Chapter 716: Mercenaries
--
The physical venue of the Heavenly Star’s Millennial Tournament will take place in a realm called the ’Altus Sky Solar System,’ which is located deep into the Heavenly Star Chaos Realm and is considered a hidden realm.
Everybody who passed the preliminaries was granted access to this secret realm, and only because of that. Had it been any other time, they wouldn’t have been eligible to even come close to it.
In consideration for the event, the organizers will send a ship that will pick up participants all over the chaos realm so that they can participate in the actual tournament. Of course, this was under the assumption that the participants needed or wanted to be picked up.
There will always be some who prefer to go to the venue with their own entourage, and that is perfectly fine. However, if they made this decision, then they have to be aware of the risks because, obviously, there will be risks.
Being picked up by the service ship sent by the organizers guarantees the safety of the participants. There’s no way that the organizers will allow them to be hurt, injured, or ambushed on the way.
But the same guarantee couldn’t be extended for those who decided to travel on their own. This means that if these participants were to be ambushed or have an accident along the way, the organizers wouldn’t have a way to save them nor have any responsibility to do so since they made their decision.
Additionally, the Altus Sky Solar System was a mobile realm. Its coordinates aren’t static, so it needed to be tracked down to get inside. Tracking it could take time, and if they’re slow, they might miss the opening of the event and have their participation terminated.
That’s why unless somebody’s truly confident that they could reach the venue on their own, they will undoubtedly choose to rely on the pickup ship sent by the organizers instead.
**
"Is everybody in position?"
"Yes, Captain. We’re just waiting for the target to be spotted, and we’d be ready to move at your signal."
Inside a cloaked ship, a group of rogue mercenaries patiently waited for their target’s appearance.
Every single member of this mercenary group looked as rugged and rough as if they’d seen some real nightmares and were lucky enough to live to tell the tale.
Their ship was large but also similarly ragged. It’s like it’s made up by piecing together some salvaged parts and was running on pure miracle at this point. The fact that it could even go in stealth is a huge sign of that.
The captain of the ship ran his hands on his stubble, clutching the piece of folded letter with intricate designs on it. His eyes were narrowed and his expression was solemn as he was reminded of the contents of this letter.
What’s written on the paper was a simple order, or a mission, depending on who you ask.
’Kill Dawnbringer.’
That’s it, plain and simple.
The sender of this letter attached some additional instructions separate from this letter, telling them of what to look for so that they can succeed in their ambush.
The mercenary captain looked at his crew and the ship before sighing to himself.
He’s been fighting the urge to swear and lash out at everything, barely containing his anger ever since receiving this order.
’I regret it, truly,’ he muttered inwardly. ’I knew I shouldn’t have shaken hands with the devil.’
’Kill Dawnbringer,’ it says, like somehow, it’s just some random assassination mission that will not be traced to them and won’t have any consequences.
Although they’re mercenaries, they’re not cut off from the world. Hell, you can even say that they’re quite connected with it, especially towards the darker side of it. Obviously, they know who Dawnbringer is, and they understand the consequences of what they’re trying to do.
This was a suicide mission. Nobody, not the captain, the entire mercenary group, or even the one who gave them this order, was expecting them to succeed.
The worst part is that these mercenaries couldn’t refuse this order or run away. The one who ordered them to do this was somebody they’ve offended once, and they only get to live this long because the mercenaries surrendered. Now, their lives aren’t theirs anymore. They’re merely tools for that person to use.
And it would seem that they’ve outlived their uses. Because why else would they be thrown straight to the fire if that person still has some uses for them?
As for escaping, where would they even go? This scrap ship of theirs could barely outrun the space marines. Hell, it would be a miracle if this piece of crap isn’t being tracked by their employer. The moment they go rogue is also the same moment they all die.
To put it simply, they’re trapped. There’s no way they’re making it out of this mess alive, so they might as well go out with a bang.
The mercenary captain could only lament to himself. He was truly regretful. If he just reeled in his greed and arrogance, they wouldn’t have been forced to this. He felt sorry for his crew, for these freaks who chose to follow his lead and won’t hesitate to live and die with him.
He wanted to save them, even just a portion of them if possible, as atonement. Alas, that’s no longer possible.
"Target sighted. Your orders, Captain?"
The mercenary captain’s eyes regained their clarity. He took a deep breath and buried all of his sorrows and regrets. His eyes then narrowed as he began planning their course of action.
"Man your stations and follow the plan. Don’t hold back. This might be our last flare."
"Aye, aye, Sir. It’s been nice flying with you."
Hearing that caused the captain’s anguish to rear its ugly head again, but he pressed it down with his grit. It’s all too late to do anything now. He could only move forward.
"What a crappy ship."
"!!!"
The captain’s eyes widened. Before he could even think of it, he had already drawn his gun and aimed it in the direction of the speaker.
As the captain of this crew for more than five decades now, he knew the faces and voices of every single one of his crew members. That’s why he’s so certain that the speaker just now was a stranger.
Besides, while it might be true that their ship was crappy, it’s their home. The crew named it ’Ugly Betty,’ and they never talk badly about her.
Seeing the face of the invader, the captain and the crew sweated nervously.
Even with all sorts of muzzles and sharp weapons aimed at his face, the invader calmly stood there, completely unbothered by it.
In contrast to the rough and dirty looks of the mercenaries, the invader was wearing a neat and smooth suit. The stench of this place was neutralized by his, certainly, very expensive perfume.
This invader was tall, handsome, and was wearing tinted sunglasses. A stark difference compared to the barbaric environment and people around him.
The captain’s eyes flashed with a strange brown light, and all of a sudden, his face blanched. Then, he did something that shocked his crew.
He lowered his gun and told them, "Arms down. All of you."
"But Captain!"
"Obey, Scarface," the captain spat harshly. "Stand down. All of you. It’s over. This gentleman is an Empyrean. This is it for us."
The crew blanched, just like their captain, and followed his orders. All of them felt like their souls just left their bodies.
After working for their captain for so long, they knew not to doubt him. The captain has a secret skill that allowed him to peer through people’s Life Evolution Realm, and it’s incredibly accurate. He could gauge someone’s strength no matter how hard the other party tries to hide it.
"Impressive. As expected of a mercenary captain, you do have some tricks up your sleeves," the Empyrean commented in an amused tone.
"It’s just that, Your Excellency. Tricks. Nowhere near enough to guarantee our survival," the captain replied bitterly.
The Empyrean smirked. Then, with a flick of his fingers, the letter that the captain received from their employer flew to his hand. He took one glance at it and asked:
"Do you know who you’re working for?"
"No, Your Excellency," the captain answered truthfully. "We’re just indebted to him, and we can’t exactly disobey his orders."
"Hmm. That makes sense."
Then, under their surprised gazes, the Empyrean plucked a single hair from the captain. That hair then turned into a long thread that seemed to extend infinitely.
"Ah, there you are." The Empyrean cruelly grinned.
He then snipped the thread using his fingers, and all of a sudden, every single one in the mercenary group shivered.
All of them realized a single truth at that instant. And that is their previous employer was dead. That’s not a guess, a question, or some happenstance. It’s the truth and a certainty.
And the one who killed him was the man in the suit in front of them.
"Well, that takes care of things."
"As for all of you, I own you now. And while I’m not as cruel as your previous employer, I’m definitely way stronger. Don’t worry; at the very least, working for me will provide you with a smoother and easier life from now on, assuming you obey."
"Oh, and my name is Philip Morningstar."