The Old Clock Library fell silent.
Not peaceful silent.
The dangerous kind.
The kind where every small sound suddenly mattered.
Rain tapped softly against cracked windows.
Police boots echoed outside the entrance below.
And somewhere inside the dark endless bookshelves…
Robin stood completely still.
Watching.
Calculating.
Escaping.
Dhruv noticed it immediately.
The way her shoulders subtly tightened.
The way her eyes kept measuring exits instead of people.
Like she had spent years surviving situations exactly like this.
A loud BANG shook the library doors downstairs.
“EAST CLOUD POLICE!”
“OPEN THE BUILDING!”
Robin stepped backward instinctively.
Dhruv quietly looked toward her.
“You didn’t come here alone tonight, did you?”
Silence.
Then footsteps echoed somewhere deeper inside the library.
Not police.
Different rhythm.
Casual.
Confident.
Robin’s expression darkened instantly.
“…Damn it.”
Three figures slowly emerged between the towering bookshelves.
They were already entered the library after Dhruv and before the police.
Hunters.
A squad.
Dhruv immediately understood the atmosphere.
Not teammates.
Predators pretending to be allies.
The man leading them – Eder, wore a long brown coat with gold rings across his fingers.
Smug smile.
Sharp eyes.
Behind him:
– a tall woman – lara carrying dual curved blades
– and a massive scarred man – osram with metal gauntlets
Eder smirked upon seeing Robin.
“There you are.”
Robin’s voice became colder than Dhruv had heard yet.
“You followed me.”
“You disappeared with important information.”
His eyes slowly shifted toward Dhruv now.
Then toward Dhruv’s hidden jacket pocket.
Recognition.
Greed.
Immediately.
“Well well…”
Eder smiled wider.
“Looks like your little research obsession finally paid off.”
Dhruv stayed calm.
Robin stepped slightly in front of him instinctively.
Tiny movement.
But Dhruv noticed.
Interesting.
Eder laughed softly.
“Still protecting strangers?”
Robin’s eyes sharpened.
“he is not a stranger.”
“Oh?”
His gaze moved slowly between them.
“That fast?”
The implication disgusted even the air itself.
Dhruv’s expression lost all humor instantly.
Robin’s fingers tightened quietly.
Eder kept smiling.
“You know what your problem is, Robin?”
His voice lowered mockingly.
“You think people value you for your mind.”
Silence.
“But the world’s much simpler than that.”
Lara laughed quietly beside him.
Dhruv saw it then.
Not just manipulation.
Humiliation.
They’d been reducing Robin into something smaller for a long time.
Using her knowledge.
Using her abilities. This chapter is updated first at g.com.
Using her silence.
And Robin had endured it alone.
Police slammed against the library entrance doors again.
BOOM.
“LAST WARNING!”
Eder sighed dramatically.
“Unfortunately we’re short on time.”
His eyes shifted toward Dhruv.
“So hand over the map.”
Dhruv smiled slightly.
“No.”
Eder’s smile vanished immediately.
“Wrong answer.”
Osram lunged forward first.
Fast.
Way too fast for his size.
Robin moved instantly.
Papers exploded upward across the library like a storm.
Entire bookshelves shook violently.
Loose pages wrapped around osram’s face and arms, blinding him temporarily.
Dhruv blinked.
Robin’s Ember ability was beautiful.
Not destructive.
Precise.
Like controlling knowledge itself.
Lara sliced through flying books aggressively while charging toward Robin.
Dhruv moved immediately first.
Invisible.
The air shimmered.
The woman slashed empty space instead.
“What the hell?!”
Dhruv reappeared again and grabbed Robin’s wrist instantly.
Then both disappeared again.
Silence.
Everyone froze.
Robin’s eyes widened slightly.
She stared downward at her invisible hand still connected to Dhruv’s.
Warm.
Steady.
Safe.
For a brief moment… the tension inside her body loosened.
Just slightly.
Because nobody could see her now.
Nobody was staring.
Judging.
Using.
Eder’s expression finally cracked.
“EMBER USER.”
Dhruv quietly whispered beside Robin:
“Stay close.”
Robin nodded once silently.
The squad panicked immediately.
“Spread out!”
“They’re still here!”
Osram blindly smashed through bookshelves trying to hit invisible enemies.
Books crashed everywhere.
Dust filled the air.
Robin’s breathing stayed controlled now.
Dhruv noticed that too.
She trusted him strangely fast.
Not emotionally.
Instinctively.
Like survival recognizing survival.
Lara suddenly stopped moving.
“…Wait.”
Her eyes narrowed toward drifting dust particles nearby.
Smart.
Very smart.
“Watch the movement!”
Dhruv immediately realized the problem.
Dust revealed outlines.
And if smoke appeared… his invisibility would completely fail.
Eder smirked slowly.
“Burn the shelves.”
Problem.
Big problem.
Osram immediately pulled out a flare capsule.
If smoke filled the room… they were finished.
Then suddenly:
BOOM.
The entire library wall exploded inward.
Everyone froze.
Deep stood inside the smoking hole holding two mechanical launchers proudly.
“GOOD EVENING CRIMINALS.WHERE IS MY BRO?”
Dhruv burst out laughing immediately.
Deepika stood beside Deep calmly twirling a knife between her fingers.
“How are you always in trouble, invisible?”
Robin stared silently.
Confused.
Nobody had come back for her before.
Ever.
Eder cursed loudly.
“Kill them!”
Chaos exploded instantly.
Deep launched several metallic spheres across the floor.
FLASH.
Blinding white light erupted throughout the library.
The hunters staggered.
Deepika moved like flowing water through the confusion.
One knife.
Then another.
Precise.
Deadly.
Lara barely blocked the first strike before Deepika slammed a second knife directly into her shoulder.
Lara screamed.
Dhruv and Robin reappeared briefly behind osram.
Dhruv kicked the back of his knee hard while Robin manipulated scattered chains from broken shelves around his arms.
CRASH.
Osram collapsed directly through a table.
Deep grinned wildly while adjusting his launcher.
“You know…”
He pointed toward the hunters dramatically.
“I REALLY disliked your vibe.”
Eder hunter lunged toward Deep angrily.
Deep threw a bomb casually.
BOOOOOOM.
An explosion blasted half the library staircase apart.
The hunter flew backward through collapsing shelves.
Robin stared at Deep in absolute disbelief.
“…You blew up the library.”
Deep looked genuinely confused.
“A little.”
Police voices suddenly echoed after breaking the door of downstairs.
“MOVE!”
“THEY’RE ABOVE US!”
Deepika immediately stepped toward the wounded hunters calmly.
Lara tried reaching for her weapon.
Too slow.
Deepika’s knife flashed once.
Silence afterward.
The last surviving hunter osram crawled backward in terror.
Deep adjusted his goggles.
“…Should we spare him?”
Dhruv looked toward Robin quietly.
Not commanding.
Asking.
Robin stared at the terrified hunter silently for several seconds.
Then turned away.
“…Leave.”
The survivor didn’t hesitate.
He pushed a knife into his body before collapsing dead.
“Better to die than getting caught by police” he said.
Police whistles erupted nearby afterward.
Too close.
Deep clapped dramatically.
“Okay wonderful emotional growth everybody.”
“We need to leave,” Deepika snapped.
The group sprinted through the destroyed upper library while rain and wind blasted through broken walls.
Robin moved beside Dhruv silently.
Still processing.
Still stunned.
Because somewhere between invisibility… and explosions… and chaos… these people had done something impossible.
They came back for her.
END OF CHAPTER 13