Chapter 236: Where Is My Family?
Without any hesitation or doubt, Daniel immediately flew toward the villa that August had given them inside the secure district.
As he flew above the city, he noticed how empty it had become. Military and security forces were patrolling all over the place.
He also saw many Awakened fighting against Corruption Beasts.
"Damn it. A dimensional break," Daniel cursed. With all the smoke trails and flames covering the city, it wasn’t hard to realize what had happened.
But how did this even happen? He couldn’t recall there being any dungeon in their city that was marked as a potential breach point.
So how had a dimensional break occurred? And clearly, it wasn’t a minor one either.
If it were just a simple break, the city wouldn’t be in such chaos. Obviously, the civilians had already been sent to shelters.
Helicopters belonging to the Awakened Association and city security agencies were flying overhead.
Seeing them made Daniel’s frown deepen. Their presence meant one of two things—either the situation had gotten completely out of control, or there were flying types among the Corruption Beasts.
The searchlights from the helicopters shined on him, surrounding him in midair.
’Just perfect,’ he thought, annoyed. Was this really the time to be intercepted by helicopters?
"Who are you? I don’t recall any B-rank Awakened being dispatched to this area... Identify yourself," a voice suddenly spoke from one of the helicopters.
Daniel turned and looked directly at the helicopter with the loudspeaker.
"I’m an Awakened returning from clearing the second floor of the Tower... I just reached B-rank and can fly," he answered honestly. Now wasn’t the time to get himself into trouble.
"What’s your name?" the voice asked again.
"Daniel Noir."
Silence followed for a few moments. It was obvious the people in the helicopters were verifying his identity.
"Identity confirmed. Apologies for the misunderstanding. You should head to the Awakened Association as soon as possible... Your power could be a big help," the same voice said before the helicopters flew off.
As soon as they left, Daniel continued on his way without wasting any more time.
The closer he got, the more his worry for his family grew. It wasn’t long before he reached the residential district.
There were lots of Awakened guards stationed there, actively protecting the area. It was clear that the people living here were still present and hadn’t been evacuated like the rest of the city.
After confirming his identity, he entered and headed straight to the villa. Without delay, he rushed inside and searched every corner for his family.
"Mom!"
"Alice!"
"Tiana!" It didn’t matter how many times he shouted their names... there was no one there to answer.
"Could they have gone back to our original home?" Daniel wondered as he walked into the living room and sat on the couch.
But that was completely ridiculous. In a situation like this, even if they wanted to go back, they wouldn’t be allowed to. Security forces would immediately take anyone leaving here straight to a shelter.
"Maybe they went to the shelters? Then what happened to my Fallen?" His frown deepened.
He had tried several times to contact the Fallen he had left behind to guard his family, but none of them responded.
Even worse, he could no longer feel the bond that connected him to those Fallen... It was as if they didn’t exist anymore. More precisely—it was like they’d been erased...?
Their deaths shouldn’t be possible. As long as he’s alive, they should return every time they die... unless he had used them as extra lives.
Even if they had died... why didn’t he get a notification? Why didn’t the system tell him anything? Why didn’t the Fallen contact him mentally when they were in danger?
The fact that his connection with them was completely severed indicated something he had never seen before—something that should logically be impossible.
He let out a sigh... He was only in that damned Tower for a week. What the hell had happened during that week?
He took out his phone and immediately checked the messages he had received... To his surprise, both Joe and Mr. August had messaged him.
His best friend had texted: "Damn, I just saw the news about the situation in Sentis. Are you okay?"
The head of the Awakened Association of Sentis had also sent him a message, telling him to contact him immediately once he returned.
Without hesitation, Daniel called Mr. August. If anyone knew anything in this situation, it had to be the head of the Awakened Association.
The phone rang for a while... but finally, someone answered.
A deep, tired voice came through.
"Daniel? That you, kid?"
"It’s me, Mr. August... it’s me... Do you know where my family is? What happened? What the hell happened to the city?" Daniel didn’t waste a second and got straight to the point.
In this state, he couldn’t think about anything except his family.
But of course, he noticed the tired tone in August’s voice—it was clear he was exhausted. Just from his voice, Daniel could tell how bad the situation really was.
That made him frown again. He didn’t know the exact power level of the head of the Awakened Association, but he knew the man was strong—stronger even than the Noble Demon he had defeated.
At the very least, a Half-Step S-rank.
So what could possibly be enough to make someone like that sound this worn out?
"Sigh... It’s a long story. I can’t explain everything over the phone. All you need to know is that the city is in total chaos... Something we never expected happened. As for your family... I’m sorry, but I don’t know anything about them," August said with a heavy sigh.
Daniel felt a sharp pain in his chest when he heard the second part.
If even the head of the Association didn’t know... then where the hell were they? What exactly had happened to them?
"They disappeared three days ago... As soon as I found out, I sent out teams to look for them... Unfortunately, they didn’t find their location, but I think we might have a lead."
"Where are you right now? I’ll come immediately."
"Come to the Awakened Association. I’ll be waiting for you there," August paused for a second before replying.