Chapter 75: Gloomy Mission

Evan sighed in relief when he saw Raphael and Celestine back in reality, but the relief didn’t last long when he realized that both had collapsed from exhaustion. With Leon already in critical condition, Raphael’s collapse left Evan as the only SSS-Rank Sentinel still capable of fighting.

He glanced at Lumi, who had her eyes closed, concentrating as she tried her best to heal Leon under Miss Walker’s guidance. The situation was far from ideal, especially with Leon’s condition remaining critical and the battle still raging around them.

Now, Evan was left to face four S-Rank Anomalies alongside only five A-Rank Sentinels, with no other SSS-Rank Sentinel available to support him.

"Can you still fight?" Evan asked, glancing at one of the Sentinels, whose shoulder was bleeding.

"If you can’t, ask your Guide to get you out of here. The anomalies are weakening, too, so we need to take advantage of that before they recover."

The Sentinel, whose name was Leyla, shook her head firmly. "I’m fine. Let’s take down the source of their power first."

She glanced toward the Anomaly that was being pinned down by two Sentinels. Although its movements had slowed, it continued to struggle fiercely against their combined efforts, refusing to stay down even as its energy dwindled.

Evan didn’t waste any more time. The moment the two Sentinels managed to pin the struggling Anomaly to the ground, he surged forward, electricity crackling violently around his arm.

"Hold it down!" he ordered.

"We’re trying!" one of the Sentinels shouted through gritted teeth.

The Anomaly twisted its body, its claws scraping against the stone floor as it attempted to throw them off. Despite its weakened state, its strength remained terrifying, forcing both Sentinels to use every ounce of their remaining energy to keep it from breaking free.

Evan accelerated, sparks of electricity crawling from his fingertips toward his elbow. The Anomaly seemed to sense the approaching danger and suddenly opened its mouth, releasing a distorted shriek that shook the surrounding air.

"Too late," Evan muttered.

He reached the creature before it could escape, seized its jaw with one hand, and shoved his electrified arm straight into its gaping mouth.

The Anomaly’s eyes widened.

A violent surge of electricity erupted from Evan’s palm, flooding its mouth and racing through its body. Lightning illuminated the creature from within, outlining the twisted contours of its throat and torso as its entire body convulsed beneath the two Sentinels holding it down.

A deafening crack rang through the battlefield.

The Anomaly thrashed once, its claws gouging deep grooves into the stone, before its movements abruptly stopped. Evan withdrew his hand as the creature’s body collapsed, smoke curling from its open mouth.

For a brief moment, the surrounding Sentinels stared at the fallen Anomaly.

"That’s one down," Evan said, shaking the remaining sparks from his fingers.

But before anyone could celebrate, a sudden surge of energy rippled through the other three Anomalies.

Evan’s expression darkened.

The creatures had weakened when their energy supply was disrupted, but now that one of them had fallen, something about their reaction felt wrong.

He turned toward the remaining Anomalies, electricity gathering around his hand once more.

"Don’t tell me that bastard was still supplying them even after we found it."

Evan clicked his tongue, watching the remaining Anomalies struggle against the Sentinels fighting them. The sudden surge of energy didn’t last long, and soon enough, their movements began to slow again.

"That’s probably the last bit of energy the dead Anomaly could supply them," he muttered. "Don’t let your guard down. Keep fighting!"

The three A-Rank Sentinels engaged with the remaining three Anomalies continued their attacks, taking advantage of the creatures’ weakening condition while Evan prepared to intervene if any of them broke through.

Meanwhile, Lumi’s attention was focused entirely on her own body.

She had been trying to follow Miss Walker’s instructions while healing Leon, but something had changed. Beneath the familiar sensation of her heartbeat, she suddenly felt something else, a strange warmth stirring deep inside her body.

Her eyes flew open. "Ah! I can feel it!"

Miss Walker turned toward her in surprise. "Feel what?"

"I don’t know!" Lumi answered excitedly. "There’s something inside me!"

She focused on the unfamiliar sensation, afraid it might disappear if she lost concentration. It wasn’t like the Guiding energy she had been taught about, nor did it feel exactly like the healing ability she had occasionally experienced before. This was something deeper, something she had never been able to identify despite all her attempts.

Lumi swallowed nervously and concentrated harder, trying to guide the strange sensation through her body.

’Come on, come on... Move!’

She imagined gathering it into her arm, directing it toward her wrist and then into the palm of her hand, just as she had seen Sentinels do when controlling their abilities.

For a moment, nothing happened.

Then she felt it shift.

Lumi gasped, staring at her trembling hand as the unfamiliar sensation slowly gathered beneath her skin.

"I did it!" she exclaimed, barely containing her excitement. "Miss Walker, I think I can move it!"

Miss Walker stared at her hand, momentarily distracted from Leon’s treatment.

For the first time in her life, Lumi could feel something inside herself that she had never been able to identify, and now she was finally learning how to control it.

Evan forced open the Anomaly’s mouth with one hand, electricity crackling around his fingers as he prepared to finish it off. Despite the exhaustion weighing on his body, a faint smile tugged at his lips when he glanced toward Lumi, who was still excitedly trying to control the unfamiliar energy within her.

However, before he could act, a sudden impact echoed across the battlefield.

One of the Sentinels was slammed against the wall, leaving the remaining one struggling to hold back their opponents.

Evan’s smile faded.

The last Anomaly, the same one Lumi had instinctively intercepted earlier, abruptly abandoned its opponent and lunged toward her. Its claw twisted and elongated, transforming into a sharp spike aimed directly at her back.

Lumi was still kneeling beside Leon, her attention entirely focused on healing him. With her back turned toward the battlefield, she had no way of seeing the approaching threat.

"Lumi!" Miss Walker and Reeta screamed.

The other Sentinels turned at the sound of her voice, but they were too far away to intervene.

The Anomaly was already upon her.

In the next instant, Evan flashed into its path, positioning himself directly between Lumi and the incoming attack.

The sharpened claw plunged into his left chest.

Everything seemed to freeze.

Lumi felt a sudden impact behind her, followed by a strangled sound that made her heart seize. She turned around, only to find Evan standing directly in front of her, his body blocking her view of the Anomaly.

For a brief moment, she couldn’t understand what had happened.

Then she saw the monstrous spike buried in his chest.

"Evan?"