Chapter 557: Death Bound Prisoners
In the heart of Solaria City, a massive skyscraper pierced the clouds like a blade of glass and steel.
Even among the other brilliant buildings that surrounded it, this structure stood prominent
Its surface was a masterpiece of engineering—glass panels polished to such perfection that they gleamed with an almost blinding intensity in the afternoon sun.
But this wasn’t merely aesthetic vanity; every pane was reinforced with advanced magical alloys, layered with protective enchantments that could withstand even an A-class Blessed’s most devastating attacks without so much as a crack.
Through the grand entrance, officials streamed in and out, all wearing immaculate suits and formal dresses.
Every single person carried a stern air about them, their faces set in expressions of focused determination.
Inside, the offices were a hive of controlled chaos—people hunched over desks, fingers flying across keyboards, voices murmuring into phones, papers shuffling, holographic displays flickering with data.
Everyone was utterly consumed by their work.
This was the headquarters of the Bureau of Interdimensional Investigation.
The BII, as it was commonly known, was responsible for managing travel and migration between the countless realms that now coexisted in this fractured reality.
It was a pivotal institution, one that could cause so much potential harm if mismanaged, and as such, vast resources had been poured into its operations.
It was one of the most fundamental departments in the entire Human Realm, the very backbone of the safety net that kept the realm secure from external threats.
—
On the 44th floor, the elevator doors slid open with a soft chime.
Mika stepped out first, his presence immediately commanding attention. Behind him, like a loyal procession, came Astrid, Anya, and Charlotte.
The moment the staff working in the small cubicles saw them, chaos erupted.
Every single person dropped whatever they were doing.
Pens clattered to desks, holographic displays were abandoned mid-sentence, conversations died mid-word.
They scrambled to their feet, bowing deeply as the group passed.
"Good afternoon, Lady Astrid!" One called out, his voice trembling with reverence.
"It’s a blessing to have you in our department!" Another added, her voice barely above a whisper.
"My Lady, your presence honors us!"
"Lady Astrid, if there’s anything we can do—"
"Lady Astrid, please let us know if—"
The words came from all sides, a chorus of deference and admiration.
Even those who didn’t speak looked at her with a mixture of awe and fear in their eyes, their gazes filled with a reverence that bordered on worship.
Normally, Astrid shouldn’t have been receiving such treatment.
Even though she held a significant position within the Bureau, there were many higher-ranking officials—senior positions with far more control over the department.
But Astrid wasn’t just any leader.
She was the daughter of a Battle Angel, and that simple fact came with an immense sense of authority.
People bowed their heads wherever she went, treating her almost as if she were some untouchable entity, a being so far above them that they could barely comprehend her existence.
Astrid wasn’t quite fond of this behavior, as were the other sisters.
They were all treated similarly wherever they went.
Of course, she had tried to change it in the past—insisting that the staff treat them normally, that they didn’t need such deference.
But the staff had been absolutely adamant about it, refusing to budge.
Eventually, she had given up and simply accepted it, ignoring the adoring gazes and reverent whispers as they went about their business.
Today, however, the attention was even more intense than usual.
Three daughters of the Battle Angels, all in one place?
The staff were basically trembling in their boots, already mentally preparing to share this incredible gossip with their friends later.
But Astrid had no time to think about that right now.
She was currently engaged in a far more important battle—pushing and nudging Charlotte as both of them fought for the position of being closest to Mika.
They both preferred his right hand, for reasons they couldn’t quite articulate, but neither was willing to give in.
"Charlotte, move over!" Astrid hissed, elbowing her sister.
"You move over!" Charlotte shot back, shoving her shoulder.
"I was here first! You take his left hand!"
"I like his right hand better! That’s the hand he uses to finger me!"
"Well, he uses that hand to spank me as well. Not to mention, I’m his older sister—that gives me priority!"
"That’s not how priority works!"
They continued their childish squabbling, completely oblivious to the stunned stares of the staff around them.
In that silent gap, Anya saw her opportunity.
She slid forward smoothly, her body pressing against Mika’s left side as she leaned into him.
Her voice was low, meant only for his ears, as they walked deeper into the building.
"I have some things to say before you interrogate those three, Mika."
He turned his head, his attention captured. "What is it?"
Anya’s expression grew slightly more serious.
"The reason I was brought over on this mission wasn’t just to interrogate them. It was also to find out exactly what their race was and where they came from."
She smiled, a hint of pride in her voice.
"With my blessing, it’s quite easy to do something like that. I can make an instant autopsy, essentially—see through someone’s body, their blood, their bones, even their nerve endings. Finding out what sort of race they are is a simple task for me."
Mika nodded, waiting for the inevitable "but."
"But unfortunately..."
Anya’s smile faded entirely.
"No matter how much I searched through them, I didn’t find any match at all to the previous races I’ve examined. It seems as if this is a brand new race—one we’ve never encountered before."
Mika frowned. He had hoped Anya would provide some clues about what they were dealing with, but even that had failed.
Anya’s eyes flickered with something darker.
"But I did find something interesting." She lowered her voice, her words barely above a whisper. "Though it’s not going to help us at all."
"Instead, it only makes our task harder."
Mika leaned in. "What exactly did you find?"
Anya glanced back at Charlotte, making sure she wasn’t listening, before continuing.
"While examining their bodies, I noticed one single peculiarity. Most of their body—their muscles, tendons, organs, bones—everything inside of them was their own." Her voice dropped even lower. "But their skin...their skin was not theirs at all."
Mika’s brows furrowed. "You mean to say—"
Anya nodded grimly. "It seems this realm was quite determined to invade ours. To make sure no peculiarities were noticed, no differences stood out, they masked the people of their own race."
"They replaced all of their skin with an artificial one—one that matched our own human appearance."
Mika’s expression grew dark. "How exactly did they do that? Don’t tell me they—"
"Exactly as you think." Anya’s voice was ice cold. "They flayed the skin off their own bodies. Completely peeled it off. Then they put on artificial skin that resembled normal humans."
"Quite ruthless." Mika said, his voice cold.
Anya nodded. "Exactly. That’s why I think interrogating them will be quite difficult."
She let out a sarcastic chuckle.
"After all, these men were willing to skin themselves for the mission and go through all that pain. I don’t think anything more than that is going to make them speak."
Mika nodded slowly, finally understanding why even Astrid was struggling.
He had seen people scream and moan when they were skinned alive—the feeling of those knives going through flesh, cutting through fat, and then slowly being peeled off like a banana was one of the most horrible pains one could imagine.
Even the strongest warriors, people who had faced death countless times, broke under that kind of torture.
And yet these three men had willingly gone through it.
The more he thought about it, the more he felt a sense of respect. He murmured under his breath.
"They truly are brave soldiers." He almost felt bad about what he was going to do to them.
But surprisingly, Anya shook her head. "I don’t think soldiers may be the cause."
Mika raised an eyebrow.
"Even though they didn’t give any proper confession at all, it doesn’t seem as if they’re doing this because they’re completely loyal to others."
"Instead, they seem as if they’re doing this because they’re desperate to save their own lives."
She paused, her eyes narrowing thoughtfully.
"From my understanding of everything that happened, I think they’re actually prisoners—ones with a death penalty hanging over their heads."
"They were sent over to this realm to fulfill a mission. As long as they succeed and come back, I believe whatever execution is looming over their heads will be completely stripped away."
Mika chuckled, shaking his head. "Using death as bait. Truly a smart move."
"This only makes the whole ordeal even more interesting." His eyes gleamed with interest. "I wonder who’s pulling the strings on the other side."
He felt more fired up about the entire thing than before. A worthy opponent. A worthy challenge.
Anya smiled, watching his expression shift.
This truly was the Mika she had fallen in love with.
Anyone else would fear such a thing, would be terrified by the implications. But here he was, getting all excited, treating it like a puzzle he couldn’t wait to solve.
The passion in his eyes made her heart flutter, and she started rubbing herself against his arm, enjoying the warmth of his presence.
But of course, the other two sisters finally noticed what was going on.
"Anya!" Astrid shouted, her eyes blazing with righteous fury. "What do you think you’re doing?"
Charlotte joined in, her voice equally indignant.
"You slippery little snake! How dare you try to steal him while we’re not looking!"
And just like that, the earlier truce was broken.
The three sisters were now pushing each other, fighting for position, their childish squabbling resuming with renewed intensity.
It was quite a strange sight for all the people passing by—the daughters of Battle Angels, legendary warriors who had shaped the very fabric of reality, acting like children fighting over a toy.
Mika, caught in the middle of the chaos, just looked tired.
He walked forward with long strides, dragging the sisters along with him as they continued their bickering.
—
Finally, they reached a section of the building that was completely secure.
They had to pass through multiple boundaries—biometric scans, magical signatures, code phrases, and various other security measures to get through.
It was obvious that no one could normally pass through here.
And then they were in front of a metal room that gave off an eerie, oppressive light.
The very air around it seemed to hum with latent energy, and the temperature seemed to drop by several degrees.
Mika reached for the door handle, but before he could touch it, he paused.
He slowly turned around to look toward Charlotte—
And sighed...
It was exactly as he had feared...
Charlotte was no longer the cheerful, competitive girl who had been fighting for his attention just moments ago.
She had transformed into someone else entirely.
Her face was pale, drained of all color.
Her eyes, usually so full of spirit and ambition, were hollow, empty windows to a soul trapped in the grip of terror. She trembled violently, her entire body shaking as if she were standing in a blizzard.
She looked utterly terrified.
Almost as if the other side of this room was the ninth layer of hell itself, a place she desperately did not want to see.
