Chapter 407 — I Know I’m Weak

And Vermont saw them in the same instant as well.

Time seemed to slow as his mind processed what he was seeing.

Two black-robed figures wearing white masks, their Auras radiating S- rank power.

They didn’t radiate the overwhelming presence of the initial three attackers.

Nor were they capable of the crushing attack that had forced Castor to destroy his body just evacuating everyone.

But they were S- rank nonetheless.

And Vermont’s mind processed everything that took less than a millisecond.

’Yara is a healer... Her combat skills are support at best... Castor is barely clinging to life. And I’m...’

His own body screamed the truth at him.

’If I was at full power, maybe I could hold them long enough for Yara to escape with the children.’

The math was brutal and simple.

’But I’m not at full power... Haven’t been since I burned my life force.’

The two figures were already moving, their attention fixed on the floating spheres, on the bubbles of Elizabeth and Damian suspended in Yara’s protective bubbles.

’If we fight, Yara has to choose between maintaining the barriers and defending herself. The moment her concentration breaks, those children die.’

’If we run, they’ll chase. We’re not fast enough to escape S- rank pursuers while carrying this many people.’

Every option led to death, every calculation ended the same way... except one.

Vermont’s eyes found Elizabeth’s unconscious form floating in her protective sphere, blood still running from her nose and ears.

Years of service flashed through his thoughts in an instant.

With the weight of an oath he’d carried every day since he’d knelt before a terrified girl and promised to be her shield.

’Bella... Just like you... I guess... It’s my time now.’

His hand moved to his abdomen, feeling his Aura core pulse.

’Mistress, your servant has kept his promise through every threat...’

The two masked figures were closing the distance, maybe meters away now.

’And he will do so again!’

His breathing became steady, but the fear of dying was making his muscles freeze.

’N-never thought I would be this scared to die... Did Bella feel the same? I guess not... Sigh, she was really a great woman, I should have at least asked her out once...’

Vermont moved.

Whoosh

One instant he was beside Yara, the next he was intercepting the two figures before they could take another step toward them.

His voice emerged quiet, meant for Damian despite the distance.

"Please tell my mistress... I kept my promise."

Then Vermont’s Aura exploded outward with force that made reality scream.

His core ignited from within, the accumulated power of decades burning all at once, his body becoming a bomb.

’DIEE!’

He closed the final meters between himself and the two masked figures with speed that exceeded anything he’d shown in years, his arms spreading wide to engulf them both in the detonation.

Yara’s eyes went wide with horror as she understood what Vermont was about to do.

"Wait–"

Her scream cut through everything, her hand reaching out uselessly, too far away to stop him and too slow to intervene.

BOOOOOOOM

The explosion turned night into day.

The shockwave rolled across the city, flattening everything in the close range, creating a crater where Vermont had been.

The ground buckled and cracked, spiderweb patterns spreading outward from the epicenter.

The two masked figures were caught at ground zero, their bodies hurled backward by the explosion, protective clothing shredding under the force, white masks cracking and burning away.

****

Vermont’s final words drifted through the chaos, reaching Damian’s ears despite the distance.

"Damian Valcor... please tell my mistress... I kept my promise."

Then the shockwave hit.

BOOM

’He exploded his core...’

Damian’s hand clenched at his side, nails digging into his palm hard enough to draw blood.

’How many goddamn S rankers did the shadow council even send?!’

The dust began to settle, revealing the crater where Vermont had been standing.

And in the rubble, two figures were standing, despite the blood covering their bodies.

Then Damian saw their faces and his breathing stopped.

Everything else fell away except the two people climbing out of that crater, their features becoming visible through the smoke and dust.

Crack

His teeth ground together hard enough to crack.

His nails cut deeper into his palms, drawing more blood, the pain distant and irrelevant compared to the rage building in his chest like a physical thing trying to tear its way out.

"Ashley Blackheart! Admond Ashford!"

The names came out as barely a whisper, his voice shaking with fury he couldn’t quite contain.

****

Admond’s voice carried across the distance despite his injuries, frustration bleeding through every word.

"Fuck! That Murdock dog actually blew himself up!"

He spat blood, his face showing the damage Vermont’s sacrifice had inflicted.

"Our identity’s exposed because of that suicidal bastard! All these protective clothing and expensive masks, and some loyal servant ruins them by turning himself into a bomb!"

His hands moved to check his injuries, finding burns, lacerations and internal damage.

"We should have been faster!"

Damian’s voice cut through, loud enough to make both of them pause.

"ASHLEY BLACKHEART, YOU FUCKING BITCH!"

His rage made the words shake, made them come out raw and venomous.

"From the Norrington incident to the portal interrogation, you never stopped! Always on my back about being a criminal! Always hunting for evidence! Always hiding behind your SFD badge and your self-righteous bullshit about upholding the law!"

He took a step forward despite the distance between them.

"And now you have the audacity to join the Shadow Council?! To participate in an attack on a Federation city?!"

His hands were shaking, his entire body trembling with fury that had nowhere to go.

"You spent over a year calling me a criminal while you were the real traitor all along!"

Ashley’s face showed something complex, guilt and shame and justification all warring for dominance.

Then she turned toward Admond, her voice coming out sharp.

"You fucking idiot! I told you we shouldn’t join this attack! The risk of exposing ourselves was too high!"

Her hands clenched into fists.

"Now my career is truly finished! We’ll be marked as enemies of the Federation!"

Admond wiped blood from his mouth, his expression showing dismissive confidence despite the injuries.

"Relax, will you? Did you forget that all electrical stuff is jammed? Gia won’t know. There’s nothing recording this, and no witnesses except the people we’re about to kill."

He gestured toward the floating spheres, toward Damian and Yara and the hundreds of children.

"We eliminate everyone here, and how would anyone even know it was us? The Shadow Kings promised their secret method to power in exchange for our help. That’s worth more than any SFD career or Academy position."

His smile became cruel despite the blood running down his face.

"We just need to finish the job."

Then, Ashley started walking toward Damian, her steps faltering a bit due to the injuries and her face settling into something cold and anticipatory.

"I’m going to enjoy this, Valcor. Every bit of humiliation you and your filthy mother put me through..."

Her hands flexed, Aura beginning to gather around her fingers.

"I’ll take my time! Make you scream! Make you beg! And then I’ll kill every single child in those bubbles while you watch and bleed!"

Admond followed beside her, his expression showing less enthusiasm for torture and more practical calculation.

"Let’s just kill him quickly... No need to give him chances to escape... and we’re injured."

His hands moved, preparing combat techniques.

"End it fast and move on to–"

"Aren’t you both forgetting I’m still here?"

Yara’s voice cut through their approach, quiet but carrying absolute conviction.

She stood between them and Damian, her hands moving in a complex gesture that severed all the threads connecting her to the protective spheres.

The bubbles remained floating, sustained by the Aura she’d already invested in them, but no longer tethered to her direct control.

She started walking toward Ashley and Admond, her healer’s frame looking fragile compared to their combat-hardened builds.

Admond actually laughed, the sound genuine and mocking despite the blood in his mouth.

"What can a healer like you even do? We’ve read the intelligence reports... If not for your three friends protecting you all these years, you would have died long ago."

His smile widened.

"You don’t specialize in combat... You’re support at best. Step aside and maybe we’ll make your death quick instead of slow."

Yara’s hair fell forward, obscuring her face and her voice came out soft and almost gentle.

"I know I’m weak... And it’s a fact that all my skills are designed for keeping people alive rather than killing them."

Her hands clenched at her sides.

"I know I might not be able to take down opponents at my own level in a fair fight."

She looked up, her hair parting to reveal eyes that had gone absolutely cold.

"But both of you are only S- rank... And injured from Vermont’s sacrifice."

Her Aura began to build, power radiating outward with intensity that made the air itself feel heavier.

"And as you mentioned... I have three friends. Each of them taught me one thing."

Her voice dropped to a whisper that somehow carried across the distance.

Aura Magnification: ×3

Her Aura tripled instantly, her body glowing with concentrated energy.

"Gregor taught me about Aura Magnification."

Phantom Step

Then she disappeared–

Whoosh

–And materialized directly in front of Ashley and Admond with speed that made them both react on pure combat instinct.

"Castor taught me his speed skill."

Her fist drove toward Admond’s face, the strike carrying power that shouldn’t exist in a healer’s body.

Admond’s hands came up, two daggers materializing in his grip, their blades wreathed in Aura.

BOOOM

He blocked her strike with crossed blades, barely deflecting the blow.

The impact created a shockwave that cratered the ground beneath them even more, sending debris flying in all directions.

Ashley’s gauntlets appeared on her hands, metal coating her fingers and knuckles.

She swung at Yara’s exposed side, her fist moving with S- rank speed and precision.

BAM

Yara twisted, her palm catching Ashley’s gauntleted fist, stopping the strike despite the force behind it.

Her smile became absolutely feral.

"And Vash... taught me how to smash."