Chapter 41 — Destruction Is Beautiful

Damian stood at the terrace of the hotel as he holstered the gun at his waist.

The Tranquil city branch of the Shadow Council was finished. He has killed everyone who has entered the city these past few days.

’It seems this organization is much more powerful than everyone assumes...

Even a branch head was already a C Ranked awakened. I need to get stronger faster.

They will realize one day that it was me who killed this branch.

But my hunt has only now begun... I won’t rest until I slaughter each and everyone of them.’

As these thoughts ran through his mind, he put the helmet back on and started heading down from the hotel rooftop.

When he stepped out of the elevator, a small crowd had already gathered on the ground floor around the room where he’d killed the first target.

Hearing the sound of the elevator doors opening, all of them turned to look at Damian.

"..."

Silence.

The floor fell into utter silence as people held their breath.

What caught their eye was Damian’s suit that was drenched in blood. Dark crimson stains covered his chest, sleeves, and collar.

It was painfully clear that the one responsible for the disturbance tonight was standing right in front of them, in the flesh.

As Damian walked past them toward the exit, his boots leaving faint red footprints on the polished floor, almost all of them released the breaths they’d been holding subconsciously.

Someone’s hands trembled.

Another stepped back instinctively.

"W-was he the one?"

"I don’t know about the guy on the ground floor... this body doesn’t even have any blood on it..."

"You’re telling me... there are more murders!?"

"Call the police! Now!"

The voices rose in panic behind him, but Damian didn’t turn around.

****

Damian didn’t care about the people gathered in the hotel.

His job was done, and he went straight back to Old Man Mike’s shop.

Tik.

Hearing the door open and seeing Damian arrive with clothes soaked in blood, Mike raised an eyebrow.

"Are you done already? That was fast."

He sounded genuinely surprised. It had only been twenty minutes since Damian left the shop.

"...Do you have some clothes I can change into?" Damian looked down at his ruined suit as he walked toward Mike. "Also, give me a set of clothes I can wear for these types of special occasions. Something durable."

"Sure thing. I already prepared a set for you, figured you’d need it." Mike gestured toward the back. "Go to the changing room. Also, when you’re done, come to the terrace. I have some things to discuss."

Damian nodded and disappeared into the changing room.

****

When Damian arrived on the terrace of the shop, he found a small table with drinks already placed on it.

Alessio stood quietly to the side of the table, ready to serve them.

Damian sat down across from the old man and looked up toward the night sky. The stars were dim tonight, drowned out by the city lights.

"Is that the skyscraper you went to?"

Mike spoke after taking a slow sip of his drink, gesturing toward the towering building in the Spire District.

Damian waited for Alessio to fill his glass, then drank it all in one gulp.

His face immediately twisted.

"...What kind of drink is this?"

"..."

Looking at the sour expression on Damian’s face after downing the alcohol, Mike chuckled.

"It’s very strong. For high-ranking awakeners, normal stuff doesn’t work anymore. So as time passed, some strong stuff was made for us as well.

This one’s called the Phoenix. One glass of it can make even an A-rank expert feel dizzy."

"I see..."

Only then did Damian shift his gaze toward the skyscraper in the distant Spire District.

"I didn’t enter that building. I just shot them all down from the hotel next to it."

"...Is that so?"

Mike looked a bit troubled as he kept staring toward the top floor of that building, his expression unreadable.

"What is it?"

Damian asked, a hint of confusion in his voice.

"Well..." Mike sighed heavily. "I’m afraid those guys had some compromising information about a few of my friends with them.

Now that the police will arrive soon, I’m worried things might become... troublesome for them."

As Mike laid his worries bare, he continued to drink slowly, swirling the liquid in his glass.

"So what is it that you wanted to talk about?"

Damian asked him directly.

Mike stayed silent for a while, staring into his drink. Then he looked up, meeting Damian’s crimson eyes with a serious gaze.

"I’ll be completely honest with you, young sir Damian."

He set his glass down carefully.

"I underestimated you before. Previously, I thought it would take you a long time before you could even reach a stage where I’d consider you an equal. But now..." He gestured vaguely toward the city.

"Looking at your growth, it seems it won’t be long before you outgrow the need to even consider me and my friends as useful."

Mike leaned back in his chair.

"Your potential was already high in my eyes. But at just E+ rank, you can take out C-ranked enemies so easily...

So I was hoping you could come meet my friends whenever you have some time. That is, if you have any plans regarding the underworld."

It seemed Mike was finally dropping the act of being just an ordinary shop owner.

"...Sorry to disappoint you, old friend."

Damian’s voice was calm, but there was an edge to it now.

"Although I do have some plans, I don’t think you or your friends would be happy about them. I don’t plan on being part of the underworld."

He leaned forward slightly, his crimson eyes gleaming in the dim light.

"I will be the underworld."

Silence spread between them like a physical weight.

The air became tense, heavy.

Alessio, standing off to the side, felt uncomfortable. The tension was clearly visible on his young face.

Ever since he’d been brought here by Damian, he’d gotten to know many things about the smiling old man named Mike.

Although the man was very dangerous, he had been kind to him.

And then there was Damian, the one whom Alessio had vowed to serve for his entire life.

Now, seeing the tense atmosphere between both of them, Alessio didn’t know what to feel.

His hands clenched at his sides.

As if sensing his discomfort, Damian glanced toward him with a small smile on his face, as if to say there’s no need to worry.

Alessio relaxed slightly.

"...You clearly have a big appetite, my young friend."

Mike’s voice was flat now, devoid of warmth.

"But do you have what it takes to make those words come true? Or are you just becoming arrogant after taking down some ants?"

Damian didn’t answer immediately.

Instead, he picked up the bottle of Phoenix and poured his glass full again. Then he downed it in one gulp, the burn spreading through his chest.

He stood up.

Strong winds rustled his new clothes, and his crimson hair swayed in the direction of the breeze.

He walked toward the edge of the terrace and pulled out his gun.

’What is he planning to do?’

Mike and Alessio exchanged confused looks as they watched him point his gun toward the distant skyscraper.

Damian felt intoxicated... not just from the alcohol, but from something else as well. It was as if someone had finally lifted his restraints, set him free.

The sounds of police sirens were already ringing throughout the city. They must have been alerted by the hotel staff by now.

"You’re worried about your friends’ information getting into the hands of the police, right?"

Damian didn’t look at Mike as he said that, his back turned toward both of them.

He pointed his gun toward the top floor of the skyscraper, where the main base of the Shadow Council’s operations was located.

"...Yes?" Mike answered, confusion written all over his face.

Damian didn’t respond.

Instead, he started pouring all his Aura into the gun. The weapon began to glow faintly, energy crackling along the barrel.

"Omega Point..."

He focused all his intent, all his willpower, into the bullet forming at the tip of the barrel.

Then he pulled the trigger.

A bright flash lit up the night sky of Tranquil City like a second sun.

A split second later, a deafening thundering sound reverberated across the entire city, shaking windows and scaring countless people awake from their sleep.

"BOOOOOM!!!!"

The top floor of the skyscraper exploded in a massive fireball. Flames and debris erupted outward, and a gigantic mushroom cloud of fire and dust formed where the top floor used to be.

"...How beautiful~~"

Damian had a wide smile on his face as he watched the destruction unfold.

The firelight reflected in his crimson eyes, making them glow like embers.

"..."

"..."

The sight was burned into their minds – Damian standing there, smiling, silhouetted against the massive mushroom cloud of fire in the distance.

Mike and Alessio stood rooted to the spot, utterly speechless.

Damian holstered his gun and turned around, walking past them casually.

"The favor I owe you is repaid now." His voice was calm, almost cheerful. "I look forward to meeting your friends."

He walked off the terrace without looking back.

"...Madness."

Mike sighed deeply, still staring at the burning building in the distance. His expression was complex... part admiration, part concern, part something else entirely.

"The younger generation is becoming far more dangerous than we ever were."

What he didn’t notice was the almost crazed look in Alessio’s eyes.

The boy stared at the distant flames, his hands trembling, not from fear, but from something else.

’I... I want this power.’

His small fists clenched tight.

’I want to stand beside him. I want to become someone he can rely on.’

The fire reflected in his young eyes, burning just as brightly.