Sitting on the sofa with her legs tightly hugged, Aubrey was intensely gazing at the TV, listening to the news.
A drone soaring above the school showed the footage of the barrier as the news reporter spoke, "BREAKING NEWS: A D-level umbrella gate emerged at the Bulacan State High School. The Twilight and White Hawks guilds are collaborating to rescue the students. Locals are advised to stay away from the gate until the situation is under control."
Biting her bottom lip, her grumpy eyebrows furrowed further, she still couldn't move on from what had happened between her and Hayden earlier.
As a careless teen, Aubrey has no interest in watching the news. In fact, this is her first time watching one; and her only concern is Hayden.
Sitting next to her was Grace; she could notice the overflowing emotions welling up on Aubrey's face, as she murmured to herself, cursing Hayden's name, transparently revealing her furious, jittery, and ticked state.
However, despite Aubrey's seemingly grouchy demeanor, Grace deciphered the unspoken worries behind her boiling anger. Grace knew for a fact that although her little sister was outwardly cursing Hayden to death, inwardly, it was as open as a book that Aubrey was grappling with a hope that Hayden would come back safe and sound.
"Is your hatred for Hayden really that severe?" Grace let out a giggle. "You know, he's only doing that because he doesn't want you to get hurt."
Aubrey laid her chin on her knees, muttering, "I know him. That jerk is the 'let's get the job done and collect the paycheck' type. All he cares about is money, not my safety.'' She paused for a second, falling into a shallow contemplation as her wistful eyes locked on the TV. "I do wish he would die…" Her voice sounded weak.
Grace scooted over to Aubrey, gently nudging her shoulder. "Don't be so harsh," A comforting grin makes up for her expression.
Suddenly, the news reporter from the TV let out a shocked voice.
"What's happening!?"
Followed by footage of a surge of people running away, the news reporter added, "The gate just closed. It hasn't been an hour yet…"
Grace's gaze darted back to the television, her gentle look remaining unchanged.
Aubrey, however, was taken aback, a mix of surprise and relief flooding her. It dawned on her just how fortunate they were to have left the school before the gate closed. The realization painted a flicker of gratitude across her gaping eyes—it was thanks to Hayden.
Thanks to him, Aubrey made it out of the barrier. Also, upsetting her to the extent that made her walk out is the reason Aubrey is out of harm's way.
The intense part of the live news is where the reporter babbles about details on the circumstance with her tongue fumbling with words as her nervousness gets into her. As that plays on the television, Grace gets onto her feet, planning to go somewhere.
"Lady Grace?" Jace, who was standing unnoticed on the side, asked.
"I'll be in my room. Keep Aubrey company for now," she said, beaming gracefully.
Jace nodded before placing his full attention on Aubrey who was absorbed by the news.
Grace's heels lightly thumped on the staircase as she went upstairs. Reaching her bedroom, she went in and locked the door shut, not wanting anyone to see her room full of pictures of one person.
Her room was overflowing with polaroids; there were hundreds of pictures glued from the walls to the ceiling, even her pillowcase and bed sheet were designed to resemble the face of that boy in the picture. The photos came in different sizes, and anywhere her eyes landed, it's always the boy she sees.
Based on the angle of the shots, the pictures were obviously captured candidly. From a young age of a cute, adorable child, up to the teenage years, all of it is covered in her collection of polaroids, and it looks like Grace has been eyeing this boy's entire life.
Treading to her bed which smelled of cherry perfume, she unbuttoned her uniform and stripped. Wearing nothing but her bare skin and aroused guise, she flumped down, bouncing delicately along the soft cushion of her bed. With her back lying flat on the fluffy fabric, her fingertips pressed against her slim waist, then unwittingly slithered down between her thighs.
"Why can't you just be mine~"
~~~~~~~~~~
*Zing!!!*
A man, or rather a worried father among the crowd, invoked his blessing. His arms transformed, contorting into razor-sharp steel, resembling the very essence of a blade. With remarkable dexterity, he skillfully cleaved the guardrail spell, unthreading it effortlessly at its center.
The avenue to the campus opened, and he seized his self-made opportunity, sprinting forward towards the entrance gate.
Victor sensed his mana spontaneously combusted, sending a jolt of alarm through him. "Sir!" he shouted. "This site is a restricted place! Proceeding unsolicited will result in appropriate consequences!"
The man didn't stop, disregarding Victor's warning. His eyes are full of spirit, unwavering in determination. With no other choice, Victor chased the man, following his trail in full sprint intending to apprehend him.
As Victor went after the passer, the passageway where the guardrail had recently held close was now left open, allowing the baffled civilians to decide on their own accord.
Surprisingly, despite not having even a single DH watching the passageway, the civilians were shakingly terrified to cross the line. Their feet felt heavy and they all mindlessly froze, not daring to go in.
As Victor chases the man, he realizes that with his current pace, he's not catching up and he will never close their distance. Victor was aware that although the man might be a DH, he's still a civilian and not under any guild supervision—however, it doesn't make sense to him how the man outruns him. After all, Victor is an A-ranker and he's actually quick himself.
"This is my final warning! Cease this intrusion at once!"
The man refuses to cooperate and they're getting close to the school's entrance gate. It didn't seem like any demons were prowling in the vicinity, which Victor took as perplexing since this area is close to where the umbrella gate opens.
It was quiet, and Victor knew that something was not right.
Not wanting the man to proceed any deeper to the suspicious entrance gate, Victor is left with no alternative and has to use a binding spell to constrain the man.
Victor outstretched both of his arms, releasing a pair of luminous threads with deadly spikes from each of his open palms. The threads rapidly get to the man, and upon reaching the target, both threads link together, forming a complete circle that encompasses the man.
The man kept on sprinting, his blade-like arms swinging at his sides. Unfazed by the spell Victor had cast upon him, he pressed on with resolute purpose.
Then, Victor folded his palms closed, tightening the thread to collapse on the man.
The ring of spikes rapidly fastened, and the man reacted. In flawless and graceful movements, he spun like a tornado with his arms of blade, forming a spinning disc motion—a grinding wheel that nullified the collapsing thread.
"Nothing could beat a determined father," he said in a monotone voice.
Victor's teeth gritted, taken aback by the strength of the man.
That spell is a high-level one that is extremely tough to evade for B-rankers, but the man just destroys it completely. It occurred to Victor that this civilian might not be a typical one who received a blessing and didn't join a guild.
This man who can turn his limbs into steel for combat might actually be a retired DH—an experienced B-rank perhaps? Or maybe even a full-fledged A-rank like Victor.
Regardless, Victor won't allow any person not affiliated with any guild to arbitrate in this matter. And so, Victor fixed his composure, planning to demonstrate to the man the full extent of his ability.
Knowing that the man is not a weak civilian, Victor won't hold back any longer.
"Muhahaha!" A sinister laughter echoed through the air, a chilling sound of malevolence that sent shivers down the spines of Victor and the man.
Their intense pursuit was halted by that cackling.
"Humans!... Every time I see humans, the only word that comes to mind is 'scrumptious'."
Their eyes darted over the top of the school's entrance gate, finding someone atop the archway of the gate sitting on his heels. A middle-aged man, his features almost crippling in lankiness, is wearing a formal school outfit, seeming to be a presidential member from the school.
"At long last, I'm free!" his low-pitched vocal sounding gruff and husky.
"Sir! Are you perhaps a survi-" Victor paused, his voice ending in a trembling manner as he spotted a gruesome sight through the gaps of the vertical slat of the closed entrance gate.
"Are they DHs?" the man with bladed arms asked Victor, resonating horror in his gaping eyes. The man also saw the carnage behind the entrance gate. "They're all dead…"
Suddenly, a pair of wings grew out of the crazy man's back, like a sapling instantly sprouting on his back. A pair of demonic wings, portraying the vile aura, unfurled with an unsettling grace, their feathers sharp and black as the abyss.
It's an archdemon.
At an imperceptible speed, the demon in its distorted human form lashes out with its wings fully spread, gliding down to sweep the man in front of Victor.
Before they could even react, the archdemon had already reached the man and set its feet on the man's chest, using its weight to push him to fall to the ground.
**GAAHHH!!!**
Then, like an abhorrent monster, it sank its teeth into the man's skull, stopping him from screaming before pulling his head off along with the spinal cord intact to the neck.
The archdemon dismantled him like an eaten fish.