raven, "Stand here, you’re the first line of defense for us if they attack."
21Please respect copyright.PENANAXaWNLq7jqf
Before he could finish his sentence, an illusion appeared behind them, saying, "If they attack you, you won’t be able to defend yourselves."
21Please respect copyright.PENANASKXnzmV3V5
Zairos and Ivan suddenly appeared.
21Please respect copyright.PENANALVLqNycSkO
Ivan called out to Kain: "Kain! Come here!"
21Please respect copyright.PENANA0GvQQ0tDBd
The illusion was Kain—he had managed to get this close without them noticing. Raven was stunned and thought, "What kind of disaster am I in? One of these guys could wipe us all out."
21Please respect copyright.PENANAOlq0qHT1NK
Raven: "It seems their powers are similar, but the one with the sword on his back is more terrifying than the rest."
21Please respect copyright.PENANAwnVzVE4OFN
Zairos stepped forward with a sinister smile and said, "We hope the money is ready."
21Please respect copyright.PENANAV3E4XR9M5l
The family representative responded, "Of course."
21Please respect copyright.PENANAXLCepiKXGR
After receiving the money, Kain, who had planned to scare them in any way possible, suddenly screamed loudly. Everyone covered their ears; it was a display of his power. Then, he raised his hand and launched a magical attack into the sky, saying, "Kain’s Meteors!"
21Please respect copyright.PENANAIiqeTdKiHL
The attack soared into the sky, then curved and returned to the ground as smaller and faster meteors. The scene turned chaotic as meteors began falling around them.
21Please respect copyright.PENANAm6HteZs4Ht
Raven, in panic, shouted, "What madness is this? He’ll kill us all!"
21Please respect copyright.PENANAEgeYskYtu6
At that moment, Raven raised his hand and cast a powerful spell, shouting, "Thunder Strike!" to block the meteor that was closest to him.
21Please respect copyright.PENANAWflSYJ4Fei
Ivan: "Kain, what are you doing?!"
21Please respect copyright.PENANAopLK3wMKok
Kain: "I was going to stop it before it touched them."
21Please respect copyright.PENANAfuwYO7iKDK
Raven, trying to maintain his composure, thought, "I didn’t think they were this strong.
21Please respect copyright.PENANAO8rVJZkWeN
At that moment, Kain felt excited because Raven managed to block his attack. He had expected to see fear in his eyes, but instead, he saw challenge. "This is just the beginning.