Alex sensed Zol's mana spike and acted swiftly. Without hesitation, he snatched Zol from his bed and shifted out of the room and off the planet, appearing trillions of kilometres out of the star system.
On the other hand, Lucas and Felicity didn't even notice anything. One moment, Lucas was staring at his ancestor with a growing smile while Felicity was turning her head towards Zol, only to be met with an empty bed and Alex nowhere to be found.
"Alex…?" Lucas looked around in confusion.
Meanwhile, Felicity let out a deep sigh with her left hand on her chest. "I think I know what happened." She quickly explained her observations and what might have happened had Alex not acted.
"I see…" Lucas swallowed hard and stared at the bed. Seeing how close he was to dying sent a chill down his spine. 'I should stay away from Class S hunters till I get there myself.'
Lucas finally understood how wide the gap truly was. He could die without even knowing it happened, and he was on the verge of attaining that level!
Meanwhile, the moment Alex appeared with Zol, he threw him into the distance and abruptly unleashed a domain made of void energy, creating a circular containment field with him and Zol within.
The domain spread out for several thousands of kilometres, locking the space around them.
Almost instantaneously, Zol's body unleashed a mana storm that created a massive shockwave that would have wiped out the planet and everything else in the star system.
Fortunately, the locked space Alex created with void energy sealed the raging mana, freezing them in place. Zol's mana continued to rage but couldn't shake the barrier.
'What an intense energy.' Alex couldn't help but smile. He observed calmly as Zol's eyes abruptly opened soon after, frantically looking around for the monster it was fighting.
Several seconds later, Zol calmed down enough to notice the man in the distance, floating in the void with a relaxed smile. Focusing on his face nearly made his heart jump out of his chest.
"A-Alex…?" Zol stuttered and abruptly appeared a few meters before Alex. "Is that really you or am I still dreaming?" He narrowed his eyes.
The boy he remembered was no more and also stood in the void of space with no armour for protection. 'Yeah, I'm still dreaming.'
"No." Alex shook his head with a smile. "It really is me, Lord Zol. I am back."
Zol stared at him for several seconds, slowly regaining his bearing. And the more time that passed, the more he realized everything was real.
He recalled everything that happened before everything went dark. Then the piece of clothing on him put the rest together.
'I somehow managed to survive.' Zol mused and suddenly remembered Mason. 'Is he…?' he did dare complete that thought and then focused on Alex.
"So you're really back." Doubt was replaced with surprise. "And from the looks of things, you've become quite the man." He took in his appearance but didn't fail to notice the lack of presence or the ordinariness of it.
"Yeah." He smiled. "A lot of things happened. I'll fill you in." He gestured for them to return as he blasted off towards the star system.
He could have shifted spatially, but he wanted Zol to see where his strength lay. Unfortunately, it sent the wrong message.
'Just how many years have I been under?' Zol wondered with furrowed brows before bolting after Alex.
A minute later, Alex and Zol arrived at the facility where they found Lucas and Dr. Felicity waiting in a receiving room. Zol quickly changed into something more presenting.
His armour and tech were not with him after his injuries, but they were things he could easily replace.
"Uncle," Lucas smiled when Zol walked in while Felicity stood up and gave a polite bow.
"Mm," Zol acknowledged and gestured for everyone to sit down before finding s seat himself. "How long have I been out for?" He went straight to the point as he wasn't one to express emotions.
"Les than a month," Lucas replied, taking Zol by surprise.
"A month?" He echoed and Lucas nodded. Zol couldn't believe his eyes and turned to Alex who simply smiled.
"Things happen, Lord Zol." Alex replied cryptically. "And you haven't missed much. I returned a little over a week ago."
Zol stared at Alex for several seconds, his thoughts his own. He couldn't believe what he was hearing.
'Then how the hell is he already at the S tier?' Zol would have believed it if they said Alex came from the future. That would have made a lot more sense.
"What happened to you?" He finally asked.
"Well…" Alex sighed as he sat up as he once again described what happened to him when he used that void core. And the more he spoke, the more shocked Zol and Felicity were, mostly the latter.
"Void energy allows me to harness the abilities of void creatures stored in their cores," Alex explained as he snapped his fingers and conjured a bluish-purple flame, instantly raising the temperature by many degrees.
The flames were quickly snuffed out and replaced with a space tear Alex manipulated to his will. "With the space attribute, I managed to find my way home."
"All in five years…" Zol muttered in a slight daze. "… and still not at your limit."
He never imagined void energy was that powerful. Imagine what humanity could do if they had many people using void energy. They wouldn't be in their current situation.
'I wouldn't have been nearly killed by that monster.' He mused. 'Yet Alex calls it a disappointment.' Zol couldn't help but feel like he had been wasting his time all these years.
As these thoughts flowed through his head, he recalled his friend. "What about Mason?"
"Ah, he is perfectly fine," Lucas said and explained to him how Mason handled the situation.
"That's good to know." He nodded and then turned to Alex again. "It's good to have you back, Alexander."
"Likewise, lord Zol."