Instead of wasting time looking for the main door, Nero, Jo, and Servant made their way out the way they came in, from the dungeon, and take a detour.
Their feet can’t help but run. They don’t want to be left behind to take part in whatever is happening right now.
Servant’s steps suddenly stopped, and the two people who were with him stopped as well.
“What is it?” asked Nero, and Jo answered the question with a question.
“Didn’t you hear it?”
“What?”
Nero listened carefully. But there was nothing so strange about his hearing that it had to make him stop. He put on an incomprehensible face and Jo impatiently gave an explanation.
“That sound, like a very large glass cracked and splattered.”
Nero shook his head. He didn’t hear such a sound.
“The shield has been shattered.” It was now Servant who spoke, and just as he finished speaking,
Gemma looked up at the sky, which was now filled with black shards. Everything sounded like a buzzing in her ears, and she didn’t close her eyes as the ashes from the shattered bodies of the Draconians hit her face. After that, she knew Jo came to her and hugged her, protecting her body from the black rain.The four of them walked to the front of the building and found the injured Archturians mingling with firefighters and paramedics. The lights from the ambulance sirens and the fire engines flickered alternately, briefly reminding Gemma of the lights in a nightclub. Jo’s arms were still around her shoulders, as if afraid that Gemma would fall if Jo let her go.Out of all the chaos, Gemma found people she knew gathered in a corner at the edge of the forest. Uncle Jonah and Sarah, and two paramedics, who were packing their equipment. One paramedic turned to call his other friend, while another paramedic spoke to Uncle Jonah with a sad expression on his face. They were swarming somethin
Slam!The door slammed shut in front of Gemma and Lysis. They looked at each other, exhaled a long breath that was a form of patience. At least, today’s rejection is not as much as yesterday’s.Lysis was holding a stack of leaflets in one hand, while the other was holding a plastic bag containing the ingredients for their dinner.“Shall we try a few more houses?” asked Lysis reluctantly. His face brightened as Gemma shook her head. Gemma stared intently at the leaflet she was holding until it was crumpled.PREPARE YOUR CHILDREN’S FUTURE, BECOME A TRUE ARCHTURIANThe title of the leaflet she made by racking her brains. But the rejection that she and Lysis experienced wasn’t solely because of a bad title. It was more for the parents in Fiend who never really thought much about their children.“Even though we’re having a free promo…,” Gemma whispered, her voice sounding hollow.They walked along the broken pavement in the neighborhood a few blocks from Gemma’s house.Lysis glanced at Gem
The bonus chapters are the story of Gemma and NeroIt seemed Gemma had just drifted off to sleep when her cell phone rang loudly. It sounded like a nuisance alarm that made Gemma let out a lazy moan. She reached out and groped over the nightstand for the noisy object. Gemma opened her still-heavy eyes to find out who the human dared to disturb her sleep. She saw Purity’s name on the phone screen. Gemma glanced at the corner of the phone screen and found that it was now the library rush hour. Maybe Purity needs her help.“What is it?” Gemma’s voice was hoarse as her throat felt as dry as a desert.“Someone’s looking for you.”“Who?” Gemma asked as she rolled over on the bed. One hand parted the curtain to look at the sky. Today is sunny. The atmosphere was so peaceful that Gemma couldn’t believe that last night a terrible tragedy had occurred at King’s Door. After this, she would call Jo to find out what happened last night.“The man who drove you earlier.”“Huh?”Hearing this, Gemma s
Their first stop was the restaurant Gemma used to go to with Jo. This restaurant is always full at lunchtime, and most of the visitors are students and office workers who are taking a break. Gemma could only grumble inside her heart as pairs of eyes stared hungrily at Nero, as if he was the main dish in this place. If this had happened to Jo, Gemma would definitely nag and glare at those flirtatious girls. “Where do you want to sit?” asked Nero. They stopped in the middle of the restaurant and became the center of attention, like a Christmas tree with twinkling lights. Gemma looked around in a huff before grabbing Nero’s arm and leading him to a row of benches outside the restaurant. “Let’s sit here,” said Gemma. Then she dragged a stool near them and motioned for Nero to sit down. Nero offered a small smile before he sat down and that smile didn’t go away when Gemma sat across from him. “What is it?” Gemma asked, while side-eyeing from time to time at the group of students who wer
After registering, Gemma received a vest with a pentagon-shaped light on the chest. She put on the vest, then tied her hair with a rubber band that she carried around her wrist. Nero handed her a black laser gun with an arm-length rope. He attached the hook at the end of the rope to the hook on the front of Gemma’s vest. “The rules are simple. Point your gun at your opponent’s front, at the light on the vest,” Nero explained, pointing to the pentagon light on Gemma’s vest which now glowed aquamarine. The lamp is divided into five parts. “If all these lights go out, it means you lose and you have to quit the game.” Then Nero pointed towards the door that was opposite the entrance. The door was wide open, and Gemma could see expanses of clearing with tall trees growing within a few feet of each other. “We will do outdoor games. The team that retrieves the suitcase in the abandoned house, on the other end, will be the winner.” Gemma nodded, telling Nero she understood. As Gemma raised
“Who would have thought he’s that crazy woman’s boyfriend?”“How can she act like that when she has a boyfriend?”Gemma nodded, agreeing with Nero’s words. They left the laser tag arena as soon as the matter with the man was resolved.It turns out that after Gemma took Nero away from the woman named Angel; she called her boyfriend and said that Gemma had hurt her. Her boyfriend came to the laser tag arena not long after and insisted to take part in the game.The misunderstanding was resolved when Nero asked the manager to show the CCTV footage shortly after the briefing was done. It’s clear that Angel approached Gemma and Nero first and Gemma did nothing to her.“You should have asked for compensatory damage,” muttered Nero.“I don’t want to prolong the problem.” It’s as if Gemma hasn’t had much of a problem.Then Nero looked at Gemma, who was walking beside him. “Sorry. We failed to win the competition.”Gemma shrugged. “No problem,” she said. “There are many other ways to earn money
The sound of three meters wide glass hitting the ground seemed to stop time for a while.Gemma and Nero froze where they stood, looking at each other wide-eyed. Their kiss stopped, even with any thoughts that had previously crept into their minds and clouded their vision.Everything happened in seconds, but every moment felt so slow.As the Draconians flying around the tower stopped and turned around. The roar, the flapping of wings, and the pair of red eyes that now turned to Gemma and Nero.“Run!” shouted Nero.Gemma took the initiative a split second before Nero gave the order. She ran towards the stairs, but stopped and gave way to Nero because Gemma didn’t know where to run.Neither of them carried any special weapons, and even though Gemma only found out yesterday that she wouldn’t die when hit by a Draconian’s claw, that didn’t mean Gemma would just fight them off with no weapons.Gemma’s palms throbbed as she followed Nero down the stairs. Several Draconians caught up with the
The time setting for this chapter is after the terror incident in Fiend (Chapter: Act of Patience) and before Gemma trains with Servant (Chapter: Mind Over Matter).---Gemma had no idea what she was doing here.When Jo asked her out earlier, Gemma thought Jo was taking her to a lunch or asking her to investigate something. He had only said about making a visit before returning to Meubena, and Gemma did not know that Jo was referring to a visit to the Saint Anna orphanage.This is Sarah and Nero’s house.The way Gemma looked at Nero felt different now, after what they had been through. The alarm squealing that their relationship wasn’t the right thing was still sounding, and with Lanaya in her body, Gemma couldn’t act as she pleased.At least she couldn’t possibly kiss anyone right now. Gemma imagined Lanaya would let out a disgusted snort if she found Gemma doing it.But Gemma couldn’t avoid or forbid people from saying something to her.Just like Nero was doing now, in the gazebo in
“Re—a relationship?” Gemma stammered. “What do you mean?” Gemma was just about to tell Nero to forget what had happened between them. Especially after Gemma found out that Nero had been in charge of watching her all along, and he knew all of Gemma’s movements and habits. And after what Jo said, about Gemma being unable to be in a relationship with anyone… starting it now sounds like a bad idea. “You don’t understand?” There was disbelief in the way Nero asked the question. Yes, of course he didn’t believe it. Gemma wasn’t a child who didn’t understand Nero’s question. “It’s not like that...” Gemma said. “I understand.” Gemma closed her eyes for a moment as she took a deep breath. As she did so, she could hear a voice from inside her head. Either her own voice or Lanaya’s. This is wrong. “Then what is your answer?” Gemma opened her eyes, blinked, then looked at Nero. “Should I answer it now?” “I’m sure you’ll have the answer as soon as I ask.” “You know me very well, don’t yo
The time setting for this chapter is after the terror incident in Fiend (Chapter: Act of Patience) and before Gemma trains with Servant (Chapter: Mind Over Matter).---Gemma had no idea what she was doing here.When Jo asked her out earlier, Gemma thought Jo was taking her to a lunch or asking her to investigate something. He had only said about making a visit before returning to Meubena, and Gemma did not know that Jo was referring to a visit to the Saint Anna orphanage.This is Sarah and Nero’s house.The way Gemma looked at Nero felt different now, after what they had been through. The alarm squealing that their relationship wasn’t the right thing was still sounding, and with Lanaya in her body, Gemma couldn’t act as she pleased.At least she couldn’t possibly kiss anyone right now. Gemma imagined Lanaya would let out a disgusted snort if she found Gemma doing it.But Gemma couldn’t avoid or forbid people from saying something to her.Just like Nero was doing now, in the gazebo in
The sound of three meters wide glass hitting the ground seemed to stop time for a while.Gemma and Nero froze where they stood, looking at each other wide-eyed. Their kiss stopped, even with any thoughts that had previously crept into their minds and clouded their vision.Everything happened in seconds, but every moment felt so slow.As the Draconians flying around the tower stopped and turned around. The roar, the flapping of wings, and the pair of red eyes that now turned to Gemma and Nero.“Run!” shouted Nero.Gemma took the initiative a split second before Nero gave the order. She ran towards the stairs, but stopped and gave way to Nero because Gemma didn’t know where to run.Neither of them carried any special weapons, and even though Gemma only found out yesterday that she wouldn’t die when hit by a Draconian’s claw, that didn’t mean Gemma would just fight them off with no weapons.Gemma’s palms throbbed as she followed Nero down the stairs. Several Draconians caught up with the
“Who would have thought he’s that crazy woman’s boyfriend?”“How can she act like that when she has a boyfriend?”Gemma nodded, agreeing with Nero’s words. They left the laser tag arena as soon as the matter with the man was resolved.It turns out that after Gemma took Nero away from the woman named Angel; she called her boyfriend and said that Gemma had hurt her. Her boyfriend came to the laser tag arena not long after and insisted to take part in the game.The misunderstanding was resolved when Nero asked the manager to show the CCTV footage shortly after the briefing was done. It’s clear that Angel approached Gemma and Nero first and Gemma did nothing to her.“You should have asked for compensatory damage,” muttered Nero.“I don’t want to prolong the problem.” It’s as if Gemma hasn’t had much of a problem.Then Nero looked at Gemma, who was walking beside him. “Sorry. We failed to win the competition.”Gemma shrugged. “No problem,” she said. “There are many other ways to earn money
After registering, Gemma received a vest with a pentagon-shaped light on the chest. She put on the vest, then tied her hair with a rubber band that she carried around her wrist. Nero handed her a black laser gun with an arm-length rope. He attached the hook at the end of the rope to the hook on the front of Gemma’s vest. “The rules are simple. Point your gun at your opponent’s front, at the light on the vest,” Nero explained, pointing to the pentagon light on Gemma’s vest which now glowed aquamarine. The lamp is divided into five parts. “If all these lights go out, it means you lose and you have to quit the game.” Then Nero pointed towards the door that was opposite the entrance. The door was wide open, and Gemma could see expanses of clearing with tall trees growing within a few feet of each other. “We will do outdoor games. The team that retrieves the suitcase in the abandoned house, on the other end, will be the winner.” Gemma nodded, telling Nero she understood. As Gemma raised
Their first stop was the restaurant Gemma used to go to with Jo. This restaurant is always full at lunchtime, and most of the visitors are students and office workers who are taking a break. Gemma could only grumble inside her heart as pairs of eyes stared hungrily at Nero, as if he was the main dish in this place. If this had happened to Jo, Gemma would definitely nag and glare at those flirtatious girls. “Where do you want to sit?” asked Nero. They stopped in the middle of the restaurant and became the center of attention, like a Christmas tree with twinkling lights. Gemma looked around in a huff before grabbing Nero’s arm and leading him to a row of benches outside the restaurant. “Let’s sit here,” said Gemma. Then she dragged a stool near them and motioned for Nero to sit down. Nero offered a small smile before he sat down and that smile didn’t go away when Gemma sat across from him. “What is it?” Gemma asked, while side-eyeing from time to time at the group of students who wer
The bonus chapters are the story of Gemma and NeroIt seemed Gemma had just drifted off to sleep when her cell phone rang loudly. It sounded like a nuisance alarm that made Gemma let out a lazy moan. She reached out and groped over the nightstand for the noisy object. Gemma opened her still-heavy eyes to find out who the human dared to disturb her sleep. She saw Purity’s name on the phone screen. Gemma glanced at the corner of the phone screen and found that it was now the library rush hour. Maybe Purity needs her help.“What is it?” Gemma’s voice was hoarse as her throat felt as dry as a desert.“Someone’s looking for you.”“Who?” Gemma asked as she rolled over on the bed. One hand parted the curtain to look at the sky. Today is sunny. The atmosphere was so peaceful that Gemma couldn’t believe that last night a terrible tragedy had occurred at King’s Door. After this, she would call Jo to find out what happened last night.“The man who drove you earlier.”“Huh?”Hearing this, Gemma s
Slam!The door slammed shut in front of Gemma and Lysis. They looked at each other, exhaled a long breath that was a form of patience. At least, today’s rejection is not as much as yesterday’s.Lysis was holding a stack of leaflets in one hand, while the other was holding a plastic bag containing the ingredients for their dinner.“Shall we try a few more houses?” asked Lysis reluctantly. His face brightened as Gemma shook her head. Gemma stared intently at the leaflet she was holding until it was crumpled.PREPARE YOUR CHILDREN’S FUTURE, BECOME A TRUE ARCHTURIANThe title of the leaflet she made by racking her brains. But the rejection that she and Lysis experienced wasn’t solely because of a bad title. It was more for the parents in Fiend who never really thought much about their children.“Even though we’re having a free promo…,” Gemma whispered, her voice sounding hollow.They walked along the broken pavement in the neighborhood a few blocks from Gemma’s house.Lysis glanced at Gem
Gemma looked up at the sky, which was now filled with black shards. Everything sounded like a buzzing in her ears, and she didn’t close her eyes as the ashes from the shattered bodies of the Draconians hit her face. After that, she knew Jo came to her and hugged her, protecting her body from the black rain.The four of them walked to the front of the building and found the injured Archturians mingling with firefighters and paramedics. The lights from the ambulance sirens and the fire engines flickered alternately, briefly reminding Gemma of the lights in a nightclub. Jo’s arms were still around her shoulders, as if afraid that Gemma would fall if Jo let her go.Out of all the chaos, Gemma found people she knew gathered in a corner at the edge of the forest. Uncle Jonah and Sarah, and two paramedics, who were packing their equipment. One paramedic turned to call his other friend, while another paramedic spoke to Uncle Jonah with a sad expression on his face. They were swarming somethin