As everyone escaped from the cavern, Voron picked Core up and bolted into the research facility behind him, his sudden action catching Galo off guard.

“Tch, everyone, go after the escapees! Roki, come with me,” he ordered, everyone in the army complying as they ran up the tunnel to pursue the group who escaped.

“Yeah yeah, stop bossin’ me around,” Roki followed Galo into the research facility in pursuit of Voron and Core.

“Hey, old man! What’s the big idea?!” Core yelled as they reached the second floor, to which Voron set him on the ground.

“Sit still for a second,” he said as he strapped Core with a metal brace that went around his chest.

Core instantly recognized what it was. It was a Springless teleporter, the same one from the future.

“What the?! I’m sure I used up my last one…” Core uttered, then came to a realization, looking up at Voron in amazement. “No way… Did you..?” He asked, to which Voron nodded.

“I was able to reverse engineer a prototype just in time. I’ve no clue where this will take you, there’s no destination set. But at least you’ll escape,” he stated.

“Wait, you only have 1? In that case, you use it! I’m immortal, I can survive whatever these guys throw at me,” Core implored as Voron tightened the strap, Core struggling to undo it as Voron’s hand hovered over the button.

“It’s you who they’re after. And before you go, I have some knowledge I have to impart to you. It’s all in this book. Find Rein, and tell him everything,” Voron instructed as he slotted a notebook between the strap.

“Hold up! Wait! I haven’t accepted this yet! Don’t disobey me!” Core continued struggling.

“Sorry kid, but this is how the cookie crumbles. You don’t always get what you want,” Voron laughed as his hand itch closer towards the button on the strap.

“Wait! D8! Come out! Stop him!” Core ordered, to which nothing happened as D8 also agreed with Voron’s choice.

For the first time, she’d disobeyed her master’s order, and without a moment to react, Voron pressed the button, and like that, Core vanished.

“What the?! Where’d the kid just go?!” Roki, who’d just arrived at the second floor exclaimed, beginning to seeth with anger.

“Heh, you’re too late. Looks like we came out on top this time,” Voron provokingly laughed, making veins pop out of Roki’s head as Galo swiftly passed Roki, approaching Voron.

“I don’t usually get this pissed off. But when someone tricks me and thinks they can get away with it,” Galo lifted his hair off of his eyes, revealing a sinister green glow. “That’s when I show no mercy.”

*****************************************************************

As Rein arrived at Stogue, the sun was beginning to set on another day. He stood in the middle of the city and tried feeling out his environment, though all he felt were the footsteps of the people around him, along with the bustling chatter of the crowds around him.

“Did those army guys come to search your house last night too?” He heard a conversation among the crowd that caught his ear.

“Yeah, they searched every house thoroughly. Apparently there are wanted fugitives from the attack on the Hasbin gulf. Though I don’t see why anyone would shelter Econican scum,” the other person in the conversation.

“Econica, huh? I thought we were at peace with them for now. Just goes to show that you can’t trust any one of those weasels. I saw some of their pictures on the wanted board, and I’m pretty sure their prince was one of them.”

“For real? That was the prince of Econica? Damn, the emperor must really be a coward if he sent his son to do his dirty work…”

The conversation continued. It was one that would have usually angered Rein, and ordinarily, he would’ve intervened. However, he felt nothing at their slanderous words and walked away to find the wanted board, which was posted on the news bulletin in the town center.

As he gazed upon the bulletin board with his emotionless, death-filled eyes, he saw pictures of all of his friends, with the exception of 1. Chloe was missing, which made sense to him since she would’ve been instantly recognized as the princess of Orthlys.

He saw Clyde, Quint, Reggie, Sho, Raxo, and even Emria and Saphrilla. Zane was also missing for the same reason as Chloe. He noticed one other person missing, one that he expected to be there. Xenia was nowhere to be seen. This lead him to believe that she’d been captured during the attack, making him unconsciously clench his fist in anger, though his face remained still. As he stared at the board, he heard a voice talk to him as someone stood beside him.

“You interested in some of these kids too?” The tall, raspy-voiced red-haired man asked as he stood beside Rein.

Rein wasn’t a short person. He was 6 foot 1, with a decently chiseled body. However, the man who stood beside him about 3 inches taller than him, with a similar build, but an older-looking face, with spots of hair growing out of his chin, indicating that he had newly shaved his beard. The man had spiky red hair and wore a long, brown trench coat that reached his feet, with black boots and pants.

“Interested?” Rein sounded in confusion, making the man put his hands up and laugh in defense.

“Wait wait, that’s not how I meant it! Don’t report me to the authorities, please,” he begged as Rein simply looked at the man, unamused. “It’s just that, these kids are painted as the attackers, right? Don’t you think they’re a little young to be pulling off some large-scale terrorism?” The man posed, to which Rein looked back at the pictures, not responding to the man’s question.

“Heh, you see it too, right? That kid’s name, ‘Greybrewer’. That’s the martial arts family from Orthlys. And way up in the east too. No way that kid’s Econican, though most of the population would have no clue,” the man surmised, his deduction impressing Rein as he turned back at him.

“You’re right,” Rein played along. “What’s your name, sir?”