Chapter 50: The Final Meeting

The tension in the air was palpable as I stepped into the abandoned warehouse. My army moved in behind me like a tidal wave, with John and Edward at my side. Edward, just to be safe, had already deployed snipers across the surrounding rooftops, each one ready to neutralize any threat at a moment's notice.

Cassandra stood at the center of the vast space, a cold smirk playing on her lips. She was alone—or so it seemed—but I knew better than to trust appearances.

"William," she greeted, her voice smooth and confident. "You've grown since the last time I saw you."

"And you've been busy," I replied evenly, scanning her for any subtle movements. "Your empire has crumbled faster than I expected. Tell me, was it worth it?"

Her smirk faltered for a fraction of a second, but she recovered quickly. "Worth it? That depends. I assume you're not here just to gloat."

"No," I said, taking a step closer. "I'm here for answers."

I studied her closely. Cassandra—no, Eleanor. I had suspected the truth for a while now, but I needed confirmation.

"Tell me," I began, my tone sharp. "Are you from Orthrus Inc, like me and John? Are you...Eleanor or Claire?"

Her eyes narrowed, and for a moment, I thought she wouldn't answer. But then she let out a quiet laugh, almost bitter.

"So, you remember," she said softly, her voice losing its edge. "Yes, William. I'm Eleanor. And no, I haven't forgotten."

Hearing her say it sent a chill down my spine. Eleanor—the most powerful bodyguard and right-hand I'd ever had in my previous life. She had been loyal, fierce, and utterly unstoppable.

"Why, Eleanor?" I asked, keeping my voice calm. "Why are you going against me now? I never betrayed you."

Her gaze hardened. "Because, in our past life, you abandoned me. You left me to fend for myself when the walls came crashing down. You may not have done it intentionally, but the result was the same. I swore I'd never let myself be used and discarded again—not even by you."

I clenched my fists. "You know that's not true. I trusted you with my life. Whatever happened back then was beyond my control. Eleanor, I've never turned my back on you."

took a step closer, my voice softening. "I'm offering you a chance to stop this madness. To stand by me once more. Work with me, Eleanor. We were unstoppable together once, and we can be again."

For a moment, her icy façade cracked. Her lips parted as if to say something, but then she closed her eyes, shaking her head.

"It's too late, William," she said, her voice trembling slightly. "I've gone too far. Even if I wanted to, I can't turn back now."

"You can," I pressed. "It's not too late. Everything you've done, every choice you've made—it can all be undone. But you have to let go of this grudge."

Her eyes glistened with unshed tears, but her expression hardened once more. "No," she said firmly. "I won't. And if you think you can sway me, you're wrong."

She raised her hand, and at that moment, the warehouse erupted into chaos.

Cassandra's army poured into the room from every direction, heavily armed and well-trained. My forces immediately sprang into action, the sound of gunfire and shouting echoing through the warehouse.

Edward's snipers, positioned strategically across the rooftops, took down the initial wave of Cassandra's shooters. But she had anticipated this. Her elite marksmen, hidden in key positions, began targeting my snipers, forcing Edward to pull back his forces.

"Fall back to secondary positions!" Edward's voice crackled through my earpiece. "They're taking out our vantage points."

John, ever the bulldozer, charged into the fray with a small squad, mowing down enemy soldiers with calculated precision. Meanwhile, I kept my eyes on Cassandra as she weaved through the chaos, her movements fluid and deadly.

I intercepted her before she could reach John, and our eyes locked.

"You're still the best fighter I've ever known," I admitted, drawing my weapon.

"And you're still as arrogant as ever," she shot back, unsheathing a blade from her belt.

She lunged at me, her movements so fast they were almost a blur. I dodged her first strike, countering with a well-aimed kick that sent her skidding back. But she recovered instantly, her blade slicing through the air with deadly precision.

Our fight was a dance of skill and strategy, each of us testing the other's limits. She was as formidable as I remembered, her strength and speed nearly matching my own.

"You've gotten better," I said between breaths.

"And you've gotten slower," she retorted, landing a glancing blow on my shoulder.

The battle around us raged on, but my focus was solely on Eleanor. I could see the conflict in her eyes, the hesitation that betrayed her resolve.

"You don't have to do this," I said, blocking another strike. "You're not my enemy, Eleanor. You never were."

"Then stop fighting me," she snapped, her voice tinged with desperation.

"I will," I said, disarming her with a swift maneuver and pinning her against a support beam. "But only if you stand down."

Her breathing was ragged, her defiance fading. For a moment, she looked at me as if searching for something—some truth she had long buried.

"William," she whispered, her voice barely audible.

The chaos around us seemed to fade as I leaned in, my voice firm but gentle. "Eleanor, come back to me. Let's end this together."

Her blade clattered to the floor, and she closed her eyes. "I...I can't..."

"You can," I said, releasing her and stepping back. "The choice is yours."

System Notification:

Mission Update: Eleanor's Loyalty

Objective: Eleanor's loyalty meter has shifted. Final decision pending.

As the system alert faded, I extended a hand to her. The battle wasn't over—not yet—but for the first time, I saw hope.

For both of us.

Eleanor's eyes flicked to my extended hand, her expression unreadable. For a fleeting moment, I thought she might take it. But then, her gaze hardened, and she stepped back, reclaiming her blade.

"No," she said, her voice steady but cold. "You don't get to waltz in here, destroy everything I've built, and act like the hero. I made my choice long ago, William. And I won't regret it."

I sighed, the weight of her words sinking in. "So be it," I said, drawing my own weapon. "But know this, Eleanor—this ends here."

The warehouse shook as we clashed, our weapons colliding with deafening force. Eleanor moved like a whirlwind, her blade slicing through the air with lethal precision. I countered with calculated strikes, each one designed to test her defenses.

"You've improved," I said, dodging a swing that would have taken my head off.

"Not enough, apparently," she retorted, spinning into a kick that sent me skidding back.

Her skill was undeniable—every move was calculated, every strike precise. She fought with the same ferocity that had made her my most trusted ally in our past life. But I wasn't the same person she remembered. I had grown stronger, smarter, and more ruthless.

"You can't win this, Eleanor," I said, sidestepping her attack and landing a blow to her ribs.

"Maybe not," she admitted, staggering slightly but refusing to back down. "But I'll make you earn it."

The battle around us intensified, with my forces steadily overpowering hers. Edward's contingency plan was proving effective, as his snipers had regained control of their vantage points, neutralizing Cassandra's elite shooters.

John was a one-man wrecking crew, cutting through enemy soldiers like a scythe through wheat. But even amid the chaos, my focus remained solely on Eleanor.

She was relentless, her attacks growing more desperate but no less deadly. Her blade nicked my shoulder, drawing blood, but I didn't flinch. I parried her next strike and countered with a swift kick that sent her crashing into a pile of crates.

"Give up, Eleanor!" I shouted, stepping closer.

"Never!" she roared, lunging at me with renewed fury.

As our fight reached its crescendo, I saw the cracks in her resolve. Her movements, while still sharp, were growing slower, less precise. She was running out of steam, and she knew it.

"You've already lost," I said, disarming her with a swift maneuver and pinning her against the wall.

She struggled, her eyes blazing with defiance. "Then finish it," she spat.

I hesitated for a moment, the weight of our shared history pressing down on me. But before I could speak, she drove her knee into my stomach, breaking free and grabbing a discarded gun from the floor.

She fired a shot that grazed my side, but before she could fire again, I closed the distance between us. I knocked the gun from her hands and delivered a decisive strike that sent her collapsing to the ground.

Eleanor coughed, blood staining her lips as she looked up at me, her body broken but her spirit unyielding.

"You...really are the same," she said, her voice weak but steady. "Always so sure of yourself. Always so...stubborn."

"Eleanor," I said, kneeling beside her. "It didn't have to be this way."

She let out a bitter laugh, her eyes glistening with unshed tears. "Do you know...who told me about what happened in our past life?"

I frowned, my heart sinking as her words hung in the air.

"It was David Lawrence," she said, her voice barely a whisper. "He told me everything. He said...you betrayed me. That you...used me as a pawn."

My blood ran cold. David. Of course.

"And you believed him?" I asked, my voice shaking with a mix of anger and disbelief.

"He...seemed to know so much," she said, her breaths growing shallower. "And...I think he's like you. A system user. I've seen him...talking to himself. Planning things...just like you."

Her words hit me like a freight train. If David was a system user, that changed everything.

Eleanor's gaze softened, and for the first time, I saw the woman I had once trusted with my life.

"I...don't know what's true anymore," she admitted, her voice breaking. "But...if you really didn't betray me...I'm sorry, William."

Tears welled in my eyes as I reached for her hand, but she stopped me, pulling a small flash drive from her pocket and pressing it into my hand.

"Everything I've gathered on David," she said. "It's...all there. Use it...before it's too late."

Her hand fell limp, and the light faded from her eyes.

System Notification:

Mission Update: Eleanor's Loyalty

Status: Finalized.

Mission Complete: Eleanor's Defeat

Reward: System Upgrade to Level 2 (Silver Rank) and +20 to all stats.

Stat Overview Post-Upgrade

SPD (Speed): 90 → 110

STR (Strength): 95 → 115

STA (Stamina): 85 → 105

INT (Intelligence): 105 → 125

The surge of power was unmistakable. My body felt lighter yet more grounded, as if every movement was perfectly calibrated. My speed, strength, stamina, and intelligence all elevated to levels I could only have dreamed of before.

Hathor's voice returned, its tone more resonant than ever.

"Your attributes have increased significantly. With this upgrade, your enemies will find it increasingly difficult to match your power, but remember—strength alone won't win every battle."

I smirked. "Good thing I have plenty of INT to make up for that, huh?"

Hathor didn't reply, but the silence felt like approval.

"To be able to access the silver-rank/lvl 2 system store, the system itself will need to be updated and during this time the system, including me, won't be available to assist you so whenever you are ready then tell me to start the update."

"How long will it takes?" I asked. "A couple days?"

"With your current status and business life, it will takes two years to finished, but don't worry. The system update will come with a bonus when it reboot again after the update."

"That means...I won't be seeing you again until I reach college?" I continued. "That is quite a long time."

"I wouldn't be worry since you are already 3x as strong and smart comparing to an ordinary human."

"In that case...start the update." I smiled. "I'll see you again in two years!"

"See you in two years!"

Hathor give me a smile and snapped her finger. Just like that, a notification window pop up and display a text saying that the system will be updating and it will be down until the update is complete.

I guess its time to head back into being a normal student, but let's clean up here first.

John approached me cautiously, his boots crunching against the debris-strewn floor. "What happened just now?" he asked, his gaze flicking to me with a mix of curiosity and concern.

I turned to face him, clenching my fists and marveling at the surge of power coursing through me. "The system upgraded," I said simply, though the weight of those words was anything but simple.

Edward joined us, his sharp eyes scanning the room and laughed. "You better stop reading those system novels because I could already see you hallucinating!"

I smirked faintly, the hint of confidence returning to my tone. "More than enough to ensure no one can stand against us."

But even as I said the words, my mind lingered on Eleanor's last revelation. David Lawrence. If he was indeed another system user, it explained so much—his mysterious rise, his uncanny ability to manipulate events from the shadows. And if he was truly responsible for turning Eleanor against me in our past life, then this wasn't just a fight for control of this city. It was personal.

I turned back to Eleanor's lifeless form, the weight of her actions and her final words heavy in the air. I couldn't shake the image of her slipping that flash drive into my hand, her last gift to me.

"I didn't betray you," I murmured, though the words felt hollow without her there to hear them.

John placed a hand on my shoulder, his grip firm. "We should move," he said. "Whatever's on that drive might be the key to taking down David."

I nodded, tucking the flash drive securely into my pocket. "You're right," I said, my voice steady. "This is far from over."

As we walked away, I couldn't help but glance back one last time. Eleanor had made her choice, and now, I had to make mine.

David Lawrence was out there, and he was waiting. But I wasn't the same person he had manipulated before.

I was stronger now. Smarter. And with the system's newfound power, I was ready for whatever came next.

One thing was certain—David Lawrence wouldn't see me coming.