Until Dusk Protocol - Chapter 26: The World Seed

Honjou Kaede was invited by her friend, Shiromine Risa to play a VRMMO.I don’t hate games, but painful things are a little……no, I hate it very, very much.Eh!…the pain would be reduced if I placed stats on defense power?Then, the only place where I can place it, is there right? Right?Solidly fortify everything into defense, now here I come!

“Heroes killed my parents. Now I wear the mask of one. Until I can bury them all.”At seven years old, Hernan Vale watched his parents — two powerful heroes — brutally executed in their own home by the very people they trusted most: the legendary super-team known as the Zodiac 13.They thought he was dead.They made sure the world blamed villains.They covered their tracks.But Hernan survived — and never forgot.Ten years later, under a false name, Hernan enters the prestigious Hero Academy, hailed as a prodigy. To the world, he’s a rising star. To his classmates, he’s charming, calm, unstoppable.But inside?He’s a weapon. Waiting. Smiling. Counting names.As he trains to become a licensed hero, fights real villains, and rises through the ranks, Hernan plays the long game — earning the trust of the Zodiac, learning their routines, studying their weaknesses. One by one, he’ll bring them down.And this time, he won’t hide in the closet.But the deeper he goes, the more blood he spills — the more he wonders if he’s becoming worse than the monsters he’s hunting.And when love, loyalty, and lies collide, Hernan may have to decide:Will he save the world like they think he will...or finish burning it down?

He was not a human since no human is aware of himself even before his birth.

He has no blood and no heart, but emotions?

He does have feelings, but can he express them?

Why was he called a Devil’s Spawn at his birth?

Why did they cut away his arms and a leg?

Why did no one ever visit him for years?

And why does this emptiness... feels so... just so familiar?

Why does the Void feel so... full?

Who is he? Or rather... What is he?

When Aria turned five her grandmother told her that their family has never been blessed with a mate and not having a mate doesn't mean they won't find love.When Aria turned eighteen, her desire to have a mate became stronger because her best friend whom she had a crush on found his mate and the pure joy in his eyes when he told her about the mate bond, place a emptiness in her heart.“You are special, Aria. You have the power to turn back time.”That was what her grandmother told her when she claimed she was cursed and even though she was not satisfied with that answer, she never asked again.Two years later, Aria got a call from the hospital and found out that her grandmother has been poisoned and the only way for her to save her grandmother was to accept this deal made by the Alpha of the Shadow Moon pack“Marry Alpha Tristan, have him fall for you and then kill him.”It was the only way to saved her grandmother so she agreed despite knowing that she was walking into a lion den, because how was she going to kill a man who despite losing both his sight and his mate, command enough power and authority to still be called a Alpha.How will Aria feel when she realized that the man she has been task to kill has been waiting for her for five lifetimes and have just two years left to live?What situation will Aria find herself that will require her to turn back time and what price will she pay for altering time itself?-----------ExcerptAria felt uneasy by his silence and wondered if it was the right moment to use the techniques, Hailey has taught her.Taking a deep breath, Aria stepped closer and closed her eyes as she brushed her lips against Tristan's.Tristan stiffened when he felt her lips on his and without thinking, he immediately pushed her away.Seeing the angry look on his face, Aria felt like it was all over; she was definitely going to be killed now.But Tristan expression was shadowed by more than anger. How had she gotten so close without him sensing her? And why--why was his heart racing like this?