Chapter 479 A Twisted Reunion (3)

Unlike Alina, Ashton didn't have a clear goal in mind, nor did he know what he was searching for so desperately. He only knew there had to be something, a hint or likewise, to help him discover more about his father and his connection with Phantom.

However, it was a bizarre situation as Ashton had no idea where his father could have left a clue for him to find. That was why he decided to disguise himself as the Chief and get unrestricted access around the facility.

Before sending Mikosh off with Viper and Alina, Ashton made sure to pull some information out of him about his father. Sadly, Mikosh had only been recently employed as the Section Chief and had no idea where Ashton's father could be.

However, the undead disclosed some helpful information, such as the part of the facility where Ashton's father should've stayed as a prisoner from Lycania.

Unfortunately, Mikosh was not carrying the admittance card to allow access to the cells, which meant Ashton would have to come up with another way to get inside the actual 'prison'.

On a positive note, since Ashton had been abusing [Alteration] to change his appearance at least once a day, the skill finally evolved. Now not only could he imitate someone's face, but he could also steal their voice.

Thanks to the much-needed upgrade, Ashton no longer had to fear accidental exposure and confidently went through rooms and corridors. During this time, Anna strictly communicated through telepathy, not wanting to expose their disguise.

"We cannot waste the time we have randomly wandering around." She urged, "We need help and need it fast."

Ashton nodded in agreement. It would take days to search the entire facility if they went to check every room. However, any rash action could lead to their covers being blown, and Ashton wasn't looking forward to that moment.

His stealthy approach wasn't due to fear of the undead but out of caution for unforeseen circumstances. After meeting Viper and Alina, Ashton was confident there could be potentially more dangerous tet subjects in prison.

Therefore, basing his opinion on them, Ashton wasn't a fan of confronting them head-on. After all, he was on their turf and caution was warranted under those circumstances.

While he could employ the help of his soldiers to ease his search, unfortunately, they were preoccupied at the moment.

Celeste was keeping an eye on Alina from the shadows while Sven was by Viper's side to protect him from unforeseen circumstances. Leaving Ashton with Atlas and Raven.

Calling Atlas for help was a big no as he was a literal warmonger, and Ashton had no intention of summoning him until he had no other choice. As for Raven, he was making himself useful by guarding the surveillance room to ensure no one would trigger the alarms while the rest of them went about their business.

That said, Ashton was short on time, and this was the final opportunity he would get to discover the truth about his father. Being overly cautious during this phase could lead to their failure.

"Fuck it,"

Instead of looking for clues, Ashton decided it was time to abuse Mikosh's authority and grabbed the next soldier he saw by the collar.

"Who the hell-" The soldier angrily mumbled, but his face changed when he saw Mikosh, "S-Section Chief! I d-didn't mean to insult-"

Smack!

"Did I give you permission to bark, you imbecile?" Ashton slapped the man, only to speak before the soldier could respond to him, "Take me to the holding cells."

"Sir?"

The Chief's order confused the soldier. Why would the man in charge of the entire facility need a lowly soldier like him to be a guide? Something wasn't adding up.

But before the soldier had the chance to question Mikosh, the ambitious part of his mind overpowered the logical one. Instead of questioning the Chief, the soldier considered it an opportunity to get to Mikosh's good side and climb through the ranks as quickly as possible.

"Private Jwayne Dawson, at your service, Chief!" Jwayne pulled his best salute out of his ass to look good in front of Tartarus's top dog.

Anna looked at Ashton through the corner of his eyes, only to find him as clueless as she was. Both of them thought the other had gotten the soldier under their influence when they realised that wasn't the case; Jwayne's eagerness to work with them felt odd, to say the least.

'I had no idea that Mikkosh fucked had terrorised them into absolute submission or some shit.'

'Even I'm surprised. But I guess it works in our favour.' Anna replied.

Within moments, they were standing in front of a massive door made of titanium alloy. While earthlings might have difficulty breaching the doors, Ashton could put the door away with some time and effort. Thankfully, he did not have to waste either.

Jwayne walked up to the door and entered the code; however, the door was still in place. The following moment, Ashton realised Jwayne did not enter the lock code as he believed; instead, he called the soldier stationed on the other side of the door.

"Why does a Private want- Sir!" The soldier stationed on the other side was moments away from verbally thrashing Jwayne when he saw the man standing behind him, "I-It's an honour, sir!"

"Stop wasting my time and open the doors," Ashton ordered in the sternest voice possible.

Unlike Jwayne, this soldier took notice of Anna. Previously, whenever Chief Mikosh had to visit a prisoner, he did it alone. He went so far as to rid the guards while he was inside.

If that wasn't weird enough, few female soldiers were stationed on the island. Therefore, the soldier in charge of the gates, knew most of the women working there, and the one accompanying the Chief wasn't one of them.

Ashton saw the guard's wandering gaze shifting towards Anna and knew he needed to act before they started questioning him.

"If you're wondering who she is," Ashton casually pointed at Anna, "I don't know either. However, she's here under the President's order. You know what that means, don't you?"

A few seconds passed, and the soldier on the other side didn't move from his station. Just as Ashton thought their cover was blown, the doors opened from the inside, allowing Ashton access to the vault of secrets.

However, before entering the prison, Ashton pulled Jwayne aside, "No one, and I mean, no one is allowed inside while we're inside. Is that clear?"

"Yes, sir!" Jwayne saluted them again, smiling from ear to ear, "I won't disappoint you, sir!"

"Good lad," Ashton patted him on the shoulder as the door closed behind them.