HIGH FROST SPIRIT

Luke narrowed his eyes, the bright morning sun stinging them, not to mention the flashing camera lights.

The press had crowded the Nexus gate, all wanting the first scoop on Luke's seeming downfall.

"It's..." Before Luke could gather his thoughts, the questions began to flow.

"Are you really a shade?!"

"How are you feeling after disappointing the whole world?"

"Luke, why do you think you failed the contracting?"

"What will this failure mean for your financial future and living situation?"

"..."

"..."

"..."

The questions flowed like an unending torrent of rain. Luke, who would usually cut them off, was left speechless—unwilling to speak, unable to, even if he wished.

The press, which once seemed like flies buzzing around him, the honey, now felt like hornets attacking him, the bee.

"Strong when strong... strong when strong... Strong when strong... Strong when strong!!" he chanted, trying to garner strength from these words—an action that seemed to work as he felt a bit lighter, willing to talk but still with nothing to say.

What was he to say? How could he explain himself?

Now willing to talk yet unable, he started looking around, searching for his sponsors, wishing they would come to his aid as usual.

His gaze caught one of them—the one who had sponsored the most, 'Adher', a large-scale distribution company connected to some parts of the Antrum continent.

The bodyguards who would always come to his aid shifted their gaze awkwardly upon meeting his, like strangers accidentally making eye contact.

"What..." Luke felt his heart drop to his stomach. He knew something like this might happen, but not now—not this early as this was completely unprofessional.

They had to at least come to his aid and then privately ask him what went on. Why leave him here?

"Ahhh, I get it. They don't want to get any more associated with me than they already are, as their reputation might take an even harder hit than it already has..." he thought, right on the mark, as that was exactly their reasoning.

Helping him now might backfire in the future. To the company, he was a loser, and continuing to support him—even though it was unprofessional—seemed like a risk they couldn't afford.

"Hahahaha..." Unconsciously, Luke laughed, startling the bustling press.

"Has the pressure of the whole situation gotten to your head?" one of the reporters inquired politely.

"..."

"..."

Luke's current predicament seem to elevate the stress he had felt moments ago. He had been afraid of what would happen, but now it had begun. What was there left to fear?

"No, that's not it. I am as sane as ever," Luke finally spoke to the press, a sad smile on his face.

They were stunned, as tegu had never seen that look on his face before, the press keeping mute as they listened to him.

"It's just... it's ridiculous how my sponsors seem to have abandoned me so quickly," he stated with a sad chuckle.

"What makes you say that?" one of the journalists inquired.

"Well..." Luke paused, processing his next words carefully.

He was clever and knew what his response would do—it would either increase their animosity or diffuse it slightly, allowing for a smoother cutting of ties. Most would choose the latter, but he felt annoyed, frustrated that they were turning their backs on him this early in the game.

"They are ignoring me. I keep looking to them to save me, yet they turn their gazes away... Hahaha, isn't that ridiculous? I thought they would let me go more professionally, but this... this is ridiculous," he spoke with pain, trying to paint himself as the victim—something he was well-versed in, considering he had lived on the streets for so long.

"Huh, this little shit... Get him out of there now," the bald, middle-aged man commanded via the smartphone he held, sitting in the comfort of his office as he watched the broadcast.

The bodyguard quickly obeying.

He unleashed his aura, the power of his Earth Wraith, silencing the crowd. An instinctive fear washed over them, and they hastily gave way as he approached Luke, escorting him away.

"That is better, but I guess I fucked up... huh, should have taken the second option," Luke thought as he sat in the Audi—the mobile artifact—on its way to the 'Adher' head office.

***

"You have the guts to try and pull that stunt?!" Adrian, the bald, middle-aged man, roared in anger, slapping his desk in frustration. Luke sat across from him, his face nonchalant, as if he had already accepted his fate—no reason to cry over spilled milk.

"Sorry, you weren't coming to my aid. I thought that would help..." Luke said calmly. His tone, devoid of emotion, was infuriating to Adrian's ears.

"How dare you speak so callously to me?!" Adrian hissed.

"I clothed you. I fed you. I took you out of the gutters—you and those filthy rats at the orphanage!" he snapped, breaking the desk into two.

He was a shade, and the only path most took was that of an augmenter—even if not for hunting, at least as a self-protection measure, his strength far surpassing ordinary folks.

"Sorry... I know you have done all that, but you don't have to rub it in. No one asked you for that. We... 'rats' were doing fine in the gutters before you came," Luke growled.

To be honest, he didn't want this to go far as he knew he was digging his own grave, but he moved on as, no matter what, he was going to be thrown away.

"You ungrateful f*ck..." Adrian roared as he walked towards Luke. "Our contract ends here. Leave the suit, bring the keys to the Audi, your bank account is taken back—go back to the gutters..." He slapped a document in front of Ossa: the termination of their partnership.

"I guess this is the end. At least they won't take the orphanage..." He paused as he looked through the documents—the orphanage was also to be taken away from him.

"What do you mean by this? You would take the orphanage too?" he said in disbelief.

He had the confidence to be brazen only because he thought the orphanage was safe, and he would be the only one to fall—but now this.

"Yes, they belong to me..." Adrian looked down at him.

"But they were in my..." he paused remembering that he was still a minor.

" Please, don't take it... What do you want me to do? I am still strong... My mana core isn't useless, I would do anything—please just let us keep the orphanage..." Luke lost his composure as he began to beg.

He had always believed he had bought the orphanage as the papers were in his name, but it seemed that was a lie as he was still a minor, the documents in Adher's name to be given to him when he became of age at fifteen, a year from now.

This never crossed his mind, his lack of knowledge making him regret his brazen attitude earlier.

"Tch... I don't have time for this... Lucy, force him to sign it..." Adrian said to Lucy, his secretary, who had been standing there all this while, a look of boredom in her eyes.

She stepped forward, Luke looking at her, his eyes welled up with tears, trying to plead.

"You are a man... I liked you when you were being all haughty, but now what is this? You look pathetic," she sneered, a bluish-red aura emanating from her, converging to form a blood-red vampire tetra, a water spirit with the ability to control blood.

Luke felt his hands move on their own as he began to press his thumb on the ink, then on the document, signing the termination.

"Leave my office, I don't want to see your face again..." Adrian said as he took the documents, leaving Luke in a state of shock, his world coming to an end. If he was the only one going down, he would have had strength, but now his family as well.

Still dazed, he was escorted out of the building, his eyes empty as he walked on the streets, having no destination in mind, not even aware he was walking.

"Isn't that the S+ Shade..." People recognized him on the streets already, giving him a name.

He seemed to come to his senses as people gathered around him. He was now crowded, and they began to ask him questions, but he didn't answer, looking at the digital billboards that were airing the news—his apparent fall from grace, giving him the name S+ Shade, the disgrace of the century.

On the news, his sponsors, the smaller ones, were even having interviews expressing their disappointment, with some even blatantly spouting nonsense about his extravagance and lecherous life using their funds. They even decided to support the false claims of his supposed bullying.

"It hasn't even been a full day, how can this be..."

𓅂𓅂𓅂𓅂𓅂𓅂𓅂𓅂

End of volume one, ' Hero to Zero '.

Let me know your thoughts and please power stones and golden tickets if you enjoyed.

Well off to the next