December 4, 2008, 03:21.
Katsushika District, Tokyo Metropolitan Tōbu Chiiki Hospital.
Cek-cek~Bzzzt~Sreekk~Pyurrr…
The sound of flickering neon lights and fragments of falling wall dust became the only melody in the silent corridor. Diana stood motionless, staring at the last point where the Qurr Urqell had been before vanishing without a trace.
BRUGHH…
"Hah... hah... hah..." Diana's knees slammed hard against the floor. Her breathing came in violent gasps, her chest rising and falling as she struggled for air.. Her body felt shattered and overwhelmingly exhausted, the exhaustion hitting her after releasing the massive energy required for her strongest technique. 'Sunya-Graha.'
Tap... tap... tap…
The sound of hurried footsteps broke the silence from the far end of the corridor, moving quickly closer.
"D-Diana! C… come here!" Zulo shouted, his face clearly filled with worry. He immediately spread his arms, ready to catch Diana's body as she began to stagger weakly.
"Tch..." Diana clenched her teeth, her brows knitting sharply, revealing a deep displeasure.
PLAK!
A single hard slap landed squarely on Zulo's cheek, nearly as powerful as the one she had delivered to the Qurr-Urqell earlier. The sound echoed sharply through the hospital corridor.
"KEEP YOUR FACE AWAY FROM ME!" Diana shouted furiously, her expression clearly showing how anti-romantic she was.
"Y-YES~!" Zulo answered reflexively, his body even thrown to the side by the force of the slap.
Brugh…
Zulo landed helplessly on the floor. Meanwhile, with the last remnants of her strength, Diana forced herself to stand. Bracing her hand against the wall, she staggered toward Jōgan's hospital room, leaving Zulo still sprawled behind her.
***
Hugo's Residence, Katsushika District.
The room was dim, lit only by the faint glow of a hanging lamp. The air felt heavy there, as if oxygen itself was reluctant to flow within the suffocating atmosphere.
Behind the chess table, two pairs of eyes locked in a sharp rivalry.
"Be honest… Old Fossil," Hugo hissed, his gaze narrowing with suspicion.
"You've even forgotten when your mother gave birth to you. You're far older than I am, bastard," Hiji replied without blinking, his gaze no less fierce.
"Tch… How dare you drag my mother into this." Hugo shot back, his brows knitting tightly as the veins on his forehead began to show.
"Yes… I truly pity her. Giving birth to a rude child like-" Hiji clenched his teeth, holding back the sentence that was about to explode.
"Are you tired of living, huh?" Hugo threatened, his face now completely dark, radiating a very real aura of intimidation.
"You're the one who has lived far too long! You're depleting Gaia's oxygen reserves just by breathing!" Hiji fired back quickly, no longer holding himself back.
"Come on… Let's duel for three rounds!" Hugo challenged, slamming the table hard, making the chess pieces tremble upon it.
"Ha! One round is enough to make you kneel!" Hiji replied, his tone thick with contempt.
The glare between them grew hotter. The room seemed charged with static electricity, as if lightning bolts were colliding in the air right between them.
"Enough…"
A voice cut through. Rika suddenly appeared between them, peeking from behind the back of the sofa with a weary expression as she watched the quarrel between the adults before her.
"M… Dad, Uncle Hiji, stop fighting just because of chess," Riko said softly while tightly hugging her beloved brown teddy bear.
"A… Sorry, Riko, Rika…" Hugo immediately broke into a wide smile, his fierce face melting into a grin as he scratched the back of his neck that did not itch. "This is all because of your foolish uncle here," Hugo continued, unable to resist mocking again while pointing at Hiji.
"You really… make me furious." Hiji growled, the veins on his forehead beginning to surface as he restrained his anger.
Tirt... Tirt... Tirt…
The sound of a holographic message notification came from Hugo's lighter. A short message from Diana appeared, confirming the death of the Qurr-Urqell.
"M… it's time. Now then… Riko, Rika, have you packed your things?" Hugo called gently as he knelt in front of them so their eyes were level. Instantly, his tone changed, becoming calm and deep.
Riko and Rika nodded almost at the same time.
"Good. Now Uncle Hiji will escort you. You will pick up your older brother, then go to a safer place, alright?" Hugo added with a sincere smile. He gently stroked the tops of Riko and Rika's heads in turn.
"D-Dad, what about you?" Riko asked with an innocent face. In her eyes lingered a slight hesitation about being far from her father.
"Dad still has some matters that must be settled. Father will follow afterward," Hugo answered calmly.
"A… time for the old men to move," Hiji said. He rose from his chair, stretching his body until his joints cracked.
Hugo then guided Riko and Rika outside toward the car, where Hiji was already waiting behind the wheel with the engine beginning to rumble.
***
Meanwhile, Tokyo Metropolitan Tōbu Chiiki Hospital.
Diana could be seen standing behind the door of Jōgan's hospital room, after sending the message to Hugo.
Srekhh…
The ICU room door opened slowly. Inside, Jōgan's body lay on the bed, still unconscious. Beside the medical bed, Sanna had fallen asleep while leaning against it, her face looking exhausted.
Diana stepped quickly toward Sanna, trying to wake her. "Sanna…" Diana's voice was soft as she tapped the girl's shoulder, which felt warm and made Diana's expression change for a moment.
"M… what-" Sanna woke up, rubbing her eyes, then froze in surprise when she saw Diana's slightly disheveled clothes. "W… what happened?" she asked in panic.
"That's not important," Diana replied briefly, looking at Sanna with a serious gaze again. "We have to take Jōgan away from here. Right now, pack all your things." Diana's command was firm and urgent.
Zulo and Kaito appeared at the doorway at the same time. Their expressions were a contrast, Kaito was clearly panicked, while Zulo endured the pain while holding his cheek.
Sanna, Zulo, and Kaito exchanged glances for a moment, then quickly moved to follow the instructions.
***
A few moments later.
Gledak~gledak~gledak…!
The sound of a medical bed being pushed in haste echoed through the corridor. Kaito and Zulo pushed the bed where Jōgan lay.
Ahead of them, Diana walked quickly toward the basement, her eyes alert as she watched every corner of the dark hospital corridor.
Sanna followed behind, carrying Jōgan's medicines and belongings.
Ciiiiiiieeeee~TUK!
The sharp screech of car brakes cut through the basement floor.
Hiji immediately stepped out, taking over a nearby ambulance. "Bring him here!" he shouted, opening the back door of the ambulance.
BRAKK~Sreeek!
The back doors of the ambulance shut firmly. Zulo, Kaito, and Sanna climbed inside, accompanying Jōgan.
"Diana… take my car, Riko and Rika are inside." Hiji said loudly as he closed the ambulance driver's door.
The ambulance engine started. They immediately left the hospital as fast as possible.
Not long after, police cars and press vehicles began arriving, investigating and covering the explosion and the strange light that had shaken the hospital earlier.
***
Hugo's Residence, Katsushika District.
All the lights in the room were off, leaving the television's glow as the only source of light.
Hugo sat casually on the sofa, his legs crossed, watching the news broadcast from the hospital while smoking his cigarette.
The reporter's voice could be heard clearly, explaining the incident at the hospital, an explosion caused by an oxygen tank in the ICU room, along with a short circuit at an electrical substation that triggered a strange light.
Clearly, the media and the police had been tightly silenced.
"Heh… they control the media and the law quite well," Hugo chuckled, as if this was simply the usual thing done by those above.
"And you… it's rude… to enter someone's house without permission." Hugo continued, glancing behind him without fully turning around.
"Huh…"
Hugo tilted his head up, exhaling cigarette smoke toward the ceiling.
The smoke drifted slowly, blending with the growing brightness of the television's light.
Right behind Hugo, something terrifying stood.
From the reflection of the screen's light, a towering monster could be seen. Its body was covered in rough dark-green scales, four fangs protruding from its mouth with drool dripping down, and four blood-red eyes staring sharply. A massive scythe rested upon its shoulder, a weapon of death no one could escape.
Hugo leaned his head back against the sofa and spoke calmly.
"Heh… Alpha Urqell."