Child of Destiny

...…

"I like those eyes that you are making, kid," commented Belladonna after seeing the current expression that Shin was making.

Shin turned to her and coldly said. "I am going to say this. If something happens to him, I will swear upon my soul that I will make you regret it."

Belladonna smirked when he heard that. "Come to again once you have the strength to back those words up."

The person who was captured by the Black Serpent Mafia was someone he knew. In fact, it was someone who he had a special relationship with.

That person was Arthur's father, Bernard Springfield, who was supposedly in a special operation with his unit. From Shin had remembered, Bernard was sent by the federation to a certain place to conduct a secret operation.

It was a highly classified mission, so even Nathan and the rest of the Springfield Family did not know about its details aside from Samuel Springfield, who was the current head of the house.

They had not received any news from him since then. But since Samuel reassured everyone that the operation had successful results, so they did not mind it that much.

Moreover, it was pretty much a normal occurrence within the family, particularly a Military Family such as the Springfields. It was normal for someone from the family to be out of contact for a couple of months or even a year when they were on a special mission.

This was the reason why Shin was quite surprised to find Bernard in this place. What's more, he was also a captive of the Black Serpent Mafia.

Given his current appearance with a haggard face and messy hair, Shin could tell that he had gone through a lot already.

In the photo, Bernard was hanging in the air with his limps sealed inside cylindrical objects, which also prevented him from moving.

Shin could not help but clench his fists tightly as he stared at the photo. He might not be that close to Bernard, but he still had special respect for this guy, especially when he was the one who had found him, invited him to the Springfield Household, and treated him as one of their own.

He was not sure how he would end up if not for this person. His life took a special turn when he met Bernard after his unit had launched a raid on the training camp of the Black Serpent Mafia at that time.

He had also treated Bernard as his real uncle just like how he treated Nathan.

Shin stared at the virtual screen very closely to make sure that he had not seen wrong. A deadly aura was started to enfold his body. He could sense that something was getting agitated within him, but he ignored it and let himself lost in it for a moment.

Fortunately, he was practicing the Jade Kirin Scripture, which also helped him keep that energy under control. Another force within him was strongly suppressing this dark energy and preventing it from going berserk.

A few moments later, he forcefully calmed himself down before turning to Belladonna. "I want to see him."

Seeing the expressionless, but cold face that Shin was making, Belladonna felt a shiver down her spine. It might be brief, but she felt a genuine fear coming from this kid, which shocked even someone like her.

It took her a couple of seconds to recover her composure before nodding. "That shouldn't be a problem."

She then walked to the door and opened it, leaving. She would be leading Shin to the place where Bernard was being held captive.

Shin did not care about anything right now. He just wanted to make sure that the person in the photo was indeed Bernard.

There was a special method within the Springfield Family that could let them sense each other when they were nearby. It had something to do with their bloodlines.

Even if Shin was not from the Springfield Family, he had a special method of his own that would help him recognize if this Bernard was the real one.

…

A few moments later, they arrived in a cell.

Shin stood silently as he stared at the completely exhausted and savagely beaten man hanging at the center of the room. He tightly clenched his fist before calling the man. "Uncle Bernard."

Bernard, who seemed to be barely hanging on his life, flinched when he heard a familiar voice. He opened his eyes with great difficulty while also struggling to raise his head to look at Shin.

He was silent for a couple of moments before smiling mockingly. "Heh! Are you guys already out of ideas to torture me and you come up with such a ridiculous idea? You will not get anything from me idiots. Just kill me if you dare."

No one responded to him while Shin quietly watched Bernard. He did not ask the latter what had happened and why he was here. He could vaguely guess how Bernard had ended up in this place given how he remembered the Black Serpent Mafia operated.

He then stepped forward and raised his hand in the air before drawing a series of mentalism runes, using his finger as a brush.

Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!

His actions were fast and accurate as the rune sequence was instantly drawn in front of him before merging and turning into a complex singular rune.

The people in the surroundings went on full alert when they saw Shin's actions. They got ready to prevent him from doing anything that would possibly help Bernard.

But since Belladonna remained calm and did not show any hint of acting, they slightly relaxed their bodies but also remained alert at the same time.

Shin placed his hand in front of him with fingers kept aside from his index finger. The rune floated on its tip and released a subtle and pulsing light. It released a certain aura that resonated with Bernard's bloodline.

With this, Shin was able to confirm that this person was indeed Bernard.

At the same time, Bernard also sensed the resonance. He instantly realized that the Shin standing a couple of distance away from him was indeed the real Shin.

"Brat! What are you doing here!?" he was surprised, shocked, and full of disbelief when he realized this. He then stared at Shin insentiently until he realized something.

He then directed his gaze toward Belladonna with a fierce glare. "Mark my words. I will kill you despite anything else if something happens to him."

Belladonna smirked when she heard that but did not reply.

Bernard was not sure how they had captured Shin, but he knew that they were plotting something. He also became afraid that Arthur and the others had also been in the same situation.

Seemingly reading his concerns, Shin reassured Bernard. "Don't worry, uncle. The others are fine."

Bernard quickly turned to Shin and stared at the young man for a moment. He then realized that Shin must have let himself get captured in exchange for the safety of the others.

He understood the temperament of this young man pretty well and knew how he handled things.

At the same time, he also saw the resolute expression that Shin was making, seemingly telling him something.

Bernard did not have to hear what the young man wanted to say, but he was sure that Shin must have decided about something.

He could not help but feel a little scared of what Shin was planning to do, so he said. "Brat. Don't do anything impulsive."

Shin smiled gently at him before turning to Belladonna. "I confirmed it. That should be enough."

He understood that the more he talked to Bernard, the more that organization would be able to take advantage of this situation. It was better to limit their exchange of words to prevent the opposing side from fishing out more valuable information from their conversation.

Bernard also understood this, so he did not say that much either. But he still could not help but feel worried about Shin.

Given the way Shin talked to Belladonna, it seemed like the Black Serpent Mafia needed something from Shin. More specifically, they seemed to need him to do something.

Shin turned to Bernard once again and reassured him. "Don't worry, Uncle Bernard. It is not something that you think."

Bernard clenched his teeth as he could feel that Shin was planning to do something that might risk his life.

…

Back in the room where Shin was first brought.
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Shin was currently reviewing all the details of the mission that the organization wanted him to do. He wanted to cover everything and made sure that would not overlook any detail.

Based on the information that the Black Serpent Mafia had provided, the people who turned into puppets by the said inheritance had all become plant monsters.

The images that were provided also showed that these people seemed to have fused with the surrounding trees or plants. Their bodies were either wrapped with vines or roots of the trees, which seemed to be an extension of their limbs.

The good news was that these only had the strength of an Ethereal Opening Stage Expert. As for those stronger ones, most of their strength was sucked toward the center of the region, where the said inheritance was located.

Whatever that inheritance was, it could absorb all the life force within the vicinity and turn the whole region into a ruined land or a dead forest.

The surrounding lifeforms were sucked dry, particularly the plants and trees, and turned the place into a withered land.

It seemed like a curse or something similar, but it also had a limited range as it could not leave the area where the inheritance was originally located.

The main problem in this mission was the first person who became the puppet of the inheritance. Based on the information, that person had become a peak Void Manifestation Stage Expert after turning into a corpse puppet.

It was impossible for Shin to face someone at that level.

He could use the talisman that he had to block its attacks after stealing the inheritance tome before using the teleportation talisman to escape.

But he was reluctant to use them since they were his means of escape from this place.

All he could do was ask for extra tools from the organization that would let him survive an onslaught against such a monster. He doubted that they would not provide him with anything given that this inheritance seemed to be important to them.

For now, he had to wait and see what was the plans that the organization had as well as figuring out about the other operations that they were preparing.

***

Time of the special operation.

Shin was standing outside the forest where the said phenomenon was happening. It was on the opposite side where the military was stationed. This entrance was pretty remote and hidden, which was also the same place that the Black Serpent Mafia had been using since the time they had discovered the inheritance inside this place.

Looking around him, Shin saw the agents that the organization was going to send alongside him. Or in other terms, they would be the cannon fodders who would be distracting the main puppet during the battle and covering Shin's retreat once he acquired the inheritance tome.

It might be ruthless, but these people did not mind as the organization had already brainwashed them to follow their cause. In a sense, these agents were nothing but empty vessels, which were no different from puppets.

They would blindly follow the orders given to them.

As for the person acting as their leader, it was someone from the batch of executioners they had dispatched in this country.

Shin exchanged glances at the young executioner before turning back to the entrance of the forest.

"All the preparations have already been made. You guys can now enter," said the person standing at the entrance after receiving the news from their scouts who were monitoring the movements of the military.

All of them only moved when Shin initiated to step forward and enter the forest.

...…