Bunker

"Sir, someone has taken Oscar's walkie and is trying to get me to open the gates. What should I do?"

"Oscar? Didn't you say Jim just now?"

"Yeah, but Jim's on this side."

"I see. Open it up. Let's see who's causing trouble."

Daniel nodded obediently and pressed the button on his controller as he stepped aside and let his superior stand in front of the gate alone. He wasn't worried about him. The guy with shoulder-length slick black hair was in charge for a reason, and it wasn't his managerial or political prowess.

The only thing Daniel was worried about was the structural integrity of the cave, tunnel, and gate.

Daniel watched with rapt attention as the gate slowly slid open. He was wondering what kind of maniac or group was on the other side. As far as he knew, there wasn't anyone in the city who could interfere with their plans at this stage. There were a couple of heroes who were powerful enough to cause a disturbance if they knew about it or wanted to.

But the higher-ups were keeping them busy.

Daniel couldn't help but be curious.

However, he was bound to be disappointed.

"Heh."

Daniel was confused by his superior's chuckle and looked at him before turning back to the gate. But there was no one there aside from the corpses of his colleagues.

"Hey, tell one of the others to get in touch with Bloodhound if possible. Or anyone else that's stronger than me to hold the fort in case this is a diversion. I'll be heading out for a moment."

"Yes, sir."

Daniel saluted as blackish-red smoke enveloped the Demon of Dusk Street's feet as he strode forward and set out in pursuit of the intruder. He sighed in relief when he was gone. The Demon of Dusk Street wasn't as bad as some of the other in the Syndicate's upper management.

But he was powerful and his presence gave Daniel the shivers.

Daniel let a light sigh slip from between his fingers before he closed the gates and went to carry out the Demon's orders.

On the other side of the gate, up the tunnel, Nathan had already started getting tired. The tunnel wasn't excessively steep since cars and vehicles needed to use it without getting stuck at the bottom. But running up the tunnel at full speed was surprisingly exhausting.

But he couldn't stop and rest. He had only sensed it for a moment. But someone he shouldn't fight had been waiting on the other side of the gate.

'Did it have stealth tech in it?'

Nathan frowned. He had been confident in his Peerless Perception. But he had completely missed the person standing opposite the gate. The gate had also suppressed the light, sound, activity, and presence of people inside the cave.

Nathan wasn't even sure if the word cave was accurate since it was so ridiculously large.

But that aside, it made sense if the entire place had some concealment technology or skill. Construction and upkeep wouldn't have gone unnoticed if it didn't.

Nathan frowned. The thought of what kind of stealth they had used reminded him of the Shrouded Hero since he was the only one to have successfully and repeatedly evaded his skill's detection. And that was before his skill evolved.

But now, he had failed to pierce the veil of a method of concealment that most likely spanned across the entire underground space.

Even if Nathan knew it had nothing to do with the Shrouded Hero, he was a little unsettled.

It would have taken a stupendous amount of money to construct and excavate such a space. It wasn't just for the sake of taking over Avalio City.

The Vijang Syndicate and the ones behind them had something much greater in mind.

Nathan's interference had most likely halted that plan the last time around. But only on the surface. He hadn't touched anything below six feet underground. So, the underground space and everyone inside it should have been fine. The shadowy figures behind the Syndicate should have also been fine.

But after he left the city, Nathan didn't hear a single whisper about anything happening to or around Avalio.

'Is it some kind of bunker? Did they just stay down there after I had my fun? Why? Was someone prepared for what would happen to the world? How? Who?'

Nathan's frown turned into a smile. It was more exciting than he thought it would be to uncover and unravel mysteries he had completely missed before his regression. He was also interested in what he could find in that space, both in terms of supplies and people to fight and exact vengeance upon.

'Ah, right.'

Almost as if to accompany Nathan's realization, footsteps tapped against the ground and bounced against the walls of the tunnel. The echoing made it sound like there were dozens running at an incredible pace.

But Nathan could only sense one person bounding up the tunnel with powerful steps.

Nathan didn't need to look around to know that that powerful individual who had stood on the other side of the gate had caught up to him. Nathan squinted as he looked upward. There was still a significant amount of tunnel left before he reached the surface.

Nathan would have preferred to fight up there since he wasn't as worried as his opponent would be about causing a disturbance and attracting attention.

However, the lithe guy with slick hair and a leather jacket breathing down his neck wouldn't let Nathan get that far.

In that case, it would be better to make the most of his energy before he was completely exhausted and fight the guy to the death while retreating.

Mid-step, Nathan turned around and lasered a javelin through the air.

His one advantage in the tunnel's darkness should be his senses.

"These are…That guy's spears. Did he betray us? Well, I told them not to hire outsiders when I am more than enough."

The Demon of Dusk Street spoke with a calm voice after grabbing the javelin from the air.

'Well, shit.'