X-MEN- CH-71. Can I hold her?

"Let's go."

As the two left the cubicle, they were stopped by an alien with a righteous demeanor.

"Wait, friend."

Martin and Raven stopped and looked at the man. He had pale skin, a strong jaw, and was dressed in a combat uniform. In movies, people with this image were usually the good guys.

"What's up?" Martin asked.

"It looks like this is your first time here, right?" The man said, "Let me introduce myself. My name is Fate, and I've been working in the mercenary industry for years. Every year, many newcomers like yourselves lose their lives because they don't understand the dangers of the missions."

"Okay, so?"

Fate continued, "When you're new to the industry, you should find an experienced guide to help you avoid mistakes." He called over two other men and introduced them, "These are people I've helped before. Now, like me, they're helping others in places like this."

"Yeah, yeah." The two men nodded in agreement, big smiles on their faces, though their expressions seemed a bit too forced, showcasing their racial talents.

"But... what's your real purpose in doing this?" Martin asked, puzzled.

"Connections, brother. In our line of work, connections are everything." Fate replied smoothly, "If you don't mind, could you tell me which mission you've accepted? Oh, don't get me wrong—I basically know all the missions here. I just want to offer some advice."

Martin, showing a bit of interest, said, "Unfortunately, I haven't accepted any mission yet. There's nothing that really caught my eye."

"Oh? What kind of mission are you looking for?"

Martin's face lit up, "I'm after missions that involve combat—nothing too complicated, but with plenty of action. I've been given the best all my life... Oh, sorry."

Fate's eyes sparkled as he remained calm. "Well, there are very few missions like that... Although, we do have such a mission. But, as a newcomer, it might be best if you don't take it."

"What? You have one?" Martin exclaimed. "Please take us along! I don't even need the reward. You know..." He leaned in, whispering to Fate while Raven tried not to laugh. "After inheriting my family's fortune, I'm not short on money. What I need is excitement. If you take me with you, I won't forget it. I swear."

Martin finished with a solemn fist, looking at Fate expectantly.

"No, no... I don't want your money. I just want to be friends." Fate said, hesitating as if torn.

The two men behind him exchanged winks, though quickly put on wide smiles when Raven's eyes fell on them. Their ability to switch expressions was faster than most professional actors.

"...Alright, I'll take you with me." Fate said, as though making a difficult decision, "But you must listen to me."

"Okay."

"During the battle, stay behind us. Follow our lead in case of danger."

"Got it."

Fate kindly shared his experiences, seemingly for Martin's own good. Martin accepted his advice humbly.

"Follow me." Fate instructed, leading Martin out of the hall.

On the way to their destination, Fate kept probing Martin for information. It came out that Martin was a noble from a small, unknown planet and had inherited wealth after the passing of his elders. When Martin didn't know something, he brushed it off as never having dealt with outsiders before.

But for Fate, this was more than enough—Martin had confirmed that he was rich!

---

"Get on your spaceship and follow me. We'll meet at the rendezvous point." Fate said at the spaceship port.

"Alright."

By now, Martin and Fate had exchanged information. Fate's team had a large battleship docked in space, and he and his companions had come here to purchase resources. After making their purchases, they had visited the mission hall to see if anyone needed help—where they had encountered Martin.

Fate wanted to see Martin's ship, and as they arrived at a not-so-expensive spacecraft, Martin proudly said it was his coming-of-age gift. Though not the best ship, it was his favorite.

After Fate provided Martin with the information about his spaceship, he left with his companions. He intended to make preparations and keep an eye on the ship in case Martin discovered anything and tried to escape.

"Honey, they're obviously liars."

"I know. Do you think I'm that stupid?" Martin replied, "There are only a few good mercenaries out there. This trick only works on fools. But with their strength, they can only fool fools... right?"

"Hiss… Are there really that many fools in the universe?"

Martin's spaceship was soaring through space when he noticed a massive black super battleship ahead. Although this battleship wasn't as large as Yondu's, it still surprised Martin.

For a group of scammers, where would they get the money for such a ship? They must be lying, but who would fall for such an obvious trick? Has technology advanced so much that people's brains have regressed?

To make the situation more convincing, the battleship was spotless, without a single flaw.

"Congratulations, you're about to be rich." Martin said, smiling.

"No, dear." Raven replied with a grin, "We are about to be rich."

"Hahaha…"

Following the instructions they received, Martin flew his spaceship into a side entrance of the battleship and docked it. The two smiled at each other before leaving their ship and entering the battleship.

The hangar wasn't large. In addition to their Magic Shape, there were two other spaceships parked inside: one was the manned ship that Fate had arrived in, and the other was a cargo ship.

Ignoring the dozen or so armed men waiting outside, Martin gazed at his "trophies" with satisfaction.

"Mr. Horn, you've been kidnapped. Please contact your family…" Fate approached them with a cheerful smile, his expression bright and sunny.

"No, no, no. It's you who've been kidnapped…" Martin smiled as he sensed the people aboard the battleship. In addition to those present, there were dozens of others scattered about, busy with their tasks. In one part of the ship, which seemed to be the prison, several individuals were being held captive.

A portal appeared behind everyone, enveloping them and whisking them away. Martin, Raven, and Fate found themselves in the battleship's command cabin, from which they could observe everything outside.

Fate, panicking, looked at Martin's smiling face and realized this was all his doing. He quickly tried to recover his composure, "I… I was just joking."

Martin didn't respond, his attention fixed on the scene outside. Fate followed his gaze and saw his crew floating in space, their bodies slowly expanding… until they exploded into red light and then turned to ashes.

The sight of hundreds of humanoid creatures exploding was truly a spectacle.

"Mr. Fate…" Martin turned to face him, smiling, "This is a robbery. Hand over everything you have."

"Okay, don't kill me. I…" Fate began to beg in fear, but then he felt an unbearable heat. Looking down at his body, he realized he was burning, "No! You won't get anything if you kill me!"

"Hehe…"

"Ahhhhh!"

Fate screamed as his body was reduced to ashes, leaving nothing behind.

"I was just saying." Martin shrugged. There was no need to keep him alive when he could get everything he needed from Fate's memories.

To avoid any mistakes, Martin had already read Fate's mind beforehand and confirmed that he was the leader of the group. A leader like him wasn't worth sparing.

After sharing Fate's memories with Raven, including information about their newfound "property," Raven didn't seem surprised. She simply asked, "So, do we still need to complete the bounty?"

"Why not?" Martin replied nonchalantly, "We do this for the experience, not for the money. It's just money…"

"Yeah… that's true."

Despite his immense power, Martin still saw himself as an ordinary person. Money didn't matter much in his world anymore—life did. Conquering the world, conquering the universe… was that even necessary?

What would come after conquering everything?

To Martin, living happily with his wives and future children was what truly mattered. While he didn't have children yet, he had several wives, and that was enough.

No grand ambitions. In the past, he made money to survive. Now, he made money to live.

Hmm… those two things didn't seem that different. But anyone who understands, understands (*^▽^*).

Martin's attention shifted to the corner of the room, where several captives were standing, looking at him and Raven in fear.

There seemed to be three distinct groups among them. The most eye-catching were a man and a woman dressed entirely in gold, even their pupils gleamed with the same golden hue. Although they were visibly scared, they still tried to maintain their image, despite their shaking legs.

Another group consisted of two men in matching uniforms, though the words on their attire were unfamiliar to Martin.

The last group was a woman and a little girl, about five or six years old, both with pink skin. They were wearing white dresses, and their foreheads were marked with what seemed to be natural lines. The little girl was hiding behind the woman, blinking her large eyes fearfully at Martin.

"You saw it yourselves. They kidnapped me first." Martin said innocently.

"Yes, sir." One of the uniformed men quickly replied.

Martin's eyes were drawn to the little girl. She was adorable.

Raven thought so too. If they ever had a daughter like this, she'd probably wake up laughing from the joy of it.

Not having children was their biggest regret so far.

The little girl had short pink hair, matching her skin tone, and big eyes that blinked in curiosity. Seeing that Martin wasn't as frightening as she first thought, she gradually came out from behind her mother and stared at him with interest.

"Is she your daughter?" Raven asked the woman.

The woman nodded quietly, shielding the little girl with her hand.

"Can I hold her?" Raven asked gently.

The woman glanced at the two men in uniform with concern but remained silent.

"Don't worry." Martin assured her, "We have no quarrel with you. Why would we hurt you?"

Seeing that the two of them weren't accusing Martin of anything, the others in the group visibly relaxed.

Raven approached the little girl, smiling warmly, "Don't be scared. We're not bad people. Can Auntie give you a hug?"

The little girl looked up at her mother, who nodded. Then, with surprising boldness, the child allowed Raven to pick her up.

With a soft smile, Raven cradled her in her arms, "You're so cute. What's your name, sweetie?"

____________

A huge thanks to William Reid, Luck George, Osman Gomez, David Aderoju, Wesely_Teixeira, reso60 gomes, Kieron Haydon, thunderwalker123, Romel Rivera, Cesar Montemayor , Victor Perez, Devor, Imen, LazyAsh, Joe Thigpen, Ding dong, Mightyowl1767, Emilio Gonzalez, Nathan Hill, Alexis vasquez, Luca, tsuko leelane, Osiel, Matt, A, ParallaxDawn, Marick Mendoza , Philippe Techer, Chelsea2valve, Onemanarmy, Reed Pace, id wyrm, Rafael Borges, RealReader743, Thomas Desrosiers, Ryan, Chaos420, matt griffin, isaiah ramirez, bikash gurung, Joseph Bishop, arthur Jones, Raiden Allen, Noname09, Gabe Smith, Rome, Benoit Valtin, Ichdaboom, Whitewolf, EmptyBeing, Smithy Boy 420, Atticus Chea Jamaal King, multiverse right, Colin Hilterhaus, nick reisch, Aryan Singh, PhantomNite, Jessie, Chaos, Kds89, BR, Wes Ferrell, Eugene sivila, M.C, Random, Ownin Tarabi Yare, The Meta, Car Crash, Maybay, Gary, Gregg, Velzura, Carlos, greenDUECES, TheEntityAbove, Skulllnight43, Cristher Medina, Adrian, WyrmDragon, kl, Tanner Johnson, Andres Saavedra, john lowry-davis, WMAF Enjoyer, Cade Atkinson, Darius Collins, Josh, Kenechukwu Nkem-ossai, JackM, Scarlet Mars, Justin Barnes, Umbra Paco, Tariel Khalvashi Mr.goldenweek, John, Brennan Tubbs, Sung Jin woo, mike panos, Kobin Philip, brian price, wolfram, Wilnet Duverne, Joe Thingpen, eduardo tellez, Panera employee, Mandy G, Shadow King, Caio Lacerda, abs, Ecokane 0, Auzzo, Taz_231, solo _le, Velzura, Alexander Martinez, Marvin Lynn, OMG X WAFF3LZ, Denacious, idk5231, Drake, Georg Tasche, Maurice, MM, Luis, Alireza Akram, Chamar Ellis, Daniel Thomsen, Kiddeath1998, Jonay, Doomsdaylover321, pop_tarts, Niklas, Red Dragon, Tanner Johnson, Jesus, AIM ABLE, Paul Auke, Stephen, Placid, Origin and Lunar for supporting me.