"Come on in."

​The voice was not loud, yet it carried an irresistible weight that seemed to vibrate through the very walls of the building. Daniel and Precious stood aside with synchronized, practiced movements. Aurelia led Eve and Justin into the structure, leaving their stunned and horrified teammates behind in the field, where the silence of the Dragon’s territory felt more like a physical weight than an absence of sound.

​They moved through the hallway in a silence so thick it was claustrophobic. They passed other Dragon Academy students, each one moving with a sense of purpose and discipline that made the Eagle Academy survivors look like disorganized refugees. Finally, they reached the massive doors of the assembly hall.

​Inside the huge space, the atmosphere shifted. The air was saturated with a dense, golden pressure. Mirabella stood at the center of the stage, looking perfectly calm as she idly caressed Cupcake. The small white cat leaned into her touch, its eyes closed, appearing as nothing more than a harmless pet despite the power radiating from its master.

​Behind Mirabella stood her new inner circle: Carl, Hitachi, Grace, Rose, Austin, and Kent. They stood like living statues, their presence alone warping the air around them. Eve and Justin watched as Aurelia walked past them, taking her place respectfully behind Mirabella.

​’What is happening here??! Carl and Hitachi are both Lv400, while the rest are Lv300! What did Mirabella do to them?!’ Eve thought, her heart hammering against her ribs as cold sweat rolled down her temples. The gap between them wasn’t just a level difference; it was an evolutionary chasm.

​Justin, though lacking the system’s interface, felt the raw threat levels through his combat instincts. ’Five General-level entities, two King-level, and one Emperor-level... Such a combination is overwhelming. That’s why Captain Eve said their Leader could wipe out the whole city. Now, I believe her.’

​The two visitors were completely unaware that Mirabella could hear the frantic rhythm of their thoughts, but her expression remained as flat and unreadable as polished marble.

​"Why are you here, Eve? And who is this?" Mirabella asked, her voice cool and melodic.

​"Um... Mira.... Captain Mirabella," Eve started, her voice cracking before she caught herself. "This here is Captain Justin. He came here to rescue the survivors hiding in the university... I met him by chance."

​Eve was visibly trembling. ’One single wrong word, and I am dead... Mirabella... She... She is Lv500!! Furthermore, she isn’t even hiding her level!’ To Eve, the sheer number—Lv500—now felt like a death sentence hanging in the air.

​Justin slowly turned his head toward the floor, unable to maintain eye contact with the figures on the stage. ’These guys... Their expressions, they don’t look like ordinary kids. How many life-and-death battles had they experienced to fold them into such monsters... especially these two King-level guys?’ He thought, swallowing hard against a dry throat.

​Mirabella stared at them for a long moment before turning her head toward a side door. It opened silently, and eight children, accompanied by a young man and a woman, walked out into the light of the hall.

​"Are these the people?" she asked.

​Justin’s professional mask slipped for a moment as he rushed toward the children. He quickly checked them for injuries, exhaling a massive sigh of relief when he found them unharmed.

​"Yes, Captain Mirabella... Thank you for saving them." He stood up and gave a deep, formal bow. "Thank you again!!" he yelled, his voice echoing in the vast hall.

​Mirabella gave a short, stiff nod. The children were all under fifteen, too young to have been pulled into the Galaxy Fall system, making them the most vulnerable remnants of the old world. The two adults with them had possessed the potential to enter the game, but they had sacrificed that power to stay behind and protect the young.

​"Is this the only reason you came here?" Mirabella asked, her blue eyes fixing on Justin.

​"Yes... But, we would like to invite you to our Base. Our Commander-in-Chief would like to meet you," he said, his head still bowed in a sign of absolute respect.

​Mirabella lightly shook her head, the movement dismissive. "We will be in this city for three days... If she wants to see me, she should come personally."

​’I can stay here forever, but I can’t,’ she thought privately, her fingers grazing Cupcake’s soft fur. There were larger objectives to meet, and her time on Earth was a resource she wouldn’t squander on military bureaucracy.

​"Um... Well, Okay." Justin nodded, accepting the decree. "I will deliver your message."

​’This person is an Emperor-level,’ he mused. ’It will be good not to offend her. She doesn’t negotiate; she dictates.’

​"Umm... Captain Mirabella," Eve spoke up again, her curiosity momentarily overriding her fear. "How did you reach Lv500 this fast? Not to mention them—how did they reach Lv400 and Lv300 so quickly?"

​Mirabella stared at Eve for a long, uncomfortable duration. Then, she simply shook her head.

​"Get going. You aren’t needed here," she said. She turned her back on them, walking off the stage with Carl and Grace following silently in her wake like shadows of death.

​"You! Aren’t you being arrogant!! I just want—"

​Eve froze mid-sentence. The air in front of her throat suddenly coalesced, turning into a razor-sharp dagger made of pressurized, swirling wind. She slowly raised her head, her eyes wide with terror as she looked at Carl. He hadn’t even drawn a weapon; he was simply pointing a single finger at her from across the room.

​"If you say any other thing, I will kill you," Carl snapped, his voice a cold, predatory growl.

​"Forget her, Carl... We still have work to do," Mirabella called out, not even slowing her pace as she exited the hall.

​Carl nodded, his focus vanishing instantly. He lowered his hand, and the wind dagger shattered into a harmless breeze that ruffled Eve’s hair. He turned and followed Mirabella and Grace out of the room.

​Eve slumped, gasping for air as the pressure finally lifted. ’What sort of skill is that?! Forming physical daggers from wind... This is crazy.’

So this is the strength of a King-level human. Fascinating,’ Justin thought to himself, his curiosity warring with his fear. He turned his gaze toward Hitachi, whose eyes had shifted from their previous kaleidoscopic colors back to a deep, natural red.

​’How powerful is this King-level? And I swore his eyes were colorful before...’