Free Web NovelChapter 251: _So Much For A Jolly Evening...
Viktor fell to his knees, his chest caving in the longer he stared out of the window.
"T–The city... our home..."
"Grandpa Magnus," Devon mumbled, shaking his head with disbelief. "A–Alisha... Doctor Kelly... everyone is just gone?"
Meanwhile, Ambrose felt like he was genuinely about to pass out from all the mental pressure the image outside was bringing.
The thousands of white eyes blinked directly at the hotel building. Directly at the group.
It felt like floating through endless space while being stared down by a cosmic horror.
He placed a hand on his chest, feeling how fast his heart was beating. Then he angled his head to Valentine and Gabriel.
"Can the Void Entity really just erase two SS-Ranks alongside the rest of the city?" He questioned. "Guild masters Magnus and Irina. M–Maybe they—"
"Wait." Gabriel raised a finger. "Hold that thought."
The others made way for him.
He closed his eyes, stretching a hand forward. Reaching out of the window into the seemingly endless void beyond.
His much heightened cosmic awareness stretched through the void—then gave him feedback that made those iridescent orbs open again with alarm.
"I knew it." He shook his head, withdrawing his hand while taking a couple of steps back.
Valentine and Ambrose exchanged a look before the former asked.
"Knew what? What’s going on, Gabriel?"
Gabriel’s eyes flitted to their faces. "What’s going on is that the city isn’t gone."
Relief crashed through the others like a tsunami. Even Viktor doubled over on the floor until his head was resting between his knees.
"Thank heavens." His voice broke like he was about to cry. "Oh, mama—I should call her after whatever the fuck this is."
However, Ambrose arched a brow, noticing the uneasiness still fresh on the space god’s face.
"I’m guessing there’s a ’but’ in your observation..."
The grim crease on his forehead already answered Ambrose’s question before Gabriel spoke.
"The entire building has been isolated from normal space-time." The words somehow sounded worse than the whole city being erased. "I don’t understand how... but it’s as if someone placed a giant cloak over the whole structure."
Devon frowned. "So in layman’s terms?"
"Those were layman’s terms." Gabriel deadpanned. "The Void Entity has us separated from reality. It’s like there’s a void surrounding the building."
Suddenly everyone’s ears perked up.
Screams resounded from all-around the building. As if the place being swallowed in pitch blackness wasn’t enough of a nightmare fuel.
"So what now?" Viktor rose to his feet, dusting his knees. "Can you teleport us out of this?"
Gabriel’s eyes twitched with genuine frustration. "Believe me, I would’ve already if I could," he stretched a hand out of the window again. "Space-time feels like countless strings connecting every point in reality. Normally I can grab those strings and move between them. Right now... I can’t sense anything beyond this building."
Terror flashed in Ambrose’s eyes. "In other words..." he swung his head to the others. "We’re stuck here. Isolated from any outside help."
Valentine exhaled through his mouth.
"So much for a jolly evening."
★★★★★
Outside the building, just like Gabriel sensed... the rest of Aurelia was perfectly fine and untouched. The night sky was clear and dotted with stars.
Nightlife still went on as usual.
The only "oddity" would be the member of the most powerful organisation on the planet casually taking a stroll a couple of blocks away from the hotel building.
"So you left him there?" Apollo asked Loki.
They were on a phone call, the lord of chaos bored beyond their mind with their eyes half lidded.
"Yep." They shrugged, ignoring a few people who basically ogled them as they walked by.
Typical.
Most humans couldn’t resist taking a second look whenever they passed.
"How can you be so nonchalant about this?" Apollo groaned. "We gave you simple instructions... be as close to Ambrose Hale as possible at all times. Walking out of the hotel when you could’ve just sat there—"
"I was sitting there," Loki stopped in front of a closed beauty shop with a tall glass window. It had a reflective surface, allowing them to see the stoicness on their face. "But then he and one of those men circling him like sharks saw me. They appeared to be having a good night and I didn’t wish to bother them further."
A long silence answered them from the other end. Just when they arched a brow to say something, Apollo made a disbelieving sound.
"You?" He muttered. "Care about bothering anyone?"
Loki scoffed, trailing a finger across their jaw. "Believe it or not, dear Apollo. But that’s exactly what happened."
"You’ve never cared about bothering anyone. That’s my point."
"Well, now I do." Loki was a tad bit offended at the Pantheon leader’s words. "There’s just something... different. And I’m not just talking about every other odd thing about that Guide."
Their eyes narrowed. "... He cares about them. So deeply. And they care about him too. Yes, there’s desire in there but not so much that it overshadows the other feelings. I’ve never felt anything like it."
If anyone was an expert on desire and emotions in general it was them. They’ve spent decades getting intimate with human desires. Manipulating it. Creating it even.
What Ambrose Hale shared with those men was different. And dangerously real.
"Well," Apollo finally let out a sigh. "Someone definitely doesn’t sound eerily sentimental."
Loki was just about to hang up when they felt something.
A bone-curdling chill sizzling through their entire being.
Their head swerved sharply, toward the direction of the hotel building. Nothing seemed wrong at first.
Until they used their aether sight.
A suffocating amount of energy surrounded the building. Not just any energy either. It was the same signature as the Void Entity’s!
"Shit." They cursed loud enough for Apollo to hear.
"What’s wrong?"
"It’s the hotel," Loki already pulled the phone away from their face. "I’ve got to go. You might want to alert the others—the Void Entity is here."
