Chapter 95: The Midnight Breach and the Empty Nest
The moon over Athelgard was hidden behind a thick veil of charcoal clouds, as if the sky itself was trying to hide the sins of the city. Inside the walls of Rollv 13, the atmosphere was different tonight. After the violent outburst with Joni, the prison authorities had decided that Ren Vority was too dangerous for a standard block.
Ren had been moved. His new "cell" wasn't even a room; it was a reinforced iron cage situated in a secluded corner of the prison's main courtyard. It was an isolation ward, exposed to the biting night wind and the distant, rhythmic hum of the city's magical barriers.
Ren sat on the cold floor, his back pressed against the vibrating metal wall. He was alone. No other prisoners were within fifty yards. His only company was the two elite guards standing ten feet away, their high-caliber pulse rifles held firmly against their chests. They didn't speak. They didn't move. They were just silhouettes of authority against the dim orange floodlights.
Ren's mind was a whirlwind of dark thoughts. Sunday is coming, he thought, his eyes fixed on the muddy ground. Hana is safe with Go, but the price of that safety is my life. Can Silas really find a way? Or is this cage my final home before the gallows?
Suddenly, the silence was pierced by a sound so faint it was almost ghostly—the whistle of a blade cutting through the air.
One of the guards didn't even have time to scream. A dark blur materialized behind him. Before the guard could turn, a pair of gloved hands grabbed his head and twisted with brutal, surgical precision. CRACK. The guard's neck bone snapped instantly, and his body went limp, dropping into the mud like a discarded puppet.
The second guard reacted instinctively, swinging his rifle toward the intruder. But the mysterious figure was faster. With a low-profile sweep, the intruder delivered a devastating kick to the guard's chest. The force was so immense that the guard was propelled backward, his boots sliding through the dirt before he crashed into the courtyard's outer wall.
Before the guard could regain his breath or pull the trigger, the intruder was on him. A swift, silent strike to the throat followed by a heavy blow to the temple silenced the guard forever. The entire execution had taken less than five seconds.
The mysterious figure stood up, their chest heaving slightly under a dark, tactical cloak. They turned toward Ren's cage and walked slowly, their boots making no sound on the wet pavement.
Ren stood up, his chains rattling with a sharp, metallic ring. His heart was pounding against his ribs like a trapped bird. He stepped toward the bars, his eyes squinting to see through the shadows and the rain. As the figure reached the edge of the light, Ren's breath hitched.
"Is... is it you?" Ren whispered, his voice trembling with a mixture of hope and terror.
The Enoki Estate: A Broken Omen
While the prison was being breached, several miles away in the prestigious residential district, Lai was lost in a troubled sleep.
The air in his room was heavy with the scent of lilies and the cold dampness of the night. Lai groaned, turning over in his silk sheets, his subconscious battling with the stress of the past few days. Ever since his father, Kimo, had slapped Mina in front of everyone, the house had felt like a tomb.
Suddenly, a sharp CRASH echoed through the room.
Lai bolted upright, his heart racing. He looked toward the nightstand. In his sleep-induced movement, his hand had accidentally swiped against a ceramic flowerpot—a gift from Mina. It lay shattered on the floor, the soil spilling out across the rug like a dark stain.
"Damn it..." Lai muttered, rubbing his eyes. "What a mess."
He got out of bed, his bare feet touching the cold floor. He felt a strange, sinking feeling in his gut—an omen that something was fundamentally wrong. He grabbed a cloth and quickly began to clean up the broken shards, his movements frantic. He gathered the pieces, threw them into a small bag, and walked out of his room to toss them into the large dustbin in the hallway.
As he was walking back, he stopped in front of Mina's door. It was slightly ajar.
Lai frowned. Mina always locked her door at night, especially after the argument with their father. "Mina?" he called out softly. "Are you awake? I broke that pot you gave me... I'm sorry."
There was no answer. Only the sound of the wind whistling through the corridor.
Lai pushed the door open. The room was dark, but the moonlight spilling through the window revealed a chilling sight. The bed was neatly made, untouched. The pillows were cold. And the large glass window was swung wide open, the curtains fluttering violently in the midnight breeze.
Lai's blood ran cold. He rushed into the room, looking into the closet, then the bathroom. "Mina! Mina, where are you?!"
He ran to the open window and looked down at the gardens below. There were no footprints, no signs of a struggle. It was as if she had simply vanished into the night.
Did she leave? Lai thought, his mind racing. Did she really run away because of the slap? Or... is she the one at the prison?
Lai remembered how Mina had stood up for Ren in the courtroom. He remembered the look of pure, unyielding determination in her eyes. He realized then that Mina wasn't just a girl who had been slapped; she was a warrior who had been pushed too far.
"Dad is going to kill us," Lai whispered to the empty room, his hands shaking. "If she's doing what I think she's doing... there's no coming back from this."
He turned and sprinted toward his father's study. He had to tell Kimo. But a part of him hoped that Mina was already miles away, doing what she felt was right.