Nightveil stood at the center of the ruined arena.
Calm.
Unmoving.
As if he belonged there.
Raze Arcwell lay unconscious at his feet—armor shattered, radiation silent, body still.
For half a second, the stadium remained frozen in disbelief.
Then—
Heroes moved.
S-class operatives, academy instructors, elite guards—dozens of them surged forward at once, instincts screaming to eliminate the threat before him.
Power flared.
Weapons activated.
Nexas surged.
And Nightveil raised one hand.
"Whoa. Whoa. Slow down."
His voice wasn't loud.
It didn't need to be.
Every speaker in the stadium crackled—and his words echoed through every screen, every hallway monitor, every emergency display across Nexara.
"Let's not be hasty."
The heroes halted mid-stride.
Nightveil tilted his head slightly, as if amused.
"Unless," he continued casually, "you want the bombs I planted under the audience stands to detonate."
Silence.
Pure, absolute silence.
A chill spread through the stadium.
"…Bombs?"
"…Is he bluffing?"
"…He wouldn't—"
Parents clutched their children.
Students froze in terror.
Heroes clenched their fists, muscles screaming to move—but they didn't.
Because no one knew.
And no one could afford to be wrong.
Nightveil smiled faintly beneath the blindfold.
"Good," he said. "I'm glad we understand each other."
He lowered his hand and slowly turned in a full circle, surveying the packed stands, the shattered arena, the stunned faces.
"So many people," he mused. "So much faith placed in heroes. In barriers. In systems."
His gaze—hidden yet somehow piercing—returned to the boy at his feet.
Raze Arcwell.
"I came today," Nightveil said, "because I knew it was the final day of Round Two."
Murmurs rippled through the crowd.
"The day when the strongest student of the next generation would fight"
He looked up.
His head turned toward Astra Noire.
Even without seeing his eyes, she felt it.
"Good day to you," Nightveil said politely. "Astra Noire. The academy's golden prodigy."
Astra's fists clenched.
Nightveil chuckled softly.
"You fought beautifully," he continued. "Even under suppression. Even under pain. Truly impressive."
Then his tone shifted.
Curiosity.
"But what interests me far more…"
"…is him."
The stadium's attention snapped back to Raze.
Nightveil nudged the cracked stone beside Raze's shoulder with his boot.
"This boy," he said lightly, "can weaken powerful Nexas users simply by standing near them."
Gasps erupted.
"That radiation…"
"He was suppressing Astra…"
"So that's what it was—!"
Nightveil hummed thoughtfully.
"How wonderful," he said. "How *terrifyingly* wonderful."
He leaned down slightly.
"How useful such a power would be… in the right hands."
Astra's voice rang out, sharp and furious.
"Don't touch him."
Nightveil straightened.
"Oh?" he replied. "You misunderstand."
His head tilted again.
"I didn't come here *for* him."
That made it worse.
"I came here to observe," he continued. "To see what humanity is producing now."
He gestured lazily around the arena.
"And instead, I find an unexpected treasure."
The screens around the stadium zoomed in—showing Raze's cracked suit, the shattered Starbreaker core, the lifeless stillness of his body.
Nightveil sighed.
"I certainly didn't expect a catch like this."
High in the stands, Titanheart's jaw tightened.
"Nightveil," the Grand Hero growled. "Step away from the student."
Nightveil laughed.
"Ah. Titanheart. Still playing guardian of hope?"
He spread his arms slightly.
"Relax. If I wanted him dead, he would already be."
A ripple of dread ran through the heroes.
Nightveil glanced down again.
"He's interesting," he murmured. "But fragile. His body isn't meant to carry what he's using."
A pause.
"…Which means he won't last long without help."
Astra's breath caught.
"What… do you mean?"
Nightveil didn't answer her.
Instead—
"Enough."
The word cut through the stadium like a blade.
Luna Arcwell had broken free.
She tore past the barriers, past shouting guards, past teachers trying desperately to stop her.
"Luna—WAIT!"
"Someone stop her!"
Too late.
She sprinted onto the ruined arena floor, eyes burning, voice shaking with rage and terror.
"Give my brother back!"
Nightveil turned slowly.
"Oh?" he said. "Another Arcwell."
Luna stood only meters away from him now, trembling—not from fear, but fury.
"You think you can just walk in here," she shouted, "stand over him like he's nothing—!"
She pointed at Raze.
"He's not yours! He's not a tool! He's my brother!"
Several heroes tried to rush forward—
But froze again.
Because Nightveil hadn't moved.
He was smiling.
Softly.
Almost kindly.
"How touching," he said. "Family."
Luna stepped closer.
"Touch him," she hissed, "and I swear—"
Nightveil raised one finger.
And the stadium felt like it stopped breathing.
"Careful," he said calmly. "You don't want to be the reason thousands die today."
Luna froze mid-step.
Her chest heaved.
Tears burned in her eyes—but she didn't back down.
Nightveil studied her for a long moment.
Then—
He looked back down at Raze.
"…Very interesting indeed," he murmured.
The wind shifted.
The lights flickered.
And every instinct in the stadium screamed the same thing—
This wasn't a warning.
This was a beginning.
*******************************
Nightveil stood calmly at the center of the ruined arena.
Alarms blared.
Heroes stood frozen.
Thousands of lives waited on a single decision.
He looked around, almost bored.
"Relax," Nightveil said casually, hands in his pockets. "I didn't come here to kill anyone."
No one believed him.
He chuckled softly.
"I came here to prove a point," he continued. "That no matter how strong your heroes are… no matter how high your walls stand…"
His head tilted slightly.
"…I can do whatever I want."
The words settled like poison.
"I prepared a very long speech," he added with mock disappointment. "But honestly? There are far too many hot-blooded people here. It's exhausting."
A few heroes twitched, barely restraining themselves.
Nightveil sighed.
"So I'll take my leave."
He turned his head downward.
"To be precise—"
His boot nudged the cracked stone beside Raze's unconscious body.
"—I'll be taking this boy as a souvenir."
The stadium exploded.
"NO—!!"
Astra and Luna shouted at the same time.
Before anyone could react, Nightveil bent down and lifted Raze effortlessly with one arm, as if he weighed nothing at all.
The Starbreaker suit hung lifeless, cracked and dark, Raze's head lolling against Nightveil's shoulder.
Panic surged through the crowd.
"DROP HIM!"
"LET HIM GO!"
"DON'T YOU DARE!"
Astra moved instantly.
Her body launched forward at full speed, pain forgotten, fear overriding everything.
"YOU'RE NOT TAKING HIM!"
Luna followed without hesitation, golden light flaring violently around her.
Even heroes broke formation, instincts screaming louder than orders.
Nightveil sighed.
"So predictable."
He raised his free hand.
"Bye-bye."
The world warped.
Space twisted like glass bending under pressure.
Astra's hand passed through empty air.
Luna's strike hit nothing.
And Nightveil—
vanished.
Gone.
No explosion.
No flash.
No warning.
Just empty space where he had been standing.
Raze was gone with him.
Silence fell.
For a heartbeat—
the stadium couldn't comprehend what had just happened.
Then chaos erupted.
"He's gone!"
"RAZE WAS TAKEN!"
"WHERE DID HE GO!?"
Heroes surged forward too late.
Teleportation signatures flared and vanished before sensors could lock on.
Titanheart slammed his fist into the ground.
"Damn it!"
Emergency sirens blared again—this time real panic.
"EVACUATE THE STANDS!"
"MOVE THE CIVILIANS!"
"CHECK FOR EXPLOSIVES—NOW!"
Security units swarmed the stadium.
Students were rushed out.
Parents screamed.
Medical teams moved automatically.
Astra stood frozen at the center of the arena.
Her hands trembled.
"…I was too slow…"
Luna dropped to her knees beside the shattered ground.
Her breath came in broken gasps.
"I should've caught him," she whispered. "I should've—"
Astra turned sharply.
"No. If you had… people would've died."
Luna shook her head violently.
"He was bluffing! There were no bombs!"
As if summoned by her words—
Reports came in over comms.
"All sections clear."
"No explosives found."
"No abnormal devices detected."
The truth hit them all at once.
Nightveil had lied.
And they had believed him.
The realization crushed the heroes harder than any explosion could have.
"…We were played," one officer muttered.
Astra clenched her fists until her nails drew blood.
"If I hadn't hesitated—"
Luna slammed her fist into the broken floor.
"This is my fault. I stopped. I listened. And now he's gone."
Rose arrived, kneeling beside Luna, holding her tightly as her composure finally broke.
The stadium emptied.
News drones filled the sky.
Across the nation, every channel lit up with the same headline:
*"NIGHTVEIL ABDUCTS HERO ACADEMY STUDENT — RAZE ARCWELL."*
Analysts argued.
Citizens panicked.
Governments scrambled.
The world shook.
◆ ◆ ◆
Three hours later—
Darkness.
Raze floated in it.
No pain.
No sound.
No sense of direction.
Then—
A dull ache bloomed in his chest.
His fingers twitched.
"…Where…"
His eyes opened slowly.
Dim light greeted him.
A cold ceiling.
Unfamiliar metal walls.
The faint hum of distant machinery.
He tried to move.
Pain flared instantly.
"Ah," a voice said nearby.
Calm.
Amused.
"You're awake sooner than I expected."
Raze's vision sharpened.
And standing a few meters away—
hands in pockets,
blindfold in place—
was Nightveil.
"Welcome," he said lightly.
"To my world."
Raze's breath hitched.
Nobody could guess at that time, what was going to happen after that for real.
***************************