On a cold but clear night in the Great Sandy Desert, a little away from a salt lake, a young man sat cross-legged as he recovered his Aura, and meditated to prepare for what was about to come his way.
Ye Tian had never in his wildest dreams imagined that his life would take a turn as it did. And thus, there were a lot of thoughts that he needed to clear from his mind.
That night in the Sylus Hotel in Sameran, when he was arrested by the Federal Police, he was quite confident that he would be out in a few days, but things were far worse than he had imagined.
He was charged with the killing of more than two dozen people, and surprisingly, there was video evidence of all fifteen murders that he committed that night. The bail was out of the question, and it was thrown out of the court as soon as his lawyers appealed for it.
There was no doubt in his mind that he had been set up. How was it possible for there to be a hidden surveillance system where he took care of Gouzo and his men? It was as if someone knew that he would choose that place, and had set up all those hidden cameras that had missed his eyes.
However, he was not disheartened, and he tried to reach the Government and contact the Netherian Military. He had been discarded and suspended, but he felt that if he proved himself to be a worthy asset and offered his services, the Government would lift his suspension and conjure up a story that he was only doing his duty.
He had been quite excited that night when he had contacted the Military, eagerly looking forward to the day he would be cleared of all the charges, which would be akin to a loud slap to the face of the Demiliore.
However, he never received a reply from the Government. Not even after he revealed his 'Esper' abilities.
It was then that he finally contacted all the people who owed something to him and his late Master, but the first positive response that he received sent his blood boiling with rage.
Keith Demiliore wanted him to publicly apologise to him and his ladies, and all he would give in return was a promise to not pursue any defamation charges against him.
He could not help his angry laughter at the ridiculousness of the offer, but somehow, that dumb old man from the Hawkins Family felt that it was better than nothing.
There was nothing in the world that could make him apologise to anyone. He was not born to kneel to any power or a person. And he had unhesitatingly refused the only offer that most of his allies brought up to him in the next couple of days.
And then he had finally seen their cowardly faces. He started losing their support as soon as the Demiliore Family pressed them, and only a few stood by his side, and that dumb old man Hawkins was one of them.
A few days before the Trial, he knew that there was no way out for him from this mess. And his dream to make a name for himself in this country was never going to be fulfilled.
The families of his allies were brought to the verge of destruction just because of him, and those that stood by his side finally started regretting their decision.
He could have escaped from the prison right before the trial, but he still held onto the hope that the Government would interfere in the matter. He felt more hopeful when he did not find anyone from the Demiliore Family in the courtroom, and ignored the strange looks of the people who were present there to witness his trial.
The trial was a swift affair, perhaps the fastest in the history of Netheria, and he was sentenced, having been found and proven guilty of all the charges against him.
It was only after he had been transferred to the Federal Prison in Agnolia that he came to know of what happened on the day before his trial.
His brother-in-arms had attacked that blonde bitch of the Demiliore, and unfortunately, she survived. He was not mad at what his Team did, after all, there was no hope for him left, and he had already made up his mind to escape the country and bide his time before taking care of Demiliore and his band of bitches.
However, the news he received on Friday morning from his lawyer numbed his mind and his heart sank.
Tiger was dead. His dearest brother-in-arms was dead, killed by the Demiliore Family. And more than half of the people of his Mercenary Guild were dead too.
Wolf Gang Mercenary Guild, his pride, had been destroyed. His efforts of several years were wasted just in a couple of days, and the whereabouts of the rest of his comrades were unknown.
The rage took its sweet time to build up, and late that night, he lost all his reasoning and massacred anyone who stood in front of him as he foiled the effort to sedate him and escaped the prison.
It was not before dawn that he calmed down and started searching for his comrades, but he failed to contact each and every one of them. He knew that he did not have much time, but he wanted to give Demiliore a taste of losing someone close to him. He wanted to kill Qingyue, the very reason why he had suffered everything, but the bitch was in the Demiliore Manor together with his other bitches. He knew that targeting the Manor was not possible since the Government and the Demiliore Family would be prepared for it, so he executed the plan that he made a few days back.
His target was Sebastian, the son of the Head Butler of the Demiliore Family, who was quite close to Keith and was also one of his trusted men. And he nearly succeeded in taking the boy out, but that damned ninja saved him by stalling for time.
He was mad, very mad, and when he saw the Ninja trying to run away, he chased after him. Someone so well-trained was bound to be a very precious asset to the Demiliore Family. And he wanted to take him out.
Unfortunately, the boy proved to be a little too skilled and managed to survive until his reinforcement arrived, and Ye Tian was elated when he saw who it was. It was Demiliore's Shadow!
He felt like it was a heaven-sent opportunity, and he made up his mind that he would kill her and leave her scorched body as a present to the despicable Demiliore.
And he failed for the third time that night. The bitch proved to be an Esper too with a strange power of Shields and managed to survive all his killing blows.
He knew he should have evacuated, but he stayed, hoping that she would soon run out of Aura, but the she kept holding on and the troublesome Ninja managed to inflict some serious injuries on him.
His heart suddenly trembled when he recalled what happened next that night. He could still feel that force that had struck him from behind, it was terrifying. And the masked man who came to the rescue of the two Demiliore Minions was undoubtedly someone stronger than him.
He had quickly made up his mind and released all the energy he had been gathering in his body, causing a massive explosion. Luckily, that man did not chase after him and he managed to escape from the vicinity.
The next few days were hell for him as he constantly ran from the Special Forces Units out on a hunt for him. And he had to kill a few of them before he escaped Netheria.
Ye Tian knew that the Government of Netheria would not let him go after he killed the members of the Special Forces, and no matter where he hid in the world from now on, he would be found by them. But he had another pressing matter on his mind right now.
He needed to locate Hummingbird, Viper, and Hound. He tried searching for them in all their hideouts but failed, and finally, he paid a huge sum from the wealth that he had accumulated in the Mercenary World to an Organisation in the Underworld that specialised in Intelligence. He also tried hiring their assassination services, placing a target on the head of Qingyue and Rebecca, but the response he got was quite embarrassing.
The sum that they asked for the task was simply outrageous, not something that he could afford. It was as if they were telling him that they could not do it, and the high price tag was just an excuse.
Nonetheless, they did help him find the location of his companions.
Viper and Hummingbird were somewhere in the Great Sandy Desert of Australia, and they were being held captives by a Mercenary Group here. It was the Guild of Abu Dingo, a renowned Mercenary, and an enemy.
Ye Tian knew that Abu Dingo would likely kill his comrades to make things even for the loss of his younger brother, who died at his hands.
But he hoped that his comrades were still alive after all the torture they were being subjected to, and after making some preparations he rushed to Australia without wasting any time.
Opening his eyes and exhaling the breath he has been holding onto, Ye Tian stood up and glanced at the bright moon in the sky.
A sense of melancholy gripped his heart, and he felt a sinking feeling building up in his stomach.
"Am I too late to save my comrades?"
A thought popped up in his mind, but he shook it off, still holding onto the hope that they were still breathing, and then picked up his backpack before taking off the dirt bike from the pick-up truck, riding to the location that was an hour away from the lake he had stopped to take a rest at.
The closer he got to his destination, the stronger the sinking feeling in his heart grew.
However, he had already made up his mind that he would not let go of anyone who harmed his companions, and even if they were no longer alive, he would avenge them with the blood of the one responsible for their death.
