After seeing Dreya crush all of the monsters above us, things began to settle down. Though tensions were high from the previous battle.
Both Miyabi and Yanagi kept their distance from Dreya, who was walking by my side. She would occasionally glance around the hollow, staring at any ether crystals that were around us.
Sometimes she would even approach them, placing her hand on the black surface, only to pull away and return to my side.
"Strange, very strange." She said aloud, hearing her voice, both Miyabi and Yanagi flinched.
"Her voice… is strange." Yanagi said slowly.
"One of the effects, besides that, she can also do this." I placed my hand on the bone mask that covered her upper face.
The second I did so, the mask began to crumble. As her upper face was exposed, her eyes showed only two white eyes.
Neither of them said a word. Yanagi placed her hand over her mouth in shock, while Miyabi's face remained composed.
"H-how…?" Yanagi asked and hesitantly stepped in front of Dreya, observing her eyes more closely.
"There is no need for worry." Dreya spoke, smiling at Yanagi's worry. "I can see far more clearly than I have ever before."
Hearing this, Yanagi could only stay silent and step to the side. Allowing us to continue forward.
"Do you… recall what happened? Before you became… this." Yanagi slowly asked, not wanting to sound offensive.
"No." Was all she said and ended the conversation right then and there, which made things awkward.
"With that out of the way, we have one of the few immortals tamed, though it will be more difficult for the others." I began to recall the few I saw in the vision.
"Can you brief us on the ones that you know?" Miyabi asked, glancing at me with the same serious look.
"Fine, but it's best if we leave." I said, staring back at the sphere that was now behind us.
"We already caused enough problems; we don't want more to follow us." With that said, we followed Belle, leaving the destruction behind.
The travel back was smooth, but no one said anything else. By the time we returned, the air had become heavy.
All soldiers looked in our direction, more specifically at the new companion who was with us.
People began to show caution, some even placed their hands on their guns, preparing themselves to attack at a moment's notice.
Yet, the tension soon died when the sound of laughter was heard. "Big sis Nagi, boss, you're back!"
"Hey, Soukaku, slow down!" Harumasa called out to Soukaku, not noticing the tension.
Soukaku then stopped before Yanagi, but her focus was on Dreya, her eyes wide and showing awe. "You're pretty."
Hearing Soukaku call her pretty, Dreya smiled and floated towards Soukaku. Which caused Yanagi to place her hand on her weapon.
"You are a strange being yourself, such destructive power, in such a small body." Dreya then placed her hand on Soukaku's head, gently patting the blue Oni.
Soukaku giggled at Dreya's touch, enjoying how soft her fingers were. "Yet, such innocence should be cherished."
Dreya soon floated back to my side, staying silent as we made our way to the mobile tent.
In front of us were both Roland and Ray, who wore different expressions. Roland showed the same strict and tense face, with his eyes narrowed.
While Ray stared at Dreya like a predator staring at its prey, I could see Ray wanting to rush forward, to understand what Dreya is.
"I can assume that the mission was a success." Miyabi stepped forward and nodded her head in confirmation.
"Correct, without the help of the chief of the MBCC, it would have been more difficult." Seeing as how I was receiving credit, I spoke up.
"Section six did most of the work, I only provided orders and support." Yanagi only smiled and shook her head.
"No, you understood the situation at hand and even guided us through the danger." Seeing that they won't let the matter go, I could only sigh.
"I see, for now, you can debrief us on what happened, and… tell us about the casualties." He said and led us inside.
As we left, the tension outside dissipated, but the tension inside was a different story. "So, what happened inside?"
"The hollow was normal when we entered. We faced off ethereals." Miyabi spoke, recounting everything that happened.
"Yet, when we entered deeper, things changed." Roland was standing in front of us, while Ray typed the report on a tablet.
"Elaborate." He ordered.
"As we approached the location, we encountered a fissure, but it radiated both ether and mania." Miyabi continued.
"Though not all of us were able to enter, both Harumasa and Soukaku were brought back thanks to Summer's invention." Everyone then turned to Summer, who was sucking on a lollipop.
"You're welcome." She said with a smug grin, then pulled out her complex Rubik's cube and pressed a small button.
The cube shivered at first, but then began to move, layer by layer. It began to twist and turn, with the surface showing complex shapes and colors.
Once it stopped, Summer grabbed it and began to solve it. We then focused back on Roland, continuing the debriefing.
"Getting back on topic, the only ones who were able to walk through were both I and Yanagi, including the MBCC group." Roland hummed, but didn't say anything else.
"When we crossed through the fissure, mania was dense, and where we encountered… her." As she finished, she took a step back.
"Thank you, Miyabi. Eros, what can you tell us about… Her?" Roland asked, his tone carrying caution.
All eyes then landed on me, waiting for my explanation. "The sinner before you all is a researcher named Dreya, who studied the very first black ring."
"The same woman who was trapped inside it, correct?" Roland asked, and I nodded and continued my report.
"Yes, though she no longer retains her memories, she was compensated with the ability to manipulate gravity." This caused everyone to stare at her, then, lowering their gazes to see that she was floating.
"Can we see her abilities in action?" I didn't need to say anything; a single glance at her was enough for her to understand.
The next second, small pieces began to float towards her, circling her body. Then, they all stopped in front of her, before slowly bending and twisting, being crushed until a mini sphere floated in front of all of us.
"I… see. Thank you for the demonstration." Dreya smiled in response, and we continued with the report. When we finished, everyone began to go their separate ways.
But before we left, I felt a hand lightly tap my shoulder, and when I turned around, I saw a girl with red hair with twin tails behind her head.
Speaking about her head, I noticed two horns on both sides. When I looked closer, I noticed how it looked metallic.
Finally, I noticed how she wore a military uniform, a mix of grey and black. With a pair of leggings, but what caught my attention was her tail.
Er… more like a mechanical tail, and at the end of it was a gun, with… a pair of eyes?
"Um… d-did you find any survivors when you entered the hollow?" Asked the girl, and she looked nervous.
"No, we were too late." Hearing my answer, the girl's hopeful look turned into sadness, but I was caught off guard by the sound of growling.
"And you call yourself a chief?! Pathetic!" The gun said, its eyes were green, but turned red when it heard what I said.
"You should have done something, you should have been here earlier!" The gun then moved in front of me.
Its barrel was close to my face, yet I wasn't fazed. I kept calm as the gun continued to rant and shout at me.
"Do you have anything to say to yourself?!" Shouted the gun, yet I didn't react. I kept the same look as I stared at it, watching it breathe in anger.
"All I can do now is mourn for them, for failing and not reaching for them in time, because that is in the past." I then continued to walk away, but the gun blocked my path.
"So what?! You should have done a better job, you should have tried to bring them back!" Shouted the gun.
"They were too far gone, and even if I did bring one back, there was a risk that it would affect the other soldiers." However, the gun wasn't cooperating.
"That doesn't excuse you for the loss of the people!" Flames began to spew from the barrel, and its eyes turned from yellow to red.
"C-captain, calm down!" The girl said, grabbing the mechanical tail, as she tried to calm her captain.
"No, someone has to say it, and if no one will do it, then I will!" The gun was about to turn back to me, but it then went still.
"C-Captain?" Seeing the gun not respond, I knew who was causing this.
"Dreya, let them go." Glancing over my shoulder, Dreya stared at the gun, the metal slowly bent inwards, causing the girl to whimper in pain.
Dreya did so, but before looking away, she continued to stare at the gun silently. "If you understood the secrets he holds, you would not be saying those things."
Dreya then stayed silent, while the gun stared at Dreya with fury. "I don't give a damn about the experience, he should have done a better job!"
"That's enough, captain Magus, stand down!" Hearing Roland's voice, Magus could only click her tongue, if she had one, and gave me one last glare.
"Let's go Orphy, we're going to practice your marksmanship." She growled, but Orphy faced me and gave me a bow.
"Please don't take offense to what she said, she… went through something difficult." Was all Orphy said before being pushed by Magus.
"No chit chat, get moving!" Orphy squeaked at her captains order and began to run, leaving us behind.
"Welp, that was nice, let's head back now." Bai Yi said with a yawn and began to walk out. But she then came back with a nervous smile.
"Uh, chief, where's the base at?" She asked, I only smiled and had K.K guide her back. Making it easier for us to enter Belle's car.
The second they left, I heard the bike roar to life, followed by the sound of tires screaming on stone.
"She… really likes to burn rubber." Belle observed, watching K.K scream at Bai Yi to slow down.
"Yeah, she's a wild one." I sighed, already used to her shenanigans. "I feel bad for K.K, dealing with both Bai Yi and Che."
"Same, she must have a lot of stress building up." Belle nodded at my comment and had her eyes closed.
"We should probably follow them before they get in trouble." With that, all of us began to like inside the car.
Eve sat in the back next to Summer and Dreya, while Hecate sat in front on my lap. Finally, Belle was on the driver's side and soon began to follow both Bai Yi and K.K.
And it didn't take us long to find that both of them were pulled over by the police. Coincidentally, the same officer who pulled Nicole over.
"Officer, is there a problem?" I said out loud, catching her off guard.
"O-oh, it's you." She coughed and soon donned her professional persona. "Not only were they driving over the speed limit, but they were also driving recklessly and causing danger for other drivers."
I turned to Bai Yi, who was the driver. She had her arms crossed and wore a pout on her face. "I'm not surprised."
"But chief, you know how I prefer to live the dangerous life, I'm a free spirit!" She said and waved her arms above her like a child throwing a tantrum.
Hearing her call me chief caused the woman to widen her eyes in surprise and go stiff; she then raised her arm to salute me.
"Officer Zhu Yuan, leader of public security's criminal investigation, sir." She said.
"At ease, officer, there's no need for formality." Hearing this, Zhu sighed and let her body relax.
"Pardon me sir, but-."
"Call me Eros, I'm not for formalities when I'm not on duty." I cut her off politely.
"Eros then, but why have these… trouble makers as subordinates?" She asked, I, on the other had kept the smile.
"I'm afraid that's classified, but I can tell you this." I then held out my hand to Summer, who placed a card on my palm.
"You'll need our assistance when the time comes." I said, handing the card to her. "As for you two."
"Yeah, yeah, I'll clean up the place when we get back or something." She said and got ready to mount on the bike, only to be stopped when a ticket was held in front of her.
"Sorry, but even if you are military personnel, you still need to pay the fine." Zhu said and forced it onto Bai Yi's hand.
"What?! That's not fair, I should be getting special treatment!" Bai Yi then turned to me with pleading eyes.
"Chief, help me out here!" She begged, looking at me with pleading eyes. I could only role my eyes and took the ticket.
"Where do we need to go to pay the fine?" I asked Zhu Yuan.
"I can guide you to our precinct, you can pay the fine there." She said, no longer with a serious look, but instead with a kind smile.
"Please, the sooner the better." I sighed, following her to her workplace. "You two go on ahead, I'll deal with this."
"Thanks Chief, I owe you one!" Bai Yi said before driving away, followed by Belle, who promised to come back for me.
"You… don't seem worried." Zhu Yuan said, staring at my face that was slowly showing exhaustion.
"I… can't really show any worry when it comes to them, only exhaustion when they cause problems." I sighed and got ready to deal with the paperwork.
'So he's the one Jane encountered, could it be possible that girl Jane mentioned is connected to him?' She thought while guiding me.
[Woohoo, the author is back, and slowly getting better, now, cool news, he's about to try something cool, something about a wierd purple thing? Eh, who cares, I want chief to beat up some bad guys!!]