The Messenger of Death

"2 green HD-ECs, we can't possibly get that huge amount of ECs for you. The reward for the mission wouldn't even worth half of that amount." Katherine fumed at the ridiculous price.

"Camron, isn't she, your sister? I mean you called her sis and she called you little brother." Drake asked trying to confirm.

"Haha, yeah she is."

"Then talk to her, that amount is just outrageous." Drake urged.

"Well, I don't think that would change anything. She has her reasons." He said in reply to Drake.

"To you that amount is outrageous," Sara flashed a warm smile at Drake. "Alex, is that an outrageous price to you?"

Alex smirked at her. "It's a deal then. Here are the ECs." He brought out the 2 green HD-ECs and handed it to her.

They all gasped when they saw what Alex had brought out the green energy crystal.

"I knew that he was rich after seeing the suite he stays in, but I didn't think that it was to this extent that he has no regard for green ECs," Drake whispered.

"You have no idea how much that suite cost do you? If you did you would know that this means nothing to Alex." Camron boasted of his friend's wealth to Drake.

Drake and the remaining three looked at Alex with a little more respect now.

Sara's smile couldn't help but get wider when she laid her eyes on the energy crystals. She quickly collected it and kept it in her storage pouch. "I think I just started falling for you, Alex." She joked.

['More like falling for my money.'] Al blurted.

"That wouldn't be necessary. When are we going to start the mission?" Alex questioned, he was very eager to earn MP.

"We can head out tomorrow. The time limit for the mission is 2 weeks after we start, you can go back and prepare the needful."

"Sara!" Right after Sara said that she heard her name being called. She looked behind her and saw that it was a friend and a teammate of hers. "Amelia! Over here." Sara called back in reply.

Her friend Amelie was also a red badge student, she had short-dirty blonde hair that stopped just below her earlobes, a heart-shaped face, and petite stature. Behind Amelia was a guy in a red uniform.

"I've found another team to join us for the mission." She steps aside. "This Lenny, the captain of the Aegis team." Amelia introduced. Lenny is a tall guy standing at the height of 6'1", with tanned skin, blue hair, and muscular stature.

"Hello, I'm Lenny." He smiles and stretched his hand out for a handshake. Sara smiled at him and gave him a polite nod. "Sorry I am not keen on shaking people's hand, forgive my rudeness." She said.

"No that's not a problem," Lenny said.

"But we just paid for the spot." Emma voiced out.

"Paid for what spot?" Amelia asked. "We paid for the spot to accompany your group for the mission." She completed.

"You guys did?" Amelia looked at them, then she turned her attention to Sara and saw her smiling. "Where is the rest of your team then?" Amelia inquired.

"This is everyone in my team," Emma answered. "Seriously just you guys? Sara, is this a joke?" Amelia wondered if her friend had scammed these people.

"No, it's not a joke." Sara chuckled. "They paid for the spot. Amelia meet my little brother, Camron, and his teammates."

"Oh, your little brother?" She looked at Camron "Hello." She said shortly.

"I know that he's family but that doesn't mean you can be biased about this," Amelia said to her friend.

"Biased? Haha, no. I did nothing of such, they paid for a spot."

"How much?"

"A green HD-EC." Sara's response stunned Amelia. "You are not trying to trick me are you?" Sara brought out one of the green ECs that she collected from Alex and showed it to Amelia.

"Wow. Where did you get that from?"

"As I said, they paid for a spot."

"Them? Who in the hell will pay that much for a spot, I don't believe that they can afford this." She refused to believe.

"Whether you believe or not doesn't concern us, we have already paid for it. Or do you plan on giving us a refund?"

"No, no there's no need to go that far. You have already paid and you would get what you paid for. Your team, mine, and his can all go on the mission together. The limit of participants for the mission is 32." Sara assured everyone.

"And also, how are there 2 red badges in a team? I thought it was one per team and done at random."

"There are ways to get what you want." Sara winked at him.

"And who are you?" Amelia glared at Alex, the way he interrupted and dismissed her previously got to her.

"An orange badge student talking to me with no respect, don't you know what hierarchy is?"

"Oh, I do. It's that word that people love to shove up their ass, just to make them feel that they are above others. I heard that it helps them sleep better at night." Alex replied rudely once more.

Hierarchy was one of the things that Alex hated. He has been in the lowest part of a hierarchy system in society when he was still a dweller in the slums of Mars, searching for food or water day and night. Those who were more fortunate than he was called him a tramp and treated him like he didn't deserve to live.

"You tramp, do you have a death wish?" Amelia cursed.

"Call me a tramp one more time and I will make that wish come true." Alex looked angry. The tramp word had triggered him.

['Calm down, Alex. Why do you still keep on picking fights with people that you can't beat? Have you lost all sense of reason?'] Xander spoke up.

['She's a late-stage disaster realm cultivator for goodness sake. That's way above your level, are you craving a beating?'] Al added.

Indeed what Alex had done was foolish. He isn't used to being on the weaker side. Since the day he followed Kain and left the slums of Mars, he had always been on the stronger side. He didn't know how to back down.

"Really, Tra… Mmm!" Amelia was interrupted by Sara. She used her hand to cover her mouth. "I would advise you not to do that Amelia." She cautioned her friend with a serious look on her face.

"Okay let's all head back and get ready for tomorrow. We'll meet here tomorrow morning." Sara left and dragged Amelia away.

"Well, I will see you fun bunch tomorrow then." Lenny bade them goodbye and left.

Alex didn't say anything, he just turned around and left for the guest inn. The rest of his teammate followed him.

He didn't notice that they all followed him back to the inn till he stepped into his suite. "Why are you all here?"

"Well, I live here too," Camron replied.

"I know that you stay here too, I wasn't asking you retard. I was asking them." He pointed at his other teammates.

"We still haven't received what we were promised, the ECs." Adrian pointed out. Alex wasted no time in bringing out 20 blue LD-ECs and handed it to Adrian and Emma.

After that, he went into his room, without saying anything else.

"Hey, what about us? How come they get ECs and we don't?" Drake complained to Camron.

"I promised that they would be given ECs if they joined the team," Camron explained.

"Damn it. I want energy crystals for joining the team too, promise that too." Drake cursed.

"But you came to me willingly, you don't get to make a request like that. Besides, Alex doesn't like you at the moment. You just have to wait till you get on his good side before I can make a promise like that."

He looked at Katherine. "Don't tell me that you also want a promise like that."

"No, I'm good. He's my ideal type."

Katherine's reply got everyone worried about her condition. "Are you certain that you are not going to have yourself checked in at the infirmary?" Emma asked.

"No, Why? I'm alright."

"We don't think so. You fought with him and after getting your head used as a punching bag you suddenly fall in love with him? That doesn't sound normal to anyone." Adrian spoke up.

"You guys wouldn't understand even if I explained it to you." Katherine defended.

"But he already rejected you," Adrian added.

"He didn't, he only said that he wasn't ready for a relationship." She snapped.

"Alright, I'll step off your porch." Adrian chose to back away.

"Everyone should go and get ready for tomorrow, make sure that you get enough rest. We are going to be running a till we reach the Agelong forest. It's a bit far from the school." Camron advised.

...

Alex was sitting on the ground, next to his bed. For some reason unknown to him he was feeling homesick. His argument with Amelia only made it clearer to him that he had bad social skills that he needed to fix. It also made it clear to him that he didn't know how to back down, even if it might cost him his life.

['Alex, go to sleep. Tomorrow might be a stressful day, so you need every energy you have.'] Lex mentioned. He did as his Alter said and laid on the ground.