[We are safe. Don’t worry. And call me whenever you can.]
Amanda’s reply arrived moments after Kyle had texted to ask if she was safe and whether any government officials had approached her.
He had sent it using the phone Serena gave him, trusting her claim that its messages couldn’t be intercepted. Otherwise, he would be having a very different conversation with Pascal about the meaning of privacy.
At this point, that conversation still felt inevitable.
"Are you sure it’s okay to bring her to the upper floor?" Serena asked, her gaze drifting toward the girl quietly clutching Kyle’s hand as they walked.
The silence didn’t last.
"I’m perfectly fine. I don’t need a doctor’s examination," Veronica snapped, her irritation impossible to miss.
Serena answered with a helpless smile.
"She sounds fine to me," Kyle said reassuringly. "Don’t worry. If there were any medical issues, I’d have her checked myself."
Nothing escaped God’s Eye. Physically, Veronica was perfectly healthy.
Her Genesis Circuits had been strained by the sudden surge of magical energy, leaving them slightly overloaded, but that would recover with time.
Her personality, however...
That was one thing even God’s Eye failed to properly evaluate.
Serena let the matter rest.
The elevator doors slid open, drawing her attention elsewhere.
"Hmm..."
Kyle stepped through the glass entrance and instinctively slowed.
Golden sunlight poured through the transparent dome overhead, bathing the entire floor in a warm glow. They had reached the summit of the tower, an enormous oval chamber suspended high above the city.
The view was breathtaking.
Curved glass walls stretched around the perimeter, revealing the sprawling metropolis that blanketed the island below. Chairs lined the windows, offering anyone willing to sit a panoramic view that seemed to extend to the horizon.
Opposite the glass stood a row of pristine white doors.
No nameplates or markings.
Just identical doors leading to places unknown.
Kyle barely spared them a glance.
His attention had already settled on something else.
Someone.
"Who is that?" he asked, watching a man casually walking toward them with both hands tucked into his pockets.
Something was... wrong.
The man’s figure was veiled by a hazy distortion, as though Kyle were trying to look at him through fogged glass. No matter how hard he focused, the image refused to sharpen.
"Hmm?" Serena frowned. "Who?"
"Oh my... I’ve found the second person who can see through my veil."
The hazy distortion dissolved as the man spoke.
"Ah!"
"!!!"
Veronica instinctively recoiled while Serena let out a startled yelp, both reactions confirming they hadn’t noticed him until that very moment.
The man flashed a delighted grin.
Ignoring Serena entirely, he walked straight past her and stopped in front of Kyle.
They stood at nearly the same height.
Up close, Kyle finally saw the man’s eyes.
They were an unnaturally deep crimson, beautiful at first glance yet carrying the unmistakable menace of a predator. Looking into them felt like standing before something that smiled only because it had already decided you were interesting.
"An amusing cadet with fascinating eyes." The man’s smile widened. "Oh, I do love fresh soldiers."
He clasped his hands together with childlike excitement, staring at Kyle as though he weren’t looking at a person, but at a long-awaited present.
"And you, my twin."
His gaze shifted to Veronica.
The resemblance was impossible to ignore. Their hair shared the same striking shade, enough for anyone to mistake them for siblings. But clearly, they weren’t.
"Sir Jimmy," Veronica greeted respectfully, her voice carrying none of the casual familiarity radiating from the man before her.
Jimmy placed the back of his hand against his forehead and sighed dramatically.
"You wound me, little sister. I’ve been waiting all morning just to catch a glimpse of you, and this is how coldly you greet me?"
His exaggerated sorrow was so theatrical that it was difficult to tell whether he was joking or genuinely disappointed.
Stepping between them, Serena cleared her throat.
"Cadet Kyle," she said, "this is the second-in-command of Team Alpha, Sir Jimmy Rovech."
"Again with the formalities."
The man let out a weary sigh, his shoulders slumping in exaggerated defeat. A heartbeat later, his grin returned as though the melancholy had never existed.
"I’m Jimmy. Call me whatever you like, as long as it isn’t ’Sir.’"
He extended a hand.
Kyle accepted it without hesitation.
"Astortia Kyle. Nice to meet you, Jimmy."
Jimmy’s lips curled into an amused smirk.
"I like that." He gave two approving nods, resting his hands on his hips. "That’s the second reason you’ve given me to remember your face."
His crimson eyes narrowed with curiosity.
"Tell me, Kyle. How does it feel to be the youngest Nightwalker in the past thirty years to defeat a Special Grade despite being a newborn?"
Kyle immediately understood what newborn meant in this context.
After a brief sigh, his eyes drifted toward Veronica before returning to Jimmy.
"I’ve never considered taking a man’s life an achievement," he answered calmly. "So... I don’t really know how I should feel about it."
Jimmy’s smile softened.
"Good. I would’ve been worried if you’d said you enjoyed it." He pointed at Kyle with a satisfied nod. "Congratulations. You passed the test."
Kyle blinked.
A test?
The man’s boundless enthusiasm made it difficult to believe he was one of Team Alpha’s highest-ranking members.
"Sir Jimmy," Serena interrupted after checking the time. "Are the others going to be late?"
It was already ten minutes past eight, the scheduled meeting time.
Jimmy casually waved a hand.
"No one’s coming, Serena. Arthur canceled the meeting."
"What?" Serena stared at him in disbelief. "But he was the one who..."
"Who called it?" Jimmy finished with a shrug. "Yeah, I know. Arthur’s just being Arthur. He acts first and explains later."
The casual way he spoke about Team Alpha’s leader made Kyle wonder if the two were really superior and subordinate, or simply old friends who had forgotten such distinctions ever existed.
Serena looked visibly troubled by the sudden change of plans, but her position left little room to question Jimmy’s decision, much less Arthur’s.
"Well then," Jimmy said, rubbing his hands together. "Since you’re here to train and eventually become our reinforcement, why don’t we begin with a proper introduction?"
Kyle raised a brow.
"Didn’t we just..."
"No, not that." Jimmy chuckled, cutting him off. "A Nightwalker’s true introduction isn’t exchanged with words. It’s earned through a hunt."
His grin widened with unmistakable excitement.
"So, why don’t you join me for a drill I was supposed to supervise this morning? Seems like the perfect opportunity for us to get acquainted."
Serena offered an awkward smile.
"Sir... I believe that might be asking too much of Cadet Kyle. He only just arrived..."
"That’s fine, Serena," Kyle said before she could continue. "It’s not like I was planning to rest anyway."
Jimmy’s crimson eyes lit up.
"Now that is the kind of enthusiasm I love." He laughed. "Keep that spirit, and who knows? One day you might be wearing an officer’s badge in this very building."
Kyle answered with a helpless smile.
"I’d rather not. But I understand."
He turned toward Veronica.
"Want to come with us?"
A gentle smile bloomed across her face, softening the sharpness from earlier.
"Absolutely."
°°°°°°°
A/N:- Thanks for reading.