"It's been a while," the lieutenant-general said, his voice steady as he regained his composure first. He offered a light smile and a respectful bow, the least he could do for a family that had once helped them.

The golden-eyed woman tilted her head in confusion. "Do I know you?"

"You don't, but we know you," the lieutenant-general replied, nostalgia washing over him. It had been over forty years since they had last seen this family, and now they were back. "We've actually been searching for your family to express our gratitude for all you've done for our world. We are eternally grateful."

By now, the rest of the conference attendees had also gathered their wits, surrounding the room and waiting for orders to act.

"Oh, in that case, can you do something for me?" The woman grinned widely.

"We will do our utmost to help you," the lieutenant-general assured her, his expression remaining neutral. He suspected that this family's appearance was driven by a need.

"Now, I'm looking for someone." She closed her eyes and nodded.

With a snap of his fingers, a man in a suit entered the conference room, holding a large tablet. He approached the lieutenant-general, bowed, and handed him the device, then turned to the golden-eyed woman, awaiting her instructions.

What she said next stunned everyone in the room.

"I'm looking for my brother… Vahn."

Once again, silence fell over the group.

Among all those present, everyone knew Vahn. Though they had only asked him a few questions about his parents, they had been closely monitoring him for years. Unbeknownst to Vahn, not just anyone received government apartments; it was a means of surveillance.

And, after years of observation, they had concluded that Vahn had no connection to the mysterious family. His lack of abilities, despite the use of their advanced technology, and the absence of any special qualities had led them to this conclusion.

Yet now, they were confronted with a shocking revelation: the boy they had given up on was actually related to them.

"You know him?" The golden-eyed woman's gaze pierced through their frozen expressions.

"Yes, we do." The lieutenant-general regained his composure and began tapping on the tablet.

Beep… Beep… Beep.

The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

A few moments later, a holographic map materialized in the air. "Vahn is in Camp 5…" The blinking indicator marked the location he was discussing. However, the lieutenant general's expression darkened.

'What is this?' he thought, scanning the screen.

[Student: Vahn Clay]

[Ability: Non-ability user]

[Current status: Alliance termination.]

[Reason: Presumed dead]

He looked back at the golden-eyed woman, however she had vanished.

"PUT CAMP 5 ON THE LINE, NOWWW!" he shouted, his voice filled with rage.

***

As expected, the demons were not foolish. After rescuing the twentieth person, they were bound to realize something was amiss.

Fortunately, Vahn had managed to save a user with healing abilities along the way. However, unfortunately, the more people he gathered, the harder it became to avoid devouring their corpses. If he did and they all made it outside safely, he would have a lot of explaining to do. So, he limited himself to teleporting, focusing on surviving their current predicament.

Currently, the area they had reached was not a demarcation like the others.

Instead, it was a spacious corridor from which dozens of demons emerged to face off against the twenty ability users who had banded together to fight.

"These damned demons…" a large man at the forefront of the group of survivors gritted his teeth as he watched the creatures pour out.

Surprisingly, Vahn was not leading the charge.

Along the way, they rescued a massive man named Blade-Axe. He was a C-rank, and as others flocked to him after he revealed himself, he naturally took charge. And Vahn, who had initially led the group, found himself at the back.

'Is this what it feels like to have your spotlight stolen?' Vahn chuckled at the thought, but he wasn't upset. They were all trying to survive, and following the strongest was the best strategy.

"Haa… isn't this wonderful?" a voice called out, drawing the survivors' attention. The demons parted, revealing a man in a laboratory coat who walked by with a smile.

"The struggle to escape, only to realize it is futile," he exhaled, shaking his head in mock pity.

"You! Aren't you a human? Why are you with them?" another member of the group shouted, gripping his spear tightly.

"Good question… now let me ask you back, who do you think all these demons were before?" He gestured to the throng of demons surrounding him.

"No way…"

"Haa…"

"Impossible…"

"H-How…?"

"Hoo… it's still too early to be shocked," the man in the lab coat said, spreading his arms wide. In an instant, his coat tore apart, his body bulging and growing taller than the surrounding demons.

"T-Two pairs…" a voice trembled.

"H-Help us…"

"Please…"

"Hahaha… as you've guessed, we have evolved the demon blood to help us retain our personalities while still being demons. Isn't that wonderful? You could say we are the better, stronger, and smarter demons than the ones you know." The man laughed, little red waves emanating from him.

'This is nothing like the single-winged demons,' Vahn frowned at the sight.

It was obvious, they couldn't fight this two-winged demon in their current state.

"Haaa… so I will give you a chance. If you can escape these demons and reach me, the final boss, you may go," he revealed, flashing a toothy grin.

"AAAAHH…" One of the men turned to flee, but—

"ARRGHHHH…" The ground beneath him suddenly burned, melting away along with him.

'Final breath,' Vahn grimaced, recognizing the cause of the man's death.

The two-winged demon had unleashed his Final Breath, a stronger, faster, and far more controlled than the one-winged version.

"Now, now, we can't have that. Without further ado, start!" With that, the man vanished, leaving them to face the onslaught of demons.

The situation was too tense