The Psychopathic Beast Emperor

Chapter 258: New Mission. Heading to Solaria

The sect was still recovering from Derek and Caron’s heretic activities, but it wouldn’t stay stagnant for everyone to come to terms with the truth of what had happened. They had to move on. Bahamut had just woken up from a long nap to find a letter by him.

Since changes were going around to test new elders to replace Derek and Caron, there wasn’t much for him to do except train, eat, banter with Ren and Sel, and have some intimate fun with his girls. Beside him was Alana, who looked as if she didn’t want to wake up. She was literally entangled with him, even more than Lily had been sometime ago. Lily’s venture was against sect rules, since she wasn’t a disciple of Elder Silvia then. Well, she was now. Her master was Derek, who was no longer an elder and possibly no longer living.

But this time, Alana took his side. They had still not crossed the last line, though. She wasn’t ready. Thankfully, all the girls weren’t humans, so they took a very long time to fertilize and all that woman stuff. Simply, getting pregnant now was a long venture, so they could go rogue as much as they wanted.

Well, that isn’t the topic...

Bahamut gently escaped Alana’s grasp and opened the letter to read its contents. Mind you, he was physically seen as blind, but he wasn’t blind-blind. Just saying... Anyway, Bahamut read the mission and couldn’t help but be surprised by its contents.

It read:

[New Mission!

Mission Rating: Tier 4 Potential (Be Cautious!)

There are some recent disappearances going on in the human kingdom, Solaria. They are connected to the mission in the Oasis Temple City. It is a broad and complex one.

Team Bahamut has been tasked to investigate these happenings and find the culprit or culprits behind them.

You are free to use anything and do anything to make the mission successful.

Duration: 5 months at most.

Team Members: Bahamut (Leader), Sel (Vice Leader), Exildra, Lily, Alana, Gabi, Ren.

Supervisors: Apollonia, Rakia, Black Fang Prodigy.

All necessary things will be provided.

This mission was personally requested by one of the Four Great Families of Solaria and issued by the Pharaoh.

Elders in Charge: Silvia, Iset, and Baset.]

This was an official mission issued personally by the Elder Hakar, or rather Lord Hakar. They couldn’t fail. But looking at the mission rating, he was lost as to what to do. This was a very difficult mission, and someone could die. It was no joking matter. Bahamut read the mission letter three times. The more he read it, the heavier it felt.

Tier 4 Potential. Those two words alone carried an entirely different weight. A Tier 4 wasn’t something that could just be overcome through talent, tricks, or courage. It was a realm that stood above Demigods. Elder Silvia was considered terrifying because she occupied that realm, and now a mission connected to that level had landed directly in his hands.

"This is bad." Even his usual confidence was nowhere to be found. The mission wasn’t asking them to kill someone or to escort someone. It wasn’t even asking them to investigate a single location. This was a kingdom-wide operation involving disappearances. And somehow it connected back to the Oasis Temple City incident. Meaning Derek wasn’t the end. He was only a piece.

A knock sounded inside his mind. It was a soft mental connection from X’Uric.

"You’ve been staring at that paper for ten minutes."

"Mind your own business."

"You look constipated."

"Mind your own business."

"You definitely look constipated."

Bahamut ignored him. A sleepy groan sounded beside him: Alana had finally awakened. The cow beast-kin slowly sat upright, her dark hair falling over her shoulders, while her sleepy black eyes blinked repeatedly. She looked completely lost.

"Master..." Her voice sounded adorable.

"Hm?"

"Why are you awake?" Bahamut stared at her.

"What kind of question is that?"

Alana thought seriously for a long time and nodded.

"Good point."

She immediately leaned forward and rested her head on his shoulder. Bahamut sighed. She had become increasingly clingy lately. She wasn’t as possessive and obsessive as Exildra and Lily. She just enjoyed being close. If given the choice, she would probably spend all day sleeping beside him. Her eyes slowly landed on the mission letter, and the sleepiness vanished.

"That’s bad."

"You understood it?" Bahamut blinked.

"No."

"..."

"I just saw your face."

Bahamut rubbed his forehead.

"Thanks."

"You are welcome."

Several moments passed quietly. Alana suddenly grabbed his hand, making Bahamut look down. She wasn’t smiling anymore. Her eyes were serious.

"Will it be dangerous?"

He hesitated for a moment, then nodded.

"Very."

Alana tightened her grip.

"Then don’t die."

Bahamut laughed. Unfortunately, Alana wasn’t joking.

"I am serious."

"I know."

"No, really."

"I know."

"Promise."

The seriousness in her gaze made him pause. Eventually, he nodded.

"I won’t die." Only then did she relax. A faint smile appeared on her face.

"Good." She said and immediately lay back down and went back to sleep.

Bahamut stared at her in disbelief.

"..."

"..."

"How?"

No answer came. She was already sleeping. A true mystery.

...

Later that afternoon. In Elder Silvia’s Residence. The largest living room within the residence had become unusually crowded: Bahamut, Sel, Exildra, Lily, Alana, Gabi, Ren, The Black Fang Prodigy, Apollonia, Rakia, and finally the three elders overseeing the operation: Silvia, Iset, and Baset. The atmosphere was heavy. That alone showed how serious things were.

At the front of the room stood Elder Silvia, while behind her floated several maps. One depicted the Solaria Kingdom. Another displayed red markings scattered throughout the five cities of the kingdom: Aurora, Obosu, Armstrong, Adam, and Throst. Each city contained multiple glowing red points.

The moment everyone noticed them, their expressions changed. There were too many. Far too many.

"The official reports mention disappearances," Silvia spoke. Her voice remained calm. "The truth is worse."

A flick of her fingers caused the map to change. Hundreds of small lights appeared, and the room became silent. Bahamut’s expression hardened.

"These are confirmed disappearances."

Nobody spoke. There were hundreds of disappearances, and that was only the confirmed cases. Silvia continued.

"The disappearances include children, merchants, and nobles," Her gaze swept across everyone. "None have returned."

A chill spread through the room. Then Elder Baset stepped forward. His usually relaxed demeanor was gone.

"The Four Great Families requested assistance after several of their own disappeared."

Another map appeared, this time showing movement patterns, routes, trade roads, cities, and villages. The disappearances looked random until one paid attention, then a pattern would emerge. Everyone eventually saw it.

"They’re moving toward something," Exildra’s eyes narrowed.

"Correct," Baset nodded.

The routes converged, toward the center of the kingdom, toward Aurora.

Silvia spoke again.

"We don’t know the culprit, the purpose, the scale, or how many organizations are involved."

The room became increasingly tense. Then came the worst part. Elder Iset stepped forward.

"The possibility exists that this operation involves multiple Tier 3 individuals."

Sel slowly frowned. "Multiple?"

"Yes," Iset’s answer was immediate. "And if our worst fears are correct..."

She paused. The room felt colder.

"...there may be a Tier 4 involved."

For the first time, even Bahamut felt pressure. A Tier 4, and it wasn’t even a potential as stated on the letter, but an actual possibility. Silvia spoke.

"Listen carefully," Everyone focused on her. "During this mission, separation is almost guaranteed."

This caused several expressions to change, but Silvia just pointed toward the map.

"You will be operating across an entire kingdom. You may be forced to infiltrate different factions. You may lose communication. You may be unable to assist one another."

Her eyes landed on Bahamut, then Sel, then the others.

"If separated..." Her voice turned serious. "Your objective is survival first, investigation second, and combat third."

That statement alone revealed how dangerous the mission truly was. They weren’t being sent to win; they were being sent to survive.

Silvia waved her hand, and the maps vanished. The room darkened slightly.

"You have three days. Gather equipment, train, study, and prepare mentally. Because once you leave the Shadow Fang Sect..." For the first time, a trace of concern appeared in Elder Silvia’s eyes. "...you may not return for a very long time."

The room remained silent. Everyone understood: The mission had already begun.