The old woman put her thermos down, adjusted her glasses, and peered at her screen.
She frowned.
"Ah. The one you invited—Keith, right?"
Elius nodded, heart starting to pound in his chest.
The old woman clicked her tongue against the roof of her mouth and shook her head slowly.
"Missing," she said bluntly.
Elius's heart stopped.
For a moment, the world went silent.
Missing?
The word echoed in his mind like a death sentence.
He stood there, frozen, staring at the old lady as if she had just punched him in the gut.
Missing.
Missing.
He remembered yesterday, the conversation with Colt.
How nonchalantly Colt spoke about seeds. About races. About brothers.
And how Radiant Man — in the original comics — had casually, ruthlessly killed his "failed" sons when Keith awakened his Solarion bloodline.
Cold sweat ran down Elius's back.
Did Colt already… kill him?
Was Keith already dead, erased before he could even fight back?
After all, Elius is now the new awakened son.
