bookrebus Chapter 210: Trapped
Chapter 210: Trapped
Kyle gave a concise account of the events and how he had managed to survive.
He began with the whole journey to the rift and the fact he didn’t sense any anomalous movements from the gateway.
Cyrus listened to him carefully even though until now, nothing particularly aligned his interest.
Kyle didn’t make the man wait for long and got onto the matter that mattered.
"I knew he had me trapped. Trying to escape would’ve only escalated the situation and given the other man a reason to join the fight."
That immediately earned him a quick question.
"So, the second individual you mentioned never intended to attack you?" Cyrus asked, one brow rising slightly.
Kyle let out a quiet breath.
"They assessed the situation correctly. The one who appeared to be in charge left the task of dealing with me to his subordinate."
He deliberately avoided using the word kill.
There was no reason to alarm Amanda further.
Not that she needed the clarification.
Amanda already knew.
Those men hadn’t come with any other purpose.
They had been hired to kill Kyle.
"Hmm. The subordinate."
Cyrus tapped a finger against his knee before reaching into the inner pocket of his jacket and retrieving his phone.
After navigating through several files, he turned the screen toward Kyle.
"Was it him?"
Kyle narrowed his eyes.
The photograph showed a young man standing at attention, his arms folded neatly behind his back. He wore what appeared to be a military uniform, his posture rigid and disciplined.
For several seconds, Kyle studied the image in silence.
"I never saw his face."
His voice grew quieter.
"But his eyes..."
A faint frown formed on his face.
"They seem familiar."
Memories surfaced unbidden.
The crushing pressure.
The overwhelming difference in strength.
The sensation of standing before a predator that could end his life at any moment. But only the sensation remained with him.
It was only because he had reviewed the entire encounter through God’s Eye afterward that he could answer with any degree of certainty.
Without those reconstructed memories, he wouldn’t have been able to recognize the man at all for now little he remembered things about the battle.
After another moment, Kyle finally nodded.
"Yes."
His gaze remained fixed on the screen.
"I’m fairly certain it’s him."
The interrogator turned the phone back toward himself.
As he studied the photograph, he calmly informed everyone present.
"This individual is Charlie Cooper. A former militant. He graduated from the Academy with exceptional results and was later recruited by a distinguished clan as one of their personnel."
The revelation caught Layena completely off guard.
Someone who had once stood so firmly on humanity’s side had become a terrorist?
Cyrus continued without pause.
"Unfortunately, Mr. Cooper possessed rather poor control over his impulses. During an altercation with his employer, he murdered seventeen members of the clan."
His gaze lowered briefly to the screen.
"Including the patriarch."
Silence descended over the room.
The number alone was horrifying.
Seventeen lives.
Wiped out in a single incident.
It served as a grim reminder that regardless of one’s upbringing, education, or affiliations, a person’s true nature could surface when pushed to its limits.
Meanwhile, Amanda’s complexion had turned noticeably pale.
She had always trusted Kyle’s abilities.
But hearing the details of the man who had attacked him made her stomach twist.
A trained militant.
A mass murderer.
A monster capable of slaughtering an entire clan.
Her heart began racing as she imagined what might have happened had Veronica arrived even a few moments later.
Unaware of her turmoil, Cyrus continued.
"I believe all of you have already deduced that Charlie Cooper was a Special-Grade Nightwalker."
He paused briefly.
"One who possessed a rather remarkable skill known as Doom Breaker."
A faint hint of amusement crossed his face.
"The name was of his own choosing, naturally. Nevertheless, the skill allowed him to move at speeds exceeding the sound barrier."
Then his attention settled entirely on Kyle.
The warmth vanished from his eyes.
For the first time since entering the room, his gaze felt genuinely cold.
"And Cadet Kyle..."
His voice remained polite.
Yet the pressure behind it became unmistakable.
"...according to the report in my possession, Charlie Cooper used that skill against you as well."
"!!"
Blake’s eyes widened instantly.
Layena’s lips parted in disbelief.
Amanda nearly lost her footing.
Only sheer force of will kept her standing.
Kyle immediately tried to respond.
"But Veronica..."
"Ah, speaking of her."
Cyrus smiled pleasantly.
"I had the opportunity to speak with Miss Veronica before coming here. We had quite an informative conversation."
The words were delivered lightly.
The meaning behind them was anything but.
Kyle fell silent.
The message was crystal clear.
Cyrus had already received Veronica’s full account of the incident.
Every detail, involving her inclusion in the incident, the timing and what course the battle took after and before her arrival.
Any lie Kyle attempted to tell now would be exposed almost immediately.
’Shit.’
Kyle resisted the urge to click his tongue.
This bastard wasn’t pressing him with authority.
He was cornering him with information.
And that made the situation far more troublesome.
The room fell silent once more.
Everyone waited for Kyle’s answer.
Cyrus, in particular, watched him carefully.
Every hesitation.
Every flicker of expression.
Every second of silence.
Finally, Kyle spoke.
"I... somehow survived."
"Is that so?"
Cyrus responded with a faint grin.
Meanwhile, Kyle’s mind was working furiously.
He needed an explanation.
A convincing one.
Something plausible enough to satisfy the Deputy Chief without exposing the existence of Overlord or God’s Eye.
The problem was that every reasonable explanation seemed riddled with holes.
And if he failed to provide an answer that could withstand scrutiny, the situation would only become more complicated.
Yet just as Kyle was desperately searching for a solution, something completely unexpected happened.
Cyrus rose from his chair.
"I believe I have obtained all the answers I require, Cadet Kyle."
For a moment, Kyle simply stared at him.
Confusion and suspicion were evident in his eyes but a faint flicker of hope too.
Cyrus casually buttoned his blazer before walking toward the bed.
Reaching into an inner pocket, he produced a business card and extended it toward Kyle.
"This contains the number I use personally."
Kyle accepted the card.
"In the future," Cyrus continued, "I believe there may come a time when we prove useful to one another."
His voice remained polite as he smiled at Kyle one last time.
The older man gave him a small, reassuring nod before turning his attention elsewhere.
"Mister Astortia."
Blake stepped forward, still trying to understand what had just happened.
The interrogation had ended far too abruptly.
More importantly, Cyrus had pulled away without obtaining the answer to the question he had pushed so hard to ask.
Even so, Blake extended his hand.
The two men exchanged a firm handshake.
"Thank you for your cooperation."
The Deputy Chief offered one final courteous smile before heading toward the exit.
The two silent guards immediately fell in behind him.
Not a single unnecessary word was exchanged.
Then the door closed.
And just like that, the three men were gone.
Leaving behind a room full of confusion and a young man who couldn’t shake the feeling that the interrogation had never truly been about obtaining answers.
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A/N:- Thanks for reading.