Anyone who knew Valeria understood that her playful nature was simply part of her personality. At only twenty-two, she was the youngest Warlord ever recorded, sharing the same age as Julie, yet she had already earned her place among the country’s most dangerous fighters. Her cheerful attitude often made people underestimate her, but no one who had witnessed her abilities would make that mistake twice.She treated the other Warlords like old friends, regardless of their reputations, and had little interest in maintaining the intimidating image that came with her title. Unfortunately, her habit of speaking whatever came to mind also made her exceptionally good at provoking people.Jaden decided he had allowed the reunion to continue long enough.“Alright, everyone. We have an important meeting to attend.”His tone was not particularly loud, but it immediately brought the room under control. The Warlords straightened, and even Valeria stopped joking as she returned to her place beside Ly

Every Warlord had gathered inside the war room by the time Jaden arrived. A massive digital display occupied the far wall, surrounded by smaller monitors showing intelligence reports, mission records, and maps of the regions where the Special Force had recently conducted operations. A long conference table stood in the center, with the Warlords seated around it and several senior officers waiting for the briefing to begin.Jaden took his position at the head of the table and surveyed the room.“I’m glad you’re all here today, especially Lysander and Valeria, who have officially joined us for this operation. I expect everyone to cooperate with them as we move forward. We have serious matters to discuss, and I don’t intend to waste time.”“Understood, General,” the Warlords answered.Jaden glanced at the empty seat near the end of the table before continuing. “The only person missing is Ronan Graves. For some reason, he hasn’t responded to the emergency summons.”The moment he mentioned

Jaden stared at the images of Facility Zero for a few moments before turning toward Hope. The information they had uncovered was troubling enough, but the possibility of thousands of bio-soldiers being deployed against the Special Force made the situation far more dangerous. The Black Covenant had already demonstrated that it possessed warriors capable of challenging their strongest fighters. If the organization decided to unleash everything at its disposal, the consequences could be catastrophic.“Inform every division of the Special Force to prepare for a full-scale war,” Jaden ordered. “Increase security around our bases, inspect our weapons and equipment, and ensure that every unit is ready for immediate deployment. I want our intelligence teams investigating the Black Covenant’s movements and Facility Zero. We need to know what they’re planning before they make their next move.”“Understood, General,” Hope replied.“We can’t afford to underestimate them. They’ve assembled multipl

Back in Ironvale, Kaelus had finally agreed to arrange Selena and Mia’s journey to Ravenmoor. It had taken considerable effort to convince himself that allowing the General’s wife and daughter to travel into an active war zone was a reasonable decision, but Selena had made it clear that she would find a way to go with or without his assistance. Rather than allow her to leave without proper protection, he had decided to organize the journey himself.He had prepared an armored, bulletproof vehicle for Selena and Mia, accompanied by two additional convoys carrying soldiers and security personnel. The arrangements were far more extensive than those required for an ordinary journey, but Kaelus wasn’t willing to take chances with the safety of the General’s family. He had also assigned the Elite Eight to the mission, trusting their abilities to handle any threat that might arise along the way.As the vehicles waited outside, Selena stood beside the first car with Mia’s hand firmly in hers.

The Special Force headquarters, Jaden’s private training room.The room was filled with heavy training equipment, several of which had been damaged beyond repair. Metal plates lay bent beside a rack of weights, and a punching bag hung from its frame with deep dents across its surface. These were the results of Jaden’s training sessions, where ordinary equipment rarely lasted long enough to be replaced.Jaden was shirtless, his muscular body covered in sweat and faint scars from years of combat. He was upside down, balancing on the index fingers of both hands as he performed handstand push-ups with astonishing control.“Nine hundred and ninety-five. Nine hundred and ninety-six.”His arms barely trembled as he lowered himself and pushed back up. Even after nearly a thousand repetitions, his breathing remained steady, and his concentration never wavered.The door opened, and Hope stepped inside with her iPad in hand.“General, I have an urgent matter to report.”“Training,” Jaden replied