Read Novel Full Chapter 766: Gate [6]
Chapter 766: Gate [6]
It was a scream that came straight from the soul.
The moment Claude felt the touch on his shoulders, his entire expression changed drastically as he turned back, his eyes widening with alarm.
“Who?!”
He immediately drove his fist in the direction of where he felt the touch, but the only thing his fist met was the empty space behind him.
“Haa… Haa…”
Claude looked around, his expression tightening.
He didn’t even realize his own breathing was rough as his chest heaved up and down unevenly, the soft hum of the lights echoing within the otherwise quiet space.
Then he noticed them.
The children. The entire classroom was filled with them, every single one of them looking in his direction.
Their bodies remained seated normally behind their desks, hands resting over their books, but their heads had all turned in his direction. Empty eyes followed him from every corner of the classroom.
Claude’s breathing slowed.
“What…?”
Nobody answered.
A child near the front blinked.
The small movement irritated him more than it should have.
Claude’s fingers twitched as he stared back at them, waiting for one of them to speak or move, but they simply continued watching him.
“What are you looking at?”
His voice echoed throughout the classroom.
Still, none of them reacted.
Claude felt something inside his chest tighten.
“I asked you a question.”
The lights continued humming overhead.
Bzzzz…
Claude’s head snapped upward.
“Shut up.”
The sound continued.
Bzzzz…
His expression twisted before his gaze returned towards the children.
One of them released a faint breath through its nose.
Claude heard it.
Somehow, he heard everything.
The humming lights.
The scraping of someone’s shoe against the floor.
The faint tapping of a finger against wood.
Even the faint dripping of blood somewhere behind him sounded loud enough to hammer directly against his skull.
Drip.
Claude’s jaw tightened.
Drip.
He slowly turned towards the sound, only to find nothing except blood gathering beneath one of the desks.
His eyes twitched.
“Stop.”
Another drop fell.
Drip.
“I said stop!”
Claude kicked the nearest desk aside, sending it crashing against the wall before immediately turning back towards the children.
They were still staring.
Something about that made his anger surge far more violently than before.
“Hehehe.”
Then he heard it.
The same soft laugh as before.
His eyes widened, anger surging through every part of him.
“Who the fuck was that?!”
He looked around, only to be met with the same stares as before.
He spread his arms.
“What the fuck are you all looking at?!”
Nobody answered.
Claude’s breathing grew heavier as he stepped towards the nearest row, his blood-covered hand clenching into a fist.
“You think this is funny?”
The child closest to him continued staring.
Claude stopped beside its desk.
“Answer me!”
He still received no response.
His expression slowly twisted as [Reinforcement] tightened around his hand.
“Fine.”
Claude reached forward.
The child didn’t move even as his fingers wrapped around the front of its uniform. He pulled it halfway from the chair before suddenly stopping.
‘Wait. Wait…’
Something was wrong.
Not with the child in his hand.
With the room.
Claude slowly looked around.
Every child was still watching him.
Every single one.
Except… one.
Near the back of the classroom, a small figure sat with its head turned towards the chalkboard.
Claude’s grip loosened.
The child in front of him dropped back into his chair, but Claude barely paid him any more attention, as his attention remained fixed on the only person refusing to look at him.
“…Was it you?”
He stepped away from the desk.
The child near the back didn’t move, the back of his head facing Claude’s direction.
“Why aren’t you looking?”
The child didn’t move.
Claude’s footsteps grew heavier as he crossed the classroom, passing between rows of children whose heads slowly followed him.
“You. I’m talking to you.”
The child continued to look away despite Claude’s sudden appearance.
Claude’s expression darkened.
“Look at me!”
Claude shouted, his voice thundering across the entire room.
“Everyone else is looking.”
He stopped directly behind the child.
“So why aren’t you? Hey!”
Claude reached forward and grabbed the child’s shoulder, the body feeling strangely light as he turned it around to face him.
“Look at—!!”
Claude’s voice disappeared in an instant as his eyes shot wide open.
The face staring back at him was a face he was all too familiar with as he felt the very breath leave his body.
“Y-you… T-that’s…”
That face…
There was no mistaking that face.
From the eyes to the faint smile that curled at the corner of his lips.
Claude’s entire body went stiff as his head turned slowly, moving towards the headless figure at the front of the classroom.
Claude’s body stiffened further as a pair of eyes stared at him from the front, shivers running down his entire body.
The head…
It was facing him, alongside the numerous children.
Then⎯
“Boo~”
“AHHH⎯!”
Another scream ripped from Claude’s lips as he stumbled backwards, Seth’s face remaining fixed in his vision.
BANG!
Falling to the ground, he clawed his way back, trying desperately to put as much distance between himself and the head as possible. But it was also at that moment that the children moved, each one of them slowly turning to look at him.
But it was just that…
…Their faces had changed.
They all looked like Seth, and it was the sight that made Claude’s vision darken as another scream ripped from his lips before he collapsed onto the floor.
“…”
A tense silence followed right after that, the silence stretching across the surroundings.
Until⎯
Clap! Clap! Clap!
A series of applause shattered the silence, Seth walking into the room whilst looking at the children around him.
They all started clapping as well.
Clap! Clap!
“Thank you! Thank you!”
Seth bowed to the children, each of whom wore the same face as him.
“…It was my pleasure.”
He bowed again, and again.
He only stopped when Claude’s body started to twitch.
At once, everyone stopped clapping.
Seth coughed awkwardly as he looked around, moving towards Claude and helping him up, setting him down in the nearest seat. Taking another chair, Seth moved to the opposite seat and crossed his legs.
Well, then…
He looked around, his lips pulling into another smile.
‘There’s one more rat that I need to catch~’
***
⎯How is the situation?
Secretary Kim listened in silence as the Section Chief spoke through the phone, his gaze fixed on the live feed displayed across the dashboard.
The Gate filled almost the entire screen.
“We’re currently handling it, Section Chief.”
⎯What is the current estimate?
“It’s in the… upper B-Ranks.”
Secretary Kim replied after taking a moment of hesitation.
“But the readings are still climbing. If the expansion continues at the current pace, it’ll be approaching A-Rank classification soon.”
A brief silence followed from the other side.
Johansberg exhaled.
⎯I can’t leave headquarters right now. There are several other things that I need to take care of. I hope that you take care of the situation and you ensure that nothing happens to the Clean Up Crew. This should be within their means.
Secretary Kim glanced towards the papers spread across the passenger seat beside him.
Several preliminary reports had already arrived, along with screenshots from local news outlets and hastily published articles reporting an unidentified Gate appearing over Valmere.
The incident was spreading quickly.
“Then what do you want me to do?”
⎯Find out what Kyle and Zoey know.
Secretary Kim’s eyes narrowed.
“They’ve already reported what they found.”
⎯I don’t believe they’ve reported everything. They’re not telling the truth regarding the matter. Especially their reasoning behind the investigation. Something is not adding up. Make sure you dig through everything.
Johansberg’s voice remained calm.
⎯Especially Kyle. I want you to dig well.
Secretary Kim looked back towards the Gate feed.
“What are you suspecting?”
There was a small pause.
Then—
⎯I believe that this gate is somehow connected to Seth.
Secretary Kim’s expression changed slightly.
“Right, but he should be in Malovia. Still, it is indeed suspicious that Kyle and Zoey both came here after contact and sight have been lost with him.”
⎯Exactly.
Johansberg’s voice became quieter.
⎯A massive Gate suddenly appeared around the exact location Kyle and Zoey were investigating, immediately after they requested old records connected to VILE-303. Seth is missing, Claude’s team entered the school, and now we’ve lost contact with everyone inside.
The implications were obvious.
Secretary Kim adjusted his glasses.
“You think Seth is involved?”
⎯In some way. At least, I know that this situation arose because of what they were looking into. Find everything that you can.
“Understood.”
The call ended shortly afterward.
By the time Secretary Kim reached Valmere, several more vehicles were already parked along the road leading towards the northern district.
Guild personnel moved between temporary barriers while monitoring equipment had been positioned outside the Gate’s boundary.
Farther back, news vans had started appearing.
Reporters stood behind the restricted line while photographers aimed their cameras towards the enormous dome covering the abandoned district.
Secretary Kim stepped out of the car.
Two more black vehicles stopped behind him.
His attention immediately moved towards Kyle and Zoey.
The pair stood several meters away from the equipment, both watching the Gate.
Kyle looked unusually calm.
…The Secretary didn’t miss it.
The Secretary approached them while one of the technicians called out from behind.
“Reading just changed!”
Several people turned.
The technician stared at the monitor before continuing.
“Still B-Rank, but it’s rising again. If this keeps up, it’ll cross into the A-Rank threshold.”
Murmurs spread amongst the nearby personnel.
Secretary Kim ignored them.
His gaze remained on Kyle.
“Kyle.”
Kyle turned.
Their eyes met.
Secretary Kim studied his expression for several seconds before glancing towards Zoey.
Then back towards the Gate.
“Where is Seth?”
“Seth?”
Kyle raised his brow in surprise.
“Seth? Why would Seth be involved in this? He’s in Malovia.”
The Secretary’s eyes narrowed. He was just about to say something when he received a sudden text, and his lips curled up.
At the same time, several cars stopped at once, and figures began rushing into the Gate.
“Go! Go! Go!”
Kyle didn’t even have the time to process what was happening before three groups already entered the Gate at once.
“Wait, wait…”
By the time he figured out what had happened, the Secretary was already smiling.
“…Since there’s no involvement in Seth’s case, I hope that this entire mess hasn’t been caused by him.”
He paused, giving Kyle a meaningful look.
“It would be pretty bad if it was.”