The black structure of Roxius Headquarters was now behind them, but a chaotic noise echoed in Aryan's mind. Devendra Verma's words—legacy... memory... frequency—were creating a violent turbulence within his Void Dantian.
Silence filled the car. Kabir was driving, but his eyes kept darting to the side-mirror, checking on Aryan. Aryan's eyes were closed, but his face was drenched in sweat.
"Aryan? What's going on?" Kabir finally broke the silence.
"Kabir, have you ever felt like your strength isn't actually yours?" Aryan asked without opening his eyes. There was a strange exhaustion in his voice.
Kabir hesitated for a moment. "For me, strength is technology. I built it; I learned it. But what you're talking about... that's different. My father (Sahil) always said that the strength of those specific warriors from the First Generation wasn't in their genes, but in their willpower. Maybe the same is happening with you."
Aryan clenched his fist. A hazy memory surfaced—a silhouette that had always watched him from a distance, an identity still shrouded in darkness. Was this Void truly his legacy? The man the world had forgotten?
Suddenly, the emergency radio on Kabir's dashboard began to beep.
"...Attention all independent hunters and guild units. Sector-9 is declared a Forbidden Zone. Potential Level-5 Sudden Breakout. Retreat from the danger zone immediately!"
"Sector-9?" Kabir looked at the map. "It's only five kilometers from here. But there wasn't even an active Gate there!"
"Go there," Aryan said suddenly. That purple glow had returned to his eyes.
"Don't be reckless! Level-5 means there's something there that even the Guilds can't handle!"
"Kabir, my Void... it's aching. It feels like there's something in that direction calling out to me. We have to go. Now!"
[Explanation: Sector-9 and 'Empty Gates']
Sector-9 was a part of the city abandoned years ago after a massive war. 'Empty Gates' often appeared there—portals that didn't spawn monsters but instead acted as atmospheric sinks that sucked in Mana. But today, the air pressure had shifted. Instead of Mana, the air was thick with a suffocating layer of floating ash. This wasn't ordinary ash; it was the pulverized remains of high-level monsters incinerated in an instant.
When they reached the perimeter of Sector-9, the sight was harrowing.
There was no sound. No screaming, no explosions. Towering skyscrapers were draped in dust and smoke. But the most terrifying sight was the corpses strewn across the streets. They weren't human; they were S-Rank level creatures. Thousands of monster carcasses lay desiccated, as if someone had drained every drop of energy and blood from them in a single second.
"This... this is impossible," Kabir stammered as he stepped out of the car. He turned on his thermal scanner. "No Guild army came here. Aryan... there's only one energy signature here."
Aryan began walking through the rubble. His boots crunched against the ash of fallen monsters. "One single person did all this."
Suddenly, a shadow emerged from behind a massive pile of debris.
It was a tall man wearing an old, worn-out long coat. In his hand was a heavy, black metallic sword. The ground around the man was still glowing hot, as if molten lava had just flowed through the area.
He didn't turn to look at Aryan or Kabir. He simply lifted his sword and, with a sharp flick, returned it to the sheath on his back. That single movement created a shockwave that cleared the surrounding dust.
Aryan's Void Dantian began to throb violently. It wasn't fear; it was recognition.
"He is here," Vedna's voice echoed in his mind, carrying a tone of deep respect. "A.K."
Aryan shouted, trying to stop him. "Wait! Who are you?"
The man stopped. He turned his head slightly. His eyes held an unfathomable depth, as if he had witnessed thousands of years of destruction. He looked at Aryan for only a second.
"You are still too raw, boy," A.K.'s voice was deep and gravelly. "Learn to handle your legacy, or it will consume you."
Before Aryan could ask anything else, a massive explosion of dust erupted. When it cleared, there was no one there. A.K. had vanished.
Aryan fell to his knees on the scorched earth. A sharp pain pierced his brain. Suddenly, a blurred image flashed before him—that same black sword, that same coat... and another man standing beside him. That second man, whose energy matched Aryan's Void perfectly.
"Is... is he my...?" The words couldn't leave Aryan's throat.
Kabir rushed to Aryan's side. "Aryan! Are you okay?"
Aryan clutched his head. "I don't know, Kabir... but looking at that man, I felt like my Void is a part of him. What was that?"
Kabir looked toward the distant horizon. "That was A.K. My father says he was the 'Executioner' of the First Generation. He only appears when the balance of the world begins to collapse."
At that same moment, in a hidden room within Roxius, Devendra Verma and Sahil watched the devastation on a massive screen.
"He did it again," Sahil said, letting out a long breath. "Cleared an entire zone without a single warning."
"He has seen Aryan," Devendra said, narrowing his white eyes. "The game is out of our hands now. A.K. won't stay quiet. He will definitely test Aryan. And if Aryan fails... A.K. won't forgive him just because he is his son. He will end him right there."
Sahil's fist tightened. "Then we must be ready."