Chapter 65 Wrath’s Return
Once the dust had settled, the door to the jet opened slowly, revealing a sleek and modern interior. Two women emerged from the jet, one of them wearing a gas mask that obscured her face.
The first one wore black leather jackets and black jeans, having black hair with red highlights that looked somewhat unnatural. The other woman had long auburn hair tied in a long braid behind her back, and wore a luxurious blue suit with a mini-skirt, giving off a businesswoman vibe.
After fully recovering from the loss of her blood and magic essence, Greed brings Wrath to Tessia Kingdom.
As they walk together, Greed addresses her friend, who is also acting as her bodyguard.
"Hey, Wrath…" Greed says, eyeing her friend suspiciously.
"Huh?" Wrath replies, intrigued by what her friend wants to ask.
"Why the gas mask?" Greed inquires, noting the mask obscuring Wrath's face.
"...." Wrath doesn't respond immediately, coming to a sudden halt.
"From what you've told me about him, you do know he's not stupid, right? He'd surely remember you, and maybe he already knows it's you and is laughing behind your back at your foolish attempt to deceive him," Greed points out.
"I don't think he'd do that…" Wrath tries to deny, but then an old memory resurfaces. She recalls playing chess with him and falling into one of his traps. Daniel had smiled amusedly at her failed attempt to checkmate him.
"No...he would actually do it…for sure," Wrath admits, remembering the fact.
"Argh! What have I done! If I see him again, he'll definitely laugh at me!" Wrath exclaims, shaken by the thought of Daniel's tendency to tease and mock her actions.
"Ah, how hopeless you are," Greed sighed at her friend's antics. "You're overreacting. He'll just tease you and laugh at you for a while, and that's it. Don't fret too much," she said, trying to calm her friend down.
After spending a few minutes calming her friend down, Wrath and Greed walked into the terminal. But everyone's faces seemed gloomy, as if something had happened. Many people were dressed in black, and some even cried in relief after meeting their waiting friends at the airport.
Something was definitely wrong.
The two women, though curious, continued walking towards their destination without dwelling too much on the news until a reporter on a large screen at the airport caught their attention. The woman, dressed in a black suit, began reporting somberly.
"Yesterday evening, during Operation Martyr, the Tessia Kingdom Defense Ministry decided to use a superheated, high-yield bomb to destroy a lethal bio-weapon in the possession of terrorists who were hiding in a condominium at the center of Sector Alpha City," she announced.
The news displayed before-and-after pictures of the condominium where Daniel had lived before it was bombed, before cutting back to the reporter.
"According to the official statement from the defense minister, this mission was a successful attack against the heart of the terrorist organization, despite the thousands of sacrifices made by the loyal people of Tessia who were involved in the operation."
Wrath was stunned, and her hands trembled as she slowly took off her gas mask and wiped her eyes to make sure that she wasn't seeing things. She quickly grabbed her phone and dialed Daniel's number, but there was no answer on the other end.
Desperately, she checked her GPS to see where Daniel was during the time of the bomb. She had installed a tracker in the phone she gave him for situations like this.
"Load… quickly quick! load it you piece of junk!" she muttered and cursed at her phone under her breath as she waited for the program to load.
Finally, the location where Daniel was when the bomb went off appeared on her screen. Her heart sank as she saw that he was at the condominium. She refused to lose hope and kept staring at the screen, hoping for a different result. But there was no mistaking it, Daniel was there at the time of the explosion.
Memories of old days flooded her mind - the day she first met Daniel, the day he died in front of her, and the day she met him again after thinking he was gone forever.
In a state of panic, Wrath bolted out of the terminal, shoving aside anyone who stood in her way, even a large man who was no match for her strength.
"Shit…" Greed cursed under her breath, realizing her friend had lost control. She quickly followed and struggled to keep up despite her inferior physical abilities.
"Wrath!" Greed shouted at her friend once again, this time using a calming spell to help her friend, who was in a deep state of panic, to calm down.
Slowly, Wrath stopped and turned towards Greed. She had promised to be her friend's bodyguard and didn't want to break that promise.
"Wrath, come on! I have a helicopter waiting for us. Let's go to ground zero," said Greed, bringing her friend, who had just regained her composure.
Without saying anything, Wrath nodded and followed Greed out of the terminal.
— Sector Alpha City, Ground Zero —
The city was in complete ruins, as far as the eye could see. The once bustling streets were now covered in a thick layer of ash and debris. Buildings that had once stood tall were now nothing but rubble and twisted metal.
The sound of emergency sirens could be heard echoing throughout the city, as police, medics, doctors, firefighters, and rescue teams worked tirelessly to try and find any survivors buried beneath the rubble.
The scene was chaotic, with hundreds of emergency personnel working around the clock in a desperate attempt to save lives. The air was thick with the smell of smoke and dust, making it difficult to breathe. Every once in a while, a loud roar could be heard as another building collapsed under the weight of the destruction.
Despite the overwhelming devastation, the emergency responders refused to give up hope. They worked tirelessly, using every resource at their disposal to try and find any survivors. Every second was crucial, as time was running out for those who may still be trapped under the rubble.
The teams worked tirelessly, often putting themselves in great danger to save others. It was a testament to the strength and bravery of these emergency responders, who put their own lives on the line to help those in need.
Despite the long hours and dangerous conditions, the emergency responders remained determined. They were driven by a sense of duty and a desire to help those who were suffering.
Ragnar, being familiar with Daniel's whereabouts, utilized his personal funds to hire an elite rescue team from outside the Tessia kingdom to assist in the search for survivors and to locate Daniel's well-being.
He understood that if they couldn't even find Daniel's remains, it would drive Wrath to the brink of insanity. With her current emotional state, fueled by grief and anger towards the culprit responsible for the tragedy, there was a high risk of her exposing the Curtained World to the public while trying to exact her revenge.
Ragnar and his elite rescue team tirelessly combed through the rubble and debris, using advanced equipment and techniques to locate anyone who might still be alive. Meanwhile, as they worked, a helicopter emblazoned with the Golden Empire Group logo approached ground zero.
Ragnar couldn't help but curse under his breath at the sight of it. "Tch! Speak of the devil!"
He knew who was likely inside that helicopter. It was probably Greed, accompanied by Wrath as her bodyguard.
"Grant them clearance to land!" Ragnar yelled at his nearby staff, who promptly signaled the helicopter pilot to land in the nearby clearing.
As the helicopter descended, Wrath jumped out before it had fully landed, checking her phone's GPS to locate Daniel amidst the debris and rubble.
Observing the somber expression on Wrath's face, Ragnar decided to take action and dialed a specific number he had saved for such emergencies.
"This is Ragnar Stenmark, the High Councilor. Activate the mind dampeners in Sector Alpha City's ground zero and the surrounding area," he ordered.
"Understood, Lord Stenmark," came the reply from the other end of the phone as Ragnar hung up and quickly followed Wrath. He didn't want to take any chances with her fierce temperament, which could potentially lead her to harm innocent people.
As they made their way through the rubble and debris, Wrath checked her phone's GPS again and again, trying to locate any sign of Daniel's whereabouts. She was becoming increasingly agitated and impatient as time went on, and Ragnar knew he needed to do something to calm her down before she lost control.