2026-07-31 07:03:08Sophia’s phone slipped from her trembling hand and landed on the table.
Tears filled her eyes.
“My grandmother…” she whispered.
“…she collapsed.”
Ethan immediately stood up.
“What happened?”
Sophia struggled to steady her breathing.
“My dad said she suddenly fainted at home.”
“They’ve called an ambulance.”
“They’re taking her to City General Hospital.”
Her voice broke.
“My grandmother has a weak heart.”
“I’m afraid…”
She couldn’t finish the sentence.
Ethan gently picked up her phone and handed it back to her.
“Don’t think about the worst.”
“We’ll get there first.”
She looked at him with watery eyes.
“We?”
He nodded without hesitation.
“I’m coming with you.”
Sophia quickly shook her head.
“You don’t have to.”
“This isn’t your problem.”
Ethan smiled faintly.
“Maybe.”
“But you’re my friend.”
“And friends don’t leave each other alone.”
Sophia bit her lip.
No one had said something like that to her in a long time.
She nodded.
“Thank you.”
The two of them hurried out of the private dining room.
As soon as they entered the restaurant lobby, Manager Lewis noticed the panic on Sophia’s face.
“Mr. Cole?”
“Is everything alright?”
“My grandmother is in the hospital,” Sophia answered before Ethan could speak.
Lewis’ expression changed instantly.
“I’m sorry to hear that.”
Ethan looked at him.
“Prepare my car.”
Lewis blinked.
“Your car?”
“The one that came with the ownership transfer.”
Lewis nodded immediately.
“Right away.”
Within two minutes, a black Rolls-Royce Phantom was waiting outside the restaurant.
The chauffeur opened the rear door respectfully.
“Mr. Cole.”
“The car is ready.”
Sophia stopped walking.
She looked at the luxury car.
Then at Ethan.
“You…”
“…this is yours too?”
Ethan smiled awkwardly.
“I only found out today.”
Sophia stared at him for a few seconds before shaking her head.
“I don’t think I’ll ever get used to hearing that.”
Despite the situation, Ethan laughed.
“Neither will I.”
The chauffeur quickly opened the door.
“Please get in.”
Sophia climbed into the car first.
Ethan followed.
The chauffeur closed the door and immediately drove away.
…
Inside the car…
Neither of them spoke for several minutes.
Sophia kept staring at her phone.
She refreshed the screen every few seconds, hoping for another message from her father.
Nothing.
She squeezed her hands together so tightly that her knuckles turned white.
Ethan noticed.
He quietly reached into the small refrigerator beside him and took out a bottle of water.
“Here.”
Sophia looked at him.
“You should drink something.”
She accepted it.
“Thanks.”
Her voice was barely above a whisper.
“I lost my grandfather when I was fourteen.”
“My grandmother raised me after that.”
“She worked two jobs just so I could stay in school.”
A tear rolled down her cheek.
“I promised I’d become a doctor.”
“I promised I’d take care of her.”
“If anything happens to her…”
She covered her face.
“I’ll never forgive myself.”
Ethan remained silent.
He understood that feeling.
In his previous life…
He had lost everything before realizing how precious it was.
He gently placed a hand on her shoulder.
“She’ll be okay.”
Sophia looked at him.
“You sound so sure.”
“I have to be.”
“Because if I let you lose hope…”
“Then who’s going to give you strength?”
She looked into his eyes.
There was something strangely comforting about them.
His confidence didn’t feel fake.
It made her breathing slowly become calmer.
…
At the same time…
Ryan Crawford sat inside his office.
Barnes stood across from him.
“So…”
Ryan said quietly.
“You mean Ethan cooked the dish himself?”
Barnes nodded.
“Yes.”
“And Mr. Harrison loved it.”
Ryan frowned.
“I’ve investigated Ethan before.”
“He couldn’t even boil an egg.”
“How does someone become a master chef overnight?”
Barnes remained silent.
He couldn’t explain it either.
Ryan stood up and walked toward the window.
“I don’t believe in miracles.”
“So there’s only one explanation.”
Barnes looked confused.
“What?”
“Someone is helping him.”
Ryan slowly turned around.
“And I want to know who.”
His phone suddenly vibrated.
He looked at the screen.
A smile slowly appeared.
“Perfect.”
Barnes raised an eyebrow.
“What happened?”
Ryan placed the phone on the table.
“The chairman of City General Hospital just invited me for dinner tonight.”
Barnes didn’t understand.
“So?”
Ryan smiled.
“Didn’t you say Ethan left with a young woman?”
“Yes.”
“They were heading toward City General Hospital.”
Ryan’s smile grew wider.
“Looks like we’ll meet sooner than expected.”
…
Twenty-five minutes later…
The Rolls-Royce stopped in front of City General Hospital.
Sophia opened the door before the car had fully stopped.
She hurried toward the entrance.
Ethan followed closely behind.
The emergency department was crowded.
Doctors and nurses rushed through the hallways.
Patients filled the waiting area.
Sophia spotted a middle-aged man pacing back and forth.
“Dad!”
The man turned around.
“Sophia!”
She ran into his arms.
“How’s Grandma?”
Her father sighed heavily.
“They’ve taken her inside.”
“The doctors are still examining her.”
Sophia’s eyes immediately filled with tears again.
A few moments later…
A doctor walked out of the emergency room.
Everyone rushed toward him.
“Doctor!”
“How is she?”
The doctor removed his mask.
“She’s stable for now.”
Everyone let out a breath of relief.
“But…”
The doctor continued.
“She has a serious heart condition.”
“She needs surgery as soon as possible.”
Sophia’s father asked nervously,
“Then please perform the operation.”
The doctor’s expression became complicated.
“I wish it were that simple.”
“The surgery is extremely risky.”
“And…”
He paused for a moment.
“The only surgeon qualified to perform it is Professor Daniel Ross.”
Sophia recognized the name immediately.
“He… he’s the best heart surgeon in the country.”
The doctor nodded.
“Yes.”
“But he’s currently overseas attending an international medical conference.”
“He won’t return for another three days.”
Sophia felt her heart sink.
“My grandmother doesn’t have three days…”
The doctor lowered his head.
“I’m sorry.”
“If Professor Ross doesn’t return in time…”
“There may be nothing we can do.”
The hallway fell silent.
Sophia slowly broke down in tears.
Ethan looked at the doctor.
Then at Sophia.
His fists slowly clenched.
Just then…
The familiar mechanical voice echoed inside his mind.
[Emergency Mission Activated.]
Save Sophia Bennett’s Grandmother.
Time Limit: 72 Hours.
Mission Reward: Mystery Grand Gift Pack.
Failure Penalty: Mission Cancelled.
Ethan stared at the blue screen.
His eyes slowly narrowed.
“If the best heart surgeon can’t get here in time…”
He looked toward the emergency room.
“…then I’ll find another way.”
Previous Chapter
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Chapter 109: Legacy Reawakened
The blue screen flickered.It was unstable.Unlike the flawless interface Ethan had relied on throughout his journey, this one was fractured.Tiny cracks spread across its edges as though the system itself had suffered tremendous damage.The familiar mechanical voice spoke again.It was weaker than Ethan remembered.Yet…He smiled.After everything that had happened…It still sounded like home.Legacy System…Emergency Restoration… 7% Complete…Warning… Core functions unavailable…Reason… Legacy sacrificed during the Final Convergence…Ethan’s heart pounded.“So…”“You survived.”The screen remained silent for a moment.Then…A new sentence appeared.Correction…This unit did not survive.This unit… was remembered.The words struck him harder than any attack ever could.Remembered.Not rebuilt.Not repaired.Remembered.The blue screen slowly continued.Human belief…Shared memories…Legacy fragments carried within countless lives…Emergency reconstruction successful.Ethan finally un
Chapter 108: The Sky Breaker
The crack spread across the blue sky.It didn’t happen all at once.Thin fractures crawled outward like veins across glass, stretching from one horizon to the other.Each new crack released a faint silver light.The peaceful meadow beneath Ethan’s feet trembled.Birds that had been singing moments before suddenly took flight.The gentle breeze vanished.An unnatural silence swallowed the world.Ren’s small hand instinctively reached for Ethan’s.His fingers were trembling.“They found us.”Ethan looked down.“Who?”Ren swallowed.“The ones who don’t want us remembered.”Another deafening roar echoed overhead.This time…It was closer.The sky shattered a little more.Chunks of blue light drifted downward before dissolving into countless glowing particles.Ethan had seen worlds collapse before.He had watched stars disappear.Yet…There was something uniquely terrifying about watching the sky itself come apart.Not because it looked destructive.Because it looked…Wrong.Like reality w
Chapter 107: The First Face
Every step echoed inside Ethan’s helmet.Crunch.Crunch.Crunch.The lunar dust compressed beneath his boots as he followed the countless footprints stretching toward the enormous black doorway.Mission Control remained connected through his communicator.“Ethan, your oxygen levels are stable.”“Heart rate elevated, but within acceptable limits.”Dr. Brooks’ calm voice filled the silence.Professor Orion spoke next.“Distance to the structure: four hundred meters.”“Proceed carefully.”“I will.”Ethan answered.He never took his eyes off the doorway.The closer he came…The larger it became.From orbit it had looked massive.Standing beneath it…It was overwhelming.It rose into the endless darkness above him like a mountain carved from midnight.Its surface reflected nothing.Not sunlight.Not stars.Not even Ethan himself.It was as though the doorway refused to acknowledge reality.Back on Earth…Sophia stood inside Mission Control.Her hands remained folded tightly together.She h
Chapter 106: The Man Who Walked Through Silence
By sunrise…Ethan had made his decision.He would go.Not because he trusted the beings beyond the black doorway.Not because he believed they meant no harm.But because he had seen something in the message that no one else seemed willing to acknowledge.They had asked.Twice.First…May we speak?Then…One may come.An enemy didn’t ask permission.An enemy simply invaded.Whatever waited beyond that door…It wanted to be heard.Whether that was a blessing or a trap…Only one way existed to find out.The launch facility came alive before dawn.Floodlights illuminated the enormous launch pad while engineers hurried around the silver shuttle.Unlike the bulky spacecraft used during the early years of space exploration…This one had been built after the Seven Days.Human technology had advanced dramatically with knowledge recovered from the Architects.Its engines were cleaner.Its shields stronger.Its navigation system could cross the distance between Earth and the Moon in less than th
Chapter 105: The Invitation
No one celebrated.Although the footprints had stopped appearing…Although the black doorway had remained closed…Not a single person inside Mission Control believed the danger had passed.If anything…The silence felt heavier.It was the silence of two strangers looking at one another across a great distance.Waiting.Wondering who would speak next.Dr. Elena Brooks stood beside the communications console, replaying Ethan’s transmission.“My name is Ethan.”“You asked if you could speak.”“You can.”She listened to it three more times before finally muting the speakers.“I’ve worked in aerospace for seventeen years.”She slowly shook her head.“I spent my entire career preparing for first contact.”She smiled weakly.“I never imagined it would begin with… permission.”Professor Orion nodded.“Neither did I.”Hours passed.The black doorway did not move.The Moon remained quiet.Scientists continued monitoring every satellite, every telescope, and every sensor aimed toward the far sid
Chapter 104: Beyond the Black Door
The three knocks echoed through Mission Control.Slow.Steady.Deliberate.Every person in the room froze.No one spoke.No one breathed.The sound wasn’t coming from the speakers anymore.It seemed to resonate through the walls themselves.Three knocks…Yet it felt as though something enormous had struck the fabric of reality.Then…Silence.Emergency lights flickered back to life.Rows of monitors rebooted one after another.Technicians hurried to their stations.“Power is returning!”“I’m reconnecting to the lunar station!”“Signal stabilizing!”Dr. Elena Brooks leaned over one of the consoles.“Get me visual confirmation.”The largest monitor flashed.Static filled the screen.Then the image cleared.Everyone stared.The giant black doorway still stood on the Moon’s far side.Exactly where it had been before.Silent.Motionless.Almost…Innocent.Kai slowly let out the breath he had been holding.“I hate doors.”Lyra looked at him.“You hate everything.”“I especially hate mysteri
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