A pitch-black shadow mist shot straight through the ceiling of the Umbra Capital underground headquarters.The dense fog solidified in the center of the room. Xavier's physical form materialized perfectly once more. His black suit was torn and scorched in multiple places. His shirt was covered entirely in dried bloodstains.The clicks of his shoes sounded incredibly steady as they struck the concrete floor.Lyra snapped her head up from her computer desk in sheer surprise. The female hacker's eyes were red and swollen. She had just been crying from extreme exhaustion and absolute terror."Boss?" Lyra called out in a hoarse voice. She jumped up from her chair. "You actually made it back alive.""I have returned, Lyra," Xavier answered in a low, elegant tone.Xavier walked right past Lyra. He headed straight for a giant glass tube in the corner of the headquarters. The tube radiated a bright blue light. Fenrir floated inside the medical stasis fluid. The gaping burn wound on the giant's

The steel elevator doors slid wide open on the ground floor of the Manhattan Hotel.Blinding white light instantly flooded his vision. Hundreds of camera flashes fired in rapid succession. The lobby of the five-star hotel was completely packed with dozens of reporters and paparazzi. They had been intentionally and anonymously invited by Lyra only a few minutes ago.The two hotel security guards released their grip on Adrian's arms. They shoved the arrogant young man straight into the middle of the crowd of journalists."Please vacate our property immediately," the security guard stated with absolute coldness.Adrian staggered forward. He lost his balance and nearly crashed face-first onto the marble floor. His eyes were blinded by the camera flashes. He raised both hands to cover his disheveled face. His silk shirt was wrinkled, and his hair was no longer neat."Get out of my way, you bastards!" Adrian roared in a hoarse voice. "Stop taking pictures of me! I will smash your cameras!"

Adrian dragged his feet across the wet sidewalk. The lingering rain of the storm was still drizzling. The pre-dawn cold pierced straight to the bone.The heir to the Wall Street throne now looked exactly like a homeless vagrant. His silk shirt was torn. His expensive trousers were stained with mud. His leather shoes were soaked completely through. He walked aimlessly down the deserted streets of the Bronx."Go away, you bastards," Adrian muttered repeatedly. He hugged his own arms. "I am not crazy. I am still sane."Adrian looked down at the street. There was a dirty puddle near his feet.Inside that puddle, his reflection looked absolutely horrifying. However, that was not what terrified him. Right behind his reflection, two blindingly bright blue eyes stared back at him from inside the water."Aaaargh! Go away, you cursed demon!" Adrian shrieked hysterically.He stomped on the puddle blindly. Filthy water splashed onto his face. He continued to stomp the asphalt until his shoes scuf

The morning wind howled fiercely across the roof of the printing building.Xavier stood frozen like a statue at the edge of the concrete roof. He did not turn his body in the slightest. He continued taking a slow drag from his cigarette. The gray smoke billowed, blending seamlessly with the freezing air of the bleak New York City morning.Behind him, a man wearing a maroon suit flashed a highly mocking smile. The man's red eyes flared brightly amidst the thick remnants of the dark night."You have let your prey roam free for far too long, Xavier," Valerius greeted. His voice echoed, fully saturated with pure demonic arrogance. "That boy's soul is perfectly ripe with terror. The stench of his fear has drifted all the way down to my world.""You are violating the ethics of the hunt," Xavier replied in an incredibly elegant, ice-cold tone. He exhaled his cigarette smoke into the air. "The Aristhos family is my exclusive target. Absolutely no one is permitted to touch them except me.""He

Freezing ice water was splashed violently over him.Adrian jolted awake from his unconscious state with a loud shriek. The young man's breathing was heavy and rapid. He felt his soaking wet face. He lay helplessly on the marble floor of the Aristhos Estate lobby."Damn it, that is cold!" Adrian roared, opening his eyes.Isabella towered directly in front of her son. The viper held an empty silver bucket. The elegant woman's face looked incredibly rigid, suppressing her boiling rage."You are finally awake, you idiot!" Isabella snapped with absolute coldness. She hurled the silver bucket onto the floor, producing a loud, harsh clatter. "You are an absolute disgrace to this family, damn it!""Mother?" Adrian whimpered, clutching his incredibly dizzy head. The lingering terror from last night violently tortured his neural pathways. "Where am I, damn it?""You are in my house!" Isabella roared, grabbing the collar of Adrian's mud-stained shirt. "The guards found you passed out on the stre