When Fate Failed, Luck Would Have to Do

Eastern Janus District, LB-10 Hollow.

This medium-sized Companion Hollow had formed as Hollow Zero expanded. Designated number ten, it lay close to Hollow Zero, just like Dead End Hollow, so the concentration of Ether Energy in the area was relatively high.

At the Hollow's edge, Cui Ji slammed on the brakes and brought the car to a steady stop outside the cordon.

"Boss, we're here."

The engine died, and silence fell. Only the faint hum of the Hollow's boundary remained, like a low ringing in the ears that set their nerves on edge.

In the passenger seat, Griseo slowly opened her eyes and gazed at the Hollow before her, her expression troubled.

Throughout the drive from the hospital, she had used the power of [Discipline] to search for Morel and Claire's threads of fate, hoping to trace them.

Every attempt had failed—not even the faintest echo had reached her.

There were only two likely reasons.

One was that her connection to the people she was searching for was too weak. Distance, the environment, interference from Ether Energy... any of these could sever a thread of fate.

She had met Morel and his daughter only a handful of times. That was possible.

As for the other reason... Griseo's fingers curled slightly.

They were already dead. How could the dead have a future?

How could she sense a thread of fate that had been cut?

In the driver's seat, Cui Ji turned toward Griseo. She saw the light fading from those purple eyes and understood her silence.

Cui Ji had been through hell. The odds that Morel and his daughter were dead were approaching one hundred percent.

"Boss..."

"I'm fine, Cui Ji. Let's go in." Griseo unbuckled her seat belt, pushed open the door, and hopped out.

The downpour had stopped, but