Chapter 344: The Mystery of Lanterk

Lanterk felt his anger raging.

The pain he felt on his face was not blocked by any technology he had. If it wasn't for his modified body that is more resilient, he would have been rolling in agony.

The crowd was scuffling around.

Eva went and began his rant at Charm, which shocked everyone nearby.

Prince rushed and began to help Lanterk, constantly apologizing, and some of the soldiers even called the medic.

While all of that was going, Jane revealed a skin underneath the sleeves of her hand. Written on Jane's hidden skin was a simple sentence.

"Be careful with the kid with four horns. He's stronger than you." 

Lara saw the words and was petrified.

Almost immediately after showing this note, Jane also ran off to help Lanterk.

In the chaos that happened, no one noticed Jane's subtle message to Lara.

Jane used the most primitive technology to pass on the message. The timing and execution of revealing her hand to Lara were also done perfectly to hide this from being noticed by Lanterk.

"Make him pay." Jane whispered to Lara while Eva kept kicking Lanterk.

Prince, who was apologizing at first, was horrified at Eva's relentless strikes and tried to stop Eva.

Lanterk had already been kicked several times that he was thrown back, and Prince suddenly held Eva and tried to hold her back, but Eva displayed a powerful shoulder throw. 

But as Eva did this, Prince suddenly countered-attack by kicking as his feet were pulled off the ground, and in this maneuver, he managed to switch his equilibrium.

Eva then noticed it right as she was throwing Prince and suddenly added force to her throw.

"Hmph!" Prince sneered as he sent an ax kick ahead of his fall to stop him from being thrown down.

SMASH!

The foot struck on Lanterk's chest.

Prince's fell off balance as she pushed Eva away. The presence of a body that caught his planned landing caused him to stumble backward.

Jane Moore's body emitted a strange red heat as she ran towards the two and delivered a powerful punch.

Both were caught off guard and decided to block the attack.

BOOM!

Two fiery burns exploded out on the area where Jane's fist connected.

The blow sent the two flying towards the edge of the room.

"You idiots!" Jane shouted angrily. Her entire body continued to emit a strange heat, and even her eyes grew dark.

She was about to help the poor Lanterk, but then the sight she saw around her completely changed.

She didn't know where she stood, but she could see the faint image of the submarine she was in. But she could also see the sea and the stars of the universe around her. Space felt like it was twisted, and she could sense something gazing at her direction.

She was confused, but she stood her ground and tried to clear her mind fearing that this was a Presider's mind attack.

It was then that she could make out four strange beings looking at her from a great distance.

"That was too much!" Jane hurriedly shouted. She didn't know whether or not she could be heard, but she shouted the code that would alert and instruct the rest to everyone from continuing with the plan.

Suddenly, the vision ended. She could seek Lanterk standing up, and she knew that he was the source of that vision. She looked around and noticed that none of the Unlocked had any expressions or reactions to what they saw. They Unlocked, however, did not continue with their planned harassment towards Alexander because they heard Jean's cry. Jean tried to remain expressionless, but the sight of what she saw had made her heartbeat and her body weak. 

"The side-effects of my power is acting up again. If either that student or that soldier moves, kill them!" Jane began to make up excuses to hide her fearful trembling.

Since the attacks had stopped, the boy they had beaten up slowly stood up and stunned everyone.

Lanterk's expression was dark and angry.

Despite the consecutive attacks, he had no wounds, and there wasn't even any drop of blood leaking out of his mouth, and the anger in his eyes could clearly be seen.

And as his anger rise, what he didn't know was that Zeraphine was looking at him with even greater anger.

It had already happened once. Zeraphine had willingly sent her body in a state where she could have died without knowing it. As such, her caution towards her enemies had grown another level. But who would have thought that despite her preparations, she failed to estimate the power of this Presider?

The key was in the phrase that Jean said. What the Unlock didn't know that one of the strongest families in the Aragarian world had a symbol of a goat with four horns.

"He's part of that family? He isn't just a disciple, then... Who or what exactly is Lanterk?" Zeraphine began to make guesses from all the Presiders she knew and even considered the Principals.

"Still... If this brat wants to hide his power, then I'll make keep hiding his powers and abuse him!" 

Lanterk was so angry that his entire body was secretly releasing certain energy.

But right before he could make any move, Lara walked near him.

"The Frost and the Pridgeon are free! So calm down!" Lara berated as she slapped her right in the face.

SLAP!

The slap echoed across the room and created a light shock wave.

The soldiers, the families, and everyone else reached out for their weapons in fear of what Lara showed.

Even Charm's mouth was wide open.

"Enough. I am the Progenitor, and I will not allow any such fighting inside my sub. Rest assured, I will bring you all to the Trading Hub as long as you all behave."

The voice had a strange distortion as if both a man and a woman were talking together.

The sudden voice startled the group.

"Any more fighting, and I will personally destroy this submarine of yours and wipe out any presiding entity. Tests my patience again, and it will be the end of you." The voice ordered.

The room was suddenly quiet.

Eva was the first to react. She stood up and wiped the burnt skin at her side.

She slowly walked before Charm.

"I will get Cliff, even if I have to take him from you and your measly family." Eva threatened as she left.

The group was shocked.

"Efren, please report to Gardo and to General Harker that the Diamons are not being perfectly honest to us. It seems that Young Master Alexander Diamon is... quite alright after that attack. Young Mistress Diamon, we expect all possible techs to be given to General Harker. After all, such secrets about hiding a family line and such impressive physical modifications will greatly aid us in the coming wars against these Lost Primordials." Jane smiled.

Lara's expression gradually changed.

"I'll give my full reports to him about this matter."

"Good! We can't wait to have such techs in our possession!" Jane Moore smiled.

"Not mine. His techs."

Lara turned to Lanterk.

Lanterk's angry yet childish expression remained.

"Why did you slap me? And what do you mean my-"

SLAP!

The slap resounded and even created a powerful force that sent Alexander spinning several times in mid-air before crash landing on one of the tables.

Most in the room were horrified at such a powerful strike. Even Charm was stunned at the sudden strength that Lara displayed.

Alexander's mouth was bleeding. The previous attacks caused by Eva and Prince did very little damage, but this once caused Alexander to lose a few teeth.

But even before he could react, Lara picked her up.

"You heard that? They are watching! That's why!" Lara whispered quietly before throwing Alexander to the ground.

"Alexander's real name is Alexander Lanterk. He is from one of the Underwater cities that has been a secret backer of the Diamons. He will also give you the techs needed. I have been honest with Harker. That technology is not mine. This one, however, is..." Lara revealed.

"Instant creation of Kinetic energy. This was supposed to be my gift to General Harker. This allows simple soldiers to make powerful attacks with very limited techs. If combined with your technology, it should increase the power of the attacks that your family can create. As for Lanterk's family, he will grant you a new molecular firmness in molecules and make humans bulletproof. Alexander is the main family, and he will grant you not just this, but all that he has." Lara suddenly declared.

"Let's go, Alexander. I will be in my room!" Lara began to move ahead.

Lanterk had a hideous expression. Not only did he get embarrassed and brutally attacked, but he would have to offer these humans a foundational framework for body-enhancing science because of Lara. But as Lara also offered one of her techs, Lanterk decided to wait and hear what Lara knows.

As the group slowly were dismissed into their rooms and as some remained situated in the evacuation chamber, Lynd and Cliff also disconnected from viewing the video feed.

"Jane's expression turned to great fear. It seems that kid was about to use one of his techs and ordered the mission to stop. But this doesn't make sense... Why was she the only one to have felt it?" Lynd mused.

"Maybe she was the only one able to sense it! She has the potential of a Ranked Hero after all."

"That's it! She was the only one able to see it! We have to tell Seeker about it!"

"Why?"

"Didn't you see where Jane was looking right before she gave the code to stop the mission?"

"She looked all around the place."

"Right. It was as if she was brought elsewhere. Or rather, she saw something. It has to be related to her Path. Perhaps we finally have it! The constant experiments we're making are bearing fruit. Project Sight is working! We may soon have the means to see in the beyond dimensions!"

"But how?"

"That's the scary part! It has to do with that boy Alexander Lanterk! He must have a tech that far exceeds everything we know! He could be related or associated to a Principal!"

"What do we do?"

"We wait and see. That Zeraphine may have a plan. Let's observe for now. It'll be up to the spies to attempt listening to them. It's about time we find out whether our team is capable of spying on Presiders."

"This is too early. Those soldiers are unprepared. They weren't expecting such dangerous missions!"

"This is exactly why it's the perfect time to send them off! These spies are the most different kinds of soldiers we are creating. They don't just fight but have an even more difficult role. They don't need power but cunning. Their success could easily mean our victory. But if they all fail, death is their only hope. They could be killed, or we could abandon them to their deaths with the easy excuse of the Progenitor to redirect attention from us. Besides, with everything Lara and Alexander showed, the spies now have the perfect excuse to spy on those two! Its kind of expected that the other families will either spy on them or try to make a connection with them! If those three get caught spying, they might not necessarily be killed! Jane will get protected by Zeraphine. That Alexander probably thinks that Prince may be working for the Progenitor." 

"How? Prince never got the chance to initiate his plan into giving that fake report by calling the number."

"The knee strike and the ax kick. Those were obvious hints anyway. But this is part of their training. They couldn't complete their plans. Prince's actions were crucial. The question now, is how do they carry on?"