Chapter 4

I barely got a wink of sleep over the next three days. It wasn't that I didn't want to sleep; I simply couldn't.

Queenie's subordinate returned on the fourth night, dragging in someone from the Northvale Base testing facility. That man looked deathly pale as he trembled violently and dropped to his knees the second he walked through the door.

"I'll tell you everything!" he said. "I'll tell you whatever you want!"

Queenie remained seated, barely glancing at him.

That man frantically banged his forehead on the ground. "Whitney came to me three years ago. She claimed Maverick had a rare constitution and that if he ever awakened, he was bound to surpass her.

"She handed me a bunch of contribution points and told me to alter the results to show that he was a non-ability user…"

I clenched my fists tightly.

"Go on," Queenie said, her voice totally calm.

That man kept his head lowered and continued, "S-She gave me some kind of drug too. She made me spike Maverick's drink after every checkup to suppress his powers. She said that as long as he drank it continuously for three years, he would never be able to awaken his power for the rest of his life…"

That explained why I always felt lightheaded and sick to my stomach after every medical checkup. That was why I had grown so exhausted over those three years, unable to match anyone else no matter how much I practiced.

It turned out that every sip of water I took had been a dose of poison Whitney had personally prepared for me.

Queenie suddenly called out my name.

I raised my head and looked at her.

She looked at me and said, "I'll make them answer for what they did to you."

I was momentarily stunned.

She rose to her feet, walked right up to me, and said, "I'll make sure they repay what they owe you a hundred times over."

…

Three months later, Northvale Base was decked out for a celebration, with a massive banner hanging across the main gate. "Base Founding Anniversary & Annual Apex Hunter Awards."

I stood on the elevated stage as an award presenter, looking out over the sea of people packed below.

Whitney emerged from the crowd below, dressed in a long black gown with her A-rank badge pinned to her chest. She gradually made her way toward the stage as she carried a composed smile, waving toward the crowd and nodding to the familiar faces.

She froze in her tracks the moment she spotted me, and the smile on her face stiffened, as if someone had slammed the pause button. She just stood on the steps, looking up at me with her mouth agape, unable to utter a single word.

In that instant, the crowd below the stage began whispering to one another.

"What happened to Whitney?"

"Who is she looking at?"

I didn't move. I just stood on the stage and watched her in silence. I watched as the color gradually drained from her face and watched as her body began to tremble. I then noticed her eyes shifting from shock to terror and finally to sheer disbelief.

I probably looked just like that when I was thrown out of the base.

It was then that the host chuckled nervously and said, "Please come up to the stage to accept your reward, Ms. Lund."

Whitney dragged her feet forward, making her way up the stairs. She came to a stop in front of me, her lips trembling slightly as she stammered, "Y-You're actually still alive?"

I didn't respond to her. I merely picked up the crystal award and held it out to her.

Whitney reached out to take it.

I kept my voice low as I said, "Congratulations on your upcoming marriage into the Base Commander's family, Whitney."

Whitney's hand froze midair. She stared at the custom combat suit I wore, the kind only S-rank ability users could have. She then said tremblingly, "Y-Your outfit—"

"You can see for yourself that it's something an S-rank ability user can wear."

Whitney went totally pale. "T-That's impossible…"

She took a step back as she stammered, "For three years, you drank that sup—"

She stopped dead mid-sentence and clamped her mouth shut, but it was already too late since the crowd below the stage had already heard what she said.

"What did he drink for three years?"

"What is Whitney talking about?"

I suddenly smiled as I looked at Whitney's current state. I waved my hand, and a translucent glow projected into midair, taking shape as a holographic screen.

In that instant, an audio recording played from the holographic screen, Whitney's voice ringing out with crisp clarity.

"Maverick has a rare constitution, so the moment he awakens, he'll definitely surpass me. Go alter his test results, and after every checkup, slip this into his water—it's an ability-suppressor. He'll never awaken for the rest of his life after drinking it for three years."