Presence-Masking

The female officer dragged Lynch in a high-speed sprint, moving so swiftly her feet barely seemed to touch the ground as she closed the distance in an instant.

In the span of a breath, the two leaped down from the factory roof. As Officer Natalie accelerated, the dozen meters between them vanished in the blink of an eye.

The countless tentacles flailing toward the five executives hanging upside down in midair froze abruptly. The tens of thousands of eyeballs studding the tentacles shifted in unison, every single pupil snapping toward the two figures rushing into view.

Authority: Protection. Ability: Deterrence.

With the ability activated, dozens of tentacles froze midair in distinct hesitation before they could even turn. Seizing the opening, the female officer did not slow down; bearing the weight of two people, she surged forward even faster, closing in on the blood pool at breakneck speed.

Dragged along behind her, Lynch gave up trying to run altogether, letting Officer Natalie pull him through the wind like a fluttering banner. Straining to keep his arms steady, he drew his revolver from his coat and clicked off the safety.

As they drew closer step by step, the gore-formed tentacles loomed large enough to blot out the sky.

The tentacles hesitated for only a fraction of a second before breaking free from the ability's suppression, whipping toward the pair to ensnare them. Yet Officer Natalie had used that window to breach the three-meter perimeter of the blood pool, bringing the little girl inside the gaping maw into plain view.

Planting her long legs, she kicked off the ground and vaulted upward, dodging several tentacles skimming low across the dirt. As they leaped into the air, the female officer bit down on her scabbard and drew her sword with a flourish. A swift arc of her blade severed several tentacles sweeping down on them, clearing their field of vision and allowing them to break through the web of tendrils onto the edge of the blood pool.

Tap.

Kicking off the rim of the pool once more, she shifted momentum diagonally forward, bypassing the entanglement of a dozen more tentacles. Now poised directly above the gaping maw, she dove toward the little girl inside like a raptor swooping on its prey.

The girl snapped her eyes open once more, devoid of any reason—filled only with bottomless greed and hunger. At the same time, the colossal mouth gaped wider and unleashed an ear-splitting roar, spraying a torrent of foul blood directly at them along with the blast wave.

Officer Natalie furrowed her brows, continuing her dive while holding her sword horizontally across her chest.

A screen of light unfurled in front of them, centering on her blade.

Authority: Protection. Ability: Defense.

Descending with them, the barrier collided head-on with the spray of gore. In an instant, dense ripples erupted across the surface of the barrier as though it were being struck by countless bullets. Layers of ripples overlapped and filled their entire field of vision, blurring everything out of sight.

Yet such a dense barrage failed to slow Natalie and Lynch as they cut through the air. Maintaining their velocity, they forced their way through the deluge of tainted blood and appeared directly above the maw, sword raised high.

Yet in the next moment, dozens more tentacles erupted from deep within the gaping maw.

They emerged without warning and with astonishing speed, instantly choking every inch of space above the mouth. For a moment, the two were like small fish darting into a forest of sea anemones—tentacles surrounded them on all sides. Like moths flying into a spiderweb, they plunged straight into the inescapable encirclement.

Officer Natalie's expression shifted drastically. She swung her blade violently, slapping the flat of the steel against one tentacle while planting her feet firmly onto the tips of two others. Exerting force at all three points simultaneously, she disengaged in an instant. Before the tentacles could coil back, the two used the rebound to propel themselves away, leaving all three tendrils grasping empty air. Riding that counterforce, their downward plunge reversed into an upward leap as they flew backward to escape the emerging tentacles' grasp.

Yet the window of leverage was too brief, and their momentum was insufficient. Though they barely evaded the onslaught of the new tentacles, the old ones swarmed from behind like a closing net, about to envelop them completely.

Right at that moment, gunshots rang out.

Lynch had already wrapped one arm around the female officer's waist, pulling her tight against him, while leveling his other hand at the little girl inside the maw and firing six consecutive shots.

The shots had zero accuracy, but the recoil was substantial. Their decelerating momentum suddenly surged, rocketing them upward just before the tentacles clamped shut and allowing them to slip cleanly out of the net.

The moment her feet hit the ground, the female officer regained control, catching Lynch against her. Just as she prepared to pivot and make another attempt, Lynch's voice reached her ear:

“Three seconds.”

“Hm?”

“I can make you invisible for three seconds too,” Lynch added. “Same effect as mine.”

“That's enough.”

“You have to trust me completely.”

“Cut the chatter.”

“Alright.”

Calming his thoughts, Lynch placed his palm against Officer Natalie's back, activating his brand-new ability for the very first time.

Divine Authority: Concealment. Ability: Presence-Masking.

Simultaneously, Officer Natalie abandoned any evasive maneuvering and surged forward without hesitation, hurtling straight into the sky-obscuring tentacles.

The first second: The countless tentacles pursuing them froze midair. Their quarry had vanished into thin air, undetectable even by the thousands of eerie eyeballs. Low growls echoed from the colossal mouth as dozens of tentacles thrashed frantically around the blood pool, slamming against the ground in an attempt to flush out the two little insects.

The second second: As if sensing something amiss, all the tentacles swung up and smashed down onto a single area simultaneously. The tremendous impact pulverized the masonry and sent stone shards flying, yet yielded nothing but rubble.

The third second: A faint, indistinct footstep sounded beside the blood pool, and a ghostly shadow flashed before vanishing, leaving the poolside quiet once more. But the mass of flesh at the core of the blood pool shuddered, and every tentacle surged at once, whipping toward the shadow from every direction to seal off all escape routes.

With nowhere left to run, the tentacles finally ensnared their target, forcing it to manifest out of thin air beside the pool.

It was a top hat. Just a single top hat.

Meanwhile, two embraced figures materialized once more above the gaping maw. With her sword raised high, the female officer channeled the momentum and force of their downward plunge, striking like a bolt of falling thunder straight toward little Janet embedded within the maw.

The girl's eyes snapped wide again and the maw unleashed another roar, but it was too late to react.

The sword cleaved down, sealing its fate.

With a loud crack like a snapping steel cable, the razor-sharp blade struck before the girl, hitting the pulsating, heart-like flesh tumor dead-center. The tumor's throbbing halted for a heartbeat, and then, along with the sprawling network of "blood vessels," it detonated into a shower of reeking blood, drenching Lynch and Natalie from head to toe.

Yet neither paused to wipe the gore away. Without a word of prior planning, Natalie pulled Lynch tight against herself while Lynch reached out with both hands, gripping the little girl firmly by the shoulders.

Authority: Protection. Ability: Escape.

Enveloped in a crimson gleam, the trio surged diagonally into the sky, with the mass of flesh and its colossal mouth snapping close behind.

A few meters above them hung the five upside-down executives. Having just regained consciousness, they saw the two officers carrying a little girl and rocketing straight toward them.

They're finally here to save us.

The joy had barely surfaced before it froze on their faces as the three whistled past them, revealing the colossal maw snapping right on their heels.

Their expressions twisted in horror as they opened their mouths to scream, but before a sound could escape their throats, the giant mouth swallowed them whole.

Having gulped down the five sacrifices, the giant mouth ceased its pursuit, chewing contentedly as the tentacles all over its body flailed with satisfaction.

In the next instant, space shattered, and the world spun violently.