Chapter 81: The start
Inside a dimly lit military tent, Bear pressed a satellite phone to his ear.
"No, Father," he replied. "We still don’t have any information about the hooded man."
A deep voice crackled from the speaker.
"Then keep searching."
"That man is important to our clan."
"Yes, Father."
Bear hesitated before speaking again.
"...What about the Freedom Convoy?"
"I can’t just swallow this humiliation."
A heavy silence hung on the line before the voice returned.
"Don’t be rash."
"Keep that young master temper of yours under control."
"This isn’t the world from before the apocalypse."
"I can’t solve every problem for you anymore."
He paused.
"That woman from the Freedom Convoy isn’t someone you can afford to provoke."
Bear clenched his fists, his knuckles turning white.
"But Father—"
"No."
"Our clan is currently in a delicate phase of cooperating with Lord Rizen."
"I won’t allow everything we’ve built to be jeopardized simply because you couldn’t put aside your pride."
The older man’s tone softened a fraction.
"For now, focus on finding the hooded man."
"If he truly possesses alien corpses, I can persuade the Rizen Group to let you undergo their enhancement training."
Bear’s breathing grew heavy at the mention of the training.
"...Understood, Father."
The call ended.
Bear sat in silence for a few minutes before striking the call bell on his desk.
A soldier stepped into the tent and offered a crisp salute.
"What are your orders, Young Master?"
Bear leaned back in his chair.
"Find the gangs in Rendell City that are affiliated with our clan."
"I have a job for them."
"Yes, Young Master."
The soldier bowed and left the tent.
In the quiet of the space, Bear’s expression twisted into a mask of pure hatred. Leo’s face flashed in his mind.
He ground his teeth together.
"I can’t touch the Freedom Convoy..."
"But you..."
"I’ll make you wish you had died that day."
Several Years Earlier...
Earth — Austria
Inside the dean’s office of a quiet orphanage, five children stood huddled together in nervous anticipation.
The youngest among them, Lia, couldn’t stop fidgeting.
She tugged lightly on Leo’s sleeve and whispered,
"Big Brother..."
"I’m so nervous."
"I wonder who’s coming to adopt us."
"Will our new parents be kind?"
"Will all of us be adopted together..."
"...or will we be separated?"
"If that happens..."
"Will we ever meet again?"
Standing beside her, Selena stroked the little girl’s hair.
"Hey..."
"Calm down."
"Even if we get separated..."
"I’ll find both of you."
Lia puffed out her cheeks in protest.
"I don’t believe you."
"You’re too lazy."
She pointed at Leo with bright, hopeful eyes.
"It’ll be Big Brother Leo who finds us."
Leo chuckled softly and patted her head.
"Of course."
"We already made a promise."
"And I never break my promises."
"So no matter where you end up..."
"I’ll find both of you."
Lia’s eyes curved into happy crescents.
"Hehe..."
"I knew Big Brother was the best."
Warm laughter briefly filled the small office.
Then—
Creak.
The heavy office door pushed open.
The dean, a nun who had overseen the orphanage for years, stepped into the room. Walking beside her was a gloomy middle-aged man dressed in a sharp, expensive suit.
Eight silent men trailed behind him like shadows.
The warm atmosphere vanished in a heartbeat.
The nun looked toward the children, her voice smooth and polite.
"These are the children who passed all the aptitude tests and selection criteria."
The middle-aged man took his time examining each child.
His cold eyes swept across them, one by one.
It wasn’t the gaze of a man choosing a son or daughter...
It was the gaze of a man inspecting merchandise.
After a long pause, he gave a satisfied nod.
Lia shrank behind Leo the second those cold eyes landed on her.
Every nerve in Leo’s body screamed that something was wrong.
The man’s gaze...
It wasn’t warm.
It wasn’t kind.
It was calculating.
Leo planted himself firmly in front of both Lia and Selena. Shielding them with his body, he looked directly at the nun.
"Sister..."
"Who are these people?"
"Where are they taking us?"
The nun smiled.
It was the exact same gentle smile she had shown the children every day for years.
"Leo."
"These gentlemen are good people."
"They’ve come to adopt you."
"You’ll have a much happier life with them."
Leo kept his guard up. He bit his lower lip.
"...We don’t want to go."
"You can’t force us."
"I know the adoption rules."
The smile dropped from the nun’s face.
For the first time...
Leo saw her wear a mask of pure, bitter coldness.
His heart sank to his stomach.
Something was terribly wrong.
The nun clicked her tongue.
"You troublesome brat."
"I wanted this to end peacefully."
"But you insist on making things difficult."
Slap!
Her palm struck Leo across the face, hitting hard enough to split his lip open.
A thin line of blood trickled from the corner of his mouth.
Even so...
Leo refused to lower his head.
He glared straight back into her eyes. That defiant stare only fueled her anger.
"You little bastard!"
"How dare you look at me like that!"
She raised her hand for a second strike.
Before the blow could land—
The middle-aged man caught her arm.
He gave a calm, silent gesture to the men standing behind him.
They surged forward as one.
Rough hands seized each child by force.
As two men grabbed Leo by the shoulders, he thrashed against their grip and shouted,
"Wait!"
"If you want someone..."
"Take me!"
"Leave them alone!"
He pointed frantically toward Lia and Selena.
"They’re still little!"
No one listened.
Leo threw his head to the side, opened his mouth, and bit down hard on the arm restraining him.
"Aaargh!"
The man cried out in pain and his grip loosened.
Leo twisted free in a flash.
Planting his feet, he spun around and drove his knee into the man’s groin with every ounce of strength he had.
The man screamed and collapsed onto the floor.
Leo broke into a frantic sprint toward the men holding Lia and Selena.
He only managed two steps.
Thud!
A hand struck the back of his neck with bone-chilling precision.
His vision went black.
His body went completely limp, collapsing onto the hard floor.
Standing right behind him...
Was the gloomy middle-aged man.
For the first time since entering the room, a genuine trace of emotion crossed his face.
He smiled.
"Excellent."
"Good awareness."
"Quick judgment."
"And plenty of grit."
He stared down at the unconscious boy with undisguised satisfaction.
"I have very high expectations for this one."
Then he glanced over at his men.
"Knock the others unconscious."
"We’re leaving."
Turning on his heel, he walked out of the office without another word.
Behind him...
The terrified cries of the children were cut short, fading into an eerie silence.