"Your tie is crooked."

"Don't worry about it, I'll fix it later."

"What fix it later? We are approaching the meeting location. People will give you strange looks if you enter with a tie like that."

"They'll look at me weirdly even if my tie isn't like this, father-in-law."

"What did you just call me?"

"Oops."

I covered my mouth as I stepped out of the back seat of a black SUV. Edward exited the vehicle on the opposite side, glaring daggers in my direction.

His face slowly turned pale.

"Don't tell me..."

"Oh, yes. It's exactly what you're thinking."

I seriously nodded my head, brows interlocked tightly together.

Edward's face underwent such a drastic change the moment those words escaped my lips. So much so that it reminded me of the painting 'The Scream'.

I tell you, they looked identical.

"No, no, no, not Amanda..."

He began mumbling unintelligible words while covering his face with both hands.

I nodded my head once more when I observed Edward's condition.

'This will get him to stop nagging at me.'

He hadn't stopped nagging me ever since I got home; it was a constant yapping in my ears. I'd had enough of it. In the end, I didn't even get a chance to rest before being forced to attend the assembly right away.

This was the least I could do to make him shut up.

"Well, whatever."

After shrugging my shoulders, I moved in the direction of a large cube-shaped building that looked to be about the size of a stadium.

The skin of the building was clad in a shiny silver metal, and it featured some kind of design elements in the form of multiple cavities that shrunk the building making it seem like it was made out of glass.

The moonlight that was hanging in the sky reflected off of the clean surface of the building, while the area around the building was covered by large fences that were patrolled by several individuals dressed in black.

I was able to determine that they were all at least <A> rank or above from their aura alone.

I would not have been able to determine their rank in the normal course of events due to the fact that they had concealed it; however, I had progressed to the point where I was able to do so based on the psyons that were fluctuating around their body.

Having reached the <SS-> rank, I could now see psyons extremely clearly. The same could be said for the rank of the people around me.

That being said, this was something limited to me.

Sort of.

To possess this type of ability, a person's psyon control must reach an unimaginable level of mastery, and the only reason why I was able to reach this level was none other than the godly pill that I had received from the elves back in Issanor.

That pill alone had boosted my psyons reception to a level far beyond what I was capable of.

As a matter of fact...

"Congratulations in advance Edward."

"...What?"

Edward cocked his head in response to my words. I approached one of the guards and handed him my ticket.

"Well, since you're trying to hide it, I won't say much, but you sure hid it well."

"Ha?"

The look of bewilderment that was on Edward's face grew. I smiled at him slightly before drawing two SS's in the air.

"Wh..a? Yo.! How?!"

As expected, Edward's expression shifted once more as he looked at me in disbelief.

When I saw his reaction, a very slight upward movement occurred in the corner of my lips.

'Even if you're trying to hide it, I can easily see that you're about to break through.'

Within a month's time, he was without a doubt going to break through to <SS-> rank.

Nothing could escape my eyes.

We were fortunate to have invites with us; Edward and I were able to enter the building without any difficulty.

It was also because of them that Edward didn't cause a scene and I was able to enter the building without any problem.

The interior of the building was equally as impressive as the exterior, with a red carpet extending across the floor, paintings hanging on white walls, crystal chandeliers, and a marble reception area.

On the surface, the location appeared to be no different than any other building that belonged to a sizable corporation; however, this was the furthest thing from the truth, as was made clear the moment that Edward and I entered the elevator and reached the ground floor.

Ding!

The door to the elevator opened with a soft chime, and we were ushered into a cramped hallway that was paneled entirely in metal.

The faint echo of our footsteps resounded all the way down the hallway until we came to a stop in front of a substantial wooden door.

When we made a move to open the door, a small compartment opened up and multiple laser beams shot down in our direction, enveloping our bodies entirely.

I turned to glance at Edward.

"This should be the security system, right?"

"Correct."

The scan only took a few minutes, at which point the compartment closed up, the wooden door opened automatically, and we could faintly make out the sound of people speaking coming from the other end of the room.

The two of us walked in without giving it a second thought, and almost immediately afterward, there was an unexplainable hush in the room as a number of sets of eyes turned in our direction.

I paid no attention to the attention I was receiving as my eyes lingered on a familiar figure and I approached her.

"You look bored."

"Uh, ah?"

Monica wiped the drool away from the corner of her mouth as she raised her head, which had been resting on her arms, and looked up at me. It took her two blinks before she finally understood who I was, at which point her eyes brightened.

"Ah, you're finally here."

She patted the black leather seat next to her.

"Come, have a seat."

"Sure."

I complied with Monica's request and sat down on the seat. As soon as I sat down, my attention was drawn to the large oval desk that extended from one end of the room to the other, followed by the people seated at the table.

In an instant, my eyes sharpened and I registered the faces of everyone present inside of my mind.

'Seth Colon, Ivana Krala, Morgan Roseman, Newman Jordan...'

Figures that I had only seen in magazines and whom I had heard of at the Lock. The remaining force of the human domain, and the <SS-> rankers that didn't work for the Union.

Douglas was also present, but he seemed to be talking to someone important at the moment, and he had still not noticed me yet.

Monica was mumbling about a few things that I was unaware of while we were both sitting there, and I would occasionally respond to her with occasional nods and hums.

"So like Donna said this, and like I was like..."

"Yeah. Um. Very nice."

It was only a fleeting moment, but the instant that my eyes passed over the few individuals I pointed out, I felt a strange sense of oppression coming from them, which caused me to knit my eyebrows in thought.

This sensation lasted only a split second, but it left a deep impression on me.

'They are much stronger than I originally anticipated.'

Everyone my eyes paused on, aside from Monica, had already broken through to <SS> rank and were on their way to breaking through to <SS+>, with Newman and Morgan already there.

I felt more reassured when I took note of this fact.

The situation wasn't as hopeless as I had originally anticipated. Especially since this meeting was happening far before the few memories I had stored inside of my mind.

"Quiet for a moment."

I was jolted out of my thoughts by an unexpected voice, which also sparked an unexpected wave of tension that quickly spread throughout the room, bringing the room to a hush.

Everyone who had been standing sat down on one of the leather seats, solemn and serious expressions plastered on their faces.

When I turned to look in the direction that the sound was coming from, I was taken aback to see Octavious sitting at the head of the table with his hands interlocked in front of him in a triangle position.

My pupils constricted slightly.

'When did he get there?'

That speed...

"I've figured that I have finally got your attention."

Octavious continued to speak, oblivious to my shock. While he spoke, the tension that permeated the room did not subside but rather, intensified.

"I'm not one that likes to waste time on pleasantries, so I will get straight to the point."

"Today, I have two significant announcements. Both will be crucial to the advancement of humanity in the years to come."

At this point, there was a noticeable deepening of Octavious's voice. It became evident to everyone in the room that he was about to say something very important.

"Approximately one week from now, as most of you are aware, the truce between us and the Monolith will expire. Doesn't it go without saying what this will entail for everyone present?"

No one said anything.

It was clear that everyone knew what was about to come.

The inevitable war between the human domain and the Monolith. A war that will most likely kill millions of lives.

"Immediate priority must be placed on preventing the spread of panic during times of war. The Union has already taken steps to construct multiple bunkers in each city to protect its citizens, and it is of the utmost importance that no spies are present during evacuations."

"This will likely be the most difficult challenge the Union will face, and it is highly likely that we will not be able to identify all spies hidden within the human domain. We simply lack the essential resources...which brings me to my main point."

Octavious's head slowly began to rise, his eyes pausing on the few figures whom I had previously laid eyes on.

Newman, Morgan, Ivana...

"An alliance."

Octavious blinked a little longer than normal, his finger tapping on his other hand.

" ...If we want to make this work, the only way is through an alliance."

My eyes closed and I leaned back on my chair the moment those words escaped from Octavious's eyes.

'Should be about time.'

...Exactly on cue, as I closed my eyes, a sudden scream echoed throughout the room, and one of the attendees jumped to his feet and clutched his throat.

His struggle went on for a few more seconds, during which time his body contorted in an unnatural manner, making it appear as though he was possessed, and the veins on his neck protruded externally.

"Aaakh!"

Black blood spat out from his mouth, and his body collapsed shortly after. Black vein lines started to appear on his pale face in a slow manner.

Thud!

As everyone in the room stared at the body with an extraordinary amount of gravity, the room fell completely silent.

The only people who remained calm were the top 10 rankers, and even they weren't entirely composed.

The silence continued for a few seconds longer, and then, just as someone was about to approach the corpse, the body contorted and, with his right hand slamming against the ground, the corpse raised its head to reveal the features of a hideous creature.

The creature had a pale face with black veins scattered all over its surface, black eyes, disheveled hair, and broken teeth; it was nothing short of a creature straight out of a horror movie.

If not for its weak mana fluctuations, one might've already killed it by now.

"Khuak! Khuak! Khuak!"

A dark substance began to spew out from the creature's body as it slowly began to rise while it was simultaneously opening and closing its mouth.

The creature's body continued to contort as it slowly stood up, and, ignoring everyone else in the room, it made its way to the chair it had previously occupied and sat down.

It was at that moment that the creature's face underwent further changes, as its jaw moved, its hair grew longer, and its eyes became clearer.

Slowly, the features of an otherworldly handsome man became apparent to all in attendance.

"It can't be!?"

"H..how is this possible?"

When the features became more distinguishable, there was a discernible paling in the faces of the many people who were in attendance.

Malik Alshayatin appeared to be smiling as he slowly raised his head while touching his jaw and moving it to the left and right sides of his face.

"So...what have I missed?"