Gunnar POV:

I kept track of the faint shadowy figures as I moved deeper into the red mist. It had been over 7 minutes since I split up from Ven and the others. That was more than enough time for them to exit this area.

My feet skidded to a halt on the street while I prepared to shake these guys off my tail. The red mist interfered with the ability to sense Ki, but it seemed to have other properties too.

“!”

One of the shadowy figures suddenly accelerated, dropping down in front of me before I had the chance to react. I jumped back as the mist began to break apart, trapping us in a circular dome free from its intervention.

“...He’s not from Enigma. A local?”

“Tch. I thought the locals had already retreated to the outer parts of District 3?”

“Ahhh! I want to get back at that Enigma dude who sucker punched me!”

A short boy stepped in front of the three men conversing. His arms hung close to his side as his gaze swept over me slowly. He examined me closely, and a few seconds later, his lips parted.

“Are you from District 3?”

“Y-yes...”

I scratched the back of my head while looking down at the floor. I made my body tremble slightly to give off the impression that their pressure was affecting me.

‘No point in fighting here if I don’t have to. I need to prioritize catching up to Ven; I can't let her get hurt.’

He stared at me quietly—his face devoid of any emotions. His bright eyes seemed to contain multicoloured hues that made it hard to get a clear read on whether he was falling for my bluff or not.

“Why did you run? Who were those people you were with?”

I dropped to my knees dramatically as my eyebrows curved inwards. My hands trembled while I made direct eye contact with him.

“I-I'm sorry... Please don’t hurt them... They're the only family I have left... I needed to protect them... It was hard enough with the Blood Hounds before... But once I saw the red mist... I knew it was time to leave... Spare them please...”

The boy's eyebrows quivered slightly before the corners of his mouth rose.

“I understand. I am Storm, Rank 15th among the Royal Guards. The others behind me are ranked in the 20s.”

‘Shoot...’

Cold sweat dripped down my back as my fake fearful act gradually turned into a real one. The Leader had received serious injuries from fighting against Solina, but the problem was that no one knew what her rank was.

We all hoped that she was a high-ranking Guard, but after hearing some of Lissandra's past, it was more likely that Solina's rank was low.

‘...His Ki...’

I examined the boy as more beads of sweat formed on my forehead. He had been suppressing his Ki to such a degree that I mistakenly thought he was weaker than me.

‘Mid Shin...’

He flared his Ki while peering down at me. I gulped while I tried to figure out what I should do. I had no idea what his ability was either.

Furthermore, what the hell was a rank 15 Royal Guard doing all the way out here? There was still a considerable distance to where the initial chain explosions had taken place.

“Go and don’t look back. I wish you and your family a safe journey.”

‘Huh? He actually fell for it?’

I stared at him in a daze, only to quickly realize this was a golden opportunity that couldn’t be wasted.

“Thank you for your kindness! Long live the Ruler!”

I got to my feet and sprinted down the street without looking back. I scaled the nearest building while I recalled Storm's last expression. His eyebrows had furrowed ever so slightly, but then his lips formed a wide smile that made me shiver—it felt unnatural.

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‘...’

I darted across the rooftops through the red mist as Storm’s reaction continued to bother me. My gut instincts were usually correct, so I knew this uncomfortable feeling I had was a bad sign.

I grew more and more worried about Ven and the others as the thickness of the mist seemed to increase rather than decrease.

“What is this?”

I stopped moving in order to get my bearings back. I had been retracing my footsteps, but the exit wasn’t getting any closer.

‘Does the mist mess up your sense of direction too?’

I clicked my tongue while I scratched the back of my head. This was turning into a real hassle. Thinking back now, I was grateful Ven stopped me from charging in alone, but what do I do now?

“!”

A loud explosion rang out, visibly shaking the red mist as a result of its intensity. The knot in my stomach tightened instantly while blood trickled down from my ears; a testament to how close I was to the source of that detonation.

Without a moment's delay, I suppressed my Ki and flew into a nearby estate. I reached an abandoned apartment, blocked the window and sat in the corner of the now-dark room.

If my suspicions were correct, I had been moving closer to the heart of District 3 instead of away from it. In other words, I was screwed.

“Kill him!”

“Don’t let any of them escape!”

The bloody sounds of battle soon reached my ears. I heard the screams of innocent civilians, who had yet to escape, and the cries of those who had lost their loved ones. Buildings were blasted apart as the scale of the battle rapidly increased.

I put my hand to my forehead and prayed that Ven was safe and sound. I wouldn’t be able to go on if anything happened to her; she was my light. Fortunately, Triste and Denise were with her, and they were closer to exiting the red mist than I was.

I wondered why the Royal Guards were fighting off Enigma but quickly pushed those thoughts aside. It was something that the Leader or Brunaulf could figure out, so I didn’t want to dwell on it too much.

“!”

The whole estate shook. The door to the bathroom flung open as a result of the shockwave that rippled over the building. The bloody mist painted the room a deep shade of red, illuminating the figure of a man with a rope tied around his neck.

My eyes widened as I quickly got up and approached him. His body hung from the ceiling lifelessly—he had killed himself hours ago; I could tell by the warmth of his skin.

I left the bathroom and slammed the door shut. My hands balled into fists as I sat alone in the dark room. I grinded my teeth together with annoyance and rage. Seeing that sight... had brought back bad memories.

‘Leader... You need to put an end to this madness.’

***

Ven POV:

I watched Triste stand over Theo, whose face had been imprinted into the ground beneath her foot. Her breathing was erratic, and she had taken a lot of damage as a result of their fight.

“...You're stronger than you look, and you look stunning.”

Hervey folded his arms, unconcerned about the state of his ally that seemed completely enamoured with Triste; constantly showering her with compliments.

I had a hard time pushing Hervey back. He was elusive and always seemed to slip out of range just when my attacks were about to reach him.

“Tch. How about you actually fight instead of running that mouth of yours?”

“...I don’t talk that much, and I can't help admiring your bod—”

“You won’t be talking at all soon enough.”

Triste booted Theo's now unconscious body outside of the dome as the red mist quickly swallowed him whole. She kicked off the ground and charged towards Hervey.

“Denise, can you sense Gunnar?”

“No...”

She had been focusing hard on sensing him this whole time, but there was still nothing. I bit my trembling lip as I tried to calm myself down. It had been well over 10 minutes, so where on earth was he?

‘Gunnar...’

I clenched my teeth while I glared at Hervey, who was giving Triste the same problems I had. I didn’t know if he was buying time or if he was simply waiting for us to get tired, but enough was enough.

“!”

I flicked my hand down in his direction, and a thin strand of air shot forward. He tried to dodge, but Triste's pressure limited his options. The air latched onto his neck, coiling around it like a snake. I flicked two fingers up, pulling him toward me as he gasped for air.

Triste's fist smashed into Hervey's jaw, blasting him into the ground. I splayed my hand and wrapped the wind around him while I lifted him up.

“How many Royal Guards are here?”

“...I can’t answer th—”

I snapped my fingers, and the air exploded against his jaw. He screamed out in pain as he struggled to break free from my grip.

“How. Many. Royal. Guards. Are. Here?”

He looked at me with half-scared eyes, but no answer came. The air battered his face from every angle as I repeatedly asked him the same question again and again.

I watched his blood soak his clothes while it splashed against the ground below, but I felt no empathy for him.

“Ven, people like him need a fire lit in their ass to start talking.”

Triste stepped forward as a ball of fire formed in the palm of her hand.

“Last chance. How many Royal Guards were sent here?”

He spat out the blood in his mouth while his lips curved into a devilish smile. The blood vessels in his eyes abruptly popped, and his body started to convulse randomly.

“The hell? Ven, what’s going on?”

We retreated backwards, but I didn’t let go of my grip on him. The spasms throughout his body increased as blood began to pour out of several crevices. Hervey laughed maniacally while his body violently shook in the air.

“...Isn't this what Brunaulf called Hounding?”

I glanced at Denise. Her assertion seemed accurate, but I couldn’t understand why a Royal Guard was going through that process right now.

“Then you’re saying he’s been injected with a KED?”

“That seems to be the case.”

“Uhh... Why would a Royal Guard do that though?”

We shook our heads at Triste's question. The reason didn’t matter; what mattered was getting out of here and reporting everything to the Leader. We had obtained more than enough information.

I snapped the air around him, and his body convulsed one final time before flopping to the ground motionlessly.

I wasn’t kind enough to watch someone transform in front of me. He was barely breathing, but if he died, it would be from the effect of the drugs that he took, not the beating he received.

“Let’s get out of here.”

We sprinted past his body and didn’t look back.