"Took you long enough."
Joshua frowned, rubbing his temples as he approached. "Not tonight, Alice. I'm exhausted." His voice was flat, drained. After everything he had seen—no, survived—he had no patience for her usual gas.
Alice raised an eyebrow, arms still crossed. "What are you talking about? All you had to do was waltz in, grab the Reaper Mafia guys, and walk out. Sounds easy enough to . And you're no amateur, Joshua—you can handle yourself."
Joshua let out a bitter chuckle, shaking his head. "I wish it was that simple." He looked at her, eyes shadowed with sothing Alice rarely saw in him—fear. "I saw a monster tonight. Soone faster than I could even register. Soone who crushed a gun with his bare hands like it was paper. If he wanted dead, I wouldn't be standing here. He just... let go. Like I wasn't even worth his ti." He turned away, already done with the conversation. "I'm out, Alice. I don't want anything to do with this anymore."
Alice's expression hardened. That didn't make sense. She had planned everything down to the second. The Blackveil Syndicate should've been gone by the ti Joshua arrived. No supers should have been anywhere near that scene.
Her mind raced, analyzing every possibility—who was this guy? Why was he there? And more importantly... how did he slip through her calculations?
Her silver eyes darkened. "Wait."
Joshua stopped.
"Tell everything you saw tonight."
Her tone left no room for argunt. And from the way she was looking at him now, Joshua knew—he had no choice but to answer.
Elsewhere
Adam turned the small orb over in his palm, its surface dark and smooth like polished obsidian. It was unnervingly cold, yet it felt… alive, like sothing inside was waiting. Watching.
Suddenly, a faint glow flickered across its surface, and golden letters appeared in front of him, floating in the air like a system notification.
[Devourer's Orb]
Status: Unactivated
A relic of unknown origin. Capable of absorbing and assimilating energy, skills, and even life essence. Its full potential remains dormant until properly awakened. Handle with caution.
Adam's eyes narrowed. "A Devourer's Orb, huh?"
The power locked within this tiny object was enough to change the balance of an entire battlefield. But why was that woman after this thing?
"I just have to make sure it stays that way," Adam muttered, his gaze lingering on the dark orb for a mont longer before shifting to the horizon. The early morning sun painted the sky in shades of orange and pink, signaling the start of a new day. With a quiet sigh, he tucked the orb away and turned to head ho.
—
anwhile, in a quiet, open training ground, Gloria stood with her arms crossed, watching the twins closely. The cool morning breeze ruffled her hair, but her sharp gaze remained fixed on them.
"Alright, first step in your training—basic endurance," she announced, tossing each of them a weighted vest. "Strap these on."
Aria barely caught hers and imdiately frowned. "Wait, hold on! Why does this feel like a bag of bricks?!" She struggled to even lift it.
Alfred, on the other hand, grinned as he strapped his on with ease. "This is aweso! It makes feel like one of those warriors in ancient training montages."
Gloria smirked. "That's the spirit, Alfred. Aria, quit complaining and put it on."
Aria groaned but obeyed, nearly toppling over as she secured the vest. "Ugh, I hate this already."
"Good. Now, start running. Ten laps around the field," Gloria ordered.
"Ten?!" Aria's eyes widened in disbelief. "You're kidding, right?"
"Nope. Get moving."
Alfred was already off, dashing ahead like he was born for this. "Co on, Aria! You'll get used to it!"
Aria shot him a glare before begrudgingly running after him. "I swear, I better get sothing good out of this…"
Gloria watched them with an amused expression. Today was just the beginning.
Aria huffed and puffed as she dragged her feet across the training ground, her entire body screaming in protest. anwhile, Alfred was still going strong, his pace steady and determined.
"This… is… torture…" Aria wheezed, barely keeping up.
Gloria, standing at the center with her arms crossed, sighed. "If you have enough energy to complain, you have enough to run faster."
Aria groaned but pushed forward, though her movents were sluggish. Alfred, on the other hand, was grinning. "Co on, Auntie, you don't want to lap you, do you?"
Aria shot him a tired glare. "If I wasn't dying, I'd trip you."
After what felt like an eternity to Aria, they finally completed the ten laps. She collapsed onto the grass, arms spread wide, panting heavily. "I think my soul left my body…"
Alfred, still standing, stretched his arms above his head. "That was fun! What's next?"
Gloria smirked. "Glad you asked. Push-ups. Fifty."
Aria's head shot up. "Excuse ?!"
Alfred grinned. "Easy."
Gloria crouched beside Aria, her smirk growing. "Do you think warriors get stronger by lying in the grass? Get up."
Aria groaned again but forced herself onto her hands and knees. She barely managed five push-ups before her arms started shaking. Alfred, on the other hand, was already at twenty, moving with ease.
"This isn't fair…" Aria muttered.
Gloria chuckled. "Life isn't fair. Keep going."
The morning training continued with sit-ups, squats, and more endurance exercises. By the ti they were done, Aria was sprawled on the ground again, utterly drained.
"I can't feel my legs…" she mumbled. "And I don't want to be a warrior."
Alfred wiped so sweat off his forehead but was still standing strong. "That was great! Can we do this every morning?"
Aria turned her head weakly toward him. "You're insane…"
Gloria laughed. "Alright, that's enough for today. Go get so food and rest. Tomorrow, we start proper training."
Aria let out a dramatic groan. Alfred pumped his fist in excitent. Gloria simply smiled, knowing this was only the beginning.
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