The sound of someone laughing loudly echoed all around, creating an eerie atmosphere.
Aniket laughed and said, "So you've finally arrived. But you took quite some time. Look around, there's no one left here anymore."
The woman standing before him was staring at the corpses scattered around, their blood continuously staining the ground red.
With calm composure, the woman said, "A commendable effort, but do you think we care about the lives of these slaves? The time has come for you to join the other heroes and take your last breath forever."
Aniket took a deep breath and said, "Of course, since you've already come here, there's no chance for me to escape anyway.
But before that, why not accept a gift from me?"
Aniket, with rage, raised his hand and shouted, "Black Hole, Create!"
But nothing happened.
An unsettling silence hung in the air.
Aniket chuckled and said, "Do you know what black holes are? Just destruction that swallows everything within itself. And when it's full, it explodes. As far as I know, maybe something like that."
Then he raised his middle finger and pointed it straight downward.
The next moment, his head was severed from his body.
Blood gushed from his neck, staining the ground red, and even the air around seemed to freeze.
His head rolled to the side, thudding slowly, but one thing that didn't change was the dangerous smile on his face.
As soon as the woman sensed that something was about to go wrong, she saw a small black sphere emerging from the ground in front of her, slowly growing larger. Things around it began being sucked in violently. The air, which had seemed still moments ago, was being forcefully pulled into the growing sphere.
Before long, the sphere's size increased, pulling in nearby trees and the ground itself. Within moments, a massive crater had formed. Whether it was dirt or trees, nothing could escape this voracious beast.
The woman was slightly shaken, for she had never seen anything like it in her life.
A girl watching from afar murmured, "This is absolute destruction…No it's Disaster."
Suddenly, a flying sword pierced straight through her head. Her eyes were wide open, even as the sword split her forehead apart. She couldn't comprehend how she was still able to think when a sword was lodged inside her brain.
Then suddenly, a girl woke up in her bed, gasping for air and clutching her chest. "What was that? A dream, or… the future?"
Victoria greeted the man standing before her, saying, "My Majesty, the princess has returning, and the Dark Moon rumors turned out to be false."
Vincent Griffin, who was staring at a map laid out before him, spoke in a stern tone, "If that's all, you may leave."
Victoria nodded, saying, "Yes, sir."
As she turned to leave, she stopped and added, "But this is wrong. The entire Silver City has been destroyed. Don't you think this is going too far? Their thirst for blood grows stronger every day, and they're becoming increasingly violent."
Vincent Griffin paused for a moment and replied, "Fine, then. Make the necessary arrangements and spread the news that the city was attacked by beasts.
No one should suspect anything."
Victoria stepped back for a moment and said, "I'm sorry, but this is too much. Have you forgotten your purpose? Your goal was to restore humanity…"
Vincent Griffin, enraged, interrupted, "Keep your mouth shut! You know that to achieve great things, small sacrifices must be made.
And don't forget, your hands are stained with blood too—your own family's blood, Victor."
Victoria bit her lip in anger and said, "But for how long? You know it's becoming increasingly difficult to control their bloodlust.
You have to make a decision, no matter how much you love them."
You decided to turn her into vampire to save her life, not so they could take the lives of your other children—your country's peoples.
If I've said too much, forgive me. I'll take my leave now. Anyway, tomorrow the potential of the heroes will be assessed, along with their future.
With that, Victoria left the room.
The moon in the sky, spotless and radiant, shone brightly. Looking at it with a smile, Isabella held a glass of red wine and said, "I'm coming back.
Let's see how long your two days of life will last."
In a dark room, a boy sat with all the windows and doors shut. This was none other than Akira Nakamura, who was staring at the cat-shaped mark on his hand.
"Ridiculous! What kind of ability is this? Just a mark and nothing else. Looks like life is going to be as useless as it always was."
He began to recall the past.
A boy sneered, "Hey, loser.
Didn't I tell you not to come here without bringing money?"
Turning to the two boys beside him, he commanded, "Strip him of all his clothes!"
They beat him mercilessly.
After a while, the boy said as he walked away, "Now, go home, loser, without your clothes!"
The boy being humiliated yelled, "Hey Akira! Did you record the video properly? I better look like the hero in it!"
Akira replied, "Yeah, it's recorded. So, whose turn is it next?"
The boy smirked and said, "Yours."
Akira laughed nervously and said, "You're joking, right?" His voice trembled.
The boy grinned and said, "Told you, he'd be scared! Ha ha ha!"
The other boys around burst into laughter, mocking him.
Akira forced a smile to hide his fear and joined their laughter. "You guys almost scared me to death. So, where do we upload this? YouTube or Facebook?"
Turning around, he saw the boy lying on the ground, looking back at him. Akira could see the disappointment on his face.
Though Akira wore a smile, his heart was filled with pain. It had to be this way because the boy in front of him, beaten and humiliated, was none other than his childhood friend.
At that moment, Akira realized how much of a coward he was. He started to hate himself.
But one day, everything changed when he arrived in another world. Yet now, as he stared at the cat-shaped mark on his hand,
his heart was breaking because he didn't want to feel that same weakness again, where someone stronger would come and crush him over and over.
He had believed that this time, things would change, but in the end, all his hopes were shattered.
Tears welled up in Akira's eyes, and one thought consumed his mind: Enough is enough. I can't stay weak anymore. I need power… power.