vncnus Chapter 177: Contradiction
Chapter 177: Contradiction
Silence pressed in from all sides, only broken by the occasional drip of water from the side.
Where the hell did that attack come from?! Aren questioned, scanning the sewers but seeing nobody here.
That was when he felt it before he could hear it. The soft clacking of heels along with immense spiritual pressure approached his direction slowly, unbothered even.
I can’t let them shoot another one.
Aren moved the moment he figured out the attacker’s direction, closing the distance just as the figure emerged within his sight.
But as soon as Aren reached the attacker, his eyes widened as he instantly recognized who they were.
Alysa Evon...How did Ghoul Division find the passage down here?!
Still, he continued his attack, aiming a punch directly at her core, more for the purposes of pressuring her than doing real damage. Yet the woman met his attack without hesitation, pivoting her left leg and pulling up her arm to deflect the attack.
Aren followed through immediately, turning his body as he followed up with a back kick aimed at the exact same place. She rolled her body forward into his kick, using her arms to push the attack off-line before ether gathered in her hand.
His eyes widened, deciding to back off immediately and block the moment he sensed that she was about to cast an Art.
Yet, nothing happened. The ether in her hand sputtered out before it could take form into anything.
What the...a feint? What is she up to?
Before he could process it further, her next words caught him by surprise:
"It doesn’t seem like you’re a Ghoul?"
"Hmm..." she continued. "Then...you’ve gotta be a spy, right? One of Khan’s political opponents?"
Aren didn’t answer, lightning surged underneath him as he closed the gap in a single step. Her hand snapped forward suddenly, catching his punch mid-motion and trying to break his wrist.
He reacted immediately, pulling free before the pressure could snap his bones. But the interruption was enough to create space between them again.
"No...that wasn’t it. You’re too strong to be a pawn for those rich CEOs...you’ve gotta be something else..."
Then, her eyes widened as the answer came to her. "Ah! I know what you are now, you’re..."
"A Ghoul sympathizer, aren’t you?"
For a second, Aren flinched, the word lingered in his head almost like false accusation he was trying to get rid of.
’Ghoul sympathizer.’ Yeah right, there’s no way.
But even as he thought about it, the imaged from before flickered through his mind. Memories of the facility, the disposal to the forest, and the massacre that just happened above flowed into his head.
But even so, he denied everything.
"You’re wrong," Aren claimed. "I’m not here for them."
Lightning sparked underneath his feet, not to strike specifically, but to remind her—and himself—that he hadn’t lost control of the situation.
"I have my own goal."
The words came out flat and indifferent, as if whatever had happened above had nothing to do with him. Whether she believed it or not...wasn’t his concern.
"Hoh? Is that so?" Alysa smiled faintly. "Then you don’t mind me killing them all, right?"
"..."
"Why?" he questioned her. "What’s the point in killing them? You know they used to be humans, right?"
"And?" Alysa blinked once, the statement failing to register as anything meaningful after all he had said.
"You’re contradicting yourself, dearie."
"You said you have your own goal," she continued, tilting her head slightly as her eyes traced over him again. "And yet you’re asking me to justify mine?"
Her smile grew wider, anticipating the question, but answering before any could come out. "Sure, I’ll bite."
"If they were human, then that was before," she said calmly as if she were simply stating something obvious.
"What are they now if not dangerous monsters that prey on civilians and Mystics alike?"
Alysa continued. "And besides...they’re quite useful as test subjects. Their increased physical abilities make for excellent data."
Aren didn’t know why, yet something just told him that was wrong. It wasn’t like he disagreed completely.
He’d seen what ghouls were capable of. He watched them tear through people without hesitation. If anything, a part of him understood exactly what she meant.
So why...does it feel so wrong?
His mind failed to catch up to his body. Aren let loose, rushing straight up to the agent. Ether condensed along his arms as the twin blades formed in his grasp.
Aren didn’t hold back, with the first strike aimed to kill.
This time, Alysa got the memo, dodging instead of meeting him head-on. She slipped to the side, toward the very path he was using to escape moments earlier.
His blade carved through empty space as she pivoted past him, movement effortless despite the shallow water beneath her feet.
Aren turned sharply, only to see that she was retreating down the narrow corridor of the sewers. Her hand dropped, bow reforming in her grasp.
With one smooth motion, she drew and shot another ice arrow.
Aren twisted his body, the arrow grazing past his shoulder before embedding itself into the wall behind him. Ice spread rapidly from the impact point, sealing part of the corridor as fragments of ice scattered across the ground.
The fight sped up significantly from here.
Aren sprinted after her, chasing her through the narrowing corridors as she fired shot after shot, trying to slow him down.
But they finally came to a dead-end through one of the turns. Alysa was backed up against a wall. She raised both hands up innocently, eyes trembling as she spoke:
"...Ahh, you got me," she said, her voice light as her shoulders slumped. "This looks really bad, so can we just let bygones be bygones?"
Though Aren wasn’t falling for her crocodile tears. Ether condensed into his hands, water forming on his fingertips and pressurizing itself before—
"Dragon’s Claw."
The blades of pressurized water shot out instantly. And through the narrow corridor, there was nowhere to dodge.
"Tch..." Alysa clicked her tongue, cold mist running up her arms before condensing into miniature crystals and hardening upon contact.
Crystallization! Does she have the same Pathway as Luna? There’s no way that’s a coincidence...
With no room left to maneuver, she met the attack head-on, arms crossing into an X-guard as the pressurized blades slammed into her.
The impact drove her backward immediately.
Her footing slipped against the wet stone, boots grinding as the force continued to push through her defense before—
CRASH!
The wall behind her shattered under the pressure, giving way instantly as her body was sent straight through it.
Light filtered in as Alysa was thrown straight through to the other side. Aren’s eyes widened, not expecting for the wall behind her to have something on the other side.
Where the hell—?
He chased after, only to realize where they currently were. Aren crouched next to the ledge, looking down to see the vast distance underneath.
They were in some kind of sewer disposal/treatment facility, evident by the terrible smell that was coming from below. He looked around at the various processing machines, only to find out that they were powered down.
This place is abandoned too, good. At least that’ll buy me some time before her backup arrives.
For a moment, the chamber remained still before the splash from below echoed.
Alysa’s figure emerged from the shallow water, pushing herself up with one hand as droplets slid from her arms. The crystalline layer that had formed earlier cracked slightly before dissolving into a faint mist, leaving only a few scuffed marks along her sleeves.
"You’re heartless, you know that?" she called out, voice carrying easily through the empty facility. "Can’t you take pity on a woman cornered like that?"
Tch...if she has enough time to play jokes, my Art didn’t really do anything to her.
As if I hadn’t just blasted her through a wall a few moments ago...
His eyes lingered on her for a second longer before something else brushed past his senses, unmistakable and familiar.
Aren peeled his attention away from Alysa for a moment, sweeping the chamber once more to try and find out where the source was.
Nothing...and yet, it lingered at the edge of his perception.
He tried one more time, channeling ether into his vision. The world sharpened instantly, the dull facility being layered over with faint traces of residual energy.
And in the far corner, a distortion, so subtle that anyone would’ve missed it unless they were actively looking for it.
Light bent unnaturally around a small patch of space, just enough to blur what lay behind it.
That’s...Miu’s Light Refraction!
Fuck, they didn’t have enough time to fully get away. Is that why she decided to hide here?
Below, Alysa noticed the shift. Her eyes followed his line of sight, brows furring as her playful expression turned. "...What are you looking at?"
Aren moved before she could take another step, pushing off the edge before jumping straight down toward Alysa.
If Miu’s in danger...No, I can’t let that happen, not anymore.
The twin swords reappeared in his hands before he took an exhale, finally declaring with conviction:
"Fine...I’ll be your opponent."