Daylight entered the room.
Rugged breathing echoed.
Sweat drenched Vincent's forehead.
Drops crawled down his spine.
His heart trembled, and his ears buzzed.
'Death?'
The system window floated before his eyes.
The timer went down, second by second.
'I have 37 days to complete the quest, or I'll die?'
As rationality returned, anger ignited within him.
"Damn system..."
Vincent gnashed his teeth.
His entire body trembled.
Beneath the anger, an even more intense fear concealed.
'Damn system! Damn!'
His breath fastened.
'What do I do! What do I do!'
Panic washed over him.
How could he upgrade the zombie virus?
How many innocent lives did it take? How many troubles are the zombies giving?
If they strengthen, how are humans supposed to live?
The fear within him only rose. His brows furrowed.
Strengthening the zombies was out of the question.
'But I'll die...'
His heart skipped a beat.
A thought. A single thought washed his determination away.
The timer went down.
With each second, Vincent's vision trembled.
Death approached.
"No..."
SLAP!
A slap echoed in the room.
Palm prints remained on his cheeks.
'Calm down,'
Vincent closed his eyes, concentrating on his breathing and calming his heart.
'There are still 37 days,'
His eyes landed on another system window, another timer.
The timer for the progenitor transformation.
'I'll turn into the progenitor in 29 days,'
Fear shrouded his heart.
Fear of himself.
'Luckily, I can consume blood to delay the timer.'
Determination resurfaced in his eyes.
'But the mission is not urgent now. I still have time.'
Maybe he could think of something. Perhaps he could salvage the situation.
'Right now, the most important thing is to focus on rescuing survivors,'
He still remembered the promise to himself.
Use his cursed power for good.
Use it to protect.
.
.
.
The governor walked down a corridor.
The giant lights above his head buzzed.
A soldier led the way.
Knock! Knock!
Finally, the soldier stopped before a door.
The door of the council room.
He knocked.
"Enter,"
The soldier opened the door.
"Governor, please,"
The governor's brows furrowed.
His expression was ugly, but he had no fear.
He already knew the questions and the course of the conversation.
Thus, without hesitation, he entered.
Buzz!
The lights in the room flickered.
The commander sat on the stone chair.
The governor walked and sat opposite him.
The cold, stone table separated them.
Vivian was not in the room.
Only the commander and the governor.
"Orson,"
The commander's eyes flashed red.
His ability suppressed the pain.
'He is using his ability,'
The governor tensed up.
'He is threatening me,'
The air grew heavy.
"Marek,"
The governor's eyes sharpened.
The commander leaned forward.
"I won't beat around."
Murderous intent surged.
"I won't threaten you. You know what will happen if I release the experiments to the public."
The governor nodded.
"I only want to know. Who ordered those experiments? Who funded them? You knew, why didn't you stop them?"
The commander extended his arm, grabbing the sabre.
"If you don't give me a satisfactory explanation, don't think of leaving this room..."
An invisible pressure descended on the room.
The commander's lips turned black.
Under the table, the governor's palms trembled.
'Do I reveal it?'
He was conflicted.
'Forget it...'
A long sigh escaped his lips; his racing heart calmed.
'It already came to this. What can they do in this collapsing world?'
"Saying I was not involved would be a lie."
The governor nodded.
His voice carried a hint of regret. Guilt?
Or was he feigning it?
"You..."
"But can you blame me?!"
He interrupted just as the commander was about to burst out.
"I am the city governor! The governor! Above everyone!"
Madness flashed in the governor's eyes.
It caught the commander of guard.
'Does he have such a superiority complex!'
Anger filled the commander's heart.
'Does he think he can disregard human life!!'
The thought to end him steeled in his heart.
But the commander's eyes widened as he saw the madness in the governor's eyes diminish, replaced by desperation and helplessness.
"But what does it mean!?"
The governor roared, his voice trembling.
"I'm just a puppet!"
"Puppet?"
The commander's eyes widened.
"You mean..."
A realization befell him.
"Who could have ordered those experiments? I was running the city in their place. They control everything."
A deep frown formed on the commander's face.
His will for revenge dissipated.
"The three cities controlling the world."
He had no chance for revenge. They were untouchable.
"That's right."
The governor nodded.
"Aurelion, Varkhane, and Eidolon. The Triumvirate."
The commander fell silent.
His ears buzzed, his mind rang.
And the governor didn't continue. He let it sink.
Heavy silence ruled the room for minutes.
The commander leaned in the cold stone chair.
His breath ragged, his heart in turmoil.
"Why would they do that?"
His weak voice tore the silence.
"Hmph..."
The governor scoffed.
"You may be the commander of a military base. Buy you are an insignificant character."
The commander didn't bother raising his head.
"The truth of this world is far darker than you realize. What do you think The Triumvirate means?"
The governor couldn't contain his desperation. His anger. Anger born from helplessness.
"Isn't it the name of the alliance the three cities make? The three cities under one name?"
"Ha...hahahaha..."
The governor laughed. A desperate laughter. A laughter begging for help.
"Of course you wouldn't know. The Triumvirate is not the three cities, but the three people."
The commander's eyes widened.
"The three people standing on the pinnacle of the world. They have the entire world in their grasp. Their meeting is called The Triumvirate."
"Eidolon ordered and funded the experiments."
The governor revealed.
"The city responsible for technological advances? The city that's supposed ot lead humanity into the future?"
"Hmph..."
The governor scoffed once again.
"Among you, it's known as that. But among the world's governors, it's known as the City of Secrets.
Aurelion controls the cities worldwide through us, city governors. Every propaganda, every mass manipulation is from them.
Varkhane controls the entire world's military. The weapons from the last wars are with them, tanks, bombs, and even nuclear bombs.
And Eidolon. The city with more forbidden experiments than you could imagine."
The governor trembled as he explained.
"Those are the three cities controlling the world. Each city is massive, with a population of over a billion. And they are controlled by three people. The Triumvirate."
The commander stared at the ceiling.
Unwilling. He was unwilling.
He didn't want to believe his ears.
Slowly, desperation shrouded his heart.
Everything seemed meaningless now.
He couldn't get revenge. He couldn't hold anyone responsible. He was helpless.
All those intense feelings. His righteousness. Everything vanished.
Everything became fuel for the desperation.
Only a question lingered in his mind.
How rotten was humanity?