A convoy of sleek black vehicles tore down the highway, their tinted windows reflecting the streaks of streetlights above. Among them, the lead car held a silence that was heavier than steel. Inside, Lucas sat slouched against the door, resting his chin on his palm, his gaze fixed on the side mirror. The reflection showed the road stretching endlessly behind them, blurring into oblivion.
A tear slid silently down his cheek.
Amelia's voice replayed in his mind over and over, cutting deeper with each repetition.
"I'm sorry to say this, but… if you're truly Lucas Jeffrey—the one who went missing through the Sky Tear—then you haven't been missing for 24 hours.
You've been gone for an entire year."
The words were like iron weights on his chest. Every heartbeat felt like a hammer striking inside him—sharp, painful, unrelenting.
Why?
Why do bad things always happen to me?
Why am I the one who got lost in space… letting Maya suffer alone for an entire year?
His fists clenched until his knuckles went white, nails biting into his palms. Tears continued their quiet rebellion, sliding down his face while he tried to hold himself together.
If I meet Maya now… will she even recognize me?
The thought alone made his chest ache. The image of her looking at him with confusion—no trace of recognition—was almost unbearable.
Pathetic.
That was the only word that came to mind. Here he was, sitting helplessly in this car, unable to rush to her because these people suspected he wasn't who he claimed to be.
They whispered their theories—that he might be some powerful, otherworldly entity wearing human skin. The idea was so absurd it almost made him laugh.
And laugh he did. A short, bitter chuckle escaped him.
Me? Lucas? The failure who couldn't even awaken? An all-powerful being?
If only they knew.
Amelia, seated beside him with her usual unreadable expression, glanced at him when she heard the sound. Her eyes studied his profile—tear-streaked cheeks, clenched fists, and a distant stare fixed on the night outside.
He didn't want to be here. That much was obvious.
He wanted to be with his sister.
But Amelia couldn't allow that. Not yet.
Because Lucas… was dangerous.
The memory of his reaction earlier replayed in her mind.
---
It started the moment she told him the truth.
Lucas had staggered backward, his eyes wide.
"No… no, impossible," he whispered.
Then, louder—sharper:
"Impossible!"
He jabbed a finger toward her.
"You're lying! This is a trick! I've only been gone a day!"
His voice cracked with desperation.
"I've only left Maya for a day, right? RIGHT?!"
The stoic mask on Amelia's face didn't waver. And somehow, that made it worse.
Heat silently shimmered in the air. Unnoticed by him, faint waves of energy pulsed from his skin, the air bending around him.
"Someone answer me!" Lucas shouted, but the silence of the onlookers only fueled his panic.
He turned, muttering to himself—
No", "I can't be here", "I have to go meet Maya".
"It's only been a day… it's only been a day…"—
and pushed through the crowd, his breathing uneven.
"Lucas, stop right there!" Amelia's voice cut through the murmurs as she stepped forward and grabbed his arm.
And then, hell opened.
His head snapped toward her, his deep blue eyes igniting into a searing crimson blaze.
"Don't you dare touch me," he said quietly.
BOOM.
The heat wave exploded outward. The temperature spiked in an instant, the air thick and suffocating. Civilians gasped, sweat pouring down their faces. Even Amelia's own knees nearly buckled under the crushing pressure. Without realizing it, she released his arm.
Lucas, oblivious to the chaos, simply turned away and kept walking.
---
Amelia gradually regained her footing. The pressure wasn't as catastrophic as when he first entered the planet, but it was still enough to incapacitate untrained civilians.
"Lucas, stop!" she called again.
No response.
"Stop right now—unless you want your reunion with your sister to be cut short… or sadder than it should be."
He froze mid-step.
Slowly, he turned, his crimson eyes locking onto hers. His voice was cold enough to freeze the air.
"What did you just say?"
Even Amelia, seasoned as she was, felt his stare like needles under her skin. But she approached anyway.
"Do you feel that pressure radiating from you right now?" she asked.
Lucas just frowned, confused by the question.
"Do you know how you came back to this planet?" she pressed.
His voice turned sharp.
"What are you trying to say? Do you just want to waste my time?"
So she told him. The descent, the alert it triggered, the Special Force's immediate deployment.
"You're dangerous if left unchecked. But I can help you—if you cooperate."
"And if I don't?"
Her tone didn't waver.
"Then the Special Force will come for you. And if necessary, an S-ranked or even SS-ranked squad will be dispatched to hunt you down."
The threat was unspoken but clear:
If you resist, you may never see your sister again.
Lucas's fists tightened. His jaw clenched. Finally, a long, controlled sigh escaped him. His eyes faded back to deep blue, and the crushing heat evaporated as though it had never existed.
Amelia allowed herself a silent breath of relief. Civilians were already fainting from the earlier pressure—any longer, and there might have been casualties.
"Fine," he said at last. "I'll cooperate for now. But not because I believe your story about… powers, or whatever you think I am. I'm doing this because Maya was brought into it. I don't want to lose her again once I find her."
His gaze hardened.
"I'm a normal human who is pathetic and couldn't achieve a simple task as awakening but ......."
"If anyone tries to hurt my sister… I'll hurt them before the thought even finishes forming in their mind."
Amelia studied him. She wasn't sure if he truly didn't understand what he was, but she had no doubt he meant every word.
---
The rest of the ride was silent. Lucas kept his gaze fixed on the blur of lights outside, lost in thought. Amelia sat beside him, torn between her duty and a strange pull to let him go free.
But she couldn't. Not yet.
The convoy eventually slowed, pulling up to a massive, sleek building. Though night had long fallen, the grounds glowed with the brilliance of day, floodlights casting long shadows across its high walls.
The moment Lucas stepped out of the car, he squinted, raising a hand to shield his eyes from the glare.
Amelia joined him on the pavement, her voice cutting through the hum of engines and murmurs of her squad.
"I'm certain this is your first time here," she said.
Her gaze turned toward the towering structure, its steel and glass gleaming under the artificial light.
"Welcome to E.R.N.S."