Under her eyelids, the beat of her heart was a steady rhythm. Sela slowly opened her eyes, her vision still blurry. She felt a heaviness all over her body, and her breathing was shallow.
"...You're awake!"
Willow smiled faintly, a look of pure delight on her face.
Sela returned a weak smile. Her eyes were exhausted, and she didn't have the strength to even keep smiling.
"...Who are you?... Thank you for saving me..."
Her eyes trembled. The blurry images of the past events rushed back to her Bakvik running towards her with a knife. But the image was faint and unclear.
Willow stared into Sela's eyes with a look of concern.
"...You're Bakvik's friend, aren't you?... We're his companions... Bakvik saved you back there..."
Sela's eyes widened in surprise, but the shock and terror from the past event were still deeply embedded in her mind.
"Where is he?... Is Bakvik okay?"
Sela tried to use her strength to get up from the bed, but her body felt weak. Willow gently pushed her back down.
"...You can't get up yet... you need to rest... Bakvik is fine..."
Sela did as she was told. It was as if her condition wasn't a side effect of using her own power, but rather the lingering poison from the mysterious man who had been with her for too long. Sela slowly closed her eyes and fell asleep.
"We can't go back?... That's not true..." In the dimly lit room with only one lantern, Dinshin's eyes widened. He slowly backed away until his back hit the wall.
"Not necessarily... we can go back... it's only 256 miles to the university... that's exactly the distance to Ichivor City."
Bakvik sat in the corner of the room, his back against the wall. His eyes changed.
"...But it won't be easy... we're being hunted..."
"We're being hunted?!... Oh my god, is that true?... How do you know?... But I believe you anyway..." Anchis's eyes widened in shock. He held on to the wall with both hands, which were shaking slightly. In the dark room, there was only one bright lantern shining in the empty space between the two men.
"They're collecting students... and anyone who knows their secrets... I'm the one who knows... and as for Sela, I think she's the one they want the most..."
Bakvik's eyes were filled with a chilling coldness, but Anchis, who was now terrified, stood still and listened to him.
"Did you see the white light that appeared on the roof just now?"
Anchis's expression changed. It became serious and intense. He thought about something and then nodded.
"Yes, I did... I followed that light and found you..."
Bakvik didn't answer Anchis right away. He just thought to himself.
(...Everything was shattered into dust and powder, leaving only a few fragments. If I hadn't pushed myself out, I would have died, and so would she... Then, the figure turned back to the balcony as its body was dissolving...)
Bakvik's eyes widened, filled with a serious look. He lifted his left hand, which was covered in wounds.
"...Our enemy might not just be that organization..."
[ The Scene ]
The building stood so tall, looking like a 10-story structure from below a massive stronghold far from the city of Veze. Behind the grand factories, the surrounding land was a barren wasteland, a miniature desert in its own right. And yet, mysteriously, abundant snow fell here with the changing seasons. The lights from the city of Veze seemed to shimmer and flow in the distance, and surrounding the huge factory were small satellite communities.
The Encounter
A man in full regalia, looking every bit the powerful figure he might or might not be, had a cold, composed look in his eyes.
"How's that... projector you've been handling?"
A younger man, well-dressed but with a hint of cunning and stubbornness in his gaze, replied:
"Everything is going smoothly, sir... Your name ensures no one dares to compete with me..."
A sly smile touched the powerful man's lips, his eyes as composed as ice at the deepest point of a frozen lake. He stopped mid-stride, and the younger man flinched slightly. The younger man's hand shot up, striking his own mouth with force.
"My apologies, sir... I'll watch my words next time..."
"Make sure you... handle the Ceranium matter..." The man turned slightly, his eyes cold and filled with a chilling indifference. It made the younger man's bones tremble, like the roar of a ferocious tiger.
"Understood, sir!" The younger man's voice was filled with a mix of loyalty and determination. The powerful man walked away, but the younger man stood there, watching him leave, his own eyes now sharp and serious, like a keen blade.
Another Path
On another side, numerous officers patrolled the buildings. Some carried spears, but their spears had gun barrels attached to the back, as if a seamless fusion. The officers walked past me countless times but never spoke a word, as if they were performing their duties with the serious, looping precision of puppets.
A young officer leaned his back against the wall, next to the entrance of a certain room. He stood motionless, not expending any energy, his eyes merely blinking. In a dark corner to his left, he caught a glimpse of a mysterious man in the shadows.
"Who are you?" He raised his spear, aiming the attached gun barrel at the shadowy figure.
Unexpectedly, the mysterious man vanished. The young officer's eyes widened in shock. He began to step into the dark corner, dumbfounded.
Suddenly, the mysterious man, in a trench coat and a mournful mask covering his face, appeared behind him. His gloved hand struck the back of the young officer's neck, knocking him out instantly.
"Aghh..."
...But on the other path leading into this place, the ground was littered with unconscious officers who had been performing their duties...
A staff officer burst through the door, closing it quickly.
"...Sir!..."
The same young man, who once stood by the powerful figure's side, held a wine glass and drank slowly. His icy eyes slowly turned toward the officer.
"...Th-there's an intruder..."
On the other side, a masked man had defeated many officers, leaving them unconscious on the ground. An officer's foot flew past his head, but he easily tilted his head to dodge. This officer seemed to be exceptionally skilled. The masked man grabbed a spear from his hand and threw it, lodging it into the wall and disarming the officer, who then had to back away.
"...You're amazing... Who are you...?"
The masked man stood still, his head slightly bowed. He slowly lifted his gaze to face the skilled officer. The clash had shattered many lights, leaving only darkness with flashes of lightning from the thunderstorm.
"...You're amazing... Who are you...?" The masked man repeated the question, but the voice that came from his mouth was the officer's own.
The officer's eyes widened in shock, his heart pounding erratically. He was so stunned he almost fainted. "...Don't you dare mock me... Are you making fun of me?!..."
"Don't you dare mock me... Are you making fun of me?" The masked man crossed his arms tightly and tilted his head slightly.
Suddenly, the officer's eyes were filled with furious determination. He took a pistol from his small pouch and fired it directly at the masked man. The event was silent and incredibly fast, but the masked man stood still. The bullet hit him directly in the torso, but the masked figure's body faded away like an illusion. The officer's eyes widened in stunned disbelief. After the masked man vanished, the officer walked closer and saw a pile of finely crumbled wood on the floor.
"What is this...?"
On another side of the building, the masked man rushed to avoid the security system. Powerful searchlights from the large and magnificent 7th-floor rooftop were sweeping the area. There were also special forces teams guarding the outside. A medium-sized bag hung from the masked man's left shoulder, as if he had stolen something.
Suddenly, a searchlight quickly found him. They knew the masked man was there. He stopped and stood still. Many gun barrels were pointed at him. In front of him was a dead end, and below was a long drop. He was on the edge of the 7th-floor rooftop.
"...Stop right now... Do you know how serious the consequences of what you've done are...?" an officer in a black cloak shouted, holding a rifle and aiming it from above. A group of riflemen stood above, both formidable and eerie, perfectly still.
"...Turn around and put your hands up..." The same young man from earlier walked out. He was on the platform above. His left hand was tightly wrapped in a black cloth. A rifleman next to him whispered to the young man.
"...Boss, this guy took out all the officers inside... He deliberately knocked them all unconscious..."
The young man stared at the masked man. He then smiled cunningly. "Looks like you... are a high-level one, aren't you..."
Suddenly, the young boss's voice came from the masked man's mouth below.
"...Looks like you... are a high-level one, aren't you?"
Everyone's eyes widened in shock. They aimed their many guns at the masked man, ready to fire. The young boss's expression changed to one of indignation.
"...Who gave you permission to use my voice!!?"
But at that moment, the masked man took a small wooden charm from his pouch. A flurry of bullets flew toward him at lightning speed, as if the moment of death was only a fraction of a second away. He crushed the wooden charm into splinters. A brilliant white light appeared around him. Many of the officers covered their eyes from the painful glare. As everything began to settle, the white light slowly faded, leaving only a rugged, scarred area on the ground.
Stay tuned for the next episode...