Axel didn't move at first.
He couldn't.
His entire body felt like a puppet cut from its strings. Every muscle was numb, trembling. His lungs still dragged in air too fast, too shallow, like they were trying to restart after drowning.
The Chairman's aura lingered in the room, even after he turned away—like a stain burned into the atmosphere.
It was a reminder:
You are nothing.
You exist on my mercy.
Axel's fingers twitched.
Not ordinary.
Unstable.
Dangerous.
Those words echoed louder than the threat itself.
After another minute, Arcturus spoke again—his back still facing Axel.
"An agent will escort you out. You are not to speak to anyone about this meeting."
Axel tried to answer, but only a hoarse rasp escaped.
Arcturus didn't wait for a reply.
"Dismissed."
A soft chime sounded.
The giant black door slid open.
Two SS-rank guards stepped in silently. Their aura alone felt like cold knives pressing against Axel's neck. They didn't beckon him.
They didn't need to.
Axel forced his legs to move.
Each step was shaky, stiff, humiliating.
But he moved.
Because staying in the same room as Arcturus Vale felt like standing in the presence of a natural disaster wearing human clothes.
As the door shut behind him, Axel finally exhaled—and the system pulsed sharply:
[Emergency Stabilization: Complete.]
[Host mental integrity: Critical.]
[Note: Host survival probability drops significantly in Apex-Class proximity zones.]
"No kidding," Axel muttered weakly.
The guards didn't react.
They led him through another hallway—this one quieter, narrower, but still lined with mana-reactive walls. Each panel hummed at his presence, scanning, analyzing, judging.
Eventually, they stopped at an exit chamber.
The lead guard spoke without emotion:
"You will be monitored."
Axel stiffened.
"Monitored… how?"
Neither guard answered.
A glowing sigil activated beneath his feet—like a brand of light. A faint sting burned on his forearm.
Axel flinched.
"What was that?"
"A compliance seal," the second guard replied. "It tracks your location, mana output, and killing intent levels."
Axel's chest tightened.
"So I'm… a prisoner?"
The guard's eyes didn't blink.
"You are under observation."
The same phrase Arcturus used.
The same threat behind it.
The elevator opened behind Axel.
"Leave," the guard said. "You will receive further instructions."
Axel stepped inside.
As the doors slid shut, he glanced at his forearm. The glowing mark faded into his skin, leaving a faint silver pattern like a tattoo.
It pulsed once.
[Foreign magical construct detected.]
[Attempting analysis…]
[Error.]
[System unable to decode Apex-grade sealing magic.]
Axel's stomach dropped.
The system couldn't understand it.
And if the system couldn't understand it…
How strong is Arcturus Vale really?
The elevator moved upward.
Slowly this time.
Almost peacefully.
The contrast made Axel's mind spin.
Minutes ago he was suffocating under the weight of an Apex-class aura. Now he could breathe again, but he felt no relief.
If anything, fear settled deeper into his bones.
When the elevator opened, he found himself back near the surface—where normal Hunters walked, talked, laughed.
A healer in white robes spotted him.
"You look pale, dear. Here—"
A gentle glow enveloped him.
Warm.
Safe.
Comforting.
But even that kindness felt wrong after experiencing Arcturus.
He thanked her quietly and left the facility through the front gate.
A wave of cool air hit his face.
Freedom.
But not really.
Not anymore.
His phone buzzed.
Unknown number.
He opened the message.
[Report to the New York Awakened Society Training Grounds – 6:00 A.M. tomorrow.]
Another message arrived instantly.
[Mandatory attendance.]
And a third.
[Non-compliance will be treated as hostility.]
Axel's hands tightened around the phone.
Hostility…
Meaning killing intent.
Meaning they would treat him like a rogue monster.
He swallowed hard.
The system flickered again.
[New Quest Unlocked]
["Under Watchful Eyes"]
Difficulty: A]
Objective: Survive mandatory training.]
Reward: Unknown.]
Axel closed the screen with a deep breath.
The Chairman's voice echoed again in his mind:
Grow stronger…
or be erased.
Axel looked up at the evening sky, the city lights flickering like stars that didn't care whether he lived or died.
"…Then I don't have a choice."
He clenched his fists.
"I'll survive this."
His heart thumped.
His aura stirred—small, weak, but alive.
And somewhere far above him, in the depths of the fortress, Arcturus Vale watched the live feed of Axel leaving.
"…Interesting," the Apex-class murmured.
"Very interesting."