Hearing this, Galon stopped joking around. His expression turned serious and focused.
Cerberus Saint Dardi was Athena's personal bodyguard. Even when she was at school and he wasn't visibly by her side, he would always stay close to protect her. So if he had abandoned his post to co report sothing, it must be related to Athena.
"Speak."
"Just now, Arujedi and I discovered assassins trying to kill Lady Athena. There were five of them in total. Their identities are unknown, but they are confird to be ordinary humans. Their marksmanship is excellent—they can fire bullets along curved trajectories using circular motion. Four have been eliminated. One has been left alive for interrogation," reported Cerberus Saint Dardi.
"What?" Galon's eyebrows furrowed, and a fierce look appeared on his face. "My lord, allow to handle this. Any organization that dares harm Lady Athena must face the harshest punishnt."
In truth, Galon didn't have much faith in Athena herself. His loyalty had always belonged solely to lin. The only reason he cared this much about Athena was because she was lin's most beloved wife.
For lin's sake, Galon would not allow anyone to harm Athena.
"Calm down, Galon. It's nothing serious," lin raised his hand to stop Galon's outburst. He then said to Cerberus Saint Dardi, "Bring the captive here. I'll interrogate them myself."
"Yes, sir."
Dardi imdiately vanished and reappeared monts later, now holding a person in his grasp.
…
…
She had a beautiful face. Tight leather pants and a fitted jacket accentuated her stunning, curvaceous figure. Yes, it was a woman.
When Dardi began his report, lin had already guessed which group the assassins belonged to. What surprised him was that the person before him was a familiar face—one that existed only in his mory.
"Kill . I won't say a thing."
Fox—a mber of the assassin group known as the Brotherhood—was a fanatical believer in the organization's ideology. It had beco her lifelong faith.
"To kill one in order to save a hundred."
That was the Brotherhood's creed. At its founding, they had co across a Loom of Fate by chance. Through a special decryption thod, a piece of cloth could be deciphered into nas—targets to be assassinated.
According to the Brotherhood, every na that appeared on the Loom of Fate belonged to a person of great evil who would eventually cause massive death and destruction. Thus, they had to be eliminated before they brought disaster, thereby saving countless lives.
But in lin's eyes, that was a complete joke. Most people would think the sa. Only the Brotherhood's mbers saw it as sacred truth.
Most of them had lost everything. In their monts of despair, soone had handed them this ideology like a guiding light, which they clung to with unwavering resolve.
But let's set aside the fact that their current target was Athena—a goddess who had protected the earth for hundreds of thousands of years. Even if it were anyone else, what right did they have to kill soone based on a supposed unchangeable fate? What if the na on the Loom belonged to a newborn baby—was that child also destined to die?
There were too many counterexamples. Galon. Saga. Deathmask…
If left alone, they would have beco major villains in the original tiline, causing trendous calamities.
But now? Under lin's guidance, each of them had beco an outstanding Saint. Though their personalities, thods, and beliefs varied, they were all warriors of love and hope, sworn to protect the earth.
So do they still deserve death? Do the nas on the Loom just disappear?
To lin, this was no more than a bunch of regular people playing make-believe. He had no intention of interfering—after all, they would collapse on their own before long.
But they had dared to target Athena. That changed everything.
"Fox. mber of the Brotherhood. Current leader is Sloan. They operate a textile factory. Your colleagues include Mister X, the chanic, the Exterminator, the Butcher, and the Pharmacist…"
As lin spoke, Fox's face turned deathly pale. She hadn't expected him to know the Brotherhood so well. She struggled to escape, knowing she couldn't kill all three of them, but hoping to pass word back to the Brotherhood so they could retreat in ti.
But it was just wishful thinking.
The Brotherhood's mbers were elite assassins—but ultimately, still only human.
"Stay put." Cerberus Saint Dardi placed a single hand on Fox's shoulder, rendering her immobile.
"Oh right, I have a question. Of course, you're free not to answer. Has Cross defected?"
Fox's eyes widened again. She was stunned—how did lin even know about that?
Assassinating Athena hadn't been Fox's main mission. She'd only helped out because she was nearby.
Her actual task was to find Cross's son, Wesley, lure him into the Brotherhood, and then have him assassinate Cross.
Though Fox said nothing, lin had already read the answer from her expression.
"Hm. So it's begun. But it's already over. Dardi."
"Sir."
"Return to your post and continue protecting Athena. I'll take care of the rest."
"Yes, my lord."
After Dardi left, lin tidied up his clothes and prepared to head out.
"My lord, you can leave this minor issue to . No need to get your hands dirty," Galon said, puzzled.
"I've been cooped up too long. I want to get so fresh air," lin replied with a gentle smile.
But Fox, who was being held behind him, only grew paler. She had a feeling that lin's idea of "fresh air" was about to bring disaster to the Brotherhood.
"Who… who are you? What do you want?"
"Just visiting your hotown," lin replied casually. "I've always been curious about that Loom of Fate."
"You! There's no need to go there. The assassination was my own action—it has nothing to do with the Brotherhood. If you want vengeance, kill !"
"Oh?" lin's lips curled into a mocking smile. "So you can access the Loom directly? Funny, I seem to recall only the leader gets that privilege. No matter how high-ranked, other mbers only glimpse it once upon joining, isn't that right?"
To Fox, the lin before her was a demon. With calm words and poor acting, he was steadily breaking her down.
"And your target wasn't just Athena, was it? Harry Osborn too, right?"
"You—how could you possibly know—"
"Heh. Girl, the world is big. You should go out and see it, instead of locking yourself in."
"You…"
lin no longer paid her any attention. As he stepped out the door, he took out his phone and dialed Peggy.
"Well, this is rare, Mr. lin. You actually called . Is there a new war coming?"
"Haha, sounds like you've got a lot of complaints, Peggy."
"If you had my job for a day, you'd understand why…"
lin chuckled without responding. He could guess the source of her frustration.
The battle at Atlantis had caused massive tsunamis—enough to destroy a city—that occurred simultaneously in multiple locations. Though it was deep underwater, the shockwaves had still reached the surface. So Saints, while preventing disaster, had even announced their identities. The Sanctuary and the Saints had beco semi-public figures among the general population.
What's more, to keep up with the tis and help the world understand the Sanctuary and its Saints, Shion had the sudden idea to build an official Sanctuary website.
Though the site mostly provided basic info—its history, mission, purpose, etc.—it effectively made the Sanctuary public knowledge.
The consequence? A flood of tourists, explorers, scientists, and more were swarming Athens, hoping to find the legendary, elusive Sanctuary.
For these and other reasons, Peggy was drowning in work—cleanup operations, upper-level etings, coordination with various factions…
If she hadn't already picked a successor and been determined to "finish her last shift with dignity," she would've quit long ago.
After venting her frustration, Peggy composed herself and returned to her usual tone: "Apologies, Mr. lin. I was too emotional. Please, go on."
"No need to be so stiff, Peggy. This call is about good news."
"Good news?"
"Yep. Ever heard of the Brotherhood?"
"Of course."
"Want to take them in?"
"Oh, I don't… Wait, what? Sorry, could you repeat that?"
"You'll soon have the chance to absorb the Brotherhood. What do you think? Can you handle it?"
"Absolutely! Mr. lin, please tell everything."
Peggy couldn't be more eager to recruit the Brotherhood. Their assassins, while covered in blood, weren't truly unforgivable villains—their ideology wasn't exactly secret. So giving them a chance at redemption wasn't out of the question. And every one of them was a world-class killer. If they could be absorbed into S.H.I.E.L.D.—yes, S.H.I.E.L.D., not the full formal na—then both manpower and strength would receive a huge boost.
"Bring your team to this location. You'll understand when you get there."
"…Alright. You're still as fond of your little gas as ever."
Peggy gave one last complaint before hanging up.
lin smiled, unfazed. Then, taking Galon and the captive Fox, he left.
But instead of heading straight to the Brotherhood's base, they first went to find Cross.
User Comments
0 comments from readers