บท 35: Warning

Here's the chapter!

The chapter is something I am concerned about as it may not be suited to taste of some so sorry if it would mess up the story if you think.

Don't worry the other chapters are on the way!

***

"1000? Maybe 2000?"

Damon wondered as he watched the holographic screen in front of him, displaying a map of Bo City and the wilderness surrounding it. Hundreds of red pins clustered around the city, continuously increasing.

Wearing a black hoodie and track pants, Damon leaned on the railing of his apartment, watching the holographic screen of his system. The pins continued to grow, spreading across the outskirts of the city.

"More than 2000 minion-level, hundreds of warrior-level, and one commander-level near the outskirts alone..."

"The city practically has no chance of survival."

Damon muttered to himself as he closed the system's window and looked down at the bustling street full of life below his apartment.

If all went as destined, Bo City would fall tomorrow under the violent spring, a catastrophe that would drive the beasts berserk and cause them to rampage through the city, all orchestrated by the Black Vatican.

"...I should leave this city too," Damon muttered, shuddering at the thought of the chaos the bastards would cause.

The city, full of life now, would soon turn into a land of the dead if the Black Vatican's plan succeeded.

'It does feel a bit cowardly... but what choice do I have?' Damon sighed, walking inside the apartment and slumping down on the couch.

Running away from the upcoming battlefield—Damon's thoughts did sound cowardly, didn't they? But what could he do? Tomorrow's battle would be something where even the strongest intermediate mages, even advanced mages, might fall. What chance did someone like Damon, just a primary mage, have?

The battle would be chaotic, and Damon's survival wasn't guaranteed. So why risk his life when he could leave the city peacefully and survive?

Damon didn't plan on playing the hero. He wasn't one, nor did he want to be.

With that thought, Damon lay on his bed in silence, lost in his thoughts. He closed his eyes briefly before opening them, picking up his phone, and sending a message to his driver.

Dropping his phone, Damon remained quiet as he watched the sky darken, dense clouds covering the horizon.

***

"So what the hell did you need to tell me so urgently?" An annoyed voice echoed in the military office of Snowy Peak Stronghold.

Damon now stood in front of military chief Zhang Kong, who looked visibly irritated. The two men sat alone in the office—Damon with a serious expression, Zhang Kong with a casual, dismissive attitude.

"Speak now, what do you want to discuss?"

The older man spoke lazily as Damon placed a file on the desk in front of him. Zhang Kong glanced at it casually, raising an eyebrow.

"What's this?" The military man asked, intrigued. But his eyes shot wide open at the next two words that left Damon's mouth.

"Black Vatican..."

Those words were enough to trigger the beast hidden inside the military chief. The pressure of an advanced-rank mage filled the room as Damon's body instinctively stiffened under Zhang Kong's intense gaze. The lazy gleam in the chief's eyes was gone, replaced with sharp seriousness.

"...I know the military and enforcement units are investigating the Vatican."

"You remember last year's one-eyed wolf that nearly evolved into warrior level? I was one of the hunters who took the quest to investigate it."

"These are my findings. The traces of impure underground holy spring you recovered—it's not a real holy spring, but an experiment to make one. A violent spring that forces beasts into berserk mode, sacrificing rationality for a boost in power."

The more Damon explained, the colder the air in the room became. Zhang Kong silently listened, flipping through the report Damon provided.

Damon had always been wary of the Black Vatican and its activities in Bo City. He had hired a team of his own to spy on certain locations, gathering traces of the Vatican's actions. By mapping out their movements, he was able to pinpoint the suspects and trail them, eventually uncovering the evidence.

For a year, Damon had been keeping an eye on the Vatican's people, gathering proof against them.

As Damon continued, Zhang Kong's face darkened, especially when he saw the picture of his close subordinate Bai Yang in military uniform.

"...I'll have to investigate these things myself," Zhang Kong said quietly as Damon finished his report, his gaze fixed on Damon.

Normally, if a teenager walked in, slapped a file on someone's desk, and claimed a long-time military officer was a traitor, the expected reaction would be to throw the person out. But Damon's case was special.

Damon may have been young, but he was also an advanced hunter, just a few points shy of becoming a master hunter, and a multi-billionaire with enough resources to investigate these matters thoroughly. No sane person would dismiss him outright.

The military was already investigating the Black Vatican's activities based on warnings from their intelligence unit. Many things Damon reported aligned with what Zhang Kong's network already knew.

Some may wonder why Damon would go out of his way to report this. Why not just leave the city in peace and avoid entangling himself with the Vatican or the military? But despite his detachment, Damon couldn't justify inaction.

He wasn't a hero, nor did he care much about the people here. But if he could help avoid catastrophe, what was stopping him?

He wasn't going to save the city single-handedly, but he wanted to minimize the damage.

Besides, he was talking about the Black Vatican. Their plans were made to be trampled upon, weren't they?

Some might think Damon would become a target for the Black Vatican, but he had taken precautions by meeting Zhang Kong privately.

Familiar with Zhang Kong's character, Damon knew the man would keep his identity a secret and shield him from further trouble. That's why he trusted him with the report.

Zhang Kong believed Damon's words but still felt a need to verify the details before taking action.

"...You can investigate as much as you want, but please, in the meantime, have the city evacuate or put your personnel on high alert."

"I don't have concrete evidence yet, but according to my sources, the Black Vatican is planning something big... very big."

"Whatever it is, it's something on the level of a blue alert or even a blood alert."

"It could happen anytime now."

Damon spoke seriously, his gaze locked with Zhang Kong's. He had disclosed all the information he had gathered on the Black Vatican, warning of the upcoming event.

Though hesitant to fully believe Damon's prediction of an attack, Zhang Kong took the warning seriously. Evacuating the city without concrete evidence was too much for now, but Zhang Kong decided to station the military throughout the city to safeguard civilians and prepare for a potential evacuation if necessary.

Zhang Kong used his status as the privilege and announced the guards to increase the defence and station the men across the city in the name of exercise calling while contacting Deng Kai, the one in charge of hunter's union of the city.

'Sigh.. well I did what I was supposed to, the fate of the city now in the hands of the strong..'

Damon sighed as he left the military camp where in front his car was parked driven by an 3rd rank intermediate mage while surrounded by the cars where more intermediate mages stood as guards.

After Damon's crown group hit the success Damon established his own security company in China too where he would hire intermidate ranking mages to act as bodyguards to his employers and himself, the company is small but it served the main purpose of providing security to Damon in China where he can't have the mercenaries he hired and owned to guard him as they all were required in the frontlines.

"Sir"

One of the guards in front opened the gate for Damon to get in but as he was about to the teenager froze in his tracks..

Tip..

The drop of rain trickled fell on his forehead trickling down his face. Damon's blue eyes widened in horror as he looked up at the sky where the dark clouds covered evening sky.

Tip.. tip..

The rain dropped down the heavens heavily, as the hell that Damon feared arrived early..

Awooooh!

***

I am quite nervous for the reaction you all may have about the chapter this is why it took so much time.. it's something I never read similar about and have used elements I don't know if I should have.

Anyway if the chapter is something majority won't like I would change this chapter to something other.

And yeah.. I am free this week mostly so let's see how much I can write shall we?