Chapter 89: ⁸⁹: taken my world.

Kael’s pov:

The entire floor quickly filled with the sound of guards’ footsteps as they hurried to follow behind me.

I didn’t stop Ryan from arranging the convoy. He was simply doing his job, and I had already put him in a difficult position by refusing to wait for the clearance signal.

Now, I couldn’t exactly stop him from making sure my special guards followed me. I reached my car as soon as I stepped outside.

"Ryan, get inside quickly. We still have to talk," I said before getting into the driver’s seat.

I started the car, and before I could pull away, Ryan climbed into the passenger seat.

"Do you have any idea about these explosions yet?" I asked as I glanced through the windshield.

At least three cars were already driving ahead of me, each filled with guards. I knew there had to be more vehicles following behind us, but for once, I decided not to get annoyed by it.

This was a special situation. I couldn’t exactly order them to leave me alone when an entire floor of my Intelligence Bureau had just been destroyed.

"Alpha, we believe these explosions are linked to the one that happened on the day of the Imperial Army Forum."

I glanced at Ryan, already understanding where he was going with this. "Are these explosions also caused by dark magic like the last one?"

That would explain the connection. If the two incidents were truly linked, then dark magic was the most obvious possibility.

Ryan let out a small sigh. "We can’t sense dark magic, Alpha. Only you can confirm that once we reach the site."

I nodded slowly, of course. I had almost forgotten that this ability was unique to me.

Because of my mother, I could sense the presence of dark magic when no one else could. Even before reaching the Army Base, something in my instincts was already telling me that I would find the same traces there.

But another thought immediately crossed my mind. "If you can’t sense dark magic yet, then how do you know these explosions are connected to the one at the Imperial Army Forum?"

Ryan turned slightly toward me. "Alpha, the Investigation Department was working on the case surrounding the first explosion. They eventually found the man you ordered me to kill last night. Do you remember?"

My grip tightened around the steering wheel as I remembered what I was doing when I had said that to him.

"Yes." I cleared my throat, the response coming out more quietly than I intended. "I remember. Continue."

Ryan nodded. "Right after you ordered us to kill him, he realized we were no longer interested in simply questioning him. He understood that we were serious about killing him."

My eyes remained fixed on the road. "And? He became afraid that he would die without telling us everything he knew." I frowned. "So he started talking."

"Yes, Alpha." Ryan paused for a moment before continuing. "He decided to tell us everything he knew about the people who had been working alongside him."

My jaw tightened. I pressed my foot slightly harder against the accelerator. "And what exactly did he tell you?"

"He confessed the names of five people working at our base who were his accomplices." Ryan sighed as he continued, "I should have gone ahead and arrested those people right then, but his confession was recorded by the Investigation Department."

"According to protocol, they first had to verify the credibility of his confession and the identities of the people involved to ensure that no innocent person was implicated."

I frowned.

"The investigation stretched on until the afternoon, and when we finally prepared to arrest those people, we received news about these explosions."

I tightened my grip around the steering wheel.

"We’ll get the rest of the information from the officers from the Investigation Department who are present at the base."

I glanced at Ryan. "Didn’t you ask that man who was behind them during the investigation?"

By then, I had made the final turn and entered the enormous gates of the Army Base.

Ryan’s fists clenched against his sides. "We did, Alpha." There was something regretful in his voice.

I looked back at the road. "And he didn’t know anything?"

Ryan shook his head. "He said he was working for one of the men he named - Megayl. He didn’t know anything beyond that."

I narrowed my eyes. "So the man who arranged the first explosion was working with someone inside our own base, and that person was connected to others."

"Yes, Alpha."

I didn’t say anything for a moment. There were too many pieces to this puzzle, and somehow, they were all beginning to connect.

"Let’s get out and see what the officers have to say." I unfastened my seat belt and stepped out of the vehicle.

The moment my feet touched the ground, an unbearable smell hit me. I instinctively brought a hand over my nose and mouth, my stomach turning at the nauseating scent. Even from outside, the scale of the destruction was obvious.

Everything was in disarray. Injured officers were being carried toward waiting ambulances. Others were rushing around with first-aid supplies, while several teams worked desperately to clear the rubble and search for anyone who might still be trapped beneath it.

The once-busy Intelligence Bureau had been reduced to a scene of destruction.

Looking at the scale of the explosion, it was no wonder the smell of dark magic was so overwhelming.

"Alpha!" The head officer of the Investigation Department said as he stopped in front of me. He had come running toward me the moment he saw our convoy arrive. "Alpha, the site hasn’t been cleared yet. You can’t be here!"

I raised one hand, cutting him off before he could say anything else. "I didn’t come here to stand outside and wait."

His expression tightened. "But Alpha—"

"Ryan, follow me." I turned away from him and walked straight toward the destroyed building.

"Alpha!"

I ignored the warning. Something was pulling at my instincts. I could feel it. A strange, heavy presence lingered beneath the destruction, something that didn’t belong among ordinary debris.

My steps slowed as I reached the centre of the collapsed floor, there I could feel it more clearly now - Dark magic.My eyes narrowed. Without saying a word, I crouched down and grabbed the edge of a large concrete slab.

"Alpha, wait—"

I ignored Ryan and lifted it. The heavy slab scraped against the ground before I pushed it aside.

And just as I had suspected... Something was buried underneath.

A red orb.

My breath caught. For a few seconds, I could do nothing but stare at it. That familiar crimson glow seemed to pulse faintly beneath the rubble, sending a chill through my entire body.

I had seen one before. I remembered exactly where. My eyes involuntarily grew moist as memories I had spent years trying to bury resurfaced all at once.

My fingers curled into fists. "You had already taken my world once." My voice came out barely above a whisper as I stared at the orb, unable to tear my eyes away from it. "What do you need this time?"