The Chief of Police''s face drained of color.

    "No, I mean... yes. Yes, you dare to pull the trigger."

    “No,” Jose exhaled slowly, almost tired. “I don''t dare to pull the trigger. Do you know why?"

    "I... I don''t know, Governor. Please, tell me."

    “Thest time I killed a man was during the rebellion, forty years ago. That man was the Governor before me. I swore to the people his blood would be thest I shed, so Vind could finally know peace."

    The Chief of Police nodded rapidly, desperate to cling to his words. “Yes, yes, Governor. You''re right. Killing is useless. Especially killing me—"

    "But I was wrong," Jose cut him off, his voice low and heavy.

    "People whisper that I''m weak because I let the mockery slide. Because I don''t punish fools who act like I''m blind, like I''m some impotent governor sitting on a crumbling throne. And truthfully..."

    His eyes narrowed, his tone dropped to a growl. "I never cared about their little games."

    But then Jose''s face twisted, rage boiling over. His hand shook with fury as the barrel of his gun pressed harder against the Chief''s forehead.

    "But you crossed the line. You tried to touch my family."

    "Sir-I swear-I didn''t know about this! Please-"

    ?

    "You speak of justice, but all you do is obey Bernard. How can a man like you sit at the top ofw enforcement?"

    "Governor-"

    The shot cracked like thunder. The Chief''s eyes went wide with disbelief.

    Regret flickered for the briefest second-if only-but then his head hit the floor, blood spilling fast across the tiles.

    Jose pulled out his phone and dialed. "Lee, I killed Bernard. And the Chief of Police."

    There was silence on the other end before Lee, the head of Vind Security, spoke. "For real?"

    "For real."

    Lee burst outughing. “Damn, Jose. About time you put those bastards down. You want help finishing off the rest? Plenty of them are already aiming for your neck—or your retirement."

    "For now, just clean up these two first," Jose sighed.

    "Fine. Our people will take care of it," Lee replied. Then his tone shifted. "Anything else I should know?"

    "I have a granddaughter. They''re aiming for her."

    Lee coughed into the phone, his tone turning grave. "If you''re nning to make her your sessor, then you''ll have to clear out a mountain of enemies inside your own government first."

    Jose already knew the storm he had unleashed.

    "Then we''ve got a lot of work ahead of us. Let''s start by separating friend from foe."

    The Vind state was about to undergo a brutal reformation—from the inside. Back at a small clinic in the Vancouver slums, Alexy on his bed when he heard a knock at the door. He opened it to find Josephine standing there, awkward in her pajamas.

    "What''s up?" Alex asked.

    "Um... can Ie in?" she murmured.

    "Sure." Alex stepped aside, and she sat on the edge of his bed.

    "I don''t even know how to ask this," Josephine said softly. "But do you think the old man Jose and Lucia will be okay?"

    "They will," Alex said, taking a seat across from her. "They still have plenty of loyalists from the old days. All they need is time to rearrange everything. Including...” He paused, the words hanging in the air.

    "Including what?" Josephine asked quickly.

    "Your connection to them," Alex replied atst. "They''ll want to test your blood, your DNA. Don''t pin too much hope on it."

    "I''m not," Josephine whispered. Her voice trembled. “I just... I just want them to be safe."

    She turned to him, her eyes searching. "Alex, there''s something I really need to ask you."

    "What?"

    "At that time, when twenty people were shooting at you and the bullets just froze in the air around you... how did you do that?" Josephine asked, her eyes shining with curiosity.

    "Didn''t you faint back then?" Alex frowned, certain she shouldn''t have witnessed that.

    "I was awake." Josephine grinned proudly. "So tell me how do you do it?" "Ever heard of a superhuman? That''s what I am," Alex replied with a calm shrug.

    Josephine leaned closer, excitement sparking in her voice. "Can you teach me to be superhuman?"

    "You want me to take you as my disciple?" Alex arched a brow.

    "Yes!" she said, her smile wide and eager.

    Alex chuckled softly. "Fine. If you really want to learn my techniques, you need a strong foundation first. Without it, everything else is useless. That means you''ll have to start by cultivating internal energy

    Josephine blinked. “What''s internal energy?"

    "It''s an unseen power," Alex exined, his tone turning serious. "You cultivate it by breathing, drawing from the energy of the air

    itself. But listen carefully-it takes more than effort."

    "You need real talent. Some people are born for this. They understand it instinctively. Others... will never seed, no matter how hard they try."

    Josephine''s hands tightened into fists. "Then tell me do I have that talent?" "Give me your hand."

    She ced her hand in his without hesitation.

    "I''ll pass a trace of my inner energy into you. If you feel it, you''ve got potential. If not..." Alex''s voice dropped, "then you''re not cut out for it."

    He pressed his palm against her wrist, channeling a pulse of energy into her.

    Josephine gasped, her eyes lighting up. "I feel it! It''s warm-it''s tingling all over!" Alex''s eyes narrowed. "Not bad. You passed the first test."

    But before he could speak further, his expression hardened. Something was wrong.

    The energy he sent into her didn''t just flow through-it vanished, swallowed whole.

    He sent another burst into her body. Again, it was instantly absorbed.

    "Wow!" Josephine eximed, almost glowing. "I feel like my body''s... alive again. Rejuvenated!"

    Alex stared at her, stunned. Her body responded to energy in a way he had never seen before. It wasn''t normal. It was extraordinary.

    Josephine tilted her head. "What''s wrong? Is something the matter?"

    "It''s nothing." Alex forced a thin smile. "I''ll give you the beginner''s training method. Whether you seed or not depends entirely on you."

    He pulled out his smartphone, tapped a fewmands, and transferred a file to Josephine.

    "Study this in your room. Once you''ve mastered the basics,e back to me. And remember no one else can see this technique. It''s meant to be passed only from teacher to disciple."

    "Okay!" Josephine lit up, checking the file on her phone before hurrying off, nearly skipping with excitement.

    Alex leaned back, watching her leave, a smirk tugging at his lips. "Interesting body she has. She can absorb inner energy without resistance at all."

    Her gift was far beyond ordinary. A body that sensitive to energy was almost unheard of-something usually seen only in children rigorously nurtured since birth. Yet Josephine had it naturally.

    He folded his arms, thoughtful. There was more to her than she even realized.

    And now, Alex found himself growing very curious-about Josephine''s mother... or perhaps her real father.