“I can’t believe that Kayne is that strong,” Emilia muttered. Slouched over the table and drowning her sours in some beer.

  They were at the Gangsta’s Paradise, taking their mind off things. Evelyn and Lauri wanted to come along with them but, they had to be protected. Naohiko and the others haven’t been to the Gangsta’s Paradise in a long time, so they came too. Sitting away from the bunch of teens.

  Able sat a bit away from them as he completed a report to send to the King of the Damned. He was also told to give Franz a special phone, to which he did.

  “Feeling defeated, don’t you?” Lauri said in a flustered expression. She might be incredibly shy but, when it came to love, she is bold.

  “Shut up, you home wrecker!” Emilia grabbed a plate and threw at Lauri, which she easily dodged.

  “Kayne is no joke. We were all trained to be cold-blooded killers but, he received it worse than all of us,” Bryant recalled his experiences at Diane’s Excellency, since they were classmates. “His shy personality does a complete 180, he becomes a cutthroat monster.”

  “I’ve seen it first-hand,” Tristan casually inputted. He also was unfazed by it, “He was sent to kill some cultists that were in the slums, I happened to be there for research.”

  “He killed them all with one move,” Tristan stated with no emotion.

  “You guys are talking about him like he is some unbeatable legend…. It feels just like a shounen manga!” Evelyn floated around in excitement. A bubbling feeling in her heart as she became more curious about this world, “I wonder what kind of powers he got…”

  “He isn’t unbeatable but, he can become like that,” Peaches held out his hand for her and Evelyn floated to it. Resting her face in his palm, “Monsters like that are known as Dynadaunts.”

  “He isn’t the only one here with potential to become one,” Able smirked to himself as he finished his report and closed the laptop.

  “You think you can become one?” Emilia looked at him and rose a brow,

  “What does that mean!?” Able exclaimed and they all erupted in laughter.

  They all had incredible potential, the King of the Damned said so himself. With this potential, how will they move forward?

  Who will survive?

  “Nishizawas,” Able spoke up out of the blue and caught their attention. He truly is a leader, “What do you plan to do with your new powers?”

  “Honestly,” Evelyn spoke for the both of them. Becoming really quiet and covering her mouth, “We want to join you.”

  “Who would have guessed,” Able rolled his eyes. He predicted they would want that.

  “Ok look, our dad will pamper and keep us inside. Especially since we’re monsters now, I doubt we’ll even go to the bathroom without an escort,” Evelyn began to rant about her father’s protectiveness. “And we… really want to learn how to use these powers.”

  “We know that you guys have been involved in the problems around Minohwa recently and… We’d like to help you guys,” Lauri proposed, finishing her shared idea with her sister. “So we can get out of these walls.”

  The Nishizawa sisters held each other’s hands and spoke in unison, “Teach us to use our powers.”

  The rest of them grinned together, their little bunch was growing bigger and stronger.

  “You’ve got the perfect teacher then,” Peaches gloated his pride and held out his palm. A visible cold wind erupted from it.

  “A perfect teacher doesn’t brag,” Evelyn teased the man, pinching his face as she showered him with kisses.

  “Hey! No PDA until marriage!” From the table afar, Naohiko grabbed a bag of fries and tossed it at Peaches. Evelyn sent it back to her father at the same speed. Whacking him on the head.

  “You’re not getting any money from the marriage, Dad!” Evelyn told her dad firmly, kissing him just to assert dominance.

  “Oh, come on! Why can’t we all win!?” Naohiko wanted to argue but, Manon grabbed his ear and reprimanded him.

  “Heads up,” Able said, smiling warmly from their family interaction. He tossed two phones to the sisters. “These phones can’t be tracked by the Confederation even if they hijack every satellite in orbit.”

  Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  “We’ll use those to contact you guys,” Able got up and so did the others. Of course, Peaches planned to stay with Evelyn a bit longer.

  “Where are you guys going?” Lauri asked him, confused of the sudden change of pace.

  “We’ve done enough for today,” Bryant yawned, stretching as demonic wings protruded from his back.

  Emilia waved them goodbye, “We’ll see you when there’s a mission.”

  ~//~

  Franz walked along the Red Panda District’s stone paths in self-disappointment. With Naohiko and all the executives away, including the princesses, he was alone. None of the lower status mercenaries dared to bother him when he was like that.

  He kept his eyes low until he came across the shed, where he fought Kayne. He looked at the destruction he caused and felt proud. And then seeing what Kayne caused, he felt disappointed in himself.

  He felt weak! Inferior! Mediocre! He felt like half of the man he used to be. Or half of the man he thought he was.

  “Lu Bu would never think like this…” Franz came to the shed and slouched by it. Thinking of his role model and his many acts of unbeatable power. Just another person he was disappointing, as he felt like he was nothing to the standard he looked up to.

  “Dammit!” He yelled, turning suddenly to shed and punching it. This shed was made to hold in monsters going berserk, designed by Naohiko’s father. Yet, he made a dent in it. While Kayne was capable of burning it down. He broke down, “Why can’t I just be… Stronger…”

  He felt his pocket and felt a phone. Recalling that Able gave him it and said there was a number that he needed to call. Franz took it out and checked the contact list, it only had one.

  “My new best friend…” Franz read the contact's name aloud, in confusion, “What kind of sick joke is this?”

  “Whatever, I am already in the depths,” Franz sighed and called the number. As it rung, he wondered who it could be, “What difference could this make?”

  The call was answered, no one spoke. Franz decided to speak, “What kind of idiot answers the phone and doesn’t talk.”

  “I just wanted to make sure Able gave the right person the phone,” The person responded in a sad tone. Franz didn’t recognize the voice, he didn’t know the person.

  “Assume he did,” Franz went on guard and spoke sharply, “Who are you?”

  “You might have heard my name before, they call me the Confederation’s #1 Enemy,” The person spoke casually. As if he wasn’t unfamiliar to any of this.

  “You couldn’t be,” Franz spoke lowly, he didn’t want to believe it.

  “Sounds like you know who I am,” The person had a slight chuckle, a bit amused he knew from that description. “I am the King of the Damned.”

  “How am I supposed to believe that?” Franz huffed. For a guy like Able to casually connect him to the King of the Damned, he didn’t think it was so easy.

  “Do you want a show of power?” Fire surrounded him. It was incredible heat and size, enough to bend light waves that came near it.

  “Where are you?” Franz looked around, he felt and saw nothing. “If you’re as powerful as they say, I should be able to sense you from anywhere in Minohwa.”

  “That’s the thing,” The flames towered higher and spiraled. Trapping him in a vortex. Images of red eyes appeared in the fires, “I am no-where near Minohwa.”

  “Okay I believe it,” Franz sighed, feeling like he was going to pass out from the heat, “You’re the King of the Damned.”

  “I thought I would have to blow up the whole settlement,” The King of the Damned chuckled. Franz gulped, wondering if he should take that as a joke.

  “But what would the King of the Damned want with me?” Franz questioned sharply. Holding the phone firmly and making sure not to speak loudly. He knew that suspicions rose because of flame spiral that formed.

  “Oh, simple, I want you to be my right-hand man,” The King of the Damned responded, with a little pep in his tone.

  “What? You do know I work for the Red Pandas, right?” Franz was bewildered; how could a man be so confusing.

  “Yeah, I know a lot of things. With power comes knowledge,” The King of the Damned gave him a vague answer. “What I do know, you use people to get stronger. Just like your role model, Lu Bu.”

  “How did you know he is my role model?” Franz was further shocked. His amazement didn’t cease to grow.”

  “With power comes knowledge, with knowledge comes power. They work together perfectly,” The King of the Damned seemed a bit delighted to say those lines. “You see, I have a very special ability to see possibilities of a better future of my desire.”

  “In most of those futures, you work closest at my side,” He continued his explanation. Franz felt compelled to his words, as if every fiber of his being wanted to listen.

  “You used the nuns when you were an orphan to unlock your monster capabilities. Now, you’re becoming stronger, gaining wealth and fame with the Red Panda Mercenaries,” The King of the Damned summed up his timeline neatly. Franz was surprised he knew that much. “From Sister Opaul to Naohiko Nishizawa?”

  “Who is next? Let him be me.” The King of the Damned declared sharply. “Lu Bu, Fengxian, he used steppingstones to reach his goals. Let me be your final steppingstone.”

  “As I will allow you to reach your infinite potential.”

  “You speak a hard bargain, I will tell you that,” Franz responded, with a pure smile on his face. At least there were some good things out of the fight. “Who do you know I won’t find another steppingstone?”

  “In infinite possibilities, you only found your infinite potential with me,” The King of the Damned stated simply.

  Franz smirked; he won his favor. He held his hand out and concentrated heavily. To the point veins appeared in his eye, for seconds his gaze was unbreakable. Until a vivid gold formed in his palms, throwing particles around in its excess power.

  He watched the vivid gold as it was incredibly hard to control, “I will be your right-hand man,”

  “Until I can stand on my own,” He clenched his fist, and the vivid gold blasted forward. Creating a larger dent in the shed. “You will be my steppingstone.”

  “Great! I am glad you were this easy! I thought I would have to tie you up for months like I did Carter!” The King of the Damned exclaimed in excitement. Franz sighed, assuming that’s someone he would eventually meet. Someone who had to endure the demands of the King.

  Franz’s mind wondered off for a moment. The Roundtable is group of allied factions all lead by the King of the Damned. Of those allied factions, the King of the Damned’s was the smallest. He was talking by information he got from the Red Panda Mercenaries. It consisted of three persons, including the King himself.

  “What do you need me to do?”