Psychic Overlord-Chapter 98: Aftermath

The battlefield became mostly silent save for the sound of burning debris and the occasional rumble of the manor’s crumbling foundation.

The air was thick with the scent of blood, hot sand, and lingering death energy, and even though the battle had seemingly ended, tension still gripped the air tightly.

Kaizer stood amidst the wreckage, his breathing controlled but labored, his ribs protesting with every inhale. The damage was manageable, but the fact that he’d been pushed this far was what gnawed at him the most.

He glanced to the side to see his team approaching, each carrying some slight residue from their own battles. Rina reached him first, her eyes still alight with that abyssal glow, her presence an oppressive weight on the environment.

"Kaizer, are you alright?" she asked, her voice echoing on itself like some demonic entity, a mixture of emotive and deadpan.

Kaizer nodded. "I’ll live. Thanks for the help, Rina... and Anir."

The lingering death energy hovering behind Rina shifted slightly, and a familiar deadpan voice emerged. "You look like shit."

"That I do," Kaizer admitted, straightening as best he could.

Sadistic Flame, Crystal Ice, and Sophia soon rushed over next.

Maria’s battle armor was slightly singed, but she was grinning, her helmet made slightly translucent to show her features to only those in front of her.

"Two B-class espers down. Easy work, but I would have liked to try some bigger prey," she bragged, then complained arrogantly.

Julia flicked her fingers, dismissing the frost still clinging to them.

"Took out two A-class," she said simply, her tone level but her eyes sharp, assessing the aftermath.

Sophia cracked her fingers gently, her void energy flickering before fading.

"One B, one A," she reported, before giving Kaizer a look.

"And what the hell was that shockwave? Did someone attack you? You’re not supposed to take that much damage," she asked sharply.

Kaizer exhaled. "The girl called Eleanor was different. Somehow, she negated my telekinetic abilities so my attacks didn’t land, and my defenses meant nothing."

Silence fell over the group at that, their hearts chilled. Whether it was Maria, Julia, or Sophia, the name Davion was not unknown to them because he was the person most female espers feared the most.

"...She wasn’t human anymore," Rina muttered, her hands clenching at her sides.

Maria scoffed. "Of course, that bastard removes every single bit of soul and thought from a person when making a doll."

Rina’s expression darkened. "Why is he allowed to do this?"

This was a question Kaizer also wanted the answer to, but Sophia shook her head.

"You’d better ask my father for an explanation. He’d be the best to let you understand without forming unnecessary ideals."

Sophia folded her arms. "Besides that, we also need to report this. Davion’s interference wasn’t expected and it goes against the rules of the Esper Commission as well as the esper world."

Julia gestured towards the building with her chin. "What about the manor?"

Kaizer glanced around, taking in the shattered remains of the once-proud estate. The enemy was routed and their objective was complete, so there was no reason to leave this place standing.

He turned to Rina. "Destroy it."

Rina smiled slightly. "No problem." ƒrēenovelkiss.com

Death energy coiled around her, expanding outward like a living tide while the ground beneath them blackened then cracked as death itself spread through every fiber of the ruined structure. Within seconds, the manor collapsed in on itself, decaying, rotting, and crumbling into dust as if it had aged a million years at once.

Maria watched with clear appreciation. "You have such a way with destruction."

The group turned to leave as the mission was complete and it was time to return home to rest and go on with their lives.

However, it was at this precise moment that Rina abruptly stopped, a flicker of confusion crossing her face.

Kaizer, who was paying attention for any ambushes despite his pain, noticed immediately. "What’s wrong?"

She frowned. "I feel like... we’re forgetting something."

...........

Elaine was fleeing through the streets of Al-Rafid, tears in her eyes as she covered her mouth to prevent herself from screaming. As a mere B-class esper, she had always chosen her jobs and tasks very carefully, making sure that she could leverage her ability to create illusions to secure the most benefit with the least harm.

This was supposed to be just another job in much the same vein as the rest, but she did not think the Federation would actually send out an S-class esper for this, and not one so tyrannical as Overlord.

The Elaine her fellow espers saw in the hall was just an illusion she created; the entire time, she had been watching things from the manor’s control room to assess the danger and act from there.

What did she see?

Soren’s skin blown off his body, Azrael slaughtered before he could peep, Levi was mind-controlled on the spot, exiting the manor silently, and Bjorn was killed in one blow after Overlord got serious. Purple Moon, who she looked up to, was smothered to death, Vargas died pitifully, and Kain’s was even worse.

Zafira, Rocco, and Ivana were vanquished in the most cruel methods, and Darren was traumatized before he perished.

Witnessing all this, Elaine snuck out after Levi and bolted, long before Davion challenged Kaizer. The only thing rushing through her mind right now was to get out of here as fast as she could and never look back, never indicating that she was ever a part of this job.

Her breath was hitched and unstable as her feet stomped against the uneven and dusty streets of Al-Rafid, darting through narrow alleys and avoiding the main streets with cameras while her heart pounded like a drum.

The city’s shadows stretched long under the eaves and bows of the nearby buildings, making her panicked flight seem to have a sinister hue behind it.

Elaine knew deep in her bones that mere running wasn’t enough... she had to get out. She had to disappear, maybe find some third-world country to hide in and eke out a living for a few years before resurfacing again under a new name.

Then, to her shock and horror, as she rounded a corner, she ended up slamming into something solid that was not a wall (as that would knock her out), nor was it a crate because she would have tripped over it.

From the skin-to-skin touch as well as the rebound, even before she hit the ground, Elaine knew that she had collided with a person.

Elaine barely had time to fall on her bum before a hand clamped around her wrist with unnatural strength, preventing her from running away.

Terror surged through her, and she instinctively tried to activate her illusion ability, but the moment she did, a crushing mental weight descended upon her that drowned out her thoughts, her instincts, and her very will to resist.

Elaine’s breath hitched as she looked up with confusion and curiosity.

Before her stood Levi, or at least, he had the face of Levi.

She thought this because Levi’s face was eerily blank, devoid of the lively energy she had come to associate with him.

His once-playful eyes were empty, his posture unnaturally still with the only movement being the slow, deliberate rise and fall of his chest, as if even his breathing was controlled by something else... or someone else.

Elaine’s blood ran cold when she remembered who might be the one doing the controlling.

"Elaine, stop running because you can’t escape," Levi said, his voice disturbingly steady, lacking its usual fire.

Her body tensed, a voice at the back of her head roaring at her to break free and skedaddle in the opposite direction... but she couldn’t move.

Not because of Levi’s grip, not because of fear, but because something else was pressing down on her, something intangible yet absolute.

Overlord.

Elaine gulped, her mind racing with questions like ’Was Overlord watching her?’ and ’Could he be controlling Levi from a distance?’ and she did not like the possible answers, as that meant escape was no longer an option.

Levi tilted his head slightly, his voice calm, measured. "You’re afraid and that’s good because fear keeps you alive, but running won’t, and definitely not from my Lord."

Elaine shuddered. "I-I’m not..."

"No need to lie to me, you saw what he did to them. You know what happens when you oppose him," Levi interrupted smoothly.

Her breath hitched. "Then... what do you want me to do?"

For the first time, something flickered in Levi’s blank gaze, which wasn’t emotion nor pity but a cold, pragmatic calculation.

"You survive by joining him."

Elaine’s lips parted slightly, but no words came out as the very thought sent a sickening chill down her spine. Join him? Join Overlord, who was destined to stand at the top of the esper world?

How was she qualified? As a mere B-class esper, how many thousands were clamoring to join Overlord now before his faction became full and the ship set sail?

Levi leaned in slightly, his tone devoid of mockery and jest, being utterly serious. "You think he won’t value you? You think because you are a B-class esper with an auxiliary ability, you are useless to him?"

His grip tightened just slightly, something Elaine noticed as Levi’s eyes flickered with more than just coldness, but a bit of respect. "Elaine, you were able to disappear in the aftermath of a battle between Overlord and his entire squad. Such a special ability is not something that can easily be matched."

Her vision blurred slightly as the weight of his words settled into her chest, making her feel a bit... strange.

Overlord valued her? He actually thought that a mere B-rank esper like her had use?

Slowly, Elaine exhaled as she stood up with a firm expression. "...Take me to him."

Levi released her wrist and nodded. "Wise decision."