A tragic streak of fire slashed across the night sky. Shin was hurtling downward like a burning meteor, his entire body blistered and depleted, his consciousness sinking into the void amid the deafening, ear-splitting roar of the wind.
Just as the air friction was about to burn away the final ember of his life, a wave of spatial energy rippled softly. Right beside Shin, the dark figure of a young woman abruptly materialized in midair. She reached out both arms, pulling Shin tightly into her embrace. Ignoring the scorching heat from the friction flames raging around them, she looked down at his blood-soaked face and closed eyes, whispering softly:
— "I saved you once again... Shin!"
The moment those words left her mouth, she raised her other hand.
SNAP!
A crisp snap of her fingers echoed through midair. Instantly, both of their figures vanished completely from the sky, leaving behind a dying trail of fire that dissolved into nothingness.
In Shin's mind, the roaring wind and the flesh-burning heat abruptly vanished. The gut-wrenching agony gradually faded as if it had never existed.
Shin blinked his heavy eyes. His blurred vision slowly focused on a quiet, cool space bathed in soft light. He rasped in a hoarse, thin voice:
— "This heaven... looks pretty strange..."
When his consciousness fully returned, a gorgeous face with porcelain-white skin and worried eyes appeared right in front of his face. Shin blinked bewilderedly:
— "Yoon Chae-won...? Did you... go to heaven too?"
The young woman before him lowered her voice, leaning close to his ear:
— "This isn't heaven or hell. You're not dead!"
— "I'm not dead...? Why...?"
Chae-won's cheeks instantly puffed up, her neck straining as she yelled straight into his face:
— "BECAUSE I SAVED YOU, YOU IDIOT!!!"
SLAP!
Shin jumped violently, sitting bolt upright on the soft mattress. He stared in astonishment down at both hands, then touched his face and chest. All the horrific burns, broken bones, and internal organs crushed by the residual impact of the Moon's explosion were completely healed without leaving a single scar!
Shin looked bewilderedly at the two women present in the room:
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— "Did you two... save me?"
From the corner of the room, a woman with snow-white hair hanging down to her waist—clad in an exquisite outfit, leaning against the wall with eyes cold as ice—slowly spoke up:
— "Chae-won saved you from midair while you were in freefall... And I helped restore that cheap life of yours."
Shin scanned his eyes around the luxurious room:
— "Where is this...?"
— "This is my private mansion," Chae-won replied with folded arms. "And the one leaning against the wall over there is Freya Sterling!"
As if suddenly remembering something immensely important, Shin's pupils contracted. He immediately threw off the blanket, intending to leap out of bed:
— "Wait! I still have Roxy, Tae-Joon, Lang Mac, Kento... I have to go to them right now!"
Startled, Chae-won hurriedly stepped forward to block him:
— "Hey! Hey! You haven't fully recovered yet, where do you think you're going?!"
— "I can't! I have to help them, I can't just leave them to fight alone!" Shin insisted firmly, his eyes burning with a fire of worry.
— "Chae-won, let him go. We're going to help Zero Horizon anyway!" Freya's cold voice from the corner interrupted.
Shin turned to look at Freya, asking in surprise:
— "Why are you two helping us?"
Freya curled her lips into a meaningful smile, jerking her chin toward the blonde girl:
— "You'll have to ask the girl next to you for that! Chae-won insisted that I bring her to watch Zero Horizon battle the Federation no matter what. And when she saw you plunging from the sky like a fireball, she immediately rushed out to save you, then begged and pleaded with me to heal you at all costs!"
Shin turned to look at Yoon Chae-won. The girl with wavy blonde hair immediately turned her face away, her ears and cheeks flushing crimson with embarrassment.
Shin let out a genuine smile, speaking gently:
— "Thank you... Chae-won!"
Freya pushed herself off the wall, asking coldly:
— "Are we ready to go then?"
— "Yes! I'm really glad to have you two supporting us!" Shin nodded. He stood side-by-side with Freya and Chae-won, then tilted his head slightly in confusion. "But how are we going to get to the Federation base now?"
Freya folded her arms nonchalantly:
— "Don't worry, Chae-won will take us!"
Chae-won took a deep breath to regain her composure, raising her hand into the air:
— "Ready!"
SNAP!
A clean snap of her fingers echoed. The luxurious mansion vanished instantly. In the very next moment, all three appeared in the heart of the Federation's main base—now nothing more than a desolate ruin, heavy smoke billowing after terrifying battles.
Stepping past the wreckage of the main corridor, the first image that hit Shin's eyes was Kento lying down, resting his head comfortably to sleep on Siren Sinclair's lap. Siren—who was currently bound tightly sitting against the wall—still sat obediently to let Kento sleep. Hearing rapid footsteps approaching, Siren gently nudged Kento's thigh, whispering:
— "Hey, Kento, your brother is back..."
Kento blinked, furrowing his brows as his eyes slowly opened. The moment he saw Shin standing looming before him—completely intact without a scratch on his skin—Kento sprang up like a coiled spring:
— "BROTHER SHIN?! You're still alive?!"
Shin immediately stepped forward, grabbing Kento's shoulders:
— "Where are the others?!"
Kento quickly reported the situation:
— "Seijuro went to rescue Kiriko. Currently, only Group B and C have just regrouped!"
Right then, Tae-Joon and Lang Mac ran over from the opposite corridor. Seeing Shin return alive, both were deeply shaken.
Tae-Joon quickly updated Shin on the general situation:
— "Right now, we're just waiting for Loona and Xie Xingchen to finish decrypting the YX Chip in the server room to broadcast their crimes to the entire galaxy. As for the mountain outside the tower, Roxy and Stolas are still in a fierce battle!"
Hearing that, Freya Sterling casually stepped forward:
— "I will support the group fighting on the mountain. Chae-won, teleport me!"
Chae-won nodded.
SNAP!
Another snap of her fingers echoed, and Freya vanished instantly before the astonished eyes of Tae-Joon, Lang Mac, and Kento.
Shin quickly offered a brief introduction of Yoon Chae-won't help to everyone. Returning to their primary objective, Tae-Joon frowned, looking around the ruins:
— "Lu Junlin and his son are definitely hiding somewhere inside this supreme command sector!"
Shin declared decisively:
— "We should split up to search!"
Kento stretched his arms violently, his joints cracking CRACK:
— "I'm coming with you, Brother Shin!"
Chae-won stepped closer with a smile:
— "I'm coming with you too!"
Instantly, the teams fanned out in different directions, diving into the dark corners of the corridors to hunt down the leader of the Federation.
In the middle of the desolate, empty courtyard, only Siren Sinclair remained, bound behind her back and sitting against the wall, watching everyone's backs gradually fade away. She let out a heavy, exasperated sigh:
— "Sigh... Sitting here like this, I wonder when I'll ever be released?"
(To be continued)