Chapter 194: Chapter 194 - Theo’s Disappearance
[The Primordial Be—ing of Lightning has n—oticed host.]
A shiver ran down Theo’s spine immediately.
The distorted system panels shook even more violently.
Every error message shattered into fragments before reforming again, as though two unseen forces were fighting for control.
He gripped the edges of his couch tightly, his heart pounding rapidly.
"What is happening...?"
Red warning windows rapidly flooded his vision.
[WA—RNING!]
[W@RN-ING!]
Theo’s heart began beating even faster.
’System?’ he thought, standing up slowly.
The previous windows shot through his racing mind.
’The primordial being of lightning,’ he thought, realizing what was going on. ’But why? What? Or even how?’
Before he could react, the panels in front of him began to twist and crack apart.
[@tt3mpting to— isolate 3xternal int3rfer3nce ###]
[Fail— ed.]
[@tt3mpting em3— rgency disconnect ###]
A single pure red screen popped up in front of him.
[FAILED.]
Theo’s eyes went wide.
’The system can’t stop it?’
Countless thoughts raced through his mind, many of which were questions.
’I just rejected the option to meet him,’ he thought, breathing in slowly. ’Is that why this is happening?’
The room around him had fallen deathly quiet.
No more messages had popped up after the last failure.
Even so, a bad feeling had started to settle inside his stomach.
’Something is happening,’ he thought, glancing around. ’I just don’t know what...’
Theo stood completely still, analyzing everything.
That’s when he heard a quiet humming noise.
It slowly started growing louder, yet he couldn’t place where it was coming from.
CRACKLE!
A bolt of yellow lightning flashed straight toward him.
’Shit!’
He jumped back immediately.
Yet, the lightning seemed to follow him perfectly at the same distance.
CRACKLE!
Another appeared, this time from behind.
CRACKLE! CRACKLE! CRACKLE!
One after another, similar yellow lightning bolts began swirling around him.
"What the hell... is this?"
Theo instinctively took several steps back.
But the lightning simply followed him.
Just then, another system window flickered to life in front of him.
[Recalculating...]
[Primordial authority — accepted]
[Establishing protected transfer protocol...]
Theo’s eyes went wide.
Though he didn’t know exactly what the text meant, he damn well had the gist of what was happening.
"Transfer...!" he let out, gritting his teeth.
The bad feeling exploded inside his stomach.
Even so, he knew there was nothing he could do about it.
As if on cue, every strand of yellow lightning suddenly froze in midair.
The entire room fell completely still.
Slowly, all colors faded away except those of the yellow lightning.
’Ahh,’ he thought, glancing down. ’Damn—’
In an instant, the lightning shot toward him all at once.
ZAP!
A blinding light erupted inside the room, lighting it up completely.
Theo didn’t even have time to react.
The moment the lightning touched him, the space around his body shattered like glass.
His vision went completely white.
For a second, he felt completely weightless, as though he was falling endlessly.
POP!
A loud noise echoed out all of a sudden.
"Huh?"
Feeling the solid ground below him, Theo slowly opened his eyes.
The moment he did, every muscle in his body froze.
His pupils shrank to pinpoints.
All color drained from his face as his breathing stalled.
For several endless seconds, he simply stood there, unable to utter a single word.
His mind, which had remained calm through beast tides, monsters, and countless near-death experiences, went utterly blank.
Only one thought remained.
’Impossible.’
Meanwhile, back in Theo’s apartment, loud murmurs echoed out just outside.
Knock! Knock!
"Come on, Theo," a loud voice echoed out. "Open the door up!"
The room went silent for a few seconds again.
Several quiet voices spoke to each other.
Then, the same loud male voice echoed through the door.
"Ah, screw this!" he said. "I’m coming in!!!"
CRGK!
The lock twisted.
Finally, the door slowly opened, revealing several faces.
"Eh?" Owen said, tilting his head. "Why is it so dark here?"
He pressed the light switch several times, yet nothing happened.
After a moment, he just shrugged and walked in.
Behind him, Lyra, Iris, and Jim followed, each carrying a tray of food in their hands.
"Theoooo!" Owen shouted. "Where are you?"
He walked further into the room, finding the lights themselves broken.
’Did the power go out or something?’ he thought, scratching the back of his head. ’Is that why he’s not here now?’
"See, I told you," Lyra said behind him. "We should’ve just waited for his response!"
Owen glanced back at them.
"Maybe," he muttered, conflicted. "But I’m sure I heard people say he was back..."
A strange feeling settled in his stomach, yet he couldn’t place exactly what it was.
After a moment, he let out a disappointed sigh.
"Seriously," he mumbled. "I finally break through, he wins an entire tournament, and the guy isn’t even home to celebrate."
As he complained, Iris put down the plate of food she was carrying.
Her eyes narrowed slightly as she stepped inside the room.
"No," she said, glancing around. "He’s definitely been here."
Everyone turned toward Iris.
She pointed at the couch without hesitation.
"See, that’s his jacket there," she said slowly. "There’s a half-finished glass of water on the table, and there are broken glass shards all over the floor."
Jim took a step forward, frowning.
"You’re right," he said. "But... where did he go?"
An uneasy silence settled over the room.
Each of them started to get the strange feeling that something was wrong.
Especially Owen, who had a certain image in his mind.
’Could it be that bitch?’ he thought. ’That happened way before we even left our hometown though...’
But with the glass shards, broken lights, and his clear presence just a bit ago, it clicked in his mind immediately.
’Of course! He won the tournament. There’s no way those damn Whitmores wouldn’t continue going after him.’
Just then, Jim slowly spoke again.
"I’m getting a bad feeling about this."
The others nodded simultaneously.
Owen pulled out his phone without another word.
"That’s it," he shouted, his expression dark. "I’m calling Adrian."
