Void of Fate, Main Chamber

Varis and Geldard’s eyes slowly opened, their movements sluggish as they struggled to understand what had happened.

Once they regained consciousness, they found themselves in a familiar void.

After realizing their circumstances, they immediately straightened their bodies and bowed their heads, kneeling on the ground.

“We would like to express our gratitude to you, Mr. Falkon. If it wasn’t for you heeding my call for help, we wouldn’t have been able to escape alive.”

Varis held a fist against his chest while keeping his head bowed. Geldard followed suit soon after.

“It was just a trivial matter. You may both lift your heads.”

Slowly, the duo raised their heads. They saw the fluttering dark cloak before meeting Mr. Falkon’s golden gaze.

Just by looking at him, they could sense the immense power emanating from this mysterious being.

“The task you entrusted us with has yielded some results.”

Mr. Falkon gestured for Varis to speak.

“We found that the Constabulary has been secretly hiding their mass murders of innocent citizens. However, we don’t know the specific reason behind their actions.

“On top of that, we also discovered that they have been stockpiling explosives. The amount is enough to destroy an entire borough.”

“Just as I expected…” Falkon praised himself inwardly.

“Good. Since we have confirmed their malicious intent, we will carry out our operation into the next phase.”

“You will need to find a way to exterminate all the explosives in that storage room.”

“That’s also our wish, though it will be harder to carry out, as there will likely be heavier security around the vault door.”

“I’m sure you have your method.”

“Yes. We will try our best, Mr. Falkon.”

“Let’s end it here. Prepare yourselves. You will carry out your task when I give the signal.”

“As you wish,” Varis said as he bowed his head.

Geldard was a little behind him.

“A-as you wish.”

Two holy lights descended from the distant void.

The blinding light wrapped around the duo and sent them back to the real world.

…

After seeing the duo disappear, Falkon descended from his seat and traversed toward the Vortex of Fate, a glass pane reflecting the fate of the people of Loftaz.

…

Balton, Loftaz Borough

Varis and Geldard reappeared inside the red apartment building.

“So, what’s the plan?”

“There will definitely be paragons who can detect stealth. Therefore, our previous tactic will not work as easily.

“What we need now is a decoy. I will lure the enemies away from the vault door while you try to pry it open.”

“That’s way too dangerous, Varis! Let’s find another method…”

Varis gripped Geldard tightly by the shoulders.

“Listen, Geldard, it’s time for you to grow up.”

“Living in your comfortable bubble won’t change anything in this world.”

“The outcome of this world may very well depend on your actions.

“If you don’t want people to suffer and die because of your incompetence, then fight. Fight with all your strength, even if you lose your comrades.

“Protecting people is your top priority. That’s why you became a constable in the first place, didn’t you?”

Anger and guilt surged inside Geldard; if it wasn’t because he was too weak and too powerless to do much of anything, Varis wouldn’t be risking his life.

“I will not disappoint you, Varis. Even if you die…your sacrifice won’t be in vain!”

“That’s what I want to hear!”

The two men laughed at their resolve, despite knowing that this whole operation might result in their deaths.

…

Inside a Constable Carriage

“I’m deeply sorry, sir. My incompetence has caused our enemy to slip away.”

The officer turned his head away from the window and looked at his secretary.

“Look into their identities and backgrounds. Give me a detailed report about them.”

“Yes, sir!”

The officer found a book and opened it to read.

“The demise we longed for will not be far from reach now.”

“That’s right, sir.”

An evil grin plastered itself across the officer’s face as he struggled to contain his excitement.

…

After receiving the signal from Mr. Falkon, Geldard and Varis began their operation.

They went through the small tunnel that stretched from the red apartment building to the Constabulary headquarters’ basement and climbed down the ladder to their destination.

“Looks like they haven’t discovered our secret hatch yet.”

Geldard said, relieved.

“Let’s go, Geldard. We don’t have time to waste.”

“Alright!”

The duo cautiously sprinted toward the other side of the basement, where the vault was located.

Around the corner, they surveyed the vault’s entrance.

“Around ten guards. Two of them are paragons.”

“Only ten? I was expecting a lot more.”

“It is strange. Maybe these are elite guards.”

“Be extra careful, then.”

Varis nodded and went into stealth after gesturing for Geldard to stand ready.

Varis ran past the guards, and his presence was soon sensed by the paragons.

“Enemy infiltrator! Catch him!”

Most of the guards left to pursue Varis, leaving only two behind.

“This will be easy,” Geldard whispered.

Going into stealth mode, Geldard snuck behind the two guards and easily knocked them out.

The vault door seemed to be firmly sealed, so Geldard decided to use raw firepower to pry it open.

Forming a magic circle, he extended his arm and began bombarding the vault door with fireballs.

The vault door proved to be resilient, as it only received a small dent.

Seeing this, Geldard enlarged his magic circle and prepared to use a more powerful spell.

“Meteor of Azure!”

A massive blue meteor formed out of the magic circle before striking the vault door with tremendous force.

The basement shook like an earthquake.

The attack was powerful enough to pry open the vault door.

Geldard walked into the vault room, which was still covered in smoke.

After the smoke receded and he could finally see his surroundings, he was horrified.

The explosives that had originally been stocked inside the room were now gone.

“Varis! The explosives aren’t in the vault room anymore!”

Geldard spoke through the communication medallion.

Varis, who heard him on the other side, couldn’t believe it.

If the explosives were gone, then a catastrophe might happen soon.

“Quick, Geldard! Get out of the basement. I’ll catch up to you!”

After relaying his message to Geldard, he cast a smoke spell that left his enemies immobilized for a minute, giving him enough time to escape through the hidden hatch.

…

Just as he reached the red apartment building, a loud boom echoed from the distance.

Varis froze.

His eyes widened as he looked toward the source of the explosion.

What he saw next left him immobile.

Geldard stood before him, a horrified expression plastered across his face.