Chapter 177 - The Ark Of Five Years

Yan paused for a moment.

"My family was the mafia, the people who worked in the shadows. They disliked the Mages but hated nobles with a burning passion. As I drifted away from my nobility, I understood how the mafia worked and joined them," explained Ashley.

Yan continued to stay silent.

"They were my parental figures. When we were little, Minwoo would be spoon-fed every ounce of good in the world. I, on the other hand, had more freedom to learn how the world worked. The darkness of it, the true nature of Mages."

"And what would that nature be?"

"That they only worked with us because they want these lands. The Mages, despite all their kind deeds, are all for show. Beneath that innocent figure hides a terrible beast. If their child could kill so many, then what will happen to us?"

"Perhaps she was scared. After all, I did just annihilate a bunch of people. But you recruited me, gave me a job. Aren't we all the same, in that sense?' asked Yan, as he hugged his sack of gold.

"Acceptance was too foreign so they thought to hate each other," murmured Yan as he looked onto the ground.

"Pardon? What do you mean by 'acceptance'?" asked Ashley, leaning down towards the kid's ear.

Yan paused while looking at the barren wasteland that was in front of them. The boat knocked onto shore with a loud thud. He didn't realize that it had been hours of sailing.

"Don't you think embracing others feels much better than hating?" asked Yan, as he hopped off from the boat.

"Keep that kind of thought up and you'd find yourself in hot water soon. The world ain't kind."

And with that, Yan kept quiet and followed Ashley to the nest. It would only be the next five years of hell as the child endured many beatings and betrayal. He was mixed into the mobile groups and tossed about.

Throughout the years, he survived countless attacks, both from friendly and the enemy. He had to learn the hard way of knowing your friends are just as cruel as your enemies. He had been exploited and misused while others got away with most of his rewards.

There were a few months that he'd survived through without any rewards. Yan went back to the main town of Campania to dig for scraps. But after using his skills to blow up other Mafia leaders, especially the ones that had betrayed him, he became the talk of the town.

The one incident that triggered him was the incident of a person stealing his reward. When he went to claim the mission's rewards, his friend had already taken it. Yan finally snapped and snapped that man's neck for all to see.

And when that was done, it was not enough for Yan. In a trance-like state, he carried on to utterly destroy the rest of his group who had betrayed him. He gathered all into a small room and drugged them to sleep forever.

He then tied them all together. When they were out, Yan took his time to find and make some little bombs. He stuffed his little makeshift bombs into every one of his group members and lighted one person. As the entire thing exploded, Yan felt a surge of adrenaline.

This made the rest of the mafia heads quite upset but Ashley gave Yan a month's worth of food and a brand new home. Ashley laughed when he heard the news.

He learned how to survive by himself, never relying on his team to do the job. He clicked well with expert killers and soon formed a group with them. Yan was silent throughout, perfecting his amazing skill of explosives. As the missions got tougher, so did he.

The more people he blew up, the more fame he had gained amongst the mafia. Ashley was undeniably proud when he granted him the promotion of being a Mafia head in the Teuton domain. That would entitle Yan to control the entire Mafia within that domain.

When he heard the news, Yan was shocked. He felt a sense of relief that he could finally go home, but some part of him still felt uneasy.

"How can you grant me that?' asked Yan, confused.

"Fear can do that. You'll be a small lead for the Teuton domain but once you've established yourself, then the title of Mafia head will be automatically for you. Don't worry I'll handle the admin stuff. But there's the last task I want you to fulfill," instructed Ashley.

"Bring down the Marquess of the Campania, Minwoo Kim Dalles. I won't tolerate failure."

Yan was shocked but quickly retreated his expression.

"I understand."

Yan bowed to Ashley one last time and made his way towards the grand domain of Campania.