Chương 88: Fear

Evel grabbed the metal cards out of his pocket and took out the top card. The itch in his left eye had intensified, and he needed something to fix it. The solution was far simpler than the problem; all he had to do was just jam his card where the itch was, and everything would all go away! His breathing grew rapid as he brought a card to his eye. It was such a simple solution to such a simple problem. Then just why were his hands pushing back against him?

The card got closer and closer until it was inches from his pupil, threatening to rip it to shreds. He needed to scratch his eyes. He needed to stab his left eye. His hands continued moving, approaching so close that the sharp metallic edge would split his eyelid should he dare to blink. Evel's breathing intensified as the card covered half his vision. Something was wrong. Really wrong. He should be able to scratch his eye with no issue, but his body was denying it.

Evel remained frozen, the ticking clock on the wall and his heavy breathing the only noises breaking the dead silence. Controlling his breathing, he slowly lowered his shaky hand holding the card. The urge had just barely faded away.

"Hm? Mark y—" Evel shut off the Mayor's voice immediately with a shaky breath. He tried pushing himself off the chair, but his shaky hands gave way, sending him tumbling on the ground. Shit. He pushed himself up from the cold stone floor. Rather, he tried to. In the state his body was in, his hands were unable to provide the support necessary, causing him to fall flat on his face. Fear. What a useless fucking emotion.

Evel grit his teeth and released a low rumble as he pushed against the cold stone floor, forcing his body to his feet. The Mayor, a Ferrum badge, knew somebody was listening. He was after whoever was listening. A Ferrum Badge was after his life. No matter how he looked at it, his fate was sealed. There was nothing he could do to escape. The fear crept back in. Useless. These thoughts are useless. Evel bit deep into his lips, the smooth metallic flavour of blood filling his taste buds.

Next, he focused on his racing heart. Proof that he was still alive. Proof that it wasn't hopeless. The Mayor doesn't know it's me listening. He doesn't know where I am. His power was far weaker than at the square — maybe the distance is a limit. Most importantly, it won't be long until he figures something out. My best-case scenario is to be on the run again. Nothing has changed; I'm just as useless as I was in Yosten!

Evel dragged himself out of the secret room and kicked open the door of his office, allowing the fresh air to rush into his lungs, replacing the putrid scent of his own terror. A nearby security worker tried approaching him, but Evel pushed him aside and dragged himself to the changerooms. As far as he could tell, he had two options. The first was to stay hidden for as long as possible and blend in with the workers. Pretend he knew nothing. But what would that accomplish?

Before long, the Mayor would use his dominating ability on him, and all his secrets would be revealed. He burst through the changeroom doors, hit by a sudden wave of cheap greasepaint and sweat. Every head immediately snapped to him. He ignored them, scanning the room for one person. And there she was, standing at one of the corners of the room, a mix of shock and confusion on her face. If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.

"Yuna!" He yelled, his voice unable to hide the surging panic. She flinched. Quickly snapping out of her daze, she hurriedly ran over to Evel. His second option was to run. In that case, it would be all too obvious that he— the owner of this entire operation — was the one responsible for spying on the Mayor. His undercover identity would be forfeit and his mission a failure. But run to where, dammit? There was nobody in this city who could possibly rival the Mayor!

His best bet was to stay hidden until the Mayor forgot about him, then get away from the city. That would only work if the Mayor had no way to track him—an impossible assumption. Evel took in a deep, shaky breath as he focused on giving his command.

"Tell Mateo to perform as The Oracle Hand. Get him to involve the Mayor in the trick if he can. If the Mayor comes to the changeroom, tell him right away that you saw an unknown figure burst out and run out from the eastern exit."

"Wh—""Please. I'll explain afterwards — I have to get to Slack Stone! If," Evel hesitated.

"If the Mayor pushes or threatens anyone, tell him the full truth. I… I have everything under control."

"I don—""Go!" Evel yelled. Without waiting for a confirmation, he rushed out the door, his tumbles turning into a full-on sprint as he made it out the southern exit. If the rumours were true, then the higher stage you are, the more demanding Slack Stone is on your body. In that case, it would be a bit difficult for Evel as a Core stage to survive, but far more excruciating for the Mayor. It was a completely reasonable spot for Evel to run off to try to escape. Hopefully reasonable enough that the Mayor believes it.

He then hard-pivoted right, running toward the west. It wasn't that he necessarily expected Yuna to give away his destination. Rather, he knew that she was powerless to keep anything from the white-haired demon. It was just a matter of his series of distractions holding out long enough. There were a few key differences between him running away in his past and running away today. Unlike before, he had an identity he needed to keep, and more importantly, an organization supporting him.

If there was anyone who could help him get through these times, it was Agent. He needed to send a message to Avid. Evel swallowed hard as the streets blurred past him — running until he couldn't feel his legs. Every second he saved could be the difference between his death and another chance. He couldn't mess it up. Not only was his own life in danger, but his workers by association were now also in trouble. If something happened to them because of him…

Evel grunted in frustration, ignoring the looks of nearby passerbys. It was a big gamble on his part. The Mayor was mysterious but it was painfully clear he cared about the support of the people and how he presented himself to the public. He wouldn't kill off important entertainment of the public in front of a crowd without a real reason. It wouldn't be right. He couldn't. Arriving at the door, he tried inserting the keys, his hands fumbling and dropping it a few times. Focus. Focus. Focus.

Evel grit his teeth and slammed the door open. He rushed to his room and immediately opened up the VTR. After a sequence of button presses, he immediately began speaking.

"The Mayor caught me and will soon be chasing after me. What should I do?" Beep. With the simple message sent, he pushed off his chair and paced around his room, the screeching clicking of his own clock the only company. He checked his pockets. Metal cards, his regular cards, the weak potions he recently bought, and a few miscellaneous items. Useless. Against overwhelming power, they were all useless. He checked the VTR again. Still no reply.

He changed out of all his clothes and quickly slipped into his training gear. Maybe that could help, making it harder for the Mayor to identify him from afar? After all, he always wore his suit whenever in public. He looked at the clock, which released a terrible, grating noise every second. It hadn't even been two minutes since he sent the message. He calmed his breathing and focused on the facts. Focused on creating a solution to get him out of this mess. It was useless; nothing came to mind.

No matter how he looked at it, there was nothing he could do. He kept trying. He sat at the edge of his bed, his elbows on his knees, holding his head as he tried to think of something. Anything. The minutes dragged out as the clock continued hammering into Evel's skull. Evel's eyes shot open. He pushed off the edge and grabbed two paper cups and stuffed their bottoms with crumpled tissue from his desk. As much as he could fit. Then he held them against his ears. Silence.

The world quieted, and the clock's persistent noise fizzled away. He placed the makeshift earmuffs to the side and sat back on the bed. His body felt light. So light that he could sprint anywhere at a moment's notice, but what was the point of this bursting energy if he had nowhere to run or had nothing to do! What was the point of having a head start when the Mayor could easily triple his speed?

What was the point of hiding away when the Mayor had the entire city at his fingertips, and probably various tracking devices or abilities? At the very least, he would know someone with the capability. Evel's eyes travelled to his only hope, the VTR. What if Avid wasn't available? Then what? How long should he wait before falling back to simply attempting to run as far away from the city as possible? His breathing became difficult.

The Mayor was faster and would catch up quickly, but maybe he wouldn't care enough to do so? Maybe… maybe if Evel got far enough, he wouldn't be worth the time? A small ding interrupted his thoughts. Avid! He scrambled to his feet and practically fell on the machine as he pressed a short sequence of buttons before a man with short black hair and calm eyes flickered on the screen. A streak of cold sweat slid down Evel's back. Avid's words here would decide his fate.