"They're here," I choked out, my hands still smoking.
"Quiet," Kaito said. His voice was completely calm.
He closed his eyes, and a strange, wavy heat radiated from his body. It didn't burn. It just warped the air.
Suddenly, the dust settled. The shattered glass on the floor vanished. I looked up, and the massive hole I had just blasted through the ceiling was gone. The wallpaper was pristine. The house looked exactly like it did yesterday.
I blinked, rubbing my eyes. "What did you—"
"Play along," Kaito whispered, his eyes snapping open.
A heavy knock rattled the front door. Before I could move, Kaito walked over and pulled it open, pasting a sleepy, confused smile on his face.
Two men in grey suits stood on the porch. They didn't have faces, just smooth black glass where their eyes should be. They held metallic rods that hummed with a low, threatening energy.
"Citizen," one of the Workers said, his voice robotic and flat. "We detected a massive Zoryn anomaly originating from this coordinate. Step aside for inspection."
Kaito tilted his head, looking like a perfectly innocent Sector 4 student. "Zoryn? What's that? Is it a new snack? Did they send it in this week's Essentials? Because honestly, we're out of the sweet buns."
The Worker didn't react. He stepped inside, his black visor panning across the living room.
I held my breath. Souta was frozen by the kitchen counter, and Yuna was staring at the perfectly intact ceiling. They saw the illusion too. It was so flawless that even I was starting to doubt I had ever used my power.
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The Worker tapped his metallic rod against the wall. Nothing happened. He looked at his wrist scanner, then back at Kaito. "Visual and physical scan returns negative. The anomaly must have been a grid error."
"Hope you get it fixed, mister," Kaito said cheerfully. "Have a good night!"
The Workers turned and walked back out to their van. Kaito shut the door and let out a slow breath. The illusion didn't drop; the house still looked perfect.
But the relief didn't last.
"They're going to check the main grid," Yuna said. Her voice wasn't shaking anymore. It was dead serious, cold as ice. "When they see the grid is fine, they'll know the sensors here were right. They'll come back with more."
She looked at Kaito. "We have to kill them before they report it."
Souta whipped his head around, staring at her like she had grown a second head. "Kill them? Yuna... are you crazy? Have you always been like this?"
Yuna just looked at her hands. "I'm just awake, Souta. We can't let them leave."
"The most dangerous lies are the ones painted perfectly over the truth."
Kaito smirked. A real, dangerous smirk. "She's right, you know."
Before I could even ask what he meant, Kaito moved. There was no blur, no footsteps. Just a violent gust of wind that knocked a picture frame off the wall.
He was gone.
A single second passed.
BOOM.
A massive explosion rattled my teeth. The heat from outside washed over the house, turning the night sky a bright, violent orange.
I rushed to the window. The black van was completely engulfed in roaring flames, the metal frame melting into the street. The two Workers never even stood a chance. The street cameras hadn't even swiveled in time to catch it.
I turned around. Kaito was standing by the kitchen sink, casually pouring a glass of water. He didn't even look out of breath.
"Engine failure," Kaito said, taking a sip. "A real tragedy."
I stared at him, my blood running cold. Zero's voice echoed in the back of my mind, dark and amused.
"You thought you were the only monster in the room, Raizen?"
I looked at my three friends. A terrified boy, a girl ready to kill, and a guy who could warp reality and incinerate a van in less than a second.
"A perfect world makes for the easiest targets, because no one is looking for the knife."
"Pack your things," I said, my voice finally steadying. "We can't stay here. The Peace is dead."
To be continued...