"What was that all about?" Edoran asked, completely shocked, staring at Harold's pale face.
"Beats me," Harold muttered, his voice hollow.
Just then, a huge vehicle — a black, sleek ORV — came rumbling into The Market. It gleamed under the sun as a tall homunculus with grey hair stepped out from the driver's seat and respectfully opened the passenger door.
An old man climbed out. His face was a roadmap of wrinkles, yet his back was straight. In his hand was a long cane, although he didn't use it to support himself. He exuded an air of authority so thick it weighed down the very air.
Harold's eyes widened. Without hesitation, he stepped forward and bowed low.
"Chairman Jason. I am pleased to meet you," Harold said stiffly.
The old man chuckled, a deep, crackling sound.
"Hah. You're well-mannered, unlike your bratty grandfather, boy."
Edoran blinked. Harold—always proud, sharp-tongued Harold—was acting like a scolded child. It unsettled him.
"Who is this man, Harold?" Edoran asked, baffled.
Harold snapped his head toward him, glaring daggers. 'Idiot! Not here.' he thought furiously.
Jason chuckled again, turning his gaze to Edoran. His sharp eyes gleamed with amusement.
"Ohhh, what do we have here? My son's biggest experiment."
The words clicked into place. Edoran felt the pieces slot together, and his face fell.
Jason Faulkner.
Founder of Nova Star Industries. Harold's great-grandfather. One of the most powerful men alive.
Jason's smile didn't quite reach his eyes.
"Don't worry, sonny. I'm not going to bite you. In fact, I'd like to reward you. You caught that bugger assassin I was after."
Harold quickly corrected, "Sir, he detonated himself. We didn't do anything."
Jason's amused face hardened.
"I never asked for your opinion."
Harold went stiff, the blood draining from his face.
Jason turned back to Edoran. "Come to my office tomorrow. Nova Star Humanity Development Center. I have just the right gift for you."
Without another word, Jason turned and left, his presence lingering even after the vehicle disappeared. The Market itself seemed to breathe easier once he was gone, but a haunted look stayed on every face.
Harold grabbed Edoran's arm harshly.
"Never... never get friendly with him," Harold said under his breath.
"He seemed... kind enough to give me a gift," Edoran protested.
Harold stared at him like he was an idiot.
"Just get the damn gift and leave. Fast."
As they drove back, Edoran noticed something strange—people on the streets, workers in the shops—everyone gave Harold a look of pity and fear. He decided not to press him about it.
The next morning, Harold knocked on Edoran's room.
"What is it? Training?" Edoran asked, stretching.
"No. I canceled it." Harold looked unusually solemn. Behind him stood a giant of a man — at least seven feet tall, with broad shoulders that barely fit through the doorway. His deep-set eyes scanned Edoran with a predator's precision.
"I am Kareem," the man said in a rough, thunderous voice. "Are you Edoran?"
"Uh... yeah."
"I have been sent to escort you. The Founder is waiting."
Harold gave Edoran a look — a silent warning.
'If anything happens... run,' Edoran interpreted.
The ride was eerily smooth. The giant ORV practically glided through the city streets, heading toward the shimmering skyscraper Edoran had seen the day Jake died.
The Nova Star Humanity Development Center.
Inside, security seemed almost laughable—no metal detectors, no fingerprint scans. Just waves of smiling staff and glass elevators rising to dizzying heights.
They stepped into the elevator. Kareem hit a button labeled 14.
As they rose, Edoran noticed small things. Cameras in the walls. Hushed conversations that stopped when they passed.
The fourteenth floor opened into a massive office filled with polished wood and floor-to-ceiling windows.
Jason sat behind a heavy mahogany desk, a grandfatherly smile plastered on his face.
"Aah, there you are. Good lad! Come, come."
"Kareem," Jason said, snapping his fingers.
Kareem nodded and disappeared for a moment. Then, a group of workers wheeled in a massive crate.
Edoran peered at it, curiosity battling dread.
"I captured this one personally," Kareem said, a toothy grin on his face.
"But what is it?" Edoran asked, stepping closer.
Jason chuckled.
"A tier-1 mythical savage. Rare enough to buy an entire city."
The crate shifted ominously.
An albino man with dark glasses entered the room, accompanied by two others: a teenage boy and a girl, both wearing tight black uniforms.
Edoran immediately felt danger roll off them in waves. Especially from the albino man — cold, calculating.
Jason gestured lazily.
"My star recruits. Only Kareem can take them down, and even then not easily."
The boy's face looked eerily familiar to Edoran.
"Why are you guys here?" Kareem asked casually.
"Bored," the girl pouted. "I want ice cream."
Kareem smiled indulgently. "After we finish up."
He handed Edoran a dagger. Its blade shimmered and rippled like liquid.
"This is Hala," Kareem said. "Made from the claw of a tier-3 savage."
Edoran's hand trembled as he took the weapon.
"Kill it," Jason said simply, his voice hardening. "One clean strike. Do it."
The crate opened with a hiss.
Inside was a monstrous creature — something like a horse but grotesquely mutated. Two heads, eight legs, bat-like wings, and smoke pouring from its nostrils.
It looked at Edoran with one head, its green snake-like tongue flicking out.
It knew it was going to die.
Edoran stepped forward, heart pounding. The dagger felt alive in his grip.
He plunged it downward.
The blade slid through the creature's skull like butter. Black blood gushed out.
Suddenly—darkness.
Edoran found himself sinking into an endless void. In front of him stood Jake, eyes wild.
"I'm sorry," Edoran gasped, tears streaming down his face.
Jake screamed, "DON'T TRUST HIM!"
The world snapped back.
The horse creature lay dead. Its strange energy seeped into Edoran's very bones.
Jason and Kareem clapped.
"Good work," Jason said.
"The savage you killed was a Draconius Equus. A beast that could glimpse future timelines. Now some of that gift is yours."
Edoran staggered slightly, overwhelmed.
"Escort him back," Jason said casually.
Kareem clapped a heavy hand on Edoran's shoulder, almost making him stumble.
Just as they were leaving, Jason's voice stopped them.
"Say, Edoran... do you know why Harold hates me?"
Edoran shook his head.
"Because I had his coward of a father executed."
Jason's face hardened, the jovial mask slipping for a moment.
"He endangered my family. My empire. I did what I had to."
Edoran nodded stiffly, unsure what to feel.
They turned to leave — but Edoran caught sight of the boy again. The boy stared back at him.
And Edoran remembered.
The blazing whale's vision.
The underground fight.
This boy — this Tobias — had fought savages as a child.
Without thinking, Edoran muttered, "Underground fights."
Tobias's face twisted in rage.
Tobias glared at Edoran with burning hatred, sparks of purple lightning crackling off his fists. The tension in the room thickened as the boy's rage became a tangible thing, choking the very air.
"You... You know about the Karoloung?" Tobias spat, his voice raw and shaking with fury. "You dare mention it?!"
Before Edoran could open his mouth, Kareem stepped protectively between them, his massive presence an immovable wall.
"That's enough," Kareem said, voice calm but carrying the weight of absolute authority.
But Tobias wasn't listening.
His entire body vibrated with energy, veins glowing faintly under his skin as the power inside him struggled to break free.
Behind them, Bacchus tilted his head slightly, his shaded eyes unreadable. A faint pulse of thought passed unseen through the room.
'It must have been Harold. He told the boy about the Karoloung,' Bacchus conveyed, the thought slipping into Tobias's mind like a poison needle.
Tobias's rage exploded anew.
"IT WAS HIM!" he bellowed, pointing a trembling finger at Edoran. "HAROLD TOLD HIM EVERYTHING!"
Kareem's eyes narrowed, the first crack of impatience appearing on his usually steady face.
"Tobias," Kareem said, louder now, the rumble of a distant avalanche in his tone. "You are crossing a line."
Tobias ignored him. His body erupted in sparks as his anger reached a fever pitch, the walls trembling as purple lightning streaked and sizzled around him.
Edoran stumbled back, heart pounding wildly.
'I didn't even know what the hell Karoloung was until two minutes ago!' he screamed internally.
The girl tried again to grab Tobias's arm to calm him, but this time, Tobias backhanded the air with such force that the shockwave knocked her off her feet.
Enough.
Kareem's hand snapped forward like a thunderclap, catching Tobias's wrist mid-swing before he could do anything else.
A massive, unseen force crushed the lightning around Tobias, extinguishing it like snuffing a candle.
Tobias struggled, but it was like fighting against the roots of a mountain. His face twisted with frustration, but Kareem didn't flinch.
"Listen well, boy," Kareem said, voice so cold it froze the sparks midair. "If you raise your hand in this room again, I will break it."
Tobias's breath hitched — not in fear, but because his own body refused to move under Kareem's crushing grip. Purple lightning sparked futilely across his trapped arm.
"Do not make me repeat myself," Kareem growled.
For a moment, the entire room seemed to hold its breath. Then Tobias ripped his arm free and staggered back, trembling with pent-up fury. He shot a venomous glare at Edoran, then turned that hatred toward Kareem for a fleeting second — but even in his rage, Tobias knew better.
Kareem's authority was absolute.
"Get out," Kareem ordered.
Tobias's face twisted in a grimace, but he obeyed, storming toward the door. Each step he took scorched the floor with flashes of purple, the air growing heavier and heavier.
Just before he left, Tobias looked over his shoulder at Edoran, hatred burning so fiercely in his eyes it was almost physical.
"This isn't over," he hissed, voice low and venomous.
And then he was gone — a streak of violet lightning that shattered the doorway, leaving splinters and scorch marks behind.
Silence fell once more, save for the faint crackling of burned wood.
Edoran exhaled slowly, only now realizing he had been holding his breath the whole time.
Jason chuckled lightly from his desk, tapping his cane lazily against the floor.
"Fiery one, isn't he?" the old man mused, completely unfazed by the storm that had just passed.
Kareem let out a slow breath and turned to Edoran.
"You're lucky," he said simply. "If I hadn't been here, he might have killed you without even realizing it."
Edoran gulped, nodding numbly.
Jason's sharp eyes glittered.
"You're quite something yourself, young man. To provoke such a reaction without even trying..."
He chuckled again, almost fondly. "Maybe you're even better than I expected."
Edoran shifted uncomfortably, feeling like a rabbit under the gaze of a very patient wolf.
Bacchus, silent as a shadow, remained in the corner, his thoughts brushing against Jason's mind again.
'He has potential,' Bacchus thought.
Jason's smile widened slightly.
'And darkness,' he answered mentally. 'Just what we need.'