Chapter 240: It’s Time
"Just how did they survive Senkhet?" Elder Derek muttered as a head full of red hair bobbed up and down in between his legs. He grunted, grabbing the person’s hair and moving his waist up, causing the person to groan in response. The fox ears of the person twitched slightly while their tail stood on end. Elder Derek then started moving his waist faster and let out a loud grunt.
"Just how could you fail to get him..." he said in a cold voice to the red-haired fox person. "And swallow it!"
"Mas- gulp! I..."
"I don’t want to hear excuses. You had just one job, and you keep on failing. Ren was even better than you. If only he weren’t blind and weak."
Rexi bowed his head in shame. He knew that his master was correct. His only job was to get Bahamut for his master by using Lily and their family practices as leverage. It failed drastically. He couldn’t even defeat Bahamut.
"Do you know how powerful you would’ve been, how powerful I would’ve been by now if we’d gotten a hold of him? Even if he wouldn’t accept my cultivation technique, we could use him as a tool. Seems like I would have to go with plan B," Elder Derek, staring intently at the naked young man kneeling in front of him.
"After Friel, you have the most potential, but you just keep on failing. Do you know the problem?"
"..."
"Friel had the same problem. You idiots, are attracted to women! Such a disgusting thing... Can’t you see the beauty in men?! Don’t you feel the love, the sensations, the joy and happiness when we make out?!" Elder Derek’s grin had twisted into something mad and sickening, causing Rexi to shiver.
"M-mas..."
"Now you leave me with no choice. I will have to call Calil. Be ready, your cousin might become a victim and die. You can try preventing her from going along with her mate."
"But..."
"BEND OVER!"
...
The bedroom reeked of sweat, musk, and incense. Dim crimson lanterns swayed gently overhead while heavy silk curtains blocked out the outside world entirely. The massive bed at the center of the room looked more like a nest than a proper sleeping place, sheets tangled and thrown everywhere.
Rexi lay face-down beneath a dark blanket, exhausted beyond words. His fox ears twitched weakly from time to time while his breathing came out uneven. Marks covered his neck and shoulders. He looked completely drained.
Meanwhile, Elder Derek sat at the edge of the bed, bare-chested, wiping sweat from his neck with a cloth. His golden hair clung slightly to his skin while his sharp blue eyes remained cold despite everything.
Knock.
The door opened without permission. A tall young man stepped inside calmly as though entering his own room. Long blue hair flowed down his back, with two braided locks framing his pale face. His pale blue eyes swept across the room once before settling on Derek.
There was not a single trace of surprise in his expression.
"It’s time."
Elder Derek smiled slowly.
"There you are, Calil."
Rexi stiffened beneath the blanket slightly upon hearing that name.
Calil Hiker.
Unlike Rexi, whose presence felt wild and aggressive, Calil carried himself with unnatural elegance. His movements were soft, almost graceful, and his voice had a strangely soothing quality to it. But beneath that softness was something dangerous... something calculating.
Derek stood from the bed leisurely.
"Wait for me."
He grabbed a dark robe from nearby and draped it over himself before walking past Calil. The blue-haired guy just turned and left the room silently.
The two eventually entered a spacious living room connected to the private chambers. Moonlight filtered through the large windows overlooking the distant desert. Bottles of wine and stacks of documents rested on a long table nearby.
Derek sat first, while Calil remained standing for a moment before taking the seat opposite him.
"Well?" Derek asked immediately.
Calil crossed one leg over the other.
"I secured the inn."
Derek’s eyes gleamed.
"In the Oasis Temple City?"
Calil nodded. "It’s in the Oasis District. One of the upper inns. It’s expensive, private, and filled with enough blind spots for us to operate comfortably."
"Good."
"The sect already approved the next mission rotation," Calil continued calmly.
"I altered one of the requests before submission."
Derek leaned forward slightly now, interested.
"What kind of request?"
"A protection mission."
Calil reached into his sleeve and placed a scroll onto the table.
"The Oasis Temple City has been suffering from disappearances recently. Merchants, travelers, even cultivators. The city requested assistance from nearby factions."
Derek opened the scroll quickly. His smile widened the more he read.
"An underground black-market organization..." he muttered. "Slave traders?"
Calil nodded again. "Not ordinary ones. This group specializes in rare bloodlines, beast-kin, and exotic races."
Derek laughed softly.
"The irony..."
"I thought the same."
Silence lingered briefly. Then Derek’s expression darkened slightly.
"But how does this make Bahamut fall into our hands?"
Calil finally smiled faintly. "The mission itself won’t."
Derek looked up. Calil rested his chin against his fingers and continued.
"But the bait will. The organization recently captured something unusual near the southern ruins."
He slid another document across the table.
Derek read it. His eyes widened slightly.
"A chimera relic?"
"An ancient one," Calil confirmed.
"According to rumors, it reacts to bloodlines connected to mythical beasts."
Derek immediately understood; his grin became terrifying.
"You want him to resonate with it..."
"He won’t resist investigating it," Calil said calmly.
"Especially if the relic reacts publicly."
"And once he’s isolated?" Derek asked quietly.
Calil’s pale blue eyes gleamed faintly beneath the moonlight.
"The Oasis District has many places where people disappear."
Derek burst into laughter.
"Yes..." he muttered while gripping the scroll tightly. "Yes, that’s perfect."
His breathing deepened slightly.
"We separate him from the others... We corner him, and this time..." His grin widened unnaturally. "He becomes mine."
From the bedroom behind them, Rexi silently opened his eyes beneath the blanket. Fear crept into his heart.
