The name Valentina entered Marcus Holt's vision the moment he was about to politely avoid looking at her optical screen.
For a brief second, Marcus forgot to look away.
His heart reacted before his mind could stop it, as if countless violent waves had suddenly crashed into his chest.
Valentina noticed nothing.
She calmly tapped the "X" in the corner of the message window, paused for half a second, then opened the menu and selected "Block Contact."
She blocked Adrian Shaw without hesitation.
For a so-called "master" to take this long to adapt to a follower who had stopped fawning over him… that adjustment period was far too long.
"Valentina."
She lifted her head and answered Marcus's question.
Hearing that name for the second time, Marcus's fingers—hovering above the keyboard—froze completely.
Instead of typing, he looked at her.
Valentina leaned back in her chair, posture relaxed, and nodded calmly.
"Yes," she said plainly.
"That Valentina. The one who is your fiancée."
For a moment, the entire office fell silent.
The air thickened, heavy enough to press against the chest.
They looked at each other—neither blinking, neither backing down.
After a long pause, Valentina's brows curved slightly, her lips lifting into a faint smile.
"Captain Holt, are we still registering?"
Marcus finally looked away.
He typed her name into the form with steady precision.
Name: Valentina
Next line.
Spiritual Power Level.
"C-level," Valentina said smoothly.
Marcus's fingers stopped.
He raised his eyes.
"That's incorrect."
"Hm?" Valentina frowned slightly. "According to the Imperial Academy, that's my level."
"Your spiritual power classification is wrong," Marcus repeated, voice calm but firm.
He had only received Mental Guidance twice in his life.
The first time had been remote.
The second time—
Marcus cut the thought short, forcibly suppressing the memories trying to surface.
But his body remembered.
His mind remembered.
"You are A-level," Marcus said slowly. "Or… higher."
His breathing slowed.
Even A-level felt like an understatement.
A standard A-level Guide would suffer exhaustion—both mental and physical—after completing a full Mental Guidance session.
But Valentina?
She hadn't rested at all.
Valentina's brows knit together.
A-level?
She was certain her memory wasn't wrong.
That left only three possibilities.
First — the initial spiritual test was wrong.
Second — the result was correct, but someone deliberately concealed her real level.
Third — the original body was truly C-level… and something changed after she appeared.
Strangely, every instinct she had pointed to the third option.
Her first spiritual test had been at fourteen, back when she was still the legitimate daughter of her family.
While her family wasn't the most powerful in the capital, it wasn't weak either. A higher spiritual level would only benefit them—there was no reason to hide it.
And after that, the Imperial Academy conducted regular retests to prevent mistakes or sudden upgrades.
Every single result had been C-level.
Yet now—
The unfamiliar fog in her mental landscape.
The changes in her spirit body.
The unexplained growth.
Why?
Before she could sort through it—
Knock. Knock. Knock.
Urgent knocking shattered the silence.
The door burst open.
Yu Tao rushed in, face pale, voice tense.
"Boss! Something's wrong! Contamination Zone No. 7 is spreading! Civilians are trapped inside!"
Marcus stood instantly.
"Direction!"
"Southeast!"
"Gather everyone in the meeting room—now!"
"Yes!"
By the time Marcus reached the meeting room, he realized Valentina had followed him.
He turned sharply.
"Guide Valentina. I'll finish your registration after I return. This situation is urgent."
"I know," she replied calmly.
"I'm going too."
The moment she heard 'Contamination Zone No. 7,' her temple throbbed.
Her instincts screamed at her.
She had to go.
Marcus's expression darkened immediately.
"Guide Valentina, do you know what a Contamination Zone is?" His voice hardened.
"This isn't some academy simulation!"
Yu Tao hurried over, clearly worried.
"Guide Valentina, it's extremely dangerous. Guides don't enter Contamination Zones. You could die at any moment. Please, go back."
Around them, every team member dropped what they were doing and rushed in.
Marcus wasted no time.
His optical screen projected footage of Contamination Zone No. 7.
Unlike the dazzling capital, the northern border was endless white.
Ruined buildings stood like gravestones, remnants of decay. Dim lights glowed inside scattered homes, where people struggled to survive another winter.
An ordinary night.
Until disaster struck.
The black mist spread silently.
Like a living mouth, it swallowed buildings, streets, and lives.
Most people were resting.
They never saw it coming.
The first to notice was a little girl.
She wore a thin floral cotton jacket, rubbing her frozen hands as she carried firewood to warm her grandmother.
A sudden gust of wind shifted the mist.
She turned—
And saw the Contamination Zone expanding.
"Grandma!!!"
She dropped the firewood and ran inside.
"It's here! The Contamination Zone is here!"
Her grandmother's cloudy eyes filled with terror.
Understanding hit instantly.
With all her remaining strength, she shoved the girl forward.
"Go! Run!"
The girl tried to pull her along.
But Grandma couldn't move.
She pushed harder.
"Go find help! Go find Captain Holt! I'll be fine! Hurry!"
The girl hesitated only once.
Then she turned and ran, screaming as she went.
"The Contamination Zone is here! Help!"
Some heard her and fled without even dressing.
Others never heard anything at all.
The mist swallowed them whole.
The girl ran until her legs burned.
She ran straight to the northern watchtower.
At last, she collapsed into the arms of a patrolling sentinel.
"Please… please save my grandma…"
Her voice broke.
"It's spreading… it's spreading…"
The video ended.
Silence filled the room.
Everyone knew what that meant.
Marcus's voice cut through it.
"Ten minutes. Equip up. Board vehicles. Move out."
Even if survival was unlikely—
They would try.
Everyone stood.
Valentina turned toward the equipment room.
"Guide Valentina!"
Marcus's voice snapped, sharp with restrained anger.
He hated disobedience.
Valentina turned back, meeting his gaze without flinching.
"Captain Holt, I am an A-level Guide."
Her voice was calm, unwavering.
"You know exactly what I can do inside a Contamination Zone."
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