novelraw Chapter 97: Report
Chapter 97: Report
Kyle was in his room, breathing heavily, his face pale and eyes wide.
What... did he just do?
He could hardly believe that, in the heat of battle, he had completely let go of his self-restraint and gone all out with that attack.
Genesis had become like alcohol, something that pushed him to lose control. He kept pouring more and more energy into that final strike, to the point where even standing straight while holding that much power in his hand became difficult.
The system had warned him, but he couldn’t stop himself and ended up causing a massive explosion. No, it wasn’t flames or sound, but a magical, overwhelming blast.
The results were in their favor. All the rifts were destroyed along with their guardians, but even so, it had been a terrifying experience.
"Haah... I left Amanda back there alone."
He hadn’t stopped to check on her because he felt weak and shaky, and in that condition, Layena could have easily caught him, and possibly any other officer as well.
So yes, he prioritized his escape and reached his room first, waiting for things to settle down.
[Host, you have surpassed your previous record of using Genesis. This was triple the amount it took to destroy that building before. Thankfully, this time it was an open space, so the explosion had enough room to spread.]
Kyle sighed. "Imagine what would have happened if I had ended up destroying the resort myself." All the effort put in by Layena and the others would have gone to waste, and Kyle would have earned himself another wanted mark.
Speaking of Layena, there was a high chance she had figured out who he was.
He didn’t know what gave him away, but the moment their eyes met, he saw a sense of familiarity in them. It didn’t feel like Layena was looking at him, but Amanda.
’That same girl didn’t even know my name until a few days ago... and now she recognized me just by looking into my eyes.’
He couldn’t deny that he was worried. Not only had she recognized him visually, but Layena also had proof that he was the rogue. After all, he had failed to find the tracker.
The realization weighed heavily on his shoulders. What would happen to him now?
....
"Yes, that’s exactly what happened." Layena finished her report.
The Delta team had finally responded to the emergency, arriving fifteen minutes after the chaos had already been subdued.
The team was spread across the area, dealing with the aftermath, finding anyone who might have seen something they shouldn’t have and erasing their memories.
Finding any residuals of monsters and even finding those bastards who tried to sabotage them.
Two of them were dead but there is a high chance that there was more.
"Are you sure you aren’t missing anything?" the man in a black suit with a shaved head asked, his thick brows raised. "Especially about that anomaly who handled things here?"
Amanda, standing nearby, narrowed her eyes at that. However, Layena didn’t need anyone’s help dealing with people like him.
"I told you everything I saw. As for the anomaly, I only caught a glimpse of his eyes. Golden, sharp, and unfamiliar. If that somehow helps, I can repeat it as many times as you like."
The senior officer shook his head lightly. "That won’t be necessary."
Just then, Amanda spoke up. "May I ask why reinforcements took so long to arrive?"
The question made the shaved-headed man glance at his assistant. The two exchanged a brief silence before the latter answered, "Ah, we received the report from HQ late."
"Oh yeah? Try saying that while looking into my eyes."
The voice came from behind, and every single staff member froze. Every investigator, every cleaner stood still at the sudden appearance of the woman, who looked anything but calm.
The officer in charge of the Delta team stared in shock. "How... in the world... did you arrive this early?"
Veronica growled, "That doesn’t answer my question, Bary!" She grabbed his collar and pulled him up until he was on his toes.
"Commander, please refrain from getting violent." Instantly, the senior officer’s assistant took off his glove and pointed a finger at Veronica.
Layena and Amanda tensed, ready to move if the man attacked. However, the one who should have reacted the most, Veronica, remained unflinching. She glanced at him and asked,
"Are you sure you can handle the consequences of attacking me?"
The man’s stance faltered, clear hesitation flashing in his eyes, but he didn’t step back.
Then Bary spoke, "It’s okay, Ren. Stand down."
Ren bit his lower lip before lowering his hand.
Veronica refocused on the man in her grasp before speaking, "I have filed a red notice against you, Bary. I will make sure proper action is taken against you and your team for negligence and such irresponsible behavior."
With that, she shoved him back.
Bary lost his balance and fell onto his back.
It was worth noting that directly under the central command, there were five teams operating. The Delta team was one of them, and Bary was actually a relative of the Prime Minister himself.
And despite knowing all that...
Bary chuckled.
This woman really was something else.
Veronica turned to her team and asked, "How are all of you?"
Ethan, who had just come out after checking on Hannah, instantly rushed over and said, "Hannah is doing better now, and Clara is resting in the room."
Amanda shrugged. "I received the least damage. Layena is pretty beat up."
Veronica silently assessed Layena for a moment before nodding. "Come with me, Layena."
Layena nodded, but staggered as she tried to move.
Ethan stepped forward to support her, but Veronica stopped him with a stern voice. "Don’t support her, Ethan. Layena, walk with me."
The command was clear, and none of them dared to question it.
As if fueled by sheer will, Layena straightened and began walking beside her.
Naturally, Veronica was unaware of what had happened, so she asked for a full account.
"Four...?" Her eyes widened as she realized the level of danger they had faced.
Layena briefly went through the whole situation, how things unfurled, the signal disturbance and its cause.
While she was at it, Layena also added, "At...some point, Commander, I accepted my defeat."
"...!" Veronica’s eyes widened, "What?"
Layena, with her eyes drawn to the ground, added, "I was injured and powerless. I couldn’t keep up with growing chaos and my genesis reserve was almost spent. I felt there was no hope left for me."
Veronica remained silent at that, just staring at her students
Layena didn’t give excuses nor try to over describe the situation to make herself look pitiful.
She knew this would displease the commander but she couldn’t bring herself to hide it.
After a long pause, "Then... who exactly saved you?" Veronica finally asked, assuming it was the Delta team.
It had to be them, and if they truly had saved her team, she might reconsider the red notice.
But what Layena said next left her utterly shocked.
"Commander... we received help... from the one I came here to capture."
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A/N:- Thanks for reading.