Ven POV:

“Storm, you hit him with the wrong KED...”

“I feel much better after beating on that Engima trash!”

“Oh, these are the same guys from before? I guess you were right, Storm. They really aren’t locals.”

Our feet stopped moving immediately. In fact, we had barely moved past Hervey's body when we heard their voices.

“You’re wrong, Lance. I wanted to see if the Royal Guards in the high 20s could resist the effects of the new KEDs. The result: Disappointing.”

A small boy stepped into the circular dome that had expanded around us greatly. His presence caused the wind to constantly stir between us while three men of different builds appeared behind him.

‘...Shin.’

The boy was definitely at the Mid Shin stage, and the Ki he gave off was astounding. I watched him walk over to Hervey's body without batting an eye at us.

“!!!”

He raised his foot and stomped down on Hervey's face. Blood gushed out like a water fountain as he kicked Hervey's lifeless body to the side of the street.

Denise gasped while Triste and I instinctively moved in front of her. The boy turned his head to face us. There was no change in his expression as he wiped the blood away from his cheek using the sleeve of his short jacket.

“What is your favourite book genre?”

His gaze rested on me while I stared at him baffled by the strange question. Triste stepped forward, visibly annoyed by their sudden appearance.

“Another weirdo shows up. Hey, kid—”

“!”

She shot backwards like a bullet, crashing into a nearby building behind us. The blood that had left her mouth was still falling to the ground by the time I had realized what had just happened. The boy had taken a single step forward, and that was the result of his step.

“I wasn’t talking to you. Do not interrupt my conversation.”

His cold eyes rested on me once more. I signalled to Denise to go and check on Triste as I faced the four of them. I needed to buy some time.

“I guess I like adventure and romantic ones.”

The boy's lips rose slightly as his emotionless eyes gained a new hue of colour. My heartbeat grew louder, and my throat instantly felt tight.

“I love tragedies. The world isn’t a place full of happiness, and tragedies reflect that.”

He stuck his hand into his pocket and pulled out a clump of messy black hair. He threw it towards me as the smile on his face grew wider. Cold sweat trickled down my neck while I felt increasingly nauseous.

‘Gunnar... You’re safe, right?...’

The texture of the black hair falling to the ground was awfully similar to his, but it had to be a coincidence. The boy was probably just trying to shake me up.

“The man who left you lied to me. You are not locals. You're from District 4, but how do I know that?”

The corners of his lips almost reached the edge of his upturned eyes as his Ki erupted. My knees wobbled; my strength rapidly leaving my body as I denied his words. I knew Gunnar was fine... I knew it. He was lying—that had to be it!

“You’re lying!!”

I roared at him while releasing the full extent of my Ki. I couldn’t compare to him, but that didn’t mean I was going to go down without a fight. There was more to battles than what Ki Stage you had achieved.

“Your District Leader almost died while fighting against Solina who is only ranked 19th. I am Storm, rank 15th among the Royal Guards.”

My eyes shook as I stared at the boy in disbelief. The determination and willpower I had been gathering left me like a fleeting thought. There was no way I could win. How could I beat an opponent stronger than the one the Leader fought?

“That’s the same look that man had in his eyes. A look of realization—a look of understanding that there’s levels to this and you both, as well as that District Leader of yours, are underneath me.”

I flopped to my knees just as Denise arrived back with Triste. That one punch had messed her up so badly, she struggled to walk without Denise's support.

“V-Ven... Stand up...”

Denise tried to encourage me, but the boy merely laughed in response at the scene unfolding before him. He stretched out his open palm, and the large man behind him placed a brown bag on top of it.

“Show her what a tragedy is.”

The large man removed the bag, and a head with a bruised face filled my vision. Everything else went white as I observed his messy black hair that clung to his forehead while a trail of dried tears marked his lightly tanned skin—It was him.

Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

It was Gunnar.

“Heuk!”

I threw up all over the street as tears poured down my face. I screamed and yelled at him in despair; I lost control of myself because I... I lost him.

Everything in my vision blurred further while I recalled my last moment with Gunnar. His warm hands that stroked my cheek gently, and his deep brown eyes that comforted me; that assured me he would be fine.

My throat grew hoarse as I began to hyperventilate.

I saw Denise and Triste shouting something at me, but their voices didn’t reach me; the darkness had already started to seal off my vision when a cold voice rang through my head.

“There is nothing more beautiful than a tragedy.”

***

Brunaulf POV:

I watched the red mist act as a barrier between the inner and outer parts of District 3. I recalled the conversation I had with the District Leader a few hours earlier.

***

“What’s wrong, Brunaulf?”

I had stopped talking for a while and stared at the papers in my hand. I was worried. I knew what the others thought of me, but I didn’t want any harm to come to Denise.

“Ah... Sorry, Leader. It’s just that I haven’t received a report from the Senior Vices in the last few days, and I’m worried. There have also been reports from the locals in District 3 about a strange red mist covering the whole inner area.”

I watched the District Leader lean forward and ponder to himself for a while. The red mist could either be a way to hide whatever was going on in District 3 from the eyes of Inner Astril, or it could be another mass experiment that Enigma was carrying out—both were plausible options.

It was just unsettling that no report had come despite the amount of time they had spent there. Even if there was nothing of importance to report, I’d feel more at ease knowing that everyone was at least safe.

“Brunaulf, this time you go.”

“Yes, Leader.”

I bowed my head, and we swiftly moved on to the next topic. I didn’t think much of why the District Leader wanted me to go—it didn’t matter. He ordered, and I would obey; this was the minimum I could do in order to repent.

“Do we have any allies in District 1?”

“None. District 1 is a very secure place. It’d be difficult to plan anything from the outside currently.”

I watched his gaze turn to Lissandra, who had been leaning against the wall with her arms folded. If anyone would have any connections there, it would be her. The District Leader would probably make a move in the next couple of months, and we all needed to be ready for it.

“Hmm... I do have one, but she won’t move for us yet. She’s the type who needs to see something more convincing before she acts.”

“Taking out Solina wasn’t enough? That means she wasn’t ranked as low as we hoped.”

“That appears to be the case, Leader.”

We had reached a bit of a standstill thanks to my Master's involvement in District 3. The conversation moved on quickly, and once all of the matters at hand had been discussed, I left Lissandra and the District Leader alone in the room.

“Hey Brunaulf, I recently broke through to Nagi!”

“Congratulations. Keep up the good work.”

“Brunaulf, when are you going to teach us again? Lissandra is too strict...”

“Don’t say that. She just wants the best for all of you. Battles aren’t forgiving—one mistake can cost you your life or the life of someone else. Train hard whenever you can.”

“...You’re right. Thanks Brunaulf!”

“Martha made your favourite bramble pie again, Brunnie.”

“Thank her for me, and let her know I’ll have some when I come back.”

I descended the floors of the building complex as various people flocked towards me. I greeted them and answered any questions or complaints that they had. I just wanted to do whatever I could to make the lives of those around me comfortable. It wasn’t easy becoming aware of your own ugly truth, and it was even harder trying to change it.

I reached my secondary office in Complex B and gazed at the two flower pots on the windowsill for a moment before sitting down behind my desk. I glanced at a black card, that had two silver stars embedded on it, as it laid on top of a similar card with a dark purple background.

My fingers moved swiftly, placing them in a drawer. I turned my attention back to the last report I had received from the Senior Vices that was currently laying on the desk. My gaze hovered over Denise's name, and a small sigh escaped my mouth.

'Denise...'

***

I snapped back to reality as I examined the red mist. I couldn’t sense any of them nearby, so I had no choice but to search inside the mist itself. I jumped down below and dashed across the rooftops as the red mist swallowed me whole.

I immediately noticed that my senses had become distorted. The thickness of the mist also interfered with my sense of direction.

‘This mist is not an experiment. Someone is trying to conceal something.’

I blew the mist away by releasing my Ki, restoring my senses at the same time.

‘First, let’s find the Senior Vices.’

I navigated through the red mist that tried desperately to consume me. My speed gradually increased as a few more minutes passed by.

“Keuk!!”

I heard a loud pained scream ring out in the distance, and I immediately changed direction.

“!”

Three figures wearing black and red cloaks shot out of the mist towards me. Three stripes with a circle and dot in the middle—the pattern on the back of the cloak was without a doubt Enigma's.

“He’s not a Royal Guard.”

“Does it matter? Those shmucks think they can mess with us and get away with it. Kill every person you come across.”

“Understood.”

I ignored them as they resumed their charge towards me. My only interest was bringing back the Senior Vices, but now, I had at least confirmed that the Ruler had gone against Enigma.

“You think you can just ignore us?”

My eyes flashed as their faces smashed into the ground.

“Know your place.”

The pressure of my Ki crushed their bodies relentlessly as they crashed through the lower floors of the estate helplessly. I darted across the rooftop without looking back.

The voice I had heard earlier sounded like Denise, and that made me... Worried. I didn't have time to entertain anyone.

The thickness of the mist increased greatly, but it still failed to block the circular mist-free zone I had created around me. I closed in on my target while more cloaked figures tried to get in my way, but I disposed of them effortlessly.

I reached the area where I heard the scream, kicked off the rooftop ledge and dropped down to the street below.

“!”

The first thing I saw was Ven's body crushed into the ground. It laid there motionlessly, covered in blood. My gaze shifted to Triste, who was barely conscious. Her face battered and bruised severely as her blood splattered the area around her, yet she still had the strength to lift up her trembling finger and point in front of me. My pupils dilated as I watched her swollen lips part slightly.

“D-Deni...se...”

Her eyes rolled into the back of her head as she passed out. My head slowly creaked towards the direction she had pointed to. I saw a large man holding Denise by her head. Fresh blood splashed all over her body, and her top was ripped down the middle exposing her breasts.

The large man grinned as he launched her body towards the nearest building. I stepped forward silently and caught her in my arms while she spun through the air.

“A hero who appears too late to save the one he loves. This is also a tragedy.”

A small boy flickered into view as I placed Denise's body beside Triste's carefully. I took my jacket off and covered her upper body with it as I lightly stroked her cheek. The boy stepped forward, and his voice entered my mind once more.

“What is your favourite book genre?”