Outside the hotel, Nolan murmured a few words to Xander and quietly disappeared into the shadows.

Axel watched him go, eyes fixed.

“Hey, what are you staring at?” Rosaline nudged him with her elbow. “He’s already gone.”

With the tension broken, the team visibly relaxed.

Millers clapped Axel on the back, grinning. “Let’s go drink, man. You look like you’ve aged ten years in one day.”

Axel blinked. “I think... Nolan looked at me a few extra times.”

Xander turned with a smirk. “You narcissistic brat.”

The whole squad burst into laughter. Even Phoenix cracked a grin.

After a moment, Xander's expression softened. He walked over and gave Axel a firm pat on the shoulder.

“You did good.”

“By the way, did you catch what Brooks said just now? About Nolan? Said something about how this wasn’t like him.” Axel asked.

“What about it?”

“Isn’t it normal for Nolan to stand up for the Whisper Syndicate?”

Xander waved him off. “Don’t go digging too deep. You’re still too green for that kind of curiosity.”

Then his serious expression vanished.

“Anyway, pack your stuff. You’re all leaving Mirabelle in the morning. And I’m giving you a proper long vacation.”

“Long live Xander!” Millers whooped. “Holy hell, when was the last time we had a real break?”

Kaia was already scrolling on her phone. “I’m buying clothes. And snacks. And drinks. And—”

“Christmas is around the corner too,” Phoenix added.

The mood suddenly shifted. Warm.

In the humidity of Mirabelle, it was easy to forget it was already late December.

“Yeah,” Axel said quietly, almost to himself.

He suddenly remembered the class group chat. They were planning a reunion dinner after Christmas. He hadn’t replied.

Looking back now, he realized how far he’d drifted from a normal life.

“Let’s go.”

The group began to head off in pairs, slowly scattering under the city lights.

Axel stayed behind, waiting.

And then, from the shadows, a petite figure stepped out.

It was Annabelle.

Axel gave her a reproachful look. “I told you to stay upstairs. Why the hell are you down here? You trying to join the fight?”

He knew Annabelle too well. If things had really gone south, she would’ve thrown herself into the chaos without hesitation, fighting to the death at his side if it came to that.

Annabelle looked a little flustered, then scowled and crossed her arms. “Don’t look down on me, okay, big bro?”

As they walked toward the hotel doors together, Axel suddenly sensed something—an unfamiliar ripple of energy coming off her.

He stopped, staring at her in surprise. “Level two… peak?”

Annabelle just gave a small shrug and smirked.

They stepped into the now-quiet lobby. The hotel manager had already cleared the civilians.

Suddenly, Axel’s vision blurred slightly.

Annabelle’s outline flickered—faded—and then seemed to vanish, her figure blending perfectly with the lobby’s shadows. In the next instant, she reappeared behind him with a grin.

Axel turned, impressed. “What the hell? When did you—?”

“This is my new ability,” she said, grinning. “I call it Night Shadow Step.”

That really caught him off guard. She had no mentor, no training team—only scraps of information he had given her over time.

For a moment, a genuine smile flickered on Axel’s face. He felt lighter somehow.

But then his mind pulled him back to reality—back to the image of Brooks, watching from above with cold, godlike detachment.

He understood now, clearer than ever: in this world, power was everything.

If Nolan hadn’t shown up tonight, they never would’ve made it out intact.

And Brooks—well, even if he’d crushed them, there likely wouldn’t have been any real consequences for him. He was a level-seven awakener, and in this broken world, that kind of power made its own rules.

“Strength is the only foundation that matters.”

......

“Brooks… actually backed down?”

“Who the hell was that man in black?!”

Out on the dark streets of Drakenfall, groups of awakened residents still hadn’t dispersed. They stood in clumps, voices low but tense, the scene from earlier still fresh in their minds.

“Man, I was hoping they’d fight,” someone muttered.

“Fight? If those two had gone all out, there wouldn’t be a Drakenfall left to talk about.”

Among the onlookers was Troy. He exhaled slowly, his breath white in the night air.

“Troy, what’s up? You wanted to see a fight too?” someone asked, nudging him.

But Troy just shook his head, face tight with something that was resignation. “No. I just think what happened tonight was unfair. Unfair to the Whisper Syndicate.”

That made everyone around him pause. Silence fell over the group. They all knew the truth, even if no one said it.

The Windsor family ran Mirabelle like a private kingdom.

“Yeah,” someone muttered. “Everyone knows what kind of trash Jude and Cody were.”

They remembered it clearly—when mutant beasts over level three broke through the city’s defenses, it was the Obsidian team that stood in the gap.

“There aren’t many like that left in Drakenfall.”

Troy glanced at the speaker. “After what happened tonight, do you really think the Whisper Syndicate would come help us again if we were attacked?”

“…We should do something,” Troy said at last.

A few people leaned in. “What do you mean?”

He straightened up. His voice wasn’t loud, but it was steady. “They’re leaving tomorrow. I’ve got a plan—just something small. Nothing crazy. Who’s in?”

People exchanged nervous glances.

“We’ll piss off Brooks if we do that.”

Troy gave a quiet chuckle. “I’m almost forty. I’m not strong. I’ve got no big career ahead of me. Just once in my life, I want to follow my conscience.”

He looked around at the younger faces in the crowd.

“If you’re young, if you still have a future—forget it. Don’t ruin it for this. But if you’re like me and you feel what I’m saying… come.”

He turned away, not expecting much.

But then a hand landed on his shoulder.

And another.

One by one, others stepped forward.

Some were hesitant. Some looked afraid. But they came.

Troy’s lips curled into a real smile. It felt like something had shifted—just a spark, maybe. But a spark could start a fire.

The weight pressing on his chest began to lift.

He glanced up.

The clouds had cleared. The moon was high and bright.

.....

Back at the hotel, Axel collapsed onto the bed, letting the soft blanket swallow him whole.

“So damn good…”

The hot shower had loosened every tight muscle, and now that the adrenaline had faded, the full weight of exhaustion hit him like a wave. His limbs sank into the mattress like lead.

These past few weeks had been relentless—first the brutal engagement at Shiverstone, then the standoff in Drakenfall. No rest, no breaks.

And now, finally, it was over.

He reached for his phone and lazily started scrolling.

News of mutant beasts still dominated every major headline—but for once, it was all good news.

“Krythos to Construct 36 New Cities Beyond the Wall to Counter Beast Attacks.”

“Top Military Academies Pledge Intern Rotation Program in Frontier Settlements.”

One big announcement after another.

Axel exhaled slowly. “Peaceful days are over.”

Just then, a soft ding sounded, and a new notification popped up—he’d been added to a new chat group: Dune 2061 Classmates Group.

Ryder: “Welcome. One more VIP guest joining soon.”

Blake: “Hey, everyone. I’m Blake.”

Ryder: “Blake’s one of our seniors. He’s already a third-level awakener.”

Blake: “I’ll be heading back to Dune soon. Let’s grab dinner if you’re around.”

Ryder:“I’ll organize something—maybe a dinner for all the awakened students. Good chance to talk cultivation.”

Axel didn’t reply right away. But soon, familiar names popped up one after another—Storm, Cassia, Drayke… even Theo, who he barely knew.

All of them encouraged him to come.

Eventually, Axel typed a quick message and signed up for the gathering.

Back in the dorms, Ryder grinned to himself as he tapped his phone.