Chapter 271

"No, No, No, No, No....." Jake shouted from the control room at what he was seeing in front of the screen.

"...."

Both Lincoln, the officials in the control room, the Aspirants, and even the Iron Corps members froze in pure undiluted shock at what they had just witnessed.

The drones were still hovering in the air as they all stared at the empty spot where the portal had hovered just moments before.

Berg, too, looked shocked as he finished slaying the last beast before him.

He wasn’t stunned for the same reason everyone else was; he was in disbelief over something entirely different.

’Wait... Ray is gone? He’s gone with all his squad?! Hahahaha! The gate is gone too! They are gone for life! Finally... I didn’t even have to lift a finger, he is gone! Woah! I can’t believe this...’

"....!!!"

"Wh-What just happened?" Lincoln questioned himself aloud as he stared blankly at the screen of his tablet.

"Fuckkkk!" Jake screamed as he smashed his hand onto a nearby desk, causing deep cracks to appear instantly across the surface of the wood.

Those present in the control room couldn’t move nor say a single word as they watched the Captain rage. 𝚏𝐫𝚎𝗲𝕨𝐞𝐛𝕟𝚘𝐯𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝗺

His teeth ground back and forth with thick veins popping across the side of his head.

He looked immensely furious for some terrifying reason.

— Captain? What happened?

Lincoln could be heard questioning through the audio feed in the control room.

— How did the portal vanish like that? And... Red... Red Gate? I don’t think I have ever encountered one before.

Jake kept his head hung low as he stared down at the fractures lining the table.

His teeth were clenched so tightly that if he wasn’t careful, they could shatter.

His mind spun with incredible speed as he replayed all the events that had transpired up until the exact moment the gate vanished.

’How did this happen? This is bad... incredibly so.’

Nobody in the control room dared to interrupt the Captain as he gripped the edges of the desk, his teeth biting his lower lip in deep thought.

"Lincoln... the beasts, have they all been taken care of?" Jake finally asked without lifting his gaze.

"..."

There was a moment of silence as if Lincoln was confirming the perimeter, and after a few seconds, his voice was heard again.

— Yeah. The Aspirants are catching their breath at the moment. Those who witnessed what just happened are still in shock. So am I. What exactly is going on?

Without giving any tangible reply whatsoever, Jake lifted his head and looked toward the woman in the room who was seated in front of the primary console.

"Bring up the files on those kids who vanished inside the gate."

Clack. Tap. Tap.

Within moments, seven different files popped up on the display screen with each of the teenagers’ images, personal details, and ranks on full display.

"Grade 1, grade 2, grade 1.2...." Jake read the information aloud until he suddenly paused on one specific image and set of details.

The name displayed on the monitor and the prominent last name shone back at him as if actively taunting him.

His teeth grit instinctively.

"Oh boy... this is bad. The Gen... forget about the General; even the Commander wouldn’t be able to save us from this now," Jake uttered in dread as he stared fixedly at the name.

"Caster..."

— Captain! The kids. What will happen to the kids? The gate has entirely vanished so I can’t even go in to rescue them. What’s going on?! Is there an explanation for this?! Can those kids survive? I don’t even understand!

"...."

Jake heaved a tired sigh while shaking his head.

He leaned forward, grabbing the microphone, and then uttered:

"They are good as dead."

"....?!"

— What?!

Jake nodded with another heavy breath.

"Yes. The moment they got dragged into that gate and it vanished, their fates were sealed. They are good as dead."

— I don’t understand.

"..."

Jake thought for a few seconds before his gaze sharpened.

"Regardless of their tiers, all gates are blue in color. The only way we can differentiate their tiers is by the ranks of the beasts that emerge, right?"

— Yeah?

"All gates, regardless of their tiers and the ranks of beasts, follow a set rule. No deviation, no changes. So one always knows what to expect inside, right?"

— Yes?

"But for fuck’s sake, that is not the case with a red gate! It follows no set rules at all. Time moves differently there, and the dangers are at an all-time high. The gate was originally classified as a tier 2 gate, right? Well, now, it has no classification. Any sort of beast can roam in that world they have been pulled into."

"...."

Lincoln processed the words for a few seconds, then asked with a slight stutter in his voice,

— You mean... they could face a beast above the King rank?

"...."

"If they are even lucky enough to find a beast below the King rank, then that’s great," Jake responded grimly.

"Horrors beyond their imaginations, beasts far beyond their strengths, and now with the gate gone, there’s no escape for them. No way for them to return.

Time moves differently on a red gate world.

They are as good as dead. Nobody can save them except for a streak of pure luck. If the heavens smile on them, they could survive, but their survival chance is..."

Jake hesitated as he clenched his hands angrily.

"Less than two percent."

"...!!!"

The Captain thought for a few seconds before looking at two specific names on the screen being displayed in front of him: Kai and Caster...

’Larson... that name sounds oddly familiar. Where have I heard that family name before?’

"The kids will die there, and we will be in big trouble here," Jake added after a brief thought.

— Meaning?

"....."

"Two of the kids are Legacies. And one of them is from a powerful legacy family. An immensely powerful family."

— Huh? Is there any Legacy more powerful than the Big Four?

"...."

Jake thought for a few seconds as his mind flashed back to all the things Ray had displayed throughout the battle.

Then he looked back at Caster’s and Kai’s images.

’Larson... Kai Larson... I need to find out more. But for now,’

The Captain’s gaze shifted back to Caster’s image on the pop-up display.

’... We need to figure out a way to deal with his family.’

Heaving a heavy sigh, Jake shook his head.

"Round up the rest of the Aspirants and head back. We will send over a team to help with the cleanup. In the meantime," Jake turned to the other Sergeant in the room with him.

"Classify the Aspirants that got sucked into that gate as... dead."