Under The Veil of Night

Ferdinand looked at the first floor with an indifferent gaze. Even though he was interested in the two youngsters, he would not go his way just to recruit them when they blatantly showed their stances that they were not on his side.

"You two are too weak against me," he said coldly as he descended the stairs. His unfeeling gaze didn’t show any mercy.

It was only the stairs between the second and third floor, so the height was only around 7 meters or so. They would hit the ground in less than one second based on the gravity acceleration.* Of course, that would be if he excluded the time when they grabbed the railing to slow down their fall.

Ferdinand didn’t really put these two in his eyes because they were simply too weak. Years of fighting on the frontline as a soldier had taught him a lot, which allowed him to become even stronger.

At the same time, it made him lose his comrades.

As he slowly reached the first floor, he could see the two of them struggling to stand up. Some of their bones might have been broken because of their fall, but their determination didn’t waver at all.

"Give it up," Ferdinand advised. "I won’t let you stop my dream."

"Is it not enough for you to change all the youths in this city into monsters?" Kanae asked through gritted teeth. Even though her body felt pain all over, she held on as she stared back at the man.

"They’re simply too weak," Ferdinand replied. "It’s the fate of the weaker to die for the sake of the stronger."

Kanae’s eyes widened. What kind of logic was that?

"This is not a jungle! They’re human beings with consciousness!"

"Is it important?"

The question thrown by Ferdinand made Kanae rather confused. Her eyes fixated on the man as she readied her sword. Once he stepped on the floor, she dashed forward to attack him with Kevin following after her movement.

Ferdinand knew from Kanae’s expression that she couldn’t accept what he said. He didn’t expect her to understand too as he knew very well what he had experienced in the past. What he wanted was to create a perfect soldier that didn’t have any feeling because he didn’t want to see them making mistakes over and over again.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

The swords and blade clashed with one another. As the sound increased in pace, it was destroyed by the loud sound of glass broken. Using his force, Ferdinand threw Kanae to the side, making her crash to the glasses cupboard. At the same time, he twisted his body and blocked the furious attack from Kevin.

Prang!

Several pieces of glasses fell on top of her, grazing her skin and clothes. Kanae looked at the two people fighting in front of them. Even though her eyesight was not that good, she still could see things. However, the sight in front of her had turned exceptionally blurry.

’Did I accidentally hit my head?’

Kanae propped her hand to stand up when she noticed the things that have fallen around her. There was a first aid box fell near her head with its content scattered on the floor. She could see bandages, band-aids, pills, syringes, and many others.

Her eyes locked into one of the items as she probed her pocket. If she was not wrong, Shiro placed the bottle inside her pocket.

Bang!

Kevin was pushed back and crashed to the wall. Blood trickled down on his forehead, creating a rather ghastly look. The difference in strength, speed, and power were simply too much. They couldn’t overcome the barrier that easily.

"Rei, can you stand up again?" Kevin yelled to the girl on the side.

"I’m fine," Kanae picked up the syringe before her and stabbed it to the cup of the bottle on her hand. She filled the syringe with the bottle’s content and looked back at Ferdinand.

This would be her last gamble.

Hiding the syringe inside her bracelet that she used to hide her small sword, she dashed forward from her position towards Ferdinand once more. Kevin also charged ahead. Even though his head throbbed with pain all over, he didn’t pay any attention.

If they didn’t defeat Ferdinand right here and right now, they wouldn’t have the chance to do it in the future anymore. This man was capable of disappearing from this city without any trace, especially with the numerous connections that he had.

Clang! Clang!

Sounds of metal clashing filled the place. The two of them attacked relentlessly, trying to overwhelm Ferdinand in the middle. Unfortunately, they have already started to get tired while the man seemed to fight with ease.

Kanae narrowed her eyes as she dashed suddenly towards Ferdinand’s neck. The man raised his left hand and caught her right arm. In that moment, Kevin swung his sword right to the man, forcing his right hand to block the attack.

Using the chance, Kanae pulled the syringe using her left hand. She stabbed it to Ferdinand’s arm and let the content flow inside.

"You-!"

Ferdinand swung Kanae to the other side of the room. Kanae’s body slammed a rather different floor and she fell downwards. On the other hand, Ferdinand pushed Kevin to the back as he pulled the syringe out. But it was too late, the medicine had seeped into his blood.

’What’s that?’ Kevin struggled to stand up when he saw Ferdinand’s hand changed to that of a monster.

Before the hand could form fully, Ferdinand swung his blade and cut off his left arm. His expression was ugly. As he had just taken the enhanced medicine not long ago, his body was unable to absorb another dose of the medicine. If he forced himself to take any, he would turn into a monster right away.

Everyone has a limit of how much they could take. Normal people wouldn’t be able to take the medicine without being diluted first. Even though he could accept more than ordinary people, he had started to go near his limit.

Ferdinand took his phone. "Destruction starts."

After he said that, the building started to shake rapidly. The man dashed towards the floor where Kanae had fallen into. Kevin chased behind him as the building started to collapse.

Slash!

From under the floor, Kanae’s head and hand appeared. Her sword was swung towards Ferdinand, making a cut on his thigh. The man raised his blade and slammed it to Kanae’s head, which she barely blocked with her sword.

"Ugh..."

The force slammed her down again as she was standing on top of an uneven stairs.

The time she took to delay Ferdinand was enough to allow Kevin to arrive. He gathered his power into his hand as he attacked Ferdinand with his power. Because he had lost an arm, his body’s balance was not perfect. He stumbled to the back right when the ceiling started to collapse.

Ferdinand moved back. For the first time, his eyes were filled with rage. "Copy, regeneration."

Kevin’s eyes widened when he saw the hand grew back at high speed. However, the fallen ceiling blocked his vision and soon, he was forced to jump into the floor where Kanae was. His mind was filled with the power that Ferdinand showcased just now.

If Ferdinand’s skill was just regeneration like Aria, he would surely die. However, if it was as he was feared, he knew that the battle wouldn’t end here.

They will clash again.