Chapter 107: The Price of a Sister's Life
The streets of Athelgard were no longer safe. Every electronic billboard, every brick wall, and every flickering holographic terminal was plastered with the same two faces. "MOST WANTED: REN VORITY & MINA KIMO." The Butcher of Sector 7 and the star student of the Academy were now the kingdom's public enemies number one. Vaner squads and specialized police units swarmed the sectors, their sirens wailing like mourning banshees, searching for any sign of the silver-haired girl and the man with the sapphire eye.
Inside a high-security office at the Academy's headquarters, the air was thick with tension. Miss Hima sat behind a mahogany desk, her eyes cold as ice. Opposite her sat Kimo, the Master Instructor. He looked like a shadow of his former self—his eyes were sunken, his skin sallow, and his hands trembled slightly.
"I'm telling you, Miss Hima," Kimo whispered, his voice cracking. "There is no proof. My daughter is a victim. She was kidnapped by Vority. She is not his accomplice."
Miss Hima didn't say a word. She simply swiped her finger across a glass tablet and slid it across the desk toward him. A video began to play. It was grainy, night-vision footage from the perimeter of the prison. It showed a figure—agile, precise, and lethal—breaking through the outer guards to reach Ren.
"Look at the hair, Kimo," Hima said, her voice devoid of sympathy. "Short, silver hair. Look at the height. Look at those tactical maneuvers—the exact same moves you taught her. That girl didn't just help him escape; she led the charge. Your daughter is a traitor."
Kimo stared at the screen, his heart sinking into his stomach. He had no more lies left to tell.
"Since when did you start caring so much about your family, Kimo?" Hima asked mockingly. "I heard the news."
Kimo's face went translucent. Two days ago, his wife—the woman he had sold his soul to Spero to save—had finally succumbed to her illness. The stress of Mina's disappearance and the corruption of the Vane had been too much for her heart.
"My wife is dead," Kimo muttered, closing his eyes. "Everything I did... I did it for her. And now I have nothing."
"You have a daughter to find," Hima replied coldly. "Before the King's Guard finds her first and executes her on sight."
The Bunker: The Final Countdown
Two days had passed since the tragic events at the Kimo household. In the center of the wooden house—which served as the entrance to a deeper underground bunker—Spero sat casually on a plush velvet chair. He looked like a man at a Sunday picnic, but the atmosphere was anything but peaceful.
To his side, Hana was strapped into her wheelchair. Thick steel chains bound her arms, and a heavy blindfold covered her eyes. Behind Spero stood five of his most elite mercenaries, their fingers twitching on the triggers of their Vane-suppressor rifles.
Spero checked his gold pocket watch. "Today is the last day," he remarked to the room. "If Ren doesn't show up in the next hour, the plan changes. We'll have to find another way to lure out the Master Instructor. Maybe I'll start sending Hana back to him... piece by piece."
Suddenly, the floor vibrated. A low, mechanical hum began to resonate through the walls, growing louder by the second.
CRASH!
The ceiling exploded inward. Tons of wood, dirt, and reinforced concrete rained down on the mercenaries. Through the dust and debris, two massive shapes descended from the sky like fallen gods of iron.
The Red Knightmare Frame and the Purple Knightmare Frame landed with a thud that shook the very foundations of the bunker. The mercenaries scrambled back, coughing and shielding their eyes.
Before the dust could even settle, the Purple Frame raised its right arm. A series of gatling barrels slid out from the forearm, aiming directly at Spero's head. The Red Frame stood beside it, its heavy 'Vane-Breaker' sword glowing with an ominous crimson light.
Hana, despite the blindfold, gasped. Her head turned toward the sound of the machines. "Big brother? Ren? Is that you?"
Inside the cockpit of the Purple Frame, Ren's face was a mask of cold fury. His new eye pulsed with sapphire light, syncing with the machine's targeting sensors. "Stay away from Hana, Spero," Ren's voice boomed through the external speakers, distorted and terrifying. "The games are over."
Spero didn't flinch. He didn't even stand up. He simply looked up at the towering machines and smiled that razor-sharp smile. "Calm down, Ren. Calm down. chell! Why so much drama? Have you forgotten our arrangement?"
Spero reached into his coat and pulled out a sleek, black pistol. He didn't aim it at the frames. He pressed the cold barrel against Hana's temple.
"We had a deal," Spero said, his voice dropping to a deadly whisper. "The girl for the sister. Bring me Mina Kimo, and you can take Hana home. Try anything else... and your little sister's game is over."
Ren's hand tightened on the controls. The Purple Frame's cannons hummed, ready to tear Spero apart, but the pistol was already cocked against Hana's head.
"Fine," Ren's voice cracked through the speakers. "I'll give you what you want. I'll give you Mina."
Inside the cockpit of the Red Frame, Mina's heart stopped. Her eyes widened, her hands trembling on the joysticks. What? Ren... what are you saying? she thought, her mind spinning. Was the plan a lie? Was the kiss a lie? Are you really handing me over to this monster?
"Ren, wait!" Mina whispered into the private comms, but Ren had muted his receiver.
Spero's grin widened. "A wise choice, Butcher. You always were a pragmatist."
"But first," Ren continued, his voice cold and analytical. "I want to know what you're going to do with her. What is a student worth to the Kara Group?"
Spero chuckled, shifting his weight. "That shouldn't be your concern, Ren. You get your sister, I get my 'key' to Master Kimo. A fair trade. Now, tell the girl to step out of that machine and walk toward me. If she hesitates for even a second... Hana's brains will be all over this floor."
Ren looked at the monitors, his sapphire eye analyzing Spero's heartbeat and the mercenaries' positions. He knew that the moment Mina stepped out, they would both be vulnerable. But he also knew that Spero's finger was already putting pressure on the trigger.
"Mina," Ren said, his voice echoing in both their cockpits. "Do it. Go to him."
Mina sat in the dark cockpit of the Red Frame, tears stinging her eyes. She felt a cold sense of betrayal she had never known. She had given him her energy, her trust, and her heart. And now, he was trading her like a piece of meat.
"I trust you, Ren," she whispered to the empty air, her voice trembling. "I hope you know what you're doing."
The hatch of the Red Knightmare Frame hissed open.