Marc had only one option left to get out of there.
That thing he called aura...
He had already tried using it back in the churches of the Great Empire—and it hadn't gone well. In fact, it had almost made things worse.
But now, he had no choice. After all, he didn't need to control it. He needed to unleashit.
Marc looked at his trembling, cold fingers. His black aura was still there. Faint… but persistent. He stared at it for a long second, calm, with a lost, dying, and sorrowful gaze...
Then he released it into a storm of rage.
The black gas spread through the water like a hurricane. Soon, the entire ocean around him turned dark and murky. The aura—once small and weak—was no longer just a faint presence.
It was the ocean.
Suddenly, the sunlight vanished. Just as Marc thought he was dead, he heard it—A sound, like glass shattering.
After a brief glance upward, he saw the surface crack open before him. That was it. He was breaking out of the illusion.
A faint smile crept onto his lips…as a burning anger rose within.
Who dared put him in a state like this?
That…He was about to find out.
Marc rose to his feet like a dying man— Like a zombie who had drowned for hours. Water was still pouring from his mouth, and his breathing came in heavy, ragged gasps. And yet, his aura raged uncontrollably in all directions.
It seemed barely contained within Marc's small body. No one could know what would happen if it were unleashed—and no one wanted to know. It was violent and overwhelming.Uncontrollable and probably merciless.
Marc summoned his sword beside him.Then, slowly, he pointed it at the bluish silhouette.
"You're gonna regret this."
Jin started smiling again, feeling the thrill of battle rising. But the aura in front of them… didn't share the same opinion.
"I'm out. No need to die here."
Marc froze. Surprised by the sudden declaration of surrender. A massive wave of frustration surged inside him—but it was quickly drowned out by a stronger wave of pure confusion.
Then, slowly, anger took hold.In a single burst of motion, Marc crossed the distance between him and the strange woman.
His blade slashed through everything in its path. But the concentrated water— evaporated the instant it touched Marc's black aura.
"What…?"
The silhouette had vanished. Then Marc heard a voice from farther away:
"That was fun. But I suppose you already know... your world is lost."
Jin, Nathanaël, and Marc all turned their eyes toward the fading aura. The water dispersed into a thin mist. The once-blazing blue energy disappeared silently—as if it hadn't just nearly torn everything apart. Calm returned. It was peaceful again… in front of Nathanaël's house.
The sun shone once more, revealing the damage even more clearly. Marc and Jin finally took in the full extent of the destruction.
The once-bright house was full of holes. Some looked like they came from bullets. Others… like a soccer ball had exploded through the walls.Inside, it looked like there had been both a floodand a gunfight. The floor was torn up, the couches had holes, the lamps were shattered,and the paintings had fallen off the walls— all of it drenched in clear, still water.
"Damn," Marc muttered.
"This is no joke."
Nathanaël took it even worse.
"How am I supposed to explain this to my mom?"
"You can't. You're gonna have to move."
"What? Are you insane? François!!!"
A man in a suit appeared the moment Nathanaël called.
His face was pale—pale like a vampire. His brown eyes shimmered red, making him look more like them than a normal human. His face was sharp and precise, his skin unnaturally smooth. His eyes were empty, reflecting nothing at all. Judging by appearance alone, Marc figured he was about forty-eight.
The man showed absolutely no emotion as he spoke.
"Yes, sir."
"Take your men and fix this."
"No problem, sir."
Marc and Jin exchanged glances—then suddenly noticed there were already over fifty men at work around them.
They had appeared out of nowhere. In less than a minute, they were moving. Each one spread out to different parts of the house like robotic cleaning units. In under five minutes, everything was done. The house looked brand new—fresh, clean, untouched.
Marc and Jin stood there, speechless.
"All done, sir."
"Thank you. Here's your payment."
"Thank you, sir."
A second later, everyone was gone.
Nathanaël's house stood there, bright and sparkling as if nothing had happened.
"I must be dreaming."
"Probably... That woman controlled water. We'll need to stay on our guard."
"I wasn't talking about that, idiot."
Jin examined the damage still visible on the ground.
It looked as if a bullet had hit it instead of rain.
"What do you think, Master?"
"I don't know if she was one of those Horsemen of the Apocalypse. She felt too weak for that."
"Maybe Sanchez underestimated you?"
"Maybe."
Marc's thoughts drifted to Elie's vision of the world's end. Was it really possible to stop it? Was this nightmare preventable? His eyes sank into the leftover puddles at his feet.
They were just humans—humans who had wandered too far into mysteries and secrets way beyond their reach. Now that they had glimpsed a part of the future, they felt responsible for the fate of the world. But what could they do against beings like that?
"You still want us to help you, Nath?"
"No, it's fine. I can manage. Ever since those things started entering the real world, we have to stay cautious."
"Goagi came through too. Looks like the conscious ones can pass over whenever they want."
"What worries me are the white beings. They were never able to enter here. The Emperor's was the first."
The three boys fell into complete silence. They were thoughtful…but their thoughts were heavy.
"What's going to happen to us, Nath?"
"I don't know, Marc. I don't know."
Meanwhile, Elie was still deep in thought.
She was often late because of the aura gap between her and the boys,but now… she had just stopped the drops falling from her sink. She stared at them for a long while. They were frozen in time. Not a single drop moved, not even slightly.
"How...?"
She couldn't even speak. The discovery was too incredible. Sure, she and the boys had gained superhuman abilities… But none of them had superpowers. None of them could replicate what Goagi had done that day. Aside from what she'd heard from Marc, no one could stop droplets in time.
And yet, Elie had done it. Without effort. Without struggle.
"Fall."
On a whim again, she commanded the droplets to fall and they obeyed, splashing down naturally. Elie was stunned. She looked at her hand, then aimed it toward something in the room. She had always wanted to try this.
She stared intently at a flower pot across the room, imagining it flying directly into her hand like telekinesis.
"Come."
The object didn't budge.
Disappointed, she sighed deeply. Of course—she probably had to understand what her power truly was before trying something like that.
Still… she felt better.
She thought about telling Marc as soon as possible but her eyes drifted to the wind blowing outside.
"If it worked with water... Stop."
The wind didn't hesitate. It stopped instantly, vanishing as if it had never existed.
Elie smiled.
Power could be dangerous in the wrong hands, but right now, Elie didn't care. She decided she'd do what she wanted. Following her thoughts, the air gathered just below her window.
Elie climbed out and stepped into the sky. The wind carried her. Steps of air began to form beneath her feet, visible through the concentrated pressure.
Elie ascended the invisible staircase, guided by her will, heart pounding with excitement. The uncommanded wind whipped harder against her face and clothes. She wore only a cardigan and T-shirt, and the temperature dropped with every step.
Her breathing grew more difficult. Eventually, once she felt she'd climbed high enough, she looked toward the sky. She hadn't reached the clouds, but she was higher than any building around her.
Her gaze soaked in the sunlight pouring down like a divine being descending from heaven. A breathtaking scene stretched before her. Sometimes, she spent so much time thinking about the other worldthat she forgot how beautiful her own could be.
The wind struck her harder, but she didn't care. Finally, she spread her arms wide, welcoming the air like a child in a gentle storm. She squinted slightly against the golden light of the sun,smiled brightly,and simply stood there—letting the wind hit her.
"If only you could see this, Marc."
Marc, Jin, and Nathanaël were still discussing the being that had attacked the house.
"I already told you, I don't know where it came from."
Marc had no answers, no idea how to even begin finding them.
"Do you think she'll come after us too?"
"I don't know."
Nathanaël didn't know either. He had nothing. Nothing solid to link to that strange being except maybe the possibility that she was one of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse.
But something didn't add up.
The millionaire Sanchez had described them as unstoppable, overwhelmingly powerful. And yet, that figure had withdrawn, claiming she didn't want to die.
If the book really had shown Sanchez the future, then it was impossible she could be that weak or hesitant if she was truly meant to destroy the world. Unless… she was faking it.
But then why attack only Nathanaël? Was it like what Goagi had once done—out of pure amusement?
But that made no sense either. If the Other World had existed for a long time, and if powerful beings had been coming and going at will just to mess with humans, then humanity would've known. They would've reacted long ago. But it was only now that these beings seemed to descend.
Something was happening. Something big… and terrible. An end of the world? But what did that have to do with their world? Why were they coming here? Marc didn't even know that—let alone the real question: Who were they?
"Why you?"
"I don't know."
Marc could see it—he wasn't going to get any answers from his friend. Nathanaël looked just as lost as he was.
"Alright, I guess we're heading back, then."
"That's what I've been saying for the last ten minutes. I don't know. No more than you do."
"You're the smartest guy in the group. I think it makes sense to ask you."
"Marc, intelligence means nothing against this."
Nathanaël's eyes were full of despair. As time passed, the tension between them only grew stronger. The feeling of helplessness…of being utterly powerless in the face of these beings was dragging them all into a bottomless pit every time they thought about it. They were going to die. Plain and simple. And all they could do was ask questions.
Marc's dark eyes locked onto Nathanaël's. They understood each other—completely.
"I know, Nath. But still… I have to try. I don't want to lose you. Or my parents. Or anyone else."
He turned around and walked out of the house with Jin.
Nathanaël stayed behind, alone in the living room. The bright aura that usually radiated from him seemed to have vanished. Only a faint beam of light kept him company now. He was tired of all of it. Tired of trying to fight something he couldn't even understand. The dark circles under his eyes made that clear. He looked up at the ceiling, in the same direction the little ray of light pointed.
"So this… is despair."