Ch 22

Areth felt something tickle his face. It was morning, and he saw the twins brushing his face with grass and chicken feather.

"Hehehe, Areth you lazy."

"Wake! Wake!"

When they saw him opening his eyes, they covered his head with blanket and started hitting him with the pillows. Laughing excitedly while doing it.

"Hiyah!"

"Boyd Eds!"

Areth was still half asleep, clueless as to what was going on. It was not until he was hit several times in the head, that he was fully awakened.

"Ugh..."

He got up angrily but the twins were already gone, calling for their parents. He heard a laughter from somewhere. Leyfin's soul form was watching from above, covering her mouth.

Areth ignored her and went down to eat.

His mother spoke after he was finished.

"Areth, you are free today right? Why don't you accompany your siblings to the amusement park?"

"Alright, I will."

Areth glanced at the kids, hiding a smirk from his face.

When the twins heard that they would be going to the amusement park, they were jumping in excitement. Sarah smiled warmly at this scene.

"Come to think of it. Areth, you have never gone to the amusement park before, isn't it?"

"No, not at all." Hendrick came out of his room with messy hair. "He spent his childhood stuck up in my studies, reading books and playing games."

Sarah clapped her hands. "Then, you take this opportunity to regain your childhood. Right honey?"

"Of course! Areth, you must go and experience it. Your childhood is so dull. I'm afraid that your brain hasn't developed completely yet. You can take your time!"

Areth stared at his parents suspiciously, he had already agreed did he not?

The two of them have entered their own world again

Nevertheless, he accepted the the pocket money and took a bath.

"Jalen, you must not use your power outside, okay? Christine, don't cause trouble for others. Remember to follow your brother."

After a while, the three siblings emerged from the house, fresh and fully dressed.

Leyfin sat on Areth's shoulder and used a spell to conceal herself. She conjured a noble dress to match the theme.

Areth pushed his glasses. "Let's go."

As it was weekend, the amusement park was crowded with people regardless of age. The trio did not garner much attention.

The children led Areth around, buying snacks and toys, playing games and watching performances.

Suddenly, Areth spot a familiar figure in the crowd. He nearly failed to recognize her as she wasn't wearing her usual outfit. It was gorgeous girl in white casual dress.

"Anne, you're here too!"

"Eh? A-Areth?"

Anne heard the voice calling out to her, a trace of panic appeared in her face, but only for a moment. She calmed down after recognizing it was Areth. She knew that this kid was really lazy and rarely cared about anything.

'It's fine, it's just this kid.' She thought.

She was worried that the image she had worked hard to build would crumble, she must look tough and invincible regardless of the circumstances.

"Sis, who?" A little girl beside her asked.

"So little and yet already gossiping. Looks like I have to increase the difficulty of your training."

The little girl shuddered at this. She stared pitifully at Anne.

Leyfin nudged Areth's cheek and teased. 'Hey kid, your girlfriend?'

'Master, how about you? Do you have a boyfriend?'

Leyfin was stunned and couldn't retort for a while.

'Rascal, you have even learned to bully your master huh?'

While they were bickering, Anne came over. "Areth, I didn't expect to see you here."

Her eyes turned to the naughty twins messing with him. One was pulling his clothes, the other was biting him.

Anne turned to her own little sister and chuckled. "I guess you are having a hard time too. Why don't you join us? We're gonna try the roller coaster."

"Sure." Areth was just thinking of how to punish the two troublemakers.

"Christine, Jalen, we're going to the roller coaster. It's fun."

"What is roarer coster?" Jalen said.

"Fun? I go!" Christine said, waving her hands to him.

"That's settled then. Let's go!"

The twins lost interest in him and start bothering Anne's little sister, Arin. At first, she was reluctant and cold. But after enduring the twins' endless pestering, she began to warm up a bit.

As they were preparing for the ride, Leyfin spoke.

'Something does not feel right.'

'What is it? a bomb? or a faulty equipment?'

'No, I'm not referring to this. Perhaps I'm just feeling unwell.'

Everyone secured themselves on the train. The train moved towards the slope and accelerated.

The feeling of the wind brushing against their faces was pleasant. Jalen was doing fine, but Christine and Arin were screaming loudly on their seats.

Areth was laughing evilly inside his mind. Though it was a shame that one of them did not react as he had expected.

'HahaHahahAahaha!'

'Seriously, stop it. Are you nuts?'

'Oh, sorry.'

He had unintentionally let some of his thoughts.

He looked around at everyone's faces. Arin and Christine were still screaming. Jalen's face was indifferent, his gaze was profound, no one knew if he was still conscious. Anne's face was pale and was restraining the urge to scream in order to preserve her image.

Amidst their activity, the sound of blaring alarm resounded across the area. The drones patrolling above shone red light toward the the ground and conveyed the message with loud speakers.

"Uncontrolled Rift detected! Civilians, please head to the nearest sanctuary!

Requesting all hunters to to head to district 1! Estimated danger level, Calamity grade! Hunters below C rank, please assist in evacuation.

Repeating..."

The roller coaster stopped at the lowest height and the staffs were already prepared receive them.

Perhaps the kids felt the tense atmosphere and they clung to Areth tightly.

Anne's face become serious, she picked up Arin and urged Areth to head to the Sanctuary. Areth tucked the twins under his arms and followed the crowd.

Numerous Drones appeared from the police station and they gathered toward the anomaly.

The civilians, though scared, followed the guidelines according to the usual drills. Those who ran too fast and caused chaos were apprehended by the drones.

Areth could feel the presence of foreign mana spreading across the air. Leyfin raised her head, and then her eyes were filled with disbelief. She was shaking.

'T-this mana...'

'What's wrong?'

'It is from Flauren!'

Areth was shocked. Flauren was the name of Leyfin's planet. He had already considered the possibility that a rift leading to her world would appear. But it was just him thinking lightly, he had never entertained that it would actually happen in reality.

"Areth, this is not the time to space out!" Anne yelled furiously.

"O-okay, I was just shocked."

"We'll think of what to do after we reached the Sanctuary. For now, let's focus on getting to safety."

Affer running for a while, they were able to see a large dome-shaped structure. A huge amount of people were inside, however, they only took one third of the space. This was not the only Sanctuary in City E. Each district have their own.

The drones were hovering above and updating them of the current situation.

"Estimated time before Rift opens, 1 minute."

The entrance was beginning to close.

The concentration of the abnormal mana was increasing at an alarming rate, Areth had already deployed his split soul without being noticed.

Suddenly, his holowatch blinked and the image of his father appeared. He looked anxious, he was wearing his Hunter suit and the background was shifting constantly.

"Areth, are you in a sanctuary now? How are your siblings?!"

"We are inside the sanctuary now! Don't worry, I will protect them."

"Papa!"

"We are okay!"

Hendrick sighed and seem to have gotten rid of a huge burden.

"You two, stay with your brother. Areth, keep them in sight. Stay there and be safe."

Anne also informed her parents that they are safe. She stared toward the entrance until it was fully closed down.

'So this is how a monster tide starts.'

She had seen one in television and in the internet. It was a different feeling after experiencing it herself. Perhaps if she was alone, she might have tried to look closely.

Meanwhile, Areth sat on the floor with the others. His split soul was observing the situation from the sky.