Hesai Arrives

"???"

Xue Yan looked confused. What was the meaning of this? "You think I, Saber, should accept this mission?"

"Two million, that's not a small amount. I've been short on cash lately and happen to need a large sum of gold coins."

"So, I intend to take this mission."

Xue Yan said, "Don't you dare ruin the reputation of Saber."

"Even if Saber fails a mission, we always return the money. We have always had a good reputation in the assassin world."

Heh, they were assassins; what kind of reputation could they possibly have?

Jonathan silently mocked them in his heart, then said, "How could that be? The information was provided by the employer, and we did send assassins, but the information was wrong, leading to a wasted trip. Shouldn't they pay extra?"

"Just drag it out for a few months. The Bred Family won't last long. Once their family is gone, there will naturally be no need to return this money."

"Besides," Jonathan suddenly turned serious, "this is my money to begin with."

Xue Yan and Cross looked at each other in bewilderment. "Your money?"

"What do you mean?"

"Actually, I only found out recently that my real surname is Bred!"

Cross said, "Don't joke around. As far as I know, there is only one Bred Family in the entire Dark Alliance."

"The direct line of the Bred Family, the eldest son's branch, died out over a decade ago. The second branch, which is the current head of the Bred Family, has no illegitimate children, let alone one as old as you."

"Wait, you are sixteen years old. I remember there was indeed a two or three-year-old child in the eldest son's branch back then. Could it be that you..."

As soon as Xue Yan said this, his and Cross's expressions changed simultaneously.

If this were true, then their Saber organization would be Jonathan's mortal enemies!

They had a deep, blood-soaked grudge.

They had actually personally trained the survivor of a family massacre into a talent?!

Even fairy tales wouldn't be written like this.

Seeing Jonathan's smiling face, they thought he was lying to them, but then Jonathan said, "That's right, exactly."

"Moreover, I also know that the ones who did the deed back then were people from Saber, and the employer was the current head of the Bred Family, my second uncle!"

"But don't be nervous. I was saved from the pile of corpses by Abraham back then, and I've forgotten the past. Besides, I am an assassin, and I know that assassins just do what they are paid to do."

"Even if you hadn't accepted that mission back then, other assassin organizations would have."

"The ones who killed me were from Saber, but the one who saved me was also an assassin from Saber. Let's just call this debt settled."

"So, even if I know the truth now, I won't be seeking revenge on you. Canina Bred is my target."

"Do you think I should take this money or not?"

Xue Yan sighed slightly. "The cycle of karma, indeed."

"Fine, this mission will proceed as you said!"

"Many thanks, Brother Xue Yan. After Lord Hesai arrives, I will put in a good word for you. Perhaps you can even visit Above the Moon together."

After Jonathan left, Cross said, "Lord Xue Yan, do you really believe Jonathan's words? To let go of a family-extermination grudge so easily—does such a person really exist in this world?"

"Regardless, he is at least still standing on the side of our Saber organization for now. His talent, potential, and schemes are all unfathomable."

"Either we kill him now before he grows up, or we maintain a good relationship with him and do not offend him."

"The Old Instructor is currently on his way. If he arrives and you tell him we killed the person, do you think you can handle the consequences of deceiving the Old Instructor?!"

"Moreover, the Old Instructor values him highly. Perhaps he has a chance to achieve the same heights as the Old Instructor."

He paused, then added, "Let's listen to Jonathan for now. He said it was settled with Saber, which implies that if Saber tries to deal with him, it will be a new grudge added to the old one."

"At that point, it will be new and old hatred combined!"

"A person like him—if there's any sign of trouble and he runs, even I might not be able to find him."

"He sent Abraham and the others away, so he has no weaknesses now. It is truly seamless."

"Even if we want to deal with him, we must wait until the Old Instructor arrives, inform him of the situation, and let him make the decision. Understand?"

Cross bowed and said, "I understand, Lord Xue Yan. During this time, I will satisfy all of Jonathan's requests."

Jonathan curled his lips, leaving with a smile that wasn't quite a smile.

He hadn't originally had much thought about revenge, but since the other party had come looking for Saber again, he would settle the new and old grudges together.

He had already written the script!

Returning to his mansion, Jonathan entered his room and began the refining of his first magic weapon again.

However, while engraving the second miniature magic array, a slight fluctuation caused the effort to fail, destroying the previous array along with it and rendering the entire weapon useless.

He was just practicing for now. Later on, Jonathan planned to learn forging techniques, find materials, and personally craft a divine magic weapon.

After Canina returned, he thought about it and ultimately decided to assassinate Jonathan, so he returned to the Saber organization a few days later.

Cross gave him the price: two million.

He even specifically stated that if the information provided by Canina was incorrect and led to a failed assassination, Saber would confiscate fifty percent of the fee, and any subsequent assassination attempt would require a new price quote.

Canina swore with absolute certainty that the information he provided was completely accurate.

"Just a lamb at the end of its road."

Watching his departing back, Cross muttered in a low voice, "To be targeted by such a terrifying nephew, you can only blame your own bad luck."

Shortly after, he also vanished from the hotel room.

Half a month later, Canina paid the reward, and the money was transferred to Jonathan's magic crystal card.

Saber had told Canina that there would be news within three months; as the person who accepted the mission, Jonathan decided for himself when to carry out the assassination or report a failure.

To him, it was just like a game.

During these past two weeks, Jonathan had forged nearly twenty magic weapons, while the number of weapons consumed had reached as high as eighty.

If he reached the level of an eighth-rank mage and became more proficient at imprinting miniature magic arrays, the success rate might improve significantly.

"This will have to do for now. A weapon with two miniature magic arrays is only useful against warriors below the seventh rank; if held by a peak sixth-rank warrior with matching attributes, they could fight a seventh-rank warrior."

"I wonder what the power of a weapon with three miniature magic arrays would be like."

He paused, then muttered to himself, "However, my current strength is likely still lacking; if I force the creation, the success rate will only be at its absolute lowest."

"It's been almost three months. As long as Hesai isn't lying on a woman's belly refusing to get up, he should be here by now, no matter how slow he is."

One day later.

A middle-aged man who appeared to be in his thirties or forties, wearing loose robes with his long black hair draped casually over his shoulders, walked into the Black Phoenix City residence of the Saber organization with a lazy and nonchalant expression.

"Little Swallow, it has been a long time."