Chapter 343: Try If You Can
The five of us stood inside the wide prison tunnel, the air still thick with dust and lingering heat. Cells lined both sides of the corridor, most of them broken or burned, their iron bars twisted from the recent battle. Ash floated gently through the space, drifting past the cracked stone floor.
Knight stood a short distance away, his sleek black form still as a shadow, crimson eyes glowing faintly as he watched the tunnel like a silent sentry.
Xin, who hadn’t stopped rubbing his temples since the fight ended, finally spoke up.
"Okay. Seriously. Someone tell me what the hell is going on. Why is the Empire attacking? What day is it? Did I die in the prison and now this is some weird afterlife where I follow around a guy who freezes ninety monsters just to make a point?"
Ming sighed and crossed his arms.
"Ignore him. He gets like this after battle. But I do want to know, why is the Empire here, Billion?"
I glanced at Steve, who gave me a small shrug that said your mess, your explanation.
I exhaled.
"The Holts were using this realm to run illegal experiments, turning prisoners into Abominations. They were working with the Ferans and planned to unleash those creatures against the Empire. So now, we’re wiping them out, every last one."
Xin whistled.
"Damn. You’re telling me all those years I was rotting in a cell, the Holts were cooking up mutant monsters like it was some sort of cursed soup recipe?"
"Pretty much," Steve said, casually leaning on his sword. "And you were the meat."