19: Chapter 19 The Herrscher of Thunder

The villa's front door was unlocked, and she pushed it open with a gentle shove.

It was as if the door had been left open specifically for her.

The villa's living room was pitch black, and the air was filled with the smell of scorched feathers.

"Mei!" Kaiwen called out toward the inside of the villa.

But there was no response, only a faint, tingling sensation in the air.

This sensation seemed to be coming from the second floor.

Thus, Kaiwen followed this faint numbness and walked upstairs step by step.

The higher she went, the stronger the tingling sensation became. By the time she reached the second floor, it had even turned into a slight sting, and her hair began to float uncontrollably due to the current in the air.

The door at the very end of the second-floor hallway was ajar, with faint flashes of electricity occasionally emitting from within.

It seemed that Mei was determined to have her come to this room.

Turning her head to look back at the lightning-flashing path she had just taken, Kaiwen couldn't help but swallow hard.

Well, she was now somewhat regretting coming up so recklessly.

However, since she was already here and the way back was blocked, she had no choice but to bite the bullet and proceed.

Kaiwen slowly crept over and then gently pushed open the door.

Utilizing the faint lightning flashing outside the window, she saw clearly the scene inside the room, and her entire body instantly froze in place.

The entire front wall was densely covered with photos and posters.

Those posters were cut rather crudely with crooked edges, looking like they were handmade, but they were all photos of Kaiwen and Kiana.

There were pictures of her walking in the school hallway wearing a hood, her profile as she squatted at the apartment entrance taking out her keys, and her makeup-free face at the hospital after taking off her makeup.

This was candid photography, right? This was definitely candid photography!

Not only that, but two long body pillows were neatly placed on the single bed in the room.

One of them seemed to be printed with Kiana, while on the other, Kaiwen could never mistake it—it prominently featured a full-body portrait of Kaiwen herself.

Looking at this room filled with photos of herself and Kiana, Kaiwen's back was instantly soaked in cold sweat.

Crap!

It felt like she had truly committed an incredible mistake.

Just as she was terrified by the photos covering the walls, she heard a "click" sound.

The door behind her was suddenly closed.

Kaiwen spun around abruptly.

Raiden Mei was hovering right in front of the room door, her long hair floating wildly amidst purple arcs of electricity, her entire figure shrouded in a layer of pale purple light.

Those originally pale purple eyes were now emitting a faint purple light, staring fixedly at Kaiwen before her.

Cold and hollow.

"Mei…" Kaiwen's voice trembled slightly.

"Mei?"

The person hovering in mid-air tilted her head, the corners of her mouth curving slightly into an arc, but there was no warmth whatsoever in that smile.

"Who are you calling?"

That voice belonged to Raiden Mei, but the way she spoke was completely different from her; her tone was lazy, carrying a sense of condescension.

"You are not Mei." Kaiwen took a step back, her back pressing against the wall covered in photos.

"She is here." The Herrscher of Thunder tapped her own temple with her finger, "She just doesn't want to see you. You hurt her so badly~"

Purple arcs of electricity jumped from her fingertips onto the doorknob, making a harsh crackling sound.

"Actually, I should thank you." The Herrscher of Thunder lowered her head, looking at Kaiwen, "If it weren't for you making her suffer so much, I wouldn't have awakened so quickly."

"I didn't mean to keep things behind her back…" Kaiwen's voice was very soft.

"She couldn't care less about what kind of relationship you and Kiana have." The Herrscher of Thunder interrupted her, "What she cares about is why you didn't tell her when you two were already living together?"

Kaiwen couldn't say a word.

Yesterday, Raiden Mei had also said similar words.

The Herrscher of Thunder looked at Kaiwen's expression and chuckled.

"Look, it's this expression." She raised her right hand, her palm gathering a blinding purple light, "She saw it…"

...

In the evening, inside Luming Pavilion.

Kiana had just finished sending a message to Kaiwen, and before waiting for her reply, the entire Luming Pavilion lost power.

Then, not just Luming Pavilion, but the streetlights, shop signs, and traffic lights of the entire street—almost everything capable of emitting light went out all at the exact same moment.

"What's going on?" Miyuki poked her head out from behind the bar.

The two remaining customers in the shop also began to whisper anxiously.

"A power outage." Miyazaki stood next to the cash register, frowning as he looked out the window.

Kiana walked over to the door and looked outside.

The sky was gloomy, and combined with the almost complete lack of light sources around, it gave off quite the apocalyptic vibe.

Suddenly, a scream came from across the street.

A passerby suddenly knelt on the ground, convulsing all over, as purple patterns gradually emerged on his body. A few seconds later, he climbed back up, except his eyes had turned greyish-white, and he occasionally let out a few strange low growls.

Followed closely by a second one, a third one.

Whether it was the clerk in the convenience store next door or the office workers waiting for the red light by the roadside... They fell down one after another, and then stood back up. The only thing they had in common was that their bodies were covered in purple patterns.

Seeing the scene outside the window, the two customers in the shop couldn't help screaming in fright.

"Hurry up and close the door!" Kiana snapped her head around and shouted at Miyazaki.

Miyazaki reacted very quickly, rushing over to pull down the rolling shutter door.

The sheet metal door landed with a clatter, cutting off the eerie roars from outside.

Miyuki hid behind the bar, her face pale as a sheet, gripping her work uniform tightly.

"Wh-what happened to those people?" Her voice was trembling.

Kiana did not answer. She took out her phone and glanced at it. An emergency disaster alert for Changkong City popped up on the screen, but she didn't see what she wanted to see—Kaiwen still hadn't replied to her message.

Without giving her time to react, the people outside—or rather, the Death Soldiers—had already begun slamming against the rolling shutter door.

"Bang. Bang. Bang."

Each blow was heavier than the last, until— "Clang!"

The rolling shutter door suddenly caved in by a dent, and the roars outside grew more and more chaotic.

"This door won't hold out much longer." Kiana calmly glanced around the shop, then pointed at the security door of the back kitchen's storage room and said, "Boss, take Miyuki and the customers and hide in the storage room in the back. Those things outside shouldn't be able to find that place."

The two customers had long been frightened to the point of weak legs. Hearing this, like grabbing a straw of life, they scrambled and crawled toward the back kitchen.

Miyuki was shaking all over with fear, looking nervously at Kiana: "What about you? Kiana, aren't you going to hide in there with us?"

"I have to go find Kaiwen. Right now, I'm a bit worried about her." Kiana picked up a thick iron pipe from the corner, then gave Miyuki a firm look: "Be good. Only when you all are safe can I set my mind at ease to go find her."

Miyazaki pulled Miyuki: "Let's go, Miyuki. Listen to Kiana. Let's hide properly and not get in her way."

Miyuki took one last look at Kiana, then nodded and hurriedly followed Miyazaki into the back kitchen.

A few seconds later, the click of the security door closing and being double-locked came from the back kitchen.

After confirming that they were all hidden, Kiana dragged the iron pipe, pushed open the back kitchen door, and walked into the small alley.