Damien walked through the white hallways of Evotech. He decided to walk home today instead of using the teleportation devices.
After all, something fun was going to happen.
The last 2 months weren't spent idly. Long Chen slowly healed back to peak condition using both the boost of Damien's [Heal] trait and a healing serum that General Strohman injected into his body. After that, he slowly acclimated to military life and began rapidly rising in position.
Long Chen's sword talent was simply marvelous. Even when he entered a state of forgetfulness and began training from the beginning, his progress was rapid, using 2 months to reach a level many soldiers only dreamed of.
With how the two of them were slowly gaining trust and reputation, Damien understood that it wouldn't take long for them to be introduced to Evotech's reality.
As for Aishia, he didn't quite know what she was doing. That woman always acted perfectly in her role, so it would be assumed that she always stayed home, but Damien wasn't sure about that.
Something about Aishia was off, and that was the main reason why he didn't include her into many of his plans.
And the biggest variable in his plan was also the most unexpected one. The little girl masquerading as his daughter, Reva.
Truthfully, she didn't do anything suspicious. But Damien's instinct was raging. It wasn't just a gut feeling, it was the same strange intuition that led him to find Zara and warned him before his fall.
This intuition was ringing alarm bells constantly. As long as Reva was around, Damien's senses would subconsciously go on high alert.
This little girl was too strange. The look in her eyes was dull and clear as if there wasn't a single thing that escaped her breadth. However, as long as she wasn't doing anything, Damien couldn't do anything either.
Reva never talked to him in the first place. The only time she would act somewhat close to familial was when there were gazes on them.
Regardless, none of that mattered at the moment. Damien was simply thinking idly as he waited for the event to start.
His steps led him to a clear bridge roughly 15 feet off the ground. This was one of the connection points between different buildings in the complex.
As he walked through it, he hummed lightly. Life had been good recently. Although he was tortured, he was compensated with an amazing promotion and pay raise. Even his wife was given a better position.
How could he not be happy? The past 2 months were like proof that all the effort he put into his research was worth something. Even if that Lynn Carter didn't acknowledge him, Evotech Headquarters had!
As he reached the middle point of the bridge, four shadows appeared around him, concealed in the darkness of night.
Their gazes switched between each other as they held a silent conversation. But, considering their current target, there was no need for excessive planning.
"White Shadow, there is no need for us to think so far. Even if Evotech knows our movements, they won't care for a small researcher like him. Even if he has a little regeneration talent, that only makes him slightly more important."
The voice that sent the mental transmission was young, roughly 13-14 years old. However, this person was currently partaking in such a dangerous mission without any qualms.
The one called White Shadow was their leader. Her reputation was spread far and wide, known even to those outside of their organization. She was one of the highest-level members, which was especially surprising since the current mission was so simple.
White Shadow shook her head. "Fine. I also agree with you, but I have to approach the situation as a leader. I cannot recklessly act and endanger the lives of my subordinates."
Her thoughts were true to her words. She didn't understand why she was sent on this mission, but since the executives believed it was worthy of her attention, she'd approach it with caution.
The four shadows had already followed her cautious approach for many weeks. They'd been quietly observing their target and understanding his routines.
And they found that every week on the sixth day, the researcher would take a specific path to the cafeteria. While this path was the most scenic route, it was also the most flawed. In particular, there was a newly constructed bridge that didn't have working surveillance yet.
They surrounded their target the instant he stepped onto this bridge. After White Shadow gave a few more reminders to prioritize safety, they moved.
One went for the head, covering Damien's mouth with a dark substance and silencing him. The little girl approached from the back, wrapping her arms around Damien's and tightly constraining them.
Four people were too many for such a simple task. While the three under her worked, White Shadow stood back and watched for any unforeseen changes.
As her eyes panned the area, they suddenly landed on the man who was being restrained. His expression looked a bit…off?
White Shadow's eyes narrowed. Was this man actually…smiling?
She concentrated her awareness and pierced the material covering his face. When she saw his entire visage, she realized that he had an amused smile on his face as he watched the three around him.
His eyes moved. They locked directly with hers. He smiled brightly at her, his eyes turning into crescents. White Shadow felt her heart skip a beat.
He knew. From the moment they arrived, he knew. The reason he walked this route was so that they could easily capture him.
But why?
Did he understand the situation? But that was impossible! There wasn't a single person on the inside who'd leak their information. They'd made especially sure of this.
But if he didn't know, why was he confident? Was it simple confidence in his strength?
As White Shadow pondered, she noticed the man's lips began moving. As she carefully traced his words…
'Don't mind me and just keep doing what you're doing.'
His voice arrived in her ear casually. She couldn't even sense his mana approaching, clearly delineating their difference.
White Shadow shook her head furiously. She was an early 4th class existence. Even within this rank, she was one of the strongest. Yet, she was being threatened by a mere 3rd class researcher?
While her pride hurt, she knew her senses didn't deceive her. She'd been through too many life-or-death situations to console herself with nonsense.
Instead, she stopped worrying about things that were above her caliber.
'Even if he can defeat us, that's only because we're in the younger generation. When he meets Master and the other elders, he won't be able to make a single move out of line. I'll just let Master handle this.'
The squad that had been sent this time was still in training. Even White Shadow, who had peerless strength and talent, was only 20. She hadn't graduated to becoming a true member of their organization yet.
Regardless, the fact that their mission was completed successfully was true. The only order White Shadow received was to bring him back to their headquarters:
The three juniors under her command wrapped up their work soon enough since Damien didn't try to resist at all.
With him bound, the four melded into the shadows around them, disappearing from reality as they silently moved back to their rendezvous point.
