Apocalypse: becoming the hidden Ruler[English]

In the distance, Isidore stared in disbelief.

“Sir, stop it,” Kason said with a sigh. “They’ve won. I’ll inform Master—this should count.”

When Lilith climbed out of that pit and jumped back into the fight, Kason knew it was over. These young Awakeners had already beaten the puppet formation their teacher designed.

If it continued, victory was inevitable—especially with Axel’s absurd healing abilities.

“Really?” Isidore’s beard twitched. Despite being well into his seventies or eighties, he looked like a child about to burst with joy.

His mental energy surged.

In an instant, he seized control of the puppet soldiers.

The electronic eyes of the four remaining puppets went dark simultaneously.

One of them, mid-air in the middle of a kick, was flying like a cannonball—still frozen in the kicking pose.

Silence fell over the battlefield.

......

“Finally… it’s over.” Sergio let out a long breath as he watched Isidore approach with a radiant smile. “Mr. Isidore, you were deliberately testing us, weren’t you? That was brutally hard.”

“Hard or not, you succeeded.” Isidore couldn’t hide his delight. In his heart, the odds of securing Mr. Instrument King’s cooperation had just skyrocketed.

“These things were insane,” Terrence said, sticking close to Axel like glue. “If we really run into Mr. Instrument King’s puppet formation, can we actually win?”

Pain might boost combat potential, but the suffering was real. In the past, Terrence had relied heavily on healing pills. Now, standing beside Axel and wrapped in Return to Origin, the relief was immediate—smooth, warm, and almost addictive.

“Oh, I forgot to mention something,” Isidore said casually. “The things that attacked you are Mr. Instrument King’s puppet formation. They were delivered today. The activation was purely an accident.”

“I only wanted to give you some real combat experience. I honestly didn’t expect you to win.”

Everyone froze.

Axel and Lilith’s eyes widened at the same time.

“This… is a puppet formation?”

“You’ve got to be kidding me!”

“This is bullshit!”

“…Wait—then that means we actually won?” Terrence’s eyes went wide. “Holy shit!” He roared with laughter, raising his fists.

He immediately started pounding his own chest in excitement.

“That’s it?” Lilith stared at the puppet head still in her hand. The cold, murderous look on her face faded, replaced by a bright, almost carefree smile. “Damn… that felt amazing.”

Her usual smiles were seductive, dangerous—this one was genuine. Warm. Radiant. Even Terrence, whose brain usually ran on nothing but combat instinct, was momentarily stunned.

“Relax, boys,” Lilith said with a wink. “Don’t get any ideas. I’m not interested in you.”

“Congratulations, everyone,” Kason said, nodding calmly. “You may head directly to the Instrument King Pavilion and select a spiritual item that suits your attributes. If you already know what you want, tell me—I’ll have it delivered.”

His gaze lingered briefly on Kenneth.

“Your teammates did well,” Kason continued. “But you… you’re a bit of a waste. Are you really our family’s so-called number one genius?”

Kenneth’s eyes darkened. “N-none of your business. Heh.”

Kason shook his head with a chuckle. “Still chasing your fix, I see.”

He handed over a list. “These are the available spiritual items. Choose first. I’ll go report to Master.”

The screen lit up, revealing a short, scruffy old man with an unkempt beard.

“Why are you bothering me?” the old man snapped. “I’m in the middle of an experiment. If this isn’t important, you’ll regret it.”

Despite the open call, his body never stopped moving, surrounded by whirring machines and rotating mechanisms.

“Mr. Instrument King,” Kason said respectfully, “good news. The puppet formation has been breached. The combat data should already be transmitting to you.”

“I thought this was something trivial—wait.”

The old man froze.

“What the hell did you just say?”

His wrinkled, irritable face filled the screen.

“Master, it has indeed been breached,” Kason said calmly. “Sergio, Terrence, and two members of the Whisper Syndicate—meeting your strength requirements—won.”

The Instrument King went completely still. His beard trembled. His fingers tapped wildly against a nearby machine.

“Show me. Show me right now!”

He plunged his fingers into the device as if jacking directly into it. Streams of data reflected across his eyes.

“Piercing amplification… knockback control… throwing vectors…”

He muttered nonstop, lost in analysis. Isidore and Kason waited in silence.

Several minutes later, the old man straightened.

“These little bastards are something else,” he muttered. “Nothing else? I can still optimize this. It needs improvements.”

“Master—wait,” Kason interjected. “They’re here for the magical artifacts—”

“Let them choose,” the Instrument King snapped, waving his hand impatiently.

The screen flickered, about to shut down.

“Sir,” Isidore hurriedly said, “since the puppet formation has been broken, would you consider coming to Everton—”

Ding.

The connection cut.

Isidore stood there awkwardly.

Kason sighed. “Sir… that’s just how my master is. But when Krythos truly needs him, I don’t believe he’ll refuse.”

Isidore let out a deep sigh. This was exactly when he needed help the most.

“…I hope so.”

Soon enough, Sergio and the others finished selecting the spiritual items they needed. With guidance from their family elders, they already knew exactly what suited them best.

Axel, however, lingered, his eyes roaming across the dazzling collection. When Kason returned, Axel stopped him.

“Mr. Kason, may I personally look through Mr. Instrument King’s private collection? I’m not entirely sure what I need.”

Kason paused, clearly surprised. “What is your awakened talent?”

Axel hesitated.

For all this time, he had claimed his talent was All Things Simulation—but that had never truly been his.

Seeing his silence, Kason nodded. “If it’s inconvenient to say, that’s fine. I’ll give you the address. Come to the Instrument Pavilion tomorrow and choose for yourself.”

The Instrument Pavilion was Mr. Instrument King’s personal collection hall in Everton. Kason would be heading there anyway to retrieve the items chosen by Sergio’s group.

......

“You’re all fucking heartless!” Nigel complained loudly. “I was practically beaten to death, and not one of you helped me!”

From start to finish, he’d mostly been rolling on the ground, grappling the puppet soldiers like a lunatic.

“Don’t say that,” Sergio said with a smile. “You played an irreplaceable role.”

Nigel felt marginally better.

“Let’s head back for today,” Sergio continued. “Once we absorb the spiritual items and complete our deep awakenings, we’ll celebrate properly.”

Terrence stretched and laughed. “After that, we’re heading to the Abyss together!”

“The Abyss?” Axel blinked. “Why?”

“To temper our natal treasures,” Nigel explained. “That eats Origin Force like crazy. Before, only awakeners below Level Four could enter, but the killing intent inside has shifted recently. It’s perfect for us now.”

No one elaborated further. One by one, they departed, with Sergio deliberately walking at the very back.

Lilith hesitated, clearly wanting to say something to Axel, but when she saw Sergio call out to him, she paused—then turned and left without a word.

“Axel, wait.”

Outside the park, the area was eerily quiet. A sleek, futuristic black car waited by the roadside.

“Get in.”

Axel nodded and slid into the back seat with Sergio.

“This is an unmanned combat vehicle designed by the Craftsman,” Sergio said calmly, unfolding a fan and lightly fanning himself. “It isolates both Force and mental waves. No one can overhear us.”

Axel nodded. “What did you want to talk about?”

“I should be asking you that,” Sergio replied. “You mentioned the Saints earlier. I didn’t respond.”

“You understand why,” Sergio said quietly. “The Saints aren’t something we gamble our lives against.”

Sergio studied him seriously. Axel fell silent for a moment before his expression returned to its usual indifference.

“I understand,” Axel said.

“You’re already on the Saints’ radar,” Sergio continued. “Probably a priority target. Staying in Everton would be safest—and with your potential, reaching Level Six is only a matter of time. So why risk your life?”

Axel couldn’t help but admire Sergio’s insight. That was exactly why he hadn’t pushed him earlier.

“I have my reasons,” Axel said. “I’m sorry. I can’t tell you.”