Chapter 11 - Chapter XI

'We managed to gain entry last night and the force was finally stable, Lady Cleopatra. We are yet to spread out and gain more power and connection.'

The red-haired woman wearing the most serene yet alluring expression nodded her head. 'Good. Make sure to familiarize and adapt well with how things work here. Remember that despite our powerful mother base in Country R, we are yet to gain a strong hold here. Do not be over confident. Always be extra careful and alert.'

'Yes, my Lady.'

'Speak.'

'My lady?' Zero was buffled by her lady's sudden question.

'Don't give me that confused look. You know very that I can read you. What is it you want to say?'

'My lady, it's not that I do not trust your capability to protect yourself but I believe it is for the best that you take at least one of us to follow you around.' Zero was nervous but he needs to be strong. He always valued his lady's wellfare and would be even ready to sacrifice his life for her. After all, she was the one who gave his life back when she bought his life almost 2 years ago at an underground bloody ring. 

He was almost dead and his oppenent was about to finished him off when someone from the ground, red hair with a mask that of an Egyptian Queen, intervened and promised to pay everyone in return of preserving his life. This brought a divided decision from the audience and even the owner of the said arena but she added another interesting bet. She will also fight 'Death' , his current opponent, and winner takes it all, all or nothing. This excited the audience who were thirsty for blood lust and a loud cheer of agreement filled the arena. 

Death is a formidable opponent and he must admit that he was overconfident about his own skill that he forgot how dirty of a player he was. That's the reason why he almost lost his life if not for his Lady Cleopatra.

Zero was an orphan who doesn't even know his own origin and one day when he went out of the gate of the convent, he was abducted and sold to the syndicate. He was 9 years old by then and had witnessed and experienced the bloody and harrowing life of the underground. His years with the syndicate is an everyday death for him. 

He could stil remember that he was shipped to Country next day after his abduction and right after he arrived,was sent straightly to the death or alive arena where blood thirsty audiences pays just to enjoy men,women and children fought to kill each other just to survive. 

The bloodiest example of the survival of the fittest. With every fight that one survived  from is the every death of one's soul.

Zero can still vividly remember and he believed will forever etched unto his mind how he was up against a 6 years old kid. He was already 14 that time. He was looked wildy at the booming cheering from the audience and his urge to kill all of them was too much. Before anyone could settle to watch the show, Zero striked to knocked the girl unconcious simultaneously whispered for her to pretend to die. The girl did so but the owner of the arena witnessed and was aware of what he has done that he ordered an underling to sliced the head of the girl in front of the shocked silent audience but later on cheered so loud after the morbid death of the young girl.

Afterwards, the owner of the arena talked to the syndicate leader about what he had done and he was tortured and left with no food or even water for one week. He thought it was his time to die but the syndicate still valued him as he was their best fighter till date and after seven days, rescucitated him back to health. After he recovered, he was clearly warned by the leader that if he was going to do what he did with the young girl, his little brothers in the syndicate will shoulder all the torture.

From then on, Zero has to kill the last bit of conciensce and moral he has left to survive. And when the day when he thought was his time to die, there, the red-haired Queen saved him from his death. 

She gave him a new name and a new life. Zero, because he is the first of none. 'The very first of my subordinate. I will conquer the underworld, and I want you to hep me.' That's what he heard from her. And from then on,he became the most loyal subordinate of Lady Cleopatra or what people in the underworld called, the Rising Queen of the Underworld.