The two friends stayed on the bench for a while longer, chatting as the wind rustled the trees in the park.
Angel watched the passersby with a distracted look before turning his gaze back to Noah.
“You wouldn’t want to join us, would you?”
Noah looked up slightly.
“Join you?”
“Stormshield.”
A brief silence settled between them.
“I could put in a good word for you with Liam.”
Noah remained thoughtful.
“You want me to join Stormshield?”
“Yes.
Since we made it to the national top three, we need new talent.”
Angel crossed his arms.
“So?
Are you interested?”
Noah stared at the leaves swirling along the path for a few seconds.
‘Stormshield…’
Just a few days ago, that name was just another agency among many.
Now he knew Liam Heartwood.
He knew Logan.
He also knew the monstrous level Ascendants from major agencies could reach.
“I don’t know.”
Angel nodded slowly.
“The world of Ascendants is dangerous.”
His tone had grown more serious.
“A lone Ascendant has a hard time progressing.
And more importantly they become a target.”
Noah understood exactly what he meant.
Victor, Fred, the black market, the crystal.
In just a few days, he had already learned how quickly trouble found you when you possessed something valuable.
“I get what you’re trying to say.”
He took a breath.
“But I don’t think now is the right time.”
His gaze drifted to the sky for a moment.
“Let me think about it.”
Angel didn’t push it.
“I understand.”
An amused smile appeared on his face.
“It’s not really the kind of decision you make on a whim.”
“Bingo.”
“Then I won’t bring it up again.”
His phone buzzed suddenly.
Bzzz.
Bzzz.
Angel pulled the device from his pocket.
His expression changed immediately.
“I’m going to have to go.”
“A mission?”
“Probably.”
Noah immediately dug into his jacket.
“Wait a second.”
He pulled out a small vial containing a glowing cyan liquid.
The liquid looked almost alive.
Angel frowned.
“What is that?”
Noah held out the vial.
“It’s the project I’ve been working on.”
Angel rolled the vial between his fingers.
“What does it do?”
“Use it if you get hurt.”
A mysterious smile appeared on the scientist’s face.
“You might be in for a surprise.”
“What kind of surprise?”
“If I told you, it wouldn’t be a surprise anymore.”
Angel burst out laughing.
“You…”
He shook his head before pocketing the vial.
“You’ll never change.”
“Let me know when you use it.”
“Deal.”
The two men stood up and shook hands.
“Take care of yourself, old friend.”
“You too.”
Then they went their separate ways.
On his way home, Noah stopped by a specialized supplier.
The mutated plant he had been looking for for days was finally waiting for him.
A mutant ginseng.
Its roots had a dark red coloration, laced with fine, luminous veins.
Noah examined it with interest.
‘Perfect.’
For several weeks, an idea had been bouncing around in his head.
The healing potion worked.
The problem now was stamina.
His research consumed absurd amounts of Astra.
The Third Eye, in particular, was incredibly demanding.
‘I need a solution.’
An energy potion.
A substance capable of accelerating Astra recovery.
If it worked, his research would progress much faster.
And more importantly…
He stopped in front of his apartment building.
‘Maybe I could finally make some money.’
His reserves were melting away at a dangerous rate.
The rats.
The mutated plants.
The crystals.
Every experiment cost him a fortune.
The vial he gave Angel was also a test.
A real-world test.
‘If the results are conclusive…’
His eyes lit up.
‘I might have just found my first real product.’
…
The next day.
The smell of damp earth and mold suddenly replaced the fresh grass of the park.
Beneath an abandoned industrial complex in Essex.
The air in the Hole was heavy.
Water droplets fell steadily from the rocky ceiling.
A sickly blue light dimly illuminated the tunnels.
Angel led the way.
Two machetes rested in his hands.
His Astra flowed smoothly through his muscles.
Behind him walked the other two members of the unit.
Phill and Sarah.
Phill broke the silence.
“Sarah, do you know where Larry is?”
The young woman shook her head.
“Unfortunately, no.”
Then she looked at Angel.
“What about you?”
“Word is, since we moved up to third nationally, we get higher priority on high-rank Holes.”
Angel shrugged.
“We’re short-staffed.”
“So Larry went to reinforce Unit Two.”
Sarah immediately let out an annoyed sigh.
“So irresponsible.”
Phill rolled his eyes.
“Oh, come on.”
“No.”
She crossed her arms.
“He’s the leader of our unit.”
“And he abandons us to go help someone else.”
“It’s a rank-three Hole.” Phill gestured to the tunnels ahead.
“We should be fine.”
“That’s not the point.” Sarah continued to pout.
“We don’t even have a healer.”
“You can file a complaint with the higher-ups after the mission.” Phill gave her a smile.
“For now, just focus.”
“Oh.” A mocking smile appeared on the young woman’s face.
“Look who’s playing squad leader.”
Angel stopped dead in his tracks.
His gaze locked onto the darkness.
His Astra flared.
“They’re here.”
The other two instantly turned serious.
Dozens of metallic clicking sounds echoed through the tunnels.
Then they appeared.
Giant cockroaches.
Their dark carapaces reflected the Hole’s sickly blue light.
Sarah held out her hands.
A violet mist spread around her.
The poison seeped into the joints of the monsters.
Shrill cries rang out instantly.
Several creatures slowed down, while others collapsed on the spot.
“Phill!”
“Let’s go!”
The two men lunged.
Angel’s machetes came down, severing legs and carapaces with surgical precision.
Beside him, Phill advanced like a battering ram.
His Astra-charged fists shattered the exoskeletons on impact, sending pieces of chitin flying through the air.
In less than two minutes, the corridor was littered with broken remains.
Then they reached the main chamber.
And everything changed.
In the center of the cavern glowed a rank-three crystal.
Standing before it was the guardian.
A colossal cockroach over three meters tall.
Its six legs ended in chitinous blades capable of slicing through steel.
Angel instantly sensed the danger.
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The monster lunged.
A leg swept through the air.
The collision was deafening.
Angel crossed both machetes to block.
The impact traveled up his arms like an electric shock.
His muscles strained, and his boots skidded back several meters through the dust.
“Sarah!”
“Keep the poison going!”
“Got it!”
The young woman increased the amount of Astra fed into her ability.
The violet cloud grew denser.
The guardian let out a howl of pain.
Then its eyes locked onto her.
Angel instantly felt his stomach knot.
‘Shit.’
The monster had figured it out.
The main threat wasn’t the fighters; it was the poisoner.
The creature practically vanished.
Its speed exploded.
Sarah didn’t even have time to finish her movement.
A chitinous blade sliced through the air.
The young woman’s thigh ripped open along its entire length.
Blood spurted out.
“Urgh…”
She collapsed.
“Sarah!”
Phill charged and slammed into the monster with all his might.
The shockwave made the cavern walls tremble, pushing the guardian back several meters.
A cold rage washed over Angel.
Memories of his grandmother.
The mutants.
The Holes.
All that hatred resurfaced at once.
He lunged.
His machetes danced.
The first leg fell.
Then a second.
Then a third.
Sarah’s poison was progressively slowing the guardian down.
Phill took the opportunity to smash its thorax.
The monster faltered.
Angel didn’t give it a chance.
“Die!”
His arms became a blur.
The blades came down again and again, shredding flesh and chitin with blind ferocity.
Until nothing was left but a mangled mass of meat.
Silence fell.
Phill looked at his teammate, out of breath.
‘His hatred for monsters is as strong as ever,’ he thought with a pang of pity.
Angel was breathing heavily.
His hands were still shaking.
Then he spotted Sarah.
The blood.
The wound.
Reality caught up with him.
“Shit.”
They rushed over.
The young woman was pale.
Far too pale.
The blood was still flowing.
Phill pressed a hand over the wound.
His face fell.
“She’s losing too much blood.”
Angel felt his heart rate spike.
“Can we get her out?”
Phill shook his head.
“Not in time.”
A heavy silence settled over them.
Sarah’s breathing was growing shallower.
Angel felt a cold sweat break out on his back.
Then a thought crossed his mind.
A cyan vial.
A mysterious smile.
A calm voice.
“You might be in for a surprise.”
His eyes widened.
He plunged his hand into his pocket.
Noah’s vial was still there.
Angel gripped it as if his own life depended on it.
‘Noah…’
He looked down at Sarah.
‘Please…
don’t fail me now.’