Child of Destiny

...

Right after getting what he needed, Uno quickly went back to the Storm Fortress to report to Commander Taiga. After all, he would not be able to get an audience with the Emperor of the Storm Empire with his status alone.

Even if he could use his title as the Envoy of the Church of the Sun and Moon, it would be better to use the connection that he had to have a stronger voice when he was standing at the council.

Moreover, there would be no stronger 'voice' right now than Commander Taiga, who was also the loyal subject of the empire and the guardian of the Storm Fortress that had protected their land for generations.

But Uno also did not know if the commander had already come back from the capital.

He was thinking about these when he reached the Storm Fortress. And to his surprise, the soldiers stationed at the gate seemed to be waiting for him.

"You are back, Sir Envoy! The commander is waiting for you!"

Hearing those words, Uno could not help but raise his brows before shaking his head at the setup of the system. "What a great timing."

…

Not long after, Uno was led by the soldier at the commander's office, where Shin had first met Commander Taiga.

Right after stepping inside the room, Uno instantly felt the immense pressure that was directed at him, seemingly trying to bring him to his knees.

But that was only for a moment as he was able to instantly adjust himself and swiftly prevent his body from falling.

He then turned to the source of the pressure and saw Commander Taiga staring at him with squinting eyes. "Heh! What a warm welcome. Quite interesting too."

Hearing those words, Commander Taiga further narrowed his eyes before saying. "You-… who are you? You look like that brat yet also feel different at the same time."

Uno continued his steps before sitting comfortably at the nearby chair while also putting his crossed feet on the wooden table. "Don't worry, we are the same. We just happen to have different personalities."

Commander Taiga was still unconvinced, but he also could not deny the fact that those words were true. Even if he could feel that this person was different from the envoy that he had met earlier, he could still sense that familiar aura, which was slightly fierce and somewhat wicked.

After observing Uno for a moment, Commander Taiga calmed himself down and sat behind his table. "It seems like you have gathered the evidence you seek."

Uno did not answer verbally as he just took out a bunch of items from his inventory space and threw them on the table. He was too lazy to explain the entire process as the evidence itself was the only important thing for them.

Commander Taiga slightly frowned when he saw those actions but did not say anything else. He then turned his attention to the items that Uno had taken out and saw that they were a bunch of spying stones and a pair of prison prisms.

He peered through those items using his powerful mental strength to see their contents. A moment later, he could not help but raise his brows.

After checking everything with his spiritual power, he turned back to Uno before commenting. "You are quite bold for diving to their den alone, and also somewhat capable of getting out of it in one piece."

Uno shrugged his shoulders, seemingly indicating that it was only natural.

Seeing his actions, Commander Taiga grinned a little as he was somewhat starting to like this version of 'Shin' as well.

"This should be enough to convince the council," he said while standing up. "Are you coming with me as well?"

Uno tilted his head slightly before asking. "Do I have to come with you?"

Commander Taiga slightly frowned before replying. "You don't have to if that is what you want. But it will be hard to get you the corresponding rewards if you don't come along."

Uno shrugged his shoulders, seemingly saying that he did not care much about the reward. Since the question would be completed without him being present, he would still get the quest rewards from the system.

As for the extra rewards that he could get, he did not care about them. He could even compensate Shin with all the treasures that he had gotten from that particular noble that they had used to lure out the spies of this empire.

Speaking of which, Uno suddenly remembered about them. "Ah! Before I forget, I have also gone to the trouble of finding out their spies within your kingdom."

He then extended his hand to use the 'Demonic Telekinesis' to pick up a piece of paper and a plume from the commander's table.

After that, he started writing the location and the time when the spies would gather. "As for this piece of information, I think it is only right for me to ask for a necessary reward, don't you think?"

Commander Taiga stared at Uno, who was waving the piece of paper in between his fingers, for a moment before laughing. "If that is accurate information, then you will naturally get your reward."

"I don't need to come with you for this one as well, I guess?" asked Uno.

Commander Taiga paused for a moment as he stared intently at Uno, seemingly trying to figure out what this young lad was planning to hide the fact about his achievement. But he quickly threw it at the back of his mind as he could not read the thoughts of the latter.

"For this, you will be an anonymous informant. I will take care of it," said the commander as he used his spiritual powers to 'take' the piece of paper from Uno.

He then slightly raised his brows when he saw the contents, particularly the date when the spies would be gathering.

He quickly stood up and prepared to leave. "Since we only have a short time, I will be leading this operation personally."

Uno turned his head at the commander before waving his hand. "I will be staying here and waiting for the good news."

Even if he wanted to explore the game, he also still had some matters that he had to attend in the real world – more specifically his job at looking for 'Shin' who was still in deep slumber within their Sea of Consciousness.

Based on the 'schedule' this was the time to do that.

He would be logging out for a moment while waiting for Commander Taiga to finish his job.

Commander Taiga did not care about entertaining Uno any longer as he had to quickly head to deal with those spies as soon as possible before they could get the wind of what had happened at the Dark Cloud Kingdom.

He also had to report to the Emperor and prepare for the war that was about to come. Since they now had the evidence that would prove the connection between the Dark Cloud Kingdom and the Demonic Churches, the war would now be inevitable.

With too many tasks at hand, he had to make haste to not waste any time.

Uno watched the commander of the fortress rush out of the room before turning his head to the bookshelves within the room.

He briefly glanced at the digital clock from the corner of his eyes before mumbling. "Since I still have some free time, let me read a book or two to relax."

***

On this day, the tomb of the ancient cultivator was finally opened once again and the people that were exploring inside came back.

There were a lot of people waiting outside as the news about what was inside the tomb had already been revealed to different organizations when the first batch of returnees came back.

The rumors about the legendary tree had already been circulating within different circles, making the people pay more attention to this place than anything else.

Even the World Government had already set their people to 'welcome' everyone who was returning. There were barely a handful of people or organizations who would dare to provoke them, so those with a slightly weaker background had no choice but to follow the representatives of the Federal Forces before they could even come in contact with their superiors.

Shiella, who was walking alongside Mariel and Elijah, had also been blocked by these people.

"What is the meaning of this? You people are supposed to meet with your representatives, not us," said Shiella in a cold voice when she saw the armed group that was blocking their path.

She might not be scared of them as her background alone was more than enough to make these people wary of her.

The problem was she did not want to create any commotion given the current situation. If she tried to fight back, then chaos would quickly break out, causing an even more disastrous result, especially when those sly foxes from other organizations would also take advantage of the situation to 'complain'.

Mariel and Elijah were also in a dilemma and were not sure what to do. They were also quite exhausted after going through all the trials within the tomb.

They might not have gotten what they were looking for within that place, but they had gotten a crucial clue about finding it, especially when their group was the ones who had reached the end of the trials.

Sweeping their gazes on the surroundings, they could also see the greedy eyes of the other forces were giving them.

They were sure that these people had already received the news from their people through telepathic messages. They were sure that they would do everything to hold them in this place.

As for the World Government, they would without a doubt try to drag them toward their headquarters for 'questioning'.

"What are you talking about, Miss Shiella? We are just concerned about your safety and are here to escort you away," said the man leading the Federal Forces.

Given the badge on his shoulders, his rank was at least a Captain of a Special Unit.

'B*llsh*t!' Elijah could read their thoughts, especially with those greedy eyes that they did not even bother to hide.

Shiella was about to release her powers when a group of people suddenly descended from the sky.

"Is that so? Then there is no need to trouble the Federal Forces as we can take care of our family members," said Samuel Springfield in a domineering manner.

"Students and faculty members of the Magic Ace Academy, follow this old man. We are heading back," said Lin Huang straightforwardly, not caring about the Federal Forces.

"Mariel, come to your grandmother. I will bring you home," said Luvenia Potter as she appeared along with the two old men. Her momentum was not the slightest bit inferior compared to them.

The auras that these three were emitting were so strong that the surrounding people could not help but make way for them.

The Federal Forces wanted to say something as they needed these three to come with them as they were the ones who had explored the deepest parts of the ruins, which also indicated that they had discovered more compared to the rest.

But with these three monsters of the Elder's Council present, they could not do anything but let them leave.

Even the forces behind them were unwilling to provoke those old monsters – even the World Government itself.

They could only watch as Shiella, Mariel, and Elijah were taken away by the forces supporting them.

They could only exchange glances at each other with helpless looks on their faces and accepted their fate. "It seems like we have no choice but to accept the punishment later."

…

In the meantime, Shiella, who was following her grandfather sensed that there was something wrong. She could not put her fingers on it, but she was sure that it was not something good.

"What's wrong, grandpa? Is there-…"

She was in the middle of talking when Samuel had cut her words off. "You will know about it later. For now, we have to hurry back home."

After that, Samuel summoned his powers to envelop Shiella before flying toward the direction of the Central Region.

Shiella did not resist either as she let herself get carried by her grandfather. But at the same time, there was this tight and suffocating feeling within her chest that she could not explain.

She placed her hands on it, trying to suppress it. She then looked in the direction where they were heading and realized that something must have happened at home.

That was when she heard the soft and apologetic voice of her grandfather. "Shiella. I am sorry."

...