Death to Power
Copyright© 2025 by TheSmartOne
Chapter 51: Wide beautiful smile
After his little transformation, Kaden did exactly what he said he would.
He went straight to the Tycoon’s Merchants without wasting another second—his only goal was to find a mission where he could die beautifully.
And by beautifully, of course, he meant acquiring a new and interesting Fragment.
So, upon arrival, he walked directly to the mission board. Unsurprisingly, the missions were sorted by difficulty.
But these weren’t arbitrary rankings—they were tied to the standard path every awakened being, in either world, had to walk if they wished to evolve someday.
Meaning:
Awakened, Intermediate, and Master.
There were higher ranks—Grandmaster, and maybe even beyond—but Kaden didn’t see any mission of that level on the board. And honestly?
He didn’t care.
Because Master-level alone would be more than enough to kill him a hundred times over.
So Grandmaster?
‘Forget about it.’ Kaden thought, before focusing again on the list in front of him.
He was deeply concentrated. Zoned in. Completely ignoring everything happening around him.
And after a few minutes of combing through the board, Kaden finally found a mission.
A weird one, sure—but one that sparked his interest immediately.
[Mission: Bring one of the hands of the Dreadthorn Bear.]
[Difficulty: Intermediate ~ Master]
[Reward: One artifact forged by the Forger Blacksmith Smith. Additional rewards possible if you bring the entire body.]
[Time limit: One month]
Kaden read through the mission slowly, taking in every word.
Not because of the target. Not even because of the time limit.
But because of the reward.
A Forger blacksmith.
That title wasn’t some fancy name—it was a realm. A level of craftsmanship that very few blacksmiths ever achieved in their lifetime.
To get one of their artifacts...
‘I can’t pass this up.’ Kaden thought firmly.
But even as he resolved to take it, a question lingered in the back of his mind—
Why hadn’t anyone else taken this mission?
He didn’t get the time to think further.
Because suddenly, instinct flared in his chest.
Someone was staring at him.
Hard.
He snapped out of his focused state, perception expanding outward—and immediately, his expression shifted into a deep frown.
There were many gazes on him. But that wasn’t what unsettled him.
What bothered him...
Was one particular gaze.
He turned his head.
And his blood-red eyes locked onto a pair of radiant silver ones.
‘No way in hell...?’
“Kaden! I’ve missed you so much!”
Meris’s voice echoed through the entire hall—loud, clear, and unashamed.
Everyone froze.
Every single person turned to look at Kaden, as if only just realizing he was there at all. And their eyes widened further at Meris’s declaration.
“Am I dreaming?” one guy muttered, stunned.
“Who the hell is he...? How can the purple-haired goddess talk to him like that?” another whispered.
The hall buzzed instantly, whispers rippling in every direction. Everyone wanted to know—who was this red-eyed stranger who knew the Elamin heiress?
Even Lisa, standing behind her desk, was shocked.
Her brown eyes flicked between Meris and Kaden with disbelief.
She couldn’t believe that the young mistress of the Elamin clan knew that guy.
At first, Lisa felt a pang of intimidation.
But quickly ... that emotion morphed.
‘He’s a big fish,’ she thought, almost trembling with excitement.
If Meris knew him and spoke like that to him—then Kaden wasn’t just anyone.
And that meant one thing for Lisa,
She had to get close to him.
But Kaden didn’t care about any of that.
His focus was now completely locked onto one person.
Kenan.
The heat in the room was rising. Subtle, nearly imperceptible—but not to Kaden. His perception caught it all. And with one look into Kenan’s dark eyes, he knew—
Trouble.
It was written all over him.
And then, just to make things worse—