Sark opened his eyes groggily. For some time he felt his whole body aching and tried to find a more comfortable position on the bed to sleep some more.

But as his thoughts went on to the bed, he realized that he didn't have one. He instantly opened his eyes and looked around with increased vigilance.

​​

Only when he looked at Gran and Sia did he calm down.

"Why are you guys here? Who are these people?" He asked them in a low voice as he eyed, the remaining four including Sam and in fact particularly Sam as his cultivation is lowest.

"We are here looking for you."

Gran replied.

"When did a thief got interested in bounty? Particularly in a realm you have no idea about. And it seems like I am right, you both indeed have some relationship."

"Look at the state of you Sark. Where is that pompous brat I saw in my bar?" Sia said jokingly as she poked a wounded area on Sark which barely healed and was still sensitive.

"It seems like you still didn't grow up." Sark said sourly as he rubbed the area and continued.

"Why are you guys here?"

"Didn't I already say, we are here for you. But not for the bounty of course. We are here to recruit you."

"Recruit me? I am sorry. I am not taking any tasks right now."

"This recruitment is not for a single job. It is for a ten to twelve year constant job." This time Sam replied himself.

"Who are you?"

"The person trying to recruit you."

"You?"

"Before you show your blatant disdain, meet your possible colleagues. Five elemental King, the Saber Monarch, Sia & Gran and finally Agar."

Sark looked at Saber Monarch and Five elemental King in a dumbfounded expression before saying.

"How did you guys started working for him, and you Gran., When did you start taking jobs like this? I thought you are going to die in that hole of a planet you call your home and what does a bartender has to do anything with this? No offense. I like your cocktails but is this really a place for you."

Gran silently cook off her cloak and this made Sark look at the twins with a shocked expression. He opened his mouth wide as he looked at them alternatively.

"It is getting creepy Sark. Do you want to hear his proposal?" Sia stopped his actions and asked.

Sark just stayed silent without saying anything. So, Sam continued.

"I will help you with your lover's escape and take you out of this place. You can wear a disguise and follow me and if your wife is as strong as you, she can also come with you, but if you don't want to take her, you can place her in one of the planets I am in charge of.

She would be in safe hands.

I want you to work for me for a decade and if you feel like it, you can stay after that. I will give you the resources that you never dreamed of."

"How can you take us away from this realm?"

"I have my means."

"I am sorry. I cannot trust you without seeing some proof myself. I cannot risk it with my wife."

Sam thought for a moment and sighed before taking the dimensional drifter out. He asked Sark to stand inside and activated it. The next second they are in the property they just came from. Before the surrounding people could notice, Sam used the dimensional drifter once again and took them back to the house.

"Now, can you trust me that I can take you away? As long as you can take use to your wife and all three of us are together, I can take you away."

Sark went into a deep thought and after sometime, he smiled and agreed.

"It is a deal."

But at this moment, Gran moved and placed her knife on his neck surprising everyone. Sam was also stunned but he didn't say anything and just watched.

"Don't play games Sark."

"Gran, what happened? Don't tell me that you are suddenly greedy about bounty."

"No, I am not greedy about bounty, I am vigilant about your smile. That smile of yours is fake. Tell me what you are planning."

Sark became silent and just as he was about to make a move, Sia came to his rear and twisted his arm. You seemed to have forgotten a lot of things you said after you are drunk Sark.

"Whenever you fake a smile, it is because you are scheming something. You said it in your own words. You don't like faking a smile and whenever you do it would be apparent. And you only do that when you are planning something cruel and do that out of nervousness to hide the fact that you are scheming something.

You are not a very good drunk."

Sia said all of this and Sam frowned.

He didn't expect that someone with these traits would be present. Faking a smile only when he is scheming is awfully easy to crack once they knew and letting out the secret while they are drunk, Sam felt like he wasted his time here.

But Gran and Sia vouched for his abilities time and again, so he decided to give it a shot.

"So, what are you scheming?"

"I just wanted to steal that box you used just now and if not possible I would just make you take us separately from the group and once we escaped, I would kill you."

"And why are you revealing that now?"

"As I said, I cannot take chances, if by any chance I might have leaked my behavior when lying while I was drunk, Gran might notice and kill me. I have to stay alive."

"Okay leave him guys. Let him talk." Sam said and took a seat. Soon, Sark started his story and they got the idea.

Sark couldn't take the job at all. He didn't want to. Because his wife is pregnant and he wants to stay with her until delivery and also did not want to leave her and the kid alone in the early stages. That was a promise he made to his wife.

And currently the Azure blood demons don't know their princess is pregnant. But once they knew the trouble would be apparent, so he decided to take Sam's help and escape before his wife's pregnant belly shows and then escape from Sam so that they can live peacefully.

"Love makes people do stupid things. It just like how stupid the drunk people behave. They spill secrets and make idiotic decisions that will bring their doom."

Sam said and looked at the guy before he continued.

"Before this, you are a person that was actually a possible asset to my team who is worth certain risk and I am a rich guy with resources trying to hire you. We have some equal leverage.

Now you are a guy with treacherous mindset and planned to scheme and also a person who does stupid things. Your leverage is gone and mine just got up.

You tell me one thing. If you are in my position, would you recruit someone like you?"

"No."

"Then should I recruit you?"

"No."

"Do you want me to recruit you?"

"I want you to save her."

"Well, there is nothing in it for me, is there?"

"Save her and give me five years, after my kid grew up a bit, I will come work for you. I will kill whom you want to kill and die if you want me to. But please help me now."

"I have a better proposal." Sam said with a smile and after explaining everything, Sark went into a deep thought.

"It is your call. But I assure you. Your cultivation wouldn't stagnate, you, your wife and your child would be able to live in one of the most peaceful places in the world. But before you can do any of that, you have to save her.

While you make your decision which has to be quick because by now the Azure blood demons already confirmed you are staying in the forbidden zone somehow, I would like to inspect this house if you don't mind."

With that Sam started using the observation ability on the house and when he did that on the ground, he could only go as deep as few feet. Because there is something that is obstructing even his observation ability.

He started digging the soil using earth element and removed one layer after another and then finally he saw something.

A transparent barrier is housing a blue liquid under it.

Sam expanded his digging and finally saw some traces. He is actually familiar with the formation that is creating the barrier. In fact, not the formation but rather the style of the formation and when he made his observation ability go past that barrier, he saw something else he was familiar with.

A Heart.