"Based on the votes, except for Hans and a few other groups, the union has unanimously agreed to withhold any conflict with the syndicate," Valentina announced as the grin on her face extended to her cheeks. However, Hans was on the opposite spectrum; his expression darkened, and gritted teeth showed his displeasure with the union's decision.

Hans thought to himself, "Damn it, cowards, if they would not support the fight against the syndicate, I will do it myself," but he kept his composure because he was enjoying the event and could not let his irritation with the decision damage his relationship with union members.

5:30 at the black-marbled conference

That dawn, drinks were shared, and there were dances and conversations. These were a matter of releasing tensions during their careers, and some used this event as a time to create personal alliances and opportunities. Aside from the earlier disagreement, the gathering had been a success.

The members shared some pleasantries. The shipment was a sign of friendship to Hans for willingly joining the union, and the equipment shipment was meant for Hans to build his private army.

However, Hans had a different opinion. He did not see the use of hiding behind his men. He fought for everything he had; everything he had could be accomplished with strength, and if he could not resolve it with strength, it meant he did not have enough strength. Only the weak rationalised their lack of strength with cunning and intelligence.

"Schemes and tricks are nothing in the face of absolute power, and this union was a step to that goal," as he made plans to use the "gifts" for a good purpose.

One by one, they left, all sharing advice with Hans; when it came to the old man's turn, he looked at Hans as he remarked.

"Remember, patience and intellect are facets of power. I hope you make the right choice." The old advised before leaving,

"There are no absolutes, and I remain a fair witness of that fact," murmured the old man under his breath

At this moment, Hans felt that everything he had planned was stripped naked in that man's sight. He found wisdom in his words, but his pride would not allow him to come to terms with it. He remained adamant about his ideals.

Indignation to the wise words was the folly of man.

Valentina observed the changes in Hans's emotions at the far side of the marbled hall. First, it was anger, then pride, acceptance, and finally indignation with a hint of fear, and she came to an understanding that Hans did not want an attack on the syndicate because of the union's consolidation or dominance as he was thinking, it was because;

"He subconsciously feels threatened by Leon and his reputation, and with how close both territories are, his fear has been magnified," Valentina muttered teasingly; the old man lightly nudged her with his walking stick, snapping Valentina out of her trance.

"My dear child, what are you thinking about? "the old man asked with a bright smile. Valentina did not let his facade mislead her. She knew how dangerous this man was. She had investigated his background, yet nothing was peculiar about him; he was too clean, like a phantom with no past. It was as if he popped out of nowhere. While deep in thought, she poured wine for the old man before pouring herself a wine and conversing with him.

The old man accepted the gesture with a smile and savoured the wine.

"Sir Epsilon, greetings. It is an honour meeting you; I was curious about why he was so adamant about the union initiating a full-blown conflict with the syndicate," Valentina gave an answer that was not a lie but not the whole truth.

"Greetings to you, Valentina of the Crimson Moon. You're looking to use him as a measure of the syndicate capabilities, brilliant child; just be careful of entering into a matter that is not meant for you to interfere. Have a great evening, child, "Epsilon humorously remarked as he felt the occasion had come to an end.

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"Thank you for the lesson, sir Epsilon," Valentina replied to the old man. Although she had already taken her stance, she couldn't understand why this old man was so protective of the syndicate.

Sir Epsilon muttered to himself, "It seems that both younguns nowadays pay no heed to an old man's teachings."

After all the pleasantries, talks, and dancing had concluded, Hans made his speech to conclude this grand gathering.

" Thank you, Ladies and Gentlemen; today has been a day of festivity, a day of friendship, and a day of trust and understanding. I devote this day to Avakos, and I pray that thou shall bless this day and guide us to a prosperous future. May our deals be fruitful and journey, and with this, our first union meeting has come to an end," Hans courteously said as he wished each member of the union fair well.

The grand hall fell silent as Hans bid farewell to the last union members, leaving only the soft hum of the building's climate system. Hans stood alone, contemplating his life decisions.

High above the black-marbled conference room, Anastasia and Kaelin crouched in the shadows on the rooftop of an adjacent building. They had witnessed the gathering through highly specialised surveillance equipment; their bodies tensed in anticipation.

Anastasia's fingers danced around the communication device, storing the encrypted information from the meeting; she turned towards Kaelin with a grave expression.

"Fortunately, the union voted against taking action against the syndicate. However, Hans remains adamant about attacking the syndicate; this might prove to be an obstacle to us; we need to send the information to headquarters," Anastasia relayed the encrypted message to Kaelin.

"Our communication is still jammed; we must shut off the dampener. Ready, Kaelin," Anastasia continued.

"Always ready, Lady Anastasia," Kaelin replied with a whisper.

"We have to take them quickly and leave the premises immediately," Anastasia muttered as she quickly ended the life of each guard with a touch of her decaying hand; she targeted the neck regions of her enemies where their skin lay bare, with each touch their flesh surrounding their jugular crumbled as the content with throat spilled out. In response to the way they died, Kaelin instinctively held his neck, as a drop of sweat trickled down his forehead onto the neck, as a passive reminder of how deadly she could be.

"Damn, I wonder what that might feel," Kaelin jokingly remarked.

Kaelin had an easier time with the guards, quickly snapping the necks of the gang members without notice with his rapid movement; with a movement speed of 6000 km/hr, he moved twice as fast as a speeding bullet. They made their way to the roof of the adjacent building, where the dampener was. Upon their arrival, their stamina was mainly depleted due to ability overuse.

Instead of arriving at the sight of elite guards, they came face to face with The Blood Hound, Hans Ridgeback.

"My worries were not based on paranoia. Greetings, guests. What have I done to have the pleasure of meeting you two? You could have knocked, and you would have been let inside," Hans remarked.

"Like anyone is going to believe that bullshit, it's funny how you act so dignified and polite while whining to your parents to help you fight against our boss behind his back; I'm sure if he were here, you would run away with your tail between your legs or lick his boots when there is no place to escape to. Acting like a good dog in front of us when you are just a treacherous, poor mutt with an overinflated ego, "Kaelin kept spilling profanities that ticked off Hans more and more.

Anastasia wondered what Kaelin was doing and was about to stop his action before she realized that Kaelin was creating an opening for her to use her decay touch on Hans because, regardless of his performance at the gathering, he was only rivaled by other heads. Even at their full strength, they could not defeat him, and now that their stamina was deficient, they were as good as dead.

"Don't bother looking for an opening. If it were any other day, I would have killed both of you, but today is a good day; you have delivered your lives to me, and I will make good use of it, loyal even in the face of death. I admire that, but that is where it ends. Nothing more, nothing less," as these words came out of Hans's mouth, they froze and trembled from the bloodlust that he emitted.

Without wasting a second, Anastasia and Kaelin bit their tongues to snap themselves out of the fear they felt; Kaelin drew his gun and shot Hans instinctually. Hans dodged to the left as the bullet grazed his right cheek; this was a deliberate action by Hans to draw out his fear of death, which heightened his five senses. Anastasia took that opportunity to land a hit on him. Immediately as Hans turned his body to intercept Anastasia, Kaelin also took advantage of Hans's lack of footing and attention to give a final blow. Before both attacks could lock in, Hans decided to redirect Kaelin's attack towards Anastasia while leaving Kaelin vulnerable to her touch; this led her palm to land directly on Kaelin's jugular, instantly killing him. Hans took advantage of the shock factor to twist both Anatasia's, leaving her immobilised.

"He spoke profanities like there was no tomorrow, and now he won't get to see tomorrow," Hans jokingly said.

He held her by the hair as she gazed; she looked to anger and fear, yet she was met with absolute apathy; she saw a man who saw all this conflict as a mere squash of ants under his boot. Within the eyes of Hans Ridgeback, only one belief was held within them, and that belief was strength. She now came to the understanding that what made the leaders who they were was their beliefs, and their beliefs were what warped their surroundings. If that was true, what belief did Leon hold, and did all leaders operate on it?

"Lady Anastasia, with your very eyes, you have witnessed the meaninglessness of tricks and schemes."

"Only those with strength can dictate this world; without strength, you are to follow the whims of the strong. Remember, he died because he was weak; if I were to die at the hands of Leon, it was because I was weak, and if he were to die to me, then he too was weak. It is that simple, and that belief is what drives this world," as Hans spoke,

Anastasia tried to refute his statement, but every rebuttal she attempted was knocked down in her mind, and the end product of their confrontation reaffirmed this; she finally understood that his belief had influenced him as she contemplated what had occurred. Hans received a call.

"Thank you very much for alerting me of the intruder; I will hand her over to you as a sign of our friendship. Yes, don't worry; most of the information will erased. Thanks again," replied the unknown caller before declining.

"Lady Anna, it seems someone is genuinely interested in you. Do not worry. I will let Leon know that I killed one of his men and that you are alive," Hans muttered to Anastasia before erasing information about the union and its members, sending the message to challenge Leon after destroying Leon. He then sat beside Lady Anastasia, lit the cigarette, and gazed at the beautiful stars in the lovely night sky, committing them to memory before the battle of life and death commenced.

"Tonight is truly a beautiful night."