Despite the situation being now controlled, we weren't allowed to leave until the cleanup had been completed, which roughly took an hour.

Lily had woken up a while ago and was currently talking to Sarah with excitement on her face as we waited for the go signal. She was essentially jumping with joy after hearing the news that we would be able to bring her to her mother since the disaster was now gone.

Although, we couldn't contact her yet since public communications were down due to the effects of the rift. How about Sarah's phone? She did get a call, after all. However, I'm sure it's because she's using a special phone catered towards Mavens, a model which uses special hardware and frequencies that would make it unaffected by EMPs and similar effects. It's a go-to equipment for any Maven out there.

However, the fact that the danger had passed and she could see her mother again didn't change, and it was enough to bring her joy. Since communications would be down for a few hours at most, Sarah proposed that we should see the closing of the rift, saying that it is an unforgettable experience, and Lily agreed, and I was curious as to how it looked, so I agreed as well.

After we were given the signal, we stepped out of the evacuation center, and the air felt different. The once chaotic and panicked atmosphere had now dissipated, replaced by an eerie calmness that made it feel like nothing had ever happened. In fact, nothing of the destruction caused by the ghouls was present. The cleanup crew was really efficient in a single hour.

A sleek black vehicle was waiting on the road with the chauffeur standing outside, his demeanor poised and professional. As soon as he saw Sarah, he elegantly bowed and greeted her, "Welcome back, Miss Sarah."

Sarah nodded in response with a warm smile. Without a moment's hesitation, he moved towards the car and opened the door. The interior was just as opulent as we had imagined, with leather seats and polished wood accents.

"Come in," Sarah said.

Lily excitedly entered the car first, clearly not affected by the luxury. I entered after her, then Sarah.

After settling into our seats, the chauffeur slipped into the driver's seat with a fluid motion, his expertise evident in every movement, and started the car.

"Where to?" the chauffeur asked.

"To Centre Way."

"Towards the rift?" he asked to which Sarah nodded. Then, the chauffeur began driving. While waiting, Lily and Sarah talked about various things, particularly the current trends of the world, which I didn't understand, while I simply stared out the window, taking note of the city after the chaos.

I realized that the cleanup prioritized the popular or common streets, and it was understandable, too, since many people would soon be walking on those streets. However, for the more unpopular streets, there were still some damage and corpses left untouched.

Sarah focused on talking to Lily, making sure her attention was on her at all times. It was so that the girl didn't have to see the grotesque scene, even if it was for a short while.

Now that I think about it, Sarah doesn't treat me the same way she treats the little girl, despite my current appearance. She treats Lily as she is, a child, but when it comes to me, she talks to me as if I was her equal. There should be a reason for her behavior toward me.

I'll ask her about it later. For now, I should take in the new environment and experience.

We passed by the streets and continued towards our destination. Roughly 50 minutes later, we arrived at Centre Way.

It was densely populated, despite it being the source of destruction, yet no signs of destruction could be seen. The cleanup crew anticipated that people would come to watch the rift close. Well, rifts are rarely formed, so I guess for them, it's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

I opened the door, and a wave of pressure entered, but it wasn't painful in any way. We stepped out of the car and saw that there was a crowd surrounding a large blue portal–a rift. We walked towards the site, but instead of going with the crowd, Sarah had us follow her to an alleyway.

"Brace yourselves," she said as she stretched her arms.

I tilted my head, wondering what I should brace myself for. Lily did what she said without asking questions.

I got my answer moments after. She went behind us, and I felt a surge of energy from her. With a quick sweeping motion, she held us by the waist and leaped to the sky, landing us on the rooftop.

After she let us go, I dropped to my knees, shaken by that sudden action. I said with a shaky voice, "You should've said that you were going to do that."

"My bad," she laughed apologetically. "Lily seems to like it."

I looked toward Lily, and as she said, she was all jumpy.

I stood up and went to the ledge. A better view of the rift could be seen, and it was–

"Beautiful, isn't it?" Sarah came up beside me with Lily.

"Yeah, it is," I agreed. To think something as dangerous as this could be so beautiful. It was a swirling vortex of deep blue with glass-like shards on its outer edge.

The ground shook, and the rift started emitting sparks around.

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"What's happening?" I asked Sarah. This didn't happen in my novel.

"Don't worry," she reassured with a smile. "It's closing."

As she said, the rift began to shrink. A strong wind circulated around the rift as it began to close. It was like watching a reverse spectacle of a glass shattering.

However, just before it closed, an ominous red light shone from the darkness. It 'looked' in my direction, and I was hit by an intense pressure I had never felt before. It was suffocating, as if I was being pressed down by a mountain. My heart pounded against my chest, making me take a few steps back.

"Arthur, are you alright?" Sarah asked, confused.

"You didn't feel that?" I asked.

Sarah and Lily were confused. "Felt what?"

What? I looked at the crowd beneath us, and they all had normal expressions. Was I the only one affected by that?

"You must be sensitive to mana, which is rare among us." Sarah tried to deduce my abnormal situation. "So, you must've felt the final burst of mana from the rift. Like a bubble popping before it disappears."

"Y-yeah." No, I don't think it was as simple as that. That doesn't explain the red light. "Now that that's over let's find her mother."

Although Sarah was still concerned for me, she decided it was best to continue searching for the mother.

We decided to go to the place where she first got separated from her mother, which didn't take long. Unfortunately, we had to leave Lily behind in the car as the cleanup in this street wasn't done yet, so there were still some bodies.

We waited for the mother here, but even after 20 minutes, we couldn't see her.

–Ring! Ring!

Sarah's phone rang, and she fished it out of her pocket.

"The signal is back," she said before answering the call.

Since communications are back online, I decided to call the mother using the number Lily gave us. There were a few cracks on the screen, but it was nothing detrimental to the interface.

I dialed the number and pressed the call button.

–Ring! Ring!

A couple of meters away, I heard a ringtone and a bad premonition came over me.

I walked over to the source, and it came from one of the bodies lined up with a white cloth draped over them.

Don't tell me…

I shakily went to the body and lifted the cloth and…

I fell on my butt, and my breathing became shallow.

Long brown hair and wears a blue blouse with denim jeans. It's her, or at least what's left of her. Her face was disfigured, and her stomach had a huge hole.

I felt something rising up my throat, so I immediately went to the side and hurled.

Sarah ran up to me and said with a concerned voice as she patted my back, "You okay?"

Shit… Shit. Shit. Shit! She's dead, and she's here…

"Arthur?" Sarah went beside me and looked me in the eye with concern. "What happened? Did you feel another mana surge?"

I shook my head and said with pants in between, "I found her mother…"

I pointed toward the body, which she faced with a solemn expression. "Oh…"

"She died here," I told her. "She was swept away from the crowd, which is why she and Lily got separated, so I thought she'd get to safety first. She must've come back after she was free."

I saw Sarah walking towards the body and taking out the phone from her pocket. She unlocked it and went through the contents of the phone, and after a while, she sighed heavily and placed the phone in her pocket.

"...It really is her mother," she muttered.

"I don't know what to tell her…" I sighed deeply once more. Lily was so excited too.

Ugh, my head hurts. Memories of that event flashed before my eyes, worsening my current condition.

"You go home," Sarah suddenly said. "I'll deal with it."

"...What?"

"Leave it to me. I'll tell her," she reiterated. "Now go."

"No, I should be the one to tell her. I'm responsible for her mother's death."

Sarah was flabbergasted. "Why would you be the one responsible? Were you the one who separated them?"

"What? No."

"Then, why are you responsible for her death?"

"15 minutes at most," I said. "That was the time window we had before the ghouls appeared. If she had found Lily, they could've made it to the evacuation center. Sure, they would have suffered a few injuries, but it's better than being dead."

"So, what? Do you think it'll be better if you had just left Lily there? What if her mother never came back on time? Or what if the ghouls caught up to them?"

I was silent. Yes, those were possible as well, but I can't help but think of those "what if" scenarios.

"You saved Lily. That's already enough." I felt the gentle touch of Sarah on my head. "Now, go home and let your big sister here deal with this."

Without waiting for me to leave, she went over to the car but paused after a few steps.

"Arthur, I understand why you might feel guilty, but please don't blame yourself for something that was beyond your control. You did everything you could do in that situation, and you should be proud of that. As for the mother's death, it's tragic, but it's not your fault. She made her own decisions, and... unfortunately, they led to her demise. It's a sad reality that we can't control at times, but we can control how we respond to it. In honor of the mother, we can continue to work towards creating a better world where tragedies like this don't happen as often. That's what I'm aiming for, at least."

She then continued walking towards the car. She took a few deep breaths before entering the car and sitting beside Lily.

Sarah closed the door for some privacy, but I stood there mindlessly, watching beyond the window as I saw Lily's joyful expression turn to that of sadness as she began crying.

Before I knew it, I was back in the condo. They were operating normally with no signs of damage, but I didn't bother thinking about it and took the elevator up and then walked towards my room.

After unlocking the door, I wobbly went into my room and collapsed on the couch.

Everything hurts.

I haven't changed one bit.

I'm making the same mistakes as I did before.

I need a drink. There should be something to drink, right? After all, 'I' am living alone.

I began to scour the place for any trace of alcohol or beer to drown the pain. I searched high and low, rummaging through every drawer and cupboard, but to no avail.

I grew frustrated with each passing second, and eventually, it turned to anger. The look of Lily's heart-wrenching expression as she heard the news replayed in my mind, and eventually, it overlapped with the family I had lost on Earth. It keeps repeating in my mind over and over like a broken record.

Finally, with a loud yell, I lost all control and began thrashing around the room, overturning furniture, smashing vases, and shattering glass. Every crash and shatter only intensified my rage. At that moment, I was consumed by my own emotions and the need to escape the pain, no matter the cost.

*****

***

*

The last piece of glass shattering on the ground echoed through the room, and my heart pounded wildly. It hurts, and I'm no longer talking about being hurt mentally or emotionally; I am physically hurt. There were blisters and bruises on my hands due to my outburst.

I slumped to the floor, exhausted from what I had done. I honestly feel a lot better now.

As I looked at the wreckage I had caused, a deep sense of regret washed over me since I knew I had to clean this all up, but my body felt heavy and unwilling to move. Just the thought of moving was overwhelming.

Just as I mustered the energy to stand up, my eyes fell upon the letter from before lying on the ground. I picked it up, and as I reread its contents, an unknown emotion swirled inside me.

I'm no longer on Earth…

I'm in the world I created, Vanteer…

"Fine… You want me to be strong. I'll become strong, no matter what it takes." I crumpled the letter in my hand.