Now that Dylan had failed to return to the lair, Zerathos calmly assumed the outcome—he had been captured
Zerathos: I'm not particularly concerned about losing another pawn, but Oblivion's mysterious power continues to trouble me. It seems I'll have to investigate personally. A City houses the largest WHA headquarters, along with complete records on the heroes. Am I correct?
Gilbert: (inclined his head)Yes, Boss. That is indeed correct. But with all due respect… what is your intention?
Zerathos: Since the area is heavily guarded, any of you would be discovered immediately. I could send Black Gryphone, but without the ability to copy his victim's personality, he is practically useless. So I'll handle this myself. You needn't concern yourselves. Besides, I feel like stretching my legs.
Gilbert hesitated, then asked one final question.
Gilbert : But Boss… how will you blend in with humans in that… form?
In response, Zerathos's body shifted. His entity form dissolved, reshaping itself into that of a human—a middle-aged man with black hair and dark eyes. Neither too rugged nor too frail, his appearance was flawlessly ordinary. Perfectly human.
The Dark Knights stood frozen, stunned by the elegance and unsettling realism of his transformation.
Zerathos: Susan, you'll escort me.
Susan nodded, her expression composed as she stepped forward to guide him.
From the shadows, Adam watched the scene unfold, his jaw tightening. Rage boiled beneath his calm exterior.
Adam: (thought)That whore....Now she's become the boss's favorite. I swear… I'll kill that bitch.
His glare followed Susan's back as she walked away beside Zerathos.
———————————————————
Now, they reached A City by taxi and drop at a street near the WHA headquarters.
Zerathos: Wait here for me. If things go south, prepare an escape route.
With that, he stepped away.
He wore a cap and sunglasses, ensuring the CCTV cameras could not capture his face. At the entrance, he approached the security guard calmly.
Zerathos: Excuse me, sir. Do you know this place?
Zerathos asked, handing him a piece of paper.
The moment the guard's eyes dropped to the paper, Zerathos struck from behind—his hand driving through the man's back, piercing through flesh and crushing his heart in an instant. He dragged the lifeless body aside, tucking it neatly into a corner.
There, he changed into the guard's uniform, slipping on the jacket to conceal the blood. He snatched the keycard and calmly accessed the headquarters.
The HQ was massive—so vast that even Zerathos was uncertain where the server rooms were located. None of the Dark Knights had ever infiltrated the building before. To find his answer, he headed straight for the control room.
Inside, four guards were stationed.
Zerathos drew the pistol from his holster, emptied a nearby bottle, and fitted it over the muzzle as a makeshift suppressor. Before any of them could react, he fired.
Four shots rang out—muted and precise.
Four bullets.
Four headshots.
He approached the control panel and quickly located the server room. It was housed on the -4th floor—the lowest level—accessible only by elevator. Gathering what he needed, he entered the nearest elevator and pressed the button.
As the elevator descended past the first floor, it suddenly halted.
Someone was getting in.
The doors slid open, and Zerathos immediately recognized the man standing there.
Zerathos: (thought)Shit… it's Eric, who goes by the codename of Riptide. According to the information I had, he's an A-Class hero. Rank No. 1. Those who fought him never returned. Unlucky timing. I cannot use my main ability in this human form. I must not engage him—his ability is unknown to me.
Eric studied him for a moment before stepping into the elevator and pressing the button for the third floor.
Eric: So, what are you going to do in the server room?
Zerathos flinched internally but kept his composure.
Zerathos: Well, the Chief ordered me to retrieve a disc for planning.
Eric: Huh? Okay.
Eric said, unconvinced.
The elevator stopped at the third floor. Eric stepped out, and the doors slid shut as Zerathos continued his descent.
Zerathos: (muttering)That was close. That could have been a disaster. Now, get the information and leave.
The server room was massive, lined with countless rows of humming machines.
Zerathos: Good. Gilbert said the data we need is in the sixteenth lane.
The sixteenth lane sat dead center. Once located, he began extracting the information using an automatic pen drive.
Zerathos: Come on… come on… work faster, you stupid mankind technology.
Suddenly, a sharp spike burst through his right leg.
Zerathos: Wh—what?!
???: Did you really think I wouldn't notice who you were? Only personnel with level-five clearance are allowed in the server room. Your ID is level one. Which means you don't belong here.
Zerathos froze.
Zerathos: (thought)That voice....it can't be…Riptide… How did he get in? The elevator hasn't moved. More importantly… where the hell is he?
Zerathos thought as his gaze swept the room.
Then Eric emerged from something that appeared invisible. The moment he touched it, its nature revealed itself—water. A wall of water, thin enough to refract light, creating a false image and allowing Eric to conceal himself behind it.
Zerathos snapped the spike protruding from his right leg and charged forward. But after only a few steps, a sudden dryness clawed at his throat. His body halted against his will.
Zerathos: (thought)Thirsty? Impossible. I shouldn't be feeling symptoms like this—so why?
Eric: So you're a close-range fighter. All I need to do is stay one meter away from you. As long as I know that, I can win.
Eric vanished once more.
Zerathos caught sight of two water bottles hanging at Eric's waist—items that hadn't been there the last time they met.
Zerathos: (thought)So his ability is water manipulation… No wonder they couldn't defeat him.
Zerathos closed his eyes.
Zerathos: (thought)To use my full power, I need at least ten seconds to revert. That's impossible as long as he's this close. But… I'm not entirely at a disadvantage.
His eyes opened again, their color shifting from black to red.
Zerathos: (thought)As long as I can see the future. Twelve seconds of prediction is all I need. Once I close the distance… I can kill him easily.
Now, Zerathos began to see the future.
Multiple watery spikes descended from above—his head. He readied his arms in an instant and barraged them away, but there were too many, moving too fast. Several pierced through, striking his shoulder, his arm, and grazing near his ear.
The impact forced him down. As his body hit the floor, the future unfolded once more—multiple spikes surged upward from beneath him, converging with lethal precision.
He slammed his palm against the ground, repelling himself upward. But even then, the vision persisted. The spikes merged at the center, fusing into a single massive spear meant to impale him outright.
He twisted aside at the last moment.
The spike missed its mark—but not cleanly. It tore through his left shoulder and back, ripping flesh open and sending blood cascading down his side.
Pain flared. Anger followed.
Driven by desperation, he unleashed a violent barrage at his surroundings, cracking the floor beneath him and damaging several nearby machines.
Zerathos: (panting and thought)Calm down. This won't solve anything. I can see his attacks—that's why I'm still alive. I have to defeat him in the next second.
Eric: You act as if you know what my attack will be. You're interesting. But there's no escape for you—not because I won't let you… but because you can't.
Zerathos looked into the future once more—and froze.
An arm went flying.
This is bad.
Zerathos: (thought)I still need one more minute to gather complete data. But things aren't turning in my favor—let alone the fact that my arm is going to be severed. I have to turn the tables somehow.
Zerathos steadied himself, blood dripping onto the fractured floor—He took a steady breath, picked up a piece of metal scrap, and began sharpening it against the concrete floor. Blood dripped steadily beneath him, each drop echoing in the silence.
He waited.
And waited.
Then the blood reacted.
Zerathos: You're there!
Zerathos hurled the sharpened scrap forward. It sliced cleanly through the thin veil of water and severed Eric's right arm, forcing him out of his camouflage.
Zerathos: Just like I saw—someone's arm did get severed. The moment you prepared to attack, the water reacted. That's how I knew where you were. Now stay right there.
Zerathos charged.
Eric's severed arm suddenly floated midair. Zerathos watched as the blood remained intact, flowing back toward Eric, rejoining seamlessly as flesh and bone reconnected at an incredible speed.
Eric: So you have precognitive abilities. Otherwise, you wouldn't know how I'll attack. But now that doesn't matter. You can cut off any of my limbs—I'll simply reattach them, increase blood flow, and heal rapidly. The human body is mostly water. In fact, water exists almost everywhere—in your body, in the air, even in the ground. I'll take you seriously from now on.
Eric vanished once more.
Zerathos immediately took precautions and looked into the future again.
Countless punches—formed entirely of water—came flying straight toward him.
Then, from the cracked ground Zerathos had shattered with his punch, countless streams of water burst forth. They separated into multiple spheres before compressing into the shape of massive fists, each large enough to deliver devastating blows. The water constructs surged toward Zerathos.
He responded in kind, barraging them back.
But the dryness clawing at his throat—something he had felt earlier—returned with force. His breathing faltered, slowing his movements. The water fists struck cleanly, slamming into his face and body, driving him down to one knee.
Eric halted his assault.
Eric: If I wanted to, I could stop the blood flow to your heart and end you in seconds. But due to my pledge, I am not permitted to kill you. Still, to capture you, I can exploit attacks that would otherwise be fatal. You're done for.
Eric launched another attack—
—and it happened to him instead.
Large spikes erupted from his back, impaling him, tearing through his body and forcing him out of camouflage as he was gravely wounded.
Zerathos: Good thing you decided to give a speech. Otherwise, I would've lost.
Half of his face remained human. The other half had transformed into his entity form.
Every injury on his body vanished, his form restored to perfection.
Zerathos: You should have stopped my blood flow while you had the chance. But through my Absolute Causality Manipulation, I redirected your attack—and all of its effects—onto your own body.
Then, the download was complete.Zerathos removed the pendrive and stepped toward Eric, seemingly intending to finish him.
Eric: (coughing out blood and weak voice)Now, I know who you truly are,
Zerathos attempted to kill him, driving a punch straight toward his face, but before he could land the final blow, the alarm blared throughout the facility.
Eric: Like I said...
Eric continued, activating the alarm from his watch.
Eric: ...you're not going to escape, OldDominion.
Susan's voice came through urgently.
Susan: Boss, more heroes are coming in. You have to get out!
With no time left to deal with Eric, Zerathos abandoned the kill and fled the scene, sparing him by necessity rather than mercy.
He reverted to his human form and entered the elevator.
Eric immediately notified the guards of Zerathos's location. Security units rushed to the entrance and positioned themselves in front of the elevator.
But when the elevator doors opened, it was empty.
Zerathos had climbed through the hatch at the top, climbing upward, ascending until he reached the first floor.
By the time he arrived, the floor was deserted. The alarm had already forced a full evacuation. He scanned the area and quickly identified the window as his best escape route.
Zerathos: Susan, start the vehicle.
Susan: But Boss, what about you?
Zerathos: Just do it. That's an order.
Susan obeyed and drove the auto-rickshaw as instructed.
Zerathos took several steps back, then sprinted toward the window at full speed. His velocity far exceeded that of an ordinary human. He shattered through the glass and launched himself outward, landing on the rickshaw.
The guards immediately called for air support and opened fire. A heavy pursuit followed close behind, but Susan already had another escape plan in motion. Before they could get any farther, she slammed the accelerator and began erasing time—this time to its absolute limit: a maximum of eight seconds.
She grabbed Zerathos, abandoned the rickshaw, and reappeared near the coast—all within those erased eight seconds. No one knew what transpired during that lost interval except Susan herself. The still-running auto-rickshaw continued onward, drawing the attention of the WHA guards, who remained unaware of where Susan and Zerathos had gone.
Susan and Zerathos spotted multiple gondolas along the water, each manned by rowers. They decided to pose as a couple and boarded one.
Along the way, Susan asked quietly—
Susan: Did you get it?
Zerathos showed her the pendrive.
Susan smiled, then looked away again. Zerathos watched her for a moment before calling out to her. When she turned back, he suddenly leaned in and gave her a French kiss.
The rower shot them a look of clear disgust and thought, "Couples these days… sheesh."
Zerathos told Susan that she had done well today.
Susan was blushing, visibly flustered and confused by what had just happened.
Meanwhile, the rower thought, "Yeah, yeah—why don't you just sleep with her right here, right now? Lucky bastard"