Chapter 255

The drones maneuvered throughout the area, panning and recording the ongoing battle in real-time.

They transmitted the footage back to the control tower and simultaneously to Lincoln’s tablet, as his naked eyes couldn’t possibly catch every skirmish unfolding across the sprawling cityscape.

With the device in hand, he was able to track the chaos with precision.

His fingers danced across the screen, switching between various cameras and angles to monitor whatever sector required his attention.

Suddenly, his communication bud blinked once.

— "Hm. We really secured an impressive bunch this year."

"Agreed. This situation has merely provided us with a golden opportunity to observe them and determine who will be truly useful in the eventual war against the Aberrants," Lincoln replied.

— "From what I can see, I can already figure out who is destined for the Iron Corps and who belongs in the Vanguard Order."

"Exactly. Look at the blue-haired girl. She was the first to charge into the fray. Fearless and courageous. She is the perfect material for the VO."

— "And look at that handsome blonde. He possesses significant strength as well."

The next second, a deafening shout echoed into Lincoln’s ear, making him yelp loudly.

He nearly clawed the bud out of his ear in surprise.

— "The hell are you doing?! Shouldn’t you be out there fighting?!"

"Damn it, Captain Jake! I’m conserving my energy for when the boss emerges, while allowing the Aspirants to thin out the minions. You can’t expect me to squander my strength here, now can you?"

— "Is that why you are standing there making commentary with another Sergeant?"

"We are simply assisting the Corps in evaluating these kids."

— "Tch. Just make sure none of them die, alrig—"

BANG—!

A massive, thunderous bang echoed across the battlefield, cutting through the ambient noise of explosions and clashing steel.

— "What the hell was that?"

— "Switching views now..."

Back at the Corps headquarters, the screen in the control room flickered.

Those in the command center, along with Captain Jake, could finally see the source of the disturbance.

For a fleeting second, they had assumed the boss had launched an attack, but instead, they witnessed a beast being blasted through the air.

It smashed through four burning cars before finally coming to a halt.

It lay there, completely unmoving....

"Impossible. How can an Aspirant neutralize an Advanced-rank beast with a single punch? That’s insane. Zoom in on that position immediately!"

— "Yes, sir."

The technician at the keyboard typed a flurry of commands.

The drone zoomed in on a figure who had smoke oozing from his fist, as if he had dipped his hand into an inferno and then quenched it in water.

He stood poised and utterly unfazed.

Faint, erratic sparks of lightning crackled around his knuckles—a detail only Jake caught before the energy vanished entirely.

Ray’s face was now displayed clearly on the monitor.

Upon seeing him, the Captain’s eyes stretched wide with disbelief.

"Him? But how?"

If memory served the Captain correctly—and it always did—the kid was supposed to be a 1.2-grade non-meta.

So how was this possible?

’Unless....’

Jake’s gaze sharpened as he recalled the teenager selling a King-rank core to him and asking pointed questions about ability books.

’... Did he acquire an ability book that granted him this power? But to master it in such a short window of time is unheard of.’

The man’s brows knit together as he stared at the screen.

Ray was standing protectively in front of Van, staring at his own fist in a flicker of surprise.

’And did I just see lightning dancing around his hand? Did he somehow gain a lightning ability? But... I have never seen nor heard of a lightning ability existing before. So what exactly is this?’

Grabbing the microphone situated on the table, Jake leaned in.

"Lincoln, you’re seeing this too, right?"

— "Yes, Captain. And to be honest, I have been waiting for him to finally take action for a while now."

"Really? You’ve taken notice of him as well?"

— Precisely. During the first few days after the Aspirants were admitted, I hadn’t even registered his presence. That changed during the VMS training, where he began blitzing through the drills as if they were nothing.

"Same here," Jake muttered.

"He absorbs every technique I teach with terrifying speed. Even maneuvers I had only demonstrated once, he would replicate perfectly."

Click! Click! Click!

The technician’s hands flew across the keyboard as she pulled up the official files on the Tribrid.

"It says here that he is an orphan and one of the refugees from Wall Rose after it fell to an Aberrant attack. He lost his mother and sister during the invasion. He definitely has no formal backing or family legacy."

The woman paused for a moment before adding;

"... It also states that he was a weak-grade human who often suffered from bullying within the Corps. Recent reports even indicate he was involved in a scuffle with Berg."

The Captain raised a skeptical brow.

"Berg? Berg who?"

It was Lincoln who replied this time, his tone grim.

"Berg from the Immortal Flame legacy family."

Jake’s eyes narrowed instantly.

"The descendant of one of the Big Four?"

The attendant nodded solemnly.

"How on Alcatraz did he survive a confrontation with Berg? Wait... why am I only hearing about this now?!"

The attendant simply shrugged as all the Militants in the room turned their collective gaze back to the screen.

On the monitor, the boy could be seen staring into space, appearing almost as if he had blanked out while absolute chaos unfolded in every direction around him.

— "I don’t know about you, Captain, but I already consider him a monster."

Thinking back to those erratic sparks of lightning, Jake turned his attention toward the attendant stationed at the keyboard.

"After this is all over, ensure the kid is brought in for a full re-evaluation. He can’t possibly be just an ordinary human."

"Sure," she replied, her fingers already logging the request.

Looking back at the screen that prominently displayed Ray’s image and name, Jake crossed his arms.

He began mentally cataloging every previous encounter he had shared with the boy.

Most of what Ray did never quite made sense. And even now, the pieces of the puzzle refused to fit.

It hadn’t been more than two weeks since their last meeting, so how could he have mastered a new ability so quickly?

Earlier, Jake had been willing to overlook certain oddities, but now, his curiosity was piqued.

He was determined to uncover the truth.

’Ray Dawson...’