"How is she now?"

Hannah heard the question and turned to find Clara approaching her.

The short-haired girl let out a sigh before answering, "She’s doing better. The doctors said she’ll recover in a few days, and in about a week, she should be allowed to return home."

She was an awakened being and with the modern technology available at the hospital, her recovery was going well.

Naturally, the hospital comes under PSC jurisdiction that’s why Layena was given priority over others to be treated instantly.

Some might call it being biased but a healthy Nightwalker could protect hundreds all alone from a danger normal humans couldn’t even see.

After a brief pause, Hannah crossed her arms and asked, "How is Ethan?" Her voice held both concern and mild frustration.

Clara pressed her lips together.

Oddly enough, she seemed far more affected when it came to Ethan than Layena herself. Another dumb one in love.

In a quieter voice, she replied, "He’s...recovering. Just very weak right now."

Ethan had collapsed in the corridor that morning from sheer shock.

Although he had been sent home the previous night, he spent the entire time standing in the alley beside the hospital before returning the moment visiting hours began.

And when he was finally allowed to see Layena...

He simply could not handle the trauma of witnessing her condition.

Ethan had gone through countless gruesome missions before, but when it came to someone he genuinely cared about, the shock became too much for him to endure.

"I still don’t understand why they haven’t caught the culprit yet," Clara muttered under her breath, clear frustration visible on her face.

Hannah replied, "Maybe whoever did this knows how to erase footage and remove their traces."

Clara scoffed.

"So you still think it was her sister after all?" She shook her head. "No one could be that cruel to their own family member, Hannah. I think you’re mistaken."

Hannah did not argue back.

She had never possessed any evidence to support her assumption, nor did she hold any personal grudge against Ava that would make her force the blame onto her.

She had simply chosen the possibility that seemed the most likely.

Bzz

Hearing her phone vibrate, Hannah took it out.

Clara raised a brow. "Who is it?"

"It’s the Commander," Hannah replied before answering the call.

Clara immediately fell silent, not wanting to interrupt.

Hannah was the first to speak.

"Good morning, Commander."

{Hmm. Are you at the hospital?}

"Yes, ma’am. Is there an emergency?" She glanced around to check if there was overhearing them.

Ever since they had returned from the trip, there had been no reports of rifts appearing, so Hannah instinctively assumed the call might be related to that.

However,

{No. I just wanted to inform you that a new trainee will be joining us in a few days. He’ll be staying at headquarters to learn the basics, and I want you and Amanda to handle his training.}

Hannah was caught off guard. 𝕗𝚛𝚎𝚎𝐰𝗲𝗯𝗻𝚘𝚟𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝕞

"Is this person newly awakened?"

{Yes. And since Layena and Ethan aren’t in any condition to handle it, make sure you do this properly.}

Hannah glanced briefly at Clara before responding.

"Understood, Commander. I’ll collect the details from the administration department."

Without another word, the call disconnected.

Hannah tapped her phone against her chin.

Who could be this sudden Nightwalker joining the headquarters? A foreign exchange? Or someone closer...?

....

After arriving at his new apartment, Kyle immediately activated God’s Eye once more and carefully scanned the entire place for hidden cameras.

Blake had supposedly removed every surveillance device beforehand, but Kyle still wasn’t willing to trust things blindly.

"Yesterday, I installed blinds over all the windows just in case," Amanda said as they walked toward the dining area.

Kyle noticed the thick curtains now covering every exposed window.

He nodded slightly in appreciation.

"I’ll need to bring my clothes and the rest of my belongings here later."

"Oh, I already moved them this morning," Amanda replied casually. "They should arrive within an hour."

Kyle stopped walking.

Slowly, he turned toward his girlfriend, who stood there smiling innocently.

"Amanda..."

His eyes narrowed slightly.

"How exactly did you enter my old apartment?"

Amanda immediately gave him a sheepish grin.

"I mean..." She awkwardly scratched her cheek. "The security there was honestly terrible. It’s a good thing you changed residences."

Kyle instantly felt the urge to slam a hand against his face.

She had casually broken into his apartment without even informing him.

Thankfully, there wasn’t anything inside he particularly wanted to hide from Amanda.

Otherwise, this would’ve become a far bigger issue.

Soon, they reached the main bedroom.

The moment Kyle stepped inside, he released a long breath and dropped onto the bed.

Amanda followed right after, lying down beside him and resting her head against his arm.

Kyle gently pulled her closer before whispering softly,

"So much has happened since that day."

His eyes drifted toward the ceiling.

"It honestly feels like our lives got turned upside down because of that woman."

Just mentioning Ava left a bitter taste in his mouth.

And Kyle already knew her presence would continue haunting his thoughts for quite some time.

"How did you even manage to fight her?" Amanda asked quietly. "She’s only two ranks above me, yet I can’t even imagine landing a hit on her."

Amanda had witnessed battles involving Special Grades before.

Compared to monsters like them, she sometimes felt less like a warrior and more like a tiny puppy standing before giants.

Kyle answered,

"I used a special arrow capable of disrupting the Genesis Flow within a certain area."

Amanda immediately looked up at him.

"Blake told me that inside its range, even powerful Nightwalkers struggle to breathe properly."

Curiosity flickered across Amanda’s face.

"That sounds ridiculously strong." She paused briefly. "Did it actually work on her?"

Kyle nodded slowly.

"How do you think I even survived against someone like that?"

The memory surfaced vividly inside his mind.

"She was completely stunned for a moment," he muttered. "Motionless."

Then his expression darkened slightly.

"But unlike what I expected..." His fingers tightened faintly around Amanda. "She didn’t stay like that for long."

A bitter breath escaped him.

"She recovered far faster than I thought possible and immediately launched a counterattack."

Amanda looked at him with clear concern lingering in her eyes.

"Kyle... are you really okay?"

Kyle nodded without hesitation.

"I’m fine. I swear."

Then, suddenly pushing himself off the bed, he said,

"I’ll go take a quick shower and come back."

Just as he was about to stand completely, he felt a small tug on his sleeve.

Kyle paused and looked back.

The moment his eyes landed on Amanda’s face, his heartbeat skipped.

She was staring at him with an innocent yet hesitant expression, almost as though she wasn’t entirely sure whether she should ask.

"Umm..."

Her fingers lightly tightened around his sleeve.

"Can I join too?"

For a brief moment, Kyle simply stared at her.

Then a helpless smile slowly formed on his face.

Honestly...

Could he be sane to even think of rejecting an offer like that?

°°°°°°°°

A/N:- Thanks for reading. If you have been reading this story thus far, then you must drop a comment. :(