"Damn it!"


    Morkel punched the air in frustration as he processed the harsh reality.


    "Nothing''s gone right since we got here. The clone didn''t listen to us, and neither did the original, and now look at the result—we''ve lost a 3-star and all the people Merlin''s earlier attack didn''t already kill."


    Frustrated, he turned to Rosaline. "Now do you see why I wanted to kill him? He''s an anomaly. Wherever he goes, destruction follows," he said, dissatisfaction evident in his voice.


    He added, "Even the original is as dangerous as the clone. He''s the real problem. We''ve never heard of a clone escaping the Null Void, yet his did—and look where that got us."


    "Morkel, calm down," Kitsuri said solemnly. "Nobody knew he had Merlin''s ck hole, or that Suzan''s attack, amplified by the clone, would create such a disaster when it collided with a ck hole."


    Morkel nodded lightly. He understood that the situation wasn''t entirely their fault, but they had certainly yed a part in it.


    "Suzan, can you sense the clone?" he asked after a moment of thought.


    "No," Suzan shook her head. "Could he be...?"


    "No, he''s too powerful to die that easily," Morkel dismissed her spection. "Either he entered his separate space during all the chaos, or he escaped."


    They nodded, but the atmosphere grew tense between them, and no one spoke.


    "You were too careless."


    At that moment, Kane appeared before them.


    Morkel and the others turned their attention to him, their expressions darkening.


    "Maybe if you''d helped, this might not have happened," Armin said, frustration clear in his voice.


    Kane shrugged. "It''s not my ce to intervene, is it?"


    "You lost your and all the people on it, and you say it''s not your ce to do anything?" Rosaline mocked.


    Kane nodded with a frown. "Those things were beyond my control. But yes, I regret it. However, this is your problem now."


    "You!" Rosaline felt her irritation rise at Kane''s casual attitude. They had not only lost a 3-star but also countless lives, and yet Kane didn''t seem to care.


    "This is why you were never invited to join the Ten Seats, even with your strength," Rosaline said.


    "I was a fool back then, wanting to join you," Kane said disdainfully. "But I abandoned that goal a long time ago."


    He added, a look of ambition in his eyes, "Now, I have my sights set on something none of you can imagine."


    "Maybe that''s why Merlin never trusted you," Kitsuri chimed in. "You''re too ambitious for your own good. The whole universe, including the alien races, knows you''re the number one genius of this generation, but they don''t know your ambitions. That''s why they''ve made you their target—some to reach your level, others to grow strong enough to kill the universe''s top genius—the human race''s top genius."


    Kane''s expression becameplex before he said, "You can''t achieve greatness without ambition."


    He added, "As for being the number one genius? That''s not me anymore. Time changes, and so do eras. My time of domination ended long ago—my era is over. It''s time for someone else to take my ce, to dominate the geniuses, and I''m d that someone is human."


    His expression grew serious. "But he''s lost, like a nk canvas. He has no goals or ambitions; the world around him shapes him, and you just gave him a goal. He hates you now. The new number one genius of the universe, who is also human, hates the human race''s number one organization. What an irony." He sighed at the thought.


    The members of the Ten Seats grew solemn as they listened to Kane. They stood silently, no one speaking.


    Seeing them like this, Kaneughed in disdain. "Now, I''m d I didn''t join you."


    "Well, I have to go now," he said in conclusion.


    "Aren''t you sad that Merlin died?" Kitsuri asked suddenly. "Don''t you feel anything? He was her father."


    Kane, who was about to leave, stopped. His back faced the Ten Seats, so they couldn''t see his expression, but they heard him clearly.


    "Yeah, I''m sad, but what can I do about it? Nothing. People die every day—someone''s father, son, mother, sister—when we waged war against the Zenithans, so many of their families were lost. But did we regret it? No. We only thought about expanding the human domain, and here we are.


    If you really want to know what it feels like to lose someone dear, just visit a vige or two of Zenithans and live among them for a while. You''ll understand a lot."


    Kane looked up at the sky and added, "To understand thew of the sword, the finalw, I had to do many things I''m not proud of, but one thing I''m grateful for was visiting the Zenithans and living their life. In those moments, I finally understood how fragile life can be, yet how strong a bond can be if it attaches to someone. But what it truly taught me was the nature of life and death."


    He turned to face them and said, "Believe me, life and death areplicated. Our concept of living and dying is false, or at least deviated from what it used to be—the true concept of life and death."


    He added, "Only those who''ve experienced themon life of the Zenithans can truly understand what life and death are."


    With those profound words, he was about to leave when Morkel asked, "Is your ambition rted to the life you lived among the Zenithans?"


    "You could say that," Kane answered vaguely and then disappeared from the scene.


    Morkel pondered for a moment, watching Kane leave, then gave orders. "Search the entire area for the clone and the original. If you find nothing, report back in an hour."


    ---


    Also, I was hoping you could leave somements or reviews to let me know your thoughts!


    *Some gifts would be appreciated as well, but up to you.... *