Chapter 124: Exterminator

?Extending his senses, he searched for the familiar mana signatures of the elite guards stationed in the outer hallway.

Normally, he could feel their presence clearly through the stone, each one registering as a distinct flare of energy.

?Now, however, a terrifying anomaly had supplanted them.

?A suffocating concentration of Death mana was gathering just beyond the threshold.

?It was so dense that the energy seemed to physically stain the air, creeping through the passageway like an unstoppable tide of pure darkness.

?The creature’s eight eyes dilated in shock.

?Before he could process the threat, a thunderous impact shattered the silence.

?BOOM!

?The massive, multi-ton vault door tore cleanly away from its reinforced steel frame.

?The massive slab flew backward through the air, crossed the chamber in a shower of brilliant sparks, and slammed into the far floor with enough force to split the metal plating beneath it.

?Thick dust billowed through the breached entryway.

?A single figure strode calmly out of the haze.

?Cassian Voss stepped into the chamber. His posture was entirely relaxed, his golden-blond hair barely disturbed by the explosive entry.

His piercing blue eyes swept lazily across the room, taking in the towering machine before settling on the insectoid creature standing before it.

?A dark, spinning ring of shadow hovered beside his right hand.

?With a subtle flick of his fingers, the shadow circle contracted into a dense point and vanished into his skin.

?Behind him, the dimly lit hallway was a slaughterhouse.

?The Arachnid guards who had been holding the outer perimeter lay scattered across the blood-soaked floor, their heavy armor shredded like wet paper.

Some had been cleanly bisected, while others bore gaping wounds that had severed their limbs entirely.

?Not a single one remained breathing.

?The masked leader stared at the human intruder, sheer disbelief flashing across his eight eyes.

?Cassian hardly bothered to look at him.

?Instead, he casually raised his wrist and tapped his communicator.

?"Nyxara, you can drop the Shadow Veil now."

?A brief pause followed over the line.

?Through the speaker, the sound of violent combat continued without pause. The Undead Elf Champion stood in the center of an outer corridor, her massive scythe sweeping through a squad of Arachnids attempting to retreat toward an armory.

?One fell.

?Then two more.

?Her violet eyes remained icy cold as she twisted the haft mid-swing, bisecting another pair of soldiers before answering.

?"Yes, my Lord."

?The connection clicked off.

?A second later, the pitch-black Shadow Veil blanketing the complex dissolved into nothingness.

?The change was instantaneous.

?The unnatural, dead quiet that had concealed the facility broke as the chaotic noise of full-scale battle flooded the chamber.

Heavy gunfire echoed through the stone tunnels, accompanied by the high-pitched crack of plasma weapons and the agonizing screams of soldiers caught in a systematic execution.

?Sirens began wailing throughout the facility.

?Red warning lights flashed rhythmically along the walls, painting the command chamber in harsh, bloody bursts of light.

?The Arachnid leader finally realized what had happened.

?The suffocating darkness he had sensed wasn’t a localized spell.

?It had been an absolute sensory blackout.

?The enemy had infiltrated their facility, hidden their assault beneath an impenetrable shroud of Death mana, and executed his entire outer security detail without alerting a single alarm.

?And judging by the mound of corpses behind the intruder, the boy had reached the Worldbreaker Core without encountering a single obstacle that could slow him down.

?The creature’s mandibles flared open, revealing double rows of needle-sharp teeth.

?"You!"

?His voice completely lost its earlier composure, escalating into a harsh hiss.

?"Who are you?!"

?Cassian began walking toward him.

?His footsteps clicked against the metallic floorboards, steady, unhurried, and perfectly rhythmized despite the deafening alarms echoing off the walls. He showed zero interest in the dead guards or the frantic chaos occurring outside the room.

?His gaze remained locked on the creature standing in front of the bomb.

?"You know," Cassian began, his tone almost conversational, "I was having a pretty eventful day."

?The creature’s eight eyes tracked his every step.

?Cassian continued, a faint, devoid-of-warmth smile appearing on his lips. "I just got home, and I received one hell of a revelation from my mother. It threw me for a loop, to be honest. But I tried looking on the bright side, at least my daughter was safe at school, building a future for herself."

?He stopped a dozen paces away.

?"And then that was ruined, too, because a bunch of masked idiots decided to turn an entire planet into a hostage situation."

?His smile remained, but the light vanished from his eyes entirely.

?"Three hundred and fifty thousand locations. Countless civilians. Children trapped in their classrooms. Families who have absolutely nothing to do with whatever pathetic, bitter grievance you parasites are trying to air out."

?Cassian tilted his head slightly.

?"And somewhere in the middle of all that noise, your little circus act managed to endanger my daughter."

?The atmospheric pressure in the room plunged.

?For the first time since entering, Cassian’s relaxed posture vanished. The faint amusement died, replaced by a chilling, absolute stillness that made the Arachnid’s skin crawl.

?The creature’s mandibles clicked together nervously.

?He had fought powerful humans before. He had seen high-tier Lords wield reality-bending magic that defied comprehension.

?But there was something deeply wrong with the man standing in front of him.

?Cassian didn’t look like a warrior entering a life-or-death battle against a planetary bomb. He moved like an executioner who had already decided the outcome, and whose only remaining thought was how much time he felt like wasting on the kill.

?The creature’s clawed fingers twitched.

?"I asked you a question, human!" he snarled, dark fluid oozing from his mouth. "Who the hell are you?!"

?Cassian stared at him for a quiet second.

?Then he let out a short, cold laugh.

?"Ah, right. You wanted a name."

?He took one final step forward, his blue eyes glowing with terrifying, absolute promise.

?"Allow me to introduce myself."

?The shadows beneath his boots began to churn like boiling ink.

?"I’m the exterminator."