The Author's POV

'Now that's what you call an entrance.'

An eerie silence filled the entire space. No one dared to budge even an inch in Malik Alshayat's presence.

Malik Alshayatin was able to instill fear in the minds of those present in the room simply by making his presence known; as a result, he was in a position to seize control of the situation.

All of the individuals who were present were at the very highest levels of the human domain, and yet, none dared to look at him in the eyes.

This went to show how scary of an individual he was.

It was reassuring to learn that the top ten rankers were not the least bit anxious, with Octavious appearing to be the most composed of the bunch.

He slowly raised his right hand to call everyone's attention to himself so that he could speak.

"Calm down, he's not actually here. It's just a projection. "

"Sharp as always, Octavious."

Malik Alshayatin's gaze continued to be unruffled as it traveled from one person to the next among those in attendance.

He appeared to be smiling only slightly as he slouched back in his chair and mumbled something.

"Don't worry too much about me, you can continue with your meeting. I'm just here to listen. Treat me as if I don't exist."

"We can't do that."

For the first time in my life, Octavious appeared to be a proper leading figure as he interacted calmly with Hemlock.

He looked extremely composed and serious.

His calmness was directly transmitted to the others, who appeared to have calmed down as a result of his poise.

It was possible that he was just as shocked as the other people in the room, or that he really didn't care. However, I was aware that if the most powerful person in the room became nervous, the rest of the group would also become nervous.

His composure was able to calm everyone present.

'Oh right, now that I think about it, don't I have to meet him later?'

I indeed recalled the fact that I was supposed to meet him right after this meeting was over.

We needed to talk about a couple of important things.

"...That's a pity. It looks like I'm not wanted here."

Hemlock lowered his head, his expression crestfallen.

I shook my head when I saw him.

He was clearly having fun.

It was most impressive that he managed to infiltrate this location, but in retrospect, given his strength, which was in a league of its own, and the fact that Kevin had planned this, it wasn't all that surprising.

At least for me.

The same could not be said for the others, who cautiously eyed each other out of fear that one of them was being watched by another spy who was hiding among them.

This was the kind of response that Hemlock hoped to provoke with his appearance.

He wanted to make everyone paranoid. Make it seem as though he had his hands in everything, and make everyone feel hopeless.

Well, at least that was how it was supposed to be.

"Don't worry, there's no other spy."

I spoke up.

At that very moment, all of the heads that were present in the room immediately turned to look in my general direction.

I let out a soft yawn while I lazily sat in my chair.

"...If there were any other spies, they'd be with the other spies. Dead."

The room fell completely silent once more, only for it to be broken by Hemlock's voice.

"So it was really you."

I felt Hemlock's gaze pause on me and I looked back at him. With a casual nod of my head, I waved my hand at him.

"Fancy seeing you again."

At that precise instant, I could feel the air turning chilly as the focus of everyone's eyes in the room intensified.

'Huh? Why are they reacting like that?'

At first, I was taken aback, but after some consideration, I realized what was wrong; I appeared a little suspicious.

I started by clearing my throat before attempting to clarify the situation.

"I really hope that you have forgiven me for what I did to the Monolith the last time I was there. If you do, please let me know. In all seriousness, I did not intend to cause as much damage as I actually did."

When those words left my mouth, Hemlock's expression remained the same; however, the others' expressions changed significantly as they finally recalled the fact that I was 876.

At this point, virtually everyone was aware of what I had done at the Monolith and how I had destroyed a significant portion of their headquarters.

When I said almost everyone, I was referring to the highest rankers specifically. The majority of the population was still unaware of what had actually taken place.

The truth of the matter was that the Union and other rankers within the human domain, just like the Monolith had for the Union, had spies working for them within the Monolith. Finding out information about me wasn't all that difficult.

...and just like that, the misunderstanding was quickly resolved.

Or at least, that was how it was supposed to be. Unfortunately, with a thin smile forming on his face, Hemlock spoke up.

"The past is the past, and I have long since forgotten about the issue. In any case, it is also nice to see you again after meeting you a few weeks back; I assume you are doing well?"

'Should've seen it coming.'

It was evident that he was attempting to plant some doubts about me in the minds of those in attendance. I had no intention of letting him.

In any case, I had one job to do at the moment, and that was to stall time for whatever Kevin was planning on doing, so I might as well enjoy myself while I was at it.

Not like I was in any danger.

I brushed my hair back and lazily replied.

"Honestly, it was quite bothersome. I was just there to visit the grave of a dear friend of mine when you suddenly showed up. Very annoying if I had to be honest. I already know of two people whose charm nearly rivals mine, a third and we have a problem."

"That's unfortunate to hear."

"What's more unfortunate is the fact that you're here. And here I thought I managed to kill all of the spies that you've managed to plant into the Union, looks like I have overlooked some spies."

This was a lie.

I wasn't the one that got rid of the spies of the Monolith.

This was Kevin, but that was irrelevant. I was attempting to anger Hemlock by claiming credit for the accomplishment.

Get some reaction from him and gain some time, but...

To my surprise, Hemlock appeared as composed as ever, as if he cared nothing about the spies that Kevin had eliminated. Well, in this case, me.

At that moment, my brows furrowed tightly and I had a sudden ominous premonition.

'...Am I overlooking something important?'

***

At the top of a tall skyscraper.

The moon hung in the sky, illuminating the skyscraper's top, where a shadowy figure stood. As red and white lines streaked across the city, a picturesque scene formed.

Kevin inhaled deeply, his focus on the towering structure that stood directly across from him.

"Everything is ready."

His eyes contained an uncommon callousness, and his voice was especially chilling.

Kevin raised his hand to his chest and clenched it tightly, feeling his heartbeat which was racing incredibly quickly.

Staring at the building opposite him, he felt nervous.

In his mind, there was no moment that was as important as this. Failure would only lead to the demise of humanity.

Kevin knew that he couldn't fail.

He had to accomplish his goal.

'I've already made the necessary preparations, there's no need for me to be nervous. '

Kevin's personality underwent some shifts as his lost memories began to trickle back into his consciousness one by one.

It was also because of this that in spite of how he was feeling, he was able to keep his cool and not let his emotions get the best of him.

He swiped the air in one single motion, and a panel formed in front of him.

[[A] Mirage cloak]

A skill that allows the user to conceal all traces of their presence and aura from those around them. Time limit; ten minutes.

[[S] Permeation]

Ability that enables the user to avoid or get around physical obstacles by directly passing through them.

The two new skills that he had recently purchased from the system shop suddenly appeared before his eyes and he activated them. His presence disappeared completely, and his figure became transparent.

In addition, he extracted from his dimensional space a small flask containing a small dagger.

[Poison of the Medheives]

Rank : S

Description : A slow-acting poison that enters the system and severs all mana connections in the human body, eventually causing death. The poison may take some time to take effect, but once it does, not even an <SSS-> ranked user will be spared. It is insoluble in any liquid and extremely corrosive.

[Nillinham Dagger]

Rank : SS

Description : A throwable dagger with the unique ability to sever any form of energy, whether it be demonic energy, aura, or mana. It is possible to kill someone of a higher rank if caught off guard. Resilience; Three times.

Kevin removed the cork from the flask and poured the liquid over the dagger before storing the flask away.

The dagger in Kevin's hand was something he had acquired by utilizing his newly acquired memories.

It was his trump card and the item that gave him the confidence in completing what he was about to do.

"I'm ready."

[Overdrive.]

As a result of Kevin activating Overdrive, his muscles grew larger and his veins became more prominent throughout his body. His rank up came about very quickly, and he eventually reached the <SS-> rank.

He didn't waste a single second following his rank up.

After taking a step forward, his body reappeared in front of the opposite building's window and entered the glass without incident. Nearly as if he were a ghost.

[Permeation.]

If that wasn't enough, his figure completely disappeared right after entering the building as his other skill [Mirage Cloak] was activated.

After navigating his way through the building's rooms, Kevin found himself inside a cramped apartment.

To anyone looking in from the outside, it didn't appear that there was anything wrong with the apartment; there were pictures hanging on the walls, the television was on, and toys were strewn all over the wooden floor of the place. It looked like any regular household.

However, Kevin knew that this was fake.

After making his way through the walls of the apartment, Kevin quickly found himself inside a room of a medium size that was completely empty and was dimly lit by a small lantern that hung from the ceiling of the room.

Kevin's attention was drawn to the figure seated in the room's center. Black hair with a glossy sheen, facial features that would shame anyone, and an aura that made him appear immortal.

With his back exposed, Malik Alshayatin appeared in Kevin's vision.

Kevin was completely immobile, his eyes glued to the figure of Malik Alshayatin. His eyes closed for an unnaturally long time before reopening.

His eyes glowed crimson red, and he flicked his wrist once. A low whistling sound reverberated throughout the room as the air tore apart.

Everything transpired so rapidly that Kevin was barely able to perceive it. During the brief time that Kevin was concentrating on Malik Alshayatin's back, a thin film of mana appeared on Malik Alshayatin's back at the moment the dagger reached him.

It cut straight through it.

Thud―!

The dagger pierced Malik Alshayatin's back directly, and he cried out in agony as blood splattered everywhere.

"Huak!"

Confirming that the dagger had pierced his back directly, Kevin finally revealed his figure, his face ice-cold.

"The dagger has already pierced through your heart. Even if you somehow manage to survive, I've poisoned the dagger. It will gradually drain your mana until you run out and die. It's over."

As he turned his head slowly to look at Kevin, Malik Alshayatin's face was extremely pale.

Kevin knelt in front of him as Hemlock intermittently opened and closed his eyes and struggled to speak.

Deeply gazing into his eyes, Kevin's crimson red eyes shone brightly.

"Your biggest mistake w―"

The expression on Kevin's face froze up about the middle of his sentence, and Malik Alshayatin's face began to change.

It wasn't long before Kevin saw a familiar face materialize in front of his very eyes, and when he did, his face became noticeably more rigid.

"W...what?"