OLD-WORLD EXTRA

Chapter 474 World Returning To Form

474 World Returning To Form

Just a few feet away from the Metalzilla's collapsed arms, lay the severed head of a student.

The creature must have killed her when it fell, slicing through her neck with one of its claws.

It was a horrifying sight, no doubt, but that wasn't what made his chest tighten, what made his breath quicken.

He didn't care whether she had lived or died.

That wasn't the point, not one bit.

A professor had been saved, and that was enough.

His position in the Academy was cemented.

What mattered was her face.

...It was familiar.

Emir rarely remembered names, let alone faces.

He didn't need to.

But this time, he forced himself to look, to acknowledge the girl as a person—to put a name to the life he'd let slip away.

The reason for that was simple.

He needed to report her death.

And what he saw struck him cold.

Her head was small, delicate, with childish features frozen in terror.

But that wasn't what disturbed him, twisting his insides like his ability did the Tyrant.

No, it was something far worse.

The girl's face was almost a perfect match for Faye's.

"...Huh."

Emir stood there, staring.

The resemblance was uncanny—down to the curve of her jaw, the shape of her lips, even the wide, fearful eyes that were now dull.

For a moment, it felt as if time had stopped, the world shrinking around him as all he could see was that face.

Faye's face.

Her laughter, her voice, her smile—all of it flashed in his mind, blending with the expression of the dead girl in front of him.

Emir knew that it wasn't her.

It couldn't be.

Faye was home, likely playing with his mother and sister.

There was just no way.

But the image lingered, burning into his memory.

'...Her sister?'

His hand clenched involuntarily, Aether sparking to life around him.

There was no room for this kind of weakness, no room for doubt or hesitation. Emir had a task to complete.

He was an Ethereal Threader, a puppeteer in control of his every thought and action.

An undercut, long on the top but shaved at the back and sides. No one but the Liberation Army would settle for such a shit-looking haircut.

But it wasn't just the hair.

The augmented suits they wore were another giveaway.

The E10 model wasn't something just anyone could afford, even if the Elite made it seem incredibly common.

Each one cost a billion UC—a price way out of reach for the average hunter group.

Owning even one would be a stretch, let alone ten.

Emir had no doubt about it.

These men belonged to the Liberation Army.

Besides, he hadn't exactly maintained the best relationship with one of their leaders either.

In fact, he was willing to bet that these were the leftovers Aquila had mentioned in his report.

They were out for revenge.

Chuckling, Emir took one last glance at them. "Too bad they picked the wrong target."

There was no denying it, Faye had become an important someone in his life.

14:11

He only realized that now but this wasn't the time for that. He looked appreciative almost. "Hm... And good job on helping me cut loose ends I guess."

Apparently, he was. "I'll mention you to your leader, don't worry."

With those words, his gaze drifted back to the decapitated head of the student or rather, the outside girl they brought in from who knows where.

The feelings it gave him still sent a shiver down his spine, but he forced himself to keep that at bay. There was no denying it, Faye had become an important someone in his life.

He only realized that now but this wasn't the time for that. The Major Disaster took precedence.

Emir checked the life status of the hunter group leaders.

It looked utterly chaotic, heart rates were spiked, oxygen levels had dropped, disjointed commands were issued, signals moved randomly, nothing was in sync, and most importantly...

One signal was missing entirely. An HG leader had died. 'Ah, man. Things always gotta go wrong.'

Emir smiled.

He knew that anything that could go wrong would go wrong, no matter how much he prepared.

It was natural.

'But I ain't complaining... It's what makes it so fun.'

Though he was enjoying the danger, he really needed to move before it was too late. The world was returning to form, following an unspoken rule.

Ten Ancient Clans, likely ten Mega Corporations, ten Leaders of the Order, ten Primordials, ten systems in control of humans on the Local Group, Big Ten, and now...

Ten Hunter Groups.

And he didn't know if it was going to stop at that. Glancing at the wall to his right he pointed at the professor and then began to move.

There would be time to deal with the consequence of that later—if there ever was time at all.

For now, all that mattered was the plan.

Lyra's disappearance, behind-the-scenes politics, the Praying Lady, the dead student, none of that mattered at that moment.

The plan had to succeed...

Otherwise, their entire future was in jeopardy.