Having had to hold herself back from rushing in several times, Leila smiled upon finally getting the signal to get into position.

She had been stalking the Golden Sun’s operations for quite a while and had accumulated enough evidence to truly make a difference, especially now that she had a good idea of what they were doing and, more importantly, where they were doing it.

The pieces of the puzzle slowly started coming together after she found the executives at the pier and realized what they were transporting. That many mana stones, especially when hidden from the knowledge of the competent authorities, could only be used for one purpose.

They forcefully increased the rank of the dungeons they leased and did not report it so they could loot better, higher quality materials and sell them off to the black market.

So many countries are barely holding together these days that very few are in a position to refuse to buy such valuable treasures. The risks of being put at odds with the US are minimal anyways, since our foreign policy is so isolationist.

Shaking her head, Leila refocused. She was currently stalking a processing plant on the outskirts of Kingston, NY. Close enough to the Ashokan Reservoir that no one would casually come by it, a massive complex had been built recently, given the signs of construction still going on.

This specific center, she had found during her investigations, was one of the main hubs the Golden Sun used. It was technically all above board too, since they did have a license to buy and sell dungeon loot.

Unfortunately for them, little could stop her from reaching the deepest, most guarded parts, and she found even more evidence of absurd amounts of mana stones being collected, alongside high-quality parts that they shouldn’t have access to. At least not in that amount.

The higher-ups, especially the regional Director, wanted iron solid evidence before they even attempted moving against a colossus like the Golden Sun. So she had been forced to observe, again and again, as they conducted their shady business, using their legitimate front to introduce their illegal loot in the system.

Those they didn’t sell overseas, of course.

Lately, however, things had changed. Maybe sensing her impatience, or possibly because he himself was not willing to let such a massive operation go on for much longer under his watch, the regional Director had started applying pressure on Washington.

Finally, after weeks of waiting, the green light had arrived, alongside three teams of black ops Awakeners from the Marines and a detailed plan for what they needed to prioritize and where the confiscated resources should go once the operation was wrapped up.

It’s not the complete sweep we expected, since the conditions for that are not ripe yet, but it’s something. If we can take out such a massive Guild, it’ll show the world we are not to be trifled with. It’ll also give us the political capital to really ramp up the rest of the operation.

Still, all of this was not particularly relevant to Leila. She had received her orders after an initial, very tense moment in which it had not been sure she could even participate in the mission. Luckily, the Director and Marcus intervened on her behalf, giving her the go-ahead.

That meant she needed to think only about taking down a specific target and securing a location. Things she was more than suited to.

All the boring stuff that comes after can be left to the pencil pushers, as long as they don’t make a mess. But it'll be almost impossible with the Director breathing down their neck.

Her stealth skills being unmatched by anyone in her rank, Leila had little trouble reaching her preassigned position. One entire warehouse had been given to her, mainly because it contained only very sturdy equipment and an office, where her target was smoking a cigarette and reading through paperwork.

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Despite being an extremely illegal operation set to undermine the United States government on foreign and domestic terrain, the whole thing ran much like a regular business.

During her long hours of stalking, Leila had seen orders arrive for specific materials from overseas on stamped paper letters, meetings being held about productivity and even HR interventions when too much abuse was being heaped on the workers.

It was a rigid, efficient business, and it must have been going on for quite a while to have reached such a level of organization. The earliest paper she had been able to find was dated January 2022, but that didn’t mean much. Until they got their hands on the more well-guarded files, they wouldn’t know how long the operation had been running.

Leila remained in the shadow world for a few more minutes, impatiently waiting for the rest of the special ops to get into position.

Armed with a dimensional mana transmitter, the signals of which could reach even her own personal dimension, she wasted no time proceeding when the go-ahead message came.

Stepping into the office of one Bradley Esposito, Leila felt not a little satisfaction seeing him jump into the air.

Being a B-rank Awakener, he had to have some kind of sensory skill, but her own abilities evidently far trumped it.

“Ah, so it’s come to this.” He said, quickly regaining his cool. A hazy golden mist started spilling from him, condensing into a solid armor. Looking like a medieval knight, the one thing he lacked was a sword, which soon appeared in his hand.

“What, no surprise, no please spare me?” Leila groused. She had been waiting to experience this moment for so long, had been denied it again and again, that his composed reaction was a letdown.

“Nothing lasts forever.” The man shrugged. “I knew one day something was gonna happen. Personally, I believed the Ten Thousand Eyes Guild would find us first and try to take over, but I guess the AA had to have some last spark of defiance before its death.”

Leila smirked, her eyes conveying all her amusement. “It’s a good thing it’s not just the AA, then, huh?”

Covered by the helmet, she couldn’t see his expression, but she liked to imagine his eyes almost falling off his head. To force the full might of the Federal Government on them, they had to pull many strings and she had to spend many, many long hours accumulating evidence. It was worth it.

“I see.” He answered after a moment of silence, his voice much more hesitant. “It seems like we have been outplayed. I don’t suppose you’ll allow me to leave without a fight, then?”

Leila snorted. After all she had witnessed this man do and what she knew of him, there was no chance in hell she would let him go.

Then, with the feeling of something snapping into place, a glowing white dome appeared in the sky over the compound. “That must be my Special Ops friends. They really don’t want any of you guys to run away, you know.”

Apparently done with words, Esposito lifted his sword and got into a stance. Yeah, you are right. Words are for later. Now, give me the satisfaction I wanted.

The golden sword was suddenly in front of her, the mana radiating off it enough to obliterate a C-rank being just from the proximity.

It passed through Leila harmlessly as she dispersed into shadows. Esposito crashed into the office’s wall, entering the larger chamber of the warehouse. He looked around for Leila and quickly noticed the darkness pooling at every corner, every crevice, sealing them in.

“You’ll have to do better than that if you want to keep me here!” He shouted, power flooding into his sword. He swung it, and a massive crescent wave of golden energy launched forth, aiming to reduce the walls to rubble.

It splashed harmlessly against the shifting shadows, which greedily absorbed every ounce of light they could get.

Like a wraith, Leila appeared behind him, apparently unconcerned with the might displayed. Her fist buried itself in his armor, sending Esposito flying against the wall at great speed.

It became quickly evident that little of the original structure remained, as it could not have withstood their clash. Instead, it had all been replaced with solid darkness. Some of that twisted into limbs and grabbed onto the man, holding him still.

Then, a glow burned through them, and the Guild member walked out of the vice grip he had been in. Silently, he flooded even more of his mana into the environment, succeeding in driving back the encroaching terror slightly.

Leila smiled. If it had been already over, she would have been very saddened. Her eyes lit up with power, and a deep red color ignited among the shifting shadows. Embers started rotating around her, as if captured in her gravitational well.

Then, she sprung forth, instantly crossing the distance between them. A sword of her own appeared in her hands, a deep black with an ominous red edge, which clashed against his glowing weapon, creating a massive shockwave that shook the enhanced room.

Before the man could react, a geyser of flames erupted from beneath them, engulfing the two entirely. He was again tossed in the air, his once pristine armor showing cracks.

Again, Leila didn’t let him have the time to reorient himself. A massive wave of darkness rose up from the ground and grabbed onto him, pulling the man back down.

Wings of the same golden light sprung from his back, beating powerfully to keep him aloft. Esposito grunted with the effort and raised his blade, preparing to deliver a massively powerful strike.

That was, until a wave of white-hot fire from her sword hit him. The energy released was enough to melt the reinforced building, continuing further into the air until it hit the glowing dome, making it flicker.

In the smoldering remains of the warehouse, Leila touched down next to her opponent, who was busy gulping in air and desperately pushing mana into his charred legs as he tried to heal himself.

“I was expecting a bit more, to be honest.” She commented, delivering one last strike that sent him into unconsciousness.