The mansion had a large garage where the Luzbel family's vehicles were kept, located in the east wing of the estate.
They followed a long cobblestone path surrounded by tall, pine-like trees, whose leaves were more orange than green.
Elara led the way, guiding the others toward a small building at the end of the path.
It certainly wasn't much compared to the mansion. The entrance to the structure—whose black stairs descended underground—was guarded by a small, single-story building with white walls and a metal door made with advanced technology.
"If we want to get there fast, it's better to use the truck. The subway to Lightflower is probably canceled because of the incursion alert."
Nova nodded. Elara was right. It was likely there wouldn't be any transportation to Lightflower for the next few days. It was even more likely that the Aberrations had already besieged the city, taking advantage of the Empaths' blind spots.
Thinking about it, Nova walked behind Elara. He stopped when the girl, with a snap and a flick of her fingers, pulled a black card out of nowhere. It was just an old trick, so there was nothing surprising about it.
She held the card up to the reader on the silver metal door, and it opened automatically.
"Which truck are we taking, Ellie?" Miyu asked.
"I was thinking more about comfort than aesthetics. We'll take the Midnight from '90."
Miyu's ears twitched in disappointment. Her question had been answered with the name of a vehicle that looked ridiculous. A '90 Midnight was nothing more than a minivan.
They went down the stairs as darkness loomed inside the facility.
Once they descended far enough, a long row of lights suddenly turned on, revealing more than twenty sports vehicles enclosed by four large silver walls, with a straight line of light stretching from corner to corner across the floor.
The gray marble floor shone, so clean you could see your own face reflected on it.
"Ladies and gentlemen."
Yuyu, the maid, appeared from the shadows holding a metallic briefcase.
"Follow me."
No one commented on it. This maid had always been a bit odd, but she was also kind and helpful.
Meanwhile, Rober stared at the vehicles in awe as he followed Nova. He only had his broken-down motorcycle, while Elara's family had all these unused cars.
"You should give me one of these for my birthday," the Canine boy said.
Elara laughed and replied:
"I will if you reach the next level."
Rober snorted. The answer was an obvious joke. Elara wasn't the owner of these vehicles. She wasn't even the owner of anything in this mansion. She was simply the daughter of a very rich man, but that didn't necessarily make her rich.
'Man… Every time I come here, I'm always amazed.'
Nova's eyes danced from vehicle to vehicle.
'Someday I'll have enough to buy one.'
Imagining himself driving one of these beauties made him want to punch the faces of a bunch of Aberrations to earn enough money, but being such a low-level Empath, the pay wasn't that great.
It was disappointing, to a certain extent, but a Seventh-Level Empath doesn't earn the same rewards as a Fifth- or Fourth-Level Empath.
The government rewards the strong better. Unfortunately, that's how it works.
'Someday…'
It was worth dreaming.
He glanced to the side, curious about what Miyu was doing. Since Elara and Rober had gone quiet while walking, there wasn't much else to look at.
Miyu was running her hand over the vehicles. She smiled as she looked inside each cabin, her eyes bright and excited.
'She's like a kid in a candy store.'
"Miss."
The maid stopped in front of a silver-painted minivan with black wheels. The vehicle looked more normal than one would expect.
She then opened the briefcase, revealing eight metallic cards, each bearing four different symbols and colors: a flower, a club, a heart, and a diamond.
Elara took the red diamond card and thanked the maid, who bowed and then calmly walked away between the vehicles.
She looked at the card for a second and turned around. She looked at Nova with a cool smile and suddenly tossed the card at him. Nova caught it between his index and middle fingers, confused, until Elara spoke.
"You're driving."
Oh. How strange…
'Didn't expect that.'
It was the first time Elara had offered Nova the chance to drive. He wasn't going to complain at all. He had a valid license for small vehicles and an up-to-date dragon-riding permit.
Of course, the latter existed because Viktor had helped Nova practice at some point.
"Sure. Sounds like a good idea to me."
"Excellent. Since you don't have any complaints, let's start choosing seats."
Miyu immediately stepped in and grabbed Nova's arm.
"I'm riding shotgun!"
Rober walked over to the back door of the minivan and looked at Nova.
"I'm riding in the trunk."
What a strange choice. But ever since forever, whenever he had the chance to choose where to sit in a car, he chose the trunk. According to Rober, he felt safe in such a closed and dark space.
"Guess I'll be alone in the back seat," Elara said.
Then everyone took their places in the vehicle. Nova, in the driver's seat, made sure the mirrors were properly adjusted and that everything was in order. He fastened his seatbelt and held the steering wheel between his fingers.
When he was ready, he passed the card over the sensor and the car turned on. The engine roared with a strange power that didn't match its appearance, making the chassis tremble for a moment.
"First, we'll stop by the market to buy instant stew. I owe it to my uncle."
"Don't tell me… Did you bribe him?"
Nova smiled. Miyu had asked a very curious question. Looking at it from a simpler point of view…
"You could say that."
Although it wasn't exactly a bribe, Nova had simply chosen not to obey Viktor, and this was the result. No one lost anything—there was just a risk of dying along the way.
Nothing to worry about.
"Well done! You got us front-row seats!"
"It'll be interesting to see our superiors in action. Do you think we might run into some well-known Masters?" Elara said as she fastened her seatbelt.
Nova shifted gears while checking the rearview mirror and backed up. Red lights lit up as the vehicle moved in reverse.
"It's likely. Uncle is pretty well-known too, you know? If he weren't, they wouldn't have called him. He's also very strong."
There were few ways to become a Faction Master. The simplest one was being ridiculously strong. Viktor met that requirement well enough to found his Faction.
"He turned out to be a good Master, after all. Hopefully, more people will join our faction someday."
Following Elara's words, Miyu added:
"And hopefully someday we can move our faction's headquarters somewhere bigger—and without gross insects."
Nova drove along the row of vehicles until the farthest wall opened like a vertical sliding door. Several lights lit up from the floor like star points, revealing the path ahead.
A long, dark tunnel illuminated from the ground. It was a good way to make the road visible, I suppose.
'It's been years since I last drove. I hope I don't crash into anything.'
Elara had entrusted him with the vehicle's card. Being irresponsible would ruin that trust. Still… why did it feel like that trust didn't matter? It was a rude thought, but he decided not to let his mind dwell on things like that.
He focused on driving through the tunnel. When a bright, blinding light appeared at the end, he slowed down and let his eyes adjust.
Soon, he found himself driving out onto the main road. There were other vehicles on the street. That made Nova pay extra attention to the road.