Clyde kept walking through the living streets, his steps steady despite the ruined ground beneath his boots.
The city groaned around him. Buildings twisted, walls flexed, windows opened and closed like blinking eyes.
The air felt restless as if the world was searching for something to crush.
Then a shadow dropped from above.
Mina leaped down from the side of a building that had not yet fully come alive. She landed hard in front of him. Her boots skidded across broken concrete.
Before Clyde could react, she rushed forward and wrapped her arms around him, holding him tightly.
"I was worried," she said, her voice shaking. "I thought I lost you."
Clyde froze. His hands hovered awkwardly in the air, unsure of what to do.
He had faced monsters, gods, and World Masters without hesitation, but this caught him completely off guard.
