Chapter 33: Captain Vale Snaps

The deafening shatter of the reinforced door echoed down the residential corridor like a bomb going off, bringing the entire Fourth Floor to a sudden, terrified standstill.

Alarm klaxons blared from the ceiling, their red emergency lights bathing the hallway in crimson. Doors clicked open up and down the hall as lower-tier personnel, medical staff, and tactical officers peeked out, only to freeze in sheer horror at the sight before them.

Elena, the Bureau’s prized A-Tier Silver Swordswoman, lay bruised and gasping on the carpet, her broadsword resting uselessly several feet away from her trembling hands.

"Clear the floor! Move! Move!" a harsh, authoritative voice roared.

Captain Adrian Vale tore down the hallway, flanked by two dozen fully armored, heavy-tier Bureau operatives. Mana rifles were raised, combat daggers were drawn, and elemental shields hummed to life in a flurry of defensive protocols. Vale stopped dead in his tracks beside Elena, his sharp eyes widening as he took in her battered state.

His face hardened, turning pale with an explosive, cold rage. The terrifying suspicion that had kept him awake since the F-Tier gate evaluation, the quiet fear that Raphael Matthews was not an anomaly to be managed, but a catastrophe waiting to detonate, had just become reality.

They had lost control, and that too completely and utterly.

"Medical team, get her out of here!" Vale ordered, his voice raw with fury as two operatives dragged Elena back into the safe zone.

Vale drew his own tactical sidearm, channeling a dense, golden mana reinforcement across his frame. He pointed the weapon directly at the shattered doorway of Room 408.

"All squads, front-line barrier formation! Heavy suppression protocols active! If he steps out of that room with hostiles, open fire on my mark!"

...

Inside the bedroom, the chaotic blare of the red alarm lights flickered softly against the walls, but the atmosphere inside was impossibly serene.

Raphael stood by the small desk, casually packing his minimal belongings into a black tactical duffel bag. A couple of spare shirts, his identification documents, and a few personal items were tossed inside with calm, methodical efficiency.

He pulled out his smartphone, tapped the screen a few times, and transferred his entire Bureau bank balance directly into a private digital wallet account.

He didn’t rush and didn’t panic. The frantic shouting in the hallway sounded as distant to him as rustling leaves. His mind was so clear that even pure water would lose to its clearness.

Beside him, Vanessa stood motionless in her flowing dark robes, her relic-staff humming with an ethereal, low frequency. Her cold violet eyes were fixed entirely on Raphael’s back, watching the effortless grace of his towering six-foot-five frame, the absolute stillness in his silver eyes, and the icy composure that had completely replaced his former civilian doubt.

A deep, intoxicating thrill ran through her soul.

’Yes!’ Vanessa thought, her lips curving into a rare, subtle, and wicked smile as her ancient heart raced with dark satisfaction. ’This is it! This is the Sovereign! Even if this is merely the dawn of his reign, the meek child is dead!’

As Raphael’s resolve solidified, the tether between their souls surged with unholy energy. Vanessa felt an extraordinary wave of pure power pouring from his core directly into her spirit.

Her internal mana capacity was expanding rapidly. It was literally increasing by the second as her anchor stepped fully into his mantle. She didn’t say a word. She was content to just bask in the glorious, rising shadow of her master.

Raphael zipped the duffel bag shut, slinging it casually over his right shoulder. He looked around the small apartment one last time, feeling zero nostalgia for the cage the Bureau had placed him in.

He turned toward the ruined threshold, where the shattered frame of the door hung precariously from its hinges. Through the smoke and flickering crimson alarm lights, he could see the bristling line of heavy tactical shields, glowing mana rifle barrels, and Captain Vale’s furious face glaring back at him. It was somehow comical.

Raphael took a slow, easy step forward, crossing the threshold without a hint of hesitation.

He stood at his full height, his luminous silver eyes sweeping over the nervous, sweat-slicked faces of the two dozen armed operatives pointing weapons at his chest. The heavy, suffocating pressure of his Sovereign aura radiated off him like an invisible wave, making the air freeze in their lungs.

A dark, calm smile touched Raphael’s lips.

"I was just about to leave," Raphael said, his deep, baritone voice echoing through the corridor with effortless authority. "I didn’t expect an entourage of bodyguards to see me off."

Captain Vale snapped.

"Shut your mouth, Matthews!" Vale bellowed, his voice cracking with pure venom as he stepped forward, his knuckles white around his sidearm.

"You assault an A-Tier Bureau officer, destroy facility property, and dare to stand there talking like you own this place?! I don’t know what kind of illegal entity you’ve bound yourself to, but your civilian privileges are revoked! Drop to your knees right now and surrender, or we will put you down as a rogue threat!"

The surrounding operatives visibly tensed, their fingers tightening on their triggers, their hearts hammering against their ribs as they felt the bone-chilling cold radiating from the towering, silver-eyed young man before them.

Raphael merely tilted his head, looking down at Vale with a cold, mocking pity that cut deeper than any blade.

"Put me down?" Raphael murmured softly, his smile fading into an icy, unyielding mask. "Captain... you never had me in a cage to begin with."

"You!"

"You were only able to do all that because I allowed you to. Your devices couldn’t even measure my mana. How stupid were you to think that an A-tier operative could keep me in check? I held respect for you, and I thought experience would’ve taught you something... but it seems I was wrong. 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

You are really senile."

Raphael stated coldly, his mana washing over them. Most fell onto their knees as the pure mana overwhelmed them, while others started bleeding from their orifices.

"Weak..."