I couldn't believe I was ranked 27 when I checked the official website of the Corps.
Excitement had filled me yesterday, so I decided to do something. It was only three o'clock when we were dismissed, but I had no intention of resting. I wanted to move, to act, to do something, driven by motivation.
As a result, I went out and used my skill to restore the broken buildings I could find, and I managed to repair three damaged structures.
I left out the one that had been consumed by fire yesterday because I had a feeling we would return. I wanted to show off, to prove what I could really do along with the people I was assigned to. I was right. We are here now.
The elevator doors slid open.
We stepped onto the fifth floor of the hotel that had burned the day before. The scent of smoke hung in the air, and the walls were blackened and scarred. I glanced at Margaret, Victor, and Luna. Together, we had a single goal of finding and protecting the person who had witnessed the vampires' whereabouts.
Victor had already glimpsed the person through the imp's memory and pinpointed the location. Sector 12, the city's farthest edge, the last sector.
The Night Vanguard and the Golden Lamp were already moving ahead. Captain Nikolai and Captain Malachi took the lead, using the daylight to their advantage while the vampires rested. Their target was a morgue.
"Where is that small demon you have, Victor?" I asked.
"I eliminated it after I got all the information," he said.
"Did you find out the name of that person, Victor?" Luna asked, glancing at him.
Victor shook his head slightly. "I don't know. I saw him in the imp's memory. He got burned, but he managed to escape. We arrived just in time to eliminate the imps."
Margaret crossed her arms and looked down the hallway. "I'm sure we can find something in his room. I managed to put out the fire before it could spread to the other floors."
Luna let out a breath and nodded. "Good thing you were both here yesterday. Otherwise, it would have been much harder to stop the fire."
We walked through the burned and messy hallway. Broken wood snapped under our feet, and pieces of glass scattered the floor. The damage was everywhere, and it was clear the fire would have consumed the entire floor if it had not been stopped in time.
After a few steps, Victor suddenly raised his hand, signaling us to stop.
"I think this is the room where the guy checked in," he said, pointing at a half-burned door.
He stepped forward and knocked, waiting for a response. The hallway remained silent.
After a moment, he slowly pushed the door open and glanced inside before waving for Margaret and Luna to follow him.
"I think I'll stay here for a bit," I said, looking around the damaged floor. "I'll try to restore this place."
Margaret paused at the doorway and looked back at me for a second, then gave a small nod before heading inside.
I took a slow breath and stepped forward. The area was large, and the damage was worse than I expected. This would take time.
Closing my eyes, I raised my hand and focused.
"Aeon Restore!"
A soft golden glow spread from my palm, slowly expanding across the scorched floor of the hotel. The blackened burn marks covered the walls and ceiling.
The light flowed through cracks and burn trails, moving over collapsed rafters and shattered glass scattered across the ruined hallway.
I moved my hand gently, guiding the energy.
Golden light flickered along the damaged surfaces. Burnt wood creaked as it lifted, aligning itself back into place. Collapsed furniture shifted and reformed, while fragments of glass slid together, restoring the shattered glass wall in the far corner at the edge of the floor.
I kept my hands steady. Sweat formed on my forehead, and I wiped it away with my sleeve without breaking my focus.
[Restoration Progress: 15%… 29%… 56%…]
I clenched my jaw and pushed more energy forward. The burned ceiling slowly rebuilt itself, rising from blackened ruin into solid structure. The walls restored their original form.
The golden light intensified, spreading through every room on the floor. The place was filled with countless golden clocks, each ticking as time itself seemed to turn back.
[Restoration Progress: 78%… 100%]
As the glow faded, everything settled into place.
The once broken, burned floor was whole again. The glass walls were clear and intact. The floor, once scorched and cracked, looked as if it had been newly built. The entire hotel floor, once consumed by fire, had been completely restored.
Even the lingering scent of smoke had vanished.
I lowered my hand slowly, letting out a relieved breath as I looked around.
The moment I finished, the three of them stepped out of the room behind me.
"So, did you find anything?" I asked, glancing at them.
They didn't answer immediately. Their eyes roamed over the newly restored floor, taking in the walls and furniture. I could tell they were impressed.
"What… what did you do? How is the place completely fixed?" Luna asked, tilting her head as she scanned the hallway.
I rubbed the back of my neck. "I have a skill that can restore anything," I said with a small laugh.
"Good job!" Victor said, a smile spreading across his face. He gave me a quick nod, the gesture I had been waiting for.
"We found where the witness went. Victor traced him through a psychic link using the witness's clothes," Margaret said.
"Whoa, you're cool too, Victor," I said, giving him a thumbs-up.
"I know, right!" he said, adjusting his eyeglass with a grin.
We were chatting happily when a strange, dark presence suddenly made me freeze.
I scanned the hallway and spotted three figures approaching, dressed in casual clothes.
"Who are they?" I whispered.
They moved closer, and within seconds, they were standing right in front of us.
"Excuse me, is this the person named Luke checking in?" a lady asked, gesturing toward the door behind us.
"I don't think so." Luna replied, narrowing her eyes.
"Man, I thought this floor was burned down. What happened?" a guy asked, stepping forward.
"I thought so too," another guy added, glancing around in surprise.
"Why are you looking at him?" Victor asked, his eyes carefully studying the three people in front of us.
"We have something to discuss," the lady said.
For a few tense seconds, everyone stayed silent. I could sense their suspicion.
I glanced at Victor and noticed his body glowing faintly with psionic energy.
"Psi Maelstrom!"
Victor pressed his hands together, and a swirling magenta sphere of psionic energy appeared, spinning with smaller streams of energy orbiting around it. He aimed the sphere at the three intruders.
The three leapt backward with incredible speed, but Victor's sphere followed, settling just after they landed. Waves of psionic energy radiated from it, tugging at their bodies and pulling them off balance.
"They're vampires! I can't read their thoughts, which means they're strong," Victor said, narrowing his eyes as he focused.
"Blood Wall!"
One of them lifted his hand, and a ring on his finger glimmered. Sharp, tiny blades extended from the ring, and he sliced his finger, letting a stream of blood spill onto the floor. The blood hardened almost instantly, forming a solid red wall that shielded them from the pulling force.
A moment later, glass shattered behind us.
We turned, the three vampires had already vanished through the glass wall.
"Why are they in daylight?" I said, staring at the broken glass wall.