The situation in Louisiana was a tricky one, which could easily spiral out of control.
With the students of the Louisiana State Limitless Academy and a few professional Limitless who entered the rift dead, the state lacked the manpower to protect itself from the invasion that was bound to happen.
Governor Ronald Brown had issued an SOS distress call, but the problem was most professional Limitless in neighboring states were either on duty, in a rift raid, injured, or just not available—pushing the state into a desperate situation.
Begrudgingly, I agreed to join this task, mostly because Pala wouldn’t leave alone. Also, she promised a whopping 1,000 contribution points as a reward, whether we succeed or fail.
While it may not sound like much, it was one-tenth of what was needed to beco a professional Limitless.
The academy worked in a fairly simple way. There were three floors in the student accommodations. The first floor was for new students like , and even older students who had low contribution points.
To reach the next floor, one needed five thousand contribution points. It offered better training facilities, food, luxury, and many other perks.
Likewise, the final floor required a student to accumulate seven thousand points. This was proof you were an elite—a pro amongst nobs.
And then, the ten thousand contribution point threshold was the price for graduation. Once a student beca a full-fledged Limitless, they were automatically awarded a mansion, with a salary of a million dollars monthly, and many more perks and benefits that would make powerless humans die of envy.
And all these benefits were just for the lowest rating-level Limitless. Just imagine the benefits higher-ranking Limitless like Pala and Viktor enjoyed.
However, this was extrely hard to achieve. Statistically, only five in fifty students made it to graduation. The rest died trying to climb the ladder.
Sotis it was hard to decide whether living this life was worth it or not, because it was not easy climbing the ladder. The expedition that cost the lives of half our class had only awarded Natasha and 300 contribution points—for standing outside amongst our peers.
If we were to rely on invading rifts alone to climb the ladder, even ten deadly raids would only give us three thousand contribution points.
It felt crazy to know that risking our lives on ten different occasions wouldn’t even give us enough points to climb to the second floor of the academy.
That was why I couldn’t say no, when I heard we would be getting a thousand points for this mission.
This ti I refused to wear the tactical gear since it offered little to no protection against monsters and was just worn for aesthetics.
I wore a plain white shirt with black joggers and a jacket. I put on my favorite running shoes and a pair of gloves, while Pala was kind enough to return my Rai’ki.
Together we arrived at the airfield, which was wide and flat, with long stretches of concrete runways for helicopters and jets to land.
There were large tal hangars—like giant garages—while yellow lines marked the landing zones, and blinking guiding lights ran along the edges.
I watched as soldiers and crew moved around in uniforms, checking fuel, loading supplies, and talking through headsets.
A control tower stood tall in the distance, and the whole place slled like oil, smoke, and burning fuel. It felt familiar since I ran a rcenary group in my past life. In fact, I would say this felt more comfortable than my days in class.
Pala led to a helipad with an aircraft different from the rest.
The helicopter looked sleek and sharp, like it was built for speed. Instead of a loud, spinning rotor on top, it had glowing blue rings that humd quietly with power.
Aether crystals pulsed along its sides, lighting up in patterns. Its body was black tal with silver lines, like veins, carrying energy through the fra. Underneath, aether vents released soft blue mist.
It didn’t roar like normal helicopters. It humd, deep and steady, like it was alive.
Standing beside it were Natasha and Viktor. He frowned as he saw my approaching figure, making wonder if this man had a grudge against after the incident in Nightfall Dominion territory.
In my opinion, if there was soone ant to hold a grudge, it was . But I didn’t voice my thoughts, neither did I show my resentnt.
I would show it when I was ready to take his life and steal his talent.
As we drew closer, Natasha ran over with a friendly smile on her face, making wonder when we beca best friends. Last ti I checked, I had abandoned her at the disciplinary committee building earlier today.
"I knew you would co," she said with expectant eyes.
I just gave her a nod with a small smile, and my face turned cold as I shifted my gaze to Viktor’s approaching figure.
Both sides t, and Viktor’s cold gaze never left .
"This is not our dress code." His eyes narrowed.
"Fuck your dress code," I responded bluntly.
Buzz!
Natasha jerked back in shock, while Pala glanced at , blinking repeatedly. Even she was stunned by my boldness.
Viktor wasn’t quick to anger, but his discontent was made known by clenching his fists while knitting his brows. Unfortunately for him, I knew he couldn’t do shit.
They needed here, and that’s why they asked for my help. By the way, he wasn’t a lecturer here, like Pala, so he had no right to discipline students.
Most importantly, even if he tried to discipline , Pala wouldn’t let him reach , and his public image would be ruined when the headline "Pro-Limitless Beats Up 18-Year-Old Student" gets out.
While a Limitless’s power was important, his public image mattered just as much.
For a few seconds, we were locked in an intense staring contest. I noticed Viktor’s displeased gaze slowly turn to confusion.
I suspected he was wondering how a student could be so bold.
Hmph!
He snorted disdainfully and walked away, entering the helicopter without a word.
Natasha drew a sharp breath while Pala chuckled, seemingly amused by the exchange.
"Let’s go," she said before skipping forward.
Before I could respond, Natasha slipped her arm around mine like couples would.
"Let’s go," Natasha said with a smile that would charm any man.
Fortunately, I wasn’t any man.
I gently pulled away before following Pala. However, a few steps in, I noticed sothing—a small team of five soldiers walking in unison like robots, synced perfectly.
They all had different appearances, but there was this faint bluish color to their veins, coupled with their identical blue eyes.
These n were all over six feet tall and built like muscular superheroes you’d see in cartoons. Their footsteps were heavy, nearly to the point where I could hear them from a distance.
Most importantly, I could sense Aether energy flowing within them. Even if I couldn’t, anyone could see it coursing through their bulging blue veins.
"Those are the secret weapons I told you about," Pala’s voice stole my attention.
I glanced at her, confused at first, but then I rembered our discussion about the governnt’s secret weapon. Back then, Pala said she couldn’t share such information, but now I understood why she made a big deal out of it.
These were genetically modified humans capable of handling Aether weapons.
But my question was, were these super soldiers created to aid Limitless—or keep them in check?
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