"It's time. There will be no turning back from here, my friend," A tall man wearing a long majestic robe said. His face was hidden behind a peculiar-looking mask made of metal, and there was not a hint of tension in his posture, but his tone was not as friendly as if talking to a friend when he said those words. It was more like a warning.

"Why would I want to turn back now?" A man wearing a particular set of clothing, something that made the Fenririus clan stand out, answered the masked man. His name was Zen Fenririus, the current head of the Fenrirus clan.

Zen didn't appear in the least intimidated by the masked man, and from their conversation, it was clear that they worked together to achieve their respective objectives.

The two men were currently standing in front of a big cylindrical tube filled with greenish liquid. Inside it, there was a person, and both Zen and the masked person had their eyes fixated on the individual.

Apart from that, the room itself was filled with a lot of things that normal people would prefer not to see in their lives.

"I am glad to see that your determination hasn't weakened, my friend. But fear not, everything is going according to plan. Let's proceed to the next step," the masked man said with an unchanging tone, almost as if he was reading a line from a book.

".." Zen stayed silent for a few moments before talking. "Are you confident in your complete victory?"

"My predictions are never wrong, my friend," the masked man answered. "Do you think the price you are paying is too great?"

".." What the man said made Zen stay silent once again. "You already know what I think. To fear death is to fear life, but the recompense is worth the sacrifice."

"We are about to annihilate almost half of the beings in this world. I hope you don't forget that you get to keep everything else, even more, by just making this sacrifice, my friend," the masked man clarified.

"I know that," Zen replied with a determined look on his face.

As if satisfied by what he saw, the masked man turned and walked away from Zen.

"I want the extracted fragment in an hour. Everything should be ready for the Harvest," the masked man as he faded away in the shadows.

Zen was left alone inside the room along with all of the disturbing results of experimentation made on humans and various creatures.

After the masked man left, however, another man appeared from the shadow.

"I am also here to collect my recompense," the man said. The first thing that draw Zen's attention was the sadistic smile on the man's face. He was handsome and wore particular-looking glasses. However, the lab coat that he was wearing suggested that he was somehow related to everything that was inside the room.

"Arkel, I guess you heard him. Can you do this?" Zen said, looking at Drakel, one of the Guardians and known as God's hands.

Arkel put his hand on the tube and scrutinized the person inside. "Ahhh, this beauty! I already want to.. Hahaha. Of course, it will be done perfectly, Mr. Zen. However, I hope you don't change your mind. She will be mine. Liu will be my wife as agreed," Arkel added, with an ecstatic expression.

*****

"Hahahahaha!" Laughter echoed inside the large and luxurious room. "I am amazed by that man! No, it's just human nature, and I am no different from him in this aspect."

The man held a glass of wine in his hand and wore a long robe, but he was still holding a mask in his other hand. He was standing in front of a transparent wall, inside of a structure built in space somewhere far from the planet, giving him a fantastic view of the Capital planet of the Empire.

"Everything is going as planned. People love to see violence despite being scared of pain. It's easy to fish them all with the right bait. I never thought that I would be able to do it, but now it just seems too easy, right? Don't you agree? Hmmm, what did he call you, Cristal?" The man asked, and his silver long hair swayed as he turned and looked and the emotionless maid standing behind him.

Cristal didn't say anything and just stood there in silence. However, the man, or more precisely, the Emperor smirked. His face wasn't as noble as how he looked when he appeared on the TV.

"He thought that he was the chosen one, that he was standing at the top of his world. He was delusional, and there was no saving him," The Emperor continued, giving Cristal his back once again. "I was like him, and even now, I sympathize with him. His suffering would be immense."

After saying these words, the Emperor took a sip of wine and sighed, almost as of he remembered something that made him feel angry, but he kept his composure. He believed that he was close to achieving his goal.

"How're things proceeding?" He asked.

"The warning was sent publically. The Raizel family and everyone related to them will be taken down because of their attempt to overthrow the Emperor. As instructed, a reward would be given to the one who can capture Adam Von Kepalta, dead or Alive, and a warning that he is a very dangerous individual was added to this announcement. The Guardians were also tasked to kill Adam individually, and a more significant reward would be given to the one who can do so. All of this was made public an hour ago," Cristal said.

She didn't show any emotion on her face and the Emperor didn't look at her. However, after hearing what she said, the Emperor nodded in satisfaction.

"That woman should be already ready for the harvest and all of the elements needed for the great show in our hands," The emperor declared with a triumphal expression on his face. He could almost feel that his victory was within his grasp.

"You can go now. Your presence would bring him despair, and the viewers will be more excited about his fall. They will never know that they are about to die at their turn. Such is the fate of all pathetic humans," he added.

After that, Cristal left the room without making a sound, but the Emperor felt that her presence vanished.

"How long have I been waiting for this day? Two hundred years, of maybe five hundred? I don't know. I will never let anyone stand in my way this time. My revenge will be inevitable. They rejected me for being a human, and they will see how human I can be," The Emperor said to himself.

'Come to think of it, that Being referred to that kid as 'The son of God'. He, no was it she? Anyway, they was talking to Master as if he was above him, so they must be quite something. There is certainly something going on, but Master didn't intervene in my plans. Still, none of that matters to me as long as I achieve my goal, no matter what anyone thinks of it. If anyone stronger appears to stop me, then I will just die!' This time, the Emperor didn't speak out loud and just thought to himself.historical

"Hahahaha! Save them all Son of God! I will accept my defeat if I am stopped by the Son of God himself, wouldn't I? Adam Von Kepalata, you are really the perfect bait!"