Kyle received the call and was given the coordinates.

They had actually provided him with the latitude and longitude over the phone, forcing him to search for the location on a map.

For God’s sake, since when did humans start talking like that?

It felt less like a conversation and more like an automated message.

Regardless, he headed to the designated location.

It was the basement of a commercial building currently undergoing renovations. The doors had been left open, allowing him to enter without any trouble.

As he descended the stairs, he kept God’s Eye active due to the darkness below.

A moment later, he spotted two figures standing beside a pillar.

Beyond them was a rift.

Another gateway, and it was only his second day.

Ahaha.

Silently approaching the pair, Kyle found the Vice-Commander standing alongside a certain short-haired girl. Her arms were crossed, and her groggy eyes made it clear she had not fully woken up yet.

Since the man was holding a dimly lit lamp, he could see their faces clearly.

"You are here," Timothy said, turning toward Kyle. Hannah followed suit.

The younger man nodded. "Morning."

Timothy huffed. "That is not how you greet your superior. But well, you will learn with time."

Kyle offered a wry smile. Was he supposed to salute?

Hannah rubbed the back of her head, a yawn slipping past her lips before she asked, "You look pretty active. I definitely took you for the type who arrives at university a minute before the first period starts."

Kyle shrugged. "And congratulations, your observation was spot on. Until recently, I was exactly that kind of guy."

Hannah grinned. "Gotta appreciate the honesty."

"Cough. Mind keeping your voices down? We are not here on a fun trip." Timothy pulled their attention back to the matter at hand.

The two of them nodded and fell silent.

After a brief pause, Timothy turned to Kyle and asked, "Have you brought your gear?"

Kyle nodded and touched his chest to double-check.

Beneath his jacket, the disc he had been gifted yesterday was still securely in place.

Timothy gave an approving nod before saying, "I will leave you in Hannah’s care from here on. However, she will only be monitoring you. Your job is to observe the rift, measure its Absence level, and report the results back to me. Here is your communicator."

Kyle raised a hand and accepted the small earpiece from him. It was sleek and black, barely larger than a thumbnail.

He fitted it into his ear, and it settled perfectly in place.

Nodding, Kyle asked, "Do I get a device to measure the rift, or..."

"Or what?" Timothy interrupted, raising a brow. "Do you have some other way of measuring Absence levels?"

Crap.

He had forgotten that he needed to keep God’s Eye a secret.

"Ah... no. I usually just rely on my instincts."

Timothy let out a sigh, looking slightly disappointed. "Instincts are built over time, and you only awakened a few weeks ago. Stop making claims about things you are not even certain of."

Kyle slowly nodded. "Understood."

Timothy then handed over his badge and said, "This will help you locate the rift."

He then took out a round device resembling a compass.

"And this," he continued, "will help you measure the Absence level. Don’t worry. Hannah will be there to assist you, so simply follow the same procedure you saw the Commander use yesterday."

Kyle accepted both items and examined them briefly before slipping the badge into his pocket. The compass-like device felt surprisingly heavy in his hand, giving it a sense of importance that made him instinctively handle it with care.

He glanced at Hannah and received a nod of confirmation in return.

Soon, the two young Nightwalkers left Timothy’s side and advanced deeper into the basement.

The blinking light on the badge indicated the direction of the Rift.

Kyle examined it with God’s Eye and immediately received the information.

[It utilizes a constant Genesis wave, similar to SONAR, that interacts with Absence and provides a rough indication of the source of the response. However, because the device cannot differentiate between Rifts and Knull Residents, it is primarily useful during the initial search for a Gate.]

So once the monsters were out, this thing became practically useless.

Was it just him, or did the PSC lack a few basic yet critically important technological advancements?

Then again, who was he to criticize? His job today was to locate and report much like a newbie.

"You are blending into this a lot better than I expected." Hannah suddenly commented, her voice lowered this time. "I mean, the whole silent and secretive thing."

Kyle hummed in surprise. "What do you mean? Do I look like someone incapable of being discreet?"

Hannah grinned. "I mean, you’re a six-foot-something giant. The idea of you being discreet is already funny. Even when you were rogue, I somehow suspected it was you just from that macho walk of yours."

It took considerable effort for Kyle not to cringe and laugh at the same time in the middle of the dark, lifeless basement.

"What the hell is a macho walk?" he asked. "I walk normally."

"That’s what every guy with a macho walk says."

Kyle stared at her for a few seconds.

Then he sighed.

There was no winning this argument.

Hannah shrugged. "You don’t notice it, but other people do. You know..."

She suddenly puffed out her chest, flared her arms slightly, and lowered her chin as she began stomping forward with exaggerated confidence.

Kyle’s cheeks bulged. His lips sealed shut as he fought for his life not to laugh.

The woman looked less like him and more like a rooster that had just won a territorial dispute.

"Pfft..." His shoulders shook. "I don’t walk anything like that." 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝒆𝔀𝒆𝙗𝓷𝒐𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝓶

"You absolutely do."

"I absolutely don’t."

"You do."

Kyle pointed at her. "Actually, that looks more like you after missing a nine p.m. sale."

Hannah scoffed as though her honor had been challenged.

"I earn five figures. Why would I wait for a nine p.m. sale?" Crossing her arms, she added with complete seriousness, "I go for the eight p.m. one. Gotta leave some discounts for the household ladies."

Kyle finally lost the battle and snickered.

"What a philanthropist."

"I know. Society would collapse without me."

Kyle shook his head.

"Well, I bet you were one of the last people to guess the rogue was me."

Hannah’s brows rose.

"Why do you say that? I’m pretty observant, you know."

"Observant?"

"Very."

"You thought I walked like an escaped rooster."

"See? Observant."

Kyle rubbed his face.

Hannah grinned before continuing, "Honestly, I just never thought Astortia Kyle would have powers and not flaunt them. That’s all."

Kyle sneered. "Well, now you know I’m not what you expected."

A faint smile appeared on Hannah’s face.

"I figured that out a while ago. You don’t have that usual arrogance people expect from someone belonging to the Petalled Clan."

Kyle shrugged.

"Glad you know tha..."

"AH!"

"EIIK!"

Both Kyle and Hannah nearly jumped out of their skins as a familiar face suddenly materialized in front of them.

Arms crossed.

Expression frozen.

Eyes colder than the basement itself.

"V-Vice-Commander?" Hannah stammered.

Timothy narrowed his eyes.

"What exactly are the two of you doing?"

Neither answered.

"Chatting so leisurely and walking this slowly?" He pinched the bridge of his nose. "I walked at my normal pace."

A pause.

"And somehow reached past both of you within seconds."

Kyle and Hannah exchanged a glance.

Neither had noticed.

That was bad.

Timothy’s eye twitched.

"We are investigating a Rift. Yet somehow the two of you have turned this into a casual evening stroll."

Another pause.

Then he slowly turned his head toward them.

"If you are so eager to chat..." His voice became dangerously calm. "Would you like me to reserve the Gravity Chamber for both of you today?"

The color instantly drained from Hannah’s face.

"No!"

The answer came out so quickly that even Kyle looked at her.

Hannah coughed.

"I mean... no, Vice-Commander."

Timothy looked at Kyle.

"And you?"

Kyle immediately shook his head.

"I will work more seriously now."

Timothy stared at him.

"..."

"..."

"Good."

The Vice-Commander turned around and began walking away.

"Move."

The two younger Nightwalkers straightened their backs instantly.

No time for chit-chat.

°°°°°°°°

A/N:- Thanks for reading. Drop a comment.