The Gate of Nothingness

"Go to hell, you bastard!"

Bang!

The baguette slammed into the back of Simon's head, leaving him dazed. If not for an Ability User's extraordinary physique, he would have been knocked unconscious.

Fornia was not particularly strong, but a full-force sneak attack from her could still have this effect.

"Nelly, run!"

While Simon covered his head and fell to the ground, Fornia hurried forward, grabbed Nelly's hand, and sprinted toward the cruise ship.

Originally, they had planned to head there just before the cruise ship set sail, to prevent anyone from secretly watching Nelly and alerting Simon. But Simon had already found them. They could not wait any longer!

Plans could not keep up with changes, but as long as they boarded the cruise ship and stopped Simon below, once the ship left the shore, they would be free as birds in the sky. No one could separate the two of them again!

"Bastards! Stop right there!"

Simon staggered to his feet. Seeing the two girls fleeing in haste, how could he not understand what they intended? He clenched both fists in fury and quickly chased after them.

"Fornia, he's coming!"

At the corner, Nelly hurriedly glanced back. Seeing Simon rapidly closing in, she nearly screamed.

Just as she was about to escape her nightmare, she discovered that the person she feared and dreaded most had chased after her and was about to catch her. She was so panicked that she could barely think.

The gap between an Ability User and an ordinary person was far too great. Simon could easily catch up with them before they boarded the ship.

"This way!"

Fornia gripped Nelly's hand tightly and ran toward the densest part of the crowd, shouting for help as she went.

This method was undeniably effective. Not everyone knew Simon's name. When passersby saw a ferocious-looking man chasing two young girls, many chose to step forward and obstruct him.

"Get out of my way!"

Simon punched a passerby. Fortunately, the man raised his luggage and blocked the blow, but the tremendous force still sent him tumbling backward.

Seeing how brazenly the attacker was beating someone, the crowd grew furious instead of afraid. They began condemning Simon one after another. Their shouts attracted the police in the distance, while several burly men shoved Simon around, making it difficult for him to continue the chase.

If these people held him back, the matter could not be resolved without a trip to the police station.

If this dragged on, Nelly would get away!

"Looking for death!"

Simon reached a hand toward his waist—

"He has a gun!" someone who saw Simon's movement shouted. A wave of screams followed, and the crowd instantly scattered in all directions.

Of course, as an Ability User with precision abilities, Simon was highly skilled with throwing knives, bows and arrows, and firearms alike. Since he had come to take the examination, he had naturally brought a gun.

Bang!

Even a duke could not openly attack ordinary civilians. It would have a tremendous impact on Simon's reputation. Nor would he shoot Nelly, because his intense possessiveness had yet to be satisfied. That left only—

"Fornia!"

That was right. He believed Nelly would not have the courage to keep running, and that no one else would dare obstruct him.

A spray of blood burst forth. Fornia fell to the ground, and red spots stained Nelly's long dress.

"Fornia?"

Nelly could not describe what she was feeling at that moment.

She had never felt so desperate before.

But in the next moment, Nelly nearly failed to hold back her tears, because the person lying on the ground slowly raised her head!

"Don't worry about me. Run!" Fornia pushed herself upright. Blood continued gushing from the hole in her left leg. The intense pain had robbed her of the ability to run, leaving her face pale.

"I might not be able to stay with you, Nelly."

"What stupid nonsense are you talking about?" Nelly gave a miserable smile, lowered her head, and struggled to lift Fornia into her arms.

Fornia was not heavy, but Nelly was too frail. Step by step, she continued forward.

"Put me down, Nelly!"

"If we keep this up, neither of us will get away!"

Fornia tried to push Nelly away with both hands, but the wound held her back and she could not do it.

"Enough!" Nelly's long hair covered her eyes. The sea breeze tugged at her bloodstained dress, making the two of them look utterly wretched.

A puppet bullied by anyone, a petite and frail girl—an absurd and powerless struggle.

She hated her own lowliness.

"Why..."

There was no why.

"I can't do anything..."

All she could do was struggle miserably, only to drown in the end beneath the currents of fate.

Seeing Nelly pick up Fornia and continue walking into the distance, Simon froze for a moment.

"Nelly's gone crazy?"

He then raised his gun, aimed at Fornia, and pulled the trigger again.

Bang, bang, bang!

The bullets flew from the muzzle and instantly closed in on the two girls.

"How dare you!"

Her pale golden eyes seemed to ignite. A low voice filled with madness rang in everyone's ears. Nelly's long hair billowed, while the wind and waves on the sea fell completely still.

Holding Fornia with one hand, Nelly gently waved the other. Her murderous gaze left Simon in the distance terrified out of his mind.

The bullets were about to strike, but a pitch-black circular void suddenly appeared and swallowed them whole, leaving no trace.

But in the next moment, the Gate of Nothingness appeared again—this time right in front of Simon. Then the bullets flew out and pierced straight through his forehead one after another.

Simon was dead!

The entire scene fell silent. It was as though everyone had forgotten how to breathe.

When they finally came to their senses and looked toward Nelly and Fornia,

the Gate of Nothingness, as tall as a person, had already appeared before Nelly. Carrying Fornia, she walked inside and vanished from the pier.

In an unoccupied corner of the cruise ship, a circular void suddenly appeared, and Nelly stepped out of it.

"We're safe!"

Fornia had just let out a sigh of relief when she fainted from the pain and excessive blood loss.

"Fornia?" Seeing Fornia pass out, Nelly panicked, but she quickly calmed herself.

I can't panic. She's only lost too much blood. Right now, I'm the only one who can find a way to save her. Save her...

Nelly murmured to herself. Then, with a thought, another Gate of Nothingness appeared. She reached into it and pulled hard.

An old man in a white coat was dragged out by the collar and appeared before her, still holding a diagnostic report in his hand.

"Please save her. Please, I'm begging you!" Nelly did not even know whether she should threaten him or beg him. After a brief moment of thought, she pleaded with the old man to treat Fornia.

"..." The old man's gaze was somewhat vacant, as though he were trying to reconstruct his shattered understanding of reality.

"I need a scalpel, gauze..." Fortunately, he understood his situation. After examining the wound, he immediately began listing the medicine and tools he needed.

Naturally, none of this posed any difficulty for Nelly. With a gentle wave of her hand, she could ignore space and move the items directly before her.

After seeing Nelly use her ability several times, the old man also understood how he had come to be there.

Without saying anything further, the old man began stopping Fornia's bleeding and removing the bullets.

Nelly held her hand tightly, her eyes red.

"Fornia, everything will be all right. Believe me..."

We'll go to the rainforest and the beach;

we'll go see whales and penguins, and taste the delicacies of the East.

As long as...

That night, Nelly had a dream.

She dreamed of herself as a child, sitting beside her bed while her mother recited:

"'God' saw that humanity's wickedness on the earth was great, and so He declared that He would use a flood. Every living thing on earth with flesh and the breath of life—

all of them died."