The Anvil Headquarters Inner Sanctum.
"So, I hear you've killed thousands of demons alone, huh?" Yueh asked Varda casually while sipping on a cup of tea.
Varda snorted quietly, "Thousands?" He smirked sarcastically, "I haven't even scratched the surface yet."
Yueh stifled a laugh, "Oh really? I heard there's something called 'demonic energy' circulating around your body right now."
Varda froze momentarily before snorting again, "What kind of rumours are you spreading?"
"It's just the civilians you know," Yueh shrugged casually, "They always exaggerate things."
"Well, rescuing them did a lot of effort." Varda puffed out his cheeks pompously, "Anyway, you're all grown up now eh? Looks like you're ready to go head-to-head with me."
Yueh poked at his cheek with his index finger playfully, "Yeah right, I'm still a kid compared to you Old Monster."
"Hah! What's with that nickname?" Varda sighed once more in amusement, "I don't even look that old yet."
"By the way, will you be joining the evacuation?" Yueh asked curiously.
Varda shook his head quickly, "No thanks. I have some unfinished business here."
"Oh?"
A tall man wearing a green uniform strolled into the office, walking past him with a confident stride. Varda stifled a snicker as he watched Garius pass by him, taking care not to show it on his face.
Garius stopped at Varda's desk and placed his hands on top of it firmly.
"The refugee's situation has been resolved. Most of them are slotted to enter the portal at intervals," He announced sharply, "To better manage the magic output and conserve power for other important functions I want you to monitor their movement closely Commander."
Varda raised an eyebrow in surprise, "So soon? We should still wait a little bit longer."
Garius shook his head silently. "We cannot afford to delay anymore, or risk the window of opportunity closing on us."
"True, this is by far the best scenario with the demons cleared of the area around Anvil's Courtyard," Yueh added as he strolled closer towards them.
General Garius scanned the room briefly and sees a young boy laying unconscious on one of the sofas.
"That boy looks like he's about to die," Garius said bluntly, "He should be dead if he doesn't receive immediate medical attention."
"He'll be fine Garius." Varda walked up to the boy and patted his head, "Just a bit of dry blood and some exhaustion, nothing serious."
"How can you be so sure?" Garius asked sceptically.
"Because I'm the Grand Marshal of The Holy Army and I know what I'm doing," Varda said with a smile.
Garius' face became dark as he narrowed his eyes, "Commander Varda, do you have any idea of the risks involved in this operation?"
"I understand that, but there's still no guarantee that they'll survive after entering the portal in such a hurry," Varda argued.
"If they die inside the tunnel, then so be it," Garius replied coldly, "There won't be any survivors anyway if we don't evacuate them immediately."
Varda pinched his nose between his fingers nervously, "Alright, alright… I got it already." He rolled his eyes as he let out a deep sigh, "Just try to keep them alive please General."
Garius nodded curtly before turning around and leaving the room. Varda watched him leave until he disappeared out of sight, then turned his gaze towards Yueh, "Don't worry, he'll do his best to save them."
"General Garius does seem quite determined to see this mission through," Yueh said thoughtfully.
"Well, a lot of people are determined to see their own agenda through," Varda retorted sardonically, "He's no different than others."
Yueh gave him a quizzical glance. "Is that why you dislike him?"
Varda snorted disdainfully, "I don't dislike him."
"But he hated you since the start." Yueh grinned deviously, "I'm surprised you put up with him for this long."
Varda started at Yueh with a blank expression before bursting into laughter. "You're talking nonsense."
Yueh gave him a confused look, "Anyway, wouldn't it be better if you take control of the operations directly?"
Varda shrugged nonchalantly, "It doesn't matter much either way. Protocol Ark 21 is somewhat a backup plan in case the demons breach the barrier. If that happens, 'The Flood' will take care of everything else."
Yueh frowned quizzically, "The Flood?"
Varda smiled deviously, "I guess you wouldn't know about it yet. Anyway, I must say that this is indeed a wonderful day…"
Yueh gave him a puzzled stare before asking questioningly, "What's that supposed to mean?"
Varda chuckled softly as he stared directly at Yueh, "I'll tell you later. Don't ask questions now."
Yueh furrowed his brows, "You never cease to amaze me…"
Varda smirked smugly, "I've waited long enough for this moment…"
He lifted his arm slowly and pointed it towards The Anvil Headquarters building towering high above them, "Now it's finally time!"
"Woa! What was that!?" Yueh gasped out loudly while covering his mouth with his hand, "What happened to the building?"
Varda stifled a snigger as he glanced upwards to where The Anvil had once stood proudly; now it was nothing but rubble scattered all over the ground.
"That was The Anvil Headquarters," Varda replied, "I wonder if it's going to explode too."
"What the hell!? What happened!?" General Garius shouted from the Main Lobby.
"The demons must have breached the barrier!" A panicked voice shouted, "We need to get out of here!"
"Shut up! There are no demons here!" General Garius yelled, "Varda made sure of that!"
"General! Some of the refugees are still on the ground! We need to help them!"
"Go! And make sure there's a secure path to the portal!"
"Get everyone to safety first!"
"Yes sir!"
"Let's go!"
The building started to shake violently. The ceiling started to crumble and the whole building shook violently. The windows shattered and the walls collapsed on themselves. The entire structure seemed to be collapsing in slow motion.
"Varda!" General Garius called out from the other side of the wall.
"I'm coming!" Varda yelled, "Everyone gets out of this building!"
"The Anvil Headquarters is falling down!"