The second knife sat in the street like a threat carved into reality.
No wind.
No echo.
Just a perfectly still warning in the rain.
Titanborn took one step back.
Mindwright stopped breathing.
Blinkstep's fingers twitched like he was ready to sprint.
Arc Modeus simply stared at the knife.
He didn't need to look around.
He could feel Elias somewhere above—watching, hidden in the storm, choosing every second with precision.
Central Forces hadn't moved yet.
The officer's visor scanned the street in wide, sweeping arcs.
"WHERE IS HE?! Identify the unknown threat!"
Arc whispered, "You can't."
She turned sharply. "Are you mocking the law?"
Arc's puppet twitched.
"Not mocking… telling truth."
Mindwright slowly lifted his hands.
"As long as that boy's near, your scanners won't catch anything. Normal humans don't leave Art traces."
"You expect us to believe a civilian caused a Mana-Level-Three area collapse?" she barked.
Titanborn barked back louder.
"He's not normal!"
Blinkstep elbowed him. "Shut up! We don't want to sound crazy!"
But the damage was done.
The officer narrowed her eyes behind the glowing visor.
"Identify this human."
Arc stared directly at her.
"He left that knife. That's all you'll ever see."
Her hand tightened on her weapon.
"Then he's an accomplice."
Arc took one step forward.
The puppet's strings snapped tight.
"I go with you… and you'll die."
A cold silence hit the street.
Blinkstep swallowed. "…Okay, that's one way to say 'no thanks.'"
Mindwright whispered, "Arc, do NOT provoke them—"
But then—
THUD.
A sharp object struck the officer's armored shoulder, sparks flying.
Another knife.
Thrown from above.
Again, none of them saw it coming.
The officer stumbled. "WHAT—?!"
She hadn't been cut.
Elias hadn't aimed to kill.
He aimed to interrupt.
To redirect.
To force them to react.
The drone overhead blared:
"HOSTILE FIRE DETECTED! UNKNOWN HUMAN ATTACKER CONFIRMED!"
The net tightened instantly.
More armored troops rounded the corner.
Blinkstep panicked. "We need to RUN!"
Titanborn roared, "He's targeting them. He wants US to move!"
Mindwright's mind raced.
"It's a diversion. A precision one."
Arc slowly backed away from the soldiers.
"He wants me out of their hands."
The puppet whispered:
"He wants you alive…"
Then, more quietly:
"…for now."
The Hunter's Pattern
Arc finally turned to the others.
"We go left," he said.
Blinkstep blinked. "How do you know—?"
Arc lifted the first knife.
"He pointed this direction."
Mindwright froze.
"…You mean the blade angle?"
Arc nodded.
"The way it landed. The exact tilt. He left me a route."
Titanborn looked sick. "He's guiding us like prey."
"No," Arc whispered.
"He's guiding us like a challenge."
The moment those words left his mouth—
A shadow moved across the rooftops.
Titanborn flinched.
Blinkstep jumped.
Mindwright spun.
But Arc didn't move.
He just felt the presence.
Quiet.
Cold.
Unavoidable.
Elias wasn't chasing them.
He wasn't helping them.
He wasn't protecting them.
He was controlling the board.
Retreat Under Fire
Central Forces advanced, shouting commands.
"STAND DOWN!"
"KNEEL OR WE FIRE!"
"TARGETS NONCOMPLIANT!"
"ACTIVITY CONTRIBUTES TO ILLEGAL MANIFEST REALM RISK!"
Titanborn clenched his jaw. "Screw this."
Blinkstep grabbed both Mindwright and Arc.
"We're moving. NOW!"
He dragged them into the nearest alley as mana blasts ripped down the street, shattering pavement where they had just been standing.
Titanborn covered the retreat, smashing through debris.
Mindwright calculated escape routes on the fly.
Arc kept the puppet steady against his chest.
The rain grew thicker, drowning the explosions behind them.
But Arc heard something else beneath the storm.
Footsteps.
Light.
Even.
Timed perfectly with their retreat.
Elias was following.
Not attacking.
Just following.
Arc whispered under his breath:
"He's watching how we run."
The puppet shivered:
"He's learning."