In the spacious and cozy ‘lounge’ of the Special Investigation Squad, Celestia Black and John were looking at the campus, their eyes focused on the crowd of people opposing each other. Most of the students were either asleep or readying themselves in the dorms, so there weren’t many onlookers, to begin with. Those who happened to witness such a sight were wise enough to keep their distance and opt for being quiet spectators.“From one hole to the other. I almost pity the boy.” Remarked Celestia as she kept her eyes on Zeke. While it was true she had first disliked him, her impression of him slightly changed. His attitude notwithstanding, she knew that he was a good-natured youth, one whose circumstances pushed him to become an impassive and overall gloomy person. John, who stayed a couple of paces behind the girl, remained silent for a long time before a chilling voice came out of his now unsealed lips.“Prepare yourself.”As she heard the Talking Sin out of nowhere, Celestia turne
“This is the place where they kept the kid?”Edward, who, despite Zeke’s unknown whereabouts, was in a surprisingly good mood. After what happened in Erys, the entirety of the Vyrsan family will be seeking revenge. If Olivia were to die, they were would have sufficient motive and not even Solas would be able to completely stop them.The incident was so big that the Department of Defense had already learned of this. Edward was certain that they would eventually figure out the truth and would pursue Zeke, but their intentions remain to be verified. They wouldn’t outright wish to harm Zeke, first because he was Edward’s family, and second because they weren’t knowledgeable about the System, thus making them wary.“Yes, sir.”Katrina stood at the entrance of the clean and empty office, politely bowing her head to Jan, who was accompanying her benefactor.“Indeed… I can smell it. The strong and foul scent of blood. It wasn’t a normal spawn, I’ll tell you that.”“The report says that his ag
Tuesday evening, the second day of the Practical Exams.North-West of the Sunken Metropolis, there was a chain of big and small hills housing several farms and settlements.Atop one such hill, filled with nothing but a stretch of grass and flowers, Zeke stood under the setting sun.He gazed at the sky, which was dominated by a beautiful orange hue as a cool wind breeze brushed against his skin.His charred black arm tingled and he felt a bit of pain, but it was manageable. The young man, who changed into casual clothes and cleaned his previously disheveled appearance, took deep breaths as he patiently waited.A fair distance away, at the side of the road, Jack and Sulong were chatting without a care in the world. They were enjoying cold beers, instructed by Zeke to await his return, no matter how time would pass.After an indeterminate amount of time, Zeke heard footsteps coming from the rear, and when he turned around, he saw the blond-haired Azmer.“I honestly thought you wouldn’t
Azmer’s physique, albeit stronger than average people, still paled in comparison to his opponent’s. With the golden sword in hand, he charged at Zeke but he only took a couple of steps before his target vanished into thin air.Instinctively, Azmer swept his weapon horizontally, unleashing vast amounts of golden fire, which clashed against several lightning bolts shot from Zeke.Using ‘Life Motus’, Zeke had closed the distance and attack, and when the successive ‘Voltage Zap’ were blocked, he ‘teleported’ again and swept his leg upwards.He moved with impressive speed, one that Azmer couldn’t react to, thus getting hit in the shoulder and blown a couple of meters away.Still, he landed on his feet and clasped the sword near his chest as a pillar of fire burst forth, spreading to all directions and forcing the approaching Zeke to leap back.Azmer relied on his powerful Pyromancy to make a small explosion under his feet, launching straight at Zeke, the golden sword thrust forward and sho
“This is the best you found?”Zeke sat at the back of the van, moving around due to how uncomfortable the cramped the place was. There were only two seats and the back was meant for anything other than people. Basically, it was a vehicle meant for delivery and not ‘traveling’.Unlike Zeke, Arbert was sitting motionlessly, unbothered by the bumpy road. It hasn’t been long since he was ‘born’, yet the boy had grown drastically. He looked no different than a 12-year-old, with relatively long blood-colored hair, pale white skin, a pair of sharp eyes, and a slim body.He was talking more and more, but most of his conversations were with Sulong. He would sometimes mock Jack or spout nonsensical stuff. Strangely enough, he seemed inexplicably wary of Zeke, barely meeting his gaze or acknowledging his presence.After winning against Azmer, Zeke wasted no time and departed from the Sunken Metropolis along with his new companions. Admittedly, they weren’t the best, nor the strongest, but he fel
Frederic Whitefort, the exiled Vagabond, was wearing a ridiculously poor disguise as he jumped over the towering walls surrounding Erys. He safely landed on the ground and safely looked around, spotting nothing but a peaceful and quiet forest. However, scarce had his feet touched the grass did a shadow figure dash from afar and stop a couple of paces away. The Dean, unlike his usual composed demeanor, was frowning and menacingly looking at Frederic. “We do not welcome your kind here, vagabond.” Unfortunately for him, Frederic’s was more infamous than famous. He wasn’t a criminal, nor was he a threat to the Nezulian Republic, but he was relatively well-known, especially amongst the powerhouses. This young man, wearing a fake beard and a long mustache, had forsaken the distinguished Whitefort family in pursuit of mysticism and mysteries. Prior to his banishment, he was an unrivaled genius, a prodigy that shook the whole world. Yet, he abandoned any and all training, obsessing over
Venzo Fekhyr noticed Zeke’s wariness, so he didn’t approach him or do any sudden movements. Instead, he thought it best to explain himself,“I’ve come here to search for a check on a monolith sighted somewhere in this swamp. It’s really fortunate to meet fellow travelers in this godforsaken place, hahahaha…”“...”The stone-faced Zeke kept looking at the two of them, his lips tightly shut. A few seconds later, Sulong returned with Arbert at his side.“Oh, this must be your friend, right? I’m scholar Venzo Fek-”“Yeah yeah, I heard you.” Sulong cut him off and waved his hand unceremoniously. The atmosphere was getting tense and awkward, so Venzo cleared his throat and proposed,“Would you like to join hands? We can help you cross the lake in return for a bit of assistance.”“No, thanks.” Perfunctorily responded Zeke, his narrowed eyes focusing on the stoic Bran. Zeke wasn’t proficient at gauging people’s prowess, then again, the Knights of the Serey Zhan empire used different methods
“This… this is more than I expected!”Scholar Venzo Fekhyr was over the moon, his face flushed with happiness as he touched every little thing in the path. The innumerable symbols on the walls and the ground, the strange black vines were intersecting under his feet, or even the slightly suffocating air.He didn’t seem to care about his protector’s absence or the presence of Sulong, Jack, and Arbert.“He’s a lunatic, Sulong. Should we really follow him?”Jack was hesitant and fearful, especially when his claustrophobia kicked in within this narrow and dim corridor.When they had passed the monolith, they were transported into a long corridor devoid of beasts. It was safer than the swamp, but that didn’t make any of them feel better as Zeke was missing and they could only rely on the scholar.“We’ll keep close to him until Zeke catches up.” Responded Sulong as he studied his surroundings, feeling trapped and weakened for some reason. Even the usually nonchalant Arbert was frowning and s