For what felt like an eternity, Liscia leaned against Anathasia as she quietly sobbed.
Her hands clutched Anathasia's shirt tightly enough for the fabric to crumple while she muttered beneath her breath:
"I hate you... I'll despise you for as long as I exist..."
Anathasia gently rubbed her back while holding her close against her chest, allowing Liscia's tears to soak into her white shirt.
I had a feeling that used to be mine though-
"Please don't ruin the moment."
...
"I was just saying..."
She raised one hand, immediately shutting me down as Liscia slowly pulled away.
Still sniffling, she wiped at her tears with her knuckles before glancing toward Anathasia.
"You..."
The two of us looked at her as she hesitated, eyes narrowing slightly.
"You're even wearing your own shirt...?"
"I have a reason for that," Anathasia replied smoothly.
"His shirts are big and comfy. They smell nice too since they smell like him."
"So it's comfort plus comfort pro max."
The tears in Liscia's eyes seemed to dry instantly.
Her expression slowly flattened into complete deadpan as she stared at Anathasia.
"You're weird..."
"But you agree, don't you?"
"...Well, yes, but-"
"Please stop talking about that." I quickly cut in before the conversation could continue, stepping toward them while pulling out my phone.
Their attention immediately shifted toward the screen as I held it out in front of them.
"The TCA are getting closer with every passing minute."
The two of them fell silent as they watched the feed displayed on my phone.
Arms crossed.
Mirroring each other almost perfectly while their gazes narrowed with each passing second.
"Sooner or later, they're going to brush against that barrier."
Liscia raised an eyebrow.
"Barrier?" She shot Anathasia a glance. "What barrier?"
The two of us went quiet for a moment.
Then Anathasia snapped her fingers.
My phone screen instantly shut off, replaced by a rapidly expanding transparent display floating before us.
Multiple red dots were scattered throughout the city, while a single blue one remained near the lower-left corner.
"Mhm." Anathasia lightly tapped her arm.
"Think of it as an invisible barrier. Something like a mix of metaphysical plenitude and anti-narrative escalation field that removes anything trying to stir trouble near our home."
Liscia's gaze shifted toward the display, carefully tracking the movement of one of the red dots as it approached a yellow line.
"That seems..." she trailed off.
The moment the red dot crossed the barrier, it instantly disappeared from the display.
"...overkill."
She pointed toward the empty section of the map.
"Also... wasn't there a group over there a second ago?"
Anathasia shot me a quick glance, the faint smile on her face impossible to miss before she lightly shook her head.
"Looks like the Non-representation Principle is working, then."
Liscia fell silent.
For a moment, she merely side-eyed Anathasia before turning back toward the display.
The three of us quietly watched as more and more red dots disappeared one after another.
"We tried warning them, at least," Anathasia murmured.
I quietly nodded in agreement.
Meanwhile, Liscia continued staring at the feed, looking increasingly disturbed with every passing second.
-
Roughly ten kilometers from the Augthoria/Abe Household
An armored van came to a stop at the edge of a narrow pathway.
Its rear doors immediately swung open as heavily armed men equipped with technology far too advanced for the surrounding undeveloped jungle stepped out one after another.
"Team Alpha has arrived at the drop point. Area clear."
One of the men spoke quietly into the microphone beside his ear.
The weight of his bulletproof vest pressed heavily against his body, ammunition lining his gear while a secondary firearm rested against his thigh.
Faint static crackled through the comms.
"Team Bravo has reached their drop point. Surroundings are clear, over."
Then more voices followed.
"Team Delta."
"Team Charlie."
"Team Hunter."
"All clear."
The responses overlapped one after another.
The man glanced toward the five soldiers standing before him before giving a small nod.
"As the TCA ground force, our duty is to identify threats that no longer abide by the laws of our world."
He paused briefly.
"So casualties..."
His expression hardened beneath the helmet.
"...casualties are to be expected."
Silence settled over the group.
Then, one after another, they gave collective nods toward the man.
Rifles remained strapped tightly against their chests while their bulletproof vests shifted slightly with their movements.
Then another voice crackled through the comms.
"Test. Test."
The man immediately stopped before pressing against the earpiece to listen more clearly.
"Can you hear me?"
"Affirmative," the man responded alongside the other team leaders.
A brief burst of static followed before the voice on the other side cleared their throat.
"Good."
The speaker paused briefly before continuing.
"As you already know, this family is not only heavily connected to global powerhouses such as the Li Family and the Shuishuo International Conglomerates of the Fuyukawa Clan..."
"...but spatial and temporal fluctuations have also repeatedly been traced back to their residence."
"Despite all previous attempts, however, our spies and reconnaissance teams have failed to retrieve any meaningful information regarding the household itself."
The line briefly went dead.
Then the voice returned.
"And we have recently traced an underground organization funded by both the Lis and the Fuyukawas as the primary source of our ongoing difficulties."
"With technology originating from the Fuyukawas themselves, led by the current clan head - Hinami Fuyukawa."
The speaker paused again.
"Whose husband also happens to be closely associated with the head of the household we are preparing to discreetly seize."
"Kyle Ruzen Abe."
A brief silence followed.
"Best friend of Noah Fuyukawa."
The microphone on the other end of the line picked up the faintest sigh from the speaker.
"Although we have received numerous warnings from the underground organization in question... we are unwilling to risk the safety of humanity itself over a series of abstract and borderline vague warnings."
A brief pause followed.
"However, after their latest warning..."
"...we have failed to detect any remaining signatures within the surrounding areas of the city where the household resides."
"Thus, we have decided to take this opportunity to infiltrate and finally study the entities involved within the household through the large-scale operation we have arranged."
"To corner such threats to humanity's continued existence."
The speaker quietly cleared their throat once more.
"May God guide us toward the success of this operation."
"And for the greater good of humanity as a whole..."
The comms briefly crackled.
"...let Operation Truth commence."
As the final words were spoken, every armed man involved in the operation lowered their goggles.
Their visors lit up instantly as they pushed through the dense underbrush beneath the jungle canopy.
In less than an hour, every team had crossed the seven-kilometer threshold surrounding the household they were targeting.
"Report, over."
Bravo Team's leader spoke quietly into the comms.
His voice scratched faintly through the static as they continued moving beneath the jungle canopy, their footsteps squelching against the damp terrain.
"Delta, clear."
"Charlie, clear."
Bravo's leader gave a small nod before continuing after the rest of his squad as they pushed through the thick vegetation.
Far in the distance, faint city lights flickered through the darkness.
"ETA one hour."
The comms crackled again moments later as the team emerged from the thicker parts of the jungle and stepped into a clearing.
Instantly, Bravo's leader raised a hand.
The squad immediately stopped in place.
Their rifles lowered slightly as they glanced back toward him.
"Team leaders, report. Over."
Bravo's leader spoke again, waiting for the static to settle.
"Delta, clear. Five kilometers from target."
"ETA forty minutes."
A short pause followed.
"Any anomalies detected, over?"
The team leader's eyes narrowed.
His body slowly stiffened as he closed his eyes, trying to recall memories that didn't belong to him.
"How many teams did the TCA deploy...?"
Static crackled through the comms before abruptly dying out a second later.
Slowly, he lifted his gaze toward the men behind him.
Only to find a single soldier standing there.
His breathing hitched.
"Wait..."
"...how many men did I come here with?"
A slow chill crept up his spine.
Even through the gloves, his hands felt unnaturally cold.
The moment he looked down, his rifle shifted faintly against the thin layer of grass beneath him.
Silence.
Then-
"...what am I...?"