My Borderline Supervillain-Slash-Hero System-Chapter 74 – Return at Nevermore

Three days later...

At the extraction point, deep within the ruins of Nevermore City, three agents of the Temple of Assassins remained stationed, awaiting the return of Zane and Shelby. It had been two full weeks since the duo had left, and still, there was no sign of them.

In all this time, the agents hadn’t left the ruined city once. They camped in the shadows of collapsed towers, ate rationed meals, and trained regularly to stay sharp.

As the morning sun rose through the haze, the three agents gathered as usual for their daily check-in, their breaths visible in the cold air of the cursed city.

This time, Agent Kassam broke the silence.

"If they don’t return today, we’re pulling out," he said bluntly. "Let’s assume they failed the trial and died somewhere in this wasteland."

The other two agents frowned.

Elizabeth McGraw, sharp-eyed and sharp-tongued, folded her arms. "Who are you to decide that?" she snapped. "When we accepted this mission, the instructions were clear: we wait at the extraction point as long as necessary. We know both applicants are still alive—so we stay."

Kassam narrowed his eyes. "Don’t twist this. There’s nothing in the rules that says I’m wrong. This so-called ’simple’ mission has taken far too long."

Elizabeth’s voice turned cold. "Ah, I see where this is coming from—your teacher’s philosophy, right? You and that mentor of yours... cut from the same stubborn, arrogant cloth."

Their argument was nothing new. Since the start of the mission, Elizabeth and Kassam had been at each other’s throats. They belonged to opposing factions within the Temple, often clashing over ideology and methods.

Elizabeth’s faction saw Zane and Shelby as valuable assets—talents with potential. Kassam’s faction, however, considered them opportunists who had advanced through underhanded means.

Meanwhile, the third agent, Barun, belonged to a neutral faction—and had spent the past two weeks playing mediator.

He sighed dramatically. "Ah, not again. I swear, I must’ve been assigned here just to babysit you two brats."

"Shut up!" both Elizabeth and Kassam barked in unison.

Barun raised his hands in surrender. "Alright, alright. No more comments. Next time you two put swords to each other’s throats, I won’t interfere. Happy now?"

Suddenly, Barun’s expression changed. His eyes narrowed, head tilting.

"Wait... do you hear that?" He lifted a hand to signal silence. "Footsteps. Several. Headed this way."

Elizabeth reached for her weapons. "Could it be Zane and Shelby?"

Barun nodded, serious now. "Could be. Either way, we follow protocol."

Without another word, the agents dispersed.

They returned to their respective tents, quickly dismantling camp. In moments, their canvases were folded, supplies vanished into enchanted silk pouches, and all signs of their presence were erased. With practiced efficiency, they activated stealth mode, hiding in the shadows of crumbling stone walls and broken arches.

Then... movement.

Four figures approached through the rubble-strewn street.

The agents waited in tense silence until two of the faces became visible.

Zane. Shelby.

Elizabeth let out a small breath of relief.

"They made it," Elizabeth murmured. This was their first mission in this fractured world, and every agent had mentally prepared for the worst. Seeing the pair alive—and walking—was no small miracle.

"It’s us," Zane called out, his voice firm. "You can come out now. Mission complete."

From the shadows, the three agents emerged—cloaked, masked, and vigilant.

Zane’s eyes flicked to each of them, and with the help of the All-Seeing Vision, their stat overlays lit up above their heads. Impressive—each of them had four core attributes exceeding 6,500 points.

Then he glanced at Shelby, but, as always, the system couldn’t read a single thing from his stats.

"Where’s the Beast Mana Core?" Elizabeth asked in a surprisingly masculine voice, distorted through her mask.

"You’re looking at him," Zane replied, pointing directly at Sebastian Hemp, who stood chained beside them.

"I don’t follow," she said, narrowing her eyes.

Zane smirked. "Agents, meet the infamous Celestial Wolf King—alive and captured."

"That wasn’t the mission," Kassam cut in sharply, his tone accusatory. "You were ordered to retrieve the Beast Mana Core of a Celestial Wolf—not bring him back."

Zane clenched his jaw. He recognized Kassam—the same agent who’d been openly antagonistic toward them from the beginning.

"Are you dense?" Zane snapped. "He is the Celestial Wolf King. If you want the mana core so bad, go ahead—rip it from him yourself. Or are you too stupid to understand what a live capture means?"

Shelby, who had remained silent until now, chuckled softly.

Kassam’s eyes flared. He reached for his blade, fury simmering in his posture—but before he could draw, Elizabeth stepped in.

"Enough," she ordered, pushing his hand away. "Let’s follow protocol. I’ll confirm with command."

Kassam grumbled, stepping back but still glaring.

"And who’s she?" he added, nodding toward Erlin. "Another stray you picked up?"

"She’s none of your business," Zane said coldly. "She comes with me."

Kassam was about to argue again when Barun intervened, stepping between them. "Cool it, both of you," he said. "Let’s focus on the verification first."

Elizabeth tapped her wrist device, bringing up a holographic interface. Her fingers flew across the screen as she activated the encrypted chat system. Moments later, she raised her watch and snapped a photo of Sebastian.

Zane watched curiously. So their messaging system works even in this world... impressive.

After a tense few minutes, a soft chime rang.

Elizabeth’s gaze flicked to the response. She nodded. "Confirmation received. Command verifies: he is the target. Priority One—capture and extract alive. Good job."

She reached into her pouch and tossed two small metallic boxes to Zane and Shelby.

"Scan the embedded codes—one-time use. Once activated, you’ll be registered officially as agents of the organization."

Zane caught the box, turning it over in his palm.

"What about the girl?" Kassam asked again, frowning.

"She’s not our concern," Elizabeth replied curtly. "If Zane wants her along, that’s his call. The mission’s complete. Now prepare the path home."

The two male agents drew their blades and slashed the air with synchronized movements. A spatial rift tore open—dark, swirling, and ready for transit.

Just as they were about to enter, Shelby’s voice rang out, calm and sharp.

"That’s enough lurking. You might as well show yourselves now."

From the nearby tree line, a figure stepped forward—a tall man clad in gleaming silver armor, a broad sword slung across his back. His presence was regal, commanding.

"You knew we were watching?" the man asked.

Shelby smiled faintly. "Hard not to, when you stomp around like an elephant in chainmail."

A gasp followed.

"Big Brother!" Erlin cried out.

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