Lucius, Liora and Luna walked out of the restaurant first. They were really unbothered, as if nothing had happened.
Loreia was the last to leave but before stepping out, she stopped in front of Darry.
With a smirk, Loreia casually dropped the two bloodied eyeballs onto the floor in front of him.
Plop.
Darry flinched. He instinctively stepped back as the disfigured orbs landed right at his feet.
Loreia tilted her head slightly in amusement. "You better think twice before asking me to accompany you again if this was enough to make you shit yourself."
Darry swallowed hard. His mouth dried up as he was unable to respond at all.
Loreia only grinned and burst into a loud, merciless laigher. "Hah! Pathetic."
With that, she turned around and walked out of the restaurant while keeping laughing.
Darry stood there and his body trembled as he had just realized that he had messed with the wrong people.
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The investigators and Vance were now standing in front of the apartment building.
Vance crossed his arms. "So, this is where they live?"
One of the investigators nodded. "Yes, according to the company records, this is Loreia Luxoriaâs registered address."
Vance sighed. "Letâs see whatâs inside, then."
The investigator stepped forward, knocking on the door and called out. "Delivery service! We have a package for you!"
Silence.
The investigator exchanged glances with his colleagues. "No answer."
He knocked again, louder this time.
Still nothing.
Vanceâs patience ran out instantly.
"Move."
Without hesitation, he stepped forward and kicked the door open with a single powerful strike.
CRASH!
The door flew open, slamming against the wall and what they saw inside shocked them.
A massive silver dragon was curling in the center of the room. Its body was trembling in pain.
"T-Thatâs..." one of them stammered.
Another investigator recognizing it immediately muttered in disbelief. "Isnât this the Argentis that Master Cassius wanted to obtain?"
Vance frowned as he glanced at Argentis. "How the hell is it already this big?"
The investigators stepped forward cautiously, examining the beastâs massive, gleaming silver wings, its razor-sharp claws, and its newly evolved form.
One of them swallowed hard. "This... this doesnât make sense. Argentis was a C-Rank when it was at the Beast Castle. How did it evolve this fast?"
Another investigator clenched his fists. "It shouldnât be possible... unless someone forcefully evolved it."
Vanceâs eyes narrowed. "Forcefully evolved?"
The investigator nodded. "There are methods, but none that can make this much progress in such a short time."
Vance remained silent for a moment before muttering. "It seems weâre in the right place after all."
One of the investigators looked around. "But theyâre not here."
Vance then scanned the apartment carefully. Unlike what he had expected, the place wasnât abandoned or hastily emptied.
The furniture was intact, the floor was clean, and there were no signs of a rushed departure.
His eyes narrowed as he analyzed the surroundings. "Tch. Itâs clear they were living here."
He glanced at the investigators. "But it looks like theyâre out for now. No signs of permanent relocation."
One of the investigators nodded. "So whatâs the plan, sir? Do we wait for them to return?"
Vance snorted. "No need. We already found something much more valuable."
He turned his gaze toward Argentis. "Well then, letâs take the dragon and leave."
The investigators exchanged glances, hesitating slightly.
One of them cleared his throat. "Uh, sir, how exactly do we take it? This thing is huge."
Another investigator rubbed his chin. "Yeah, even if we try, we will alert the people around here and we need to be discreet about this."
Vance let out an annoyed sigh, as if the answer was obvious. "Weâre not taking it alive."
The investigators stiffened slightly.
Vance then continued. "Master Cassius wants this beast for research, not as a personal pet so just kill it and store the body in a spatial ring."
One investigator paused, glancing at Argentis. "Sir, this beast is still evolving. Killing it now might damage the research valueâ"
Vance gave him a look. "Are you questioning my orders?"
The investigator swallowed hard and immediately shook his head. "N-No, sir!"
Vance exhaled slowly, shaking his head. "Then donât waste time. Do it."
But Argentis, who had been dazed and recovering from its evolution, suddenly became alert.
It could sense some people around but when he saw them, it realized they werenât its masters.
These werenât even familiar people. They were total strangers. They were intruders.
It had sensed them earlier, but it was still weak from the forced evolution.
But when Argentis heard their conversation, its entire body tensed.
"Kill it and store the body."
They wanted to kill it.
One of the investigators stepped forward, unsheathing a weapon. "Alright, letâs get this over withâ"
Argentis immediately rose and growled. Its claws dug deep into the floor.
The investigator froze, feeling the shift in the air. "Wait⌠itâs awake."
Vance raised an eyebrow, unfazed. "So?"
"Sir, itâs hostileâ"
BOOM!
The floor shook as Argentis suddenly roared.
Vance clicked his tongue in annoyance. "Tch. So it still has fight in it?"
The investigator backed up slightly. "Sir, I think itâs going to retaliate!"
Vanceâs expression remained calm, but his eyes grew colder. "Fine. Letâs see if this dragon is worth the trouble."
Argentis lowered itself into an aggressive stance, its wings spreading slightly.
It didnât know how strong these enemies were or how it could win in its current state.
But it knew one thing. It wasnât going down without a fight. Discover hidden stories at freewebnovel
Vance smirked as he cracked his knuckles. "This shouldnât take long."
But just as he took his first stepâ
CRACK!
The floor beneath them groaned violently, splitting apart.
For a brief moment, silence hung in the air.
Thenâ
BOOM!
The entire floor collapsed beneath them.
The investigators barely had time to react before they plunged downward, their bodies twisting mid-air in shock.
"What theâ?!"
Vanceâs eyes widened slightly as he instinctively reached for something to grab onto, but it was too late.
They were falling.
All of them.
ExceptâŚ
Argentis.
The massive silver dragon hovered in mid-air, flapping its newly evolved wings.
It watched with amusement as its would-be captors fell through the crumbling apartment floor, crashing into the lower level in a chaotic heap.
The dragonâs silver eyes gleamed as it realized something.
This⌠was its fortune.
It let out a deep, rumbling chuckle.
"Heh."
And with one strong flap of its wings, Argentis soared upward, blasting through the ceiling and into the night sky.