However, Zeke stopped them before they could leave. “What will you guys do from now on? Will you keep serving me, or will you go back to lead the life of a civilian? You can live peacefully, perhaps even get married and have some kids of your own.”
Sawyer and his brothers answered with determination, “We shall serve you, sir. We'll gladly keep being your spies.”
Zeke smiled. “Very good. However, it is impossible for any of you to be spies anymore now that you are all exposed. From now on, you'll serve the northern division. Once the matter with the ministry is handled, you and the other spies shall return to the frontlines and fight the enemies head-on.”
Sawyer and the others were excited that they could finally work as full-fledged soldiers. “Yes, sir!” they answered.
Joining the ranks of the northern division was their biggest dream all this time. Now that it was finally fulfilled, it was natural that they would be buzzing with excitement.
Zeke gave another order. “Tell the spies to search every corner and every inch of the ministry. Leave no stone unturned. If they find anyone or anything suspicious, tell them to come to me.”
“Yes, sir!”
Ares and the others went to join the search as well, while Zeke took his family to the playground in the ministry's backyard. It was a huge place and had enough facilities to rival a small amusement park. Thanks to that, Missy had a great time with her family there.
Zeke was smiling warmly, but in reality, he was starting to get worried. I wonder if the head of the ministry will actually come out after I execute his family. But there's a bigger problem here. He's a Buddhist, but still, he colludes with the underworld. Was this his personal action, or did the top dogs in the religion tell him to do so?
If the latter is true, it'd be a big problem for all of us. Buddhism has existed in Eurasia for millennia now. They have a lot of believers and powerful martial artists working for them. If the rumors are true, they even have some ancient fighters dwelling in their sacred mountain. If the head of the ministry has the power of Buddhism backing him up, there'd be a bloodbath here.
Half an hour later, Sole Wolf trotted back to Zeke. He had something to say, but when he saw that Zeke was spending some quality time with his family, he hesitated. I shouldn't bother him right now. After all, my boss' happiness is more important than what I have to say. With that thought in mind, he left Zeke to his family.
Zeke noticed him, of course, but since Missy looked so happy at the moment, he didn't tell Sole Wolf to report the situation to him. After all, he didn't want to ruin Missy's fun with work.
Lacey noticed that as well, so she said, “Zeke, you can get back to work if you want. Sole Wolf looked like he had something important to tell you.”
Zeke shook his head with a smile. “It's fine. He can handle it himself. He doesn't need my help. Besides, it's not every day I get to see Missy. I should spend more time with her today.”
Lacey chuckled. “All right, Zeke. You can cut that out now. Get back to work. I know you're wondering what Sole Wolf has to say. It'll be hard for you to spend any time with us if you're in this state. Besides, you'll have to keep everybody safe first. That's the only way you can keep us safe. You can't let the nation down just because of us.”
Zeke gave it some thought, then he reluctantly said, “I see. Very well then.” He patted Missy's shoulder. “I'll have to go to work now, Missy. But I'll be back in a second. Be good until then.”
Missy nodded in understanding. “Okay, Daddy. You go do your stuff. Oh, and Daddy? Can we have KFC tonight? I want their chicken burger.”
“Sure we can, sweetie,” Zeke agreed to it immediately before leaving. It didn't take long for him to locate Sole Wolf, and the moment he did, Sole Wolf came up to him.
“Zeke, you can stay with Missy if you want. It's nothing important, I swear,” he lied. “You can handle this tomorrow. Or I can handle it myself if you'd like. It's not every day they get to spend some quality time with you, after all. You should go back to them, Zeke.”
Zeke waved him down. “It's all right, Sole Wolf. What's the situation? Tell me everything.”
Sole Wolf took out a bronze dragon badge carefully from his pocket and handed it over to Zeke. “Zeke, we found someone in a hidden underground dungeon. This badge you see here belongs to him.”
When Zeke saw the dragon badge, he got visibly excited, as if he finally found something important. Finally. I found him. After all this time!
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