Brunaulf POV:

‘Damn.’

The hairs on my body stood on edge as I failed to comprehend just how powerful Kindred was. What made it worse was the fact that he hadn’t released his Ki at all, yet the entire area was beginning to break apart from his sheer presence.

“...Leave this to me.”

A small voice drifted through the hole that Percival had been crushed in. His bloodied hand poked out and grabbed the sides of the earth. He stumbled to his feet, lifting his sword towards Kindred once more.

‘...’

Beatrix and I had stayed behind in order to draw Kindred's attention away from the others escaping, but it became clear as day that we wouldn’t be able to hold him off for even a couple of seconds.

“...Jyn’s apprentice. Indeed. If that was enough to kill you, you would bring shame to his name.”

He peered down at the battered Percival, unamused by his attempts to hold him back. Percival recklessly walked forward, never looking away from Kindred.

“I am Percival, apprentice of Jyn. I will not allow your organization to contaminate this place further.”

His Ki exploded, breaking through to Monzen as his grey-blond hair flowed upwards. He lowered his center of gravity while flames ignited his sword.

“Justice Order: Twelfth Night.”

The flames burned brighter while his hand flashed forward. Eleven arcs of fire ripped the night sky in half, trapping Kindred in a cage of fire and darkness.

Percival launched himself high into the sky as the movement of his blade left a sharp afterimage behind it. An arc of fire blasted forward, causing the flames to converge inwards.

The darkness wrapped around the ball of flames while the arc of fire split it apart. The air shattered from the explosion that took on the shape of a large star.

I raised my guard as the aftershock sent fierce winds that pushed down on us. Percival landed on his knee, out of breath from the attack. His grey-blond hair covered his forehead while his hand rested on the sword.

“I suppose there is some potential to be seen in you.”

Kindred hadn’t moved a single spot from his position. There was not a shred of anything even remotely close to what could be considered damage. He levitated in the same place, unperturbed by the attack as his gaze rested on Percival's exhausted figure.

“Your ability is split into two types: Passive and Active. The first contains 6 passive techniques while the last 6 are active ones. Even if you met the conditions to use all of your passive techniques at once, the result would be the same.”

Kindred's eyes glowed a lighter shade of purple, leaving a trail of aura-like energy behind every time they moved. Percival forced himself up to his feet using his sword as a support. He was visibly shaken by Kindred's correct analysis extrapolated from that brief exchange.

“I see the inspiration behind your ability didn’t come from Jyn alone.”

Percival's eyes widened as he clenched his teeth. He ripped the sword out of the ground and faced Kindred once more.

“No. We're done here.”

The air vibrated destructively as Percival’s body was assaulted from every angle at an insane speed. He fell headfirst into the ground, covered in his own blood.

‘Percival...’

He had tried his best in order to create an opening for us, but the opponent was simply too strong. Kindred was the strongest person I had ever encountered.

His gaze shifted to Beatrix, who had been frozen in place just like I was, unable to do anything but watch. Kindred’s eyes narrowed while he observed her carefully.

“Madness: Wolf.”

I roared while releasing everything that I had, barely managing to force myself in front of Beatrix. The tendrils of madness screamed as the closer I got to Beatrix, the deeper the resonation became.

They spiralled up behind me with the desire to protect. I crouched down as I faced Kindred head-on.

“Move.”

‘Huh?’

The full moon suddenly appeared a lot closer than before, and then...

It didn’t.

The world around me spun as I collided into the wall with a deafening thud.

‘What?...’

My body laid crumpled against the debris, incapable of moving an inch. My brain shook around while I struggled to make sense of what had happened.

I replayed that moment over and over again, but no matter how many times I saw it back, I failed to notice anything. The madness that had wrapped tightly around me a second ago had vanished into thin air.

‘Could it be...?’

I swivelled my eyes down as I examined the large bruise on my broken jaw. I theorized that I had been hit with a supersonic blast of air that split the madness apart like bamboo strands.

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“Brunaulf!”

Beatrix panicked while twisting her neck to check on me. Her feelings flowed into me clearly as her expression darkened.

“A Kassmeyer? Hoh, so the child survived.”

Beatrix's face stiffened. Her head creaked as she swivelled it back towards Kindred levitating in the air.

“You...!”

“Hand over that report. Otherwise, the three rats outside and your little lover here will die.”

Beatrix bit her quivering lip. I watched her clenched fists fall to her side helplessly. She slipped her hand inside her pocket, pulling out a folded, brown piece of paper.

“So it was true. To think the one thing we had been searching for was right under our noses the whole time. How ironic.”

The report left Beatrix's hand as it headed towards Kindred.

“That worthless Baron was actually waiting for an opportunity to strike back.”

It floated above the palm of his open hand. The air shredded it into such tiny pieces it resembled the dust of the earth. Beatrix gripped her arm tightly as she watched years of planning, of hard work vanish into nothingness.

She gnashed her teeth together while her eyebrows furrowed deeply. A fiery wave of anger swelled up inside of her as she glared at Kindred.

“The bomb... Was it you?...”

Kindred peered down at her, and for the first time since his arrival, his lips curved upwards.

“Bomb? There’s no such thing. That was just me tying up some loose ends.”

Beatrix roared as she released the full extent of her Ki, breaking through to Monzen. The veins on the side of her head bulged alongside her dilated pupils. Her eyes popped as a blood-curdling scream entered my ears.

“Torment: Gateway to Hell!!”

Pillars of dark purply-blue flames erupted from the ground, surrounding Kindred, who still had a thin smile on his face.

“!!”

I heard the sound of someone’s fingers snapping. The flames immediately vanished, and the technique was cancelled before it even began. Beatrix flopped forward, blood pouring down her face.

I tried to get up, but I couldn’t move. Beatrix barely managed to stand upright as her body violently trembled.

“I think you’re mistaken, young Kassmeyer. That report contained a list of every member within Enigma, so why do you think your parent’s name were listed on it?”

His smile widened further as Beatrix stared at him in a daze. Her mouth dropped open, but no words came out. I could feel the confusion, the fear, the distrust swirling around inside of her.

“Lie... It’s a lie!”

Beatrix shivered intensely. The shock of her own parents being a part of such an organization made her deny the reality in front of her. All the killing, all the sleepless nights trying to avenge them... For what?

“A lie? On the contrary, young Kassmeyer. Your parents were one of the ten founding members of Enigma.”

The strength in her legs vanished. She collapsed to her knees as she gripped her head. Beatrix screamed while a surge of pain penetrated my heart, causing blood to gush out of my nose.

“They had been on the run for 12 years, and I was tasked with hunting them down.”

Kindred's smile faded as he slowly descended, stopping above the destroyed fountain.

“During that time, your mother conceived a child—you. Do you know why they escaped my grasp for so long? It’s because the Kassmeyers were strong. As their child, you’re nothing but a disappointment. At your age, both your parents had already gone far beyond Boukyaku years ago.”

He sneered while staring at a broken Beatrix.

“Your mother grovelled before me after days of continuous fighting, begging that you be spared. I showed her the fate you would meet by ripping out your father’s beating heart right in front of his wife. And then, I took her heart too.”

Kindred's eyes glowed a deeper shade of purple.

“I wanted to kill you that day, but do you know what saved you from that blast? It was one of the Kassmeyer's ultimate techniques: Absolution.”

He clicked his tongue as the pressure in the area began to increase.

“A child shouldn’t bear the crimes of their parents—that was their philosophy.”

Beatrix wobbled. Tears streamed down her face while her arms dropped lifelessly to her side. He smirked, satisfied with the destruction of her mind.

“Don’t worry. They have become a part of something bigger; they have become kindred souls. Now, you too will join them.”

He stretched out his hand towards Beatrix.

“Stop... It...”

Kindred's eyes moved in my direction. The pressure pressing down on me rapidly increased, threatening to shatter my bones at any moment.

“Open your mouth again, and I’ll permanently close it.”

‘Keuk..!’

My head snapped back into the debris as the last of my strength left my body. Kindred manipulated the air, lifting up Beatrix's despondent face.

“I have spoken this much only out of respect for those who I once called Seniors. Goodbye, last seed of the Kassmeyer lineage.”

‘Beatrix!!’

His hand lunged forward only to stop centimetres away from her chest. Kindred's face suddenly contorted; his eyes glowed as he clenched his teeth.

*Hoooo! Twit-Twooo!*

The sound of an owl screeched throughout the night sky as a column of white light shot down to the ground.

“!!!”

The whole estate shook violently, and blinding white winds covered my vision. I could barely make out the appearance of a long dark jacket that flapped slowly within the white light. Pure, long white hair fluttered along with it. An eye with luscious white eyelashes and a brilliant white iris peered at me.

‘...!’

“Keep your mouth shut, or the next time we meet will be the last breath you take on this earth.”

A beautiful voice of a woman directly entered my ear, followed by a pure white screen. The screen peeled away, and the next thing I knew, I was standing at the halfway point between Losa and the Baron's estate.

Traces of white owl feathers dispersed around my body as I turned my head to see that everyone within the mansion and the nearby area had been teleported all the way here.

Everyone wore expressions of visible confusion mixed in with relief as I stared at the tiny dot that represented the estate on the horizon. A large tornado descended down above it, only for beams of white light to pierce through it, causing a huge explosion to occur. The shockwaves reached our current location as the ground beneath our feet shook dangerously.

“We need to get out of here now! Everyone get into the spare carriages!!”

I snapped out of the daze I had been in as I saw Nana standing in front of multiple carriages. The maids, chefs, gardeners and whoever else was in the mansion quickly rushed inside, departing immediately.

‘Belle!’

I spun around and saw Christina holding Belle close to her chest. The clothes on her back had been ripped apart from what looked to be traces of wind attacks. Her back was raw as blood dripped down it continuously.

‘Kindred!’

He had been toying with them on purpose. I clenched my fists in anger but quickly remembered the vast difference in strength.

“Christina...”

She looked up at me with a bright smile on her face. Christina had taken the full force of the blows in order to make sure Belle was safe. If even one of those strikes hit her in her current condition, she wouldn’t make it.

“Don’t worry, she’s perfectly fine. Take a look.”

Christina winced in pain as she leaned backwards. I saw Belle's sleeping face and checked her pulse. A sigh of relief escaped my lips.

“Thank you, Christina.”

“... She’s your family. You can’t let anything happen to her.”

Christina smiled bitterly. I nodded my head when a sharp pain pierced my chest.

“!”

I stumbled forward as I belatedly realized the source of this pain. Nana cried uncontrollably as she crouched down next to Beatrix, who stared at the ground lifelessly.

I walked towards Beatrix while the others continued to flee the area affected by the battle. I sat down on my knees in front of her and grabbed hold of her hand gently. Our fingers interlocked as she looked up at me through the gaps in her messy, curly hair.

“Beatrix, you're not alone.”

Her lip quivered while her emotions continually flooded inside of me. I clenched my teeth and held her hand tightly.

It really had been a long day.