Chapter 406 — Focus On Surviving

While Vash bought them time, Yara’s hands came together, her fingers weaving patterns that made the air itself shimmer.

"Sanctuary Spheres."

Her voice rang clear despite the chaos, her Aura flooding outward with precision.

Translucent bubbles erupted into existence around every person who needed protection.

Damian’s world became enclosed in white as a barrier formed around him, the surface pulsing with warmth. Healing energy washed over his battered body, checking for injuries and stabilizing his breathing.

Around him, hundreds more spheres appeared in rapid succession.

Every child lifted into the air, suspended in their own protective bubble. The staff members, Granny Helena, Castor’s broken form and Elizabeth who had fallen unconscious. Even Kuro got wrapped in one of the barriers, the raven’s form going still inside the translucent shell.

’Kuro, get in my shadows.’

Damian’s mental command cut through their bond.

’But Kuro want to–’

’Now.’

The raven dissolved into darkness without further argument, merging with Damian’s shadow just as the bubble around him popped.

Yara stood at the center of the floating spheres, her hands spread wide, threads of Aura extending from her palms like a spider’s web.

Each thread connected to a different bubble, linking them all together in a network of light that pulsed in rhythm with her heartbeat.

She was controlling them through these hundreds of individual tethers that responded to her will.

"I’ll clear the path."

Vermont’s voice came from beside her, his tall frame already moving.

Then they were running.

The city blurred around Damian as Yara and Vermont carried everyone.

They weren’t running at top speed for obvious reasons, but fast enough that buildings became streaks of color and shadow.

Damian’s thoughts churned as he was being carried, bitter realization cutting through the adrenaline.

’I trained in that forest for weeks... Pushed myself past every limit... Learned to control my power, refined my skills, convinced myself I was getting stronger...’

BOOM BOOM BOOM

The sonic booms hit like physical walls, each one making Damian’s chest compress.

’Fought that elf Major General... Survived battles that should have killed me... Came back thinking I’d finally reached a level where I could protect my people...’

Somewhere to their left, Vash was fighting.

To their right, Gregor’s Domain flickered in the distance, white-gold light pulsing against the darkness.

’But none of it matters.’

The thought hit harder than any physical blow.

’In front of S ranks... all that training, all that power I thought I’d gained... I’m still just an ant... Still completely useless...’

His jaw clenched, frustration and helplessness warring in his chest.

’I can’t even see their movements properly... Can’t track what’s happening when they fight... Can’t do anything except run and hope the real fighters keep everyone alive!’

Another thought crashed through his mind.

’The Shadow Council.’

His mind flashed back to the early days, to the first intelligence Elizabeth had provided.

’At the start, every piece of information pointed to them being just a minor organization... C rank awakeners at the top... Nothing that couldn’t be handled.’

The intelligence had been solid, verified through multiple sources and cross-referenced against SFD databases.

’But as time passed... I kept finding more... Kept realizing they were stronger than they should be.’

The attack on the northern region. The battles that had pushed his northern Mafia forces to their limits.

’When I was there months ago, I realized our people weren’t strong enough to handle them...’

’But I never thought they had S ranks. Never imagined they had multiple S rank awakeners... and ones who are so powerful ’

The scale of it was staggering, alongside the sheer audacity of attacking a Federation city.

What Damian didn’t realise was that even Chairman, with all his intelligence networks and decades of experience, hadn’t realized the Shadow Council possessed this level of power until the SFD’s recent reports had forced a reassessment of the threat they represented.

****

Then Damian saw the people.

Bodies in the street, too far to be caught in the initial devastation but close enough to be hit by falling debris.

A woman’s arm stuck out from under a collapsed wall, her hand still reaching for something she’d never touch again.

A man stumbled from a doorway, his face covered in blood, his eyes unfocused and lost.

Families ran in the opposite direction, parents carrying children, grandparents being dragged along by younger relatives, everyone screaming and everyone trying to escape the destruction spreading through their city like cancer.

"EVERYONE GET OUT! SOMETHING’S ATTACKING THE CITY!"

The shout came from a middle-aged man standing in the middle of an intersection, his arms waving frantically at people still emerging from their homes.

"My phone’s dead!"

A woman’s voice, panicked and sharp.

"Mine too!"

"Everything electronic, it’s all gone!"

More voices overlapping, fear bleeding into every word.

Damian’s eyes tracked them as Yara’s bubbles floated past, his mind cataloging faces he’d probably never see again.

A young boy stood frozen in a doorway, his face showing blank shock.

His mother grabbed him, yanked him back inside and slammed the door.

Like that would help.

Like hiding would save them.

"Motherfuckers! Look at the destruction! Those are S ranks fighting! Just RUN!"

"M-my family’s house is in that district!"

The district that didn’t exist anymore.

The district that had been reduced to ash and dust when Castor’s evacuation ended.

"Are the monsters attacking?!"

"Just run, idiots! Or we’ll turn to ash as well if they move their fight here!"

Damian’s jaw clenched as they kept moving, leaving the screaming civilians behind, heading deeper into the city toward the Mafia Headquarters.

And the bitter taste of powerlessness filled his mouth.

****

Vermont’s voice reached him through the network of bubbles, the sound carrying despite the chaos.

"I’ve never heard of anything capable of doing this. Even our Imperial family doesn’t have technology this advanced."

His face was grim when Damian looked at him.

"Gia can hack into such devices using their signals with ease and resume functions that have been blocked. But if even she’s being suppressed..."

Damian’s thoughts raced, trying to find an angle.

"The Academy is close enough... They should realize something’s wrong and send reinforcements."

His voice came out steadier than he felt.

Elizabeth remained unconscious in her protective sphere, blood still running from her nose and ears, her body completely limp despite Yara’s healing energy working to keep her stable, no one knew whom she fought in that seer battle to become like this.

Castor’s broken body shifted slightly in his own bubble, his eyes opening despite the agony.

"I can sense... powerful fluctuations..."

Each word looked like it cost him, blood bubbling at the corners of his mouth.

"From the Academy’s direction... Even if someone is coming... they’re being blocked by someone."

His breathing became more labored.

"Any kind of communication interference... won’t last long. Just focus on... surviving."

Suddenly, his eyes became alert, looking past Yara toward shadows between ruined buildings ahead.

Yara’s gaze snapped to where Castor was looking, her eyes finding the two figures stepping from darkness.