Chapter 91: Nearing Flames (Part 1)

Laurie: "You are going to face me alone, stalling me for the two of them to go ahead?!"

With a condescending glare, the Hellfire questions the Aural.

Laurie: "Well, how noble of you, but do you think I will just let them go ahead like this? Do you take me for a fool?!"

Not even trying to hide her oppressive aura, Laurie Brown presses her feet on the ground, an unnecessary and egotistical move done with the sole purpose of mocking her opponents as she makes the ground beneath their feet tremble.

Sneha: "Tsk!"

Clicking her tongue, she tries to maintain balance.

Ethan: "Geokinesis, huh? You sure you'll be able to deal with this woman alone?"

He questions her, not feeling very confident about her chances.

Sneha: "It'll be fine."

But, even with the ground underneath her feet trembling just to make her fall, she stands strong and says so without any concern in her voice.

Hearing it,

Ethan: "Hah! Well, you are currently the powerhouse of the third faction. Don't lose to her!"

The man with the Eyes of Truth finally makes up his mind to put his faith in his comrade once again and leave.

Laurie: "Did you not hear me earlier, or are you just a suicidal?"

She says, rather annoyed.

Laurie: "I'm not letting you or her go anywhere."

Hearing that very predictable line, Ethan tries to make a retort but,

Gabriel: "Well, I'm going."

Before Ethan says anything, the Hellfire temporarily on their side speaks up.

Laurie: "You? ... Fine, whatever! I don't get anything from keeping YOU here anywhere."

She says, not worried about anything as she knows Gabriel is a person who minds his own business and now that he no longer has a purpose to protect these two others with him, he would no longer come in her way.

That is, at least, what she thinks.

Gabriel: "I'll be taking Ethan Kales with me."

Ethan: "Huh?"

Sneha: "Huh?"

Laurie: "...?"

With a plain and business-like tone,

Gabriel: "If Kesley really is in that state, there's something I would need his special eyes for. So, I'm sorry, but you'll just have to make do with Sneha Stone."

Laurie: "You don't get to-"

Gabriel: "I'm not asking for your permission. I'm telling you what I'll do, as a sign of respect. That's all."

He says, and without a word more, teleports Ethan away.

Seeing one of her targets disappear right before her eyes, Laurie finds herself enraged but,

Gabriel: "You should stick to your basics if you want to overpower her. Her fighting style is quite similar to yours after all."

He gives this last piece of advice to Sneha, and finally, teleports himself away as well.

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"!!!"

Wordless surprise holds the Spectres in its grasp as they reach the Vermilion Tower, and see the upper floor of it blasted and scorched, confirming the estimation that the blast came from inside there.

Dyne: "I don't really feel Rosevelt's presence anywhere."

As he scans the entire tower for the presence of anyone remotely on the same level of power as the Phoenix, he comes up with no results.

Dyne: "I think it's highly unlikely he is in there."

Which, only begs the question of what happened to him.

Who did this and for what reason?

"Commander?"

While Dyne is thinking about that though, a scout of his addresses him as he comes running back to the group.

Dyne: "What are you doing back here? You should be scouting the area."

Dyne, surprised that the Spectre went against the principle of 'never leaving a job unfinished', a principle that is so carefully programmed into every Spectre's brain, questions him so.

So,

Scout: "There's someone … who's been following this battalion."

Dyne: "What!?"

Scout: "H-He's just one person, but he seems to be very intent on keeping an eye on you.

Considering that the Spectre came out of his way to inform them of this, this 'someone' who's been following them must seem rather dangerous.

Dyne: "Does this guy … look like a Vampire?"

He asks so, knowing that they are his biggest concern.

Scout: "Not from afar, he didn't seem like a Vampire. But, to be honest, he did have a pretty strange outfit, with completely dark clothes and a devil mask on his face.

Dyne: "Ah … I see."

The leader of the Spectres sighs as realizes the identity of the person in question.

Dyne: "Walter had told me about a guy who is targeting Hellfires. The appearance of the guy that he gave had very few details, probably because he had never actually seen the guy, but it seems to fit with everything you have said."

It doesn't really make sense for 'that guy' to follow them randomly though, which means, he should be following them because of the location they were heading to, the tower they are standing in front of.

Dyne: "Well, this might be something worth coming here for then."

A nightmare he had seen, or rather, a nightmare that had been shown to him, haunts him regularly. So, it is only natural that he checks to see who this Abgere is since there is a chance that he would be the demon he had seen within his nightmare.

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Eshin: "Well, well, isn't that an interesting story?"

He says with a grin as a member of Heise, from the fear of torture, tells Baise and Angela everything about their plans, their goals and their reasonings.

Angela: "They are gonna go meet the Phoenix and ask him some questions? As if that would work!"

She says, trying to hold back her laughter.

Angela: "But, more importantly,"

With a malicious grin, she asks,

Angela: "You said Abgere's aunt is with you, right?"

For anyone planning to kill Abgere, a hostage like her is a golden opportunity, and an opportunity like this is not to be missed.

Angela: "Let's meet her then."

Eshin: "Indeed, that should be interesting."

Eshin Mir, too, having only joined her to gain the position he could gain by her becoming a Hellfire, eagerly wants to make sure that this hostage is theirs for the taking.

However,

Li Wei: "You fool!"

The leader of the fallen group derides the two's enthusiasm,

Li Wei: "Do you have any idea who the people you are messing with are?!"

Eshin: "A bunch of wannabe-Aurals who are our prisoners now?"

Li Wei: "I'm not talking about us, you idiot! Do you have any idea what Abgere and the third faction is capable of?"

At that, even Angela Holystone, as she had seen Sona in action once before, silences herself. However,

Eshin: "What about them? They are five capable people. Big deal!"

Mocks the leader of Baise.

Li Wei: "Ha! Stupidity like that is the reason why you always end up falling behind us."

Then mocks the leader of Heise.

Eshin: "Why you little …!"

Angela: "Stop!"

Angela, as she looks at Li Wei with a look of contemplation, tells Eshin,

Angela: "Take that woman hostage immediately. That's far more important than arguing with him."

Even though she says so herself, she feels a sense of dread, one she is not able to shake off, and the words of warning just said by Li Wei only keep ringing in her mind, again and again, leading her down her own path of destruction.

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