The car sped down the bustling street as the brothers headed for Layette Cemetery, located in the Garden District of New Orleans.

New Orleans...A land where the pen weaves dreams into reality, tunes and rhythms moving in tandem or in opposition with each other. A Major city where powerful, wealthy families reside in huge numbers.

Be it the music industry, writing industry or political schemes among the senators, Governors in charge of The States, mayors of towns under the jurisdiction of New Orleans or the city councils in charge of lesser towns. This town had them all.

And on the top of them all stood a revered young man.

'Well being buried there can also be considered to be a fortune for the poor.'

Klaus shook his head with a wry smile.

Five minutes passed by in silence before the car screeched to a halt at the entrance of the cemetery. Layette was one of the oldest graveyards in the city, established in 1830. Its towering, moss-covered statues loomed like ancient sentinels, guarding the entrance to long lost forgotten secrets.

Just like Xavier had said previously, it was nothing more than a five-minute journey.

They both alighted from the car. After Klaus brought out the salt. Without a word, Xavier vanished into the dark, returning minutes later with petrol in hand.

Already having taken the necessary equipment, ranging from petrol to a lighter, shovels, guns, and salt in hand. They walked into the cemetery. The surroundings were gloomy, and the oppressive atmosphere drenched the entire space in a weird, chilling coldness. It was like stepping into the abyss, except for the fact that this abyss was frigid as fuck... Frigid in a spiritual sense of course.

As they ventured deeper into the graveyard. The oppressive atmosphere of the cemetery swallowed them whole. A chilling coldness wrapped around them- not the kind of cold that cut through the skin but one that gnawed at the edges of the soul.

The golden sun, pale and weak, barely illuminating the path ahead.

Klaus swore under his breath; the weight of the equipment made each step heavier than the last.

After a couple of minutes of walking past various graveyards, their legs were already showing signs of wearing out, and their body already feeling the slight aches of holding so much equipment whilst walking around, looking for a single corpse amongst thousands of other corpses.

Who knows when we will find it? Xavier let out a sharp exhalation, he was about to take one more step when the corner of his eyes caught a glimpse of a name... Sarah Margarine.

His mind easily raced, as he swept through his subconsciousness. He soon remembered where he had seen the name, it was in the reports the school had on the cursed spirit!

He was about to call out to Klaus. But Klaus had already arrived right beside him; he dropped down the other equipment before getting to digging with the shovel in hand.

Xavier also joined in the fray. The shovel scooped out loads of sand and debris one after the other.

Time seemed to slow down as they unearthed the casket, the chiming sound of wood hitting metal sending a chill through Xavier's spine.

Klaus pried the lid open, and a wave of rancid air hit them- an oppressive stench, a pungent bad odor, stale and suffocating.

It was akin to a formless wave, it easily went past them, spreading wide and far, causing Xavier's mouth to twitch.

"Just as smelly as usual."

He muttered before shifting his gaze towards the casket's inner parts.

The corpse inside was little more than bones, with patches of decaying skin clinging stubbornly to the remains.

She died just twenty years ago. So it makes sense that her bones haven't dried up completely. The dried-up bones before him.

Xavier thought, a grim expression settling on his face. He could only hope that she makes it to the so-called Heaven in "HIS BOOK." That's if it even exists in the first place anyway. Sighing internally, he stared at the corpse for a couple of seconds before shaking his head, a light exhalation escaping his lips.

A solemn expression slowly crept up his face as he sprinkled the salt all over the body, while Klaus doused it with petrol. A flick of the match and flames violently roared to life, vehemently engulfing the corpse in a fiery blaze, determined to erase such monstrosity from the surface of the world.

The heat was intense and blazing hot, but Xavier's focus was elsewhere. He could feel it- a subtle pair of eyes filled with negative primal emotions seemed to linger on him for a few seconds. A subtle shift in the air, a faint tug at the edges of his consciousness.

When the flames died down, there was nothing left but ash...

Still staring at the ashes that floated across the space as the wind blew about violently. He wondered and pondered on what this could truly be called. He had no idea why he was even doing this in the first place.

But it didn't take him long to realize the perfect word to describe this state.

"Nothingness." He muttered grimly.

Xavier felt a slight subtle elevation in his spiritual level, it was almost like he had grabbed onto something. But yet was miles if not light years away.

Glancing at how everything, be it the body to the bones to the ashes had been reduced to Nothingness. He couldn't help but remember a famous saying in most if not all, cultivation novels back in his world.

At the end of it all... All things will eventually return to Nothingness.

He sighed inwardly before both brothers breathed a sigh of relief, especially Xavier who was happy that nothing went wrong.

But the relief was short-lived.

Footsteps echoed across the space.

TAAAP!!

Quick and urgent.

Before they could react, a voice barked from within the shadows.

"You both move one more step, and I am going to fucking drill a hole through your skulls!" Their heartbeat suddenly went into a frenzied state; blood rushed at an incredulous pace whilst the flow of blood switched states almost instantly, going from beating insanely fast to skipping a beat every once in a while.

Their mind easily raced for a way out. Xavier's face had turned grim a long time ago.

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They were only trying to help. How had they end up becoming the criminals.

Almost as though they had reached an invisible tacit understanding, they both turned backward.

Appearing right before them, within their line of sight, was a man who was probably in his late forties, had a slightly muscular build with both hands of his pointing the rifle right at them. They had no misconceptions about it. If they dared to move, he definitely wouldn't hesitate to... Shoot!

And being mere humans...their death were more than certain the moment the man decides to pull the trigger.

The man's hand gripped onto the gun even more tightly, "How dare you desecrate a corpse whilst this young man is on guard!"

"Ehn?" Klaus thought he had heard wrong.

But the man didn't seem to care less. His expression turning frigid cold.

"Both of you, get down on your knees, right now!"

Xavier's grim expression slowly turned into something else. With a sharp exhalation, a symbol of authority flared to life.

A cold expression slowly crept up his face, "I am Detective Hollerein. And this here is my partner, Detective Zander."

He paused for a second, seeing that the man's gaze had returned to an amiable look with a tinge of wariness. He calmly added, "We got a report from our superiors informing us that the corpse has been infected with a strange virus. Hence we were given an order to burn the corpse and prevent the spread of the deadly virus."

Uh- "Oh," The man's brow got slightly raised, a scrutinizing gaze enveloping his face. All that they had said did seem possible, yet he felt like something was wrong somewhere. But he just couldn't place his hands on what it was.

Well... Who am I to stop an agent of the law? That's a punishable offense under the law of the universal states. And he didn't plan to spend a few years in jail: well thirty to be precise especially when he still had so many clubs to visit before the fabled death comes to take him away. Sighing inwardly, his mind racing with thoughts.

He could still remember...the scene felt just like yesterday. Three years ago, the doctor had told him that he was suffering from cancero already in the fifth stage and unless some miracle occured he was going to die in the next three to four years.

Xavier and Klaus who didn't know what was going on in the man's mind, could only walk faster. Within the blink of an eye, they disappeared from the man's light of sight.

By the time he looked around for the weird detectives... They were already gone. He shook his head, a light exhalation escaping his lips before he proceeded with his duty.

Both brothers had gotten into the car. Klaus let out a light chuckle after starting the car engines. Xavier had a light smile creeping up his face whilst he chuckled inwardly at the recent incident. The car easily sped past multiple buildings, malls, shops, and so on. Being one of the most powerful Major cities under the jurisdiction of two senates. The town could be said to be a walking legend of industrialization.

Bordered by Lake Antanze; New Orleans was a town that delved greatly into the art of fishery. Highly valued resources like Aetrium used to power up cars, machines and so much more are also produced in New Orleans including a lot of farm related stocks such as greans, weans and so much more.

Twenty minutes later, Klaus's car screeched to a halt.

Arriving before the house of Tulane's descendant, they alighted from the car before approaching the blue-colored building.

The golden sun illuminating the path before them, endless shadows far away from the "holy" rays.

Ringing the doorbell, a woman who seemed to be in her early thirties with brown hair and brown eyes soon appeared in their line of sight.

She had a narrowed brow, opening the door halfway through, "What can I do for you?"

Xavier had a light amiable smile creeping up his face.

"Nothing really much. We just have a few questions for your husband."

He paused for a second, bringing out his badge, which he now saw as a lucky savior before he added, "I am Detective Hollerein, and this is my partner, Detective Zander."

Her expression turned solemn almost immediately.

"Did he commit a crime?" She asked hurriedly.

Xavier forced a smile on his face, "Well, not really, ma."

Well except if we are to consider the heinous deed of his twenty years ago. If not, the records on him seem pretty clean. Or perhaps his family had covered all of his bad deeds.

After all, the Tulane family are one of the families to have produced many ground-breaking geniuses of the literary industry.

Xavier's mouth twitched slightly, while he lampooned inwardly.

Klaus let out a dry cough, "So, can we now meet with your husband?"

She forced a smile on her face, "Sorry but you won't be able to see him."

She paused for a second, gathering her thoughts before she added, "He's currently out on a business trip and supposedly won't be coming back anytime soon."

Hmm... Something is definitely off. Klaus's brows got narrowed as he assessed the lady's demeanor with a scrutinizing gaze.

The hands behind her are slightly sweaty; her voice were quivering a little when she said that and she was finding it slightly hard to say those words. There were so many more reasons for him to find fault with her words or, better still... Lies. He harrumphed coldly, inwardly.

Xavier's mouth slightly twitched, "You don't have to worry Ma. We are simply here to help.

"We suspect that his life is in danger." He added with a solemn expression.

Seeing that he had succeeded in gaining the lady's attention, he continued, "According to reports and from our investigation. It's safe to assume that an old friend is out for blood. And the people killed by said person just happen to be close friends of your husband. Hence we have reasons to believe that your husband is next on his list."

Klaus had a light smile creeping up his face before he chuckled inwardly "Well haven't you heard of the saying, Leave the best for the last."

"Who knows? Perhaps your husband was a bully back in the day."

The lady shook her head, her hand hidden behind the door tightly clenched.

"No-Hander would never raise his hands on anyone," She was quiet for a few seconds before she added, "He can't even kill a fowl."

Klaus let out a light chuckle, about to continue with his dark humor before being stepped on by Xavier, who gave him a stern expression.

Klaus simply shakes his head, a wry smile adorning his face.

Xavier nods his head at the lady, "Okay, Ma. I just hope you can get him to come back home faster."

He paused for a second before he added, "The faster he gets back home. The better it's for all of us."

A tensed voice suddenly reverberated outward, cutting short the lady's voice, "You agents can enter."

Just as I thought. Not surprised at all, Klaus chuckled inwardly whilst a light smile slowly crept up his face.

The lady opened the door for them before they both walked in. Moving towards a room where a man who appeared to be in his late thirties sat down on a chair. He brought his hand forward, "I am Tulane Hander."

He paused for a second before adding softly, "It's nice meeting you detectives."

Xavier forced a smile, "The pleasure is ours."

Klaus slowly walked towards Hander, a light whisper ringing into his ears, "If it isn't the high and mighty rapist."

Hander's expression slowly turned grim, he wanted to move back immediately. But it felt as though his legs were stuck on the spot. Feeble and shaky. That was what he could use to describe the feeling his legs currently gave off.

How do they know about it. The first thought that came to his mind was to outrightly deny it, but judging by how things had escalated to such heights and how his friends were being killed one after the other.

He knew he would simply be holding onto a straw of hope. He sighed inwardly, his expression slowly turned calm. He turned to look at his wife.

"Mary, take the kids to school."

Mary had a wary look on her face. Why had her husband suddenly reacted weirdly after the whisper from the detective, and why had he decided to send her away? So many thoughts ran through her mind within that split second.

But she knew the nature of her husband's family and why he had distant himself away from them.

Perhaps they came from his family.

She forced a smile on her face, "Um- Are you sure?"

Hander's expression turned cold as he glared at her, "Do I need to repeat myself!"

She shook her head, biting onto her lower lips before heading for a room where two kids could be seen playing on the bed.

One of the daughters, who seems to be of age five, questioned, "Mum. Who are those people?"

Mary forced a smile, "They are dad's friend." She carried one in her arms then held onto the other before they moved out of the house as she took them to school.

Inside the room....

Hander had a solemn, grim expression slowly creeping up his face, "So it's just as I guessed,"

He paused for a second before he added after a deep sigh, "Fenar is the one going after us."

A few seconds easily passed by whilst the room was enveloped in a mind wrenching silence.

Hander finally spoke up, "Alright," a calm expression slowly crept up his face, "I don't assume you came here just to mock me. So... What do I have to do?"

Xavier had a light smile adorning his face, "We will indeed save your life.

"But...

Each second felt like an eternity in a mind-wrenching silence.

And Xavier seemed to be doing that on purpose. Well at least that was what Hander thought.

"On one condition." Xavier's voice broke the tension after a few seconds that felt like an endless eternity to Hander.

Hander's brow got narrowed, his heartbeat pacing abnormally fast. His hands slightly sweaty with his body suddenly heating up.

Not knowing what the detectives might be after. He could only hope that it wasn't anything too outrageous.

After a few seconds, he finally voiced out his restrained thoughts.

"And that being?"