"Now, back to the mission details," Asher spoke with a calm, composed tone. "I'm sure you would love to meet your parents and little sister, Finch. Even I am looking forward to meeting them. But we cannot do that right now," he explained.

Finch immediately frowned. Ever since arriving at the Whale Barony, the very first thing he wanted, almost with a childlike urgency, was to rush home and greet his family. He had imagined the sight of their faces, the warmth of their voices, the comfort of home. And now, after all that anticipation, Asher was telling him he could not do that.

"Let me explain," Asher continued, his voice steady and patient. "If we meet your parents now, we have no idea when we will be able to leave your Whale mansion. A family reunion like that could take hours, even days. Besides, have you forgotten that this mission is urgent? It still carries the possibility of being cancelled if the client waits for too long. You do know the reward was doubled because the client couldn't wait, right?"

The frown on Finch's face vanished almost instantly as the weight of Asher's words settled on him. He realized he had momentarily lost sight of his primary goal and the broader perspective of the situation.

"We can see your family before we depart into the wilderness for the mission. But right now, we have to meet the client, make ourselves known, then head to your family mansion," Asher concluded, leaving no room for argument.

Finch stayed silent for a moment, then nodded without any objections. His chest rose and fell with a slow sigh, accepting the situation even though a part of him still ached for home. Asher's eyes drifted toward William, who stood quietly at the side. From William's expression, it was clear he had understood the situation from the very beginning.

"But how do we meet the client if Finch is so damn popular?" William asked, raising an eyebrow. "Won't he be spotted the moment we step anywhere?"

Asher remained silent for a heartbeat. He closed his eyes briefly, then replied, "I will be right back." In the next instant, he vanished from his spot, leaving behind a faint ripple in the air. A moment later, he reappeared, holding a single dark cloak in his hand, which he tossed toward Finch.

Finch, understanding Asher's intentions without needing any explanation, simply put the cloak on. The hood fell over the upper half of his face, concealing his recognizable features. "That's sorted then," Asher said. He retrieved the compass from within his space ring, channeled Astra energy into it, and watched as the needle stirred to life once again, pointing their path.

Together, the three moved, with Asher leading and Finch and William following closely behind. They leaped effortlessly from rooftop to rooftop, their movements swift and coordinated. People below glanced up as they passed, but no one questioned them, nor did anyone appear startled. In the Whale Barony, even ordinary unawakened individuals could perform such acrobatic feats with barely any bit of training. Besides, many of the citizens already traveled this way; it was nothing unusual.

Following the compass needle, they soon arrived before what appeared to be an inn, a somewhat aged establishment with polished wooden beams and lanterns glowing faintly at the entrance. Without hesitation, the trio stepped inside. The moment they entered the lobby, several eyes shifted toward them. The atmosphere thickened with gentle attention, but none of the three reacted. If anyone caused trouble, they would simply beat the person up and be done with it.

Asher didn't spare even a glance at the receptionist behind the counter. He moved with silent purpose, following the compass needle as it pulled him toward the staircase. The receptionist watched them for a moment, her eyes flickering with both confusion and caution, but she wisely chose not to speak, wanting to avoid misunderstandings, unnecessary fights, and property damage.

They ascended the stairs. At the top, a long hallway of identical wooden doors stretched before them, illuminated by dim lanterns hanging at intervals. The air was quiet, almost too quiet, disturbed only by the soft creak of floorboards beneath their feet.

Following the needle, they arrived before a particular door. At that very moment, the compass in Asher's hand began to tremble. A second later, it crumbled into fine dust that slipped through his fingers and vanished entirely, signaling that he had reached his destination, the client's room.

Asher knocked once, twice, then a third time. No reply came. Only silence greeted him.

His expression remained unchanged. Without hesitation, he grabbed the doorknob and pushed it open. The iron knob bent under the pressure of his grip, and the door creaked open with a groan.

Asher stepped inside without hesitation, but the instant he did, a dagger streaked toward his neck with blistering speed, the air hissing as the blade cut through it. Finch and William reacted on instinct; their bodies blurred backward in a defensive motion, putting distance between themselves and the threat. But Asher didn't move an inch.

His Omni Perception had already mapped out the entire room before he even reached the top of the stairs. He had seen the attacker, the room layout, the exit, the hidden weapons, all of it. There was nothing to fear or hide.

The dagger reached his neck, but instead of slicing skin, it passed harmlessly through, phasing through his body as if Asher were made of mist.

The attacker, a woman cloaked in shadows, froze, her eyes widening for a brief, stunned moment. Before she could recover or adjust her stance, a backhand slap struck her on the cheek with lethal force. She didn't even register the movement; she only felt the impact. Her body flew backward violently, crashing into the wall.

Within the room, a man sat with serene calmness in a padded chair, observing everything with unflinching eyes. Three other individuals stood around him, each with weapons drawn, their muscles tense, their expressions calm.

"Who are you?" the man asked, his tone steady, his expression unchanging even though one of his bodyguards had just been incapacitated in a single strike.

Asher stared at him for a moment before responding. "I'm from the Star Academy. We accepted your mission and are here for the mission details and itinerary." His tone was flat and direct. If the woman earlier had been an enemy, Asher would have ended her without hesitation. But he already knew she was acting to protect the client, so he treated the attack as a formality rather than hostility.

"The Star Academy, huh?" the man murmured. At that moment, Finch and William entered the room, seeing that the situation had been resolved.

"Funny how nobody accepted my mission for a whole week," the man continued with a faint smirk. "Then I doubled the reward, and here you are, barely an hour later."

Neither Asher, William, nor Finch offered any response. Their silence hung in the air like a steady wind.

Seeing their unchanging expressions, the man shook his head with a faint sigh. "Whatever. You arrived just in time. I was planning to cancel the mission tomorrow if no one accepted it by then." He paused, his green eyes locking onto Asher's purple ones. "Welcome onboard, then," he added in finality.

_______

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Happy new month everyone, wishing everyone a happy holiday. Also, don't forget the golden tickets. Thanks for reading.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.