Vows of convenience Hearts in Collision のすべてのチャプター: チャプター 161 - チャプター 170

(Caelum’s POV)The rooftop was eerily quiet now. The storm had passed, leaving the city slick and glimmering beneath the moonlight. Yet the calm did nothing to ease the tension coiling in my chest. I could feel it the faint, insidious pull of danger lingering like smoke, curling around us, refusing to dissipate.Saphira stood beside me, her hand still gripping mine. Her green eyes scanned the horizon with a predator’s focus, sharp and unyielding. Even after everything, she was ready to fight again, ready to dive into whatever chaos the world threw at us. And I couldn’t help but admire that, even as the weight of responsibility pressed down on me.“That message,” I muttered, breaking the silence. “It’s no idle threat. Whoever sent it knows us. They know exactly how to push our buttons.”Saphira’s brow furrowed. “And they’ve got time on their side. They’re patient, calculating… waiting for the perfect moment.”I nodded, jaw tight. “Exactly. And we can’t wait. Not anymore. We need inform

(Caelum’s POV)The basement air was thick, heavy with tension and the metallic tang of fear. Every muscle in my body was coiled, ready to strike. The figure in front of us wasn’t human not entirely. There was a power radiating off them that made my teeth grit involuntarily.Saphira’s hand squeezed mine, grounding me. Her emerald eyes were wide, sharp, alive with defiance. “Caelum,” she whispered, her voice steady despite the tremor I felt in my chest. “We can do this. Together.”I nodded, jaw tight. “Stay close. Watch every movement.”The figure smiled, cold and calculating, stepping forward. “Impressive,” they said. “You’ve survived far more than most. But this… this is the end of the road for you.”Lucien lurked behind them, restrained but clearly frustrated, struggling against invisible restraints. I didn’t trust him, but right now, he was irrelevant compared to the threat before us.I shifted slightly, analyzing the room. The walls pulsed faintly, glowing with a strange, electric

(Saphira’s POV)The ground didn’t just crack.It screamed.Concrete split apart beneath our feet with a deafening roar, the sound ripping through my chest like a warning straight from the earth itself. Heat rushed upward from the abyss below, carrying the stench of burning wires and scorched metal.I clutched Caelum’s arm as the floor dropped another inch.“Move. Now,” he ordered, voice sharp, no room for fear.We ran.Debris rained from above, chunks of ceiling slamming into the floor behind us as the alarms blared louder, faster like the building itself was counting down our deaths. Red lights strobed violently, turning the space into a hellish blur of motion and shadows.My lungs burned. My heart felt like it was trying to escape my ribcage.The exit twenty feet away.Then the mastermind spoke again, their voice echoing calmly over the chaos.“Left corridor,” they called. “Unless you prefer the fire.”I skidded to a stop, panic slicing through me. “Caelum!”He didn’t hesitate. He y

(Saphira’s POV)The city smelled like smoke and rain.It clung to my skin as Caelum and I stood on the rooftop, staring at the damage below. Sirens wailed without urgency now too many fires, too many broken systems for anyone to pretend control still existed.Twenty-four hours.That was all we had before Phase Three.I wrapped my arms around myself, not from the cold but from the slow, creeping realization that this wasn’t just an attack on our lives. It was an attempt to reshape us.“They want to own us,” I said quietly.Caelum didn’t answer immediately. His gaze was fixed on the horizon, jaw tight, eyes burning with the kind of focus that scared even me.“They want to break us first,” he finally said. “Ownership comes after.”We didn’t go back to the penthouse. There was nothing left to return to.Instead, we took refuge in one of Caelum’s last uncompromised safe houses an unassuming concrete building tucked between warehouses near the river. No glass walls. No luxury. Just steel, s

(Saphira’s POV)The city watched me go.That was how it felt as the car rolled toward the river streetlights blinking past like unblinking eyes, skyscrapers looming in silent judgment. The unfinished high-rise rose from the fog like a skeletal hand clawing at the sky, its concrete ribs exposed, windows nothing but black mouths.I checked my phone again.No new messages.No countdown.That scared me more than the threats.“You’re late,” a voice crackled through my earpiece Caelum’s, low and controlled. “Two minutes behind schedule. Intentional?”“Yes,” I whispered, keeping my lips barely moving. “If they’re watching, I want them irritated.”A pause. Then, approval. “Good.”The car stopped.I stepped out alone.Wind whipped my hair around my face as I stared up at the building. No lights. No guards. No movement.A trap with open doors.I entered through the front lobby, heels clicking loudly against the raw concrete. The space smelled of dust and rusted steel. Plastic sheets flapped ove