Emily’s small frame trembled.
She cried without sound, her shoulders shaking as she clung to Alice like she’d fall apart otherwise.
Alice didn’t speak.
She just held her and continued patting her head.
Her skill [Miracle of Grace] activated again, casting a faint glow.
The skill had already leveled up twice from healing everyone earlier. That was enough to tell her how powerful the mist’s negative status effect had been.
The gentle warmth spread from her palm.
It was soothing the weight of fear still clinging to Emily’s heart.
Emily slowly calmed down. Her body stopped trembling. Her arms relaxed, and though her eyes were still red, the tears had stopped.
“Are you okay now?” Alice said softly.
Emily didn’t let go, but she nodded into her chest.
Alice looked up and turned toward Professor Catherine. “What kind of monster was that?”
Professor Catherine didn’t answer immediately. Her eyes followed the fading mist as it drifted across the cracked landscape.
“Its name is [Phantom Voice],” she finally said. “It usually stays near the Mourning Frost Mountains. I’ve never heard of it leaving that place. This is the first time it’s appeared here.”
Alice frowned.
“Why would it move toward the city? That doesn’t seem random.”
Professor Catherine didn’t answer.
Alice narrowed her eyes, watching the mist spread slowly into the distance. “We should head back. If that thing’s heading toward Isaac’s farm…”
Emily jerked in her arms. She looked from Alice to Professor Catherine.
“We have to go back,” Emily said. “Now.”
Professor Catherine stayed silent.
Emily’s expression shifted, caught between panic and confusion. “Aunty?”
“We’re continuing the wilderness exploration,” Professor Catherine said finally.
“What?” Emily stepped forward, visibly tense. “But—Isaac—”
“I said no,” Professor Catherine repeated, firmer this time.
Alice stood, her arms tightening into fists. “Then I’ll go back by myself.”
Before she could take a step, a massive weight slammed onto her shoulders.
The air seemed to twist, and the ground beneath her feet cracked as her knees buckled. Her breath hitched.
Alice barely managed to stay upright.
The pressure vanished as quickly as it had come.
Alice sucked in a breath and looked up. Her eyes burned with fury as she glared at Professor Catherine.
She was about to say something until she noticed Professor Catherine’s expression.
The two of them exchanged glances.
Then, Professor Catherine spoke, “The weight you just felt now was my ’Presence’. It allows monsters and high-level awakeners let others feel their strength.”
“You felt my Presence. So, you should be able to tell how strong am I.”
Alice gave a small nod.
“[Phantom’s Voice] is strong,” Professor Catherine said. “But I’m stronger. It caught me off guard earlier, and I was worried it might be a mutated species since it could leave the Mourning Frost Mountains.
“But now I confirmed it’s a normal [Phantom’s Voice], I can handle it rather easily.”
She paused, then added more softly, “You two focus on the wilderness. That’s what we came here to do. I will eliminate the monster before it harms Isaac”
Alice did not seem convinced.
Professor Catherine added, “Alice, focus on the monster hunt. The faster you get stronger, the sooner you can protect Isaac yourself. Even if you go back now, it won’t be enough.”
Alice looked down.
Her fists were still clenched, but she didn’t say anything else.
Emily wiped her eyes and looked at Professor Catherine. “Isaac will be safe, right?”
Professor Catherine finally smiled.
“Have I ever lied to you?”
…
Catherine Lorrain POV
Catherine moved through the wilderness like a streak of lightning.
Her form blurred with speed, the ground cracking beneath her feet every time she accelerated.
The shockwaves from her movement shattered old roots and loose rocks, and each time she kicked off the earth, she left a small crater behind.
The wind tore past her face.
Branches split apart in her wake.
She was moving so fast that the air itself split around her, breaking the sound barrier as she crossed the ruined terrain.
In the distance, she could already see it. The monster. The [Phantom Voice].
It drifted forward silently.
The mist pulsed like breath, spreading in waves that swallowed the trees and land beneath it.
Catherine narrowed her eyes.
She didn’t go near it.
Instead, she arced wide around the creature’s path and ran along the curve of its movement.
She wasn’t here to fight it yet.
’I need to find out why it left the Mourning Frost Mountains before I fight it.’
It might have come for Isaac, or maybe the Nagas were doing something.
She needed to aware of the cause behind the monster’s appearance here before she fought it.
Within minutes, the looming towers of the Horizon Institute’s stronghold came into view.
The walls stood tall, surrounded by a moat of barren, scorched ground.
Outposts dotted the perimeter, and high-level awakeners patrolled the gates.
A pair of lookouts turned toward her as she approached, sensing the high-speed presence closing in.
She stopped just before the outer wall, letting the pressure of her arrival ripple outward in a small shockwave.
Dust kicked up around her boots.
“I need to speak with your general. Now.”
One of the awakeners guarding the gate narrowed his eyes.
“State your name and purpose. This stronghold—”
“Catherine Lorrain,” she interrupted. “Tell your general [Phantom Voice] is heading this way.”
The awakener blinked, confused. Then he scoffed.
“Make a better joke next time. That monster’s habitat is the Mourning Frost Mountains. It can’t be here.”
A cold expression adorned Catherine’s face.
She just stepped forward.
Her presence surged, far stronger than what she had shown Alice.
The guard groaned and was smashed into the ground.
The other guards were alerted, but ignoring them, she moved forward.
The inside of the stronghold was structured and busy, with buildings organized around the central command tower.
She didn’t stop for anyone.
Her boots echoed sharply as she reached the tower’s main building and didn’t bother knocking.
She kicked the door open.
It flew off its hinges and slammed against the far wall.
The general inside stood up immediately, red-faced.
“What the hell—!”
His words died the moment he saw her.
“…Evil Sword?”
The anger drained from his face. Replaced by something closer to fear.
Catherine gave a single nod.
“The [Phantom Voice] is moving toward this location. You need to begin evacuation immediately.”
The general didn’t respond for a few seconds. He frowned. “That monster’s territory is the Mourning Frost Mountains. What would it be doing here?”
“I don’t know,” Catherine said. “But I’ve seen it with my own eyes. It’s heading straight here.”
The tension in the room shifted.
The general looked at her carefully.
“…Are you sure it is on the way here?” he asked again.
“I wouldn’t be here if I wasn’t.”
The room went silent again.
The general knew about [Phantom Voice].
It was a monster far beyond human capabilities.
The creature was so dangerous and horrifying that knowledge about it wasn’t taught to awakeners unless they were ready to venture into wilderness.
Even the strongest Champion-ranked awakeners were nothing in front of it.
Only Overlords could fight that kind of thing.
The general cleared his throat.
“There are… rumors,” he said slowly. “That you fought more than one of those monsters in the Mourning Frost Mountains. Can’t you deal with this one too?”
Catherine shook her head.
“This one might be different since it left its habitat. For all we know, it’s a mutated monster. Instead of risking a losing battle, we should let it pass.”
“So the plan is to run?”
“Yes. [Phantom Voice] doesn’t attack infrastructure. It’s focused on living people who are caught in its mist.”
She stepped closer to the desk.
“Evacuate your people. Let it pass through the stronghold. Once it’s gone, you can return.”
“Evacuating the whole stronghold would take time.”
“That’s the only choice we have.”
The general looked unconvinced.
Running away with their tails tuck between their legs would affect the image of Horizon Institute.
But situations like this were common in today’s post-apocalypse world.
Against front of powerful monsters, people could only run and hide.
If even the armies consisting of entire Apex species had been annihilated in the past, what could anyone does now?
Over the years the monsters had become stronger through mutations and evolutions.
The moment the people of the past lost against the apocalypse, any chances of future retaliation had disappeared.
In todays would, they could only escape and hide to ensure their survival.
Within minutes, sirens blared across the stronghold.
Teleportation anchors were activated, and warp points were opened in organized batches.
Each platform was covered with swirling blue clouds as awakeners and staff moved in orderly lines.
Catherine stood off to the side, watching.
Trucks moved civilians toward the pads.
Teams of soldiers carried crates filled with emergency supplies.
Students from the Horizon Institute were guided by their instructors to form squads, and each was assigned a teleportation group.
It was all very practiced.
They’d had been trained for orderly evacuation.
A tall woman from the logistics department jogged past Catherine, holding a comm-crystal and barking orders. “Group B-3 to Platform Four! Don’t wait for clearance. Move!”
Catherine watched as a young boy—no older than sixteen—stumbled on the stairs to the pad. A woman, probably his teacher, caught his arm and pulled him along. The boy didn’t cry. He looked too stunned to even blink.
Another officer shouted, “Six minutes until final departure!”
The portals buzzed louder.
More than a thousand people were now moving.
Portable barriers shimmered to life to prevent any last-minute interference.
Several high-level awakeners surrounded the edges of the platforms, guarding against the possibility of a monster appearing mid-evacuation.
They weren’t expecting to fight.
But they had to be ready anyway.
Catherine stood near the last pad. She wasn’t evacuating.
The general approached her again.
“I’ve sent them all to the Sanctum’s stronghold,” he said. “You’re sure it won’t attack the buildings?”
“If it does, then I’ll stop it,” she said.
He studied her for a moment, then he gave a tight nod.
“I’m staying too. Someone has to make the report of the event.”
“I’ll make the report. You should leave.”