LXXIX

The hum of the SUV’s engine filled the car as I drove down the open road, my eyes fixed on the horizon. The night was still young, but the weight of the situation pressed on my shoulders. Leora sat in the passenger seat, scrolling through her phone with a bored expression before tapping on the screen and starting a video call.

Selena picked up almost instantly. “Yo.”

Leora adjusted her grip on the phone. “You picked him up? What’s your progress?”

Selena’s face appeared on the screen, looking far too relaxed. “Already on Joe’s airship.”

Leora raised a brow. “That’s fast… ah… Joe still owes Reynard favors, right?”

I kept my eyes on the road. “Yes, he does.”

Selena smirked. “Wanna see Leon?”

The camera shifted, and our son’s excited face popped up. “Where’s dad?”

Leora sighed and turned the phone toward me. I glanced at the screen while keeping my hands on the wheel. “Hey, buddy, how are you doing?”

Leon beamed. “I have fire powers.”

I nodded. “I know.”

Leon continued, “Auntie Selena said you sealed them and that I could use them since I was a baby?”

I sighed. “Yep.”

Leon tilted his head. “Where are you going, dad? With mom? What’s up?”

Leora cut in before I could answer. “Business trip.”

Leon narrowed his eyes suspiciously. “But dad write novels at home. He is a shut-in, remember?”

I nearly choked on air. This kid… his vocabulary was way too advanced for a six-year-old.

Selena smirked. “Don’t bother them, Leon. It’s a honeymoon, okay?”

Leon frowned. “What’s a honeymoon?”

Leora’s expression twisted into something between panic and horror. “Don’t listen to her, Leon.”

Leon ignored her. “Honeymoon… that’s when you make babies, right? Am I going to have a younger sibling?”

Leora’s jaw dropped. “H-huh?? Uh… Sure… No, wait—Selena, what have you been telling my son!?”

Leon looked confused. “Is there a problem? Did Aunt Selena do something wrong? Aren’t babies made just by touching lips while hugging?”

I nearly swerved off the road. “What the hell?! What have you been teaching him in the short duration you just picked him up, Selena!?”

Selena held up her hands defensively. “This isn’t my fault! Leon, where did you learn this stuff?”

Leon shrugged. “The TV. The cartoons.”

Leora buried her face in her hands. “Seriously?”

I sighed. “So he didn’t see anything… like how exactly babies are made, right? Just sounding out what everyone’s thinking.”

Leora peeked through her fingers. “Leon, when they are making babies… were they naked?”

Leon made a disgusted face. “Yuck, Mom… Of course they aren’t! That’s so embarrassing!”

A collective woo~ of relief filled the car.

Frankly, I had no idea what age was appropriate for kids to learn about sex education. But for now, I was just glad we didn’t have to deal with it today.

I drove in silence, letting Leora, Selena, and Leon fill the air with their conversation. It wasn’t that I wasn’t interested—it was just that I had my hands full with the road and my own thoughts. My grip on the steering wheel was firm, and the quiet hum of the SUV’s engine gave me some much-needed space to reflect.

Ever since I sealed Leon’s aura and memories, my own natural aura pool and control had improved. It made sense—tampering with someone else’s aura, especially a growing child’s, forced me to develop a level of precision I never had before. Still, I felt rusty. Like an old blade that hadn’t been drawn in a while.

Meanwhile, Leora and Selena were still at it.

“So, Leon,” Leora asked, keeping the camera steady on her phone. “Did you eat your veggies today?”

Leon puffed up his cheeks. “Auntie Selena said I don’t have to eat them if I don’t like them.”

Leora shot Selena a glare through the screen. “Really now?”

Selena shrugged. “What? I’m just saying, a kid should eat what he enjoys.”

“He needs nutrients, Selena.”

Leon tilted his head. “What’s a nutrient?”

Selena smirked. “Something that makes you a responsible adult.”

Leon gasped. “Like dad?”

Leora and Selena both turned to me. I pretended not to hear, keeping my eyes straight on the road.

“...Sure, like dad,” Leora answered hesitantly.

Leon grinned. “Then I don’t need nutrients.”

Selena burst out laughing, while Leora groaned and rubbed her forehead.

“Leon,” she tried again. “If you don’t eat healthy, you won’t grow strong.”

Leon pouted. “But I have fire powers.”

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Selena gave him a thumbs up. “That’s the spirit.”

Leora groaned. “Selena, stop encouraging him!”

I smirked but said nothing. This was entertaining in its own way.

Leon then switched topics. “Mom, when will you be back?”

Leora’s face softened. “Soon, honey. Just a little business trip.”

Leon narrowed his eyes. “But you don’t have a job.”

Selena cackled, while Leora’s expression twisted into frustration.

“Ugh… I’m a professional housewife, okay?”

“So what’s the salary like?” Selena quipped.

Leora exhaled loudly. “Shut. Up.”

Leon looked thoughtful. “Mom, I’ll protect Auntie Selena while you’re gone.”

Selena ruffled his hair. “Oh? You think I need protection?”

Leon nodded seriously. “Yep! Because I have fire powers!”

Leora chuckled softly. “That’s my boy.”

Selena rolled her eyes. “Well, you two should get going. I’ve got an airship captain to trouble, and I’m sure Leon here wants to watch more of his questionable cartoons.”

“Hey!” Leon pouted. “They teach me stuff!”

I finally chimed in. “That’s what I’m worried about.”

Leora sighed. “Alright, Leon, behave for Auntie Selena, okay?”

Leon gave a thumbs up. “Okay! Bye, Mom! Bye, Dad!”

I smiled. “Bye, buddy. Stay safe.”

Leora waved. “Love you.”

Selena added, “Try not to make babies on your ‘business trip.’”

Leora groaned. “Har har.”

With that, the call ended.

Right on time, too—because we had just arrived at our destination. Temon City-State loomed before us, its skyline illuminated by neon lights and a faint haze of pollution.

Time to get to work.

Temon City-State was just like any other urban sprawl—towering skyscrapers, dense residential districts, and constant vehicle traffic clogging the streets during the day. But at night, things slowed down. The streets weren’t exactly empty, but the usual congestion had eased into a steady, manageable flow. Neon lights flickered along the main roads, illuminating the sidewalks where night owls and late-shift workers moved about.

Our SUV blended into the scenery as we drove through the city. The hum of the engine was the only sound between us for a while, until Leora broke the silence.

“So, Rory… what is she like?”

I kept my eyes on the road. “Not a fighter, but she knows how to kill. Her poison is potent. If she turns out to be an enemy, don’t rattle her. Kill her in a way you don’t have to go near her.”

Leora’s fingers tapped against the handle of her sheathed katana, a habit of hers when she was thinking. “I’ll keep that in mind.”

It didn’t take long before we reached our destination. The address Rory had sent led us to an apartment complex—nothing particularly secure, just a run-of-the-mill safehouse. The building wasn’t in a high-end part of town, but it wasn’t a complete slum either. If anything, it was the kind of place you’d use when you didn’t want to stand out.

Leora and I stepped out of the vehicle. There were no guards. No signs of surveillance. Just a quiet apartment building with dimly lit hallways.

Leora adjusted her katana at her waist, standing close behind me as we approached the door.

“Even after all the hand-to-hand combat training,” she muttered, “I still feel most comfortable with a weapon.”

I nodded. “No need to discourage yourself. Let’s go.”

We reached Room 021. I knocked.

Silence.

I knocked again, harder this time. Still no answer.

Leora and I exchanged glances. Neither of us had any lockpicking skills, which meant there was only one solution.

We settled it the way all highly trained individuals would—rock, paper, scissors.

Leora lost.

She clicked her tongue in annoyance, then raised her foot and channeled Fighter Aura into it. With a controlled burst of force, she slammed the door handle, snapping it clean off. The door creaked open, revealing the darkened interior.

I stepped inside first, hand instinctively reaching for the weapon at my hip. Leora covered my rear, moving with the practiced ease of a professional.

And then we saw it.

Rory Christen lay sprawled across the floor, her petite frame drenched in the soft glow of the apartment’s ceiling light. She had brown hair—short and neatly styled, but now slightly disheveled as if she had collapsed without warning. She wore a simple, sleeveless one-piece dress, an unassuming choice that hinted at a casual meeting rather than a business one. But none of that mattered now.

Blood pooled beneath her, dark and still, soaking into the cheap carpeting. Her limbs were awkwardly positioned, her fingers slightly curled as though frozen mid-motion. Her expression was eerily peaceful, lips slightly parted. The scent of iron and something vaguely chemical lingered in the air.

I shut the door behind us, securing it before speaking. "What do you think?"

Leora exhaled through her nose. "I think she’s dead."

I shot her a flat look. "Come on."

Leora crouched beside the body, brushing her hair behind her ear as she studied the scene. She had a background in forensics—not formal, but enough to be dangerous. That made her insights valuable. I watched in silence as she got to work.

She started by checking Rory’s pulse, though we both knew it was pointless. Her skin was already losing warmth. Leora then examined the blood pooling beneath her, touching the edge of the stain before rubbing her fingers together.

"Not fresh," she murmured. "She’s been dead for a while. The blood’s settled too much. If I had to guess… at least two hours."

I crouched beside her, watching closely. "What about the cause?"

Leora carefully tilted Rory’s chin up, checking her lips and the inside of her mouth. "No signs of external trauma," she noted. "No bruises, no defensive wounds. Nothing suggests a struggle."

That narrowed things down. "Poison?"

She nodded. "Most likely. If she was poisoned, it wasn’t immediate. Something slow-acting, maybe? Her lips have a faint discoloration—not cyanide, but something similar."

I stared at Rory’s lifeless form, a frown settling on my face. Poison wasn’t unexpected—she had been a master of it herself. But for her to go down like this? That was something else entirely.

Leora’s gaze flicked to me. "This wasn’t a heat-of-the-moment thing. Whoever did this planned it."

I exhaled slowly. "Yeah. And that means they might still be around."

Leora rose to her feet, scanning the room again. "To set up an ambush?"

I exhaled. "Or maybe a trap... get down."

She didn’t hesitate. We both crouched low as I stretched out my senses. Outside, the faint web of invisible aura threads I had scattered across the entrance shivered. Someone—or more accurately, a lot of someones—had just triggered them. I could feel their innate aura signatures reacting to my threads, but they weren’t alarmed. That meant they expected to walk into something.

Shit.

The cops had arrived. No, this wasn’t just some small-time police force—this was a full-scale tactical operation.

I could hear them, feel them moving outside. I’d need to be closer to use Soul Marionette, but with numbers like these, it’d be a nuisance at best. My ability worked well on individuals, maybe small groups—but against this many? No way.

"How many?" I whispered.

Leora closed her eyes for half a second, then activated her Seeker Aura, taking a quick peek through the window before pulling back immediately. "It’s a whole fucking army out there." She cursed. "Shit, let’s make a run for it."

I was about to agree when I caught a glimpse of something through the broken door—a van, black and armored, parked across the street. Then another. And another.

Three of them.

And they weren’t just vans. The side panels slid open, revealing mounted miniguns.

Oh, hell no.

"Move!" I shouted.

Before the first bullet even fired, I felt Leora grab me by the waist and hoist me over her shoulder like I was nothing but a sack of potatoes. She kicked off the ground, aura flaring, and suddenly, we were gone.

A split second later, bullets tore through the walls behind us.

The apartment exploded in a shower of dust and splinters as the mounted miniguns opened fire, chewing through concrete like it was paper. Glass shattered. Car alarms blared. The cityscape erupted into chaos as civilians screamed, ducking for cover.

Leora blitzed through the apartment hallways, down the stairs, and toward the exit. She was fast—stupidly fast—but I knew she was still holding back, trying to keep her aura usage minimal. The moment she went full throttle, every aura-sensitive anything in the city would know our location.

Not that it mattered.

We didn’t last long.

Just as we burst through the front doors of the apartment complex, an invisible force slammed down on us.

It was like hitting an invisible wall.

Leora stumbled, nearly dropping me as her entire body locked up. My vision blurred for a second as my own aura flickered—no, suppressed—and an overwhelming sense of heaviness weighed down on my limbs.

"Fuck—what the hell is that?" Leora hissed, trying to move, struggling against the force pressing down on us.

I gritted my teeth, already knowing the answer. My worst-case scenario. My educated guess being confirmed right in front of my eyes.

I swallowed. "It’s the fucking World Order."

~079