Chapter 160The day of Nathan’s burial came, a sky mourning without rain. The cemetery was packed—reporters, students, staff, politicians, and people who had probably never even spoken to Nathan when he was alive. They all wore black, some with cameras hidden in their sleeves, others whispering behind dark shades. All eyes were hunting for one thing: a performance.A lot of them really came to make more connections, while some of them came to see if it was true. If Nathan was really dead. While some came to see if there was going to be anything special to gossip about. And we gave them one.I stood by the edge of the crowd, my face expressionless, hands tucked in my coat pockets. Juliet stood to my right, dressed in a sleek black dress, her face veiled in polite grief. Ren was behind us, arms crossed, his head slightly tilted as he scanned the crowd. Marcus flanked my left, jaw clenched like he was holding back a scream.Nathan’s casket sat like a throne before the crowd, draped in

Chapter 162Pain.That was the first thing I felt—or thought I felt. Then, nothing.Just cold.Then heat.A blinding, searing heat that spread through every corner of my being, as though my bones were melting and reforming all at once. I wanted to scream, but there was no mouth, no voice, no air.Only black.Only fire.Only silence.Then… a heartbeat.Ba-dum.It echoed like a drum in an empty hall. Slow. Steady.Ba-dum.Another. Louder.Ba-dum.Then suddenly—I gasped.Air tore into my lungs like a flame. My body arched violently off the ground as I sucked in oxygen. My eyes flew open, and all I could see was the night sky above me—stars scattered like shattered glass across the heavens. The moon stared back at me like a witness, cold and judging.My body—every inch of it—ached, but not in the way it should have.I blinked, realizing I was still whole.No blood. No bone fragments. No internal bleeding. No fatal injuries.Nothing.I was lying in a shallow crater, the impact of my fall

Chapter 164Silence hung in the air for a very long time as each of us looked at ourselves. Suri sat still, eyes glassy and distant, like she was reliving it all again in slow motion. The rain thundered against the roof above us, a steady rhythm that sounded like a war drum—pounding, relentless, maddening.I bent down and picked up a shard of glass from the floor, watching how the dim light refracted off its jagged edge.“He screamed—like he was burning…”Those words replayed in my head. I clenched the shard in my fist until it bit into my palm, and only when Ren placed a hand on my shoulder did I realize I’d started shaking angrily. “Adrian,” he said quietly. “We’ll get him back.”I nodded once, not trusting my voice. It wasn’t about hope anymore. It was about necessity. Marcus wasn’t just my friend—he was practically family.“Did you see their faces?” I asked Suri, keeping my voice low and careful.She shook her head slowly. “No helmets. Black, with this strange symbol on the side

Chapter 166Darkness.It wrapped around me like a second skin, thick and cloying. I couldn't tell if I was still falling or already on the ground. There was no sound. No wind. No pain. Just… nothing.Then came the ringing.A sharp, high-pitched screech slices through the void like a blade. My ears throbbed. My head pounded. I forced my eyes open, and was met with shadows. Shifting. Breathing. Watching.I tried to move, but my limbs felt like they were underwater. Heavy. Sluggish.Where was I?My vision slowly adjusted. I was no longer on the rooftop. The gravel, the city skyline—all gone. Replaced by black walls that pulsed like a heartbeat. Faint veins of light traveled through the surface like rivers of silver blood.A prison.Mental or physical, I couldn't tell. Edwin had built this.“You survived the fall,” came his voice again—this time from nowhere and everywhere at once. “Impressive. The last few didn’t.”I grit my teeth, pulling myself to my feet. “Where’s Marcus?” My voice ec

Chapter 168My gaze was fixed on the theater room Marcus had been wheeled into. I couldn't help but wonder what was taking so long. The nurses kept walking in and out of the room. I rushed toward them each time one of them walked out, but when I asked how Marcus was faring, all they told me was to wait. “We are trying our best, Mr. Adrian. You might need to wait for the final result.” One of them said, I was feeling tired, and I could barely even think. My mind went back to work, Edwin, and I felt happy to have seen the end of him. With Edwin gone, the school would be at peace, and the students would be able to live a normal life. That was my thought. I remembered Ren’s words again. “Did you see him do it?” I arched my eyebrows again. I only saw him fall into the hole when the walls around him were crumbling. Could he have had powers, too?If Nathan was having it, then I believe he could too. The door opened, and I saw the doctor walking out with two nurses flanking his side.