“Huff” “Ahh” were the noises that Vas was emanating; he lifted the bar with all his might. Eventually, after a couple of reps, he puts the bar back onto the holder and takes a deep breath.

  The time was early morning; the sun had just risen, and yet Vas was already working out in his home gym. For him, he didn’t like wasting time sleeping; he was an active man and didn’t enjoy lazing about in bed.

  With only a brief rest, he gets up from his bench and grabs another plate. He jumps slightly, feeling the freezing cold metal. Usually, Vas sets the air con to max ready for the morning, but he might’ve made it too cold. Baring through the cold, he loads more plates onto the bar, eventually reaching 120 kg.

  His gym gave off the cosiest part of the house, which doesn’t make his case any better. Inside the gym was a window looking out to the opposite side of Valonia, untainted from a skyscraper. His gym was the only room that didn’t give the feeling of a hospital waiting room.

  Vas lies back down onto the bench and begins lifting the new weight; he is midway through the push when someone opens the door to the gym. Their footsteps were quiet like a mouse. Vas began worrying about who it was but continued lifting the bar.

  “Sir Vas, we have an urgent client,” Illusion stated, breaking Vas’ worry with now an even bigger threat. Vas’ expression soured; his face gave off the words, “I’m busy,” but Illusion’s face was much more terrifying than his.

  “Cool, yeah, another client. Can’t you see I'm in the middle of something?! This company is taking all my damn time up!! Can’t Hyun take the deal? I don’t pay him extra for nothing... Vas rants to Illusion.

  “This client is too important; only you can authorise it. Perhaps it’s time to retire?” Illusion smirks. Vas looked at her, without an expression, just looking blank-faced at her.

  Vas takes another deep breath and makes the final push to the bar holder. They connect and free him from the multitasking of lifting and speaking. He takes a final deep breath as sweat drips from his hair and forehead.

  “No way, I’m only 22 y’know? I won’t be retiring until we at least win Edessa over.”

  “They swore allegiance to Foundation; I doubt that’ll ever happen.”

  “Exactly.” Vas clapped.

  Vas’ ideals were always known to the whole of Silver Bullet. It was the first company he founded and one founded from nothing but a pure ideal. It was his treasure, and Vas wouldn’t let it go until it reached all corners of the world and built a monolith. That was his goal.

  Illusion briefly walked out, leaving Vas to his thoughts. He looked outside, the blistering heat that made the air wavy, the endless spiralling city. “Valonia is an amazing city,” he thought, and there was a knock at the door as Illusion appeared at the door.

  “So long as VISC is around,” he mutters. Illusion returns with a hand towel, which Vas promptly uses.

  Brief moments of silence were broken by the occasional cough or deep breath until Vas broke the silence. “Who’s our client?” he asked.

  Upon Vas asking, Illusion gave him a concerned look and averted her gaze to the floor. He was concerned too, worrying as this was another side that he never saw of her. Her mouth quivered as he softly began to speak. “...Cathodic Electronics,” she muttered.

  Whatever it was, Vas also was now worried; he leaned forward, interlocking his own hands. He gave an exasperated laugh, one that only made it more concerning. The air fell stagnant as an aura of suspense could be felt.

  “Hah…That company? Hiring us.” Vas let out a fake laugh, his expression still sour. It was incomprehensible. Cathodic Electronics was a conglomerate company with a monopoly over electricity. They routinely ranked in the top ten biggest companies.

  “Haah…We’re in deep shit, Illusion. Cathodic, one of the biggest companies, who definitely has their own team, hiring us? What I said in that meeting yesterday was true…We’re at the cliff. Only one more step and we fall into chaos.” Vas stressed.

  Illusion gives a slight smile, a genuine smile. “A good analogy, Sir Vas,” she says. Trying to make the situation even just slightly better. He got up from the bench, throwing his Silver Bullet uniform on haphazardly.

  “What’s the job?” he asked while tidying up his clothes. He walks out of the gym with Illusion following. “Cathodic Electronics is employing us to raid an armament facility; they have not disclosed who it belongs to. They described our job as ‘Leave nothing, burn it to the ground if you have to.’ They’re paying about five times our regular rate.” She briefed, making sure to hammer in the five times part.

  Vas was drinking water as Illusion explained; he spat out all the contents of his mouth as he heard “five times the regular rate.” “Hell yeah!! Who cares about morals when you’re getting money? Five times the amount is perfect; we’ll take the job.”

  “Sir Vas is greedy.”

  “You also get paid more, though…?”

  He walks outside of the gym, being greeted with a hallway that was reminiscent of a white room. With the help of Illusion, his clothes looked less like they were thrown on and more tidy; it made him truly look like a professional. His outfit was a black and silver yukata, with a rope tied around his waist and a sheath attached to his hip. There was a silver bullet emblem on his yukata.

  2.

  Vas arrives at the towering building. It dwarfed all the other buildings in sight, clouding the street in an eternal darkness. The only light was the entrance, having a slight illumination from the company's logo, a mockery to the people.

  This was the backstreet of Neosaka, the highest-density city in the world and home to Cathodic Electronics. Neosaka was known as a sprawling city of rats, the disgusting hygiene, and the eternal darkness from the towering buildings.

  Although he was shaking from worry, he swallowed all his fears in one single gulp and walked towards the entrance. Each step, he couldn't help but feel he was walking closer to the cliff he mentioned earlier.

  The entrance was a stark contrast to the backstreets; the floor was carpeted red with gold symbols embroidered into it in a spiral pattern. Chandeliers decorated the roof, illuminating the inside with an almost cosy atmosphere. “This is supposed to be an electricity company?” Vas thought to himself. The temperature inside was a soothing warmth. Various heaters lined across the wall.

  Whatever this company was, something was up. It was clear to pretty much everyone that each major company held some secret, one so big and dark that they buried it under layers and layers in hope they wouldn’t get uncovered.

  He walked up towards a reception desk; there was a man standing patiently, his eyes were watching Vas since he walked in. “Welcome to Cathodic Electronics! How may we help?” He greeted Vas.

  Vas leaned closer into the receptionist, “Here for the contract.” He almost whispered towards him. In case they didn’t believe him, Vas held up a peculiar pendant; it was made from silver and had a “X” in the middle. Below was writing: “In association with the VISC law, we hereby declare ‘Silver Bullet’ a legitimate bounty corporation.”

  The receptionist stared at Vas for a moment and back at the pendant; he could see as the receptionist started sweating, realising how long he had stared for. They pressed a button on the desk. “Silver Bullet is here,” was what the receptionist spoke.

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  In several minutes, Vas was now inside a dark room; no, the better word to describe it would be a black room. It wasn’t dark, as there was a light in the centre; instead, the walls were a strange material. It wasn’t just painted. It was darker than dark itself.

  “Greetings, Vas Sabry, we’ve been notified about your presence and your company. You show promising signs as an emerging power; thus, we’ve granted an opportunity for a contract.” Someone stated. Vas could see figures in front of him but couldn’t make out any features; he didn’t dare to step out of line.

  “Thanks, I’m honored.” Vas thanked, with a questionable tone.

  “To explain fully, we have a problem with another company, and our team is currently dealing with external threats. We need you to go and destroy this factory; this should suffice in halting their operations.” The person explained.

  “So what’s the pay like?” Vas asked.

  “A normal question. We know working for us will put a lot of pressure and stress on you, so we’re willing to pay 33 stars and 5 platinum coins. We’re also providing you with the Cathodic Authority.“ The person answered.

  They extended their arm; a blue crystal necklace was hanging from their wrist, and they signalled Vas to take it. He did, feeling the cold chain in his grip. The necklace was heavy, shockingly heavy. The crystal glowed a bright blue as he held it up to his eye.

  “You’re giving me the authority?!” Vas shouted,

  “The Cathodic Authority, that allows the user to control the very flow, the very charge of electricity? I mean, I’ll take it, but this is something you can't, like, give away!” Vas shouted yet again.

  “Save your lecture. It’s a one-time use; this crystal will shatter after a single use, so make sure it's something worthy. That is all; you may leave.” The person answered, demanding (albeit politely) to leave.

  Vas lands back in Valonia after a series of connecting flights. Due to the ongoing war between Sora and Volara, infrastructure and travel between the two are non-existent. This means that for someone like Vas, he has to fly to Eluthorn and then go from Eluthorn to Sora, adding pointless hours of flights.

  When he arrives back at his house, he takes an old radio, one that was made in the 2000s. “We have a contract; meet me at my house,” he told me through the radio. The quality was atrocious; Vas could only hope someone could decipher what he was saying through it.

  “Why do you still use that junk?” Illusion asked, “It’s from the war, the same exact one I used. I like it; it holds memories, y’know?” Vas answered; Illusion didn’t expect an answer like that from him of all people.

  After half an hour, the entirety of the main Silver Bullet team had amassed. The main team had only six members, Hyunsoo, the chemical agent. Fumiko, the hacking agent. Nico, the technique agent. Illusion and Delusion, the two maid agents, and Vas, the leader. It was an incredibly competent team, each of whom had their own specialities.

  They were all located inside the main hall; it was a grand room that reminded people of an old cathedral. Apart from the gym room, it was the only other one that was tolerable. There was a spiral staircase leading to the second floor and a massive stage at the end. It screamed more royal than rich.

  “So. We’ve been contracted by Cathodic— Vas explained before he was cut off; everyone started screaming and shouting the moment they heard Cathodic being mentioned strangely; Hyunsoo stayed silent.

  “W-What? Cathodic, THE Cathodic? Who are we fighting, the military?!” Nico shouted.

  “The end times are here. We’re so dead…” Fumiko joined in on the shouting.

  Vas took a sigh, seeing the discontent in his own team. He unsheathed his sword and slammed his sword against the wall. “Shit, probably shouldn’t have done that…” He thought, seeing the mark on the wall.

  All that did was cause more confusion between the team. As they wondered why on vesta would even do that.

  “We’re breaching this factory.” Vas pointed at a map, detailing the surroundings; the factory was located in Aledsia, a district of Edsa. Aledsia was once the biggest district but now has fallen behind, becoming the outskirts of the city.

  “We haven’t been disclosed as to who the factory belongs to. We’ve just been told to destroy it.” Vas finished the briefing. With the entire team now notified, they set off towards the factory in the late night.

  Vas ultimately decided that he wouldn’t tell the rest of Silver Bullet that he got the Cathodic Authority; for something so important, he knew it would be best if they didn’t know.

  “Well then, LET'S GOOOOO!!!” Vas shouted.

  2.

  Nighttime fell onto the streets of Edsa; the air was cold, and the wind softly blew across the city. They were outside, trees, abandoned buildings, and a single path in front of them. This path was illuminated by flickering lanterns; some lanterns were even broken. At the end of the path was an ominous factory, completely dark.

  “Okay, okay, yeah, we’re dying today. This could not be more weird.” Vas responded to the terrifyingly creepy atmosphere.

  “They dragged us here just to execute us!!” Nico shouted.

  “Shut it. You’re not helping my anxiety!” Vas shouted back. He gave Nico a slight push, though from the way Nico acted, you would’ve thought that Vas had shoved him with all his might.

  “You don’t even have anxiety?!” Nico fought back.

  “Cathodic Electronics… Never thought I’d be doing something for them again,” Hyunsoo randomly commented.

  The rest of Silver Bullet were perplexed by what Hyunsoo had just said; they specifically highlighted the “again” part in their brain.

  “A-again? You mean you’ve worked for these guys before?!” Fumiko questioned, no, demanded an answer.

  “Ahh. It was a long time ago, something not to dwell on. I just ask dear Vas, let’s not just trust them so willingly; they’re parasites after all.“ Hyunsoo asked Vas. He took a moment to collect his thoughts, remembering his conversation with that strange man, the authority, and the building that was odd…

  “Got it. We’ll even launch an investigation with Eyes. Even I think this situation is crazy.” Vas replied, reassuring Hyunsoo.

  As they approached the factory, the aura of it got more and more intense, like it was dragging them towards it. There was a heavy pressure that could be felt by the entirety of Silver Bullet. Slowly, they opened the door into the factory; the heavy metal crashed and scraped against the floor.

  It revealed a sparkling clean factory with no one inside. There was no one, not even a trace, and yet it was fully operational. “Odd.” Vas thought as he looked around.

  What made this factory even stranger, stranger than it working without any personnel, was the fact that there was no company logo, nor was there any name that associates the factory with someone. It was like the memory of this factory was rubbed out.

  Combined with the pounding sense of doom, it became clear to Silver Bullet that this was no ordinary factory. “Did something happen here? A- Are we walking into a death trap?” Fumiko asked.

  “I remember this. Though, I thought they weren’t around anymore…” Hyunsoo trailed.

  “And w—who is that?” Fumiko asked.

  “Mm~ I don’t remember much; after all, it was before The Grand Winter. But there was a company that reached another world. ‘Mirro Assembly’ was the name. They were the biggest company at the time, but something went wrong, and they fell. While this isn’t ‘Mirror Assembly,’ this factory is in a state of stasis much like they were.” Hyunsoo provided valuable information.

  Hyunsoo was the oldest out of all of them; he left a lot more questions to the Silver Bullet members, like The Grand Winter and Mirro Assembly. However, many of those questions would go unanswered apart from one.

  “I suppose you guys wouldn’t remember it. It was a depressive moment in history where every market crashed. It was a bad time.” Hyunsoo replied to a question asked by Fumiko.

  To the left of Silver Bullet was their rival, Foundation, who was there. All of the agents plus Phi were staring at them, ready to fight.

  “Where is Silent?” Vas asked, demanding an answer immediately. He wouldn’t let history repeat itself.

  That guy? He’s been gone for a while…Aren’t you getting old, losing your memory?” Phi laughed.

  “Don’t kid me. You’re like double my age. Regardless, Silver Bullet isn’t just a bounty company like you. We’re also an intelligence agency; we know everything, and we sure as hell know he’s back.“ Vas laughed back, taking pride in all of his achievements.

  “Huh? You always d-ride his name, get it out of your mouth, ahaha! You used to always say to yourself that he was undetectable.” Phi leans closer. “He’s undetectable. What makes you think you can find him?”

  “Ah—” Vas muttered as he was taken aback; he didn’t expect to be beaten by Phi mentally. He grinded his teeth and muttered, “Deny it all you want; I know.” While he made sure she could hear it.

  “If I may,” Illusion requests, and Vas drops his arm down, allowing Silver Bullet to proceed. He gives a slight nod to indicate that Illusion should speak.

  “It may not be our business, but why are you here?” Illusion asks.

  “W- We were contracted by ?rsen Recovery; they asked us to fill in for their guards…” Thorn stammered out; everyone could tell he was slightly afraid; his hands trembled.

  “Ahh, what a conundrum; we were contracted to raid this facility.” Hyunsoo laughs before pulling Vas to the side.

  “I can tell. They’re not real.” Hyunsoo whispers into his ear.

  The moment Hyunsoo notified Vas of this situation. Foundation immediately attacked the other Silver Bullet members. As if Vas and Hyunsoo were heroes, they jumped into the fight. It was clear that Foundation didn’t want to talk any longer.

  Hyunsoo held up a spear towards Thorn; he looked scared, but there was a faint sense of determination emanating from him. Hyunsoo charged at Thorn, just barely scraping him. Thorn responded with his own technique, which captured Hyunsoo.

  Nico fought the agent known as Rose. It was a battle that no one could understand; Nico didn’t fight with any weapon; instead, they used exclusively techniques. Nico muttered, “Essence Technique, Rapture,” and then a giant blade rose from the ground, impaling Rose. No blood, though…

  Fumiko and Zeus were fighting with all their might. Zeus dodged all the electronics Fumiko was throwing at him while Zeus charged his lightning.

  There was a loud, crashing sound that alerted all of the agents.

  All of the agents, both Foundation and Silver, were stopped in their tracks as a giant parasite burst through the door. This parasite was massive, the very behemoth of a monster, and it put an end to their fights.