"What the hell were you thinking?!"
Gloria yelled as she rushed inside and saw the mess Anita had made.
"Umm… umm… I'm sorry. It slipped," Anita mumbled, her voice shaky as she crouched down to pick up the broken pieces.
Gloria sighed, rubbing her temples before putting a hand on her waist. "You guys are going to be the death of me," she muttered before walking off to the kitchen.
Adam crouched beside Anita, offering to help. "You say it slipped, but I think it happened when I mentioned that brat's name—Mark Blackveil, right?" His tone was calm but serious.
The second she heard the name again, Anita's eyes widened in panic. Without saying a word, she bolted to the bathroom, leaving Adam watching her retreating figure with a sigh.
"She definitely knows something," he muttered. "And if she reacted that strongly, then the Blackveil name really does mean something. Shit… I might've just made things worse for my siblings."
With that thought, he got up and walked over to Becca. "I'm taking the rest of the day off. Something important came up. Tell the ice queen for me, will you?" Before Becca could even respond, he was already out the door.
"He didn't even wait for my reply," she sighed, resting a hand on the nearest table.
At that moment, Anita stepped out of the bathroom—except she was completely different. Gone was the timid, shy girl from earlier. Her presence was sharp, commanding. She turned to Becca.
"Where did he go?" Her voice was firm, leaving no room for hesitation.
Becca straightened up immediately, sensing the shift. "He left to handle something urgent, young miss," she said, head slightly bowed.
Anita exhaled sharply. "I know where he's going. That idiot never learns. If that brat gets him hurt, I'll skin him alive."
And just like that, she dissolved into a shadow and disappeared.
Becca groaned, rubbing her temples like she was nursing an oncoming headache. And, as if the day couldn't get any worse, now was the time the ice queen decided to show up.
"Where's Adam? He should be in the kitchen helping me right now," Gloria said, storming out.
Becca sighed, already exhausted. "He left. Said it was urgent."
"Okay," Gloria replied, turning back toward the kitchen. But she stopped when she noticed the broken plate still on the floor. Her eyes narrowed. "And where's Anita?"
Becca held back another sigh. "She said she wasn't feeling well and went home."
Gloria arched a brow, clearly suspicious, but after a moment, she let it go. "Fine. Get someone to clean this up," she ordered before heading back inside.
As soon as she was gone, Becca let out a deep sigh, massaging her temples. "When will this nonsense end so I can just go back to the Blackveil estate?"
Meanwhile, Adam arrived at the school in a hurry and ran straight to his siblings' classroom. But when he got there, he didn't see them.
"Where are my siblings?" he asked their homeroom teacher, who was standing at the front of the class.
The teacher, a young man in his early twenties, had short brown hair, tired-looking blue eyes, and a lanky build. His face always seemed a little pale, like he barely got any sleep. He glanced at the empty seats where Alfred and Aria usually sat and frowned.
"They were just here," he muttered before turning to the rest of the class. "Does anyone know where Alfred and Aria went?"
The students exchanged confused looks, all of them shaking their heads.
Adam's face darkened as anger crept in. He stepped into the classroom and walked right up to the teacher, standing face-to-face with him.
"What kind of teacher doesn't even notice when two of his students go missing?" Adam asked, his voice calm but filled with fury.
"I—I swear they were just here," the teacher stammered, looking increasingly panicked. "One moment they were in class, and then… they weren't. I don't understand what happened."
Adam clenched his jaw, his mind racing. Something was definitely off.
"Where's Mark's class?" he asked, deciding to find his siblings first. He could deal with this idiot later.
"Who's Mark?" the teacher asked, looking genuinely confused.
Adam stared at him in disbelief. "You're completely useless, aren't you?"
Without another word, he reached for the teacher's desk and crushed it effortlessly with his bare hand. The sound of wood splintering echoed through the room, making the teacher's eyes widen in shock and fear.
"You're the most useless excuse for a human being I've ever met," Adam said coldly. "And that's coming from someone who's spent his life surrounded by idiots."
With that, he stormed out, slamming the door so hard it shattered on impact.
"Oh my God… what kind of freak is he?" Thomas muttered, staring at his shattered desk and the broken door.
Meanwhile, Adam was wandering around the school, trying to find someone who could tell him where Mark was. But every time he asked, people either avoided eye contact or quickly walked away. It was as if Mark was some untouchable figure no one dared to speak against.
"What kind of damn family does that bastard come from to have this much influence in a school?" Adam muttered, getting frustrated. He was running out of patience, but he couldn't afford to give up. His siblings were in danger.
Then, suddenly, it hit him.
"Wait a minute… I have a system," he said, smacking his forehead. "And I can create anything I imagine. How stupid can I be?"
Shaking his head at himself, he quickly moved to a quiet corner of the hallway. He needed something to help him track his siblings. An item could work, but there was a risk of losing it. An ability, on the other hand, would stay with him permanently.
"Yeah, an ability is the way to go," he mumbled.
He closed his eyes and imagined a fruit that would grant him the power to locate people. A second later, something materialized in his hands.
[You have created: The Seeker's Fruit]
Adam looked at the fruit—it was deep blue with glowing silver veins running across its surface. It had a faint, pulsating glow, almost as if it were alive.
[Seeker's Fruit]
Type: Consumable
Effect: Grants the user the Seeker's Sense ability, allowing them to track and locate any target within a certain range. The ability improves with the user's strength.
Duration: Permanent
Side Effects: None
"This should do the trick," Adam said with a grin.
Without hesitation, he took a big bite. The fruit had a surprisingly sweet and tangy taste, and before he knew it, he had devoured the whole thing.
[You have unlocked a new ability: Seeker's Sense]
[Seeker's Sense]
Description: Allows the user to sense and track any living being within a certain range. The more familiar the user is with the target, the stronger and more precise the tracking becomes.
Current Range: 5 kilometers
Upgrades: Range and accuracy will improve as the user gets stronger.
Almost instantly, Adam felt something change inside him. It was like an extra sense had awakened. He could suddenly feel the presence of different people around the school, their locations appearing in his mind like glowing dots on a map.
"Alright," Adam smirked. "Let's find my siblings."