System's POV
chapter-175

Anwir, who was still inside the underground prison, raised his head upon hearing the footsteps drawing nearer in his direction.

'He's back again,' Anwir thought. 'He really is persistent.'

Whenever Zion visited him, the human boy would talk about random things. He never mentioned anything about Anwir becoming his slave or freeing him from the prison.

The boy didn't try to entice him with other proposals and simply kept him company for an hour before leaving again.

He was also the one who brought Anwir's food on a daily basis, not allowing anyone to come near the prison aside from him.

In time, Anwir started to look forward to his company because he was the only one he could talk to.

Whenever the seven-year-old wasn't around, Anwir would be surrounded by nothing but darkness.

There was no light source in the prison, and only when Thirteen visited would he see a torchlight that illuminated his surroundings.

Although Tigerkins had Dark Vision, the prison still felt dark and lonely without anyone around.

As usual, Zion entered the prison while pushing a cart of food and holding a torchlight in his free hand.

After placing the food near his cell, the seven-year-old sat casually on top of the cart with his chin resting on the palm of his hands.

Since his hands were no longer shackled, Anwir didn't hesitate to grab the food in front of his cell and started to eat.

Usually, Thirteen would already start talking at this point. But this time, he just remained quiet, which unnerved Anwir.

It was like he was having his last supper, and when morning came, he would finally be executed for the crimes that he had committed.

Unable to tolerate the deafening silence anymore, Anwir raised his head and looked at the boy, who was just watching him eat in silence.

"What's wrong?" Anwir asked. "Am I going to be executed?"

"No," Thirteen replied.

"Then why are you so silent?"

"I'm looking at you as much as I can because tomorrow, I will no longer be the one bringing you your food. I have an important mission to do for your father, you see. Someone is planning to send assassins to either kidnap or kill Lady Briella and Cleo, so I need to put a stop to their plans."

Anwir, who was about to take a bite of the bread in his hands, froze after hearing that his adoptive mother and the girl he loved were being targeted by someone.

"Who dares?!" Anwir roared. "Are they mad? They are planning to kidnap or kill the wife and daughter of a General?!"

Thirteen nodded. "Mmm, they are indeed mad. But, this is nothing new. It's just politics. Even Princes fight and kill each other to become the next King. In comparison, the family of a General being targeted because he is part of a different faction is a very normal thing."

Anwir, who thought that the boy was just joking, suddenly felt cold inside.

He knew that the friction between the Radical and Conservative Faction was getting intense as of late, but he never thought that things would escalate this far.

"Who?" Anwir asked coldly.

"What will you do with that information?" Thirteen asked in a teasing tone. "What can you do while being locked up inside that cell? Just continue to eat, so I can leave and meet the team of people who will accompany me to kill the fools who are targeting your mother and sister."

Anwir looked at the bread in his hand before crushing it to pieces. How could he possibly eat knowing that his mother and sister were being targeted by assassins?

"Hey, if I become your slave, will you take me with you?" Anwir asked.

"Take you with me?" Thirteen chuckled. "Why would I do that? It will be best if you just go to the Barbarian Lands and reunite with your little brother, Percival."

"You can take me there too, but only after I have personally killed the people who are targeting my family."

"Oh?"

Thirteen smirked after seeing the determination in Anwir's gaze.

He could genuinely tell that the Tigerkin was serious about becoming his slave, in exchange for allowing him to personally kill the people that wanted to harm his family.

"Anwir, what I am going to do isn't child's play," Thirteen explained. "This isn't a game, where you can join, and quit anytime you want. What I am going to do is shake up the entirety of the Sumatran Kingdom, and conduct things that could have you executed for treason.

"In short, in order to protect your family, you will have to do the dirty work and become a Villain. While your family will stay in the light and keep their good reputation, you will be covered in the blood of their enemies in the darkness, never to gain recognition for your sacrifices."

"I don't care," Anwir growled. "If this is the only way that I can redeem myself, I don't mind killing everyone who wishes to harm my family. As long as you can promise me that this is for the Evander Family, I don't care if I do all the dirty work myself!"

Thirteen didn't say anything and just stared at the Tigerkin, whose eyes were glowing golden in the darkness.

If he were Anwir's System, he would have heard a ringing sound at this point in time, notifying the Tigerkin that he had unlocked a mission or gained a new title that would set him on the path of becoming a First Rate Villain.

An existence that could only be defeated by their Fated Heroes, whom Fate had prepared for them.

But, there was one problem.

The Hero that was supposed to defeat Anwir had become Thirteen's Slave and was being played with on the palm of his hand.

In other words, as long as Thirteen put in a lot of effort, he was confident that he could make the two brothers reconcile, which would make Anwir unstoppable.

And, right now, he needed the power of a Hero and a Villain in order to beat the Third Party, who planned to flip their game of chess upside down.

After a few minutes, Thirteen hopped off the cart and walked away from Anwir's jail cell, leaving the TIgerkin behind.

Anwir thought that the human boy had rejected his request, which made him clench his fists tightly, drawing blood from his palms.

Suddenly, he heard the sound of something metallic falling in the cell in front of him.

"Come out when you're ready."

Thirteen's voice echoed inside the prison.

"We have some assassins to catch."

Anwir didn't hesitate to grab the key on the ground and unlocked the shackles that bound his feet.

He then opened the lock of his cell and walked towards the exit.

The moment he opened the door, he was momentarily blinded by the sunlight that he hadn't seen for a long time.

After his eyes adjusted to the brightness, his gaze then landed on Zion, who had his arms crossed over his chest.

Right behind the boy were Dixon, Armand, Thane, and Alina, whom General Stark had chosen to become the seven-year-

old's manpower.

"Welcome, My Villain," Thirteen said with a devilish smile on his face. "Are you ready to embark on a journey filled with blood and betrayal?"

Anwir snorted before he took a step forward to walk in Zion's direction.

"I already betrayed my family once," Anwir replied. "Now, I want blood. Make sure to keep your promise."

"But of course," Thirteen nodded. "I will give you the blood of your family's enemies, and I guarantee that after this journey of yours ends, you will have redeemed yourself and be recognized as a Hero of your people."

The seven-year-old then took a dagger from his dimensional storage and used it to cut his palm, drawing blood.

He then extended his bloodied hand for a handshake, surprising Anwir, and the rest of the Tigerkins behind him.

Anwir looked at Zion's hand for a few seconds before extending his own hand to shake it.

Among the Tigerkins, the blood oath ritual was the sign of Brotherhood.

There were other ways to do it, but Thirteen chose the simplest and most appropriate method to convince Anwir that, from this moment onwards, the two of them were on the same side.

The Tigerkin raised his right hand, which was still bleeding due to him clenching his fist hard enough to draw blood after he thought that Zion would leave him behind.

With their blood mingling together in a handshake, the two made an oath to become Sworn Brothers, who would never betray each other.

General Stark, Briella, and Cleo watched them from a distance, feeling complicated about how this even turned out to be.

However, Zion had promised them that he would make Anwir atone for his crime and gain their forgiveness, allowing him to redeem himself.

Anwir hoped with every fiber of his being that after his journey was over, he would truly get a second chance to become part of the Evander Family and regain the happiness that he would work hard, once more, to achieve.

This was his path to redemption, and he would not allow anyone, not even the world, to get in his way.