The bell rang at the end of the school day, signaling the conclusion of another exhausting set of classes. As they walked down the steps of the academy, Leiza nudged Azzy with her elbow, her tone casual but with an underlying invitation.
"So, this weekend," she began, "I'm heading out to a private island, owned by Ciesta, with so friends for a little getaway. So, I hope you clear your schedule for it."
Azzy raised an eyebrow, pausing for a mont. "A private island, huh?" He was here to catch a fallen angel but the temptation of vacation struck his head.
"Yeah, a small private retreat," she continued, her voice light but sincere. "It's just a weekend thing, and it'll be fun. What do you say?"
Azzy thought for a mont, weighing the potential benefits. Plus, the chance to learn more about Leiza and her connections could serve him later. After all, he is staying here for three months anyway, regardless of his mission.
"Yeah, you can count in," Azzy replied, shrugging nonchalantly. "Sounds like I could use a break too."
Leiza grinned. "Great! I'll make sure you're ready. It'll be fun."
Azzy wasn't one to back out of things once he committed, so when Leiza asked, he agreed after a little bit of thinking.
"Perfect," Leiza replied with a mischievous smile, as they made their way out of the academy's front gates. "It's settled then. You're coming."
As they made their way toward the parking lot, Leiza's expression turned slightly more business-like. "Oh, and there's one more thing," she said, glancing at Azzy. "I need to go shopping before the weekend, and you're coming with ."
Azzy looked at her, slightly confused. "Shopping? Why?"
"I need a few things for the trip. Plus, I think it's about ti you updated your wardrobe too," she teased.
Azzy sighed, knowing better than to argue. He wasn't exactly a fashion expert, and it seed harmless enough.
"Fine," he muttered, accepting the situation. "But don't expect to do anything more than carry bags."
Leiza smirked. "I'll drop you off at your house so you can freshen up and change. Be ready to et at my place in one hour. Got it?"
"Got it," Azzy replied, his tone flat. With that, the two of them parted ways briefly, and Leiza's car drove off to begin her errands.
As they made their way toward the parking lot, Leiza's expression turned slightly more business-like. "Oh, and there's one more thing," she said, glancing at Azzy. "I need to go shopping before the weekend, and you're coming with ."
Azzy looked at her, slightly confused. "Shopping? Why?"
"I need a few things for the trip. Plus, I think it's about ti you updated your wardrobe too," she teased.
Azzy sighed, knowing better than to argue. He wasn't exactly a fashion expert, and it seed harmless enough.
"Fine," he muttered, accepting the situation. "But don't expect to do anything more than carry bags."
Leiza smirked. "I'll drop you off at your house so you can freshen up and change. Be ready to et at my place in one hour. Got it?"
"Got it," Azzy replied, his tone flat. With that, the two of them parted ways briefly, and Leiza's car drove off to her ho.
Azzy entered the house, only to see their captain sitting in the living room. His teammates gathered around. The prisoner hasn't been awake and bound by energy chains.
"Captain…"
"Rael, you are back."
After a brief exchange of greetings, Captain Astro's eyes t Azzy's, his expression somber. "So, I was briefed about the whole story. Thanks for your help. But anyways, I need to say sothing important. Sit down." Despite his usual calm deanor, the fatigue from his earlier ordeal lingered in his posture.
Azzy sat upright, listening to the captain.
"I encountered the fallen angel," Astro began, his voice still a bit strained from his recovery. "But I wasn't strong enough to fight it. Not on my own."
The rest of the team, who had been quietly waiting for their leader to regain his senses, all leaned in, their expressions serious. This wasn't good news. The tension in the room seed to grow thicker, the threat of their mission expanding with each word.
Azzy's eyes narrowed, already suspecting the gravity of the situation. Astro continued, his tone grim.
"The fallen angel was attempting to corrupt humans," he explained, his voice low and filled with unease. "His goal wasn't to kill them. It was trying to convert them into fallen angels. There's a thod to it—a twisted process that uses sothing called the Seed of the Fallen. It's a demigod-level power, unique to certain fallen angels."
Azzy's mind clicked into action, processing this new information. He had heard of the Seed of the Fallen from Chronos, but hearing it from Astro brought new weight to the reality of the threat they were facing.
Astro's eyes darkened, his voice growing more serious as he continued.
"The Seed of the Fallen usually corrupts angels, turning them into more fallen angels," he explained. "But this one—it's different. It doesn't just corrupt angels. It can also corrupt humans. Give them power. But at a price—once soone is tainted by the seed, they're not just empowered, they're enslaved to the fallen angel. Unfortunately, not every human could bear the seed. Most of them would die as a result."
Azzy's expression remained unchanging, though the implications of this revelation weren't lost on him. "So, the so-called serial killings in this city were caused by experintation, huh?"
"This power doesn't belong to just any fallen angel," Astro continued. "It belongs to soone far worse. The original fallen angel—Abaddon, the Angel of the Abyss— was directly corrupted by the Devil himself during the ancient wars."
Astro paused, letting the words sink in. The room was silent, everyone processing the full magnitude of what they were up against.
Azzy's teammates, despite having heard similar accounts from their instructor before, grew more serious at the ntion of Abaddon's na. The atmosphere grew heavier, the urgency of their mission becoming clearer.
"This is no longer just a mission," Ramiel muttered, his voice a mix of concern and resolve. "We're dealing with a force that can bring about a new generation of fallen angels. This isn't just a threat to us—it's a threat to everyone."
Seraphina nodded in agreent, her usual calm deanor replaced by a rare edge in her eyes. "We can't let Abaddon succeed."
Azzy, however, remained unfazed by the gravity of the situation. He had already been briefed on this by Chronos, the Reaper, and had known that things were more dangerous than they appeared. While his teammates seed rattled, he stood at the center of the room, calm and composed.
Breaking the silence, Azzy's voice rang out, cutting through the tension.
"Do you know anything else about this fallen angel, Captain?" he asked, his tone steady and curious. His eyes remained focused on Captain Astro, awaiting more information.
Astro, though still visibly tired from the ordeal, t Azzy's gaze. "He's dangerous—not just because of his power, but because of what he's trying to do. His influence is spreading slowly, turning people and corrupting them. But there's more—his presence is a direct threat to everything we're working toward."
Captain Astro took a deep breath, his eyes darkening further as he spoke the na that haunted the air.
"Abaddon," Astro muttered, almost as if saying the na brought a shadow over the room. "He's no ordinary fallen angel. He was once a transcendent being (god realm) but after the fall of the Devil, his soul realm regressed to the demigod level, like the other fallen angels."
The room grew even more somber as if the weight of Abaddon's backstory alone was enough to make the air thick with unease. Azzy's expression remained focused, unaffected by the grandiosity of the na.
"But don't let the regressed realm fool you," Astro added, his voice quiet but heavy with warning. "Even in his current state, Abaddon is stronger than any of us. In fact, he's stronger than our entire team combined."
A quiet tension filled the air as the team absorbed the full scope of what they were facing. The fallen angel they had been sent to find was no simple foe—it was a being of imnse power, capable of twisting the very fabric of humanity to his will. The scale of their mission had just beco far more complex and dangerous.
Azzy, however, seed unusually calm. The news didn't rattle him as it had his teammates, and there was a reason for that: He was just confident.
Captain Astro took a deep breath, the weight of his words evident in his expression. He knew that Azzy had a strong sense of duty, but there were monts when the bigger picture couldn't be ignored.
"I've heard about your deal with the human," Astro began, his tone softening slightly. "Protecting her, I an. I understand your sense of responsibility. But this matter—this situation we're facing—it's of utmost importance. We need to report this to our superiors, Azzy. We can't afford to stay here any longer. We are leaving before the sunset."
Azzy's gaze was steady as ever, his expression unwavering. "I'm sorry, I can't follow the order."
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