Chapter 292: Restraining Oneself

Sakura fell silent before finally shivering slightly from the night air. "Hey, let's go inside. It's too cold and uncomfortable out here in the garden."

Sakura turned and stepped ahead towards the house.

Kakashi stood still for a moment, gazing at the sky with a weary expression. Then, in a barely audible voice, Kakashi murmured, "... I hope Kaori will forgive us soon."

After that, Kakashi followed Sakura into the house, leaving behind the night’s silence that now felt increasingly heavy.

...

...

...

Meanwhile, in a hidden place where even the moonlight could not penetrate, a group of people stood with their heads bowed in silence. The room was dark, illuminated only by a few flickering oil lanterns in the corners. The scent of damp wood mixed with the thin smoke from burning incense, creating a stifling and tense atmosphere.

In the center of the room, a man stood with a face full of rage. The muscles in his jaw tightened, and his breath quickened as the anger simmered within him.

"...Damn it...!"

The shout echoed, bouncing off the sturdy stone walls. The people present felt their bodies tense, as if the heat from the man's anger pressed against their chests.

Arde stepped forward, his boots thudding heavily against the stone floor. Arde's face flushed with overflowing anger, his eyes blazing like embers ready to explode.

"Decon and Francky are dead?! They just died like that?!" Arde shouted again, his voice rumbling like thunder in the midst of a storm.

The Captains and Vice Captains standing before him kept their heads bowed, none daring to meet his gaze directly.

"They were indeed the weakest among you… But still!" Arde clenched his fists until the knuckles turned white. "How could they be slaughtered so easily?! Did they not even try to fight?!"

No one answered. They knew that attempting to explain would only worsen Arde's fury.

A few hours earlier, the four remaining Captains and Vice Captains had managed to escape from the battle in the Southern District. Their breaths were still ragged when they finally arrived at Arde's location. With pale faces, they reported what had happened.

At first, Arde refused to flee. He hated the idea of running away like a scared dog. However, when the sound of explosions shook their hidden base in the Southern District, Arde had no other choice. The sounds of battle drawing closer, the screams piercing the night, and the rumbling of the ground collapsing beneath them—all were signs that they had lost.

With clenched teeth, Arde finally made the hardest decision of his life: to escape.

Now the Southern District lay in ruins. The entire underground base of the Soul Collector had been uncovered and reduced to rubble. Police officers and special investigation units were still combing through the debris, searching for traces of them. Every underground passage that had once been their refuge was now nothing but ash and charred stones.

Arde felt his blood boil. This was not the first time they had faced defeat.

A few months ago, the secret base that Arde used for experiments and research was also attacked by a mysterious group. They came without warning, without mercy, and destroyed everything Arde had built over the years. Now, the same thing had happened again.

Arde growled, his hands trembling with uncontrollable rage. It felt like there was a fire burning in his chest from within. Arde wanted to kill someone right now. Arde wanted to blow something up now.

However, Arde restrained himself.