Funeral and...

Cairo, Egypt.

August 29, 2030.

3:38 pm.

A grand parade was held in the capital in honor of the fallen Awakened, Urs Hassan. The people marched in grief and sorrow as they held back their tears, seemingly wanting to escape from their eyes.

Egypt's Prime Minister led the March until they arrived at the heroes cemetery where all Awakened, who sacrificed their lives for good, lay. He stepped towards the platform to make his speech. The crowd of civilians and Awakened immediately became silent.

"Cough—, my fellow countrymen. We have witnessed the struggles of our land when the monsters invaded our land. However, here we are, still standing despite our lack of power and Awakened—"

The Prime Minister spoke with dignity and compassion as he praised Urs braveness and nationalism. All of his deeds are remembered one by one.

That was until suddenly, the Prime Minister spoke with disgust and disdain. The whole world witnessed the other side of the story.

"And then I heard that our hero was left alone fighting those monsters while others escaped here!! They left him to fend for himself!!" The Prime Minister voiced out in anger. His face reddened as he explained the cowardness of others Awakened.

"This is an insult to the creed they promised!! An insult to our country!!" After his outbreak, his voice gradually calmed down.

"My fellow countrymen, we have been wronged. While one of our heroes died out there, those people get to escape. There's no need for further explanation. I just hope that our country will be able to get back on track after this horrible disaster. Let's pray for Urs and hope that he'll guide us."

As the short speech ended, the Prime Minister's words echoed in their minds. The people had doubts but now an answer was presented to them.

Urs death was the cause of others' cowardness.

"I thought they said they encountered an SSS-Class monster? Are they lying?"

"Of course they are!! Those fuckers lied to us!!"

"He's right! If there's really an SSS-Class monster there, why could those 6 rescuers survive!!? There's clearly foul play here!"

"There must be an inside story here."

"You're right."

The Prime Minister nodded in satisfaction after seeing the people's reaction. This is his purpose. With the threat of the monsters looming around, Egypt would receive the most backlash as Urs wasn't here anymore to fend off those beasts.

However, with this, those SS-Class Awakened would have a responsibility to defend the country, or else the people would scorn them.

'Come to think of it, they should be arriving by now.'

Meanwhile, after his speech, the internet was in full chaos. Chats refreshed every now and then after they were led by the Prime Minister's misinformation. Now, they were in rage too.

—UnknownUser: I can't believe they'd run away.

—BongcloudOpener01: Tch, I knew it!! Since no one would know what happened there, those bastards manipulated the news!!

—PawnsGambit21: Wait, that doesn't make sense lol. Why did they run in the first place? Maybe it's true that they encountered a strong monster!

—UrsDieHardFan69: What do you know? If there's really a strong monster, they wouldn't be able to escape!! They were cowards!

As the people on the internet were in heated arguments, the 15 SS-Class Awakened arrived in Egypt together with Urs summon, which is Hans in disguise.

Having no idea that their reputation and authenticity were being questioned, everyone strode towards the funeral venue. As they walked past the crowds, they felt scornful gazes and disgusted auras.

In their minds, various questions rippled but no one asked as they thought these people were just devastated by Urs sudden death. Shortly, they arrived on a path leading towards a monument.

Originally, the funeral was planned to be held in Urs residence. However, unable to find it, the Prime Minister set the venue in the capital and made it public. It was also because the people desired to attend and pay respect that he did so.

However, after seeing the hypocrisy of the so-called humanity's strongest Awakeners, these people who came to mourn were disgusted instead.

Their eyes restlessly scanned each as if saying, 'We've seen through your true natures'.

"They really had the guts to attend here huh?"

"Seeing their sad faces makes me want to puke."

"You're not alone, girl."

The crowd's voices grew louder as everyone started whispering to one another.

Hans, on the other hand, heard their murmurs. Well, not only him, he was sure that these big guys heard them too.

'They are disgusted? Why?'

He didn't mind the gazes of other people unless they weren't murderous gazes. As long as these people didn't bother him, it didn't matter. However, feeling their scornful looks crawled in his skin, made him a little uncomfortable.

'At least they know how to restrain themselves.'

Although they constantly released negative emotions, no one dared to step forward and blocked their way. Unfortunately, not all of the SS-Classes agreed to that. Kai, who's becoming annoyed as time passed, moved.

He didn't want this solemn occasion to become a place full of chaotic murmurs and noisy whispers. Without permission, he unleashed a pressure so heavy that the people were having difficulty breathing.

"!!!"

The desired effect took place right away after he gathered the pressure back. The air feels tighter and silence descends upon the place. Hans kept his ears perked. Now, even the breathing of these people could barely be heard.

"..."

"..."

''..."

Everyone shut their mouths.

They didn't walk for too long as from a short distance, an old man in a black suit stood solemnly. He was none other than the Prime Minister.

The crowd gaze narrowed as they stared at the Prime Minister and the SS-Classes face off.

'Heh, even the Prime Minister disdains to see you!'

'I hope he'll drive them away.'

Contrary to their expectations, the Prime Minister bowed and greeted them respectfully which caused quite a reaction from the people.

"I'm glad you arrived safely."

"You sounded like you wanted something to happen to us."

"How could I ever think of that? Well, anyway now that you're here we could start the ceremony."

Everyone copied how the Egyptians showed their prayer ceremony. Hans continued to send his gratitude towards Urs. As they reached the final prayers, everyone began shedding tears they had been holding on to for too long.

The high sunlit clouds drifted away from the blue skies and were replaced by the granite gray clouds seemingly carrying mournful emotions.

Droplets of crystal clear water streamed out from the bubble clouds. Hans felt the first splatter of rain as he put the flowers beside Urs memorial.

At that moment, under the gaze of everyone, a woman walked out from the shade and placed a flower under Urs monument. She wore a tight-fit black dress, veils hiding her head, and black glasses.

Hans can see her body slightly quivering as she puts down the white flower. She stopped for a moment before walking away. Having no clue who she was, Hans shifted his gaze away and stared at Urs' portrait.

Urs within the black picture frame was waving his hands towards something with a smile on his face. Hans placed the flower in front of the flower and lowered his head for a brief moment.

'I hope you're doing well wherever you are.'

After finishing his prayers, he turned around and saw familiar faces below the stand. Awakeners from various countries also offered their honors and respect for the deceased.

As if sensing his gazes, they sent him a silent greeting with a slight nod of their heads.

'It's time to go.'

He can sense the mana that Urs gave him was gradually diminishing every second. Before it's too late, he needs to complete his other purpose.

As he was introduced as Urs summon, he had to leave here as if he vanished into existence. Fortunately, he prepared well.

Under the countless gazes, Hans' body gradually blended and turned into shadow particles together with his presence slowly vanishing away. In his previous location, all that was left was the dust scattering as he walked away.

"Seems like he's with his master now."

"Yeah, he must have fulfilled his purpose now."

.......

500 miles away from the funeral venue, a blurry figure dashed through the seemingly endless desert. His steps carried gusts of winds and his eyes showed melancholy.

Hans' cover faded revealing his handsome features under the light of the sun. Urs mana circling around his hand were just a spec of most now that may vanish anytime.

Hans hurried a bit more.

Shortly afterwards, he reached a small hut hidden beneath a small dark cave. The hut was in great shape. It has a wooden door and a small window beside it.

The only light it received was from the sunlight penetrating in the small gaps. As Hans pushed the wooden door, it clicked before finally collapsing.

'It seemed like it hadn't been opened for years.'

The interior was dark and there was almost nothing inside. However, under his enhanced sight and perception, he caught a light emitting under the wooden mat.

'I guess this is it.'

As if agreeing to his words, Urs mana danced around his arms until it faded away. Its purpose is fulfilled now. Hans rushed forward, pulled the mat away, and fetched the small storage box under it. Based on the dust accumulated from its body, it's almost been years since it's last touched.

Hans brought it up and brushed the dust away. There's no lock or passcode so he easily opened it. As he slowly unveiled its contents, the box emitted a blinding bright light. Unable to bear the uncomfortable feeling, Hans covered his eyes.

After a short while, the light died down, exposing a folded paper and a runestone.

'Is it necessary to have that effect?'

He picked up the paper and read the words written on its front.

[To the future me.]

'He wrote a message for himself?'

Without further questions, Hans unfolded the paper and read the contents word by word.

[To the future me…

You must have been wondering why you are still reading this. Don't worry, I just have to remind you of something.

I'm turning 14 this year. A year of slaughtering those people involved in our family's death but up until now, they were like a chain that has no end. I can't find the mastermind…]

Hans brushed through the letter which contains half of Urs life story.

[... Well, how old are you now? Did we manage to find the culprit? I'm not crying anymore right?

Sigh, it must have been strange reading this but anyways, I hope you have a great life. I'm still immature and I hope I'll be able to correct my path in the future. Come to think of it, I heard voices in my head yesterday asking me about envoys— something like that.

There's also this…

Oh, wait! I need to go now. I'll keep it under the mat so when I'm bored I'll read this again.

...But I hope it won't come to that point. Stay strong! You got this!

Yourself,

Urs.]

Unknowingly, Hans smiled after reading the letter. Yesterday, after talking to Freya he was shocked when she said that the Hell's Carnage that happened in Egypt was orchestrated by Urs himself.

It's hard to imagine something like that but after reading the letter, he realized his reasons. Hans folded the paper and placed it back inside the box. Next, he picked the runestone and inspected its description.

[Runestone (S)

—Contains the skill of Emperor Constantine.

Requirements for use:

— Must have at least one of Emperor Constantine's skills or items to activate.

Note: The skill you'll receive depends on the skill you already have.]

'Constantine!!!'

Wasn't this the name of the sword skill owner he has? To think he'd encounter something like this is truly heaven sent.

'So he's an Emperor?'

However, even when he asked Plundy about it, he received no answers. There's no need to ponder what skill he'll receive if Hans activates it now.

'No doubt, it would be the 2nd part of the sword skill.'

As he crushed the stone in his hands, golden energy surged throughout his body until it was absorbed to his core. Hans closed his eyes feeling the soothing energy nourishing his bones.

With that, a familiar electronic voice sounded in his head.

Hans opened his eyes and heaved a sigh of relief.

'Let's see it.'

Tri-ring—

[You have obtained the skill…]

As he read through the contents, Hans' eyes narrowed in confusion.

The skill he received…

… is not something he expected.