Angkasa's POV
For the past two days, I have been forced to attend the meetings held by the Atmadja elders. They pressured me using Nadia's name until I finally agreed to join. Our discussions revolved around what Governor Dante had been doing over the past decade. All the wickedness neatly covered up, along with the palace's bias toward him, further solidified his power in the city of Valdera.
"Banyu has confirmed his move. Tomorrow, the henchmen will gather as planned. We just need to carry out the final phase," said my brother, Bumi, firmly to the Atmadja Family Head and the elders sitting at the far end of the long table.
They only nodded slightly, while their gazes showed that each of them was lost in their own thoughts. As if there was something they hadn't fully considered.
"Are you sure about letting Banyu face this alone?" I finally spoke up, drawing sharp stares from everyone. "I am impressed by how he's moved undetected all this time, but…"
"Are you trying to underestimate Banyu? Huh? You—" Bumi's voice rose, but quickly stopped as our father, Adrian, raised one hand, signaling Bumi to control his emotions.
I merely scoffed. My gaze swept across the entire room, meeting the eyes of everyone present before continuing, "Darius has been spying on Macron. And it's proven that he is one of Dante's most trusted men in Calibri. But it's not just him—there's someone even more dangerous. This person has sharp intuition, is more ruthless, and wouldn't hesitate to skin the other members of Atmadja alive for just a handful of information."
"So you mean Macron has betrayed us?!" Bumi exploded again, his glare stabbing into me. "He's been Father's trusted man all this time, and you're calling him one of Dante's henchmen?!"
"I've long suspected him..." Father spoke, mediating. "Since he chose to stand alone and distance himself from the family's communication, I knew sooner or later he would become a stumbling block for Atmadja."
I glanced at Elder Lisa at the far end of the table who had been quietly observing, still saying nothing as she watched us exchange arguments.
"But who exactly do you mean by 'someone'? Is there another?" Father asked sharply, staring at me.
I shifted my gaze to him and nodded briefly. "Yes. He's always by Macron's side as his assistant. But the truth is, he's a direct envoy from Dante Romano!"
My statement shook the entire room. Even Father, who was usually calm, looked shocked. Everyone was waiting for me to continue.
"Don't we have a backup plan in case Banyu fails tomorrow?" I asked. For some reason, I had a bad feeling. Dante Romano isn't a fool who can be easily trapped.
Silence. No one answered. Just as I expected—they were too focused on the mission's success tomorrow without fully considering the risk of failure.
I pressed my clenched fists on my thighs, trying to suppress my emotions. But I spoke again, my voice much louder, "If Banyu falls tomorrow, are we just going to stand by and do nothing?!!!"
Angkasa's POV END
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Bang!!!
"WATCH YOUR MOUTH, DAMN IT!!!"
Bumi couldn't accept Angkasa's previous words. He slammed the table so hard that it nearly cracked. Rising from his seat, he stared fiercely at his younger brother, his eyes blazing.
"You know nothing about Banyu! He's far more experienced than your foolish assumptions! What did you say?! That Banyu will fall?!! Say that again and I'll—"
"Do what? Kill me? Go ahead!" Angkasa shot back sharply. He wasn't afraid. He had stayed silent all this time, but he would never allow himself to be belittled, even by his own family.
"You've all been focused solely on the success of Banyu's mission tomorrow! As if everything will go smoothly. How naive... Dante isn't that short-sighted!" Angkasa snapped. "He has people ready to die for him!"
Angkasa exhaled sharply. His gaze grew sharper as he stared at Bumi and everyone else in the room.
"I don't want Banyu to fail either. But think back to the tragedy ten years ago! Do you want history to repeat itself?! Enough! My mother has already become a victim of your selfishness!!" he finally shouted.
The room suddenly fell silent as Angkasa slowly collapsed back into his chair. All this time, he had carried the anger and pain alone. He hated discussing that tragedy—because that's where his greatest guilt lived. He knew his father was at fault… but more than that, he himself had been powerless when his mother was taken from him.
"Angkasa, I... I was—"
Adrian tried to reach for his son's shoulder, but Angkasa raised his hand to refuse, stopping his father.
Angkasa's gaze turned fierce, full of determination.
"Today I'm going to Valderano. I will personally ensure Banyu's safety!" he declared resolutely, then stood and left the meeting room.
Stomp! Stomp! Slam!
The sound of hurried footsteps followed by the loud slam of a door filled the room, leaving it in silence once again. No one dared to speak.
Several seconds passed before the calm voice of the elder broke the silence.
"Adrian, have Group B stand by as per the original plan. And I will personally watch over Angkasa. No objections."
●●●●●
Flashback to the chaos in the previous chapter...
Thud!
A sharp kick landed directly into the gut of the bandit holding the club. His body was flung backward, and the club dropped from his grasp. The other bandits, stunned, quickly turned their furious gazes toward Nadia.
"Well, well, little girl's got guts, huh? Too bad for you—now feel this!" one of the bandits growled in a gravelly voice, his eyes filled with rage.
Nadia shook her head subtly, signaling the man on the ground torun while she took a fighting stance, ready defend herself.
"Sorry, sister... looks like I'm gonna have to break my promise this time," Nadia whispered, her eyes burning with determination, locked on the bandits preparing to strike.
Thwack!
Thud!
Crash!!
---
EveCity, Calibri — 8:15 PM
Nadia's POV
Thud!
"Arrghh!"
Damn it! One of their baseball bats slammed into my left leg, swung by one of the bandits.
I stumbled backward and crashed into a trash can behind me. Pain shot up my back as I struggled to stand again.
"Heh, still fighting, huh? Little girl, you better give up now!"
I scoffed, glaring at a tall bandit with a spider tattoo on his left arm. He seemed to be the leader. My eyes quickly scanned the surroundings, looking for something I could use... Ah!
I smirked slightly as I spotted something just ahead: a broken power pole cable, its end sparking faintly.
"What did you just call me? Little girl? Sorry, I'm 23 years old, and that title really doesn't suit me, bastard!" I shouted, provoking them.
It worked! The leader's face twisted in anger as he ordered his men to surround me again.
With my injured left leg from the earlier hit, I forced myself to run, dodging their attempts to corner me.
Wham! Wham!
My fists landed repeatedly on the faces and jaws of the bandits, throwing them off. I used the opening to push forward.
Screech!
"Arrghhh...!!!"
My hair was yanked harshly from behind just as I was about to grab one of the cables scattered on the ground.
"Hahaha... Where do you think you're going, huh? Little girl, you're like a rat caught red-handed. This time I'll— Aarrghhhhhh!"
Just in time! I managed to electrocute the bandit leader with the end of the power cable. His body convulsed uncontrollably, stepping back and releasing his grip on my hair. I exhaled in relief, quickly rising and backing away from him. But then—
Crash!
"Arrrghhhh!!!"
Nadia's POV END
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Nadia dropped to her knees instantly as a heavy blow landed on her back. Before she could recover, a harsh yank on her hair made her grimace in pain.
"Huh? Turns out you're just a regular girl with a lot of guts, hahaha."
A raspy laugh rang out sharply. Nadia didn't recognize the man — his face was covered with a mask up to his nose.
But that wasn't the real problem. The man raised one hand, revealing a dagger right in front of Nadia's face!
"You know what this is? Huh? This knife could ruin that pretty face of yours, weak girl... or maybe I'll just end your life altogether. Hahaha..."
Nadia's eyes widened. She instinctively struggled, but the gap in their strength and size was simply too great.
"Prepare to meet your end, you foolish little girl!"
Just as the knife swung toward Nadia, who instinctively shut her eyes, a gunshot rang out from afar. The man dropped his knife, startled, his hand bleeding profusely as the bullet struck his knuckles with perfect precision.
Seeing her chance, Nadia summoned all the strength left in her legs and—
Wham!
Her foot landed squarely on the man's most sensitive spot.
"Aaarghhh... damn it!!!" the masked man howled, stumbling back and hopping in pain.
"Miss Nadia!"
A familiar voice made Nadia turn her head. Darius was running toward her, followed by several others who immediately subdued the remaining bandits.
"Darius...? Where's Angkasa? I-I have to... find him... ugh..."
Thud!
Nadia collapsed, falling unconscious just as Darius caught her in his arms.
Darius quickly examined the bruises on Nadia's face and body. His eyes narrowed slightly at the sight of a large, swollen bruise forming on her left ankle.
"I need to get her to the Elder immediately! Master Angkasa will kill me if he finds out his girlfriend's hurt!" Darius muttered under his breath. He lifted Nadia into a bridal carry and signaled to one of his men to handle the mess left behind.
Tap! Tap! Tap!
"Angkasa... sshh... I-I switched the files... ha... save Banyu... ugh... A-Angkasa..."
Darius widened his eyes in shock as he heard the name "Banyu" — Angkasa's second brother — slip from Nadia's lips. But not fully understanding her ramblings, he chose to stay focused, speeding away from Eve City as fast as possible.
"Hang in there, Miss..." he whispered softly, glancing at Nadia's unconscious, wounded figure while the car raced toward Elder Lisa's residence.